TROTTING.

Auckland Star, Issue 38, 14 February 1929, Page 14

TROTTING.

REMINDERS TO OWNERS,

WHEEL AND TRACK NOTES. SEASON'S FIXTURES. (By ORION.) February 16 —Wellington T.C. February 23—Kaikoura T.C. Annual. February 2a, 27—Otaliuhu T.C. February 27, 2S—lnvercargill T.C. March I—Marlboror.gh T.C. Annual. March 2—Waikato T.C. March "J —Timaru T.C. March 13—Wyndham T.C. # March 13—Manawatu T.C. March 10—New Brighton T.C. March 2:>—Thames T.C. March 30—Takaka T.C. March 30, April I—Hawera T.C. March 30, April '3—N.Z. Metropolitan T.C. April 6 —Tarauakl T.C. J. Shaw lias taken Jackie Audubon to the Wellington meeting. The son of Great Audubon has been racing lather disappointingly, but it can be assumed that his trainer feels the horse will do much better this week, otherwise he would not be at Wellington. Matters are still very quiet at Epsom, and witli J. Shaw, C. G. Lee, aiul H. Kinnaniont away at Wellington things will be even more quiet than usual. However, after Saturday's trotting at the Hutt a number of Southern horses will be brought on to Auckland for the Otahuliu meeting, and next week should see some interesting work at headquarters. H. Kinnamont has taken the aged trotter Xapland south to race at the Wellington meeting on Saturday. Last season Xapland failed to get in the money in any of his starts, but this season in four starts he finished second on one occasion. This was when he was beaten by Tiger Salve in the Association Trot at the Auckland T»otting Club's summer fixture. Xapland in the past has been anything but a solid trotter in his races, and invariably has broken up i badly. Something of a sensation was caused at the Light Hours Day meeting at Launceston recently when Home Voyage, who was regarded as having a mortgage on the principal event, had to be withdrawn owing to the suspension from riding for a month of the crack Tasmanian rider of straight-out trotters, J. Moriarty, who, during the progress of the first race of the day, was alleged to have shouted a remark to the rider of another competitor, which was overheard by the stipendiary steward. The Epsom trainer, C. G. Lee, does not often travel far away from home, but this week-end he will be at Wellington with Tiger Salve and Xelson Dillon. Both are decidedly useful, and liable to pick up the money at any time. Tiger Salve is one of the very few trotters who does not make mistakes in a race, and on firm tracks he is a hard horse to dispose of. Xelson Dillon has yet to win a race for his owner-trainer, but he showed pace at the Waikato meeting in December, and a repetition of that run should make him a possibility on Saturday. Richore, at one time recognised as one of the most promising young horses in commission, has been a long time redeeming the early promise he gave when he won the New Zealand Sapling Stakes in 1926, for his win in the Appleby Handicap at Xelson marked his first victory since then. Kichore, by Key de Oro —Lady Superior, is a half-brother to Cardinal Logan (says the "Press"), and was handled for his earliest races by R. W. Franks. Later he joined W. J. Tomkinson's staole, but he showed no form, after which Franks again secured him. Eventually he was purchased by Mr. J. R. Corrigan, whose proverbial luck seems to be sticking to him.

The Taspianian Trotting Derby, at Launceston recently, produced the most impressive lot of three-year-olds, as a whole, that have contested the event, an even-looking field of 10 going to the post. The race has now become thoroughly established and its introduction is fully justified. By reason of his having had a good d'al of experience in races about country tracks, where he had shown promising speed, the Lord Ribbonwood colt, Master Ribbonwood, was favourite, and, pacing evenly, he and the Southern filly, Maisie Wobd, had the race mostly to themselves, quite a number of others losing their chance by slow beginnings or by being unable to go the early pace. The winner averaged 2.29 2-5. Only seven have been accepted for in the Champion Handicap at Wellington on Saturday, and if recent form is taken into consideration the field is not particularly good, but as the distance to be travelled is one mile and a-half that may bring about a good contest. Jean MeElwyn is not the best of stayers, and Epigram has to prove he can go the distance in good company. Jackie Audubon lias been racing below form, and Padlock, although be went a good race at the last Wellington fixture, has not been a success this season. Logan Chief is another whose latest efforts have not been encouraging. Logan Park, on the other hand, has been racing well, and if Ahuriri is right he must have a royal chance.

THE FLYING START

One of the big problems to be faced in America is an improvement in the starting methods adopted there, and trotting exchanges at present are devoting a lot of space in an effort to devise some system that will give universal satisfaction. The present system of scoring starts has not met with success, and the false starts and long delays that occur before many races do not tend to increase public interest. For many years New Zealand adopted the seconds system of starting with a flying start, but this method proved quite unsatisfactory, and the flat-footed start, as now in vogue, is voted the fairest way for all concerned. At first it was thought that trainers would have some difficulty in getting their horses to stand flat-footed, but results have proved that it is quite possible, and it seems that if the Americans adopted our system there would be a deal more satisfaction, even if such fast times were not registered as is the ease at present. A writer in the New York paper, "The Trotter and Pacer," comments on the position as follows: —"The best system we can hope for is to have honest and able starting judges. Owing to the fact that the flying start has become an integral part of the trotting sport, it is unlikely that any purely mechanical method of starting will .ever supplant the judgment of the human starter on harness tracks. Nevertheless, those who are interested in popularising our sport realise that one of the problems that crop up constantly is how to lessen scoring delays. There are times when we are tempted to believe that there are no good starting judges, but the more thought one expends upon it,

the clearer it becomes that this is not tlie fault of the men who say 'Go,' theiu- ' selves. It is the fault of the lax tradition we have allowed to grow up around scoring, the bad habits among drivers that have been tacitly encouraged, and the low standards of professional accuracy that have been developed. Just so long as starting judges scramble for jobs, try the impossible task of endeavouring to please public, drivers, owners and track management alike, and allow themselves to be drawn into track politics, we will have poor starting. The fellow that tries to please everybody generally ends up by pleasing no one, and anybody who attends many race meetings constantly sees the pathetic truth of this in regard to starting judges. More than once we have heard a starter cursed by the drivers for being too severe, by the spectators for being too lax, and by the management for general inefficiency all at the same time and for the same actions. The only way, as the veriest political tyro knows, to get really honest government is to elect to oflice honest men with sufficient authority and 110 strings tied to them; the only' way to get honest racing is to place competent men in starting positions, with 110 one to please but the rule book and the public. Perhaps a system of assigning starters to member tracks by parent bodies is too arbitrary to succeed in our easy-going sport, but it may become necessary if present conditions do not improve. A system which linds none of the three main parties to a race meeting —the owners and drivers, the public, and the track management— really satisfied must be capable jf improvement."

Owners who have lioraes in training will have to pay attention to two trotting meetings to-morrow. At 5 p.m. acceptances for the first day's programme of the Otahuhu Trotting Club's meeting close with the secretary, Mr. R. L. Absolum, and also at 5 p.m. nominations for the Waikato Trotting Club's autumn meeting close with either the secretary, Mr. T. G. Reynolds, Hamilton, or with Mr. A. G. Mabee, secretary of the Auckland Trotting Club.