RACING AND TROTTING

Press, Volume LXX, Issue 21296, 16 October 1934, Page 14

RACING AND TROTTING

LATEST NEWS FROM FAR AND NEAR

RACING FIXTURES

October 16—Auckland R.C. (second

October 20, 2?— Wellington R.C. October 22. 23—Gore R.C. October 22—Waverley R.C. October 22—Waikato R.C. October 22—Waipawa C. R.C. October 22—North Canterbury R.C. October 25, 27—Poverty Bay T.C. October 27—Banks Peninsula R.C. November 3, s—Avondale5 —Avondale J.C. November 3, 5. 7, 10— Canterbury J.C. November 8, 10— Whangarei R.C. November 10—Hawke's Bay J.C. November 17—Carterton R.C. November 17, 19—Waikato R.C. November 24 Levin R.C. November 24. 26—Takapuna J.C. November SO, December I—Feilding

J.C. November "0. December I—Winton .I.C.

TROTTING FIXTURES

October 20, 22—Auckland T.C. October 20, 22—Greymouth T.C. October 22—Oamaru T.C. October 22—Manawatu T.C. 'October 27—Wellington T.C. November 6, 8, 9 —New Zealand Metropolitan T.C. November 22, 24—Forbury Park T.C. November 30 and December 2—Nelson T.C.

TURF GOSSIP j l Reminders General entries for the Canterbury »Jockey Club's metropolitan meeting Avill close at 8 p.m. on Friday. An acceptance for the Stewards' Handicap, ; s. further payment for the New Zealand .Cup, and first forfeits for the Welcome 'Stakes, Derby, and Oaks Stakes will tie taken at the same time. Acceptances for the North Canter- ; 'bury Racing Club's annual Labour Day janeeting will close at 8 p.m. to- \ anorrow. Corrected Weight Cheap Money's correct weight in Ihe Oxford Hack Handicap at Rangi'dra is 8-6. Winning Juveniles Galilee, winner of the Welcome , Stakes at Ellerslie on Saturday, is a !-/chestnut filly by Chief Ruler from jfLady Bede, an English-bred mare by >Adam Bede from Lady William, by Rufus, and was bred by her ' liuwner, Mr E. H. Cucksey, for whom i'ehe is trained by A. Cook at Te Awa--Criiitu. This was Galilee's second win, 'slier previous victory being on the .jisecond day of the recent Taumarunui 'sheeting, when she beat Gay Sheik, !j{(third in Saturday's race. Before the ;jss!£uckland classic, the position in reij%ard to two-year-old form was rather JVjbscure, but Galilee can now claim ■i'-tb b.e the best so far seen out in the 'Srjorth this season. Legatee won in |.sne style at Wanganui, defeating ;]JS,evere, who had beaten Symcony at jfMarton. Then Symcony decisively j@efeated Legatee at Foxton, and was Ighimself beaten by Galilee at Ellerslie. ■jjr-CFay Sheik was beaten by Symcony Ijjjat Marton and then won at TaumarukfiW, but on the second day he failed mo concede 171b to Galilee. Kotou, a jjfNigtit Raid Ally, won attractively at BgSaper, but was not placed at Ellers3!l|g.oh Saturday. Galilee, Legatee, and 3s3|ver£ are acceptors for the WellesjKKjy Stakes at Trentham on Saturday, *apl the first-named will again be ridden by L. J. Ellis. % at Riccarton , The Canterbury Jockey Club is having a subsidiary totalisator building Keijgcted at Riccarton to relieve the con?sgeskbh at the main totalisator house. >Ten shilling tickets will be sold from ythis building, which will be situated ■ ■."in a convenient position, and there ,£\gill thus be more accommodation for tickets and for one pound place Vtickets at the main building. It is ftexpected that a Julius totalisator will Jsrjg installed early next year, and when the present apparatus will rt)*e disposed of to other clubs. Big Insurance The English Derby and St. Leger .--?iv.mner. Windsor Lad, is insured for 5"£:5p;000, the amount Mr M. Benson paid for him. A High Price At the bloodstock sales in Dublin a last month the steeplechaser. Reviewer, *a six-year-old gelding by King David |"from Reunited, realised 3000 guineas. \He was bought for England. Worth Trying Silver Scorn is not to do any fur- - ther racing this spring, says a Sydney Spaper. F. T. Cush had her looking t'ell, but she showed so little form i her recent races that temporarily fthere seemed little use persevering tf-wi'th her. Up to the present she has not ©been a profitable purchase, and in fSydney has done nothing to uphold Sth'e belief of many New Zealanders f that she was better than Desert Gold. Perhaps change of climate may, in a be responsible for her disform—though against that fshe has galloped well in private—and, pn the way of an experiment, it might jsriot be a bad idea to send her back to jptfew Zealand to have her prepared y-ior'autumn racing in Australia. HiNiot For Light-weights Silver Ring is the eighth horse in Klhe last 18 years to win the Epsom ©Handicap with over 9-0, the others Sbieiog Rebus, Wolaroi, Greenstead, |Beau"ford, Amounis, Nightmarch, and During that period the lowest weight carried by any winner was k,7-l-2 by Cathmar, all others, in addition to those mentioned, having over 8-0. It would therefore seem little use \ xor backers to go below 8-0 in trying I'lor the winner of an Epsom. This t year's field was somewhat remarkcable in that, of the 20 runners, only teix had less than 8-2, and only two £ dropped below 7-10. Of the 18 Don- ? caster winners, three had over 9-0, fand two scored with less than 7-0— ! Hem and Jacko. Debatable Point A well-known veterinary surgeon i recently expressed the opinion that, if Nt were possible to resurrect Carbine, place him as a four-year-old in -« present-day environment, he would make our champions look cheap. Carbine was a great horse in his day, but if it were possible to bring him back in opposition to the best o'f the present day, it is probable, if he could speak, he would say, "Times have changed." Surprise Action The acquiescence of the Victoria Racing Club to the broadcasting of prices and totalisator dividends immediately after a race is run came as a surprise to the majority of goers. The Australian Broadcasting Commission has for some time been seek-

ing permission to broadcast the starring prices of the three placed horses the favourite (if unplaced), and the totalisator dividends; but all the leading race clubs were unanimous that this would not be in the best interests of racing. The Victoria Racing Club chairman (Mr L. K. S. Mackinnon) was very definite in his opinion, having held that the broadcasting of prices, which would necessarly be offlcal, would encourage starting-price betting, and as people would be able to bet away from the course, there would be a resultant falling off in attendances at the various courses. Not a Lucky Day Senior saved G. Price from having a very disappointing day on the first day of the recent Randwick meeting. He expected Whittingham and Blixten to do well in the Epsom, but neither showed near the front. Gladswood, too, completely upset his calculations by dropping back'last approaching the six furlongs in the Derby. On track form it seemed improbable that lack of dash would be Gladswood's trouble in the race, no matter how he fared in respect of stamina. To wind up with, Sir John was solidlv backed for the second division of the Kensington Handicap, and did not gain a place.

Expensive Defeat The defeat of Radiant Star in th.3 Ailsa Handicap at Moonee Valley on September 29 was very unpalatable to punters, as the Hunting Song colt appeared to have a mortgage on the race, and the betting indicated the same thing. Rarely does Frank Dempsey ride an indifferent race, but he certainly was not seen to the best advantage on Radiant Star. Always well placed he was gallopig so well within himself three furlongs from home, that he looked as if he could gather the leaders, Queen of« the Air, Angelo, and Dedda, in at his ease. In a flash Radiant Star, who was outside two horses at that point, ducked in on the rails, and was pocketed, with the result that when they rounded the home turn Pnnce Conceit and Epigram had taken the lead and Dempsey was forced to come on the outside--Epigram streaked away from Prince Conceit to open up a winning break, and when Dempsey got clear and rode the colt the race was all over. Radiant Star fairly flew over the last 100 yards to beat Prince Conceit out of second money, and there is no doubt that had the race been another 50 yards he would have won. Back From Australia The Monowai, which arrived at Wellington from Sydney yesterday, brought back seven New Zealand horses that have been racing there recently. C. Emerson returned with Marcus Cicero and Bine Ra. A. E. Neale with Diatomous. and Ebb Simpson with Autopay, while F. D. Jones sent back The Masquerader, Custodian, and Abdication. The five Riccarton horses will arrive from the North Island by the Rangatira this morning. Autopay did well on the trip, and he will fulfil an engagement in the sprint race at Trentham on Saturday. No rider has been engaged, but it is probable that either A. E Ellis or D. O'Connor will be approached. Cyclonic, who is engaged on Saturday in the Wainui Bandicap, is also in the October Hack Handicap, and will start in the hack event.

TROTTING NOTES Reminders A payment of 5 sovs for the New Zealand Cup will fall due to-morrow at 12 noon. Nominations for the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club's spring meeting will close on Thursday. Acceptances for the Greymouth Trotting Club's-meeting will close today. Train Arrangements Arrangements made by the Railway Department for the Oamaru Trotting Club's Labour Day meeting include a special horse train, leaving Christchurch at 5.0 a.m. on Monday, October 22, and arriving at Oamaru at 10.17 a.m. This train will stop opposite the Oamaru racecourse to permit horses being unloaded. Addington, Sockburn, Templeton, Rolleston, Ashburton, Hinds, and Orari will also be stopping places, and the train will have car accommodation for horse attendants. A special passenger train for passengers will leave Christchurch at 7.6 a.m. on Monday, arriving at Oamaru at 11.40 a.m., in time for the first race, which commences at 12.5 p.m. The return train will leave Oamaru at 6.30 p.m., arriving at Christchurch at 11.25 p.m. Engaged at Greymouth Black Shadow, engaged at Greymouth on Saturday and Monday next, is an aged mare by a Sungod colt— Coldstream Bells mare. She is trained by L. A. Maidens, and won the Intermediate Handicap at Greymouth in July. On a heavy track she paced a mile and a quarter in 2min 53sec from a 3min 3sec mark. Parette, trained at Addington by J. Young, will be well suited by the small Greymouth track. A quick beginner, she should be in a good position from the start in whichever race she starts in.

Agility, the three-year-old in G. S. Smith's care, claims engagements ar Greymouth, and he should give a good .account of himself in the Blaketown Handicap of a mile and a quarter. He has several smart ones against him, however, the number including Grace McElwyn. At one stage, Bingen Palm looked like developing into a star performer, and it is reported that several tempting offers for him were refused. Last season he won four races besides filling minor places on several occasions. He is far removed from good class at present, and now six years old, he should soon be too good to keep on the West Coast, where good class racing is hardly known. Bingen Palm is a full-brother to Olive Palm, and several Canterbury trainers would be willing to give him a trial. Lone Derby and Agile, trained at Addington, look to be the best of the Addington-trained horses engaged at Greymouth. Both arc improving, and have several smart performances to their credit. At the Methven meeting Lone Derby, after making all the race, failed only in the last furlong, being beaten by Dollie Derby, who registered 3min 44 3-ssec for a mile and five furlongs from a 3mm 52sec mark. Both Louc Derby and Agile are engaged in the Mawhera Handicap, a race in which they may be thoro'ughly tested by Blandford and Young Travis.

Red Ranger The three-year-old, Red Ranger, will make his first appearance in public when he contests the New Zealand Derby next month. By Native King—"Waitnki Girl, he is said to be an exceptionally good pacer. Most of those opposed to him will have had considerable racing experience, and so will be at an advanifigc over Bryce's three-year-old. A Doubtful Quantity Nimbus, who registered a numbei of very in-and-out )K>rformances when trained by M. B. Edwaras, hay been pleasing track-watchers In Auckland

of late, but too much notice need not be taken of'the gelding's displays on the training tracks. Nimbus has invariably raced best in front of his field and few horses nowadays are capable of setting a strong pace and stalling off challenges at the finish. No matter how fast or how slow the pace, the horse tucked in behind will always have the advantage, and not only does this apply in trotting and pacing races. It applies in most forms of athletics in which fast bursts of speed are required. In athletics the pacemaker seldom wins, in cycleracing it is suicide for a rider to attempt to make the pace from end to end of a race, and in football the man coming from behind will often overtake the reputedly fastest men the football field knows. In trotting at one time a horse that was first out was usually first home, and on the American galloping tracks to-day it is a question of get in front at the start and stay there. The great old American trainer, Ed. Geers, was the first man in America to adopt the art of trailing, and before the youngci drivers appreciated his methods lie had won many races. On New Zealand courses Free Holmes set the other drivers an example. He realised that there was only one winning post, and it did not count if one horse led for seven furlongs out of the eight and did not hold that lead to the winning post. He won many races by allowing other drivers to hold the lead until the last hundred yards, when with one burst he would take the honours. Since Free Holmes showed the great advantages of trailing a number of drivers have copied his methods, none more thoroughly than his sons, F. G. and M. Holmes, both amongst the best horsemen in New Zealand, and able to handle any kind of pacer or trotter. C. King, J. Fraser, junr., C. S. Donald, R. B. Berry, M. C. McTigue, J. Brycc, and G. McKendry are drivers who prefer others to make the pace, for them to reap the benefit. While Nimbus may prove a great track worker his form on race day is not likely to be so encouraging. M. B. Edwards gave him a proper try-out and several times he was found wanting.

Handicapping System When the handicapping system was first introduced to trotting m New Zealand it had a number of very vigorous opponents, and one club went so far as to issue a circular condemning wholesale the introduction of anything pertaining to fixed penalties. The club in question prophesied the elimination of all country trotting clubs, and emphasised the hardship it would bring on owners. A number of owners and trainers were bitterly opposed to the new order of things, but subsequent happenings showed that the objecting owners and trainers were considering the position of the horses they were interested in and not in the sport of trotting. The Owners' and Breeders' Association, however, gave the system of handicapping its wholehearted support, and there was no keener advocate than W. J. Tomkinson, who had had a more varied experience than the majority. .Tomkinson was very broadminded on matters affecting the sport, and in his travels from one meeting to another he never failed to advocate the handicapping system. Recently the system was introduced in New South Wales, and while the first meeting under it showed much better racing and faster times, and a greater interest being displayed by the public, it is not surprising, perhaps, to find a section of the trainers voicing a protest against the new idea. The following is taken from the Sydney "Referee" of October 4:—"At a meeting of owners and trainers held in the Railway and Tramway Institute, Sydney, a resolution was passed objecting to the new system of handicapping pacers and trotters adopted by the New South Wales Trotting Club. It was decided to write to the controlling body and forward the motion passed by the meeting condemning the New Zealand method, as copied by those in authority in this state, and at the same time requesting an immediate return to the old system—with modifications. The owners and trainers appear to be In a hurry to condemn something about the practical benefits of which few of them are as yet in a position to judge. Reforms are not welcomed by the average trotting man. He seems to regard any departure from custom with suspicion, especially if it is something that is not easily understood. The attitude adopted by a portion of the Sydney owners and trainers in passing such a resolution is hard to understand. With the exception of a few, the men present were openly asking for information about the new system. and quite a number of them confessed their ignorance of it in theory or practice. In spite of this they voted against it, and such an action can only be regarded as being prompted by prejudice and not by knowledge. It is unwise to condemn anything before understanding and testing it. So the New South Wales Trotting Club will doubtless remain unmoved by the hastily conceived and ill-advised action of some (not all) of the Sydney owners and trainers. The New South Wales Trotting Club is definitely committed to the new system, and it intends to give it a fair trial. The fact that the meeting in question decided to add the words —with modifications—to their request for a return to the old system shows clearly that they admit the old system has definite faults. The action of the men may not influence the New South Wales Trotting Club's decision, but it may hamper the smooth working of the system, and it is to be hoped that in their own interests trotting men will not add to the difficulties the inauguration of ,aoy new scheme presents."