RACING Lochgair Will Have Backing In North

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29250, 7 July 1960, Page 4

RACING Lochgair Will Have Backing In North

“TM Press" Special Service AUCKLAND, July 6. Horses from Auckland and the Waikato have a habit of winning the best prizes on offer at Trentham, and the indications are that they will run prominently on the first day of the Wellington Racing Club’s winter meeting on Saturday. In the main events they are again at great strength. When acceptances for the first day were taken last Wednesday seven of the 12 candidates for the £3250 Wellington Steeplechase were from Auckland or Waikato stables.

In the main flat race, the Whyte Handicap, they numbered eight out of 28. In the Trentham Hurdles, of £1250, they made just one less than half the field of 10, and there was a good sprinkling throughout the races of less importance.

Lochgair will carry strong northern hopes in the Wellington Steeplechase. He is a horse of considerable c’ass. He is nicely placed as well with 10-0 and is now one of the cleverest jumpers over steeplechasing country. The other candidates from Waikato are Break Away, Nupla. Peter Keith and Valleydale.

Nupla’s chance will very likely be the best ,and if anything happens to Lochgair in the three miles and three furlongs which have to be covered, his prospects might be very good indeed. Nupla has been successful twice over light country. He is a Great Northern Hurdles winner (1959) besides. So alongside Breakaway, Peter Keith and Valleydale he seems well placed. Nupla is a rugged little gelding He looked a great deal better than average when he beat half a dozen opponents hands down in the Windsor Hurdles at Avondale last week. That was over 15 furlongs. Last year Nupla failed in both the Matai Steeplechase, two miles and a half (second day), and the Riddiford Steeplechase, three miles (third day) at Trentham, but he had been tested pretty severely at the Great Northern

meeting not long before. It seems very likely that he went south a trifle below his best. In the Windsor Hurdles Nupla jumped smartly and outran the pacemaker. Contract, impressively when it came to the run from the last fence. Form Runners Being right in form. The Chief and Airephelia. from Takanini, Phoenician and Black Lad (Matamata). On Demand (Te Rapa), and Gold Sign (Whangarei) have already a big northern following for the first leg of the double, the Whyte Handicap. They like the wet, so if the going is as heavy as it can be at Trentham in July they are not likely to be much inconvenienced.

On Demand, Otara and Airephelia started on their way south two or three weeks ago and they have raced well meanwhile in the middle districts of the North Island. The last time The Chief started was on June 11 in the York Handicap. run over the distance of the Whyte Handicap, a mile. Black Lad won, and Phoenician was another which competed. The Chief came second, being beaten in the last stride, and Phoenician was fourth.

In the meantime Black Lad finished third out of his distance in a mile and a quarter and 110 yards at Tauranga on June 25, and Phoenician ran second behind Climbing in the President’s Handicap, seven furlongs, at Avondale last Saturday. This time Black Lad has 8-3, 71b more than he carried in the York Handicap. The Chief is up 11b to 8-4, and Phoenician has one pound less, making 8-8. t The figures favour The Chief, and the chances are he will be hard to beat. What has been noticeable about The Chief during the last month or so is the manner in which he has kept his condition. This time last year, and during the summer, when he ran with moderate success, he was very spare, but when he left last week-end for the south he looked robust and solid.

The Chief is nicely positioned at the start with No. 7, and Phoenician is not badly off with No. 14, which is the middle. On the other hand. Black Lad has No. 28.

Phoenician performed well in the President’s Handicap and had he stayed right on the inside he might have kept Clmbing out Last year, with 41b less than he has this time, he finished sixth in the Whyte Handicap. Perhaps racing last week-end improved Phoenician a little. If it did he might take a hand in the finish on Saturday. He is bound to run prominently in any case because he has the speed of most winter sprinters. No Rehandicap Climbing, a four-year-old stablemate of Nupla in H. P. Long’s stable, escaped being rehandicapped for the Stewards’ Handicap, the second leg on Saturday, as he might have been for his success in the £9OO President’s Handicap at Avondale. Consequently he has 8-0, which is the bottom of the handicap, and the weight he won with last Saturday. Altogether, Climbing has had five wins from his last 11 starts, showing himself to be consistent and good over the sprint courses. With 8-12, the Takanini four-year-old Firenze is badly placed to beat him, and so is Beauzami. a Whangarei gelding with 8-1. Only a determined finish by Fend kept Gold Kip from being successful last time in the Campbell Hurdles, two miles, at Ellerslie on June 11. With two furlongs less to run it might take an even better performance to beat him this week in the Trentham Hurdles, and if the ground is not too bad he will be a bright prospect. Had he kept closer to the inside, Gold Kip might have beaten Fend in the Campbell Hurdles. As it was, his rider kept him to the middle of the track and consequently had his mount running over much extra ground. Since he showed fine hurdling form in the hack class at Trentham last winter. Gold Kip has raced only twice over jumps. His only other attempt besides the Campbell Hurdles was when he finished third behind Count D’Azure and Lord Pilate in the Remuera Hurdles, two miles, at Ellerslie. Big Chief was a bright star at the Great Northern meeting, with three wins over hurdles in the hack class. He looked well when running on the flat at Avondale last week, and there will be keen interest in his training work at Trentham during the next few days. If he acquits himself well he is bound to attract a big northern following for the Trentham Hurdles and the Winter Hurdles, for which he has been entered on Saturday week.