RACING Only Two Riccarton Horses At Wingatui

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30143, 29 May 1963, Page 4

RACING Only Two Riccarton Horses At Wingatui

Direct Riccarton interest in the programme for the first : day of the Dunedin winter meeting will begin and end with the ! first race, the Trial Stakes. Royal Duke and Flashest, both Trial Stakes acceptors, will be Riccarton’s only representatives for the day.

It must be a long time since Riccarton • has had weaker representation on the opening ; day of a Dunedin winter meeting, but it seems : to be a case of cutting the coat according to » the cloth.

Riccarton has few horses ef much ability reedy for early winter racing, and this was evident st Waimete last week when the local centre had only one winner, Bridie OCal’y • It was intended to take .Bridie O’Cally to Wingatui. ■but she demaged ligaments in a foreleg in her brilliant winning gallop o<n Saturday, and has had to be eased. She is trained by P. H. 'Jones, who also prepares Royal Duke. N. Eastwood will ride Royal Duke on Saturday. This Royal Commission gelding resumed after a long, enforced speU ait Riccarton at Easter Earlier he had shown partiality for easy and soft tracks, but he was tangled by the going at the C J.C. autumn meeting and ran only fair races. It could be different at Wingatui if the ground is knee Flashest, Riccarton s other runner in the Trial Stakes, will be ridden by D N Hadfield. The Riccarton trainer, G. S Barr, started this Jimmy Flash

filly on her racing career at Waimate where she showed some speed to finish about the middle after a slow start. Thinly Spread South Canterbury will have a stronger interest in the first - day programme at Wingatui. There are 18 South Canterbury horses in the fields but they are thinly spread over the major races with only Rhythm Rein to the Birthday Handicap. Napoleon Bonaparte in the Otago Steeplechase. and Gold View and Tutton in the Winter Handicap

In his present form, Tutton looks one of Canterbury’s brightest hopes. This Wadmate-owned and trained gelding easily beat the other open sprinters on his toir.e course last Saturday.

Rhythm Rein has seldom raced badly on winter tracks at Wmgqjui and was second to Desert Chief in the Birthday Handicap last year Napoleon Bonaparte suc-

cessfuHy mixed bundling and steeplechasing as a five-year-old two seasons ago, and he won over hurdles at Wingatui last season shortly before he went wrong. He ran an encouraging fourth against the hurdlers at Waimate last Saturday. The Washdyke trainer, B T. Jones, prepares both Mainroyal and Surhine, the only Canterbury jumpers in the hack steeplechase at Wingatui on Saturday. Maimroyal looks the better of the two. and will have a fallowing on his last-start fourth at Ashburton. N. Eastwood has been engaged to ride Captain Morgan, one of three runners for the Anderton stable in the Birthday Handicap. D. N. Hadfield will ride Valaris in the Birthday Handicap; also Glen Yon and Flashest

Other riding engagements include: W. H. Beck: Etoele Este; G. W. Mein: Corduroy, Golden Syrup: E. G. Dow: Knight; M. J. Wildermoth: Bright Countess or Modern Imp, Green Haven.