“The Press” In 1864

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30512, 6 August 1964, Page 16

“The Press” In 1864

mgust 5 THE STEEPLECHASE A more lovely day than that which shone out yesterday was never seen, and if such days could be commanded in winter it would be a foolish thing ever to hold race meetings m the summer. But the bad days of summer, though not pleasant, do not actually stop sport, whilst we doubt If any race could well come off in a sou'-wester in midwinter. Yesterday we had sun and warmth, and genial air and gentle breeze, all without a particle of dust—that great destroyer of all summer comfort. A large crowd of persons began about noon to pour out of Christchurch along the South road to the farm belonging to E J. Wakefield, Esq., upon which the course had been laid out, and we do not think that we ever saw more people on the race ground, although, the dispersion of

the crowd round the various parts of the course all could not be seen at once; and there was no bird’s-eye view of the whole, such as can be got from the top of the Grand-stand The course was laid out in an oval form, and a part of it having to be run over twice, the once and ahalf round was equal to about two miles. The fences were for the most part gorse, with a five or six foot ditch on one side. There was one good post-and-rail not high, but sufficiently so to bring several to grief, and there was one water jump, of which far more was made than it was worth, as the horses mostly pushed through the slight fence on the near side, and got into the bottom of the ditch; the further side had been made up with sods so that the horses could not rise out of it; they therefore walked out at either side of the temporary construction. The

leap was perfectly easy to take in the clear. The course being a dead level throughout was not a favourable one for the spectators, but those who stood on the Riccarton church side had a good view of the start, and the run in. The only elevation higher than the top of Cobb’s coach, which, with its train of six capita] horses, and its roof crowded with passengers, loomed large amongst the surrounding vehicles, was the steeple of Riccarton church, but that, though church steeples have stood godfather to this class of amusement, was of course not available for the purpose of a Grandstand. On the whole it cannot be said that the race was a very good one, though some of the leaps were well taken. Indeed it struck us that the genera] style of taking the fences was far better in the scurry race than in the steeplechase.