Assured Market For N.Z. Horses’

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31208, 4 November 1966, Page 22

Assured Market For N.Z. Horses’

“There will always be a good market in the United States for good New Zealand pacers and trotters, but prices must be reasonable and competitive with American domestic prices,” said Mr H. D. Matson on his return to Christchurch after six weeks in the United States.

Mr Matson, New Zealand stud stock manager of the National Mortgage and Agency Company of New Zealand, Ltd., visited trotting courses, studs and sales throughout the United States. Many New Zealand horses had been successful, but some had been disappointing, said Mr Matson.

He thought it unlikely that American buyers would buy as freely as in the last 12 months when they had purchased more than 100 horses in New Zealand. One reason was the high cost of transporting a horse from New Zealand to America. Mr Matson found much to recommend the handicapping system in the United States. It appeared to be designed to allow good horses to continue racing among horses of similar calibre after they had been found wanting in the top company.

The New Zealand system seemed to make no allowance for horses which lost form for reasons such as age. As a result many horses became valuable only for export because they had been handicapped beyond their capabilities. One of the highlights of Mr Matson’s visit was the annual sale at Lexington. About 350 yearlings were sold at an average price of 10,000 dollars. The top price was 90,000 dollars for Sociable, a colt by Good Time from Beata Hanover.

Several records had been broken at Lexington at the race meeting run at that time, said Mr Matson. The greatest thrill had been provided by Bret Hanover’s mile in lmin 53 3-ssec. Attendances at the top trotting tracks in New York had been affected by the grand jury inquiry into alleged malpractices. The inquiry had apparently been spurred on by political motives, said Mr Matson, and it appeared to have been dropped. Taxation in New York helped the smaller clubs, said Mr Matson. A total of 15 per cent was deducted from investments, this being shared by the State Government and the club. Clubs with a turn-over of 250,000 dollars or less received 10 per cent, and 5 per cent went to the State. For each subsequent 100,000 dollars invested taxation increased by 1 per cent, and the club's share declined by the same amount. On a similar basis the New Zealand Metropolitan Trot-

ting Club would have received 8.25 per cent and the Government 6.75 per cent, last season, such figures being based on last season's turn-over said Mr Matson.

Stakes at Yonkers Raceway and Roosevelt Raceway were based on 34 per cent of the income received on turn-over of up to 1,650,000 dollars, and 44 per cent over that amount, said Mr Matson. An additional 1 per cent was set aside for a special fund, twothirds of which went to a welfare fund for grooms run by the Standard-bred Breeders’ Association. The rest was used for the running of the association. The Metropolitan club last season had given in stakes 71 per cent of its total receipts from on and off-course betting, said Mr Matson.