TROTTING Forbury Stakes Up $1100 But Two Extra Races

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31781, 11 September 1968, Page 6

TROTTING Forbury Stakes Up $1100 But Two Extra Races

Although the total stakes for the two nights of the Forbury Park Trotting Club’s spring meeting on October 7 and 14 have been increased by $llOO to $23,050, the position is not as good as it might appear. The club will run nine-race programmes each night, adding an extra two races to the meeting.

In addition, the club has included a number of restricted free-for-all events, mainly for horses assessed from 2:16 to 2:13. These races have been allocated stakes which in the main fall below what are now expected from metropolitan clubs.

| The club has obviously j taken little account of the I extra 2.68 per cent to be reI ceived from doubles invest--1 ments. Stakes for restricted | age events have been cut ! rather drastically and it is un- | likely they will draw horses , of good class. I By combining two classes kinder restricted free-for-all < conditions, the club is unI likely to be able to cater adejquately for the horses expected to be entered. In 'most cases races catering for ' a single class would attract .more than sufficient entries (for the maximum fields of 14 (started at Forbury Park. The main race on the first I night, the G. J. Barton Mem- ■ orial Handicap, has a limit of 12:11 and will be run under I invitation conditions. The conditions and stake of $2300 and a trophy valued at $lOO will be the same as for last year. The Southern Flving Mile of $2050 replaces a 2:13 $2OOO (handicap race last year as the main race on the second night. The limit this year i will be 2:12. This is $750 below the usual stake paid for a 2:12 class race by the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club. Owners of horses on 2:12 are unlikely to relish the idea of racing against Lordship and other New Zealand Cup class horses under free-for-all conditions. The club could well have applied a 2:11 limit

for such a feature race. Even then eliminations would have been necessary. Starting Gate The starting gate will be used for the Southern Flying Mile and two other races on the second night, and three races a week earlier. Some of these races will be run over 13 furlongs, a most awkward starting point, not far from the exit from the back straight. With fields of 14 there could be considerable incident at the start of the bend. The club's assessment of the value of various classes is unusual to say the least. Horses on 2:16 and 2:15 will race under free-for-all conditions for a stake of $l6OO in the Welcome Stakes on the first night A week later 2:16 class horses will race for $l4OO in the Kensington Handicap. Also on the second night horses on 2:14 and 2:15 will race under restricted free-for-all conditions for a stake of $1650. The 2:13 and 2:14 class horses will be combined and race for a stake of a mere $lBOO on the first night. Last year horses on 2:16 raced for $l3OO at Forbury Park, horses on 2:15 for $l5OO, horses on 2:14 for $l6OO, and horses on 2:13 for $2OOO.

The Metropolitan club will this season pay $l7OO for the 2:16 class pacers, $l9OO for the 2:15 class, $2250 for the 2:14 class, and $2500 for the 2:13 class.

Separate races for three and four-year-olds on the first night have had their stakes reduced from $llOO and $l2OO respectively to a meagre $BOO. On the second night thev will be combined and race for $lOOO. Last year they had separate races worth $llOO for three-year-olds and $l2OO for the horses a year older.

Rather surprisingly the conditions for the combined race give no advantage to three-year-olds. Usually these horses receive a start of 12 yards from their older rivals.

Race Dropped The invitation race for trotters has been deleted from the programme for the second night. Now there will be races each night for trotters, one with a limit of 2:18 and the other with a limit of 2:16. The stakes for the slow-class events remain unchanged at $lOOO. The Times Handicap, for 2:16 class trotters on the first night, will carry a stake of $l4OO and be run over two miles, against $l2OO and 13| furlongs last year. The same horses will race over 11 furlongs for a stake of $l3OO on the second night. The races for 2:16 class trotters at the New Zealand

I Cup meeting in November will carry stakes of $l6OO. The club has included new races for 2:17 class pacers on each night. The stakes will be $l2OO, $3OO more than for the 2:18 class events, which are $2OO greater than for the 2:19 class pacers.