KEEN COMPETITION LIKELY IN HORSE CLASSES

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31835, 13 November 1968, Page 30

KEEN COMPETITION LIKELY IN HORSE CLASSES

Ring events at the Christchurch Show begin today with a wealth of horse events. Giant Clydesdales, bringing back memories of a past era, backs with their elegance and sometimes over-exuberance, ponies of all sizes and descriptions, spectacularstriding harness horses, and jumpers, will all converge at the showgrounds for three days of intense competition.

This show has developed an atmosphere of its own with competitors coming from all parts of the South Island.

Horse events begin at 9 a.m. this morning with the ladies’ hunter turn-out class and the working hunters. In the first class, 12 competitors will be assessed by the hunter judge (Mr G. P. Donnelly), of Hastings.

Last year's winner, M'ss J. Richardson with Argus, entered, but this year Argus is shown in partnership with lan Bell. Correct turnout of rider, gear, and horse are essential items for this class. The winner will receive the Gambler Perpetual Challenge Cup. The requirements for the working hunters are substance, ability, and activity. They must have strong, easy paces, be well mannered, and jump kindly and clearly. Amongst the competitors or horses with previous successes in these classes, Condor, Markham, Morning Spirit, Imperial Blue, have all been placed in the classes up to 12 stone, but tough opposition is sure to come from some of the new-comers.

The Shah, Miss S. Crosbie’s small attractive horse, making his first appearance at Christchurch, has won numerous awards both for his jumping prowess, and as a hack. This three-quarter-bred Arab stands only 15.2 hands high. He won both the champion hack and hunter awards at the Invercargill show two years ago. T’Dappa. formerly owned by Miss M. Harris (North Island), is now owned by Miss D. Bowker of Amberley. He was a successful trial horse and gained third place in the Waiteko trophy at the national trials last winter. From former careers on the racetrack but with the right requirements for tins class are Miss Dunn's St Malo, Mrs McCully’s Kilbernan and L. Diggs’s Glentarkin. The hunters over 12 stone are likely to be dominated by the big, quality Blenheim horse, W. Wadworth’s Flint. Other horses with good records in this class are Letham’s Pardon, Penney’s Calestan and Gould’s Belvoir. A first appearance at Christchurch is Mrs Marns’s Zhivago, a quality horse who is a true hunter type.

Hack-Events

The aristocrats of the show ring are the hacks. Their classes are divided over the three days. Two maiden classes for horses that have not won a first prize at a major show w.il be decided today. Thursday brings the weight classes, park hack and lady’s hack. The mannered and paced hack classes conclude the hack events on Friday after which the champion hack will be selected.

Argus, a beautiful quality horse and winner of the championship honours for three successive years at Christchurch, will undoubtedly be the favourite. However, in the past, the excitement of the occasion has often been too much for him and his manners have let him down.

This year he seems much more settled in the ring. He is only entered for the 11-stone hack class, and the lady’s hack. Last year

Argus won the 11-stone class, but his manners put him out in the lady’s hack and he only gained fifth place in the best mannered and paced hack. This year Argus has gained championship honours at all his starts. Leeston, Rangiora, and Ashburton.

The reserve champion last year, Miss C. Bennett’s Gary Monarch, is again entered for the 14 stone class where he is usually a force to be met with. Strong contenders for the hack awards will be Mr and Mrs A. L. Dunn’s Nightcall in the 14-stone class and Te Huia in the 13-stone class. Timaru Champion Te Huia, always among the top horses, has impeccable manners. He won championship awards at Timaru, and was runner-up to Argus at Ashburton this season. Last year Te Huia won the best mannered and paced hack over 15.3 hands at Christchurch.

Other well placed 13-stone hacks are Robbie Burns (Miss S. Mahon), reserve champion at Amberley, and Condor (I. Bell and Mrs Blackie), reserve at Leeston. Not outshone by his stablemate will be the grey Moorcock gelding. Nightcall. He did not appear at Christchurch last season, but won a great list of championships at the Southland shows for Mrs Meyer, formerly Miss D. Dunn. Nightcall will have no easy task ahead of him, for although the 14-stone class is the smallest of the weight classes there is an abundance of quality. They include Gay Monarch, last year’s winner, Flint, second last year, Pardon, Ramero, Secret, Faenza, Zhivago, Belvoir, Complaisant, Wait and See, and Cassius. The 11-stone class has, apart from Argus, Morning Spirit, rather unlucky in his classes this year, Destiny (champion at Amberley), Imperial Blue, Whimsical and St Malo. The park hack class has two versatile and wellknown performers in Harvest Moon and Delmont Lad. A first season in this class is Mrs S. H. Sampson's Blythe Spirit Harvest Moon had the distinction last year of being the only hack to win two classes in the hack rings. He won the park hack (over 14.2 and under 15.1 hands) and the lady’s hack. As usual the largest hack class is the lady’s hack class which has drawn 31 entries.

Pony Classes

Ponies from the smallest, under 11.2 hands, to the largest under 14.2 hands, have their share of classes beginning tomorrow with the mannered and paced classes. All the classes ate well filled and the judges could have difficulty selecting the final placings. Maiden and open ■ classes

will be judged on Friday in three rings. In the under 12.2 ponies both last year’s champion Highbrow (Miss D. Bevins) and reserve, Popcorn (Miss J. Stead), are competing. Other ponies to gain championships and reserve awards this season are Sir Winston (Miss S. Gray), Melody Maid (Miss V. M. Willis), Prince Ali (Miss D. Bevins), and Debonaire (Miss J. Mahony). The 13.2 ponies have many placed ponies of last year entered. The champion, Peregrine (Miss C. Rolleston), is not competing, but Mr Chips (Miss G. Dunn), reserve last year, will be defending its title. Ponies to excell last year were Blue Boy (Miss D. Clemens), first maiden and second in the open class with Mr Chips and Peregrine winning the open classes under 13.2 and 13 hands respectively. Of the larger ponies, the supreme champion pony of the show and the 14.2 championship winner, Miss E. McGrath’s Golden Chartreuse, has been sold to Te Puke, but the reserve pony last year, Miss L. Walker’s Dark Legend, is again competing. Other ponies likely to do well after last year’s and recent successes are Belair (Misses C. Oldfield and J. Boyde), Willie Do (Miss W. Wordworth), Alladin’s Light (Reed and Clark), Summer Haze (A. Gray), Miss Legend (Miss S. Walker), and Forget-me-not (Miss R. Harvey). F.E.I. Events The F.E.I. jumping events begin today with the A and C grade hit and hurry event, and the C grade Table A. Thursday’s programme has the New Zealand Farmers' puissance competition for A grade horses, and two pony events, one for ponies under 13.2 hands and one for ponies under 14.2 hands. The Ballantyne F.E.I. Table A event is timed for 3.15 p.m. on Friday, followed by the pony fault and out and the pairs relay competition.

The hit and hurry event promises to be one of the most exciting events with some of the best speed horses in the South Island competing. Fiano (D. Youngman), Harvest Moon (Mrs Bain). Geelong (Miss J. Cresswell), Whispering (Miss J. Nixon), The Shah (Miss S. Crosbie), and Delmont Lad (Mrs McCully), are all capable of fast clean jumping.

Fiano jumped brilliantly at Ashburton Show for two wins in the speed events. However, at Rangiora on Labour Day she took second place to Harvest Moon. Both Miss Cresswell’s mounts, Geelong and Blue, are capable of good turns and speed, but perhaps a shade slower than the other two. In any speed event there are always plenty of surprises and the result could be in doubt until the last horse.

The New Zealand puissance event for A grade horses has drawn a good field of 13 horses.

Limelight, last year’s winner, is entered with the experienced rider Miss J. Dunn. He is going kindly for Miss Dunn, but she has not managed to eliminate his sudden stop. In spite of this he has several good

placings to his credit this year.

Fiano, second last year, can always be relied on to give her best, so too can Overland and the small Whispering, third and fourth respectively last year. A force to be reckoned with will be Sultan (Miss J. Robinson). They won the A and C grade Table A at Timaru and were third in the open event at Ashburton.

Lucky Charm from Gore is a good versatile jumper, and last season won five open international jumps in a row at the Southland shows—no mean achievement.

An interesting combination will be Mecca, ridden by W. Smith. Mecca is a specialist in these events. He was formerly ridden by R. Williamson. Others in the event are the good South-, land horse, The Shah, Ariki (Miss Darling), with some consistant placings, Mark-' ham (Miss B. Lemon), Geelong, Brigadier and Blue Mist.

The Ballantyne Table A event has the same field of competitors as the puissance, with the inclusion of Harvest Moon and Killamie (Mrs Clifton), and Miss A. Peddie will be riding Jubilee instead of Blue Mist. Jubilee has been jumping particularly well this season. They won the A and C grade at Leeston and were second with G. Innes and Brigadier in the pairs class at Timaru.

In) the light-weight hunters’ event, both last year’s champion and reserve, Ariki and Markham, are competing. Markham has already added champion awards at Leeston and Ashburton to his growing list of successes. Ariki has been placed .several times but has done little of note this season.

A consistent performer in the light-weight events has been Jubilee. He won the light-weight and open events at Timaru and was awarded champion hunter. Moorpork, reserve champion at Rangiora, should also perform well. Delmont Lad is another horse with placings to his credit at the southern shows.

Amongst the heavyweight horses Hunter’s Moon, champion at Rangiora. Overland (Amberley), and Limelight, first in the heavyweight at Timaru, should give good displays.