NO TROTS ALLOWED

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32346, 11 July 1970, Page 8

NO TROTS ALLOWED

(From Our Own Reporter) WELLINGTON. Without the next payout from the Totalisator Agency Board the Banks Peninsula Racing Club could not find the stake money for its next race meeting, Mr W. Bulman told delegates to the annual meeting of the Racing Conference in Wellington yesterday. Mr Bulman said his club could not be sure whether it would have enough money for stakes at its second race meeting next season. He was speaking to a

Banks Peninsula resolution seeking permission for South Island clubs to include on their programmes one trotting event provided it was the ninth race on the programme. The resolution was supported by the Canterbury Jockey Club and all other clubs in Canterbury and Westland, also by several North Island delegates, but was defeated by 115 to 67 votes.

Mr Bulman said the Banks Peninsula Club’s finances had deteriorated markedly since trotting events had been taken off its programmes in 1957.

It had sold a third interest in its property to the Banks Peninsula Trotting Club, which was in a position of meeting half the maintenance costs and had as well amessed $38,000 in accumulated funds.

Mr W. R. Lemon, president of the Ashburton Club, sought permission to stage a trot as a ninth event on programmes on a trial basis for one year. The extra revenue from the meetings with the trotting race could be put back into stakes for galloping races, Mr Lemon said. A group of Southlanders led by Mr F. H. Plunkett (Winton) said that the reintroduction of trots to galloping programmes would set South Island racing back. Mr Plunkett reminded the meeting that the North Islanders were not directly concerned but if they listened to those who sought trotting on programmes they would be “crucifying” South Island galloping. > Mr J. A. C. McKenzie (Oamaruf said he would hate to see trots on his galloping programmes but would introduce them if he thought galloping would prosper as a consequence.

Mr I. A. Purvis (Cromwell) said it had been noticeable in the last two years that his club was making good progress through increased support from galloping owners. He did not think that Cromwell was at any disadvantage because of all-galloping programmes.

“Our job is to promote galloping and I regard something like this as the thin edge of the wedge; if we go along with this we’ll be back to where we were 20 years ago,” said Mr J. E. Brunton (Dunedin). Mr H. H. Elworthy said the Canterbury Jockey Club intended to support the resolution because it felt that in some cases it was a matter of survival for some clubs. Mr R. C. B. Greenslade (Dunedin) said the introduc-

tion of a trotting event as a ninth race on a galloping programme 'muld deprive owners and their horses of opportunities when fields were over-sized. Mr D. S. Thoms, in supporting the resolution said it was sad to think that if the struggling Canterbury galloping clubs went under they would be replaced by trotting clubs.

Conference Officers

(from Our Own Reporter)

WELLINGTON. Mr R. A. Whyte (Wellington) (above) was re-elected president of the New Zealand Racing Conference yesterday. Mr H. H. Smith was re-elected vice-president. The executive for the next year is Messrs N. A. Thomson (Auckland), D. W. J. Gould (Canterbury), G. H. Morgan (Hawke’s Bay), R. C. B. Greenslade (Dunedin), J. C. Craig (Greymouth), W. A. H. Thompson (Southland), C. H. Wynyard (Taranaki), F. C. Johnstone (Waikato), M. Conway (Wanganui), and I. D. Reid (Wellington). The conference’s levy on racing clubs for the year is $lBO,OOO, an increase of $20,000. It’s delegate, Mr N. A. Thomson, gave notice of the Auckland Racing Club’s intention to bring forward a remit next year seeking to have the president and vice-president of the conference elected “from the floor’’ at the annual meeting.