Walk Alone too good

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32561, 22 March 1971, Page 8

Walk Alone too good

Walk Alone, one of the top juvenile pacers in the last two seasons, gained an overdue first, success as a four-year-old when he outfinished General Idea and the outsider, Robinson Crusoe, in the Cheviot Cup on Saturday.

Walk Alone had raced well but without luck in many of his other 15 starts this sea- 1 son, and he had returned : seven platings. On Saturday he gave away starts of up to 36 yards to the majority of his rivals and finished with a great burst of speed from mid-field to win most convincingly. The field was tightly packed and a number of horses, ’ including John Charles, Swift Action and Fortunate, failed to see daylight over the final quarter. The favourite, Young Trouble, finished sixth after losing ground early and then

going to the front with a mile left. Blackbeard, after' losing 60 yards at the start, looped the field after about six furlongs. He finished fifth, but was well beaten and blew hard afterwards. The promising three-year-old, Bomber Bill, and M. Holmes combined to gain their third success for the season in the Rangiora Handicap. Bomber Bill was always handy and ran on well to hold off a late challenge along the inner from Morpheus by a neck. Fantastic was a good third, ahead of a solid finisher in Brockworth King. The win favourite, Irton Prince, did well to finish seventh after being pushed Ito near the tail of the field on the home turn. SPRINT WIN

Bachelor Blue proved a class above the sprinters in the Gold Bar Handicap. He received a good run behind the tearaway Bachelor Boy and came on to win handily in the smart time of 2min 40sec for the 10 furlongs.

Dancing Step was a fine I second, ahead of Apollo King and Boy Louw, which did well to finish so close after I a slow start. Baffle Girl gave further evidence of her class when she made most of the pace in the Ripcord Handicap and outstayed Pacific Star by two lengths, with Lessaday a useful third. The hot favourite, Frontier, broke and lost 60 yards at the start He was trotting easily in the middle of the field when Al Mundy broke and came back sharply on him inside the last five furlongs. He sprinted up again and broke when wide out on the track inside the last halffuriong. He did well to finish seventh.

The other race for trotters, the Parnassus Handicap, resulted in a deserved win for Nimbo Stratus over Piclo. A five-year-old by Court Martial from Black Shaw, Nimbo Stratus is trained by A. M. Purdon for Mr W. J. Hart, of Templeton.