Changes to Met. meeting

Press, 19 July 1983, Page 28

Changes to Met. meeting

The New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club has renamed its traditional National Handicap, run since 1904. Now named the Commercial Union Handicap, it will be run on the second night of the “National” meeting next month.

The August meeting will still be known as the National meeting, however, coming after the Grand National race meeting for gallopers at the start of the month.

The club has retained the traditional Louisson Handicap for the first night of the meeting, on August 20. Both races will be worth $B5OO and will have a C 8 front, not an 0C limit under invitation conditions as in the past. Horses already qualifiedfor the New Zealand

Cup will start from 20m instead of the front and Hands Down and Armalight will start from 30m and 35m respectively. For the first time at an August meeting, the club will run mobile start events for C2, C 3 and a combined event for C 4 and C 5 class pacers, on both nights. The Metropolitan club intends to apply for an early start of 11.5 a.m. on August „ 20 as the customary evening programme would clash with a telecast of the AIL; Blacks v. Australia test in Sydney, which starts at 5 p.m. New Zealand time. The customary open class trot events at the meeting have also bad a change to C 5 fronts and will be worth $7OOO. OC trotters will start from 20m and Sir Castleton will be handicapped on 45m.