Paia Royal given beach work at Spencer Park

Press, 25 February 1987, Page 41

Paia Royal given beach work at Spencer Park

By

G. K. YULE

A course of walking in the sea at Spencer Park was the main item on the training programme for the visiting Victorian pacer, Paia Royal, yesterday.

Earlier, he was jogged lightly at Addington by his trainer-driver, Graeme Lang, and the gelding revelled in his task.

Lang has had his share of worries with Paia Royal, a fairly small and lightly-framed five-year-old by the Auckland-based stallion, Mercedes. “He’s accident prone and is always knocking bits off himself if he gets near a fence,” said Lang. “The only way I can contain him is with an electric fence, but about 10 days ago he reared and came-down across that. I happened to see it, and he lay there until I turned the power off. A knee came up and it seems he must have got burned. It hadn’t gone down by Sunday and I was almost cancelling the trip, but by Monday it was going down,” he said.

The knee was down to normal size yesterday and Lang thought walking in the sea would clear the trouble up. “He’s not sore now, but he was a bit tender the night he broke the track record at Geelong last Wednesday,” he said.

His race at Geelong, in which he rated 2min 0.7 s for 1830 m and won easily, was his first since December 13 when he went

down by a narrow margin to Bag Limit at Moonee Valley, the winner rating Imin 57.2 s for 1940 m.

Lang, who is best known in New Zealand through the deeds of the champion trotter, Scotch Notch, a winner last week in North America, is also taking much interest in the fine Victorian trotter, Game Ebony, trained by Dick Lee.

“I drive occasionally for Dick and had three wins with Game Ebony early in his career,” said Lang, who would not be drawn to making a comparison between Scotch Notch and Game Ebony. Game Ebony and the other Victorian trotters, Blackwood Mac, Eastern Romance and My Trinket were given light exercise yesterday also. Game Ebony is a bold trotter which holds his head high. He has a splendid record and has rated 2min 3.8 s for a mobile 2840 m at Moonee Valley, taking some five seconds off the old record set by Scotch Notch.

Game Ebony will race at Addington in the sulky pulled by Hano Direct when she won. the Trotters’ Grand Final at the 1980 Inter-Dominion series at Harold Park,

Sydney. “I bought it from Doody Townley after that race,” said Lee, who drove Hampden’s Pride into third place. “It’s had plenty of use and is as good as the day I bought it. It will be going home with me, too,” he added.

Paleface Bubble, in the care of Mrs Debbie Ilsley, wife of the six-year-old’s trainer, Michael, was also settled when he was jogged lightly out in the centre at Addington.

Paleface Bubble has raced in Adelaide and Melbourne in the last five weeks and has had much travelling by road. He looks to have come through his strenuous campaign in fine style and the big 16.2 hand gelding should make a big showing in Saturday’s sprint heat although he is regarded mainly as a staying type. It was his stout staying qualities that gave him victory in the Consolation Race at the Brisbane Inter-Dominion series last year. His most recent ,start was in the $250,000 Winfield Cup at Mdonee Valley on February 14 when he finished fifth to Bag Limit. In January he won the South Australian Winfield Cup, a $lOO,OOO

race jit Adelaide, and the $50,0(0 Harold Park Cup in Syfney. Visitors on show at Addington i today Eleven of the 13 Australian horses visiting Christchurch for the Lion Brown Inter-Dominion Championship series haye been entered for the bsrrier trials to be held at Addington Raceway this afternoon. The exceptions are Paleface Bubble, which will lot have any fast work before the first round of heats on Saturday, and Sunset Candios, which is to start at the Ashburton trials tomorrow. The seven pacers have been included in the heats for two mobile start events over 2600 m to be tun at 1.15 and 1.30 p.m. The four visiting trotters will race 15' minutes later in a standing start event also run over 2<oom.

Trident, Captain Cavalla, Horizon, That’s That, Lord Louie, Greg Patron and Emcee will be among the rivals of the Australian pacers, while Wedgewood, Borrowed Time and Front Up are among the New Zealand trotters engaged.

1987 1 JOINTER-DOMINION Championships