NOTES AND COMMENTS

Evening Post, Volume XCVI, Issue 14, 16 July 1918, Page 5

NOTES AND COMMENTS

(BY "SIR LANCELOT.")

M. Hurley leaves for South to-night with. Sir Fisher, who will finish, his Grand National preparation at Riccarton.

Trainer P. Hogan informed me at Trentham that tie imported horse Fleetham had done a light season at the stud and he would probably improve with racing. The writer is not in favour of racing stallions twice a day, although it worked out all right in Fleetham'e case on Saturday. When the horse came here first he was known as Kirkby Fleetham, but as there was a. horse of the first name racing in the Dominion the English, horse's name was altered to udvantags. Fleetham's sire, Picton, is by Orvieto—Hecuba, by leonomy—Helen of Troy, by Hermit. The only other representative of Picton, in the Dominion is Brisseletto, one of the Elderslie stud brood mares. Picton has a representative in Australia named Tanbellina, who was among the winners at the Adelaide Birthday Meeting last month. Flete, dam of Fleetham, is by St. Simon—Free, by Plebian. The late Mr. Orraond Cooper, whose death occurred on Saturday last, was well known in racing circles. He was president of the Pahiatna Racing Club up to the time of his departure from that district, and has latterly been a steward of the Masterton Racing Club. Mr. Cooper was a delegate to the Conference of Racing Clubs,held last week.

King of the Valley was sired by Waikaranga (Soult—Durus), bred by Mr. Jervis George at New Plymouth" and half-brother to Miro, Durable, and three horses that carried the Glenroy colours. Waikaranga is also the sire of the steeplechasers Tarero and Korero. It is seldom that H. Gray goes through a meeting without a win. On both days at Trentham his mount was sent out favourite for the principal flat race. White Blaze was off colour, and he was not produced on the second day. The win on Sir Agnes brought Gray's total up to 61 for the season, which is a very creditable record. Sardinia and Detroit were the unlucky performers at Trentham, both being placed second each day. This season Sardinia has been placed previously at Rangitikei, Feilding, Wanganui, and Otaki without scoring a win. Detroit scored his only win early in the season at Dannevirke, and had since been placed at Otaki and Napier Park. During an interval between the races on Saturday, the four rising, two-year-olds in J. W. Lowe's stable at Trentham were spurted down the course. Form Up has won two races this geason, and 1220 soys in stakes.' Stan Reid rode the winner of the Winter Hurdles on the first day at Trentham, and the winner of the July Steeplechase on the second. This brought his number of successes up to twenty-four. Bon Eeve, who has won five races and 2320 soys in stakes this season, is proving a capital advertisement for the Waikanae rtud sire Boniform. '

Mr. Don Robin, of the Wangonui Jockey Club's secretarial staff, visited Trentham for the first time last Saturday.; Another West Coaster the writer met at Trentham was Mr.'. John Gray, a vice-president of the Egmont Racine Club. -

The secretary of the Woodlands Hunt (Mr. S. T. Tinney) has received a letter from the secretary of the New Zealand Racing Conference stating that the conference thoroughly endorses the action taken by the Hunt in deciding not to carry on hunting and to. hold no Steeplechase Meeting during the continuance of the war, owing to the absence of so many members on active service. The Minister of Internal Affairs has also expressed his approval of the action taken by the Hunt, and has given his. assurance that such action will not prejudice tho Hunt's right to its totalisator permit after the war has ended.