NOTES AND COMMENTS

Evening Post, Volume CIV, Issue 1, 1 July 1922, Page 15

NOTES AND COMMENTS

(II "SIR LANCELOT.")

Tlie Trenthain Steeplechase country is' muoh easier, and not so difficult to negotiate since the stone wall and th© water jump—on the inside of, the course —were' done away with. It is certainly better going than the old Hutt course, • where the road had to be crossed twice, also a water jump, and heaivy ground re-entering the course. Hawkes Bayowned horses, won the first three Wellington steeplechases. Faugh-a-Ballagh ran in the ownership of Mr. W. T. (Bill) Dnnett, of Hastings.,' Faugh-a r ßalla,gh later on won the Grand National in the ownership of, Mr. Bobert Rutherford, a brother to Mr. Duncan Rutherford, who later on won, the race with Ahua and Eurua. Denbigh won at the Hutt after winning at Hawkes Bay. She was one of the successful Painter .breed', and produced some great performers between, tibe' flags. The best of them w«re Moifa and Ruby; both of whom did- good, service for the Ellingham family, The other Hawkes Bay winner was Echo, who was only a moderate. compared .with the other- pair. The first local winner was Kangaroo, who' ran .in the interests of the late Mr. J. Mandel, who, raced-•as. Mr. "J. Leopolds" Kangaroo: jusb : failed to repeat the performance again when Rossiter won. ■ Kwvgaroo was then owned by Mr. Fred. Martin, of Wellington. • That was the ; year Defamer (A. Ellingham) won the Trial ■Staeptecase, and, in the big event, bolted into a. swamp, and had to be pulled .out with ropes. Mr. Spencer Gollan's Darnley wae.th© ohbiee of backers the following year, but he only got as far as the first fence. The Blenheim-owned.;' Orient, then a veteran performer, „ won from Sir Maurice, who was similarly placed! ■in the Ti-ial Steeplechase earlier in the day. The only dead heat registered' in. connection with the race was in. 1871, Oeo andi .'Whalebone. Oeo . had, the previous week, run second to Taurekaitai at Hastings. Mr. Gollan's Darnley, who got third, and-Ahua were the popular picks that ye&r. The late Mr. Edward Pearce was in the judge's box. The first Auckland horse to win, at the Hutt was the black gelding Ingaraagi. Whalebone was the popular pick, but he ran .off. Three good Hawkes Bay performers in Victrix, Watsrbury, and Gondolier, filled the places the following year. Victrix won from end to end! That waa the year the roan gelddngi Balicore won the United Hunt Club Steeplechase., -It was over the same course as the Wellington Steeplechase, run a couple of days previously, but the journey was half a 1 mile longer. Halicore was owned and ridden by 'Mr. 0. P. Skerrett, K.O. There were only six tickets on Halicore, and hi& backers .received over half a hundred each. Tha following season-or two the Autumn and Steeplechase Meetings were1 comibimed. When Timothy won, Nort)on! carried about as much, money as the ■.••other eight runners. He only got a*.far as the first fence. Another big surprise in connection with the race was Austral, 'owned and trained by Mr.. A. Peters, and ridden by his son (Harry). He was. the only one to complete the course without making a mistake, and won by about a furlong from Fishmonger, who had mm off-at tho last obstacle)—a post and' rail fence. The other: place-getter, Dromedary, had previously come dbwn at the sod wall. Gobo and Kaitere both won the race twice ip succession, at the, old course. Rongoa, the first winner at Trenihaanj was about the weffst since' the club' sihiftßiJ quarters to Trenthain, and Coalition the best of the winners of the race. ; ~ , Members ot the hunter class engaged in the Wellington Steeplechase with recent performances to their credit are Waikaretu and Red Cent. They are both favourably treated in -the- fatter of weight, but whether they are sufficiently seasoned to get to the end of a three miles and a-qnarter journey in the best of company remains to be seen. Waikaretu is by Spalpeen, who has sired a number of first-class steeplechase performers, including Waimai and El Gallo, winners of the Great Northern Steeplechase. Recently, at Ellerslie, Waikaretv. was successful on each of the three days. On the opening day he won the Hunt Cup Handicap, two miles, by eight . lengths. On the second day he won the Hunt Club Cup, three miles, by 60yds, in 6min 49see. *He carried 10.12, ■ 171b more than he will have to carry at Trentham. In the Winter Steeplechase, run over the same journey, Oakleigh took 6min 35sec—Msec shorter time. In the Wellington Steeplechase, Oakleigh is called upon to concede Waikaretu 161b. .Red Cent, who lacks nothing on the score of breeding, won the Petane Hack Steeplechase on his only appearance at the Park, and in the Hawkes Bay Steeplechase beat First Line, winner of the Napier Steeplechase. First-Line was then conceding 241b, whereas in the Wellington Steeplechase, there is only 81b between the pair of performers named. These are the sort of opponents that might worry the top-weight out of it by making him carry his weight all the way. Just before the List mail left England H. Gray had a couple of winning rides> one for Sir Cunliffe-Owen and the other for Lady Owen. For the former he rode White Satin to victory in the three-year-old handicap at Newmarket, and for the latter was successful on Isle of Wight in the Voltigeur Handicap at York. The latter was favourite, although not very pronounced, but White Satin was only third in request. Gray had his first ride over the Chester course recently, and in the course of an interview stated that he was 'greatly impressed with the little track. He informed an English writer that it remined him very much of the New Zealand courses, though the rails at the turns were better, placed. The Ellesmere County Trotting Club still has hopes of getting a totalisator permit, and intends sending a deputation, consisting of Messrs. P. Delargey, T. Prosser, F. Rowell, and S.-Johnston, to Wellington to put the case, before the coming New Zealand Trotting Conference. ■.-.'.■

P. M'Grath had booked accommodation at Trentham for Raconteur, but, according to a Southern writer, the Kilbroney gelding pulled up lame after a gallop at Riccarton, and the trip will probably be abandoned.

The Trotting Clubs' Annual Conference vvill bo held in Wellington on the 11th inst. Mr. E. Fox will represent the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club, Mr. B. M'Kenna the New Brighter Trotting Club, and Mr. R. Wallace the Canterbury Park Trotting Club. Messrs. J. Bowe and C. F. Mark will represent the Auckland Trotting Club, and Messrs. H. It. Mackenzie and W. Watts the Otahuhu Trotting Club. Mr. J. H. Finney will represent the Nelson Trotting Club. Mr. J. H. Finney has been appointed to represent the Nelson Jockey Club at the conference of delegates ;of country racing clubs to be held in Wellington next week. . . In writing up some of the early winners of the Wellington Steeplechase, I had-to freshen, my^fflgmprx from, bacjc-

numbers of the New Zealand Referee, which in. those days was the official calendar of the New Zealand Racing Conference. I came across the success of the cream gelding Macaroni, owned by Mr. William Promt, in the Hawkes Bay Steeplechase. According to the advertisement appearing on the official page of the Referee, Mr. W. Proffit was a member of New Zealand Tattersall's Clnb, also of the firm of Prebble and Pioifit, who worked the totalisator at Napier Park and other meetings. Another business announcement on the,same page waa that of Messrs. Hill and Poole, Wanganui, announcing that they were prepared to do business on the: Melbourne and New Zealand Cups and other forthcoming events. Messrs; Hill and Poole ran the totalisators, between Wellington, Wanganui, and New Plymouth. They also raced some useful horses, including Strenuous, Cheque, Waltonia, Specula tion, and others. Times have considerably changed since then. The successful South Island performer, General Petain, is.in both hurdle races at Trehtham, and it is understood he will make .the trip up. It is somewhat difficult to estimate the difference between South Island and North Island form, but the writer would estimate it' anything from 141bs to ;281bs. At the weights allotted here on their southern form, the southern contingent generally respond liberally, but they mostly go away empty handed. Songbird • proved an exception this season. He won. the Summer Handicap, when in receipt of 221bs from Kinsem) and afterwards the Craven P,late at Riccarton, ■ Publicans' Handicap at Dunedin, and Great Easter Handicap. General Petain is big enough to carry any weight, and ;is well enough bred to win a New Zealand Cup.! At the Dunedin Autumn Meeting he carried 11.13 in the Autumn Hurdles, one mile and three-quarters, and ran second to Bellroek, 9.0. in 3min 19sec. Next day he carried 12.5, and won the Ohwiro Hurdles, 1£ miles, in 2min 49sec. At Waimate, he carried 12.9, and won the Studholme Hurdles, one mile and' five furlongs, •in 3min 3 l-ssec. At the Dunedin Winter Meeting, General Petain, with 11.9 up, won the Otago Hurdles, two miles, in 3min S4sec, with Falstaff, 9.11, second. Next day in the Greenfield Hurdles. 1| miles, General Petain, 12.13, was beaten, half a length by Falstaff, 10.13, in 3min 24sec. On this form, Poanui may find it difficult to concede General Petain a stone.

Mr. B. T. Bennett advises me that Khartoum Has gone on the right way since he raced at Wanganui, and, barring accidents, will take his place in the Wellington Steeplechase field. George Price was in town yesterday, making arangements for his departure for Sydney, where he intends to settle. He leaves Auckland on Friday next with Loyal Irish and The Shag (Panmure—Cormorant).