RACING NOTES

Evening Star, Issue 21515, 13 September 1933, Page 10

RACING NOTES

[By St. Clair.]

RACING. Snimbar 18.-Ashburton C. Racing Club, •ntambar 21, 23.—Wanganui Jockey Club, laptambar 21. 25.-Geraldina Racing Club. Septambar 30 —Kurow Jockay Club. September 30,-Napier Park Racing Club. October 5. 7.—Dunedin Jockey Club. October 6, 7.—Otaki-Maon Racing Club. October 14.—Masterton Racing Club. October 14.—South Canterbury Jockey Club. , October 14, 16.—Avondale Jockey Club. October 21, 23.—Wellington Racing Club. October 21, 23.—Gore Racing Club.

A POTENTIAL CHAMPION. Another three-year-old likely to be much in the limelight in the next few months is Wheriko, who was responsible for a rather striking performance in the Warriston Handicap, which he won in brilliant style (writes Chiron,” in the ‘Australasian’). I heard a well-known racing man declare on Saturday while Wheriko was parading in the mounting yard that he might be another Phar Lap, I do not expect him ever to reach the heights of the dead champion, but he is a colt of tremendous possibilities. He is a big fellow, and still undeveloped. He stands about seventeen hands, and being a young three-year-old he is naturally very immature. There is no doubt about his ability to go fast, and he shapes like a colt who will not he troubled by distance. _ But he needs time, just as Phar Lap did, and he has the makings of a great four-year-old. Mr Eric Connolly has been very patient with him. Last season Wheriko ran in only two minor races, but he has won both the races in which he has run this season. On Australian Steeplechase day he won over a mile, but the fact that Market Merry, a pony, was .second to him did not make out the tOfm to be anything above the ordinary, hut his performance in the Warriston Handicap was really convincing. His owner soon made it known he expected him to score, because Wheriko was sent out a 2-to-l favourite. He was in front almost as soon as the field had gone 100yds. He did not seem to he in the least troubled by the soft going. Free-going horses usually go well on a soft track. Folk Lore ran with him to the straight entrance, where he left her without an effort. Then Rapsonia, who is coming to hand fast, ranged alongside him, and for a few strides headed him. Then it seemed that he had Wheriko beaten, but when Reed shook up the favourite, he went away again and won decisively. Wheriko again ran very greenly, which rather emphasised the merit of the performance. Wheriko and Blixten are yclosely related, both being sons of Night Raid, Wheriko being from Satisfaction and Blixten from a daughter of Satisfaction, a mare by Bezonian (son of Velasquez) from Satisfaire, by Birkenhead (son of Orme) from Content, by Dreadnought (son of Chester) from Lullaby, hv Apremont from Hammock (imp.), by Orest. Satisfaction Tvas raced and trained; by C, Gjesler, and out of thirty-two starts ' finished “in the money” twenty-six times. Like Phar Lap, both are members of the No. 2 family. I wonder which is likely to be the better racehorse. Blixten is the more forward at present. TE KUITI AND WAIKATO CLUBS AMALGAMATE. An apimated discussion on the advisability of a permanent amalgamation with the ’ Waikato Racing Club took place at the annual meeting of the Te Kuiti Racing Club. The president (Mr H. Rothery) was definitely of the opinion that the . town was not sufficiently interested in racing to run a successful meeting. The credit balance of £9OO from last meeting was due to the result of a “gentlemens agreement ” with the Waikato Club to hold the meeting at Te Rapa. The arrangement had been thoroughly successful, and he Considered it necessary to ratify that agreement of amalgamation and hold afl future meetings at Te Rapa or lose their status as a club. He was not prepared to accept the financial resopnsibility of further racing at the Te Kuiti local course.. After deliberation it was resolved to amalgamate the Te Kuiti and Waikato Clubs, and to maintain their individual status and racing days. It was further resolved to offer the buildings for sale and offer the ground to the town of Te Kuiti as an aerodrome site, for which it is being used at present—Auckland correspondent.

JOTTINGS. Owners and trainers are reminded that nominations for the Spring Meeting to be held on October 5 and < close on Friday at 5 pm. Over a paragraph commenting on the prohibition of the publication in New Zealand of totalisator dividends a Sydney ■ newspaper had the heading A Foolish- Law.’ During the last ten seasons the Winton Trotting Club has given £14,590 in stakes ami paid £lO,Oll Os 10(1 in ta ßed° Sun, one of the few New Zealand Cup representatives trained at Trentham, is reported to be in great heart just now. He ran seven furlongs in Imin Slsec last Saturday morning. The Railway Department announces that a fast special tram will be run from Dunedin in connection with the Kurow races to> bo bold on the Oatnaru course on September 30. Nominations and acceptances in connection with last year’s meeting of the Winton Trotting Club amounted to £368 7s 6d, and thanks to the excellent system in vogue at all Southland meetings only £4 2s 6d of this amount has not been paid. . . , , - Hunting Song, who just beat Chief Ruler in the sires’ list last season, had his first winners in 1928-29. Since then his stock have won £43,737. Chief Ruler’s first winner? appeared in UZI--28, and his stock have since won £oo,508 in New Zealand. The Winton Trotting Club had to pay £l6O in rent last season,, and £39U .is 5d to the Winton Jockey Club and racecourse trustees as its share of the cost of, buildings. Considering these payments, the club is fortunate in having a nest egg of £.500 tucked away on fiX Sir Clifford’s three-year-old filly Fracas has made good progress lately, and she .is . putting plenty of dash into her sprinting tasks. She was in the top flight among the juveniles at the end of last season, and already she gives indications of going, on to rew ind form. She is being got SS- for the Dunedin Guineas, in rC u- u oka will keep her rivals busy. W l h Lile of N T ew Plymouth, has reMtod caW advice tom F,«W ,r i Ticerism has broken clown, liger that Rigorism « th . s stable at ’Angf-s— 'tssx# Soaps, .o that W. breakdown i. nafortanate tor Mr Me. > mam* .

TROTTING. September 16.—Hawke’* Bay T.C. September 30.—Methvea T.C. October 7,— New Brighton T.C. October 14.—Waikato T.C. October 21, 23.—Auckland T.C. October 21, 23. —Greymouth T.C. October 23.—Oamaru T.C. October 28.—Wellington T.C. November 7,9, 10.—N.Z. Metropolitan T.C. November 23, 25.—Forbury Park T.C.

! Tenterdeu won his second race in Adelaide when he was successful in the Welter Handicap, in which lie defeated Kimberley and Codon. It is many years since such a fine reception has been accorded a jockey as that which greeted J. V. Hopwood when it was seen he could'not be beaten on Tenterden. It was the first time in eight years that Hopwood had ridden a winner. He gave up riding for training, but soon found that this was a losing proposition. , i , The joint owners of the thoroughbred Winooka, Messrs A. J. Matthews and W. A. M‘Don aid, Sydney sportsmen, passed through Auckland on Friday by the Monterey on their return to. Australia after taking the well-known Australian racehorse to America. Referring to the match which was _ arranged with Onrush, the American West Coast champion, Mr Matthews said the event had to be postponed- on account of an epidemic of influenza, which had affected Winooka, as well as other racehorses along the Pacific Coast. Winooka would carry 1201 b (Bst 81b) and Onrush 1051 b (7st 71b). It was at ' the invitation of Lord Rosebery an. ex-steward of the Jockey Club a little while ago that hjs fellow members considered the matter of officially inspecting horses’ shoes and other equipment before every race. The latest report is that the turf authorities are favourably inclined towards such a procedure, and will shortly issue a notice to trainers that the practice of running horses in ordinary shoes instead of the feather-weight aluminium racing plates must not continue. . By using an aeroplane the Beckhampton owner-trainer, H. G. Blagrave, was able to attend two race meetings in England on August 5. From Beckhampton, in Wiltshire, he flew fortyfive miles to Chepstow racecourse, in Monmouth, and there won the first race with his own horse, Thermidor. Immediately after having seen the winning jockey weighed in and the necessary formalities completed he got back into the aeroplane and flew 128 miles to Lewes racecourse, in Sussex, where he saddled his horse Andy in the 4.30 race. Unfortunately, Andy did not do so well as Thermidor, but Mr Blagrave only very narrowly missed a remarkable double, as Andy finished second, accounting for all except Ballet Dancer. Lord Derby, presiding at a conference of Cheshire branches of the British Legion at Chester on August 5, replied to a comment by Major-general Sir Frederick Maurice, national president, that they had started well by their president winning the Derby, and they looked forward to him completing the double by winning the St. Leger, to be run to-day. Lord Derby said he thought Sir Frederick Maurice was thanking him for past favours and looking forward to the future. (Laughter.) “ All I can say is that Hyperion is very fit, and is going on very well,” ho said. “ That is not a tip,” he added, “ because I always remember that a former Lord Mayor of Liverpool said: /If I can get away from a public function where Lord Derby is without him giving a tip I am a much richer man.’ ” (Laughter.) An experiment was tried with the steeplechase fences at Caulfield early this month, and, judging from the results, it was a great success. The fences were a dull black, and past experience had shown that the horses did not sight them well, and it was thought that was to a great extent responsible for so many horses falling in steeplechases there. For the Sandringham Steeplechase the top rails of the fences were painted white, and the brush on the take-off side slightly lowered. The result was the horses were able properly to sight the fences, and consequently jumped safely. There were eleven starters, and they all safely negotiated the course. It was refreshing to see a steeplechase in which there were no casualties. London newspapers show that by the end of July England’s crack jockey, Gotdon Richards, bad further increased bis lead for the 1933 championship. His tally of winning mounts was then 133, while the nearest to him were H. Wragg and W. Nevett, each with only forty-five. Despite the success that has thus attended him, Richards would not have proved a profitable proposition to follow through the season with a uniform starting price investment on each of his mounts. Adopting tbis practice, a speculation of a £ a time would have been some £45 to the bad. In fact, as the following list shows, there are only two among the dozen leading riders who, on this footing, would have yielded a profit, the better of the two being the former Australian, B. Carslake.

Won. Lost. £ s. d. G. Richards ... 133 386 — 45 12 6 H. Wragg ... 45 202 * 8 8 4 W Nevett ... 45 209 — 78 7 4 T. Weston ... 43 254 — 44 8 3 P. Beasley ... 36 154 — 11 10 8 S. Donoghue ... 35 315 — 171 7 9 F. Fox ... ... 35 329 — 167 11 2 J. Caldwell ... 33 167 — 50 4 9 R. Dick ... ... 32 144 — 45 11 11 J. Dines ... ... 32 203 — 59 11 11 R. Perryman ... 32 250 — 65 13 1 B. Carslnke ... 31 111 * 31 1 1 •Profit.