RACING NOTES

Evening Star, Issue 22687, 29 June 1937, Page 7

RACING NOTES

RACING. July 3.—Manawatu R.C. July 3. —Oamaru J.C. July 6,8, 10.—Welling!on R.C. July 17.—Hawke’s Bay Hunt Clul),

July 17.—Waimate Hunt Club. July 24. —RangiUkei Hunt Club. July 24. —South Canterbury Hunt Club, July 29, 31.—Poverty Bay T.C. July 31.—Christchurch Hunt Club.

NEXT SEASON.

August 7.—Poverty Bay Hunt. I TROTTING. August 10, 12, 14- Canterbury J.C. A st 7 n 13.-N.Z. Metropolitan T.C, August 21.—Pakuranga Hunt. , B T C August 28.—Otago Hunt. August 28.—Auckland 1.0.

THE TREttTHAM JUMPING DOUBLE

The totalisator added to Derby day’s records by setting up a new high figure at Epsom, with a pool of £41,797. The best pool was £60,292 for the Royal Hunt Cup at Ascot last year. The crowd was easily the biggest at Epsom since the boom days of racing immediately after the war, and it gave an enthusiastic and affectionate greeting to the King and Queen, who were accompanied by Queen Mary and other members of the Royal Family. Messrs A. S. Duncan, W. H. Hollis, and J. Westerman are the retiring members from the committee of the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club. Neither Mr Hollis nor Mr Westerman will seek re-election, but seven nominations have been received for three vacancies. There will bo no election for, the positions of president and vice-president of the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club at the annual meeting next month, and Mr J. H. Williams and Mr F. E. Graham will be elected unopposed.

The big jumping double to be decided at Trcnthani next week has attracted interesting fields, ana as would be expected with'the good stakes put up have drawn the best cross-country and hurdle horses in the Dominion. The Wellington Steeplechase, run oyer about tbree and a-quaitei miles, half a mile less than the Great North- „ era Steeplechase, has drawn horses from Auckland in the north to Wmtou in the south, and 10 of them were also handicapped in the big race at Ellerslie run early this month. The following is the comparison of the weights allotted:— , Wgtn. Auck. Diff.

According to * Sporting Life, England had a musical . colt, just oyer a century ago. This is what they say: “ Plenipotentiary, winner of the Derby in 1834, had a flair for music. His favourite instrument was the flute. Alas, unless a piper piped a tune Plenio performed in a minor key, and big backers found themselves facing the music. On Derby day his trainer engaged a flautist to ‘ play ’ him from paddock to starting post, and the result was a handsome win by many lengths. Later on at Doncaster, in the St. Leger, when he was not provided with an overture, the musical-ihinded colt got hopelessly out of tune, ran flat, and his myriad of backers were left with nothing to sing about.” Mrs Miller, owner of this year’s Derby winner, is 28, and has one son, aged 18 months. She was formerly Miss Lettice Mary Talbot, daughter of the late Major John A. Talbot. In 1930, under the will of her uncle, tho late Lieutenant-colonel W. B. Brocklehurst, head of the silk manufacturing Arm of J. P. Brocklehurst, of Macclesfield, she inherited a fortune of £500,000. By tho terms of the will she would have forfeited this legacy if the trustees had not approved her marriage in 1934 to Mr George B. Miller, of Kingscoto Park, Gloucester, who was formerly a subaltern in the -Grenadier Guards. llacing is but one of Mrs Miller’s hobbies. She .is an enthusiastic golfer and tennis player, and does not frequently attend race meetings. Seldom have racing people, known so little of the owner -of a Derby winner.

A dozen of the horses handicapped in the Winter Hurdles- to be run on the third day of the Wellington Winter Meeting were also handicapped in the Great Northern Hurdles, and the following is the comparison of weights allotted them:—

JOTTINGS The jumps in the steeplechase at the Oamaru Meeting will all be brush fences. Acceptances for the Oamaru Meeting close to-night at 8 o’clock. Some writers persist in referring to Valpeen as a veteran. Yet the big gelding is only nine years old—not so ancient for a steeplechaser. Sporting Song now has a mate in Platter for schooling over steeplechase fences, and they both shaped well in a bout over five obstacles last week. Several of the horses engaged at Oamaru next Saturday are also engaged at Tr*ntham on Tuesday, and are likely to be reserved for the northern meeting. The New Brighton Trotting Club’s annual balance sheet shows a credit balance of income over expenditure of £1,541 14s lOd. Mr A. Ferguson is not satisfied with the weight allotted M’Heath in the Winter Handicap, to be -decided at Oamaru on Saturday, and he will not be an acceptor. Mr W. T. Hazlett arrived at Bluff from Australia yesterday, and will proceed north this week to attend the annual meeting of the New Zealand llacing Conference at Wellington. Arctic King and Boomerang, two of Trentham’s candidates for the Whyte Handicap on the first day at Trentham, finished second and third last year, being beaten in the last stride by the outsider Maine. The grey mare, Fifa, is again in work after producing a foal to Grattan Loyal. Fifa was solid enough, but never developed the speed to win good class races. Now 13 years old, her prospects do not appear very bright.

Among the biggest stake earners this season is Grand Mogul. He has started 21 times for six firsts, two seconds, and one third, and has won_ £2,610 in stakes. Included in his list are the King Edward Handicap, Louisson Handicap, Recovery Handicap, Flying Handicap, Easter -Handicap, "and President’s Handicap. Last year he won £1,127 in stakes. Grand Mogul is a product of Southland. He is a six-year-old gelding by Adioo Guy from Logan’s Mission, which is by Logan Pointer from Wild Queen, which was a daughter of Wildwood Junior and that good mare Regina Belle. Among the many horses Kir G. J. Barton has bought Grand Mogul is one of his greatest bargains. Soon after the gelding won his first race Mr Barton purchased him for £6OO. Grand Mogul is one of the gamest pacers in commission. . He' is expected to be one of the highlights of the 1937-1938 period. , This year’s Derby winner, Midday Sun, was bred by Mr W. T. Sears, who had a few horses in training in various stables, but he is unlucky to have parted with the best horse he lias ever had. An interesting story is told of the purchase of the' Derby winner by his' present owners. Mr Sears sent tho colt for sale as a yearling at the Newmarket October sales, and he failed to reach the reserve of 2,000g5. The Kingsclere. trainer, Fred Butters, consulted his brother. Frank Butters, as to the produce of Solario, and he then sought out Mr Sears, who would not take anything less, than the reserve price, and at that figure the Derby winner became the joint property of Mrs Miller and Mrs Talbot. It was in the colours of Mrs Miller that Ankaret came exceedingly close to winning the Oaks two years ago. Afterwards the filly won the Coronation Stakes at Ascot.

Dundee has sorely tried the patience of his owner, Mr W. T. Lowe, and trainer, R. B. Berry, and his win on Saturday would only in part repay the big expense the gelding has proved since he won his last race at the Ashburton Winter Meeting in 1934.

A record number of rising two-year-olds is in work at Trenthain, the total number being close on the 50 mark. Of these, however, 20 odd are destined for Singapore and are being handled preparatory to making the trip in a few weeks’ time. Of the remainder the largest teams are those of T. 11 George and H. B. Lorigan, who have eight and seven respectively.

Admiral Rous, in his book on racing, declared that hundreds of races were lost hy the use of whip and spur, while hundreds were won by a judicious pull, except when a horse is so manifestly superior to his opponents that he goes well within himself, there is rarely a race where he does not require to be steadied hy a judicious pull. On the other hand, there are few horses that can win a race in good company if bustled from start to finish, or ridden with a loose rein. When a jockey feels his horse falter from any cause, whether distress or otherwise, he should take a pull on him, even at the cost of losing a little ground ; the horse may then, and probably will, recover himself, avid drop down unexpectedly on tho leaders and pass them on the post. It is astonishing how slow tired horses often go at the finish of a race, and how easily they are beaten by one that, having a bit left in him, comes with a rush at the finish at a speed that he may be able to maintain only for a few yards.

The two-year-old Don Acron has yet 'to win a race, but in his few efforts in public he has performed, like a coming racehorse. He will be given another chance at the Oamaru Jockey Club’s Meeting on Saturday next, when he will contest the Oamaru Trot Handicap. Ihe field is composed mostly of ■maiden horses, and does not represent very good class.

Cbttingliam has only contested three Ifaurdle races for two wins and one third placing, his restricted activity being due to an accident h© met with when racing at Riccarton last year. The trouble has taken a long time to overcome, but he is considered quite sound again, and tan bo expected to reach the best hurdle class before the present winter closes.

In a Chicago divorce case recently Sirs Cathryne Hall said the income of her husband. Charles L. Hall, ran from 100,000 dollars (£20,000) to 200.000 dollars yearly, from the sale of tips. She testified that he picked winners under 20 or 30 different names, and sent names of several different horses to his various clients in each race. Hall, who said he occasionally made two-dollar bets, explained to Judge George Bristow; “You can’t send everybody the same horse.”

In England it has been decided that a bookmaker who has paid out too much to a client on a betting transaction cannot recover it by legal action. The Court of Appeal in London gave that decision on May 11, thereby reversing a decision of Judge Thomas at Abergavenny County Court-rwhich was in favour of the bookmaker, Mr Walter Morgan, of Abergavenny, and allowing the appeal of the client. Mr Llewellyn Ashcroft. The ‘ Sporting Chronicle ’ savs that Mr Morgan paid out £24 too much to Air Ashrroft, and the County Court held that he was entitled to its repayment and that the Gaming Act which Mr Ashcroft pleaded did not apply. The Master of the Rolls said the point was that in order to ascertain whether an overpayment had, been made it would be necessary for the court to examine the state of the account between the parties. “ that,” said His “the court is not entitled to do, since by taking such au account the court would be recognising wagering transactions, and, therefore, would be doing the very thing which the Gaming Act, 1845, did not permit to be done.”

One of ' the ■ youngest and lightest apprentices in the Dominion is a lad named H. Duncan, who is now being taught to ride work by A. Goodman at Trentham. This lad is only 11 years old and he_ weighs 4st 101 b. Duncan still lives with his parents and he goes to school daily. He is down on the tracks before _ school most mornings, riding the rising two-year-old Beauly to the course and then practising Tip and down the’centre of the course on a retired hack who can still muster up quite a lot of pace. At his present rate of progress it should not be long before he is riding in gallops. -

Tudor ... 12 0 11 13 — 11b Yalpeen Irish Comet 10 10 . 10 8 10 9 5 0 + 51b 221b Billy Boy ... 10 6 10 11 —■ 51b Allegretto ... Urination 10 10 0 0 10 2 10 10 z 21b 101b Polydora 9 9 10 8 — 131b Black Marlin 9 9 9 0 + 91b Don Erma ... 9 8 10 2 —. . 81b Palm 9 2 9 8 — 61b

Wgtn. Auck. Diff. Jolly Beggar 11 12 11 13 — lib Clarion Call 11 0 10 11 — 31b Tudor 10 13 11 3 — 41b Erination 10 6 10 10 + 41b Sandy Dix ... 10 4 9 9 + 91b Lord Val ... 10 4 9 161b Huskie 9 9 9 0.+ 91b Valpai 9 9 10 3 — 81b Tout le Monde 9 n 9 2 — 31b Ruafonn 9 4 9 9 — 51b Black Marlin 9 4 9 0 41 b Irish Comet 9 2 9 0 + 21b