GENERAL NOTES

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XVIII, Issue 84, 21 March 1928, Page 2

GENERAL NOTES

Tlie Morris brothers, L. G. and B. H. were well to the fore at Trc»itham on Saturday, winning four of Hie eight races on Nucleus and Bright Glow, and Episode and King Midas respectively. Tioga got on to Alyson’s heels alter going about a furlong in the Hutt Handicap at Trenthani on Saturday, ami went right down on his nose. He lost some skin and was sore afterwards. R Reed escaped injury. * * » Farndon, the California gelding R. McMiken owns and trains at -i’c Kapa, has been refreshing his jumping education of recent times. Farndon won a race over the battens at Tanmariinui about Christmas time, but has done little since owing to sustaining a knock which has taken some time jo clear up. * Gala Day joined up with A. Tinker’s stable at Te Rapa last week. The (Juin Abbey Bell Crispin gelding is not doing any work at present and it is likely that lie will bo

given a spell before he again carries the colours of his new owner, Mr Clive Matthews, of Hamilton. * * « Lorna Doon, who was in a bad way from tetanus when her trainer, W. Woods, had her well forward a the early part of the season, later went to Hastings for veterinary attention'. The Lucullus—Lassie Doon filly has been a visitor to the track at Te Rapa of recent times, and will soon bo started on a serious preparation. * * * Paganelli will have his next racing at the Auckland Meeting at Easter. The Lord Quex —Ringdove gelding is regularly on the tracks at Te Rapa. Of recent times he has been uiven only sufficient work to keep him in trim to begin the serious business a little later on for the important campaign near at. hand.

Glena Bay has had an occasional tilt at the hurdles at Te Rapa. The Romeo —Martigues gelding has nor had a race for a long time, and it will probably be as a jumper that he will next lie seen in action.

Athcnry, who was injured while contesting the hurdles at the Waipa Meeting in December, has been in work again at Te Rapa for a few weeks. The -Mullingar chestnut has not completely got rid of the effects of his mishap, but they are gradually clearing off.

Ned Kelly had some schooling work over the jumps at Te Rapa last week. The Quin Abbey gelding, who won on the flat on fhe Taranaki circuit last month, may be taken to race at Whan; irei.

The name of the Auckland-bred mare San Patricia is found on the pedigree of an important winner in South Africa recently. High Society, who won the Transvaal Handicap (two miles) j s described as by Green Kite from Patrician, bv Greatorex from San Patricia. At two years old San Patricia won three races; under the colours of the late Mr G. G. Stead, and the chestnut mare was «übsequentlv sold to go to South Africa.

Statistics published bearing on the turf in the Gid Country last year show' that the amount given in stakes under Jockey Club rules was the highest in the history of the tnrj. viz.. £741.928 in England and £37,217 in Scotland, the previous highest having been in 1921. when the aggregates were respectively £723,211 and £30,761. The total distributed in Ireland for the period named was the lowest for many .rears, viz.. £63,967. which is much under the host on record —that of 1921. when the aggregate reached ! .035.

The Duke of Richmond, whose death was recently reported from England, owned the famous Goodwood racecourse. It was while the Duke was a steward of the English Jockey Club that the question of jockeys betting came up and w’hen some of the jockeys stated that they had to bet in order to get a Jiving, a rule was passed by the stewards of the Jockey Club ordering al] jockeys’ lees tq be paid at scale and another prohibiting jockeys from betting.

It is interesting to note that MarLarma (winner ot the Great Northern Derby) and Satrap (winner of the AeW’ Zealand St. Legcr) were included in a collection of seven yearlings sent up to auction from the Kinloch Stud by the late Mr J F. Buchanan, in the spring of 1925. Martarma was sold for 800 gns, but Satrap only realised 190gns.

’’Vedette,’’ in the “’Post,’’ comments on the race for the Trentham Gold Cup as follows: —Really, superlatives are necessary to comment on the race for the Gold Cup, and the result was a triumph for Star Stranger, his trainer, J. H. Jefferd. and R. Reed, his rider. To train a horse to rpn two miles in record time lor Australia and New Zealand is a teat of which any trainer may justifiably be proud. Moreover. Star Stranger surpassed records held by horses of the calibre of Spearfelt, Windbag, and Kennaquhair. Certainly the track was fast, but there was a cool and fairly strong southerly wind. Star Stranger showed himself brimful of courage, for when 11. Reed took up his whip a furlong from home the Martian gelding responded in a wonderful manner. The previous best time in the race. 3min ‘-4sec, stands to the credit of Warstep in 1915. Star Strangers 3min 22Jsec on Saturday is half a second better than the record for the distance in the Commonwealth and New Zealand. All honour must be naid to Satrap for the terrific speed he showed and to him is due much of the credit for Star Stranger’s «e--cord. , It must be confessed that Satrap’s St. Lcgor victory was not rated sufficiently highly here, and no is a letter three-year-old than ue thought. Any horse of that age capable of running half a mile in oJsec. six furlongs in Imin Joscc, mile in Imin 41 2-ssec. ten furlongs in 2mm 6 l-ssec, ami a mile and a-hali in 2min 31 l-ssec is something above the ordinary. Safrap’s owner. 31 r J. > Barrett, won this race last year with Count Cavour, and no <hmb| he J’.ouhl have wished his -rcen .imkei to bn to (h<» fore on St natriek s Day hut it' was not to be. T. M'‘tra|f obviously riding io instruecarried out his task faithfully. Rapier was tbo big disappointment. Hi* was hmm' kicked up.to his work and (’ Emerson at him with mile Io go. Rapier was under the whip to go on with Star Stranger after passing the half-mile post, but bo poiibl net go on. and Emerson wisely refrained from sub-

jecting him to unnecessary punishment. Wild Pigeon dropped out of the contest when the real business commenced.

The loss of Lord Star just when the jumping .season is approaching is a stroke of bad luck lor the Waikato owner-trainer, 11. Hannon, (states the “Sun.”) In the steeplechase at Paeroa on Saturday Lord Star was making his first appearance over country and he was made a good second favourite. It was stated that prior to the meeting the Lord Mul-tifi-gelding had not shaped at all well in a schooling task over the brush fences. In the race he did not last long and the first fence saw him come to grief. W. Rennie, his rider, escaped injury, but not so Lord Star, who broke a leg and a few minutes later he was destroyed.

The following horses were inadvertently omitted from the list of nomin atioiis for the Waipukurau meeting which appeared in our •yesterday’s issue:— Waipukurau Cup.—Lin Ailing ton, TanagraFlying Handicap.— Liu Arlington, Tanagra. A TRIO OF BIG WINNERS. In my notes last week (says “Phaeton ’ m the Auckland “Herald’’) I gave a list ol noteworthy Australian and New Zealand horses wiio raced under the colours of their respective breeders with their winnings in stakes. lam tempted now to give some figures relating to the largest amount of prize-money won by horses who were sold as yearlings m Australia for sums ranging from 1000 guineas upwards. The three leading hvrses ranged up at the head of the hst in that - category are: — Sold as Stakes Yearling. Won. Gns. £ Heroic, by Calais ... 1,860 38,062) Mantred, by Valais .. 1,400 28,830 Artilleryman, by Comedy King 1,000 17,833 In considering the racing careers of the three-hign-pnced horses mentioned above and their respective totals credited them Hl prize-money, it has to be recognised that but lor the untoward circunisances their respective winnings would have been considerably extended. In the case ol Heroic the unforunatc incident in his case came about when he became automatically disqualified for the V.R.t. Derby, Melbourne Cup, V.R.C. St. Leger. and A.J.C. St. Leger as a result of his owner being ruled out over the Purser case. Had Manfred not developed an ungovernable temper, there can be little doubt that he would have put up a rreat record. Aritlleryman’s career closed at three years old. and an incurable internal ailment carried him oft at a year older. THE DISTANCE QUESTION. Periodically the cry. “Build up the distances,” is heard in the land, and once again pointed reference is made to the preponderance of sprint events on present-day programmes. Jn Melbourne proprietary racing clubs, it is argued, are to a large extent responsible for the cultivation of sprint racing, and a strong demand is voiced that there should lie an alteration. In the course of a spirited article dealing with the much-discuss-ed question the Melbourne “Leader” remarks:—“The whole ot the blame, however, does not rest with the proprietary clubs. The leading racing bodies in Victoria and New South W ales have of recent years been steadily reducing distances, panicularly in the weiglit-for-age races. The Champion Stakes, which was once next in importance to the Melbourne Cup, has become a thing of the past. It was run over three miles. The race was replaced by the King's Plate, which is run ovv a mile less than the Champion Stakes. The Governor s Plate, which replaced the Lodi Plate, had two furlongs chopped oft the journey. The Essendon Stakes shared a similar fate, as the distance was a few years ago reduced from a and a-ha If to a mile and a-quarter. That hardly suggests giving encouragement to stayers. The A.J.C., however, is just a s much blameworthy as the V.R.C. in that matter. They. too. have reduced the distances of their long weight-for-age races. There is now no weight-for-age race at Flemington and Randwick comparable with the Ascot Gold Cup in England, which is run over two miles and ahalf. That is regarded a s the supreme test of stamina in England. The longest "eight-for-ace race in Australia is only two miles and a-quarter.’’