SPORTING NOTES.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XX, Issue 2339, 31 January 1893, Page 2

SPORTING NOTES.

[Trident.]

Owners are reminded that acceptances fall due on Wednesday (to-morrow) evening for the following races in connection with the Egmont Summer Meeting : — Waimate Handicap (1 soy), First Handicap Hurdles ,(3 soys), Egmont Handicap (2 soys), Hawera Welter Handicap (1 soy). The first acceptance (10s.) for Sires Hack Produce Stakes, of 200 soys., to be run at Hawera in February, 1895, is due on the 11th February. The nominations for this event amounted to 137, so that there is almost certain to be a long acceptance list. Weights for the Flying Handicap will not be declared till the evening of the first day's races. This will do away with the penalising clause, which has hitherto been in vogue with regard to this race. The handicapper will have the form of the horses engaged before his eyes, and he will thus most likely make a more equitable adjustment than if he had to declare his handicap, as , has previously been done, before the first day's racing had eventuated. A larger field will, no doubt, be secured, and this will be beneficial to the club financially.

Weights for the First Hack Hurdle and First Hack Flat Eace will b declared on Saturday next. The paucity of the nominations fo some of the events to be competed for a the coming Egmont Meeting was a matte for surprise to most people who take a; interest in racing. Is one of the secon< batch of nominations have come up t last year's, and for the two-year-oli events the outlook is not at all assuring That there should have been only tw entries (one of which has since beei scratched) for the Sapling Stakes of 6 soys was a staggerer, while those for th Nursery Stakes, which is run for on th second day of the races, is not mucl better. These two events have hithert been well represented by owners, and i was not thought that there would hay been such a falling off on this occasion which will entail a financial loss to th club on these two races. Surely ther ought to be a few good two-year-old somewhere about the district. What ar owners thinking about to allow such ; chance to slip through their lingers P ! have been told that a well known Hawke Bay sporting man overlooked the date o entry, and thus missed the chance o nominating. This is to be regretted The nominations for the hack events ar however, pretty good, and somewha compensate for the falling off in th< other events, but even these do not com< up to previous records, as the f ollowinj will show : — 1892. 1893 First Hack Hurdles ... 14 12 Second Hack Hurdles ... 14 12 First Hack Flat ... 31 26 Second Hack Flat ... 26 16 Nursery Handicap ... 9 4 Sapling Stakes ... 9 2 103 72 On the whole, the nominations are in excess of those for last Summer Meeting, and the club need have no fear as to the financial result of the coming races. Last year the total nominations amounted to 250 ; this year they total up 269, made up thus : — Egmont Handicap 31 Waimate Handicap 25 Flying Handicap 30 Atkinson Memorial Stakes ... 35. Normanby Stakes 28 Welter Handicap 16 First Handicap Hurdles ... 16 Second Handicap Hurdles ... 16 Sapling Stakes 2 Nursery Handicap 4 •Firsfc Hack Flat 26 Second Hack Flat 16 First Hack Hurdles 12 Second Hack Hurdles 12 269 Among the local turfites, training operations are in full swing, seventeen tickets having been issued up to the present date. In the course of a few days visitors will be arriving on the scene of operations, and then the training track will be lively enoughs Numerous horse boxes have already been secured at the different stables in the town, and all the available private boxes are being inquired after and taken. It'is generally thought that there will be a big meeting at Egmont, and no doubt a record will be established. At any rate, the buyers of the privileges displayed a large amount of confidence on , Saturday last when they were disposed of. A whole host of visitors, it is said, may be expected from Auckland ; the, racing folk from the northern city roll up in good numbers at Egmont. I was not surprised at Frftternite's name being struck out of the Egmont Handicap. The Dauphin's son was none too well treated.

The Wellington correspondent of the Referee makes an error when he states that Melas is an entire brother to Vendor. This is not so. Melas is by Armourer ; Vendor being by Resolution. I am told that Vendor is to be put into work again. Beget, who is nominated for Egmont races, is reported to hare gone amiss.. The son of St. Leger was thought good ' enough to be nominated for the New* market Handicap.

The ex-Taranaki hack mate Sirins was harshly treated by the Nelson handicapper. She was placed third on the list in the Nelson Cap, and was asked to. give weight to Retina, the "Wellington Cup winner. , Retina has been shipped to Christchurch, in order to fulfil her engagements at the Christchurch Summer meeting. She will not run at Nelson.