NOTES BY PHAETON.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20958, 22 August 1931, Page 9

NOTES BY PHAETON.

PRESENT STEEPLECHASERS. NO OUTSTANDING PERFORMERS. CHAMPIONS OF THE PAST. The pronounced falling 1 away in tlie steeplechase division in Jvaw Zealand is on all hands recognised, and apparently it can be regarded as quite certain that some time ! will elapse before the Dominion will be j able to claim horses up to the standard of The Asv.nfc, Canard, Clarence, Chemist. Norton, Mutiny, Levanter. The Guard. Kiatere. Corazon and Coalition, all of whom were champions in their day. The hunting field no doubt, still plays an important part in connection with cross-country racing, and, bearing in miun the assistance and enj couragement which New Zealand hunt clubs receive, this ha* to be counted upon in considering the question. But evidently something still further is required to bring: abou' a proper increase in the number of noteworthy cross-country horses. With highly-bred stallions strongly in evidence in the Dominion, the quality of the steeplechase division should certainly be raised. Tha hreeders do not special!? shape s, course for the breeding of steeplechasers is a generally-admitted fact. and. with peopli ■ -Si inclined to chance anything in that line, it would seem that, the steeplechase question will continue to be very much invested with the element of luck. New Zealand's experience on this steeplechase question is the same as that in Australia. The Commonwealth cannot now boast of horses either in number or quality anything like up to the standard of the pasL Indeed, the mediocre character of the cross-country performers there is such as to arrest attention, for it has to be remembered Australia occupies a prominent place in the extent of its operations in horsebreeding. AMMOST ISA AT TH3EE YEAES. SUCCESS AT FIRST START. By scoring an easy victory in his initial engagement at three years old Ammcn Ra, who can be referred to aa New Zealand's chief hope in the Australian Jockey Club's Derby, must be accounted to have furnished pointed evidence of being early ready for the fray. The race won by the bay son of i Limond at the fioisehill meeting last Satur- | day extended only to sis furlongs, but he j beat a field cf 14 opponents, and, as he coni ceded lib. and a year in age to Legislator, ! the performance can be regarded as highly satisfactory, far the runner-up wound uo at three years old with three successive wins, Ammcn Ra is engaged in the Hobartville ! Stakes, seven furlongs, to be run next Saturday, and he also figure® in +he Resell ill Guineas, nine furlongs, which comes up for decision on September 13. In view of his Derby engagement, it goes without saying that a very keen interest vriil be centred in his form in those races. PHAE LAP IST FORM. LIKELY TO RACE TO-DAY. | Some little time &so it was suited that 1 Phar Lap would not be raced again until the Australian Jecke7 Club's meeting came r-sind in October, but, according: to recent advices, the champion may figure among the starters in the Underwood Stakes at the Vfillianistown meeting to-day. This race is run aver a mile at standard weigh t-for-age. Water line, v.-ho defeated Phar Lap in, the C. M. Lloyd Stakes at Flemingtea last March, is also engaged, but he has a very different task before him. for he bad 2i!b. the best of it compared with Phar Lap, whereas in to-day's race he will meet the champion at even weights. AMERICA'S BIG- WINNERS. NEW RECORD ESTABLISHED. The record put up by Gallant Fox in the United States last year was not allowed to stand for long A recent cablegram announced a victory on the part of the veteran Sua Beau in the rich Arlington Handicap, and this success raised his winning tctai to £66,000. Gallant Fox's j captures in prise-money amounted to j £55,000, and then, comes Zev'a record of i £62,727. In connection with the sum credited to Zev, it haa to be stated that £25,000 represented the proceeds of his match with the English Derby winner Papyrus. STUD ITEMS. THE BREEDING PROBLEM. The Stud Book gives many illustrations S of extraordinary results. Horses witn j sterling records cn the racetourse have j proved most disappointing as sues, wmJe dorses of small account as racenorses have won a good place. La pursuing the interesting siudy an authority on the thorougiibred lamily wrote the lollowmg in London Sporting Life:—"A stayer without a turn ox speed seldom proves to be a successful stallion, whereas horses sucli as Bend Or, whose limit was one and a-haii miles—but very good at that—make successes beyond all ques ion. We have seldom seen finer stayers than Merman, Torpoint. White Knight and Wiiicnys, but what good did they do as stallions ?" IRISI DERBY WINNER. The Irish Derby decided at the Curragh j last raontn was won by Sea Serpent, a i chestnut colt by Golden Myth from Sea- j bloom a daughter of Spearmint, eon of i Carbine. The interesting ' feature in the j pedigree of Sen Serpent is the m-breeding to the Beno Or line. Golden Myth is by j Tredenms, son ul Kendal and grandson of > Bend Or. while Marah Marigold, the grand- j dam en the dam's side, is by Bend Or. j I GERMAN-BRED LUCULLUS. The fact of Luculius having been bought j in England for 25 guineas for transportation > to New Zeaian ' has always invested'the j stud career of the German-bred horse with ! much interest. Although Luculius was a j conspicuous failure as a racehorse, his | record as a sirf i well in advance of many horses who were extensively extolled. Up to the present the progeny of Luculius have won prize-money ti the atnount of £126.266. and the figure* involved are such as to arrest attention for the black horse has been required to make a name for himself under conditions that were not altogether advantageous. HORSES OF THE GREY SHADE, Grey racehorses are numerous in England nowadays, but m a history of the Racing Calendar and Stud Book, recently published, it is revealed that the colour named nearly became extinct in England. It is said that but for ihe importation of the Frenchbred Bire Roi Herode in 1310 by the late Mr. Kennedy, of Ireland, there would have been very few grey brood mares left. Roi Herode's proeenv popularised the colour. BALBOA AS A SIRE. _Balboa, who bad the parentage of a Grand National Steeplechase winner credited to him when Snowfall led the field home at Biccarto, last week, has acquitted himself well as a sire even <n the face of not beinjr advantageously placed. During the season of 1925-30 Balboa's progeny won stakes to the value of £6350. but last season they battered tin. previon. record by capturing £BB7O. Balboa, who was got by Varco. a grandson of unbeaten Barcaldine, proved himself a racehorse, for he iron the New Zealand Derby and Auckland Cup, and was thus included among the stayers. THE ST SIMON LINE. Another success In an important steeplechase event wa" credited to a horse tracing to the *!:. Simon line when Acceleration brought ofi a surprise victory in the Australian Steeplechase run at CaulSeld on August 8. Acceleration is by Demolition, a son of San Francisco who was by St. Simon. TROTTING FIXTURES. August 23—Auckland Trotting Club. September s—New Brighton Trotting Club. September 12—Wellington. Trotting Club.