HARRIER NOTES

New Zealand Times, Volume LII, Issue 12199, 25 July 1925, Page 17

HARRIER NOTES

ON THE CHAMPIONSHIP COURSE \ (By “Pacemaker.") TO-DAY’S CLUB EVENTS. Brooklyn.—Club championship, at Hutt Park. Hutt Valley.—At Hutt Park. T Olympic.—Teams’ race, at Lyall Bay. Scottish.—Club championship, at Hutt Park. . Wellington.—Club championship, at Miramar. COMING EVENTS. August 1. —Wellington provincial chamHutt Park. August 15m. —N.Z. championship, at Dunedin. August 22nd.—Dome Cup, at Hutt Park. August 29th.—Australian-New Zealand championship, at Hutt Park. The sealed handicap usually held in conjunction with the provincial cham?ionship has been abandoned this year. n order to encourage the “B" grade runners a “B” grade championship is to be held. Silver medals are to be provided for the winning team. The newly-formed Wanganui Club will take part m the provincial championship, but owing to their being under the West Coast Centre they will bo running as individuals. In the event of one of their members winning the race he cannot hold the title. GRUELLING RACE AT HUTT The club championship of the Olympic Club was held last Saturday over the. Australian-New Zealand championship course of 61 mile 3. The trail, which was laid bv the Hutt Valley Club, was very hard to follow in places. The result of the race was a triumph of age and experience over youth. The club’s star uerformer, Peter Wilson, was a non-slarler. In the Vossler shield race he ran several miles in >his bare feet, and as the resalt he (had to undergo-a slight operation.

The race itself developed into a duel between those two old war horses, Bill Scatchard and Jack Perston, who were in fine forjn Neither man was able to shake the other off, and both reached t*e Hutt Park together. Then began one of! the most gruelling finishes ever seen m a harrier race in Wellington. Over the last half-mile the two raced neck and ' neok. Two hundred yards from home Perston forged ahead, but Scatchard hung to him like a leech, and in the last few yards made an almost superhuman, effort, and won by about two yards. Smith, who finished third, was over naif a mile away, closely followed by Ormrod* Lankshear, Workman, and Lovatt. NOTES ON CLUB RUNS . Members and supporters of the Wellington Club went out to Trentham last Saturday, where the race for the Old Boys' Memorial Shield was held vrer a course of 41 miles, comprising part of the steeplechase., course and part crosscountry. The scratch man, Ray Watson, was conceding starts up to Si minutes* and ran into second Rlace, about , 350 yards behind the winner. After his- recent illness, his run, if the time (27mm 96seo is correct, was a very fine one. He should have little trouble in winning the club championship to-day. C. White, the first man home, made good use of .liia handicap. 3min 40§ec, and won comfortably The evergreen Fred Harlen filled third place. Twenty-seven runners started in the Hntt Club's championship. The re&ult was a fairly easy win for R. Kent in the good time of 38min 27sec. G. Dome, the second man, was about 150 yards behind Kent, with J. McKee about 250 yards further back, third. The next to finish were A. Borne, J. Hutton, and Smith. The six members mentioned will probably comprise the club's A team for the provincial championship. A sealed handicap run ip. conjunction with the championship was won by J. Butler. To-day a training run will be “held over the championship course. The Hutt Club should be able to run blindfolded. The town clubs will have had only one. run over the course prior tp provincial day, and in this respect the Hutt Club Have a decided advantage.