SPORTING.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19845, 19 July 1926, Page 13

SPORTING.

RACING AND TROTTING. FIXTURES. August 7.—Poverty Bay Hunt Club. August 7, 11, lJ.—• Metropolitan irotting meeting August 10, 12, 14.—Canterbury J.C. August 21.—Pakuranga Hunt Club. August 25.—Egmont-Wanganui Hunt Club. August 23.—North Taranaki Hunt Club. September 1,2. —Marton J.C. September 4. —Otago Hunt Club. September 4.—Manawatu Hunt Club. September 9, 11. —Wanganuii J.u September 15.—Dannevirke R.C. September 16. —Dannevirke Hunt Club. September 18, 20. —Otnki-Mnon R.C. September 24 25.-Ashburton Comity R.C. September 24 , 25. —Napier Park R.C. September 25, 27.—Avondale J.C. September 30. October I.—Geraldine R.U. October 2.—Hawke’s Bay J.C. October 7.—Kurow J.C. October 7.—Masterton R.C. October 7, 9.—Whangarei R.C. October 9. —Oamaru J.C. October 14, 16. —Dunedin J.C. October 16.—Carterton R.C. October 16 20. Auckland 'irotting meeting. October 23, 25.— Wellington R.C. October 25.—Oamaru Trotting meeting. October 25.—Waikato Hunt Club. October 25—Weipawa County R.C. October 23, 25. or 25 27.—Wavcrloy R.C. October 25.—North Canterbury R.C. October 25, 27.—Gore R.C. . Odtober 28, 30.—Poverty Bay Turf Club. October 30.—Timaru Trotting meeting. October 30.—Banks Peninsula R.C. October 30 November I.—Thames J.C. November 2, 3—Cromwell J.C. November 3.—Birchwood Hunt Club. November 6, B.—Auckland R.C. November 6,8, 10, 13.— Canterbury J.C. November 9, 11 12.— Metropolitan Trotting meeting. _ , , .. November 26, 27.—Forbuvy Park meeting. A visit was paid to Wingatui on Saturday morning in the hope that something might be seen that would supply a line to th- Waimate Hunt and South Canterbury Hunt meetings. A slight tinge of frost was dispelled by the sun, but the tracks were in a very bad state. The outside of the course proper had been churned and chopped into a strong resemblance to a plough track, and trainers with horses engaged at" meetings to be held this week have been seriously handicapped in their ctiorts to get their horses ready to race. A fresh stretch of ground fringing the plough track was placed at the service of trainers with horses engaged this week, but the going was heavy, and funning along the back one could hear the noise of the gallopers extracting their feet from the deep going. An inspection of the tracks would convince anyone that the going is at present too deep and holding for sending a horse on fast work, and trainers with rising two-year-olds have to be exceptionally careful in ''hat "oik they allot their youngsters. As a mattcr of fact, they can merely give them little beyond exercise, and this state of alfairs a serious handicap to trainers with prospective winners of the M Lean Stakes in their mind’s eye. . , f There was a fairly large number of horses on the scene. Pink Note, looking big and lusty, did steady pacing, and 1 ink Terrace was treated to an easy task. Mr W. Quirk’s Kilbroney—l ot 1 omu youugster which is also in J. Ruttledge s stable, was exercised, and look® bright and healthy, but is not being bustled. Eaton Bells is being exercised, and has " 'street 1 Melody was allowed to run along the back, and covered five furlongs in Imin 7sec. She has come on well during the past few weeks. The Tractor —Jada youngster and the Sol ferine —Satisfaction gelding sprinted Three furlongs in 43 2-Ssec. A Sarto gelding in R. C. Reed s stable was allowed to sprint a couple of furlongs, and showed promise and sufficient specd to warrant him a chance in * ram ' ng ‘ . Cartoon and General Advance got through steady work, and Rapuna and Prompter did strong work over five fur out doing useful work Hanpv Days, Taboo, Tholomon, Dioxide, Red P Kriss, Bachelor Gay. Kipling, Incarsio Glencree, and several youngsters. Mr A. C. Cambridge was at Wingatui on Saturday morning, and Mated that although Rosenor is »' «7'^ h hf 1 j, being seriously trained, and there is very remote chance of the English t being raced at the Grand National m ing Monoxide is being exercised, but will nav p visit to Rosenor this season. Dioxfde, the sister to Monoxide, is m work again, and on looks fills the eye aa a much more likely sort than her elder relative Mr Cambridge has commissioned his English filly Noeline who is a daughter of Bethlehem, and hence the namfe. She is a raking big youngster, with an apparently very placid temper, as after working on Saturday she stood in her stall with a pelaaing unconcern of "hat "as coin" on around her. The English fill . who is a good hard grey in colour, is somewhat bulky in condition, and "ill probably require some little time to work hcrinto yyj'lkfna’s Tractor—Judd youngster is going on the right way. So far he iias not been named, and the suggestioi is made that Pulliau (to draw) would Re ,i suitable name Other names suitable for Tractor’s stock would be Impel, 1 idler, Drawing, Dragan. Haulage, Draggei, and, of course, other words suggestive of Pr Tho ll Solferino—Satisfaction gelding in C. Gieselcr’s stable is still unnam,ed and the suggestion is offered that Climax would be suitable. ... The going on the Wingatui tracks will have to improve considerably in order to alio local trainers to tune up horses with engagements at the Grand National m G^ l Feilding has recommissioned Comic Song, and has also Bonnie Winkie getting through easy tasks. On Saturday morning Galaxy "as schooled over four fences at Wingatui, and then continued on over the stand double. He dwelt a bit at the stand double, but would probably be keener at his fences if schooled in company. Bachelor Gay seems to have made a complete recovery from the mishap which put him out of commission. On Saturday he worked an easy circuit, and then seemed anxious to improve the pace when sent over another circuit. Kipling has been going on the right wav, and although asked to do a fair amount of racing this season S. G W are has kept him bright Mid healthy foi future engagements. General Advance continues to get through useful work, and is looking well at present. >. ' , . . . , The track conditions at ingatui hate been against schooling horses, but nevertheless R. M'Donald has been able to give Happy Days some acquaintance with the should strip a fitter horses this week than he did at the Dunedin winter meeting. . . - Mr W. Quirk has been negotiating lor a North Island handicap horse, but so far the deal has not come to fruition. The nominations for the Metropolitan Trotting Club’s meeting seem sufficient to guarantee good fields for each cai d on the programme. _ At the last meeting of the Canterbury Owners and Breeders’ Association, the secretary was instructed to write to the secretary of the Canterbury Park Trotting Club suggesting the advisability ol extending the false rail at Addington right round the inside of the track, i he committee considered that the false rail, as erected in front of tho jzrand stands (reports the Christchurch Tress), had proved a big success, but one extended the full distance would prove even a creator success if people who congrc'-Me on the inside of the track were kept back from the rails. This would bo in the interests of horsemen engaged in a race and also for tho benefit of spectators generally. Several members instanced the dangers' accruing from paper blowing across the track while tho horses were racing, and it was considered that this nuisance would be got rid of if the false rail were erected and wire netting placed on it. Civility is reported to he doing well in her preparation for the Winter Cup. At a meeting of the Canterbury Owners and Breeders’ Association hold last week, Mr W. J. Trist said that members were all disappointed that no discussion had been allowed at the Now Zealand Trottm" Conference on the proposal to allow of the Owners and Breeders* Associations of New Zealand represented at conference. Mr Trist considered that tho association should be entitled to representation, and that the Owners and Breeders’ Associations were composed of men who bad a thorough knowledge of the sport and of its requirements. He thought that the association was in a position at limes to offer vrrv valuable suggestions for the improvement of tho sport generally, as

the members were vitally interested in trotting, and in a different position from the maiority of members of clubs. He still had hopes that the constitution of the conference would be altered to allow of direct representation by the Owners and Breeders’ Associations of New Zealand- . „ , , The Metropolitan Trotting Club has rejected a proposal to pay out on three horses when there are 15 or more horses in a race. The idea was “turned down because it would give further facilities for pambing. Paying out on three horses has been a long-established custom both with the totalisator and bookmakers. ■ o back a horse for a win and a place is the only way which some shrewd punters will bet on a race. They do _so because it reduces the rick of a straight-out loss, and because if they miss a win they may at least save their stake. It is quite obvious that there is a better chance of picking a horse to pain a place instead of a straight-out win. and those who know racing best wouk sooner bet to a small profit than a big risk. Those who do so certainly last longer at the game than others who attempt to pick one for a straight-out -vin. The idea of paying out on three horses is considered by me, personally. a good one. but where there is a place machine the club should also provide a straight-out machine for those who prefer to bet (hat wav. When the I—2 dividend system was introduced it led to an increase in totalisator returns simply because the risk of losing became considerubl.V reduced. The introduction of the system of paying dividends on each ot tiie placed horses would certainly tend to bring a fresai increase to totalisator returns. Under the place betting a punter can go through a day’s racing without picking a winner and yet show a profit at the end of the card. No better proof of the groat reduction in the risk of loss could be made than by the above statement. The introduction of the thrcediorse dividend mifdit increase '.o totalisator turnover, but it docs not necessarily follow that the fact could bo taken as evidence of an increase in the gambling spirit which always has existed, and always will continue to exist. ... , Excellent progress is being made witn the improvements for accommodating the patrons of Wingatui on race days, but the fact remains that our local trainers are and with vow good reason, very much dissatisfied with the conditions under which they have been endeavouring to get horses ready for early engagements. The bad state of the track, is, of course, due to continuous bad weather, t and no one can be blamed because our climate is so versatile in its moods, but this fact has been obvious for many years, and hence the imperative necessity of providing a winter or wet-weather track at Wingatui in order to conserve what little grass galloping ground there is at our racing headquarters. At the present time the outside of the course proper hao been chopped and churned into a quagmire, and the inside grass does not furnish any better going. Wingatui stables have never been so strong as they arc at present, and yet at the same time our local trainers have hover been so badly off for training tx*acks. We have an unprecedentedly largo number of youngsters in work, but one can by no means envy the task and the groat disadvantage under which our trainers are placed in their efforts to get them ready to race. As a matter of fact, the mgatui tracks are not fit for fast work at the present time, and when they do dry up there will he a very limited space of ground to work horses until the plough gallop at some more or less remote period is brought into use. It must ho obvious that existing conditions arc anything but assisting Wingatui to become a popular training centre. Tf a winter track could be laid down it would save Hie grass gallops tremendously and help to keep them in order when required, but existing conditions have made the inside and middle of the course proper the only places where a horse could be spun out in a gallop, but this part of the course is taboo. It is for this reason that the writer would, in the best interests of racing and training at our racing headquarters, urge membeis of the club to conaider seriously the opportunity of p’acing more horse-owners on the committee. Ju other words, men who own horses and in the mutual interests of the club and themselves would not only strive to make Wingatui a popular’ racing rendezvous, but also a place where trainers can receive every possible opportunity to pet horses fit and ready to race. It is frequently stated that the club is in need of new blood. The members have an opportunity to say something in that direction and whether Wingatui is to become a training centre or our local owners will be forced to carry out a threat to send their horses elsewhere.