TROTTING

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22133, 11 December 1933, Page 13

TROTTING

By Sentinel.

The substantial increase in stakes made by the Forbury Park Trotting Club for the summer meeting has won widespread appreciation. The numerical strength of the nominations for the Winton Trotting Club’s meeting' means that good fields are assured. At one time acceptances decided the strength of a field, but nowadays there is no such thing as handicapping in.the correct sense of the term, as owners know where their horses will be placed. Trotting has never become firmly established m South Australia, and one of the reasons is the lack of betting facilities. Keen, workers in the interest of the sport have had a long battle to have this state of- affairs altered, and it seems they are at last to be rewarded for their efforts, as a Bill has been passed to provide a wider scope of market in the way of legalising bookmakers 1 to operate on a course or in. an office. > Soon after Ascot, a track, was opened for trotting, and to give the game a fillip, Mr C. Jdhuston, a'wellknown bookmaker, promised, £lO to the owner of the horse recording 2min lOsec. This sum was collected recently by. W. M‘Kay, owner-driver of Auburn Lad, who registered 2min 9i)sec. Mr Johnson has offered another £lO to the owner' of the horse that breaks the existing record. In accordance with a request made by the Canterbury Owners and Breeders’ Association, the Ashburton Trotting Club lias decided to. extend the date for receiving nominations for its summer meeting until to-day at 5 p.m. The date for declaring final forfeits for the New Zealand Champion Stakes has also been extended until to-day. . Events at the. Auckland Trotting Clubs summer meeting which promise to draw big fields are the .improvers’ races for pacers. There are 'at present a number of particularly smart ■ novices in Auckland, and it is not going to be easy to collect a stake. A few years ago there were no events for maidens on the summer programme, and it is questionable whether it was a good move on the part of the club to go so fat in loosening the limits as has been done, states the, Auckl and Star. , " A meeting of the Canterbury Owners and Breeders’ Association was held last week, Mr T. G. Fox presiding, over a full attendance. A further discussion about the Timani trotting track took place. It was resolved to send a dele-gate-to nieet the Timaru Club’s Committee and go fully into points raised in a previous letter to the club. It was decided to protest against any form of handicapping which included “temporary penalties, but to congratulate the Handicapping Committee on recent amendments instituted. The secretary was instructed to write to the New Brighton Trotting Club and the Hororata.Racing Club about lartm fields in their slow class races, and to suggest that these races should be run in two .divisions, as it was to start more than 30 horses off the, Same mark. The pooling of all betting on one machine was considered an improvement on the win and place system,, and members expressed appreciation of the action of those -dubs endeavouring to improve the betting, system. The further .reduction in stakes by the .Canterbury Park Trotting Club was unfavourably received, especially since some country clubs now px’ovided higher stakes than this club. A special general.meeting of members, called to amend the rules of the association, was held after the meeting, and several amendments . recommended by a sub-com-mittee -were adopted, the chief of which increased the membership of the Management Committee from 10 to 10. , ,