RACING NEWS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22518, 12 March 1935, Page 4

RACING NEWS

By Sentinel. Nominations Nominations for. the Waimate and South Canterbury meetings will be taken on Friday, March 22. Easter Meetings The programmes for the Tuapeka and Beaumont Jockey Clubs' meeting, on Easter Saturday and Easter Monday repectively, have been circulated. Nominations in each case close on March 29. Awapuni Fields The Manawatu Racing Club looks like having an exceptionally good meeting. This, at any rate, is a reasonable assumption from the very strong list of nominations. They represent all parts of the North Island, Auckland supplying some good material, while the presence of the Riccarton contingent will add to the interest. Chopin Retired Chopin has given hie last; public performance. In future he will lead an • adagio existence on the property of his owner, Mr W. J. Wood, at Waipawa. Mr Wood bred several other horses from Tuneful —Irish Melody, Minstrel Boy, and Sweet Chimes, but none was such a good racehorse as the honest Chopin.. Schooling Tasks Fleeting Glance (G. Barr), who had not jumped eince August, was given a round of the schooling hurdles on Friday, and gave a sparkling display. She ' has done a good deal of strong work on i the fiat, and not' much will be required ! of her to bring her up to racing form. : Battle Queen also was schooled by G. Barr, being followed by. Royal Amphora, with J. Wadley up. Both these novices . gave satisfying exhibitions. Rangitikei's Success The stewards of the Rangitikei Racing Club were highly pleased with the euccess of Wednesday's meeting. Early in ' the day it was evident that the attendance was going to be large, as- the supply of race books was sold out. The gate ! takings totalled £7O 4s more than last "i year's. . The totalisator forged ahead ' steadily all day; and finished £2189 in t front —an increase of just over 50 per cent.

T. R. George'* Stables T. R. George has increased his team at Trentham beyond the score mark by the addition last week of Debut, a four-year-old gelding by Diacquenod—Avola, owned by the Messrs Smith brothers, and an unnamed three-year-old filly by Whirlwind—Bon Chic, owned by Mr W. Higgins. The Bon Chic filly was previously in work for A time under J. P. Coyle at Awapuni,. but she ha s not yet been seriously tried. Australian Cup Winner Sylvandale, who cost 550 guineas as a yearling is by Silvius,, a young sire by Polymelus from Addenda (half-sister to Pretty Polly), by Spearmint from . Admiration. Silvius raced in Australia for; two seasons, proving himself a brilliant and consistent performer. He won several races in South Australia, and on his transfer to Melbourne he won the Moonee Valley Cup, also two weight-for-age events, the Melbourne Stakes and the C. B. Fisher Plate, while he was second to Trivalve in the Melbourne Cup. In his first stud season he sired Braeburn, winner of the Queensland Derby and Queensland Cup. La Bergonette, the dam of Sylvandale, is by Poor Boy (son of Perth 11, a great Preach stayer) from Strathglass, by Isinglass from Hush, the dam also of Eaton Lad, a successful sire in Australia a few years ago. The Name of Tybalt The reason why the name of Tybalt was given -the Romeo —Akahau five-year-old-gelding who has recently won three races in the north is provided by a correspondent (" Brooklyn "), who writes- thatTybalt is the name of one of the characters in Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet." Reference to the .play shows that this is correct. Tybalt was oue of the Capulet family, and according to Dr Brewer there is an allusion in the name to " cats," who in earlier times were often called Tybalts. In the play Mercutio says: " Tybalt, you rat-catcher, will you walk? " and again, .when Tybalt asks, "What wpuldst thou have with me?" Mercutio answer', "Good king of cats! Nothing but one of your nine lives."

Centralisation of Racing Although opposed to the idea of the centralisation of racing, the English turf critic A. J. Sari, better known to more than one generation of racegoers as " Larry Lynx," predicts in his recent book of reminiscenes, " Horses, Jockeys, and Crooks," that it will have to come. Mr Sari points out that the public will not patronise inconveniently situated racecourses to witness indifferent sport, and adds: —"I have always said that if a racecourse could be laid down in Hyde Park, and it was managed on up-to-date lines, not only Londoners would flock to it, but people from places within a radiu s of 100 miles. Racing in big centres is always an attraction. At places inaccessible it will never catch on. People would not go there if they were taken there free, gratis, and for nothing. . . . Still, variety, is charming, we have always been told. Racing in this country has never been a cut-and-dried sport. Half the charm would vanish if every track was built to schedule. Also the 'horses for courses' theory would be completely washed out. That would not do at all. . . . Horses that win at Epsom and* Brighton often don't win anywhere else." Riccarton Track Work The mbst noteworthy contribution to the proceedings at Riccarton on Saturday morning jvas that of Nightly and Silver, Ring, who went together on the plough for six furlongs. They kept together, and Nightly was doing at least as well as his chestnut companion when they cut the line in lmin 15 4-ssec. The first furlong took 12 4-ssec, and the first three 37sec. Both horses moved very freely, and those meeting them at Trentham will find them very hard to beat. Other gallops on the plough track that can be recorded were Variant and Hostis, a mile, with feather--.-eights up, in lmin 45sec; Heather Glow six furlongs in lmin 16 4-osee, the first three in 37 2-ssec; Fair Weather and Jolly Beggar lmin 17sec over the same ground. Knowledge led Gay Crest and Greek Shepherd by two lengths until well into the straight, but the others beat him home in lmin 17 3-ssec, after the first three furlongs had been cut out in 38sec. Owlsgleam and Hororata took lmin 18 3-ssec, and 37 3-osec for the first three. Quietly ran half a mile in 57 3-ssec, well. Haere Tonu beat Jerry Boy by three lengths over seven furlongs in lmin 31 l-ssec, the first half-mile in 50 2-ssec. Polydora had Land Raid as companion over five furlongs to record lmin 5 1-osec.