RACING NEWS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22628, 20 July 1935, Page 19

RACING NEWS

By Sentinel.

A Note of Nominations Nomination!! for the Christchurch Hunt meeting are due to-day. Facts or Form Some horses appear to be handicapped on suspicion rather than on facts of form. Nominations Nominations are due to-day for the M’Lean Stakes, Champagne Stakes, and Dunedin Guineas. The Val Brigade Valpeen and Prince Val have been treated to an easy time since arriving at Riccarton. ’ A Change The Lord Quex filly Disguise, formerly trained by P, T. Hogan at Timaru, is now with 11. Dunn and worked at Riccarton. A Good Schoolmaster Punchestown is amongst the horses schooling well at Riccarton. He acted as schoolmaster to Free Air, Starlight, and Burglar on Wednesday. Strength to Stable , The four-year-old gelding Chancellor has arrived at Addington in order to carry Mr G. J- Barton’s polours for future engagements. Not a Surprise It was *not surprising. to _ find Graball struck out of the Grand National Steeples on the. appearance of the weights. Both he and Royal Limond have about a stone the worst of weights on racing merit. New Blood Cricket Bat is again getting ready tor strong work at Riccarton. He is a lusty stallion whose racing merit might have been improved considerably by using the knife on him. In one way he holds only a. comparatively small attraction as a breeding proposition because new blood spells success in breeding. Fact and Fancy Contradictory reports are published, in the north concerning Aladdin. It ia a fact that he was with the leaders when he tipped out on the final day at Trentham and apparently going well. Aladdin may yet fulfil his early promise when he loomed up as one well over the ordinary in the ranks of hurdlers.

An Idea Nominations for classic events usually close , prior to'the start of a season. It might be’ worthy of consideration to close nominations fpr the Hazlett. Gold Cup at the same time as the. other events run at Wingatui at classic weights. Another idea in connection with the Hazlett GoW Cup is to frame similar, conditions to those attached to the King’s Gold Cup in Australia, such as a 9.7 maximum and a 7>7 minimum.' The idea is to attract a better and more interesting field than :ould be obtained under the weight-for-age scale with penalties attached. _ . An Unwarranted Increase

When a horse runs a bad race, why should he receive ,an increase of weight under whicTi a most pronounced failure has occurred? Royal Limond failed, and failed badly at Trentham, and . yet has rceived an increase of weight, in the Grand National Steeples. Royal Limond may win at Riccarton, but, nevertheless, holds a most remote. chance on paper. For instance, why should be he asked to meet Ruby Meteor on worse terms than at Trentham?

The Short Stirrup The ,Rules of Racing supply power to compel a rider to lengthen his leathers, but. it would be the greatest mistake in the world to order a rider to change his length after mounting a horse in the birdcage—probably, the first time that a steward has seen the rider —or near —a saddle. Such an abrupt change could not be considered wise. The' right idea would be for an official to visit the training tracks and criticise a seat when riding work takes place. If a stage manager requested a singer to sing basso (low) instead of alto (high, or riding in the air) as the curtain was rising.it would be considered a ridiculous request. So it would be with racing.

A- Satisfactory Season The annual report of the Southland Racing Club states that for the first time since 1924 both race meetings showed a profit, the return for the summer meeting being £Bll 8s 5d and for the winter meeting £145 17s Ud. This gave a total for the two" meetings of £957 6s 4d to be carried forward to revenue account as against last year’s net return of £279 7s 3d and £375 11s 9d in 1933. After adding amounts received from members’ subscriptions, rents, - rebates and training fees, and deducting the expenses of administration together with depreciation on buildings and plant, the year’s working shows a profit of £154 17s 2d as against a loss of £555 6a 3d last year, and £490 15s 6d in 1933.

A Hoi Pot In commenting on the V.R.C.Grand National. Hurdles, “Chiron,” in the Australasian, said Full Charge appeared to have the race at his mercy. Like many other horses- which have in the past appeared to be certainties on paper, he proved anything hut a certainty on the racecourse. Full Charge started the hottest favourite in of the race, but he‘did not get past the first hurdle. Fifty-two Grpnd National Hurdle Races have been run at Flemington, and Full Charge has been the only favourite to start at odds on. The first ,*Grand National' Hurdle Race winner, Sir Peter, started favourite at 6 to 4, and in later years Soult and Rahda were 0 to 4 favourites, but failed. Until this year the shortest price accepted about a Grand National favourite was 5 to 4, which was the quotation for Sheet Anchor in 1885 and again in 1886, but he failed on both occasions. After failing in the Grand National Hurdle Race in 1885 Sheet Anchor went on and won the Melbourne Cup tjie following spring, when in a close finish he defeated Grace Carling and Trenton. The Grand National Hurdle Race has been anything but s good race for favourites, as only seven have been successful, viz.. Sir Peter, Malua, Apsley Pat (equal favourite with Reindeer), Clontaft, Berrinbo, and Mosstrooper.

Blind and Bumped Describing the V.R.C. Grand National Hurdles, “ Chiron ” said as they ran out of the straight it was seen that Healy was riding Full Charge as he ‘did in his previous races. He had him at the tail end of the field, and the horse vras running along with his tucked almost between his knees. Why Healy should have ridden him in that way is

beyond understanding, because there was nothing to be gained by having him so far back when the pace was slow. He might just as well have been running along quietly near the leaders. , I think Full Charge was surprised when he came to the hurdle, and did not see it until the last moment. The result was be jumped high, landed awkwardly, and jolted Healy from the saddle. The crowd gasped when it realised that the hottest Grand National Hurdle Race favourite on record was out of- the race almost before it had begun. I suppose when jockeys as snort as many of them are allowed to do to-day such things will continue to happen. That, however, is poor consolation to those who lost their money on Pull Charge. The stipendiary stewards have the power to order any jockey to alter the length of his stirrups to their satisfaction, but I have yet to hear of a rider in a jumping race being ordered to let down his stirrups. If it were done we might not see so many riders both over hurdles and fences leave the saddle as they often do when a horse lightly touches an obstacle.