TROTTING NOTES

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23491, 4 May 1938, Page 17

TROTTING NOTES

By Sentinel Omitted from Acceptances Joe Carbine (scr) was omitted from the Oamaru Trot acceptances for the first race. A Special Train A special train will run from Dunedin in connection with the Oamaru Trotting Club’s meeting to be held on Saturday next. An Interesting Race One of the most interesting races on to-day’s card at Addington will be the Westland Handicap, in which the American Bing Crosby, Fremont and Starwyn are engaged. At Addington Under favourable weather conditions there will be some great racing at Addington to-day. A private report states that there is a doubt as to the weather.

Peggotty Peggotty is a perfect trotter, but for some reason will not be allowed to wipe off the stain on her reputation by going to a break after establishing herself as the poetry of trotting motion. A Blot

It is a matter of regret that the one and only great blot on the championship meeting is the pocket bellowing that followed U. Scott’s win. It also shows an unpardonable lack of control about the definition of gear.

A Strong Hand Mr G. J. Barton will have a strong hand for the Auckland Handicap in Bittersweet, Golden Eagle, and Great Admiral. Another strong bracket Will be made by Captain Bolt and Wahnooka. Sea Gift

Sea Gift will have to step along from a 96 yard mark in the Auckland Handicap to get amongst the money. Captain Bolt, on the front with a 4.36 handicap, went 4min 31 2-ssec, and Sea Gift is giving him 96 yards. Cantata

They say that Cantata was backed for the Gloucester Park Handicap as if the resulting numbers had already been hoisted. She shot away to win in 2min 46 l-ssec, and is on a 4.33 mark in the Wellington Handicap.

Lucky Jack Lucky Jack has 11 horses in front of him in the Interdominion Championship, but if it is a fast run race from end to end his chance may not prove so hard as it looks on paper. Good Wishes

The best horse on the day should gather the fruits of success, but everyone would like to see an Australian or Auckland horse pick up a good stake at Addington to-day. The reason why Auckland is included rests on the fact that it costs as much to bring a horse from Auckland as it does from Australia. Frisco Lady

Frisco Lady misbehaved at the post on the first day of the championship meeting but she may do better to-day. This season she has ’ won twice and been five times placed in 15 starts. In her last winning effort Frisco Lady won at Wellington in 2min 43 2-ssec from King’s Play, Bonny Azure and others and may be worthy of note for the Canterbury Handicap. U. Scott

U. Scott spoilt his chance in his first two races at the championship meeting by misbehaviour at the post. It looked odds on that he would do so when the fields were called into line. He went away in his next race and won, and will take a power of beating if he behaves himself at the start of his race to-day. At Oamaru

The Oamaru Trotting Club’s meeting to be held on May 1 has attracted an excellent list of acceptances, supplying more than ordinary interest because the form displayed should shed some light on what is likely to happen at Forbury Park during the following week. Compensation

The Metropolitan Trotting Club has been extremely unfortunate in striking bad luck in the way of weather and so preventing the championship meeting from being the greatest light harness gathering ever staged in the southern hemisphere. The club is not only deprived of the chance of staging a great sporting spectacle according to the original idea, but it has taken the risk of a large financial responsibility and as some compensation those in control should give the club another championship meeting as soon as possible, and without waiting for the usual routine of allotment. This would no doubt be readily agreed on by all the clubs concerned in promoting the welfare of light harness racing. Shadow and Substance

The idea of giving a prize to the horse in the lead with a lap to go in the final of the Championship may tempt some to catch the shadow and miss the substance. A horse in the lead with a lap to go may have to make a run to get there, and it may possibly mean that the run will have to be continued for the next six furlongs in order to hold a front position or else take the risk of getting boxed. It would suit Berry with two strings to his bow in the shape of Parisienne and Lucky Jack, and both horses would be suited by a solid pace, which possibly would tell against Supertax. Berry could thus take the risk of setting the pace and catching the lap prize, as he would have Lucky Jack waiting for the business end of the journey. The front markers will have to set a solid pace, lap prize or no lap prize, because a slow pace would be suicidal and play into the hands of Supertax with his final burst of speed. Providing a lap prize really means making two races out of one, and any reinsman holding the opinion that he can get the thick end of the purse will use commonsense and ignore the fact, that a comparatively small stake goes to the horse winning a race six furlongs from home. In other words, a lap prize is a waste of money.

Good Prospects Good prospects exist for the unfortunately prolonged championship meeting being brought to a conclusion today. It is a matter of great regret that it could not have been brought off on the original dates and under favourable weather conditions. Even under the most adverse conditions sufficient has been accomplished to establish Addington as the light-harness hub of the southern hemisphere. Addington stands alone with its track and stand accommodation, and no more suitable place could be found where a championship meeting could be staged, providing the fields are kept within a reasonable size, and not, as in the present case, with too many on or near the front and so doubly handicapping the back-markers. Under similar circumstances horses capable of developing marks near the speed limit will find themselves on the back marks, and so with a very remote chance of gaining championship honours. That must be obvious to anyone giving a moment’s thought to the matter. The word championship is absolutely superfluous and meaningless when it is attached to a race where an Indianapolis is asked to give 60 vards away in a mile and a-half race, and incidentally wend his way through 11 horses spread over the track in front of him. It would be impossible to got satisfactory fields on the free-for-all basis, but bearing in mind about the golden rule of giving away distance in a race, the fields should be brought to-gether as much as possible. There seems to be only one way of bringing such a desirable state of affairs about, and that is to group the fields according to class and in divisions so that the backmarkers will be giving away as little ground as possible until it comes to the final. The Interdominion Championships will do mor« to elevate the tone of the light-harness racing and giving breeding a greater filip than 10 years of ordinary handicap racing could achieve. It should be a great spur to ambition to own a really good horse and supply the incentive to breed or

buy a real racehorse and by their superlative merit completely eliminate the coach horse from the race track by proving that it is a wai.te of time and money to bring them there. Then we would have something like a real racing spectacle and not the all-too-common sight of seeing fields spread over a furlong or two before a race is half over.