IN A NUTSHELL

Otago Witness, Issue 3768, 1 June 1926, Page 58

IN A NUTSHELL

The first race at Wingatui will start at 11 a.m. each day. The Wellington Winter meeting will be held on July 6,8, and 10. Sun Up will probably start favourite in the Tradesmen’s Handicap. Mr A. S. Cambridge will not have his colours in evidence this week. Tommy Dodd and Los Ambus were shipped to Melbourne on Monday. The Deucalion-Sun Up double has been backed down to a short price. Hurdy Gurdy is galloping well in his work, and acts well in soft going. The imported Bridge may be raced at the Dunedin Winter meeting. Tione is rounding up well, and has thickened out during the past few weeks. He is also going fairly well in his work. Buoyant is hitting out well in his work, and seems to be quite at home when acting in soft going. Miss Winkie has been doing good work on the track, and is expected to run a great race in the Tradesmen’s Handicap. J. Kuttledge has Eaton Bells and Pink Note fit and well to race in their engagements this week.

It is stated that Sun Up was priced at 2000gns when a would-be buyer asked a question in that direction. All the North Island horses dropped out of their engagements on the first day of the Dunedin Winter meeting. A likely-looking youngster by Archery from Miss Signal accompanied A. M'Kay’s team to Wingatui. J. M’Combe is taking Forgery over to Sydney to race him at the pony meetings. Nominations for the Melbourne Cup and other important events to be run at Fleiiiington close to-day. Sir Rosebery figures amongst the entries for the V.R.C. Grand National Hurdles and Grand National Steeples. Sweet Melody is again in work at Wingatui. She looks a bit in the rough after her^pell. Handicaps for the Ashburton Trotting Club’s meeting are due on June 7, and acceptances on June 9. Matatua failed to stand up to his work, and has disappeared from the active list at Wingatui. General Advance has been stopped in his work, and is not likely to start at the Dunedin Winter meeting. The Solferino gelding Taboo appears to be coming on again in his work on the track.

Captain Sarto looks in good racing shape, but shows signs of soreness after working. A yearling brother to Gloaming, who i 3 in J. Scobie’s stable, has been named Loading Light. The Grey Spear mare Spearmaid shaped well in a gallop- at Wingatui on Saturday morning. Mantua will run her last race this week, and in due course will be bred to Last Dart.

First Line has broken down, and will, as it were, drop back to the rear in the publi.; view.

The imported stallion Tractor will stand the season at Salisbury at a fee of 30 guineas.

There will be a very welcome spell from racing after the Dunedin Winter meeting. Circulation looks in good shape, and if she misses the Winter Welter may do better under a lighter scale of weights. The New South Wales Trotting Club recently disqualified three men for life. Two of the,cases were in connection with ringing horses. The Kentlock gelding Sherlock, formerly trained by K. M'Donald at Wiugatui, is now in J. B. Pearson’s stable at Wingatui. A smartish Galloway gelding by Balboa is booked to go to Sydney. He has been in F. Shaw's stable for some time, and shapes fairly well on the track. The well-performed gelding Listening Post will be offered at auction prior to the commencement of racing on the second day at Wingatui. Red Kriss makes a considerable noise when galloping, and in consequence is not likely to win any distinction when racing, over a distance. Happy Days has beer, sold, and is destined for Australia in August next. The gelding has recovered from the cut he received whilst schooling over hurdles. Bonepa has been coming on nicely in his work, but is still a bit backward ir. condition. A race or two should sharpen him into racing shape. Coeh-y-Bondhu figures amongst the acceptors for Wingatui, but she wa not brought with the rest of R. C. Keepers team. R. C. Keeper has worked a good deal of improvement into Night Raid's condition. This gelding looks a better horse than he did when last seen in public. Although. Tigerland did not appear amongst the acceptors for the Otago Steeples he will probably appear on the second: and third days at Wingatui. Overdrawn has been going well in his work at Wingatui, and as he acts well in soft going should keep the opposition busy when racing this week. Kipling will saddle up fit and w ell this week, and as he has won over the Wingatni country should help to make things busy in his races. Moorland is well handicapped in the Tradesmen’s Handicap, and if he is ready to race will beat more than what will beat him. Warhaven is regarded in some quarters as a dangerous horse in the Tradesmen’s Handicap. He will not lose anythipg by having Emerson in the saddle. Sir Rosebery is one of the popular picks fer the Great Northern double. It landed the double last year, and also won the Great. Northern Steeples of 1924. Vice Grand is said to have developed into a good jumper. He may develop into a useful ’chaser, as he has a fair amount of pace on the flat. Uncle Bob twists at his fences, and should ba given a wide berth when going into a jump. He caused Night Raid not a ITttle trouble when they were schooled in company on Saturday. Beauty Light has been improving in his huidling with each succeeding schooling lesson. He shaped well in a school over six flights of hurdles on Saturday morning with Coastguard. Cartoon flew the big sod wall at Wingatui like a bird when sent at it last week. He is fairly forward in condition, and should shape well in his engagements this week. Raveuna is not amongst the acceptors for Wingatui, but she is travelling well in her. work, and will be better suited by a shorter journey than that attached to thq Birthday Handicap. Cashman has improved in condition since he won at the South Canterbury Autumn meeting, where Kipling had no chance with him over two miles when giving 341 b. The English Derby will be run on June 2. . Success in the greatest classic in the world stamps undying fame on a horse, and incidentally sets his value at anything from 20,000 fps to a rich goldmine. Cloritarf has displayed winning form this season, and has a lot of admirers for his chance in the Tradesmen’s Handicap. Last season he ran in 29 races, of which lie won eight, and was placed in eleven others. This is a very good record. A likely sort to land the Great Northern double is Gaze. He has proved himself able to jump fences and hurdles, and is in at a handy weight in both races. Possibly the state of the going will tell against the top weights. “It is one of the best tracks in New Zealand,” stated a steward of a club, when boasting about his particular course. “How do you know?” queried a friend. “You never go to any meetings except your own.” Pink Terrace is again in work, and will be got ready for spring engagements. She claims some important engagements as a three-year-old, as she is in the New Zealand Oaks, Dunedin Guineas, and New Zealand Derby. The Wingatui trainer C. Gieseler is still at the head of the list with 36 winners to his credit. He is well clear of the rest, and is not likely to be ousted from his position during the rest of the season.

Pamplona has come on quickly during the past couple of weeks. He seems quite sound, and shows no signs of soreness after working. Since eased from corn trouble the big chap has got through a good deal of work. From August 1 to April 30 Valais had 24 winners, who won 47£ races worth 52,96850v5. Magpie is next him on the winning list with 19 winners of 37£ races worth 32,75550v5. Comedy King comes third with 37 winners of 72 races worth 22,03550v5. Overdrawn is one of the principal fancies for the Birthday Handicap. In the D.J.C. Handicap Mantua beat him at the difference of lib, and in the Birthday Handicap she comes in on 91b better forms. The favourable handicap suggests that Mantua should be dangerous. Bonnie Winkie is being ridden again as a preliminary to an attempt to give him another preparation. It is generally * a waste of time asking old and brokendown horses to “come back,” as they crack up as soon as pressure is applied in their work. The Tractor—Call .Bird gelding High Gear is amongst those netting through easy work at Wingatui. He promises to furnish into a fine three-year-old, and fills the eye as ono that will not look out

of place if he goes to the post for the Dunedin Guineas and New Zealand Derby, in which he claims engagements. Toa Taua has been trained on the Dunedin beach since his arrival from the North Island, but on Friday afternoon last he was taken to Wingatui and schooled over three flights of hurdles. He shaped well, but unfortunately shows signs that he is not too sound in the respiratory organs. Mazama has improved in his fencing since ridden with the Birchwood Hunt. He shaped well when sent over the brush fence and sod wall in the straight at Wingatui in company with Frenchman. They also went together at the post and rails on the hill. Anton was Frenchman’s early companion in the school, but he tipped out at the sod wall. When sent at the schooling fences at Wingatui Anton flies them like a bird, and really hurdles the jumps. When sent at the big sod wall on the steeplechase course he came a cropper, and prior to that landed badly when crossing the post and rails. Hurdling a fence may be the quickest and most spectacular way of crossing country, but it is by no means the safest way to the winning post. The bad weather of the past couple of weeks has seriously interfered with training operations at Wingatui. The training tracks have been very much chopped up, and supply unmistakable evidence of the absolute necessity of a wet-weather track at Wingatui. Horses must be worked somewhere, and grass tracks take too long to recover from the rough usiige such as the Wingatui tracks have been receiving.

On his form at the Dunedin Winter meeting of 1925 Bonomel re..ds -well treated in the Jumper’s Flat and O 1 go Hurdles. Last year he won comfortably in the Jumpers’ Flat with 10.5, and after losing ground through faulty jumping had no great difficulty in winning the Otago Hurdles with 9.1 U from Adjutor 10.8, Penury Rose 9.10, Captain Sarto 11.3, and others. This year he has 10.2 in the Jumpers’ Flat, and 10.6 in the Otago Hurdles, in which he meets Adjutor on better terms than la ' ear.

Brightling has been going on satisfactorily in his work, hut was allowed to drop out his engagements on the first day because the handicapper was held to have flattered him in the weights. Brightling won the Electric Stakes after getting cut. out at the start, and beat Serotina, Buoyant, Lady Clarenceux. Fairy Herald, Clarion, and several others at even weights. In the Brighton Handicap Brightling was asked to give Lady Clarenceux 61b and Buoyant 91b, who were both unplaced behind him at Timaru. Then, again, it may be that the Wingatui handicapper might have heard that Brightling’s win was anything but a fluke.

Dr A. H. Bennett, who has for many years carried on a breeding establishment at his property at Manningham, some miles from Adelaide, has decided to retire from that branch of the sport, and on May 11 he disposed of his thoroughbred stock. It is his intention to give the whole of the property, which comprises many valuable acres, to children’s playgrounds, a section for adult recreational purposes, and another portion for the erection of houses for members of certain learned professions and their female -e----pondants who may experience hardship. The whole of the proceeds of the sale, 3600gns, have been given by Dr Bennett as the nucleus of an endowment fund to assist in the work he has undertaken. Some trainers in England have such large strings that it is almost impossible for them to know as much as they should about all their horses. Bearing on this Warren Hill writes as follows in the London Sporting Life and Sportsman:— “How anyone can conceive it possible that one man can train, say, between 70 and 80 horses properly is beyond comprehension. If one minute were devoted to each every, morning and every night just to look them over, it would devour most of the time at the trainer’s disposal; and it was notorious many years ago that a certain large stable that has been closed a long time had horses standing at various places in the town which the trainer never saw more than once in a week—if that. But the worst of it is they are trained hard so early with a view to finding out the more promising, and the slower ones have a poor chance.” The Otago Steeplchase will start on the stand side of the water jump, which is opposite the three-furlong mark ».n lie course proper. The distance attached to the race is given as “about three miles and a-quarter,” but unless started close to the sharp turn, whifch leads to the fence bringing a field on to the course, the actual journey will be close to 3J miles. If the race is not started quite close to the water jump it will be a scrambling race to get round the sharp turn leading to the brush fence, which brings a field on to the course proper. A start in such a place .is open to serious objection. It would have been very much better to place a brush fence in a position near the first hurdle in the straight, and start the race on the course proper. The alteration is thus open to two objetions—one because the race will be started at an awkward place, and the other because the distance will 1. considerable more than the official journey.