RACING & TROTTING.

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXVI, Issue 19093, 27 January 1932, Page 10

RACING & TROTTING.

On and Off the track. A BUDGET OF NEWS AND VIEWS FIXTURES. Racing-: Jan. 27, 28—Pahiatua R.C. Jan. 29, 30—Takapuna J.C. Feb. 3 —Tapanui R.C. Feb. 3. 4—Egmont R.C. Feb. 4, 6—Gisborne R.C. Feb. 6 —Matamata R.C. Feb. 11, 12—Taranaki J.C. Feb. 11, 13—Dunedin J.C. Feb. 11, 13—Marlborough R.C. Feb. 13, 15—Rotorua R.C. Feb. 17—Clifden R.C. Feb. 18—Tologa Bay J.C. Feb. 18, 20—Wanganui J.C. Feb. 20—Canterbury J.C. Feb. 20, 22—Waikato R.C. Feb. 24, 25—Woodville District J.C. Feb. 24, 25—Gore R.C. Trotting: Jan. 28. 30—Forbury Park T.C. Feb. 6—Metropolitan T.C. Feb. 20—Kaikoura T.C. Feb. 20, 22—Auckland T.C. Feb. 27—New Brighton T.C. March 4, s—lnvercargills—lnvercargill T.C. March s—Wellington T.C. March 12—Timaru T.C. Ma,rch 16— Manawatu T.C. March 16—Wyndham T.C. March 23 —South Otago T.C. March 26. 28 —Hawera T.C. March 26, 30—Metropolitan T.C.

Pahiatua races to-day and to-mor-row. Forbury Park trots Thursday and Saturday. Takapuna meeting Friday and Saturday. Golden Gate, who won the Challenge Stakes at Randwick last Saturday, is a three-year-old brother to Royal Limond. Valves and High Speed, who had been sojourning in the country for several months, have returned to Washdvke, and gone into F. Trilford’s stable. This year’s Great Northern Steeplechase and Hurdle Race will be worth £IOOO each, against £ISOO and £I4OO last season. Tire Easter Handicap has dropped from £1250 to £9OO. Amounis (£48.297/10/-), holder of the Australasian stakes record until Phar Lap took the lead, has been turned out again, and as he will be ten next season, it is very unlikely that he will race again.

P. T. Hogan again bought some of the cheap but well-bred lots at the Trentham sales.

Gold Pit and Trek, the only Washdyke representatives at Trentham, notched a second and a win respectivelv. Both are related to good horses — Gold Pit is a half-sister to Duo. and Trek a half-brother to Nightmarch—and both are likely to improve.

An unusual number of horses failed to begin correctly at last week’s trotting meeting. Five of the eight races were started from the one post at the back, and it was undoubtedly due to the gale that there was so much trouble.

Game Carrington, who won the two-year-old handicap at Trentham on Saturday, is a half-brother to Peter Jackson, their dam, Left, being a sister to Menelaus, Nones and other good horses. Game Carrington is named after the owner of his sire, Hunting Song, and the name would scarcely have been passed under the Clifford regime. Drivers were between the devil and the deep sea in the gale at Washdyke on Saturday. Those who got off the mark well from the front line had either to take the risk of being blamed for driving their horses into the ground against the wind, or of dropping back and taking the dust. Lord Matchlight, who got out on the move in the Farewell Handicap last Saturday, broke and lost his position before completing a circuit. Evidently some of his gear shifted, as when he came on the scene again to secure second place, there was a Rapping of leather.

Half a mile from home in the Waimate Handicap, First Wrack appeared to be just waiting on the leaders, but she disconcerted her backers by putting up a weak finish and missing a place. The Ashburton trotter was off the tracks for a couple of seasons as a result of nasal trouble, and it is possible that the dust settled her chance.

The large number plates used at the Trotting Club’s meeting were voted a pronounced success. In cases where drivers appeared in colours other than those on the card the public had no difficulty in identifying the horses in the preliminaries. It simplified matters also for the casual racegoer where similarity of colours might have caused confusion. It should not be long ere the leather plates replace saddle cloths and arm bands on all courses.

The Nightraid-Full Swing colt, a three-quarter brother in blood to Phar Lap, was passed in at the Trentham sales, his breeder declining to accept the 400gns bid for him. Another of the Gladstone Park draft that was passed in was a filly by Nightraid from Cochvbondhu. She is related on the dam’s side to Windbag, and if she is never raced she is v/orth more as a stud proposition than the low bid for her at auction.

The sudden death of Mr T. A. Munro robs the Kurow Jockey Club of its most popular official. Mr Munro had been president for many years, and was largely responsible for the Club maintaining its existence in bad times. Naturally of a cheerful disposition, he invariably looked on the bright side of things, and his decease will be deeply regretted thoughout Canterbury and Otago. In addition to his activities at Kurow, Mr Munro was an officer of the North Otago Jockey Club and the Oamaru Trotting Club.

The first six horses to finish in the President’s Handicap at the Trotting Club's meeting were Hostess, Nimble Direct, Tarndale, Wrackeen, Colonial Boy, and Great Author. The only one of the half-dozen which started in the Pareora Handicap was Tarndale, who put himself out of count by a bad break. This was a weak foundation on which to base a charge of inconsistency against Black Lion, apart from the fact that in the first race Black Lion broke at the start, while in the second race he was on the move. In the President’s Handicap Black Lion was on 24 behind, and had to take all the dust; in the Pareora he was off the front, and being lucky at the start was able to go ju’t where his driver wished. The horse has coarse blood in his veins, and it is reasonable to suppose that he would be better suited by ten furlongs than two miles, yet in the shorter race he was on a 24 yards more favourable mark. He actually met John Noble, Proud Dillon and Gunchild 24 yards better; Royal Comrade 36yds better; Rollo, Baron Bingen and Tarndale 12yds better; Steel All on the same terms; and Dillon Logan 12yds wor.:e. There was nothing in the betting to point to wilful inconsistency. The cold facts were that

Black Lion broke at the start in the first race, and got the best of it in the second, in which he met a weaker field o n much better terms. The demonstrators merely wrecked the pool on the last race (to the financial detriment of the Club), made everybody late home, and disorganised the train arrangements. Seldom has there been less cause for a rumpus a racecourse.

Admiral Drake has been nominated for the Sydney Cup. Nukumai, who is 13 years old, is being got ready for autumn and winter racing. Cadland was responsible for a good performance in winning the City Handicap at Trentham with 9.9. as he was conceding 131 b to the Epsom winner, Autopay. Germanicus, who notched a confident win in the Claremont Handicap, trotted smoothly all the way, but he is credited with being able to go equally well with the straps. Hostess, who is now trained at Methven by her owner, was swapped by Mr C. Nordquist for the big pacer Laplander. She was formerly raced by J. R. Corrigan. Real Huon never flattered the backers who made him favourite in the Salisbury Handicap, and he has not nearly fulfilled the promise he showed as r. youngster. Two two-year-olds belonging to Mr Letoof, of Dunedin, which were broken in by T. Hobbs, at Waimate. have gone south to be trained by G. Fielding, at Wingatui. Black Duke’s win at Trentham was his first sucess since he won the Connolly Handicap at Wanganui last May. It was in the autumn of last season that the black gelding produced his best. form.

The Wellington Stakes was a rather disastrous race for some of the starters. Gold Trail had a tendon injured, La Moderne sustained a cut below the fetlock. Golden Wings cuts on the legs, and Tea Trader finished lame.

Margaret Bingen, a five-year-old pacer in D. Taehen’s stable, is a sister to the trotter Stanley Bingen. Stanley’s Child was a good performer and has proved a success as a brood mare.

and Margaret Bingen looks as if she will not disgrace the family.

The two-year-old Rebel Song has gone into H. and A. Cutts’s stable. He is owned by Major Stafford, who acts as veterinary surgeon for Chokebore Lodge. This explains his presence in the Cutts’s team, which is generally confined to horses owned by the Clifford family.

It was public money that sent First Wrack out favourite for the Waimate Handicap. It was considered by her connections that the wind and dust

would adversely affect the Ashburton mare, and her owner was not keen on starting her.

Valuable time would often be saved at a trotting meeting if the marksmen at the start were required to report to the stipendiary steward any unusual happening at the start. Supposing a horse on the 12 yards line broke and failed to go away, this could be reported to the stipendiary. In the event of the same horse winning a race later in the day or the meeting, there would be no time wasted in unnecessary inquiries.

Mr C. C. Sheath, owner of the champion three-year-old Ammon Ra, is particularly anxious that the gelding shall not be raced over long courses when not ready. For that reason there

is still a doubt whether Ammon Ra will run in the V.R.C. St. Leger at Flemlngton, writes “Cardigan.” In fact, if intentions are adhered to, Ammon Ra will run in the Essendon Stakes on the opening day of the Fiemington meeting. It is possible that he will have one race before the Futurity Stakes, and it will be either the C. F. Orr Stakes at Williamstown or in one of the short races cn the opening day of the V.A.T.C. autumn meeting. The race in the Futurity Stakes of seven furlongs will bring him to his best for the Essendon Stakes on the first day at Fiemington, and he will run again in the C. M. Lloyd Stakes of one mile on the final day of the V.R.C. meeting. Ammon Ra will then return', to Sydney, and. all going well, he will run in the weight-for-age races at Rosehill and at Warwick Farm to fit him for the A.J.C. St. Leger. It is a sound programme and by the time the

classic is run at Randwick, Ammon Ra should be a very fit horse and equal tc the task of running a mile and three-

quarters right out. The Ngingongingo case has proved a most unfortunate one for the trotting sport, and it is certain the judicial stewards of the Auckland Trottinv Club did not realise what their action would lead to. Eighty per cent, of trotting people appear to believe that an injustice was done to Ngingongingo and his driver, as well as to his owner, who has lost a stake and the services of his horse for twelve monihs. The affair, however, has developed into something much more serious than that. It apparently has led to the disclosure of a grave weakness in the Rules of Trotting, and to have brought to light the fact that the Trotting Association has no power to overrule a decision of judicial stewards on a question of alleged fact, however unjust such decision may be. It was as a protest against this interpretation tha L the members of the Trotting Association resigned. Apparently, also, all the rules of justice are transgressed by the rules. In the law courts, a man is deemed innocent until he is proved guilty; but in a trotting inquiry the onus is thrown on the accused person to clear himself. The decision of the appeal judges, it is understood, was based, not on the question whether Ngingongingo was guilty of wilful inconsistency, but on the power of the Association to overrule a verdict of a judicial committee. The expression of confidence in the president of the Conference and the app: 1 judges was only to be expected, but the close vote of the special meeting of the Conference does not prove that the Auckland verdict was a just one. Placed horses at the Timaru Trotting Club’s summer meeting have been reassessed as follows: —

Horse. Table Line Black Lion . . .. 1 2.12 2.46 4.32 Donna Gulvallis .. 1 19 Edith Voyage .. .. 2 19 Erin’s Advance 1 20 Erin’s Star 1 13 Germanicus .. .. 2 8 Great Burton 2 17 Hostess 1 2.13 2.47 4.32 Hydro .. .. .. .. 2 20 John Noble .. .. 1 32 Lomar 1 21 Lord Matchlight . 1 21 Margaret Bingen . 1 1 Marvin auy .. .. 2 8 Mountain Ore .. .. 1 26 Needles 1 14 Nimble Direct 1 2.13 2.47 4.33 Onoto 1 16 Oxford Queen 1 24 Sodium 1 2.12 2.46 4.34 Special Sun .. .. 1 13 Tanepai 2 1 Tarndale 1 2.13 2.47 4.33 Wrecker 1 12