On and Off the Track

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLII, Issue 20585, 26 November 1936, Page 8

On and Off the Track

A BUDGET OF NEWS AND VIEWS FIXTURES Racing: Nov. 28—Ashburton County R.C. Nov. 28, 30—Takapuna J.C. at Ellerslie Nov. 28, 30—Feilding J.C. Dec. 10, 12—Woodville J.C. Dec. 12—Waipa R.C. Dec. 12—Hororata R.C. Dec. 19—Otaki Maori R.C. Dec. 26—Waipukurau J.C. Dec 26, 28—Dunedin J.C. Dec. 26, 28—Taranaki J.C. Dec. 26, 28, 29—Westland R.C. Dec. 26, 28, 29— Manawatu R.C. Dec. 26, 29, Jan. 1, 2—Auckland R.C. Jan. I—Waikouaiti R.C. Jan. I—Wyndham R.C. Jan. 1, 2—Stratiord R.C. Jan. 1, 2—Marton J.C. Jan. 1, 2—Hawke’s Bay J.C. Jan. 1, 2—Wairarapa R.C. Jan. 1, 2—Greymouth J.C. Jan. 2—Oamaru J.C. Jan. 2, 4—Southland R.C. Trotting. Nov. 26, 28—Forbury Park T.C. Dec. s—New Brighton T.C. Dec. 3—Waikato T.C. Dec. 3—Wairio T.C. Dec. 26—Ashburton T.C. Dec. 26—Gore TO. Dec. 26, 28—Wairarapa T.C. Dec. 26, 28—Westport T.C. Dec. 28, 30, 31—Auckland T.C. Dec. 29—Winton T.C. Dec. 30—Westland T.C. Jan. 1, 2—Canterbury Park T.C.

Forbury Park meeting opens to-day. • • • •

The first race at Ashburton on Saturday will start at 12.30.

Win and place totalisators will be operated at Ashburton and Ellerslie on Saturday, and single pool at Feilding.

Melbourne reports indicate that Queen of Song had a rough passage in the Consolation Handicap at Caulfield.

Grand Finale will probably be trained by G. Fielding during J. W. Dooley’s term of suspension.

P. T. Hogan and J. W. Jennings are expected to return from Melbourne at the beginning of next week.

Scratchings for the Takapuna races on Saturday are: Cheval de Volee, Takapuna Plate; Elanage, Cambria Handicap.

Bonny Azure would have a good chance in the Buchanan Handicap at Forbury if she could be relied on to begin correctly.

J. M. Cameron returned on Monday with Gold Trail and Only One. Pladle and II Duce will return from Melbourne via Auckland, where they will probably race during the holidays.

Davolo has not been able to do any Work since the Cup meeting. Argentic has been undergoing treatment for an enlarged fetlock, but will be moving along again shortly with a view to a trip too Auckland.

It is stated in a southern paper that Counterblast will strip a better filly in the Great Northern Foal Stakes than at Riccarton, and that she will make Francis Drake travel faster to beat her. Unfortunately the Jericho filly was not nominated for the Foal Stakes.

The water cart was used on the Forbury track on Tuesday, but this was made superfluous by the heavy rains that have flooded Otago and Southland. Many motorists may experience difficulty in getting through from the back country to-day.

Ever since the Clifden Racing Club has been established a cross-country race had been included in the programme, but this year it has been decided to substitute a highweight handicap. There were no fewer than fourteen starters in the Highweight Handicap at Invercargill last Saturday.

N. Creighton, the Victorian jockey who arrived at Wellington yesterday, was offered the ride on Wotan in the Melbourne Cup at 31b overweight, 8.0. Creighton normally goes to the scale at 8.5, and he refused the mount saying that as he would have to waste hard to ride 8.0, he did not think he would be in fit condition to do Wotan justice.

The obvious mistakes made frequently by some handicappers caused the English Jockey Club to decide to control more closely the appointment of these particular officials (says an English paper), and a rule was passed providing that the handicaps at every meeting should be made by one of the handicappers appointed by the Jockey Club.

Bunfight, a four-year-old sister to Trench Fight and Fracas, is an acceptor for the open sprint at Ashburton. Bunfight shaped well in her early races as a two-year-old, but she did not train on. Last season she ran very badly, and was sent out for a long spell. If she does not shape better this season it is unlikely that she will be persevered with.

Long before E. Bartie returned to the enclosure at Ascot after winning the second division of the Fourteen-two Handicap on Manamah, hundreds of people began to cheer. Bartie rode for the first time since he along with J. T. Jamieson met with th displeasure of the V.R.C. stewards, following an inquiry into the running of Country Party in the Batman Stakes a year ago. Could you imagine a Melbourne Cup ready to be presented without a recipient? Melbourne men tip that one of these days a resentful owner will stay out of the enclosure just to assert his disapproval of the fact that he is forced to beg his way in after having won Australia’s greatest national event. After this year’s Cup the gateman was amazed to see three winning owners clamouring for admission, but when he looked up his book and saw that three Smith brothers shared Wotan’s ownership he pinned a large cardboard disc on the lapel of each and let them through. It is a roundabout and churlish way of handling the situation.