ON AND OFF THE TRACK

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLVI, Issue 21325, 20 April 1939, Page 8

ON AND OFF THE TRACK

A Budget of News And Views FIXTURES Racing April 19, 20— Manawatu R.C. April 21, 22—Whangarei R.C. April 22—Reefton J.C. April 22—Waverley R.C. April 28, 29 —Dannevirke R.C. April 27, 29—South Canterbury J.C. April 29, May I—Nelson J.C. Trotting April 19— Manawatu T.C. April 22—Wairarapa T.C. April 29—Auckland T.C. Acceptances for the first day of the South Canterbury meeting are due tomorrow night.

Royal Chief is to be given a two months* spell before being recommissioned in preparation for another Australian campaign in the spring.

Following the running of the Rosebank Handicap at the Avondale meeting, C. H. Hope, owner-trainer of Master Vaals, was fined two pounds for racing his horse in shoes.

Never before, it appears, have there been so many sore horses in New Zealand as at present, and unless rain comes soon there will be further shrinkages in fields all over the Dominion.

Waitaka and Garonne are to be schooled for hurdle racing. Bright' Prospect will probably make a start in this department at the South Canterbury meeting next week.

The injuries received by F. J. Smith when Van Derby came down on the final day at Addington were more serious than at first anticipated, and it s likely to be a month before he is again in the sulky.

After M. McCarten won the A.J.C. St. Leger on Mosaic he was offered the ride in the Sydney Cup, but was held to an engagement for Young Crusader and could not accept. The mount then went to E. Bartie, who was allowed to get off Respirator.

Top-weights scored a notable triumph on the first day at Avondale when they gained four firsts, three seconds and a third. Horses carrying No. 1 saddlecloth to succeed were Round Up, Pirate King, Airam and Brazilian, and those to fill places were Vaalso, Aero King. Nora Gregor and Ivar.

Winner of £2070 last season, and of £2500 to date during the current term, Round Up has been the most successful handicap performer in the Dominion during the last eighteen months, but any further victories will be hard to gain in view of the weights he must receive. His victory at Avondale with 9.13 makes big loads inevitable.

The Tasmanian owner-breeder Mr E. Tatlow was very disappointed with the showings of Van Derby at Addington and at one time was seriously considering taking the Globe Derby horse back to Australia. Van Derby is to be taken quietly by J. Fraser, and in all probability will next race at Metropolitan Trotting Club’s August meeting.

The Sydney Cup winner Mosaic was bought in New Zealand for a patron of J. H. Abbs's stable, Mrs S. S. Crick, but Abbs leased the colt for two years when Mrs Crick decided to retire from racing. Two years ago Abbs won the Metropolitan for Mr Crick with Sir Regent. Mosaic has been a difficult colt to train, being a dainty feeder, but Abbs has been rewarded for perseverance.

Since Beaupartir’s wins in the Awapuni Gold Cup, Auckland Easter and Great Northern St. Leger, many racegoers would like to see another clash between the Beau Pere colt and Defaulter. There is no possibility of that happening this season, and if it did there is no reason to suppose that the result would be different from that in their previous meetings. Peerless had Beaupartir doing his best at Ellerslie, and nobody would expect the filly to extend Defaulter.

Jayola scored his most important win to date when he annexed the Autumn Handicap at Avondale, and his success was meet after the consistent record of the Gisborne gelding over the st twelve months. In that period he has been unplaced only four times in 21 starts. Not once in his last 13 starts has he been outside a place, and he has raced over both sprint and middle distances, a fine record for a threey: r-old in handicap races. Jayola’s sire, Boy Jay, is little known, but he is a well-bred son of Hunting Son and Tiue Jay.

On the strength of Submission’s win in the Great Northern Champegne, some northerners are awarding the filly the two-year-old championship, but that title seems to belong to Beaulivre’. When Submission beat this colt by a head at Awapuni, she was meeting him on 101 b better than w.f.a. terms. On that occasion Beau Vite was only a length away, but at Riccarton Beaulivre beat him in hollow fashion by four lengths and again by three lengths, suggesting that Beaulivre had improved considerably. There seems to be no sound reason for placing Submission above Beaulivre, though it might be correct to rate her as superior to Beau Vite.

Messrs C. Cross, chairman of the g- ounds committee of the Metropolitan Club and the Canterbury Park Club, Mr A. A. Penfold, representing the Metropolitan Club, and Mr J. Highsted, caretaker of the Addington course, went to Dunedin to examine the clay that has been used on the Forbury track. While there they obtained samples of other soils with a view to requirements at Addington to make the track more suitable to race on under winter conditions. The soils are in the hands of experts at Lincoln College for analysis, and the grounds committee hopes to obtain a soil which will be suitable for the work in hand.