THE TROTTING TRACK.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 7799, 2 September 1903, Page 4

THE TROTTING TRACK.

NOTES ON HORSE AND SULKY. ' The standard-bred American trotter Sacramento is advertised to stand this season at a free of £4. By Albert W, a son of Electioneer, daon Promptness, by Prompter, a- son of Blue Bull, his breeding would be hard to improve on. In the past he has had. very limited opportunities to distinguish himself at the stud, but already he has a number of promising horses in this district. Tho Vancleve- pony Velox was sold last week to a Melbourne buyer, and was shipped to his new home on Friday.- Since he has been in Albaugh's stable Velox has proved himself one of the best and most consistent performers for his inches ever seen in New Zealand. He commenced his career three seasons, ago, as a three-year-old, when he contested four pony races, his only win being a mile and a half race at New Brighton, Onward, in receipt of llsec, being among three to finish behind him. The following season he made his debut in open company, starting fourteen times, and winning twice. At the Metropolitan Club's track he won in smin 5 2-ssec, Boldrewood, giving him Bsec, being a length away. His other victory that year was at Auckland, where he won a mile and a half p^ony race in 4min I6£sec. Last season he started eighteen times, and was successful six times. At New Brighton he won in the Spring in smin, and he bettered this by trotting 4min 55 3-ssec at the Metropolitan course. Then at Plumpton- Park, in heavy going, he won a mile race in 2min 38 4-ssec Two of liis best performance? were accomplished at New Brighton on< day last March. He started by giving starts from. 409ec. to 53sec in the Pony Handicap, and winning in 4min 50 3-ssec, arid later in the day he covered two mile; in 4nnin 52sec in an open race. His last victory was in a Pony Handicap at Plumpton, when he covered a mile in 2mir 30 4-ssec. He was a wonderfully quick beginner, and one of the cleanest-gaited trotters ever seen in the colony. His victories were always popular with the public, ad his presence afc local meetings will bt greatly missed. •' At Whitegate Park, Blackpool (England), on July 13 last, the attraction was a match of £1000 against time, Mr Thomas Smallwood having accepted £800 to £200 that ht found two horses to trot forty-three miles inside two hours. T,o complete the full distance 106 laps 120 yards had to be covered, th© track being 170* yards short of the halfmile. Smallwood drove the mares in sulky, aitd selected Florrie O. to commence his task. At the completion of the fourteenth lap, distance 5 miles 1140 yards, Smallwood lost a deal of time in changing to Rustic Beamty, who broke, t and had to be steadied down. These mishaps saw time gain an advantage of los-ec in the next five miles traversed, but the third change to Florrie 0. put a better complexion on things 4 aaid at th© end of the forty- second lap Smallwood was 4£see inside. Ten laps further on the timekeep€c3 announced that the mare waß 15seo to the good, while after going exiactly an hour tho backers of time had a lap the worst of the argument. Everything now favoured the mares accomplishing their task, but during the progress of the sixtysecond 1 lap Florri© 0. showed signs of exhaustion, and Ixai to be pulled up a lap later. This mare in subsequent changes went vety badly, and, with Rustic Beauty slowing down, the hopes cherished of time being beaten were blighted. At the completion, of the sixfey-sixth lap it was 5 to 4 against the mares, ani twelve laps from the finish, it was quite 10 to 1 against them. With eight minutes to go they had 7£ laps to traverse, and subsequently they were given the task of doing five laps in as many minutes in order to prove successful. When, the gun went signalling the second hour Smallwood' had traversed 620 yard's short of 43 miles, his ♦time for the distance being 2hr lmin 6sec. The mares thus failed in their task by lmin 6sec.