THE TUAPEKA COUNTY JOCKEY CLUB'S RACES.

Tuapeka Times, Volume XVIII, Issue 1217, 27 January 1886, Page 3

THE TUAPEKA COUNTY JOCKEY CLUB'S RACES.

( To the Editor.)

Sib, — I was nt the Tuapeka County Jockey Club's race-meeting held on Thursday and Friday of last week. I was greatly pleaded at the improvements which have been made on tbe course. The Club svideutly seem determinfd to make the t/auk a ijood o.te. This is as it shou'd bo. The expenditure of another £70 or £80 Wi/uld still further improve the course so as to make it thoroughly sate for fast work. The objection lo your course in the pist ha 3 been that it was too dangerous to risk sending a good horse at full gallop over it. However, this defect appears to be in a fair way to be remedied, ihe Club has my best wishes for its future ; but I am half afraid that unless there is an improvement in one or two directions the outlook will not be a very bright one for the Club. It was chiefly with a riew of referring to these matters that I was induced to address you. Bear in mind I am not writing in a captious spirit : I am merely writing in the best interests of the Club. That I have good grounds for writing — or, at least, for pointing out one or two matters which have given dissatisfaction to owners of horses — I will shortly show. In the first place, there is ciuse for complaint at the handicapping. Who the hancticappers wore I do not pretend to know ; but a remark wjs dropped by a certain person within my heaving which leads me to think that one or two individualsmembers of the Club— took upon themselves to do this work ; and if lam not misinformed one of these gentlemen had horses of his own engaged at the meeting. If this be true, might I ask, Sir, if you think this is the correct thiug? Why could not the Club secure the services of disinterested parties to do the work ? Bear in mind, racehorse owners are "little cattle;" sf they get a notion into their b/ads that they have been badly treated, the chances ard ninety-nine lo one hundred that you never see th^'m en the course again. Then there is another matter. The Club, I think, should get an outsider— a party altogether disinterested iv any of the horses engaged at the meeting— to act as starter. I hold that it is not the correct thing for anyone who has horsps running at a meeting to be assigaed such an important po3t as that of starter. The gentleman who acted the other day might be fair enough (I am not going to say anything to the contrary), but still he could not in any way be regarded as a big su. cess. Taken all through, the startin<7 was simply execrable; indeed, during both days 1 can't remember seeing one really decent start. The Club surely could get some outside gentleman to act as starter. vVere they to do so, owners of horses would have less grounds for complaint. There are one or two other things I *houid like to have referred to, but as I have run this letter out to too great a length already, I must in the meantime desist. Possibly iv a f ul ure issue I might have something further to say. — I am, &C, A VISITOB. Dune.iin, 25th January, 1886.