RACING.

Waikato Times, Volume 109, Issue 18345, 3 June 1931, Page 11

RACING.

FROM TRACK AND STABLE. (By “ Martian.”) FIXTURES AHEAD. June 3,6, B—Auckland. June 3, 4—Otaki-Maorl. June 3,4, 6—Dunedin. June 10—South Canterbury. June 13, 15—Waikato. June 19, 20—Hawke's Bay. June 23—Egmont-Wanganul Hunt. June 26, 27—Napier Park. June, 27—Ashburton. July 4—Oamaru. July 4, 6—Taumarunul (Ellerslie). July 11, 15, 18—Wellington. July 18 — Waimate Hunt. July 23, 25—Gisborne. July 25 —South Canterbury Hunt. New South Wales List. June 6—Canterbury Park. June 8, 13—Australian Jockey Club. June' 27—Rosehill. ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. ’* “Age,” Taupiri.—Tukl is 14 years old. He won the Grand National Steeplechase of 1925. “Interested," Hamilton. —Catkin 'has won over hurdles in Victoria. .The w former New Zealand-owned candiW date is by Catmint —Hukapapa. ' “Inquirer,”Te Aroha. —Snow Prince has been nominated for the Carbine Plate on the final day (Monday), at "Ellerslie. Snow Prince ran second to Chromadyne in this event last season. “Results,” Hamilton. —The winners of the Great Northern Steeplechase for the years you refer to are:— 1924, Sir Roseberry, 10.2; 1925, Sir Roseberry, 11.5; 192 G, Dick, 9.8; 1927, Beau Cavalier, 9.7; 1928, Glendowie, 9.7; 1929, Uralla, 9.0; 1930, Aurora Borealis, 9.1 J.

GOSSIP FROM ALL PARTS. The Dunedin Joolcey Club will continue Its Winter meeting to-mori’ow. The Otaki-Maori Racing Club will conclude its Winter programme tomorrow. According to a return compiled by the New Zealand Referee, H. 'Gray has ridden 837 winners in the Dominion. Lady Pam ran -her last race of the season in the Masterton Cup. She will not be turned right out, but will: be kept pottering about by G. Jones during the winter and got ready for -spring racing. Palaoe, the two-year-old gelding by Grandcourt from d'Oro, who had to be eased up as the result of an aooldent in the spring, is back In aotlve work again at Rlccarton. The other morning he sprinted three furlongs in 36 2-'5. He Is a well-grown youngster, and big things can be expected of -him.

Hlstorio, who is now being spelled at Trentham, will follow the same programme as last year, and be prepared by S. Reid for Avondale and Auckland in the spring.

The Trentham light-weight, J, Gunn, attaohed to S. J. Reid’s stable, has been engaged by the Hastings trainer, J. M. Cameron, to acoompany him on his next trip to Sydney, which is to eventuate during the present month.

A rising two-year-old filly by Nigger Minstrel from Icl has joined J. Fryer’s team at Hawera. The youngster, who is a half-sister to Mendip, is stated to he of attractive conformation.

Aberfejdy (I. Tllson) negotiated a round of the country In a capable manner at Riccarton on Saturday morning. It Is not generally known that ho is not a novice over the big fences, as he was schooled a good deal In Sydney when he visited there In 1926, and unsuccessfully contested, but completed, a steeplechase at Randwiok at the A.J.C. Autumn meeting that year. He Is engaged at the South Canterbury meeting.

Doubtful, a three-year-old colt by Tea Trary or Paper Money from the Kllbroney mare Kilbreeze, Is making good at "unregistered” meetings rouna Sydney. It was his second win In two successive attempts when he led the field home In the Novice Handicap, six furlongs, at the'recent Menangle Park meeting, for which event he started favourite.

Glen a Bay, who met with Injury while schooling over the country a. Te Rapa a couple of weeks back, has again returned'to the tracks. The Romeo gelding has been nominated for events at the Waikato Club’s Winter meeting, but it is problematical whether M. J. Carroll’s charge will bo able to keep his engagements.

On Adelaide Cup day last month the winning double was Suzuml— Prince Paladin. The double totalisator paid out what must be a record short price, just over £2, but it has subsequently been discovered that a mistake had been made in the dividend declared. The committee decided to pay the altered dividend to those who had not already collected their money, and to hand £ll3 12s 6d, the difference on the tickets already paid, to the commissioner of police.

It Is understood that the recent winter meeting of the Wanganui Jockey Club turned out much more satisfactory from a financial point oi view than" was generally anticipated. There will probably be a slight loss on the meeting, amounting to £IOO or so, but some, of those who advocated abandoning the fixture or restricting it to one day are very pleased now that wiser counsels prevailed, and that the majority decided to hold the meeting as usual, says a Taranaki writer.

One of the yearlings bought by J W. Lowe at (lie Hamlwlck Master sales, the bay colt by Shillinglee from the Kilboy marc Kilvivan, has been purchased by Mr L. Smith, of Paekakariki, and lias been handed to C. Pritchard to train at Treniham. The youngster is a neatly-turned,we!l-grown colt, tie is attractively bred, belonging to (lie same family as Lantoen. who won the New Zealand Cup, and Vat tendon, a w'nnrr of the Sydney Cup, nml one of Hi. mosl successful of Colonial sites. Hay Leo*! has a!rendv advertised the colt's sire, Shillinglee. in the Dominion.

“Many of the horse-boxes are in a filthy state and the owners of valuable horses have a right to be protected,” declared Mr \V. E. Slmes at the annual meeting of the Canterbury Jockey Club. Mr Sirnes spoke of the cost of transport on the railways, which, he added, was 100 per cent higher than a few years ago. The -Government should realise that there should be a reduction. The chairman (Mr H. A. Knight) said the Railway Board of Management would take over the service in June and that would be the Lest time to bring such a question up.

The Masterton Racing Club based the programme for Its recent Autumn meeting on an estimated turnover of £22,500', and as ‘the investments amounted to only £12,569 for the two days, It is apparent that the balance sheet for. the meeting will show a big debit. The drop in turnover was much heavier than expected, and the result can only mean a substantial pruning of the stake money offered next season. The club was very unfortunate in having such bleak weather after a week or more -of fine days; however, .there was a fair attendance ■on the final day, but the money was not on the course for Investment.

Among the winners at the Moonee Valley meeting last month was the former New Zealander Catkin (Catmint—Hukapapa), who scored unexpectedly by a neck in the Banya Hurdles, two miles and 60 yards, as the result of a brilliant late run when the race appeared safe in the keeping of the favourite, Arcadlusj ■ -This -was Catkin’s first success over fences, to which he had been turned after consistent failures on the flat) and as he Carried 10.5 it Is evident that there was merit in the performance. Catkin ■ran In 'the colours of Mr T. J. Hayes, who had purchased -him at auction at Newmarket the previous week for 300 guineas. The race was worth £2OO to the winner.

Broomstick (Ben Brush—Elf, toy Galliard) died in America last month at the age of 29. His dam was sold for £SO when site was carrying him, and, when a yearling, lie was one of ten of that age sold by Colonel Young to Captain S. S. 'Brown for £3420. A success as a racehorse, winning over £14,000, Broomstick attained greater fame as a sire. He headed the winning sires’ list In America in 1913, and the two following .years, and his progeny won most of that country’s races of importance. In England his son, Sweeper 11., won the 'Two Thousand Guineas, and another son, Whisk Brooih 11., was third in that race.

N9W Zealand-bred mares as well as our racehorses are very much In evidence in Australia. One of the latest successes Is that of the Absurd mare, Ridicule, which has thrown to the successful young Australian sire, Heroic, a very promising two-year-old colt In Pacltlo Flight. Although this youngster won unexpectedly at Mentone recently, he is referred to In some quarters as a likely Derby colt. Ridicule is a daughter of Cheloma and she Is a full-sister to the A.J.C. Breeders' Plate winner, Nincompoop. Cheloma, in foal to Lord Quex, was one of the lots disposed of at the Flaxmere Dispersal Sale last January. The breeding of Pacific Flight is a case of extraordinary Inbreeding. Herolo himself Is Inbred to Illuminate both through his dam, Chersonese, and Ills sire, Valais. Cheloma is, too, a direct descendant of Itlumtnata. The lines of Bend Or and Hampton aro also Intensely bred to and, if the pedigree is extended for seven generations, there arc no less than twenty lines of Stockwell appearing In It. It will be very in-' teres ting to see how this colt, who is referred to as an excellent, typo, will continue to develop, says a New Zealand Referee writer.

“A decided innovation, which has not previously been tried in France," says a writer in the Horse and Hound, ‘is the doing away with the starter at the post. Starting will be carried out by the new electric elastic machine, which is a later device than the Australian gate. It consists of several strangs of thick elastic stretched across the course, which, on being released, disappear so quickly that they can hardly be seen to go up by the naked eye. Up to the present, where I have seen it in use it lias made some horses dart hack, but they will no doubt get used to It. The novelty, however, in connection with it Is that there will be no olllclal at the post. Starting will lake place by means of a ‘loud speaker,’ which wilt announce as follows, when all the participants are gathered tit the post:— 'At-

tention! Line up! One, two, three! Go!” The last word apparently acts ns an electric wave lo release Ihe elaslic, so that if competitors are not, going to be left jockeys will have to ’mind their p's and q's'. it snould certainty do away with a good deal of delay at the start, and prevent jockeys finessing and manoeuvring to try and obtain an unfair advantage for their mounts.” II sounds strange that the electric wave does not release the barrier prior lo the word "go." and it will be stranger still if iiie jockeys, with no slnrler lo pull them up, do not attempt to break through tnc elastic barrier.

! The weights for the first day of the Waikato Club's Winter meeting, which programme is to be carried out at Te Rapa, on Saturday, June 13, and Monday, June 15, will be announced on Tuesday next. Acceptances for the first day will be received up to 9 p.m. on Wednesday, June 10, I with the secretary (Mr E. H. O’Meara) at Hamilton, or with Messrs Blomfleld -and Go., Auckland.

Taragoma, the winner of the Autumn Hack Handloap at the recent meeting at Ashburton, has done very little racing. He ran six times last autuma for one second, while he was making his fifth appearance this season in his successful effort when he won at Ashburton. He owed his win to stamina, as lie outstayed the opposition in fine style, after giving away several lengths from the entrance to the straight. He has made a lot of improvement during the last few weeks, and now looks like making a useful performer over a distance in much better company. Taragona is a four-year-old brother to 'Paquito, who ran second to 'Nightmarch in the Melbourne Gup, the pair -being by Thurnham from Madrid, by Vasco from Flame, by Phaeton from Catherine Wheel, the dam of Treadmill, a high-class racehorse and a successful sire.

The latest addition to T. H. GII- - team at Riccarton Is a yearling filly by Lord Quex from Los Vegas, by Bonlform from La Valiere, by Seaton Delaval from Charente. This is a very successful 'Old New Zealand .family, which Includes Nonette, LO3 ■Angelos, and Client among its good representatives, while the recent arrival at Rlccarton is a half-sister to Los Gatos, a high-class two-year-old ip Australia, where she won the Ascot Va'le Stakes in Melbourne and the Sires’ Produce Stakes in Sydney. The Lord Quex filly, who was bred by Mr W. G. Stead, was sold at the Trentham yearling sales In January, Mr J. Nicholson, of Wellington, paying 140 guineas for her. She is. a likely sort to earn early two-year-old honours.

The Trentham. trainer, E. J. Murtagh, who has been located at Wellington headquarters for about two years, is shifting to Marton. His original patron, Mr J. J. McGrath, did not go beyond a preliminary canter on tho turf with .First Money and Arikinui, and later with Mr C. Boyle supervising his own training under 11. Bennett at Levin, Murlagli lias lost Rational 11, Hasoull, and Salt,spray. He won the Touro Cup with national 11., and Hasoull won last August at tho Grand National meeting, but the Australian trip last spring was unprofitable, and tho horses had to he •spelled. With Habit also spelling. Murtagh lias had only Arikinui in work recently. By shifting to Marton Murtagh will be nearer tho home quarters of his main patron, Mr 11. McManaway, who, in addition lo Habit, has one or two youngsters to go into work shortly. Murtagh also has the promise of ono or two other horses.

The well-known American racing man, W. S. Vosbrugh, has no illusions concerning the breeding or buying of racehorses, and shows it by ‘the following remarks made by him in the Lexington Thoroughbred Record: “From the experience of a lifetime It often occurs to me that In matters concerning the breeding, selection, and racing of horses, for which men are often given 'the credit of knowing a great deal, there are no subjects of which they know so little. The mistakes of horsemen, whether owners, trainers, or breeders, would lilt volumes. It is fair to suppose that a trainer constantly associated with horses is in a better position to speak of the chances of a horse for a race than anybody. Yet. It is frequently remarked that ‘a trainer's lips would break a bank.' .... That men should make mistakes is not so strange after all. Haring and the breeding of racehorses are 100 involved—

too complex. Owners and trainers become ‘stable blind* as regards their own horses and blind to the excellence of other men’s horses. Breeders allow themselves to become the worst kind of theorists. in the purchase, of yearlings, men are given the credit of 'good judgment’ when good luck would seem more dc*nrvinK.*’

Cruaohan has been placed in -work again by the local tr-alner, R. Syme. Cruachan Injured a hoof as the result -of over-reaching while training at Te Rapa and had to be spelled. The King Mark—Straga gelding has opened his hurdling career successfully and he should have further prospects in the department.

Since the introduction of the totalisator means of speculation on the racecourse in England there were, and are multitudinous arguments regarding the mechanical mode of betting. The following is from The Field—“ In a few weeks there will be presented to Parliament the second annual report and accounts of the Racecourse Betting Control Board. It is to be hoped that some, muchneeded light will be thrown on certain matters concerning which controversy has been aroused, and rumour -is persistent. 4 The totalisator was made for the racecourse, not the racecourse for the totalisator. Has it or has it not achieved this object—is it or is It not likely to -achieve it in -the future? It has been -stated that the Control Board is in debt to the extent of more than £2,000,000. Is this true? What is the deficit, and to whom is the money owed?”

An Australian expert, in writing on "What is a Stayer” says ; "The horse must, all things being equal, have good and sound heart arid lungs and plenty of lung room for forced breathing. This is obtained in two ways, either by good depth or good ’spring' (or roundness) of the whole of the ribs, and particularly so of the back ones. Where the ribs lack a little in depth, Nature can largely compensate, not only by aforesaid ‘spring,’ but by inclining the middle-piece. (A longbacked horse never stays well). One of the chief reasons why the . thorax and also the back ribs should 'be well shaped is that the sheet of muscle called the diaphragm during forced breathing pushes th’e stomach and intestines well to the rear, thereby making more room for the lungs. Hence the necessity for good back ribs. So far we can see that conformation plays a very important part In staying ability, hut not nearly so much so In that of stamina. The latter applies more to the animal born In rough, Inclement surroundings, with coarse fare, and yet able to perform great feats of hardihood year In and year out, which the well-nurtured racecourse stayer could not endure. Temperament of the kind amenable to the rider’s every command —therefore free of wilfulness—ls another factor, and It has a large influence, together with the foregoing qualities, on action.

KING MARCH BREAKS DOWN. King March has broken down in one of his front pasterns and has been turned out. He was to have been a member of J. T. Jamieson's team for Australia, but will now lie a compulsory absentee.