THE CLUBMAN

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Issue 1370, 27 July 1916, Page 8

THE CLUBMAN

The racing season of 1915-16 will be at an end on Monday, July 31, and the last race meeting will have been concluded at Amberley ere these notes reach far. The meeting referred to is that of the old-estab-lished Brackenfield Hunt Club, the members of which have always been the strongest of supporters of the popular sport in which horses, hounds and hares have played so conspicuous a part in the South Island of the Dominion. Last year the last race meeting of the season was that of the Pakuranga Hunt Club, the oldest hunt club in New Zealand and the best known in the North Island. There will be quite a large number of hunt meetings following in quick succession after the New Zealand Grand National meeting and on to the end of October, some of them with the aid of the totalisator and a number without.

The first race meeting to be held in the Auckland province will be that of the Pakuranga Hunt Club, and we were hopeful that for the hunt club events at least there would be some outside competition, that is to say. from the provinces in the North Island. The North Taranaki, Pakuranga and Manawatu Hunt Clubs’ meetings are, however, all run inside a week, being separated as a matter of fact by two days and four days only respectively, and this is against the probability. Now that so many hunt clubs enjoy the privilege of using the totalisator, we think that an effort should be made to attract the best horses to one central meeting annually to test the merits of the qualified hunters over country and over hurdles. Good prizes should be offered for at least two races each, divided into three prizes, first, second and third horses, and a cup should go to the owners of each of the winners, the club on whose course such events are run to allow railage expenses beyond a given distance. Some such arrangement as that suggested would make the championships for bona fide hunter racehorses most interesting events. A matter of this kind might well have been discussed at the meeting of delegates of hunt clubs held in Wellington recently, also a better arrangement of dates of meetings to avoid clashing should have been arrived at. Some of our best steeplechase events this season, as in the past, have been won by horses that have qualified or seen some service in the fields.

The resignation of Mr. W. H. E. Wanklyn from the position of secretary to the Racing Conference is an event which deserves more than a passing reference. That official had occupied the position for a very long time and with conspicuous ability, but it has long been an opinion held by many of the clubs’ delegates that the secretary of the Racing Conference should not hold the dual positions of secretary to that body and to a racing club as well, and Mr. Wanklyn has been secretary to the Conference for the greater part of the time he has been secretary to the Canterbury Jockey Club, a growing institution. He has also been the compiler of the New Zealand Stud Book for about 17 years. This last-named work requires a lot of time to be devoted to it if it is to be kept up to date, and as the Conference empowered the president to retain Mr. Wanklyn’s services for the purpose, that official, who takes much interest in breeding studies, should have more time to attend to that important work, and we trust that he will devote his energies to making future volumes more complete, and that breeders will render him every assistance, as a good deal requires to be done to bring the New Zealand Stud Book up to a proper standard. The omission from its pages of many thoroughbreds is invariably placed to the blame of their breeders, but there are omissions for which they cannot. all be held responsible. Some owners are so indifferent and some so ignorant ot the pedigrees of mares that fall into their hands that other sources must be sought and resorted to for the data. Much of what is required passes through the records of the Confer-

ence in registrations and through the books of the clubs and the entries for classic and other races. All these have to be furnished to the Conference, in whose office they should be available for reference. Ever}' thoroughbred that races must be named and its name, age and breeding. registered with the Conference. Every thoroughbred that comes into the country or that leaves the country can be traced. A lot of work is admittedly necessary, but the Conference does not expect its work done for nothing, and very little data should be missed under the existing circumstances. The wonder is that previous compilers, who were left to their own resources, did so well.

The records of recent years go to show that the New Zealand Grand Nationals have been won by horses that have been well seasoned by racing at meetings preceding. There is nothing like racing them into form and giving them a fair amount of schooling as well if they are to stay over long courses. The little raced or little schooled horse may run one fair race and then go back. a. horse unfit and not muscled up by the kind of work he has to undertake on the day has only to hit

a fence to steady him and to strike a second to stop his progress quick, but the fit horse may rap one or more hard and still come on with a bit of fight left. A horse may be in condition to run a flat race very well and to run a second one better, but the jumping horse to run a long race over a succession of hurdles or big fences must have done a fair amount of schooling or racing over the obstacles to pull through and to go through a three days’ meeting, Some have their schooling crowded into the last few weeks before a meeting, but the horse that is fair ready a month before only needs a schooling task or two during the last fortnight and condition will pull him through, but, as before stated, racing into form is the best. Many a good horse through lack of the right preparation has been beaten by an which has had the better training for the particular task set. Some owners think that if they have horses that have proved good jump-

ers they can get them fit for jumping races by working them on the flat only. Superior class horses may beat moderates without special preparation. but put two horses that are well matched on the flat to race over the hurdles at similar weights and the one that has done some schooling will beat the other nine times out of ten, and concede weight too. We have had some proofs of this during the past few months.

One feature of the recent Wellington meeting was the heavy investment of money on the totalisator on the Kia Ora Handicap, the last race of the meeting, won by Toki, who paid such a fine dividend. Sixteen moderates started, and the top weight, the best horse, won. The race was worth 150sovs, of which sum 105sovs went to the winner, yet the public invested to such an extent. that the amount handled constituted a record for the club, and, of course, the club’s percentage alone would have paid the stake several time over. At one time the backers of horses picked out the most important races, such as cups and the most valuable prizes, to do their betting on, but nowadays and for some

time past minor races attract much attention. When it comes to the last few races winners follow up their good luck and losers try to retrieve what they have lost, while many finding themselves still with perhaps as much money as they started with determine on a final flutter. It is in or out with many who take so much money to invest and decide on giving it a “spin,” win or lose. * * * * We have read that Rorke’s Drift has been assessed somewhat above his deserts for the New Zealand Grand National Hurdle Race, but we contend that when horses of such proved excellence on the flat are entered for jumping races it is a handicapper’s duty to assume that they can jump and to assess them accordingly. Koi ke’s Drift has been already credited with being a good jumper in private, and he and Kooya and Bon Reve, on their fiat performances, also Sir Solo, are very well treated indeed. Had the last-named not raced over

hurdles, or since he was at the top of his form, he would have been considered thrown in, and so would Bon Reve, but as they have both raced over obstacles there is some justification for treating them lightly now, though it is a bit risky treating horses of their proved class as of the thirdrate order in a business to which flat racers are often relegated and make good. On recent flat form, if they haq done any schooling to fit them, two horses that would have been in the market for the race referred to are Rorke’s Drift and Kooya. The last-named has raced once over obstacles, and if kept to that business should pay her way.

When making comparisons between the way in which steeplechase horses are treated :n Australia and in New Zealand, it should be remembered that our minimum is 71b. higher than in the Commonwealth, which makes all the difference. El Progresso was weighted at 11,12 in the chief crosscountry steeplechase in Victoria, in which he finished sixth, and was thus giving away nearly three stone to the worst of those engaged. In the N.Z. Grand National this consistent performer, wno has won and just got beaten carrying bigger weights than anything that will run at Riccarton next month, has Hb. less than he failed under at Flemington, and has thus a pu 1 of 1 lib. over the bottom weight division here as compared with the minimum division in Australia. He has thus been assessed very considerately. Mr. Henrys’ estimate of his merits may be correct, but if the best of the New Zealand horses engaged in the race should be enteied at Randwick, say, for the spring meeting there, in which steep.echase events figure, and the Australian weight adjuster were to follow on the same lines, it is easy to imagine that there would be some complaining on the part of their nominators. Last year it looked as if Tim Doolan would have about won the New Zealand Grand National, when he fell at the last fence, carrying 11.9. If he had been beaten it would not have been by more than a very short margin. El Progresso and Tim Doolan are assessed as of about the same class. In the V.R.C. Grand National El Progresso was asked to concede Tim 31b., and on these figures if Mr. Stead’s little horse had been in the New Zealand event with 31b. less than El Progresso has been awarded he would likely have been a strong favourite. .El Progresso’s owner has had every inducement for him to send his consistent gelding over if he is well.

A Home paper says that excepting in France racing appears to be proceeding in nearly every part of Europe, and then goes on to relate that at a meeting at Milan a jockey named Wooland won six races in four days, while in Germany, at Hoppegarten, the Union Renner, of £2OOO, was won by Taucher, a son of the English horse Malua, the second of the runners being by Louviers, who was second in Minoru’s Derby in 1909. On the same day, the “Field” i elates that there were race meetings at Madge burg, Creffeld and Frankfurt-on-the-Main. In Vienna the Austrian Oaks was won by Nur Du, by the Irish-bred Shene Glallion, who won the Two Thousand Guineas. In Russia racing is going on regularly also. While "this is so there is no reason for we in the colonies who are so far away to think of closing down, as some people have suggested. In England it is claimed that a sensible view of the situation has been taken, and that there is just enough racing to allow of tlie horses being tested in the only possible way. In France, according to the same paper, it is understood that premiums for mares are being given, and shows of stallions are being held in the interests of maintaining the various breeds, and it is expected that when the enemy pressure is rather more lelaxed race meetings will be quickly arranged. The authorities could not well permit racing to go on there with the war so near racecourses and training quarters, or it is certain that it would never have been stopped.