TROTTING Why Not Fancied In ißangiora Winter Cup

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31087, 16 June 1966, Page 4

TROTTING Why Not Fancied In ißangiora Winter Cup

If Why Not produces one of her best staying runs at Rangiora on Saturday there is a strong chance that she will take the honours in the Rangiora Winter Cup. This two-mile event is the first leg of the T.A.B. double at the Rangiora Trotting Club’s winter meeting.

Why Not raised hopes of an immediate return to her best winter form the last time she raced. That was in the Ashburton County Handicap, in which she ran Paranova to a length, last Monday week.

About this time two years ago Why Not won the two principal events at the Nelson winter meeting. She gained a few minor placings last season but has made no major contributions to her record meantime. However, her present campaign—which only began in March —was obviously designed to have her at peak for winter racing. The majority of Why Not’s rivals on Saturday do not have strong form credentials If Ashburton form proves the best guide most opposition for her could come from Soldier Gal and Epona. Proven Two-Miler Soldier Gal will be trying to keep a winning record intact. At Ashburton last Monday week she led for the last seven furlongs of 12 to win the Winter Handicap. She was also successful at Wyndham in March. There she won the two-mile Farmers’ Handicap. Epona was placed as a twomiler the last time she raced. That was in the Nichol Handicap in which the winner was Allakasam and the runner-up was Gold Boots. The latter’s

effort to give 16 rivals up to 60 yards start and a beating in the two-mile Caltex Gold Cup at Nelson last Saturday make Epona’s prospects in this event look very good. Raven Song and Our Smokey have the best form of the others. The former has won two sprint races this season. Our Smokey has three wins on his record and one of those was a two-mile event at Nelson in January. Sprint Fancy Lustre Scott, the beaten favourite in the Queen’s Birthday Stakes at Ashburton last Monday week, is generally expected to make amends for that defeat among the sprinters in the Eyreton Handicap, second leg of the main double There was justification for Lustre Scott being the popular fancy at Ashburton. At her previous start she had been a fast-finishing second to Our Smokey in the Winter Stakes at the Canterbury Park meeting. But the bother

she struck during the running of the Queen’s Birthday Stakes cost her all chance. Form runners with which Lustre Scott will have to contend are numerically strong. Ulight, which, ran Soldier Gal to a neck at Ashburton and was again a close second to Chaman in the Craddock Handicap at Nelson on Tuesday, is bound to have solid backing.

Ulight will form a strong bracket with Showpiece, a sprint winner on the first day at Nelson. The consistent Overtime, which will be bracketed with Sir Hugh, will be another strong fancy. Chaman’s. chance of winning this mile and a quarter event does not look as bright now that he has been rehandicapped to 24 yards. He would probably need a lot of luck to succeed in what is almost certain to be a capacity field. But Dryden Smoke, Eyreton, Richard Hanover and Vantage, which either won or were placed at Ashburton or Nelson, will have to be included among the stronger possibilities.