NOVICE TO MAKE DEBUT

Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 84, 5 October 1940, Page 15

NOVICE TO MAKE DEBUT

Royal Challenge, who is to make his public bow in the Puhi Maiden Plate at Otaki next Saturday, has been waiting a long time to go to the races. Officially he is ten years old and he has been in training, on and off, for the past four years. However, every time he has packed his bag for a trip away from home to see the world something has gone wrong, and he has yet to be introduced to the intricacies of the racing game.

Royal Challenge, as far as is known, has not yet been on a racecourse, but he is quite sensible and seasoned, for he knows all the roads and most of the people about Eastern Hutt. That is where his owner, Mr. J. E. Dawson, has been working him from time to time the last four years, occasionally taking him down to the beach at Petone for a trial sprint. He is a low-set and not by any means a bad-looking gelding, but, as for racing, he is as green as the grass he nibbles along the roads. Mr. Dawson has no inflated ideas about Royal Challenge's being one of those "dark" horses, such as they used to produce in more parochial days of the Dominion's history. However, when he bought him at the dispersal sale of the late. Mr. W. H. Ballinger's horses six years ago, he did so with the intention of racing him, and that is why he is going to produce him at last at Otaki. The horse at least deserves a chance to show his paces, even if he is now progressing towards the veteran stage. According to Mr. Dawson, he is definitely to don the colours next Saturday. When Royal Challenge was secured at the sale for a modest 5 or 6 guineas, he was given in the catalogue as an untried four-year-old gelding by Koyal Shot (son of Royal Stag) out of the Cyrus mare Arihia, hence a three-quar-ter brother to that hardy horse Royal Game. But the only return made for Arihia in 1929 was "slipped foal and not served," consequently that pedigree cannot now be allowed for Royal Challenge, who must, go down in the records as by Royal Shot, dam unknown. It is nevertheless possible that the gelding is out of Arihia, as Royal Shot at times ran with the mares on the late Mr. Ballinger's Trentham property, and it is also quite probable that he is a year of two years younger than supposed. As he somewhat resembles another horse Mr. Ballinger raced, Shootist, who was out of an unnamed Cyrus mare, he might even be a full-brother °Whatever his breeding and whatever his performance, Royal Challenge will gather his share of notice atptaki next week, as some years ago- there were no more popular horses racing anywhere in the Dominion than those that; carried the livery o* that.real sP£ r£" man and gentleman, the late Mr. W. H. Ballinger. •