SAVING THE YOUNGSTERS

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 19, 6 February 1937, Page 8

SAVING THE YOUNGSTERS

No Juvenile Racing Mr Warren Wright, an American breeder, is about to try an interesting experiment. He has decided to keep back from racing for two years five of his most iashionably bred yearlings. They will be trained but not raced. Mr Wright' s intention is to try and determin© the vexed . question - of whether two-year-old racing is harmful or not, states a sportingi writer. if any of these five horses should turn out to be stayers of class and train on, other breeders may feel disposed to adopt a similar policy. There is no getting away from the fact that at the present time a too large percentage of racehorses do not train on ai'ter two or three years. Commenting on this question in his new hook, "The Breed of the Itace* horse," F. Becker says: "The largeet supply of stayers is coming forth in these days from the ranks of horses ■which either could not be wound up at two years or were kept back by forbearing trainers with a view to giving them ample time for a natural physical maturation, and that from the ranks of precocious horses only a very smail. percentage of true stayers is springing." The writer points out that "the best stayers of the period under siw^ vey were (next to Solario) Foxlaw, Invershin, Trimdon and Brown Jack. Foxlaw was not raced for two years. Invershin was not raced at two years and even at three years was not fit to win a race. He won the Ascot Cup twice at six and seven years. Trimdon was not raced at two-three years. He won the Ascot Oup two years in succession, at fiye and six years. Brown Jack was not broken in until his third year. He started winning at four years, and kept on until his tenth year, when he won the longest rac® on the British Turf, the 2| miles Queen Alexandra Stakes, for the sixth time in successive years." We may take .it that Mr Wright intends to experiment with young horses bred soundly on staying lines. Keeping horses back from racing until three years would not be likely to have the effect • intended (that of producing stamina) jf they were not bred on right lines. As to two-year-old racing it may be said with confidence that in. this oountry ic is allowed .to start much too early in the season. How many winnors of the Wanganui Debutante Stakes or even of the Avondale Stakes have' raced ' on successfully for any length of time.