NOTES AND COMMENTS

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 139, 29 June 1937, Page 15

NOTES AND COMMENTS

'The Barb.")

Dannevirke Hunt Form WELLINGTON WEIGHTS

(By '

The Dannevirke Hunt meeting, field ■ at Dannevirke on Saturday last, w?.s well patronised, and tfiere was close on ; £1000 increase on tfie totalisator. With. the exception of Aube's double win. all the linisfies were vcry close, and the raeing^ on the whole, exciting and interestiug. • •. * The Meeanee-bred and ex-Hastings-trained and owned Tractor gelding Trackman put up a very fair performance in the hurdles, as this was fiis first public attempt, and prior to Saturday 'had only four schooling lessons. ' Trackman was held in behind for the ; first mile, but took command at tho 1 last fen.ee and in a great struggle - managed to last out to win narrowly. . He is sure to go on and0 do better things. Mercian Prinee was one of the first to begin, and being a regular mudlark the publie were hoping to see him running a fair race, but they were doomed to disappointment, as at the initial fence fiead over heels he went. Sybil Song was always handy to the leaders, but fourth was fier best. War Lap fell down the back, but he was never jumping cleanly. « « • The Hastings gelding Cletrac was made a good favourdte for the Takapau Maiden, but running fourth for most of the way eould only attain third position at the winning post. The winner, Aube, who is a half-brother, by Arausio, to that one-time good perfOrmer Toxeuma, was in the van for most of the journby, * after getting the best of the jump-out, and at the finish went on to win easlly by the best part of five lengths. Tho Waipawa-owned Triplex. who in her few starts has shown promising form. ran a fair second. Ghe is by Joeulator from the dam of Tiger Gain and Blue Tiger. Seacourt was a quiet tip. She was well away, and turning for homo looked as though she was going to trouble the winner seriousjy, but hittin g a bad patch of going sfie stopped quiekly. It was the lxeavy going tfiat prevented Mrs T. Ryan's Gainscourt mare from paying a dividend. « • • Hastings again supplied the favourite for the Hunt Cup Steeplechase when Cotsfield was sent out first choiee. For two miles he mado the pace, jumping eleanly, but fiis stamina, in the going, went astray and at the finish he was a very tired horse in fourth po'sition. Dozie was always. well behind. and fier showings eince she won at Napier are very poor and difficult to aecount for. The winney ef this raee was the hunting field candidate, Sleepy, from Taranaki, who had no previous form. He jumped well and finished full of running. • » 9 Gladium was very unlucky when raeing at Hastings, but was rewarded with a win in the Rakaiatai Hack. His margin was narrow, however, but he w.on, and that is the main thing. Le Torquet, tfie Hastings- trained gelding was one of tfie first out, and after shaking olf tfie pony, Sporting Gift, at the straight, looked the winner, but finishing resolutcly- GladiuiiL hung on to get up and win on ihe post. Le Torquet is a gelding that would, I tfiink, do better over middlo distances, , # * • The moderate and consistent Umpiro, after a row oi minor plaeings since being taken over by H. Monteith, oi" Waipukurau, succeeded in getting on the winning list when defeating Iddo narrowly in the ten-furlongs hack race, so that fiis win was not out of turn. Iddo was field in behind for the firsi; seven furlongs, when he gradually improved his position to occupy fourth making the iiome turn. Over the last bit he and the winner enjoyed a battlo royal, for Iddo to go down by a head, He is in great order, and the raee will bring him into apple-pie condition for the hack hurdle events at Trentham next week. « • W • Aube was saddled up again in tfie Ladies ' Bracelet, and after waiting on tho leaders until the home bend was negotiated, Mr It. Plummer let his head go, and as he won as he liked by ovor five lengths from the favourite, Miss Pango, who had every ehance, with the paeemaker, All Spirit, third. . Tommy Atkins, from G. W. B. Greene 's stablo and ridden by Mr G. G. Beatson, occupied a leading position for about a mile, when he gradually weakened to occupy fourth position passing the. judge's box. • , • • Yet another close finish Tosulted in the final event, when Even Money, who had finished third to Umpire and Iddo carlier in the day, was again steppcd out, but this time fourth in public. favour against her favouritism earlicr. This Goldcn Sovcreign mare was back early, but when making her bid in thn home stretch finished strongly, aiul wearing Warehi down won by a short head. with Patagonia again tfiird. Fir.si Chapter was ahvays close up to have cverv chance, but fourth was his best. Prior to tho race this gelding was moving short, so maybc was not at his best. Wellington Prospects, Wykemist, who won at Napier and was uniucky in two other starts over the Uawkc's Bay meetings, as tlio Bay's solo representative in the Mariri Hack Btceples at Wellington, and with 9,11 has not been over-weighted. He has fully recovered from his iujured stifle, sustaiued tlic second da.y of the Hastings meeting, so that, on form, he should give a good accouut of himself on Tuesday next, altbough the opposition is strong for the class, including Streamline, Lucidus, Chang, and Hunting Go. * * • Hawke 's Bay hcads the list iii tho Woburn Hack with the unreliable barrier horse, Hunter 's ir.orn, at 9.11, or just on a stono more than tho Park double winner, Joviality. In this haek

raco a promising lot of young horses elaim engagement, including Besiege, Alunga, Winsome Lu and others. * t_ * Gontact has been allotted 10.10 in the Vittoria Hack Hurdles, but his recent showings on heavy tracks do not point to him being a Trentham proposition. 4» « Iddo, at 9.10, the -winner of the recent H.B. Hurdles in easy fashion, reads nicely, as does also another Hastings gelding, Blue Tiger. • * • In ,the open sprint Whirling (9.11) has bieen asked to coneede 61bs. to -Pakanui. As good as the former has proved to be, Pakanui, at the difference, will keep hdm working overtime, as F. W. Stowe fias the brilliant Hunting Song horso back to his very best form. Of course there are others in, too, but at the moment the two topweights occupy moet attention. » • • There are no eurprise weights in the Wellington Steeplechase, as all raeing folk rightly selected the top w.eight, Tudor, who ds a bHBiant 'cnaser ,and his second to Windsor Lad on Saturday points to the big Little England gelding being 'A.1. by Tuesday next. Val•poen (10.10)' is not badiy olf, as this double Grand National wmner reeeived no less than 181bs. from tho top-weight. Irish Comet, wfio came to light .at tfie recent Auckland meeting to win tfie two main cross-country events, fias been awarded 10.8. Tfiat fie is good up ; to a point is beyond dispute, but tfiat • point is fiis size, and tfie bigger Tren- ; tfiam fences may see tfie little fellow fiard put to repeat fiis Auckland wins. Billy Boy (10.6) fias won all tfie main cross-country events dn tfie Dominionj and altfiougfi not tfie fiorse fie was, at ; tfie luxurioue weigfit fie must attraet - attention. Manawatu is on tfie improve all tfie time, and by Tuesday next Mrs Macdonald wiU fiave tfie Acre gelding in great trim to carry his 10.3. Streamline tfiis time last year was very much in the boojn as a fiurdier, but at fids lirsS big meeting, Trentham, failed to • live up to fiis reputation, and Riccarton saw him performing no better. Now, tfiis season, as 9- 'cfiaser, he is in the boom again, so that if hds South Island friends ' are not over-estimating his ability 10.1 is a nice weight for him. Allegretto, Black Marlin, Sky Pilot, Don Erma, Snowy Dawn and BattlegTOund will all have ' ' ndbblers. " The sole Hawke ;s Bay ncpresentative is Royal Banquet (9.123. As a crosscountry horse I, for one, do not favour him, not becausse he is unsound, but on aecount of his not being a proficient fencer. # • • The two open hurdle races, the Trentham and Winter Hurdles, seos this district represented by Highgrader, Journet and John Charles, but their failures at Hastings hardly warrants them being taken into serious consideration, albeit should the ground be firm, whieh is most unlikely, Journet, at tho minimum is a po-'ssibility. • '• m Potent, who was onee raced and owned here without ever showing winning form, has been raeing down tho West Coast (S.I.) this last two seasons. Brought over to Ashburton on Saturday he succeeded in winning the six-furlong hack race, bedng 6/7 in the betting. At the same meeting that good hack Dictate, witfi 8,2, won at his first attempt among open handicap horses from ; a fair field.