RACING NEWS

New Zealand Times, Volume XLIV, Issue 10290, 27 May 1919, Page 8

RACING NEWS

FIXTURES.

Mav 29—Taratahi-Carterton JR.C.' ' Mav 31. Juno 3 and.s—Auckland B.C. June 3 and 4—Otaki K.C. :

NOTES AND COMMENTS

(By "ToKungaY); , . The public have- a- peculiar vay ct chasing popular riders, Yt 'has come to such an - acute staff© that’ wherever Gray .or Deeley is riding-one or the other ipust be the winner.. At . Wanganui anything Grav rode was sunposed'to bo the - dead pea.” So, much for fame.. Anyway* Gray did , not succeed in riding * one - winner home during the meeting. ‘ / • Silver Link,, who was' -top weight Hi each of the major’ sprint ©vents‘ at ; War nganui, failed to prove herself. On the first day when she .was second ‘ favourite she -showed, out for a- while. * but subsequently died away* and on Saturday the public, evidently judging.fry the first day*s running, -went for her .hot. end strong. SHe led for a while in her second essay, but failed to .go on with it, being beaten by an inferior mare, 'Rawaknre. Rawakore and Silver Link, are hardlv reliable horses to back. >

Demos,. who was made first choice for thft-Borough , Handicap at Wanganui and duly turned up as* number one, was made number two on the machine on Saturday, but he ran into the ruckin the end. He is a most unreliable anunal w Royal Chef ran into third place in tte Borough Handicap at Wanganui, and promised to do better on the second, rut he was never in the hunt. Ho appear* to be a back number. «

Carmel Arch ran into second place in the Borough Handicap at Wanganui, hut was never sighted on the second day. It seems that the form of the' two days did not by any means coincide. Inah appears to he coming into form. She was in the bunt all the way m tte Borough , Handicap at Waoganm, end ram a very good race in the Winter (Juts on the second day. Although she is approaching six years of age, the mare has a lot in her yet. ~

Bonville has definitely retired from the track; end will go to Kilbroney. Polthogue, who is a six year old gelding by Patronus from a Sylvia Part mare, has proved himself as a jumper. Ke kicked off as a hurdler and did oil that was asked of him, and when put over the big stuff duly turned up, defeating several horses who bad previously been over the'stout jumps at Wanganui. His trainer. E. Barlow, of Nejv Plymouth, knows something about getting a hors© ready* He has a large future. Grafton Tot was in the boom at Wanganui. He ran fairly well on the first day but hit ' a fence on Saturday and came a cropper.

Yellow and Black has been touched In the wind, for some years. , Despite that fact he was put in the Wanganui Steeplechase, of three, miles. •_ A threemile steeplechase is a hard thing for a broken-winded horse, tend the obvious thing resulted.. he fell at the end of the race and broke his back. Quite a long time was taken to discover .whether the horse was seriously injured after the accident but eventually he was carted away and destroyed. Running a. brokenwinded horse in a three-mile steeplechase, with cracks engaged, hardly seems reasonable.

Lochella was well backed on both days at Wanganui for some reason. > The best the Grafton Loch gelding could do was to run - fourth on the first .day and fall down on the second. When he fell Lochella caught. his rider, O’Connell, in the stirrup and dragged mm along the course for some, yards. The rider escaped serious injury.

Euripos (Hymettus-Martian) ran two good races, at Wanganui. ,On the first day he was more Or less eschewed by the oublic, and duly winning, paid the best price of the day. On the second day the public duly appreciated their previous. day’s error, and . made Euripos favourite, and their udgment- was by no means misplaced. Tor all tbafc no paid a, remarkably, good, dividend.

• Bewi Poto appears .to have gone right off He was made first favourite in both of ~ the middle . distance races at Wanganui, but could make very little impression’ bn his fields. " On the first day he ran a very poor third, and on Saturday he did worse. ,

The well-known E-., S. Sievier was beaten when he tried for Parliamentary honours in England a few months back, but as if to compensate for, that failure, he has since experienced specially ’ good racing luck His horse. Royal Bucks, won the Linpolnshire Handicap recently, and followed that up with the City and Suburban , Handicap last week. , Boyal Bucks is by. .Buckwheat., whoso, stock have given him good advertisement in various countries since he came to New South Wales. ’Messrs Thompson Bros, displayed excellent judgment ’ in. buying Buckwheat, the appearance Of Whoso yearlings in the sale-ring at Band wick will I bo awaited with considerable interest. ,

Melbourne’s crack rider, F. Dempsey, struck trouble at the Victorian Club meeting at Moonoe Valley on Friday 1/ist. it is not unusual for a-jockey when he draws a bad position at the starting-post on, a horse possessing a chance to attempt to get in closer, to .the rails when at the barrier! especially as the riders of .some of the other, runners are often complaisant. Nor do starters, as a rule, make a particular fuss about it unless a boy is too persistent. Dempsey, however, must have gone'to extremes in trying to better his post position, seeing that the stewards disqualified hita for two months. He has appealed. * Trainers in the principal cities of Australia will endorse the following views, expressed by an English writer" The trainer’s position has always, to. my way of thinking, been a curious, one. Ho ha,s the care of a horse and the 'responsibility for its woil-being for months, and all attendant anxiety, yet' the ; big presents go to the jockey who wins a ,big' race on a horse after being in the saddle from the time he leaves for the starting post until ■ho returns-' to • weighing. ’ If a trainer bets and- is Tu'cky : in' his speculations he can make - money, arid many of the profession have done so,-but I have always held-the view that of all who earn their living by racing, tho trainer is the worst, paid having- regard to his responsibilities." .It- is- the same -in Australia, and, many a trainer has seen his work ot' months go; for nothing, consequent on the rider not being nearly as fit as,the horse. l" can recall an occasion at Randwick some years' ago when a horse thatshould have won an important race only finished third! It . was handled wretchedly, which was not surprising when .it subsequently ‘ transpired' that the' jockey had not gone to bed the same morning until ,an hour approaching, that-at which racing, stable employees generally commence the day’s duties.

In connection with .the Napier. Fark Facing. Cllub's winter meeting,- on June 30th and'2lst..nominations for all events close on Friday. 31ay .30th, at, 8 p.m.

' Acceptances for the-Horowhenua- Boeing Club’s meeting flloso with the secretary (Mr. Walter Bull, Levin), on Friday next. May' 30tli, at 8 p.m.

OTAKI RE-HANDICAPS

Following are rehandicaps for the Otaki winter meeting - RAUKAWA CUP —Marquotuer 8.5, TAIPUA MEMORlAL—Eawafcore 7.12, Astinome 7.5.