Racing Bits and Turf Tattle

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 1, Issue 181, 24 March 1932, Page 7

Racing Bits and Turf Tattle

HORSES AND HORSEMEN.

Back to the Saddle. A. W. McDonald has resumed riding in public after a lengthy absence caused by aecident. McDonald proposes to ride in hurdle and steeplecliase events during the coming winter. Although he is the veteran of the riders of jumpers, he is very fit and is sure to hold his own as a crosscountry horseman. Jockey's Premiership. H. Gray, with 58 wins, still has a commanding lead in the jockeys' premiership. The next on the list is H. "VViggms, whose wins at Dannevirke brought his total to 51. K. Voitre has 48 wins and is followed by B. H. Morris 39, R. Reed 31, and L. G. Morris 31.^ Wiggins will be decidedly unlucky if, as seems likely, passing Alness prevents him taking part in this week's racing. It is to *be hoped he vrill be fully recovered by the time the Ellerslie meeting comes on. Chance Lost. A great chance of winning a race was lost when Chief Cook went out for the Hartgill Memorial at Dannevirke carrying 121b overweight. Probably had H. N. Wiggins been well enough to ride he would have had the mount on Chief Cook. Chief Cook's owner, Mrs. F. Armstrong, has been unlucky lately, as her horse finished first in a race at Napier and lost the stake through the bursting of a lead bag. Coming on top of that, the Dannevirke incident must have been hard to bear. Speedy Tray Bond. The speedy Tea Tray mare, Tray Bond, who has been trained at Gore this season, has joined E. J. Ellis' stable at Washdyke. She has not done much racing since last season, when shs showed smart sprinting form. Regular Work Again. Corinax is again in regular work at Ellerslie. The Magpie-Queen Ingoda ^ gelding has been hitting out well in his recent gallops and with a little racing will be at his best. Corinax, who has proved capable over a journey of ground, goes best when the going is yielding. Jayson's Chance. Jayson has a tendency to lag badly in his races. But for this failing he 2>tay have won at Bulls and at Dannevirke. Mr. Keeble's gelding finishes strongly, and may pick up one of the middle-distance handicaps at Easter, especially if he strikes a race in which the pace is on all the way.

Has Shown His Paces. The former southerner Palace now seems to be free from the soreness caused by splint trouble. He has already shown that he possesses speed, but he may not reach his best eondition for a few weeks. When he does so he should be equal to winning in the best class in the north. Welcome Boy. Welcome Boy, the winner of the Herries Hack Cup and the President's Hack Handicap at Tauranga, was first and third in the respective events last season. Two years ago he won a double at the meeting. The Feramerz gelding, who is in R. J. Mateer's Matamata stable, is owned by the Tauranga sportsman, Mr. G. Earl. Again a Track Worker. Baroscope, who was added to the list a short time back, is again a track worker under A. Tinker's supervigion j at Te Hapa. The Weathervane — TorI trix three-year-old, who has invariably worlced well in private, has not pro- ■ dueed the results anticipated with the colours up, although he has been a winner at nine furlongs this season. When he is again fully conditioned, more consistency may mark the racing deeds of this local candidate. Not First for South Africa. The juveniles recently bought for South Africa are not the first New Zealanders to go there. King Log, by Stepniak colt, who won the Great j Northern Foal Stakes and Royal • Stakes in 1903 and other races as a two-year-old, went to South Africa with another of the late Mr. G. G. Stead's horses in Evelyn Wood, a Hotchkiss colt also raced by the same owner.

Suffered a Mishap. The Paper Money gelding, Money Mine, owned by Mr. W. Swale, of Invercargill and until recently trained by J. A. Rowland, suffered a mishap on the Southland tracks and as a result will probably be permanently retired from the turf. Jumpers Now Working. Jumpers are now providing part of the programme on every working morning at Ellerslie. Last week-end, High Finance and Zoom gave good exhibitions separately over four hur- J dles. High Finance, who prior to her reappearance as a hurdler at the Te j Aroha meeting, had been off the ; scene since the spring of 1929, is jumping confidently and well, and assisted by her legacy of speed, which apparently has not all been expended with age, the Paper Money mare should do well this winter. Zoom is a bold fencer, but an unknown quan-

tity to racegoers. He is a five-year-old chestnut gelding by Warplane from Harmonious, by Formby from j Tuneful by Hymettus, and is a half- | brother to the once useful -Euphonij um. The latest important novice to j be sent to the ring is Brampton, who, with Neil as leader, was given a | schooling lesson over the pony hurdles. He did not infuse a great deal of dash into his work, but got over a few fences safely before unseating L. Dulieu. On being remounted, he jumped another fence safely. Town Beauty is getting experience of the steeplechase fences. All these horses add materially to the strength of the j northern winter brigade. :