Turf Notes

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 273, 8 February 1928, Page 10

Turf Notes

Conducted by “EARLY BLRD”

Rotorua’s Annual Fixture One of the most popular meetings outside of Auckland City is undoubtedly that of the Rotorua Racing Club, and the gathering to be held at this thermal resort on Saturday and Monday promises to be well up to the standard of its predecessors. Excellent acceptances were received last night for the opening day’s racing, and splendid sport seems assured. To Ride At Rotorua At Rotorua on Saturday, A. H. Driscoll will ride Branson, Flying Juliet, Bright Comet and Abbey Day, while S. Henderson will have the mount on Harvest Day.

Cynthia N. For Rotorua N. Cunningham has Cynthia N. in the best of order at present. The recent racing she had has worked a deal of improvement in her, and it would not be out of place to say that she appears to be the most promising hack now in comfhission at Ellerslie. Cynthia N. is an acceptor for events at Rotorua on Saturday, and comprised one of the contingent that went South last evening. Storm Fiend’s Programme Although Storm Fiend has not been noticed doing any fast work of late at Ellerslie, he is getting through useful tasks, and bears a well-trained appearance. Provided he goes along in the right manner during the interim W. Morrow will take him to the Franklin meeting next month. Storm Fiend went a good race on the second day of the Takapuna meeting. Luxurious As a Jumper Now- that R. ponway intends to fit Luxurious for jumping events in the winter, his stable will be without a representative for flat racing. Conway has a fair team under his charge at present, and with Rahepoto, who will commence work when the tracks are to his liking, Monday, Maia and Luxurious, he should experience a successful season. Present intentions are to race Maia on the flat at Easter. The Form Horse Pink Note looks none the worse for his exertions at the Wellington Cup meeting. He has been kept at work, but mostly treated to fairly lenient tasks since his return from Trentham. He is the form horse in the Dunedin Cup. Atareria In His Class There is no mistake as to the striking of form of Atareria. In the Rossendale gelding’s last six starts he has won on five occasions and run second to Huikai in the Wairoa Cup in the other. Mr. W. H. Gaisford deserves these successes for persevering, a fact all recognise. The three-year-old, First Sight has suffered from shin soreness since the Trentham meeting, but he appeared anxious to increase his stride while doing three-quarter pace at Riccarton recently. The fGay Lad gelding is to run at Wihgatui, and he should not return home empty-handed, for he is a very bold galloper who is improving with each run. Jockey’s Broken Leg An' unfortunate acciddent occurred at Wingatui last week. W. Taylor rode the two-year-old Statuette filly at exercise, and when he was leaving the track she reared and fell back with him at the crossing. Taylor broke his left leg near the thigh. Dr. Spedding arrived promptly in response to a telephone call, and did all that was possible for the boy prior to his removal in an ambulance. Chit For Victoria

Mr. V. Riddiford has disposed of Chit (Paper Money—Minona) and Select (Leighton—Exclusive) to a Melbourne buyer, and they will be shipped before the end of the month.

Chit, who showed good speed in the early part of the season, has not raced recently, but in the interval she has grown and filled out surprisingly, and if all goes well with her, she will do good service for her new owner. Select has had recent racing and has shown sufficient form to suggest that she, too, will be a profitable purchase. Mr. Riddiford has got rid of a lot of his horses in training this season, and will have room for the young ones of his own breeding that are coming on. Will He Beat Goblin Market? The Autumnus colt, Full Feather, galloped smartly over six furlongs at Riccarton recently, and the indications are that he will start favourite for the Champagne Stakes at Dunedin. His victory on the concluding day of the Trentham meeting was very encouraging and, as the racing he had at Wellington has apparently cleaned him up, it is almost certain that he will take a hand in the finish of the approaching classic race. Absurd Over a Distance It is reported that Nincompoop, who acted as runner-up to Set Sail in the Invercargill Cup, is to fulfil his Dunedin Cup engagement. C. Emersan has been retained to ride the descendant of Absurd at Wingatui. Very few of the progeny of Absurd have won over stayers’ distances, and it will therefore be interesting to see how Nincompoop fares to-morrow, when he is called upon to race over one mile and a-half. Unlucky Filly Seldom nowadays do horses ridden by T. Green pay long prices, but if Fermanagh had been first instead of third in the Juvenile Handicap at Hawera on Thursday her backers would have received a big, dividend. This three-year-old sister to Avola is just showing signs of form, and it will not be long before she earns a winning bracket. She finished almost from nowhere into third place behind Miss Ransom and Royal Ceres on Thursday. Sympathy Of Racegoers Friends of the Fordell trainer, F. Tilley, and\ the racing world in general will be grieved to hear that he lost his wife on Saturday following upon a brief illnes. The late Mrs. Tilley left Wellington after spending a visit to relatives only on Wednesday last, and although she complained of not feeling well, the announcement of her sudden death came as a big shock. Her husband is left with two small children, and he will have the sympathy of the whole of the racing community.

Now At Wingatui The three-year-old filly Eliminator has been purchased by Mr. A. H. Murdoch and has joined C. Geiseler’s stable. Eliminator ran second to Skyquest in the Kaitoke Handicap, and is evidently a fairly smart galloper. She has a rather pronounced dip in the back which is accentuated by very high withers. In the Dunedin Cup Thorndale’s good gallop over six furlongs at Riccarton last week has caused him to firm considerably for the Dunedin Cup. and he is bound to wind up one of the prime fancies for next week’s big race. There is no doubt that he is in better form at present than at any other stage of his career, and it seems only a matter of staying out the extra two furlongs at Wingatui for him to prove one of the hardest to beat. As the Antagonist gelding ran Hynanna to a head in the Consolation Handicap at Trentham, it will be seen that Thorndale’s form is first-class, for yesterday Hynanna beat a very useful field in the Egmont Cup, which was run over a mile and a-half. A. E. Ellis rides Thorndale toA Worthy Substitute A few months ago Mr. F. Ehrhorn lost that useful jumper Anchor at Ellerslie as the result of an accident. He

obtained the Lucullus —Persis mare Nucleus to fill his place, and she did her job really well at Hawera on Thursday. She showed a clean pair of heels to the opposition all the way. By the way she shaped she has improved a good deal, and is likely to win many more hurdle races. She raced indifferently on the flat in and around Auckland. Purchased for lOOgns in December Nucleus won £303 by her two wins at Hawera. Worthy Relations It has often happened in the past that relations of a good horse have proved very poor relations indeed. This does not apply to Hynanna and his juvenile sister, Miss Ransom. Hynanna, although he has now won twice in excellent style, is still some distance from being at his best, and he should be a high-class performer this autumn. There is no doubt about his quality. Miss Ransom was still very green when she ran second at Trentham, and at Hawera on Thursday she was quite unprepared at barrier-rise. In the straight, however, she put in a run typical of her brother, and won well. , T. J. Daly, who trains the pair, states i that they have very similar characteristics and dispositions, although different in colour. Mr. W. R. Kemball has in them an above-the-ordinary pair of gallopers. In the Long Ago l The well-known trainer S. Waddell 5 is at present on a brief visit to Dunedin, and still bears every appearance that the clock has been moving \yith a very sluggish pendulum since he first came to Dunedin, says the “Otago Daily Times.” Some indication of how long ago that is may be gathered from the fact that in his young days he stayed at the Plough Inn Hotel, at Caversham Rise, in company with R. J. Mason. In those days they rode their horses from the old hotel almost straight across Forbury Park by way of a bridle track which, if lost, meant immersion up to the chin in the swamp. The hand of time has changed the old scene from a busy place with long ranges of stables to a dilapidated building, but some of its old guests were obviously built of far more durable timber. Mr. Waddell is being met with the greatest pleasure by many of his old friends. He will return to Hawke's Bay on Monday. Rub Him Out!' There was a decided demonstration against the judge at Randwick recently, the “Sydney Morning Herald” commenting as follows:—When No. 6 (Sion) was hoisted by the judge as the winner of the High-weight Handicap, it was the signal for a demonstration by the crowd, which was obviously of the opinion that Lady Buckinbar, the horse placed third, had been to reach the winning post. One woman, to show her disapproval of what she evidently considered a reversal of form on the part of Sion, called in a shrill but effective voice; “Rub him out,” “Rub him out.” The main demonstration, however, was against the judge’s decision. Owing to the awkward angle at Randwick the judge’s decision on several occasions has come in for criticism, but on this occasion there appeared to be unanimity, both .with those in the public reserve and the people that occupy the members’ stand. There was a slight delay on the part of the judge in hoisting the number of the winner, and when No. 6 was sent up in the tower, demands of “take it down, take it down” were made. Half a furlong from home Pike was taking matters comfortably on Lady Buckinbar, who had the run near the rails, while Sion and Royal Tune, who were wide out, were having a keen battle between them. As the horses approached the winning line King Val emerged, and although the quartet flashed past the post practically in line. Lady Buckinbar appeared just to get there from King Val, with Sion third, and Royal Tune the closest of fourths. The judge’s placings, however, caused a stir. It w r as argued later by those in the members’ stand that if Sion had won, then Royal Tune, who was on the outside of him — the pair being locked together—was second, and in that case King Val would be third, and Lady Buckinbar fourth. And the rider of Royal Tune also was of opinion that his mount had finished in a place, at least, for when he returned to the enclosure he went straight for the partitions specially erected for the placed horses, but found them occupied. He then had another look at the numbers in the tower, and reluctantly moved Royal Tune alongside Lady Buckinbar. Mr. Moss, owner of Sion, certainly deserved a win with the colt that has cost him thousands of pounds. He was congratulated on the victory, many remarking. “I don’t think you won, but congratulations just the same." Mr. Moss acknowledged the good wishes, and added that he also j did not think Sion had been first past the post.