TRENTHAM NOTES

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 751, 26 August 1929, Page 12

TRENTHAM NOTES

MANY HORSES TO RACE AT MARTON WELLINGTON TRACKS BAD {Special to THE SUXJ WELLINGTON, Saturday. The preparation of Trentham horses I for their spring engagements has been I retarded by the atrocious weather of j the past several days. An unusual I quantity of rain had fallen, and the | tracks have been anything but places j to attract trainers and their charges. ' Some of the horses intended for spring j racing will be backward for the early j meetings, but those who raced during i the late portion of the winter or were j engaged at Riccarton will not take a I great deal of tuning up, and they I should be among the first to gain distinction when the spring racing proper commences. Thurnbell’s failure at the National fixture is not at all disturbing. He is new at the game and needs time, but is coming along fairly well. The three races that Matu had at the Grand National meeting got to the bottom of him, and probably he will need a spell before he is able to do himself full justice again. Gold Cure’s Form One of the most improved of the sec-ond-rate handicap horses up this way is Gold Cure. He may be seen out at Marton early next month. The course there will suit him, Dut the distance might prove just too far tor him. However, he is going to be a lot better than he was last season, and it should not be lost sight of that he handles bad ground well, and therefore will have an advantage over some of those who oppose him during the spring. The greatest disappointment of the Wellington horses racing at the Riccarton carnival Tcheka. When he left here for the South, there was every hope that he would win a race. He looked well and had done well in his work. When he stripped for action at Riccarton, his appearance was against him and some who had intended to support him left him out of consideration. He failed completely through the meeting, and the only glimpse of his real form he gave was when he mad© a dash on the rails toward the finish of the Islington Handicap on the second day. Even then he did not run on as he was expected to. Tcheka is expected to come good, but his immediate prospects are not really bright. Royal Game thrives on racing, and it can be taken for granted that the contests he had at Riccarton will benefit him. He was not prominent in the Winter Cup, but he won the Islington Handicap in good style, and on that running looks like being one of the hardest to beat in the mile and aquarter event to be run at Marton early next month. Pie is a courageous little fellow, and runs well when the ground is soft. On a glance at the weights one may say that he ought to be favourite for his Marton engagement. Fast in Private Tourist, who ran at Riccarton, is not exactly a worthy relative to First Sight. The chestnut has some speed, but he does not stick at all well, and it looks as if winning races with him is not going to be an easy matter. One of the most improved hack hurdlers from up this way is Aurora Borealis. Pier running at Riccarton was not only good, but it was well in advance of anything she had shown in this Island. Her win on the last day was particularly meritorious as her rider lost an iron during the ’contest. Probably she will be kept to hurdling for a while and then spelled and put to steeplechasing next winter. The Bulls hurdler, Elysianor, has come on a lot in the last few weeks, and his running on the last day of the Grand National Meeting, when he finished a good second in a race that was run in world’s record time, was a vast improvement on anything he has ever done in the past. He often had shown glimpses of form and now seems to be coming right quickly. While he is in form he should take beating in whatever he starts in in the near future. Black Mint was not looking his best at the Canterbury winter fixture, but lie ran one good race. He is carrying very little weight these days, and were ho to return to form he would win more than one before he was stopped. For the Future A smart youngster that the best was not seen of at Riccarton is Pat’s Boy, °> ne , r * r * 41 Kemball’s string. Pat’s Boy is by Hymestra from Princess Pat, and his track work before going South was particularly good. Juggle is understood to be going along the right way, and she is to race at Marton next month. She has a nice turn of speed, and should be all the better for the little experience she had at the end of last season. Not many retainers have been mentioned this season, but B. H. Morris is once again to do the riding for the stable of S. J Reid, where Mr. Vivian Riddiford’s horses are trained. The two races that Roi de Val had at Riccarton naturally have improved liis condition, and it is the present intention to run him at the Marton meeting, but it will not be surprising if he is taken to Avondale for the spring meeting there. Roi de Val finished a long way back in the first start at the National meeting, but on that occasion he struck trouble and had to be checked to prevent him from falling. Balloon was doing nicely in his work at Foxton prior to the Grand National meeting, and although he was allowed to miss the trip South, it is intended to race him at the early spring meetings. He is entered for Marton engagements, and probably a decision will be made to take him there. He went off a little after winning at Napier Park in the autumn, but is right again now. One to Remember Maui is a very fit gelding, and he is looked to to win a fair class race this spring. He is not up to big weights, and should do better next month than he did at Riccarton The failure of Oratrix in the King’s Cup at Brisbane was a nasty blow for some Wellington enthusiasts, who have been thick and thin followers of the Kilbroney mare. Advice was received that she was doing well, and consequently they expected her to make a big showing It has since been learned that on the eve of the race she was about equal favourite with Valparaiso (who won), so it is safe to assume that her failure was quite unPec ted by those on the spot There is an impression here that beatown will be returned to New Zea;?r n< ? without racing in New South VVales or Victoria now that he has . s . u^ h ba *3 form in the King’s winch was his special mission. Wlb be a good-sized team of l rentham horses racing at Wanganui next month, among them some of the bri S ad *- If there is much " et weather in the Hutt Valley wjfrJ?°T Se i S U 1 \ not be sufficiently forSr a e ni Pf n ” time* bei Hkelv tlm l, d i? v n, ' t so Kooner it is uni her* 3 after ! on from there. **° risnt