TURF NEWS & NOTES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 25 June 1938, Page 5

TURF NEWS & NOTES

CURRENT TOPICS FROM STABLE & COURSE '3

Views on Racing Facts and Fancies

VALANTUA NOT ELIGIBLE

(By

“The Cynic.”)

Valantua, entered for the Trial Plate at Wellington, is not eligible, as he won £52, or £2 over the limit allowed, when he captured the Crown Stakes at Otautau in April.

The filly by Night Raid from Royal Flavour in W. J. McLean’s charge will race under the name La Vie. Although a very big filly, she is fairly forward and works in good style on the track.

Jf Queen of Song undertakes another campaign in Victoria, she may be accompanied by Top Row, Runstan, Netherlea, Newsreel and the rising two-year-old Aranui, by Colossus — Cupid’s Mark.

On his recent schooling, Padishah should have a good chance if taken to Trentham. He has been racing in sprint events lately and he should be well.,attuned for his second effort over the battens.

Soho was far frotn disgraced by his race in the Hawke’s Bay Hurdles. He was carried along, first by Curie and then by Small Boy, so that he really never stopped pulling, and he was beaten at the last fence.

Lone Raider would probably have finished closer in the Hawke’s Bay Hurdles had he not got into the second to last fence, but he would not have won, and his display was much below the anticipations based on his previous two wins in as many starts.

Riding fees earned by apprentices in the Dominion between January 31, 1937, and January 31, 1938, amounted to £10,494 19s net. Of this sum £4,921 18s 9d goes to employers and £5,573 Os 3d to the credit of the lads ..themselves.

Paper Money, who has three representatives in this year’s M’Lean Stakes, has been the most successful sire of winners of this classic, his progeny having won it on six occasions, viz.:—Overdrawn (1924), Scrip

(1925), Wealth (1931), Guarantee (1932), Card Player (1936), and Compensate (1937).

. A patron of P. J. Boyle’s stable has purchased the two-year-old Merry Simon.

The Polazel gelding Recollection, is one of the latest recruits to hurdling and shows promise.

The rising two-year-old colt by Inflation from Gold Flare, recently purchased by the Hon. F. E. Lark, has made his appearance on the tracks at Ellerslie. A nice, compactly-built youngster of good temperament, he gives the impression of one that will come to hand early.

The Blatherskite—Flout filly engaged in the M’Lean Stakes, comes from a previous winner of this race, as her granddam, Disdainful (Bonny Glen — Lady Disdain) won in 1915. Flout is by Polazel, and a half-brother, Meprisant, by Paladin, was a high-class racehorse.

Nea Lap, a sister to Phar Lap, and who was purchased and taken to England by, Mr H. E. Morriss, owner of the Derby winner Manna and of Pasch, winner of the Two Thousand Guineas, is stated to be in foal to the Solario sire Tai-Yang, who was unbeaten on the racecourse. Nea Lap is to be mated next season with a son of Blandford, probably Bahram, or the French champion Brantome. Nea Lap was sold to a member of the Whitney family, of New York, but it is possible that she was resold to England. Manna and Tai-Yang are both at the Banstead Manor Stud, Newmarket.

Lambent, winner of the Rothsay Handicap for two-year-olds at Flemington, is a chestnut filly by Thracian (brother to Heroic) from Black Powder. She was bred at The Nook Stud, Victoria. Black Powder is by All Black, so that Lambent is very closely related to the Victoria Derby winner Feldspar, who is by Thracian out of Quartz, by All Black. Black Powder was bred in 1924. Black Powder is also the dam of Cortez, Pelleas. Ammonal, and Merrily. She was bred by Mr A. T. Creswick. Her dam was Artillerie, by Royal Artillery from Nantes, by Stepniak from Huguenot, by Apremont from Martyr, by Daniel O’Rourke (from Raupo, by Diomedes (imp.) from Waimea, by Sir Hercules from Flora Melvor.

Paragraphs are going around supplying instances of remarkable performances over hurdles and fences. One of the most notable performances on the flat was that put up by Red Lancer at the Gore summer meeting of 1898. Emmeline beat Red Lancer by a nose in the Gore Cup, run over a mile and a-quarter. On the second day of the meeting Red Lancer 9.1 won the G.R.C. Handicap, a mile and a distance, two races later he won the Welter Handicap, seven furlongs, with 11.6, and after another intervening race was saddled up again and won the Shorts Handicap, four furlongs, with 10.9. Each race was run in heavy going. The great effort did not wreck Red Lancer, as later in the season he won the Post Handicap at Riccarton, a welter, and a mile and' a-quarter race at Dunedin. The following season Red Lancer won five races out of 30 starts.

Instances of horses winning a steeplechase and hurdle race in the one day are rare, and it is some years since there was a parallel in Auckland to the feat accomplished by Inness Lad in accounting for both the Bay of Plenty Steeplechase and the Otara Hurdles at Tauranga. One of the last occasions that can be remembered was when Royal Abbey, ridden by G. Holland, won the Manukau Hurdles with 10.6 and the Onehunga Steeplechase with 10.1 at Ellerslie on November 9, 1925. Owned and trained by Mr R. Hannon. Royal Abbey was a chestnut gelding by Quin Abbey from Uranium and he was a versatile performer who did well on the flat, over hurdles and over country. The only difference between the feats of Inness Lad and Royal Abbey was that they won the races in reverse order, Inness Lad winning the steeplechase first and the hurdle race later. Whether Inness Lad will measure up to the standard of Royal Abbey remains to be seen, but there is no doubt that he is useful. Probably he may not be as good under weight as Royal Abbey, but he is an improved horse, likely to score again before the winter is over.

Those who have been so pessimistic about the Wellington Steeplechase must feel brighter since the entries have been published. The entry of 19 should ensure a field which will provide a good contest. In fact, the very large entries for all events indicate that there will be no dearth of horses for the Grand National meeting, either.

As expected, the Great Northern Steeplechase winner, Valpeen, will not contest the Wellington Steeplechase, but it is understood he will go to Riccarton. Clarion Call and Jolly Beggar, who failed over the Ellerslie country, are among the good performers in the list, which includes the Grand National winner (Nocturnus),

the Wellington Steeplechase winner (Santoft), and horses who have run prominently lately, such as Erination, Smiling Thru, Kinkle, John Charles, Flashlight, and Bryce Street.

Pessimism was hot warranted. The best hurdles in commission are engaged, among them Erination, who won the Great Northern. If the Wellington Racing Club is as fortunate in other respects as it has been in its entries, its meeting is certain to be one of the best it has ever experienced.

For the Epsom summer, or Derby meeting, lasting four days, a balcony box to hold eight persons costs from £lOO to £l2O. Admission to the paddock costs £1 2s 6d on Derby Day and 10s on each other day, or £2 2s for the meeting. Grandstand accommodation varies from £4 4s to 16s 9d. A keen racegoer may travel from London in a motor bus, “all found,” for £3 3s, or he can get on to the heath free of charge, apart from the fare of a few shillings by rail, or a few pence by road.

Hunting Chorus, winner of the Trial Handicap at the recent Dunedin meeting, is under offer to an Ashburton sportsman, and is engaged at the Ashburton County Racing Club's meeting today. His owner, Mrs C. Bain, has disposed of the two-year-old, Merry Simon (Gascony—Lady Makere), to a patron of P. J. Boyle’s stable at Winton.

K. Voitre went to Adelaide for the Birthday Cup meeting of the Adelaide Racing Club, under engagement to ride Regular Bachelor, and was rushed with mounts. His performance at Victoria- Park on Saturday, June 4, was one that kept his name well to the fore all the afternoon. Voitre started well by winning on a favourite, Pimlico. For good-measure Voitre won on Point Sturt, favourite in the following race. Then on Regular Bachelor, Voitre went under by a halflength. He then got the seconds complex. On Kingswood he was second in the Parkside Handicap, while the best he could do on Countess Amalti in the Toorak Trial was to finish a length behind the winner. Two winners and three seconds out of five rides nevertheless made the trip profitable.

Ringshot has been recommissioned by W. Kirk and is being hacked about at present in readiness to resume track work at the end of the month. School Song, in the same stable, is reported to be looking none the worse for his racing at the Great Northern meeting. It is intended to try him out over the battens, and as he has speed and size it is possible that with experience he will pay his way.

The promising jumper, Hirangi, who stifled himself in the Hunt Club Cup at Ellerslie, is reported to be making an excellent recovery. Hirangi is a halfbrother to Pango and Pahu, and all going well it will not be long before he is again on the winning list. Seventy horses from England, France, Germany, Hungary and Yugoslavia have been entered for the “Brown Riband of Germany” race, to be run at Riem, near Munich, on July 31. Comus is making rapid improvement in his appearance and is working with much more dash than formerly. He is down to have his first race after an absence of more than 12 months, at the Westport meeting, which will be helcf at Riccarton.