TURF LECTURES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 2 October 1940, Page 3

TURF LECTURES

SOME GOOD ADVICE. To raise funds for patriotic purposes the Sydney sporting folk recently held a racing exhibition of trophies,. pictures, etc., and several leading lights of the turf gave lectures. One by trainer F. McGrath was recently mentioned in which he gave a Derby tip. Last week jockeys M. McCarten and D. Munro had a turn. McCarten said that practice for riding was as necessary as practice for the horse. Jockeys had to be' early. risers and keep fit, for the work was hard. Even the most docile horses were often affected by the noise and excitement of the racecourses. The temperaments of horses varied greatly. Some liked friends. Others, like Limerick, preferred to be alone.. Some had to be petted and others “bossed.” He believed that the saying of “horses for courses” was true. McCarten said that race riding had changed greatly in recent years, races now being much faster. In a six furlongs race a jockey could not afford to let a leader get too far in front. In the past jockeys saved their horses until the entrance to the straight, when the race practically started, but it was different now. No plans could be laid down for running a race. A jockey had to think quickly, and that reminded him of a fellow jockey who intended to make his son a chemist because the boy “was not brainy enough for a jockey.” McCarten considered present-day horses faster than those of the past, and times proved this. This improved standard, he thought, was the result of breeding for speed. There were also more stayers now than before. He thought Limerick and Ajax the best horses he had ridden. Ajax was full of fire —all speed and ambitions. Ajax, like many other good horses, would run his own race, seeking and taking advantage of openings. Limerick was more solid and a better stayter. Aurie’s Star was the most courageous horse he had ridden. Asked whether Ajax was better than Beaulivre, McCarten said he could not tell. He would not say who was the best jockey in Australia. Munro, giving advice to young jockeys, said that it was impossible to copy the style of any jockey. Rogilla was the best weight-for-age horse he had ridden, and Peter Pan the best handicapper. When a young woman asked for the likely winner of the Epsom Munro caused laughter by inquiring: “You would not be asking for a free tip, would you?’ He tipped Pandect for the Derby.