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RACING HISTORY

FEATURE RACE COMMENT

Driver Doug Watts and Owner/Trainer Vic Leeming

1946 NEW ZEALAND TROTTING CUP

The contest for the NZ Trotting Cup, 1946, resembled a funeral march in B flat. It should have been a marathon. It wasn't. The bun rush that developed over the last half-mile, and the memorable photo-finish between Integrity and Josedale Grattan, came as poor compensation on top of the sit-down strike that was imminent for the first mile and a half. It just wasn't good enough for a stake of £7500. The basic constituent of harness racing is speed and stamina, but you will look in vain for either of these commodities in the sectional times for Saturday's race.

Without a doubt it was the worst stayers' Cup for years, because the void that occurred between Vesuvius
and Gold Bar yawns again. The king is indisposed - long live Gold Bar or his prototype. The Metropolitan Club was deserving of a better deal from the principal actors in what should be the Dominion's leading light-harness drama.

Integrity's victory was a gratuity for services rendered in past Trotting Cups - he was runner-up in 1944 and 1945. Possibly he would still of won no matter how the race had been run, but does a horse who has performed like a moderate between one Cup meeting and another really earn a cheque for £5000 at the conclusion of a dirge like Saturday's race turned out to be?

The power went off as soon as Double Peter took charge. The Gold Bar kilowatts were imprisoned in there generator up at Yaldhurst. So lethargic did Double Peter become with a mile covered that he nearly deposited himself in the lap of his trainer, R Young. Turtles would have looked like cheetahs alongside him. In Indian file, two abreast, they sauntered the third half-mile in 66secs after taking 2:14 for the first mile, speed that would not embarass any Timaru Nursery Stakes candidate worthy of consideration.

It is beyond comprehension why trainers prepare their horses to stay two miles in 4:16 or better and are then content to allow one horse to dictate the conditions of a race worth a fortune by looking on while a veteran slows up the field to an amble and reduces three-quarters of the race to a speed that a country cup winner could do in a hearse nowdays. The truth of the 1946 NZ Trotting Cup is that everything played right into the hands of a master craftsman in D C Watts. If he had had the race made to order he could not have wished for anything better. No one wanted to make the pace and no one did - ever.

The past of any NZ Trotting Cup winner should be great. A glance at the Index to Performers reveals that Integrity was unplaced in all of his eight starts prior to his Cup success, and it is difficult to reconcile his abject failure in the Hannon Memorial Handicap at Oamaru five days beforehand with his lightning half-mile thrust to wrest Cup honours from Josedale Grattan. But it must have been a case of strength through weakness because he was a raging favourite from the moment the machine opened. And once he left the mark Integrity had the dawdling two-miler type at his mercy. He is virtually a two-minute horse, though it is only about once a year he produces it.

Josedale Grattan, 300 times a father, and returning to racing afer 15 month's absence, put the younger generation of the field to complete shame. The pity of it was that he went to the post without the winding-up race that might have clinched victory for him. F J Smith's judgement in putting the 11-year-old stallion back into work because he summed up the Trotting Cup possibilities - with the sole exception of Emulous - as by no means of champion calibre, or past their best, was bourne out by the performances of the majority of Saturday's field. When Emulous went sore and did not have the opportunity of qualifying, Smith made no secret of the fact that he expected Josedale Grattan to win. How close he went to doing so, after faltering slightly about 100 yards from the finish, emphasises one of two things - either that Josedale Grattan is a super horse, or that our other Cup horses are mostly has beens. Lets grow old together!

The newest horses in the Cup field, Volo Senwod and Knave of Diamonds, were eliminated in the run home. Knave of Diamonds was literally climbing over everything with less than a quarter to go and eventually succeeded in doing so; he lost his driver near the furlong post. Even old Burt Scott, with many facets to angular shadow, was full of running with nowhere to go in the final furlong, and Countless also appeared to be looking in vain for an opening in the concluding stages.

Integrity is a breeding freak. He is a beautiful chestnut of porcelain quality and refinement, yet his pedigree is the most lowly of any Cup horses racing today. His sire, Trevor de Oro, was a ponified pacer of moderate performances, and his dam, Cheetah, was an unraced mare by Grattan Loyal, a line that, apart from Integrity, has produced nothing in the nature of a champion.

Now eight, Integrity was bred by A and R Gardiner, of Lower Hutt, and was purchased by his owner-trainer, V Leeming, as a yearling. Integrity has won £14,507 in stakes and trophies to date, and becomes the biggest light-harness stake-winner in New Zealand and Australia. The previous record stood to the credit of Great Bingen, who won £14,120, of which £13,320 was earned in the Dominion and the remainder in Perth.


Credit: 'Ribbonwood' writing in NZ Trotting Calendar 6Nov46

FEATURE RACE COMMENT

1946 NZ PREMIER SPRINT CHAMPIONSHIP

Full Result

1st=: B Grice's HAUGHTY. Trained by the owner at Tinwald and driven by G McKendry.

1st=: A V Prendeville & J X Ferguson's TURCO. Trained by G S Smith at Addington and driven by the trainer.

3rd: F J Smith's JOSEDALE GRATTAN. Driven by the owner.

4th: P A Watson's COUNTLESS. Driven by A G Collison.

There was a dead-heat for first, with a neck back to the third horse.

Also started: Battle Colours, Bronze Eagle, Bulldozer, Clockwork, Double Peter, Gold Bar, Happy Man, Indian Clipper, Volo Senwod & Trusty Scott.

Credit: NZ Trotting Calendar 13Nov46

FEATURE RACE COMMENT

1946 DOMINION HANDICAP

Back in 1930 Tod Lonzia, a two-year-old, trotted a mile against time in 2:22 2-5. Sixteen years later the pacemaker in the Dominion Handicap, a £2000 race holding pride of place in the NZ Metropolitan Trotting Club's Show Day programme, took round about the same time to trot the first mile of this two-mile contest.

A great deal hung upon this race - the general welfare of the trotter, his status on future Metropolitan programmes, his eventual right to equal opportunities with the pacer. It must be confessed that as a spectacle the Dominion Handicap was a complete let-down for those ardent supporters of the trotter who have been pleading his case.

The fact that the principal two-mile events for pacers were run in much the same way is no excuse - this was the trotter's opportunity to step into the breach and put on a real show. But everyone was content to allow Steel King to slow the field to a jog for more than a mile. Many of the field broke because they were only scratching along.

Casabianca had the run of the race and would probably have won in any circumstances, but that does not exonerate any member of the field from a charge of tedious loitering. They will have to do much better than that.

Full Result:

1st: S T Webster's CASABIANCA. Trained by the owner and driven by J B Pringle, started from scratch.

2nd: W H Roche's MAE WYNNE. Driven by W R Butt, started from scratch.

3rd: V A Barker's MEDICAL STUDENT. Driven by A Holmes, started off 12yds.

4th: J R McKenzie's FANTOM. Driven by G B Noble, started off 24yds.

The winner won by four lengths, with five lengths to the third horse.

Also started: Hidden Note, Ordnance, Steel King, Sure Lady, Forewarned, Will Cary, Sea Max, Douglas McElwyn & Royal Worthy.

Credit: 'Irvington' writing in NZ Trotting Calendar 13Nov46

FEATURE RACE COMMENT

1946 NEW ZEALAND DERBY STAKES

M Holmes, Mr D McFarlane and Rustic Maid all had previous successful associations with the New Zealand Derby, the latest contest for which was won in the manner of a champion by Free Fight at Addington on Friday. This marked M Holmes's seventh winning drive in the race, his fourth success as a trainer; it was Mr McFarlane's third success as an owner, and Rustic Maid, dam of Free Fight, also produced the 1942 Derby winner, Scottish Lady.

Holmes's winning drives in the Derby have been behind Wrackler(1928), Arethusa(1930), Ciro(1931), Aldershot (1938), Imperial Jade(1939), Scottish Lady(1942) and Free Fight this year and he has trained Aldershot, Imperial Jade, Scottish Lady and Free Fight. Mr McFarlane raced Imperial Jade in partnership with Mr W Scott, and he holds both Scottish Lady and Free Fight on lease from Mr G Youngson, of Gore.

Mr Youngson secured two bargains as things are turning out when he bought Scottish Lady for 400gns and Rustic Maid, carrying Free Fight, for 200gns, about four years ago. Rustic Maid is the dam of Highland Scott, Gallant Maid, Scottish Lady, Scottish Lord, Slavonic and Free Fight, and another of her progeny, a two-year-old colt by Dillon Hall, has also been leased by Mr McFarlane and is being prepared by M Holmes for classic races.

This famous family of horses was established by a mare named Bonnie Belle, owned by the late W J Morland, some 40 to 50 years ago. Bonnie Belle was by Lincoln Yet from an Arab mare, and this Arab mare was by a pure-bred Arab stallion imported to the Dominion by the late Sir Cracroft Wilson more than 80 years ago. The Arab characteristics are still strongly ingrained in the descendants of Bonnie Belle, most of them being flecked with white hairs through their coats. Do they derive a measure of their gameness from this source as well? The late Mr Morland was sure of it, and as he bred such champions as Country Belle, Escapade and Gold Country from this line, and jealously preserved the breed over half a century, his high opinion of the family has never been in dispute. The female side of the tribe has been one of the most conspicuous in the Stud Book over a long period, but Free Fight is the only colt of the line left intact for many years. He is no doubt intended for a stud career in Southland when his racing days are over.

Free Fight is the first winner to the credit of a grand imported pacer in Light Brigade, and it is a splendid advertisement for Mr McKenzie's stallion that he should sire a Derby winner among his first crop. It is doubtful if there is a better bred horse in the Dominion today than Light Brigade, who is by Volomite, 2:03¼, today the leading sire of the United States with 13 two-minute performers, and the first stallion to be credited with 100 or more 2:10 trotters and 100 or more 2:10 pacers. Another great distinction came to Volomite recently when Poplar Bird, a two-year-old, took a record of 2:04¾ and became Volomite's 100th representative to enter the 2:05 list. Volomite thus becomes the first sire to attain this honour.

Besides being by the world's outstanding sire of modern times, Light Brigade is flawlessly bred on the dam's side. He is out of Spinster, who took a record of 2:03, and is by Spencer, 1:59¾, a champion in his day and also leading sire for one season a few years ago. Spinster is out of Minnetonka, 2:12¼, by Belwin, 2:06¾ from The Miss Stokes, 2:08¾, by Peter The Great-Tillie Thompson, by Guy Wilkes, etc. Minnetonka, second dam of Light Brigade, also produced Emily Stokes, 2:01½, Tilly Tonka 2:02¾, Kedgewick 2:03¼, and Balbo, 2:04½. The Miss Stokes, third dam of Light Brigade, was a Futurity winner and produced a famous race mare in Tilly Brooke, 1:59.

Although the mile and a half start again proved unsatisfactory, the race over the last mile developed into one of the finest in the history of the blue riband event. County Antrim, as in the Riccarton Stakes, took up the role of pacemaker, and Free Fight, drawn on the second row, made the best beginning of his career to be in fifth place going round the first bend. With half the journey covered, County Antrim led Sahara Queen, Snowflake, Free Fight, Culture, Fillmore, Darkie Grattan, Lady Diane, Pirouette, Gay Piper and Palette. It was not until three furlongs from home that Free Fight made a definite move, and he had raced up to County Antrim at the distance. He finished in the gamest possible style and won all out by a length from Snowflake, who finished too well for County Antrim after getting out of a pocket late. Culture went a surprisingly good race for a close fourth, Gay Piper was fifth, then Lady Diane, with the rest well back.

The time, 3:17 4-5, was the second fastest for the race, the record being held by War Buoy, who registered 3:16 1-5 when he outclassed a good field in 1933. The sectional times on Friday tell their own story of a sound pace for youngsters: Half-mile 1:08 4-5, six furlongs 1:41 4-5, mile 2:14 4-5, mile and a quarter 2:46 2-5 and the full journey 3:17 4-5.

Sahara Queen failed to stay, but On Approval, who would probably have been hard to beat, was among several eliminated as a result of a mix up caused through Darkie Grattan tangling going into the back the first time. Darkie Grattan was lame on returning to the birdcage. Coral Princess, who was strongly fancied by her connections, failed to begin correctly, and, with Henry of Navarre and His Excellency, was in an impossible position at the end of a furlong.

The big field completely ruined the chances of many, but it is some consolation to reflect that probably the best horse won.

Credit: 'Ribbonwood' writing in the NZ Trotting Calendar 20Nov46

1945. With the end of the Second World War, the Cup Meeting reverted to a three day format and the stake of the Cup was increased from £5,000 when Bronze Eagle won the 1944 contest, to £7,500. According to “Ribbonwood” writing in the NZ Trotting Calendar at the time this stake made it not only the richest horse race in NZ, but “the largest prize for a straight-out light-harness contest in the world”.

Although Gold Bar was not among the punter’s favourites (he started 5/7 in the betting) he was certainly the one of the crowds favourites. Gold Bar had started in the previous four Cups and, as was his racing style, had lead the fields along “at break-neck speed” only to be overtaken in the final sprint to the line. This attitude endeared both the horse and his Owner-Trainer-Driver Allan (A B) Holmes to the racing public. In 1945 however only Integrity got within 3 lengths at the finish, with 10 lengths to Shadow Maid which was third. Gold Bar returned to a scene of unrestrained enthusiasm and in the presentation Mr C S Thomas, then President of the Club, referred to the race “as probably the greatest light harness contest ever staged in the Dominion.

The last word should be left to a rather contrite “Ribbonwood” who after writing off Gold Bar’s chances in the previous issue of the Trotting Calendar commented “…so you will just have to put up with the vapourings of the scribe who told you in all seriousness last week that Gold Bar had about as much chance of winning the Cup as Hirohito has of becoming President of the United States”.


Credit: Colin Steele

Part of the record crowd on Cup Day 1945

RECORD CROWD OF 32,000 ON CUP DAY

Trotting is truly the 'peoples sport.' Of the record crowd of 32,000 who packed themselves into the Addington grounds on Saturday, 82.8% made their investments with 10/- tickets, 15% with £1 tickets and only 2.2% in £5 tickets.

All South Island betting records were smashed but the totalisator staff were well prepared for this great volume of betting, and the machines were balanced for the last race only a few minutes after the scheduled time. It was a very creditable performance indeed.

More was invested on the NZ Trotting Cup than on eight races on Cup day in 1931. The betting on the opening race was only £52 below the investments on the Cup race itself in 1941, and the days wagering was only £5000 short of the total sum invested for three days during Carnival Week of 1938. Even in 1940, when racegoing was in the boom, the attendance at Addington on Cup Day was only between 19,000 and 20,000. In 1944 the attendance reached a record of 29,000, but an additional 3000 attended on Saturday.

From before 10am the crowds flocked to Addington and long before the first race accommodation was taxed. Long queues formed to invest on the first race, and by the time the third race was run hundreds had decided to take up early positions outside the selling windows to back their Cup fancies. They missed seeing a race, but they saved themselves a hectic rush from the stands and the lawns and a long wait in the queues. Before the tote opened on the Cup race the queues were 45 yards long, and with only about 15 minutes before the machine closed they extended for 75 yards, the lines on the annexe on the lawn linking with those from the main totalisator.

The betting on the Cup was £34,943, against £31,758 last year, £16,108 in 1941, and £16,370 in 1940. The extent to which Cup Day betting has increased in recent years at Addington is shown by the following table of investments for the day:-

1945 £182,086/10/-
1944 £154,064/10/-
1943 £141,211/10/-
1942 £99,419/10/-
1941 £76,668/-/-
1940 £75,675/10/-
1939 £73,276/-/-
1938 £69,276/-/-

Credit: NZ Trotting Calendar 7Nov45

CARETAKERS

JOHN HIGHSTED

Mr John Highsted who had been caretaker of the Addington trotting track since 1928, died suddenly in Christchurch last week. Before taking over control of the big property at Addington he was employed with the Reserves Department of the Christchurch City Council and later the Domains Board.

The race track at Addington is possibly the fastest in NZ, and the only one in the Southern Hemisphere on which a horse has done a mile in better than two minutes. On tracks prepared by Mr Highsted, Lawn Derby (1:59 2/5), Gold Bar and Haughty (1:59 3/5) have ever reached the coverted figures, and the records for practically all distances have been made at Addington.

Under the direction of Mr Highsted the track, which had proved very bad in wet weather, and uneven at any time, was rebuilt and in recent years had been the best wet-weather dirt track in NZ.

Mr Highsted was a keen horticulturist, and the flower beds and general lay-out of the enclosures at Addington remain as an example to his outstanding ability.

Credit: NZ Trotting Calendar 3Jan45

PEOPLE

GEORGE PAUL Jnr

The death has occurred in Auckland of Mr George Paul, jun, who was for many years handicapper to the NZ Trotting Conference.

Mr Paul received his first handicapping appointment from the Auckland Trotting Club in 1926, and later he became handicapper to the Thames, Hawera, Taranaki, Wanganui and Hawkes Bay Trotting Clubs. Mr Paul established his reputation in the North Island to such an extent that, on the death of Mr H Brinkman, he was appointed handicapper to the NZ Metropolitan Trotting Club, and eventually made his headquarters in Christchurch.

Mr Paul's ability as a reader of a race, as we say in newspaper parlance, was extraordinarily sound. He was one of the keenest judges of trotting form ever identified with the sport, and had what is known as 'horsesense' in a highly developed degree.

Mr Paul was one of the first handicappers to depart from the strict time basis in the framing of his handicaps, and for this he came in for strong criticism when he put some of his revolutionary ideas into operation, but the results of his work soon began to confound his critics. One of Mr Paul's principal contentions was that it was illogical to penalise a horse registering 2.10 in a 2.20 class, say 10sec, when the fourth and fifth horses, which might have finished within a fraction of a second of the placed horses, could not be brought into line. Mr Paul was rapidly evolving a system of his own, completely divorced from the time factor, and the more lenient view he insisted upon taking of horses putting up fast times on perfect tracks had a big bearing upon the scheme limiting handicapper's penalties, which was passed by Conference in 1929.

Confusion set in, however, as a number of handicappers showed little desire to co-operate with the scheme. In 1933, Mr H F Nicoll, in his presidential address to the NZ Trotting Conference, stated:"...We have had considerable experience at this stage of the vagaries of handicappers; some do not appear able to grasp the essence of the regulations and others do not keep proper records. It will be noted in the order paper that it is proposed to bring in new rules giving your executive power to appoint one or more handicappers and assistants..." At that time there were no fewer than 11 trotting handicappers in the Dominion, and after the 1933 Conference these were reduced to three, Mr G Paul secured the principal appointment.

Mr Paul was a returned soldier from the Great War, and four of his brothers and a son were on active service in World War II.

Credit: NZ Trotting Calendar 5Sep45

PEOPLE

R GRANT

The death has occurred of Mr R Grant, who some years ago raced Harold Thorpe, Mate o' Mine, Sarsaparilla, and other horses with a good deal of success, winning, among other races, the NZ Trotting Gold Cup at Wellington with Mate o' Mine in the 1928-29 season. In partnership with Mr H Winter, he raced Black Admiral, winner of the Dunedin Cup in the 1925-26 season. The horses raced by Mr Grant won just on £7000 in stake money and the partnership more than £4000.

Mr Grant farmed a well known property at Yaldhurst for many years, the home of the late R J Mason. Probably the last horse owned by Mr Grant to be returned a winner was Queen High, holder of the Westport race record of 2:12 3/5 for a mile.

Credit: NZ Trotting Calendar 15Aug45

PEOPLE

MORGAN O'BRIEN

The death occurred in Christchurch on Sunday of Mr Morgan O'Brien, a well-known Christchurch businessman, a prominent owner of racehorses, and a member of the committee of the Canterbury Park Trotting Club.

Mr O'Brien was born in Limerick, Ireland, and at an early age came to NZ with his parents, who settled in North Otago and took up the business of horse dealing. As a boy Mr O'Brien followed the calling of his father, but later joined the Permanent Attillery at Lyttelton, where he was stationed for nine years. Later he became one of the best known men in the licensed trade.

Mr O'Brien was always interested in horses, especially trotters, and many years ago he trained and drove in many of their races All Gold, The Limit, Rostrevor, John Peel, Manreva, Rosie McKinney, Pete Peter, Succory and General Derby. Associated with a fine horseman in A Pringle he won many races. Other horses he owned were Monopole, trained by R W Franks, Worthy Bingen, White Satin, Young Blake, Western Voyage and Prince Pointer, all trained by W J Tomkinson. He also owned a number of gallopers, including the consistent but unlucky Dictate, Winsome Boy, Grecian Prince, Helen Gold and Rebellion.

Mr O'Brien also took a keen interest in trotting administration and for two years he was president of the Canterbury Park Trotting Club and for many years a steward of the club. He was also a member of the Metropolitan Trotting Club and the Canterbury Jockey Club. His wife died four years ago, and he is survived by his son Mr Morgan O'Brien, of Christchurch, and a daughter, Mrs W J Doyle, of Leeston.

Credit: NZ Trotting Calendar 5Dec45