Weigh-In 1 December 2024: Arapaho isn't a Maori word!!!

[Chief Stipe]

I guess the new generation of presenters weren't brought up watching Cowboys and Indians movies.

Arapaho won the Grp 2 Zipping Classic yesterday at Caulfield for Bjorn Baker.  The presenters on Weigh-in today insisted on saying Arapaho as Ara-pay-hoe!

Then again some us are old enough to remember the talented pacer named Arapaho trained by Jack Smolenski in the early 70's.  A chestnut he won the 1973 NZ Trotting Cup.  

It is pronounced as follows:

 

[Chief Stipe]

[curious]

If it were a Māori word, it would be 'ah rah pah hor' anyway, wouldn't it?

[Murray Fish]

who was the nz cup winner Arapaho named after?

Arapaho, the New Zealand Cup winner, was named after the Arapaho Native American tribe. The name "Arapaho" is derived from the word "Arapa," which means "dog eater" in the Pawnee language. The Arapaho tribe is one of the Plains tribes and has a rich history and culture.

[Murray Fish]

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HORSES

 

ARPAHO

A winner over two miles in 4.19 as a 3-year-old, Arapaho brought himself into light harness racing prominence as a 4-year-old when he won the New Brighton Stars Travel Mile at the Addington track. Starting from a second row barrier and running against the elite of NZ pacers, Arapaho ran the distance in 1:59 in conditions that were anything but favourable. Arapaho defeated the Australian Bay Foyle, who ran second and also had to contend with a second row barrier draw, Robalan and Radiant Globe.

Arapaho became the first of his sire, Bachelor Hanover's progeny to enter the two-minute list.

Arapaho won 10 races, was second twice and third twice as a 4-year-old for prizemoney, $31,740 to be the leading NZ stakewinner in 1971-2. Arapaho was subsequently voted the NZ Harness Horse-of-the-Year in 1972.

In February, 1973, Arapaho set a world record in winning the Dunedin Festival Cup. He ran the 11 furlongs from a standing start in 2:48 3/5, a mile rate of 2:02 3/5. This clipped 1 3/5 off the world record set by Johnny Globe, in 1955. Following his success in the Dunedin Festival Cup, Arapaho raced in Sydney in the 1973 Inter-Dominion Championship series. He was defeated into second placing by the championship winner, Hondo Grattan, in the first heat he contested but won the next heat. He qualified for the final, but ran unplaced from the 12 yard mark.

During the 1973-4 season Arapaho was again the leading stake-earner in NZ with earnings of $69,375 for the season. This followed wins in the prestigious NZ Cup and the Auckland Cup in 1973.

Arapaho was sold to Canadian owners and left NZ late in 1974.

Credit: Ron Jenkins: Great Trotters

 

YEAR: 1973

1973 NZ TROTTING CUP

Doubts that Arapaho would see out a solidly run 3200 metres against such talented opposition were completely dispelled when he raced away with the $40,000 NZ Cup.

Not only did Arapaho win the Cup, but he did so by five lengths in the brilliant time of 4:08.6 for the 3200 metres, which compares favourably with False Step's 4:09 recorded in winning his third NZ Cup in 1960 when the distance was two miles. The fastest time recorded in the Cup over two miles was Johnny Globe's 4:07.6 in 1954. This was a world record which stood until 1969 when Dainty's Daughter recorded 4:07 in Western Australia.

Arapaho, who at the start of the season was under option to an American buyer for $100,000 but remained in New Zealand when the sale fell through, proved by far the best stayer in the field. Dunsandel owner Mr Laurie Forde has now won 23 races both here and in Australia with Arapaho who took his stake earnings to $90,270 with the $24,000 first prize.

Arapaho was given a dream run by trainer-driver Jack Smolenski. Sixth early he had a turn in front at the 2100 metre mark as the early lead changed frequently, and was then three back on the rails when first Vanadium then Rauka Lad took the lead. Rauka Lad made the pace from the 1800 metres when Young Quinn was shot into a handy lead by Bob Cameron. Vanadium and Arapaho moved to be second and third on the home turn, but Arapaho proved too strong for Young Quinn and went on to win by five lengths.

Last year's Cup winner Globe Bay went another good race for second. He improved along the rails to be in fifth place on the turn and finished determinedly to edge Young Quinn out of second by half a neck. Young Quinn, the youngest horse in the race at four, made a game attempt to beat his older rivals. He was one of several to have a turn in front early when he led briefly at the 2600 metre mark, but at the 1600 he was well placed in the fourth line on the outside of Fab. Cameron sent him passed the tiring Rauka Lad at the 600 metre mark and he turned for home with a handy advantage. He could not maintain it, but his third in such a fast-run race was a good effort for a young horse.

Robalan third in the race last year, gained another placing when he battled on for fourth though four lengths back. He drifted to the rear after 800 metres and then had to go very wide when improving from the 700 metre mark. He was sixth, but very wide out turning for home. Royal Ascot did best of the three horse bracket which include Manaroa and Manawaru. He finished fifth, but never looked like paying a dividend. He had only Manaroa and Robalan behind him at the 800 metre mark and then had to go three, then four wide round Noble Lord at the 400 metres. He was a length back fifth at the line. Vanadium, who trailed Rauka Lad from the 1800 metres, wilted to sixth a length back and a nose in front of Lightsey who ran on well after breaking at the start.

Scottish Charm just battled away in the middle of the field two lengths back with a gap of five lengths back to Noble Lord who made a brief forward move at the 800 metres, but was struggling at the 400 metre mark. Manawaru, who was under pressure to maintain his position at the 800 metres, was a further four lengths back ahead of Bomber Bill, Fab, Manaroa, who broke badly at the start, and Rauka Lad. Rauka Lad stopped badly after going up fast to lead at the 1800 metre mark.


Credit: 'Lookout' writing in NZ Trotguide

[Murray Fish]

By chance it was the first cup I was oncourse for!  Besides him bolting in the big thing I recall was the massive ORRRRRRRRRR that went up from the crowd when they put up his price on the semaphore board! two dollar something!!!!

ps, back then of course you had to have won 10 races to get into the cup! and there was a whole lot of Open Class races leading up to the cup

 

Here was the field for that years race

 

Here are the horses that participated in the 1973 New Zealand Trotting Cup:

Arapaho

Young Quinn

Globe Bay

Robalan

Royal Ascot

Vanadium

Lightsey

Scottish Charm

Noble Lord

Rauka Lad

Fab

Manaroa

Manawaru

[Gammalite]

20 minutes ago, Murray Fish said:

By chance it was the first cup I was oncourse for!  Besides him bolting in the big thing I recall was the massive ORRRRRRRRRR that went up from the crowd when they put up his price on the semaphore board! two dollar something!!!!

ps, back then of course you had to have won 10 races to get into the cup! and there was a whole lot of Open Class races leading up to the cup

 

Here was the field for that years race

 

Here are the horses that participated in the 1973 New Zealand Trotting Cup:

Arapaho

Young Quinn

Globe Bay

Robalan

Royal Ascot

Vanadium

Lightsey

Scottish Charm

Noble Lord

Rauka Lad

Fab

Manaroa

Manawaru

A huge Addington Crowd to see ARAPAHO bolt in by 5 lengths. be lucky to get a good spot to see Murray ?

Here is the race result for you Murray , and Arapaho and Jack Smolenski sailing in for that great Cup win.

 

[mikeynz]

35 minutes ago, Gammalite said:

A huge Addington Crowd to see ARAPAHO bolt in by 5 lengths. be lucky to get a good spot to see Murray ?

Here is the race result for you Murray , and Arapaho and Jack Smolenski sailing in for that great Cup win.

 

Some good horses and drivers, can anyone tell me if Robert Cameron is still alive ?   Also note crowds, imaging trying to jam them in like that today, watching Cricket yesterday, despite apparently being sold out plenty of space, must be health and safety again.

Robalan was the first cup I can remember, was probably the first on TV live, I stand to be corrected though.

That 49 bucks for the quinella would buy a fair bit of piss then.

Edited December 1, 2024 by mikeynz

[Murray Fish]

2 hours ago, Gammalite said:

be lucky to get a good spot to see Murray ?

I think I can see myself!!!

[mikeynz]

4 minutes ago, Murray Fish said:

I think I can see myself!!!

Most racedays today you would stand out.

Edited December 1, 2024 by mikeynz

[Chief Stipe]

4 minutes ago, Murray Fish said:

I think I can see myself!!!

1527 from the left?

[curious]

9 minutes ago, Murray Fish said:

I think I can see myself!!!

You beat me by a year I think. I was there the following year when Robalan won it.

[curious]

 

[mikeynz]

1 minute ago, mikeynz said:

Most raceway today you would stand out.

 

8 minutes ago, curious said:

 

Lord Module is on You Tube, somewhere.

[Murray Fish]

25 minutes ago, mikeynz said:

Most racedays today you would stand out.

sigh, at most of the recent meetings at Wingatui (not counting Melb Cup day) I usually get to speal to the 5o people on course in the public area!

 

[Murray Fish]

19 minutes ago, curious said:

You beat me by a year I think. I was there the following year when Robalan won it.

wasn't it great to see him bolting  in!

 

I recon from around 72 to 76 there would have been one meeting in Canterbury and the West Coast , gallops and trots that our crowd wasn't on course!  I would hate to think how much warm flat bear and cold pies we ate and drunk! lol, I recon I jumped the fence at most meetings as well!!!

 

[Murray Fish]

2 hours ago, mikeynz said:

Some good horses and drivers, can anyone tell me if Robert Cameron is still alive ? 

via microsoft copolit.

is Robert Cameron the harness trainer and driver still alive?

Yes, Robert Cameron, the renowned harness trainer and driver, is still alive. He has had a long and distinguished career in the harness racing industry, with numerous wins and accolades to his name1.

Would you like to know more about his career highlights or recent activities?

how old is he?

Robert Cameron, the renowned harness trainer and driver, is 79 years old. He has had a long and distinguished career in the harness racing industry, with numerous wins and accolades to his name.

Would you like to know more about his career highlights or recent activities?

how winners did he train and drive?

Robert Cameron has had a highly successful career as a harness trainer and driver. Some of his notable achievements include:

Iraklis: This top pacer won the 1997 NZ Trotting Cup and the Miracle Mile. Iraklis won 22 of his 51 starts and earned over $1 million in stakes1.

Monkey King: Another standout horse trained and driven by Cameron, Monkey King won two NZ Cups and numerous other Group 1 races.

Scotch Tar: Cameron trained this trotter to win two Dominion Handicaps and several other Group races.

Cameron's career highlights reflect his skill and dedication to the sport. Would you like to know more about any specific horse or race?

how many winners did he drive?

Robert Cameron has driven over 1,000 winners in his career. This is a remarkable achievement and highlights his skill and dedication to harness racing.

Would you like to know more about his career highlights or any specific races he's won?

how many winners did he train?

Robert Cameron has trained over 500 winners in his career. This is a testament to his skill and dedication to the sport of harness racing.

Would you like to know more about his career highlights or any specific horses he's trained?

[mikeynz]

16 minutes ago, Murray Fish said:

via microsoft copolit.

is Robert Cameron the harness trainer and driver still alive?

Yes, Robert Cameron, the renowned harness trainer and driver, is still alive. He has had a long and distinguished career in the harness racing industry, with numerous wins and accolades to his name1.

Would you like to know more about his career highlights or recent activities?

how old is he?

Robert Cameron, the renowned harness trainer and driver, is 79 years old. He has had a long and distinguished career in the harness racing industry, with numerous wins and accolades to his name.

Would you like to know more about his career highlights or recent activities?

how winners did he train and drive?

Robert Cameron has had a highly successful career as a harness trainer and driver. Some of his notable achievements include:

Iraklis: This top pacer won the 1997 NZ Trotting Cup and the Miracle Mile. Iraklis won 22 of his 51 starts and earned over $1 million in stakes1.

Monkey King: Another standout horse trained and driven by Cameron, Monkey King won two NZ Cups and numerous other Group 1 races.

Scotch Tar: Cameron trained this trotter to win two Dominion Handicaps and several other Group races.

Cameron's career highlights reflect his skill and dedication to the sport. Would you like to know more about any specific horse or race?

how many winners did he drive?

Robert Cameron has driven over 1,000 winners in his career. This is a remarkable achievement and highlights his skill and dedication to harness racing.

Would you like to know more about his career highlights or any specific races he's won?

how many winners did he train?

Robert Cameron has trained over 500 winners in his career. This is a testament to his skill and dedication to the sport of harness racing.

Would you like to know more about his career highlights or any specific horses he's trained?

Scotch Tar, what a horse he was, I'm surprised Cameron trained him for a period of time.

Edited December 1, 2024 by mikeynz

[Gammalite]

5 hours ago, mikeynz said:

Some good horses and drivers, can anyone tell me if Robert Cameron is still alive ? 

Speaking of Jack Smolenski (with Arapaho) and Bob Cameron . 

They used to Dominate the GREAT NORTHERN DERBY every year at Alexandra Park. These are the years I went along when got involved in harness racing and the South Island horses ran the Quinella nearly every time. Jack and Bob with 3 quinella's togeather. 

Us North Islanders thought these Southern Blokes like Jack and Bob were some sort of Super Human Supermen Trainers that were  impossible to beat with their colts. 😅

Here's the results of the live races I saw. Not a bloody Northerner in sight . Barry trained Melton Monarch for the Dalgety's each time he came North for races . but essentially a South Island horse . Metal Mickey trained in my street by Clive Herbert in South Auckland,  and driven by a Junior driver no body had heard of at the time. A young Anthony Butt. helping the North Islanders get something 🤣😂

The Great SOUTHERN Derby they should of called it.  crazy southern invaders lol.

 

1986	1st  Laser Lad		Peter Jones
1985	1st  Nardinski	2nd Metal Mickey	Jack Smolenski
1984	1st Roydon Glen	2nd  Half the length of straight 😆	W F (Fred) Fletcher
1983	1st Mighty Me	2nd Timely Play (Jack)	Robert M Cameron
1982	1st  Mel's Boy	2nd Mister Woodchips	Jack W Smolenski
1981	1/  Melton Monarch	2nd Vitaman	Barry Purdon
1980	1st Armbro Wings	2nd Armalight	Colin De Filippi
1979	1st Matai Dreamer	2nd Ostrava (Jack)	Robert M Cameron
1978	1st Main Star	2nd Jayex   (Jack )	Robert M Cameron

 

Bob Cameron on the Favourite in 1980 named GAME ADIOS . They had won the Nz Derby at Addington that season , but he stopped to a walk in the Great Northern Derby that year, with some controversy as was not in good health but they started in the race anyway. Armbro Wings from the Deep South Alex Milne's beat the champ mare Armalight (Wolfie)  by a nose in a big upset. 

Roydon Glen won by a Huge margin his year . many many lengths. then won 12 out of 12 as a 4 year-old after.  

[Doomed]

8 hours ago, Gammalite said:

Speaking of Jack Smolenski (with Arapaho) and Bob Cameron . 

They used to Dominate the GREAT NORTHERN DERBY every year at Alexandra Park. These are the years I went along when got involved in harness racing and the South Island horses ran the Quinella nearly every time. Jack and Bob with 3 quinella's togeather. 

Us North Islanders thought these Southern Blokes like Jack and Bob were some sort of Super Human Supermen Trainers that were  impossible to beat with their colts. 😅

Here's the results of the live races I saw. Not a bloody Northerner in sight . Barry trained Melton Monarch for the Dalgety's each time he came North for races . but essentially a South Island horse . Metal Mickey trained in my street by Clive Herbert in South Auckland,  and driven by a Junior driver no body had heard of at the time. A young Anthony Butt. helping the North Islanders get something 🤣😂

The Great SOUTHERN Derby they should of called it.  crazy southern invaders lol.

 

1986	1st  Laser Lad		Peter Jones
1985	1st  Nardinski	2nd Metal Mickey	Jack Smolenski
1984	1st Roydon Glen	2nd  Half the length of straight 😆	W F (Fred) Fletcher
1983	1st Mighty Me	2nd Timely Play (Jack)	Robert M Cameron
1982	1st  Mel's Boy	2nd Mister Woodchips	Jack W Smolenski
1981	1/  Melton Monarch	2nd Vitaman	Barry Purdon
1980	1st Armbro Wings	2nd Armalight	Colin De Filippi
1979	1st Matai Dreamer	2nd Ostrava (Jack)	Robert M Cameron
1978	1st Main Star	2nd Jayex   (Jack )	Robert M Cameron

 

Bob Cameron on the Favourite in 1980 named GAME ADIOS . They had won the Nz Derby at Addington that season , but he stopped to a walk in the Great Northern Derby that year, with some controversy as was not in good health but they started in the race anyway. Armbro Wings from the Deep South Alex Milne's beat the champ mare Armalight (Wolfie)  by a nose in a big upset. 

Roydon Glen won by a Huge margin his year . many many lengths. then won 12 out of 12 as a 4 year-old after.  

Alex Milne trained Matai Dreamer as well, so he won the race two years in a row.