I REFER to comments in the 'On The Rails' column dated October 17 regarding the riding arrangements for the horse Blaze Of Glory and the headline to Mr Robin Parke's article stating that the club's rules were bent in order to allow Miss Julie Krone to ride Blaze Of Glory in the first race on Saturday last. In fact, there is no rule that was either bent or broken by the Club. To put the matter straight, Stewards' Instruction 60(i) states that a 'supporting owner' means contributing to the cost of the retainer and affording the retained jockey first call on the owner's horse(s) in races.
Blaze Of Glory's owner is a supporting owner in this sense. However, the decision to employ Julie Krone was made by his trainer some weeks before Miss Krone's arrival in a generous gesture of helping to support the Club's Ladies' Day promotion. I understand that this decision received the full support of the stable retained rider, Mr Darren Gauci.
WILSON CHENG Information Secretary Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club Robin Parke writes: It is an unalterable fact that a Jockey Club instruction was breached in the engagement of Julie Krone for Blaze Of Glory. The reasons for giving her the ride are, as previously stated, irrelevant.
