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CAN WIN ENDURANCE RACE But Thoroughbred Must Be Young and Sound to Carry Off 300-Mile Test. LEXINGTON, Ky., November 6. William Wood-ard, who trained the horses of the Thoroughbred Endurance Test Club for the recent 300-mile race from Fort Ethan Allen, Vermont, to Camp Devens, Mass., has returned to Lexington and has taken charge of his own stable at the Kentucky Jockey Club track. "Everybody I meet," said he today, "wants to know my opinion of the test. One. question invariably asked is: Can a thoroughbred win itV My answer is yes, and I wish to go on record as sayiug that a thoroughbred can win the endurance test under the same conditions prevailing this year and over the same route. "I loved the thoroughbred before I trained the horses of the Thoroughbred Endurance Test Club, but I love the thoroughbred more than ever now, as I think they are the gainest animals that breathe. The horses I trained were beaten because they were unsound, but I do not wish to put all the blame for their defeat on them. I did the best I knew, but as this was the first time anybody ever tried to train a thoroughbred to go 300 miles, weighted with 245 pounds and 100 pounds of dead weight, it was decidedly in th.e nature of an experi-, meat. Believe me, it is a big job for any horse. "As I said before, the horses I trained were all unsound, but I thought they could win before I tried and found out differently. I offered to bet Mr. W. R. Brown, president of the Arab Horse Club of America, ,000 the pure-Tared thoroughbreds would beat the pure-bred Arabs1; I am now glad Mr. Brown did not take the bet. Twenty-seven horses started. Eight were pure-bred Arabs and four pure-bred thoroughbreds. Ten horses finished. Two were pure Arabs and one pure thoroughbred. "Now that it is all over there are lots of things I would do differently were I to try it again. Our horses never quit eating. Moscowa got zero on feed. That is, lie ate too much. Our horses never showed any signs of wanting to quit. We" had to withdraw all except Moscowa because they went lame. A thoroughbred will take , his death looking down the road. .-. ,. ! FEED SCOJIE IS FAJtOICAli " "Let rme say; .please -that I think the; method the judges used to. obtain their feed score is farcical. Noam, a pure Arab, got a perfect scoreon feed. Her speed score was 11.21. She lost more weight than any horse that finished sixty-five pounds. Moscowa, a pure thoroughbred, got score of zero on feed. His speed score was. 25.50. He lost thirty-seven and a half pounds. , If anyone can explain the above to me Ill say thanks. "Mr. Harry W. Smith, one of the judfses, I think is as good a judge for a test of this kind as could be .fpund in any country. He never asked the aid of a veterinary in determining anything. He always depended upon his own judgment ami I do not think he made auy mistakes. All judges in a test of this kind should be competent horsemen with practical experience enough to know when aud how to act and their decisions should be final, just as it is in all horse shows or contests. Did you ever see judges In a show ring call in a veterinary to tell them whether or not a horse was lame? "I am not criticizing the conditions of the test just finished. We entered under those conditions and we never broke a rule. Our riders rode well and Avere never reprimanded by an official. I am sure our club will try again next year. Our people are like our horses. They wont quit. But please let me say I believe I could, write conditions for a test that would bring out just what our army wants the best horse for carrying weight, such as any mount should carry traveling an unlimited distance and keeping his place in line of march even though he had to walk, trot, canter or run, and without restriction as to his teed, letting him eat wnat the country through which he travels will afford. "Mr. Brown deserves great credit for what lie has done to help the army find suitable mounts and everybody who loves a good horse should do all possible to keep up interest. Let us all get together, arrange a test that will prove the best horse and place him nt the head of the class. If the sponsors of the test and horse lovers want to know my idea of conditions under which I think a test shonld be held, I will, be very glail to submit them for their approval."
