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RESUME CUBAN RACING Oriental Park Opens Its Gates After Two-Day Lay-Off. Christie Holters Heroine in Spectacular Finish, Though Beaten : by Matter of Inches. HAVANA, Cuba, Dec: 9. After a lay-off of two days racing was resumed at Oriental Park this afternoon. Large fields went to the post in the majority of the races and interesting sport was witnessed. The track is now really fast for the first time since the meeting opened on November 29. It is now expected that almost all the races will draw the limit fields of twelve starters. There was no outstanding feature on the : program:. All the races were of the claiming; and allowance variety. The finishes in the majority, however, were keenly contested. J The mile and seventy yards of the fifth race was the most interesting of the afternoon and furnished a spectacular finish, in-which the old mare Christie Holters was the heroine, though she failed to win by inches. After being virtually left at the post, having been pulled up at the start, Christie Holters closed an immense gap and was going much; faster than the winner at the end. Pat. Hampson led all the way. He was away in front and soon had a comfortable advantage.: However, he was forced to the limit to outstay Christie Holters when the latter threatened in the last eighth. EASY FOR SOMERBY. In the opener, a dash of five and a half furlongs, Somerby made his rivals look cheap. Ho was ridden by Taulelle, raced to the front soon after the start, and assuming a long lead rounding the far turn, was taken in hand at the finish, winning by a couple of lengths from Follow Me, with Crestwood Boy in third place. A local victory was celebrated in the second when the Cuban-bred Havana Electric won. He took the lead immediately after the start and set the pace throughout. Ho tired towards the end, but managed to maintain his advantage in a whirlwind finish. Ha lasted just long enough to beat Colossus by the smallest of margins, with Ben Bolt third. Old Broadway disappointed in the third, a five-eighths dash. He was unfortunate, being crowded back at the start and hopelessly out of it before he had run an eighth. Wanderlust set a fast pace from the start, and was never headed, although Tcsuque made a game effort to challenge as they entered the stretch. Nimrod, which races for Pat Stanton, and which was a popular horse here last winter, won his first start when he beat a band of platers in the fourth. He was ridden by Carpenter. Taking the lead early he held it to the end, showing the way to the favorite. Galleon, by a length. RIVERSIDE IX TRAILING. Riverside, after an all-summer rest on the. island, is getting ready for the races at Oriental Park, where for four winters he met with unqualified success. This ten-year-old son of Von Tromp Rose Gal, galloping in spirited fashion, looks good. He is a favorite with the Cubans. Paul Powers arrived from the North. Ho has opened his home in Almandares. Shingle Shack, back in winning form, is a tough old bird. During the past year ho. was raced through Canada and Ohio. The. son of Heno is owned by Ike Garson, son." of Abe Garson. Battledore, in training here, is owned by. H. S. Lipman, local business man. A. E. Niehaus trains this horse, also others for Mr. Lipman. Battledore, son of the ini- ported All Gold, formerly belonged to H. P. Whitney. Martin Nathanson, associate steward at. Oriental Park, confirms the report that ho will preside at Aurora 111., when the 1925." meeting opens there. Bob Frend has begun schooling the yearlings at Oriental Park. Four in the Caimito Stable and four owned by E. E. Major are pronounced by Frend to be the best lookers, he has seen in a long time. Majors juveniles are by Seth. : James Hoeffler arrived from Lexington. Ha brought the filly, Blue Goose, and one other with him. Jockey P. Groos arrived here today from New Orleans. He is under contract to S.. N. Holman, owner of the Maple Heights course, near Cleveland. George M. Ridge, who has raced at Oriental Park since the track was first established,-got in from Baltimore, which city, he said, he left in a driving snow storm. "He brought a useful string of horses, including Lord Karnes, Brush Boy, Gaffney Lass, Oraleggo,; Pond Lilly, Belle and King Cole. He is training the latter two for G. J. Boesells. All of the horses arrived in- good condition.
