view raw text
Here and There on the Turf Racing of Two -Year-Olds. Marshall Cassidys Gate. Universal Machine Needed. On Race Riding. At this time the trainers at the different winter racing grounds are making ready the juveniles that will be of racing age New Years Day. Reports from these winter tracks would indicate that each is bountifully supplied with young thoroughbreds and that as a general proposition it is an excellent crop. The training of these yearlings has bean going forward for some time and when the first of the juvenile races is carded it will be found that there will be no lack of material on hand. Some years ago an .effort was made to discourage the early racing of two-year-olds. To that end the Jcckey Club passed a rule whereby any two-year-cld that was raced before May 1, was disqualified from racing over any of the tracks in the jurisdiction of the Jcckey Club for the rest of the year. The other governing bodies of the turf did not concur in this rule and it was tremendously unpopular with the breeders. Shortly after this rule was wiped out and now there is no regulation against this early racing. Undoubtedly the early racing of two-year-olds is not conducive to the welfare of the young thoroughbreds. Too oflen when they are drilled, as they must be to reach racing condition, before being properly matured, a great harm is done. But from time to time there comes a good one that will stand up under this gruelling and go on to big things on the turf. The attitude of breeders who produce thoroughbreds for the market is readily appreciated. The earl racing offers a quicker return on the investment and it naturally strengthens the yearling market. The yearling would not be nearly as attractive to many buyers when prohibited from racing until May, as he is when it is possible to begin to realize on the investment as early as January. There always will be an intelligent opposition to the earlj racing of two-year-olds, for the general good of the breed, but it is doubtful if it will again be prohibited for the reasons that have been set forth. Marshall Cassidys new starting gate has been demonstrated at Tijuana and many good judges have pronounced it a success. At this distance from the scene of action it is impossible to pass judgment, but, with a hearty appreciation of the opinion of Judge Francis Nelson, his endorsement means much. It has been reported that Judge Nelson has prdnounced it the solution of the starting difficulties. That is praise indeed and Marshall Cassidy is to be congratulated on his new machine. It still remains to be seen how it will perform through an actual day of racing. It has been shown frequently that the walk-up start obtains excellent results, but one objection there may be to the new gate is that it is such a radical change from other barriers that horses leaving Tijuana may be at a distinct disadvantage when they return to the other barrier at other courses. This is another thing that can only be determined by experience. As a matter of fact it would be well if there was a universal gate for all the race courses. The principle of all of them is about alike, with the possible exception of the Marshall Cassidy device, but there are differences that easily confuse horses. J A horse may be campaigned over the New York tracks until he -becomes thoroughly familiar with the gate used by Mars Cassidy. He is sent to Kentucky or Maryland where he has to leave from a different machine and then into Canada, Chicago or Ohio he may find other changes in the gate. That is not exactly fair to the horse and no matter how efficient the gate, or how efficiently it is operated the difference in the operation can readily confuse the horse. It is not to be expected that there will be a universal gate, unless one is devised that is so superior to all others that it becomes generally adopted. It is not to be expected that the governors of racing will sanction only one particular gate, but the simpler the contrivance, the better, and the horse should not be asked to learn new tricks for each gate. Nothing succeeds like success is perhaps more applicable to race riding than almost any line of endeavor. Little Swanson, the Swede who rode four winners Friday, cams back with two more Saturday. Undoubtedly the lad is a good rider and just now a bright prospect for 1925, but just where the application of the old adage is that when a jockey strikes a winning streak he always has opportunities to ride the best horses. That is particularly true of winter racing grounds, where naturally the good riders are a bit scarce and several of the stables have no contract rider. Swanson will have ample opportunity as a reward for the form he displayed Friday and just as long as his winning streak lasts he will have the additional opportunity of picking and choosing when it comes to mounts. If he is able to pick the best horse from the entries, he will have many a ride on the bsst horse. The best riding prospect in the world will never go far in that line of endeavor unless he has the opportunity. Few indeed are the jockeys that have not had to establish themselves riding bad horses before the chance comes to ride the good ones. The boy without any experience is seldom trusted with the mount on the dependable horse of quality, unless it be that the said gentleman of quality is not up to a race and is in the field for the benefit of the work he will obtain. But the lad who knows how, if he keeps plugging along on the bad ones, may, with his share of luck, do as Swanson did last Friday. He may have three or four winners in an afternoon. At once his reputation is established and, if he is a real rider and not merely a lucky kid, his reputation is made. He will have a chance on the "solid" horses and a chance that never would have come without that one afternoon when he brought the bad ones home in front. The trick is to show a skill that will attract attention. After that the way is made much smoother in the quality of horses on which mounts are offered. Starter Mars Cassidy tells a good story that emphasizes the fact that unknown riders are not given good mounts. A little black boy rode a big, rather good looking bay horse to the starting post one afternoon at Aqueduct. Cassidy did not know the horse and he did not know the boy. Calling him over he asked, "Boy, what horse is that youre riding?" "Ah doan know, Mr. Cassidy, but he caint be no count or ah wouldnt have the mount," was the black boys answer. There was a kid that had no illusions. He knew he did not belong on a good horse, for he had shown nothing himself. And that is what the lad who would become a rider is frequently up against in his struggle for fame in the saddle. He will have to ride the no-account horses until some bright afternoon he brings a couple of them home in front, as did Swanson. Then he attracts attention. The trainers find out that he knows how to ride and there is an eager demand for his services.
