Here and There on the Turf: Inconsistent Rulings.; Ethics of Internationals.; Colonel Winns Plan.; Dwyer Prospects., Daily Racing Form, 1926-06-30

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Here and There on the Turf Inconsistent Rulings. Ethics of Internationals. Colonel Winns Plan. Dwyer Prospects. Tt would seem that when a jockey is guilty of such rough and foul riding as to be suspend od for the term of a meeting, which has seven days to go. his offense would bring about the disqualification of the horse he was riding. The stewards only have jurisdiction over th; meetings at which they preside, so that the limit punishment was inflicted. All this has to do with the suspension of F. Sharpe in the unfortunate race of Monday at Aqueduct, in which Claptrap, the first horse in, was also disqualified. Both McTag-frart and Sharpe were "set down" for the meeting, but Volante, the horse ridden by Sharpe. was confirmed in second place. If Sharpe offended and earned his punishment, then Volante should not have been confirmed as second. It is one of the inconsistencies that frequently come in New York rulings and they are indeed hard to understand. When it was decided that Sharpe was guilty enough to draw an equal punishment with McTaggart, whose fouling was palpable, then Volante hat! no more right to any part of the purse than did Claptrap. Such inconsistent rulings do racing no end of harm in destroying public confidence and the stewards seem to be the last ones to find it out. While the rule reads that the horse impeding another shall be disqualified, or words to that effect, they on various other occasions have convicted a rider of foul and rough riding without disqualifying his mount. Day after day there comes rulings that more and more show the absolute necessity for paid stewards, who will take their duties more seri ously than do the gentlemen who serve in the stands at the New York tracks. Probably there never will be paid stewards. Unless appointed and volunteer stewards show more consistency in the stands they will have a hard time re taining the public confidence that is so essential. After l eing just about as excited as is possible over the attempts to bring about some more international specials, Peter Bumaugh writes: "Of course there is no need to get excited over such an event." The genial Peter is not exactly convincing in his tirade against these races and his charge that it is unsports manlike for Americans to invite Englishmen and Frenchmen to send their best to this country. Just what offense there is to the proprieties is hard to understand, and it is also hard to understand that any turfman of any country could take offense at such an invitation. Peter insists that it is only because the Englishmen are courteous gentlemen that they have not given churling answers to the proposal. If one needs to be particularly courteous under such circumstances it is strange, indeed If ihat is the only claim to courtesy that can be advanced on behalf f Ixrd Woolavington, or any other turfman, then the standards of courtesy abroad are low indeed. But Peter ■ not a good judge of the English turfman if this is his estimate. That is well enough as far as the courtesy end of it is concerned, but Peter overlooked the one good reason for specials. He overlooked the only good reason. Without the specials it is impossible to bring the best of the various countries together. The English and French horses are not eligible to our big values of the turf which mean more than dollars. Our best are seldom made eligible to the English stake races. How else would Peter bring thes? horses together, unless by specials? It is not a ques tion of offering a value that would tempt. It is merely a race to give the best horses of every country a chance to come together. That does not appear to be unsportsmanlike and it does not seem to be a proposal that would offend the sensibilities of any turfman. But while all this was brought about by the visit of Joseph E. Widener to France, there is almost an assurance that a series of interna tional races will be arranged that will not take on the New York courses at all. This is a series proposed by Matt Winn, and he has a way of going through with anything he undertakes. The Winn plan is to arrange a series of races for Laurel, Fairmount, Lincoln Fields and Latonia. These four courses could keep out landers busy and the rewards would be of a nature to make it a paying, as well as a sorting venture. There is no apprehension that the proposals to foreign turfmen to send over horses for such a series of races wdl offend, and it is hoped the plans will bring results that will show great sport. It is not the intention of any of the pro motcrs of international races to take away from any of the famous old fixtures that mean so much to the turf. It is not meant that a vie tory in an international race can ever hav.* the importance of a victory in such races as the Epsom or Kentucky Derby, the Belmont Stakes or thr* Ascot Gold Cup, to 6ay nothing of various othar famous races, but it is non sense to say thai such races have no importance other than the offered money. They are races hut afford a champion a chance to be champion of the world, instead of champion of England, France or America. In that they have a real importance and the man with a champion always v. ants to show the world that his is a rt-. champion. The original idea of the international races was to build them up until they would become fixed events to be contested for in either Eng land, France or America, the place of running to le decided by the nativity of the winner of the prvvjous year. Sever:*, of the turfmen of both England and trance are heartily in accord with such a plan itnd there is no end of American turfmen who would welcome an opportunity to race here, just as they would welcome an American champion that might be sent abroad. The arious candidates for the, Dwyer Stakes-have been going along in work in a fashion to indicate that the renewal on Saturday will be a notable one. The fact that the Dwyer Stakes of this year is over a mile and a half lends greatly to its interest and makes it more of a verification of the Belmont Stakes than ever before. Of course, the fact that there are penalties and allowances prevents its being the ideal companion piece to the Belmont Stakes, but that fact makes for a better field. Just now Espino, which will be in the Dwyer Stakes field under 108 pounds against the 123 pounds that Crusader will be required to shoulder is looked upon as a particularly brilliant prospect and he has already scared out one notable eligible in Rock Star of the Brookmeade Stable. This colt would have been raced against Crusader, but trainer, Tompkins could not see giving as good a colt as Espino nine pounds.


Persistent Link: https://drf.uky.edu/catalog/1920s/drf1926063001/drf1926063001_2_2
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Library of Congress Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/unk82075800