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AURORAS INAUGURAL » Enormous Attendance Present Despite Unfavorable Weather. ■ ♦ Unbounded Enthusiasm and Keen Interest Displayed Augurs Well for Successful Meeting. ♦ AURORA, in., April 21— The popularity of racing in the Chicago sector was strikingly illustrated today when an enormous attendance braved the most adverse weather to be on hand for the opening of the Aurora meeting, which formally inaugurated the racing season in this section. Incidentally the handsome turnout paid a high tribute to manager Trimble and his associates In the Aurora track and made it manifest that they are highly appreciative of their efforts to provide sport of the highest class. It was distressing that the opening should have been under such adverse conditions and that the sport should have suffered as a result of the bad track that prevailed. An immense crowd, considering the unpropitious-ness of the attending conditions, their unbounded enthusiasm and keen interest in the racing is a great augury for the brilliancy of the coming Chicago season. There was no particular outstanding incident in connection with the opening in a racing way. The fields in the different races labored considerably to negotiate the stiff going and in instances they blundered and stumbled their way to the finish. Only one of the starters came to actual grief. That was R. L. Bakers Infante. He had moved into the lead and appeared a certain winner when he suddenly began blundering and stumbling as if exhausted and, crossing his legs, came to a bad fall. Luckily his jockey. Zucchini, escaped with a slight shaking up and afterward resumed riding. The innovation of broadcasting the approximate odds and the positions of the horses racing at various stages was well received by the crowd and this feature promises to be adopted by the other race courses in the Chicago vicinity. IRON MASK II. EASILY. The California Miramonte Stock Farm Stable carried off stellar honors of the 1927 racing inaugural in Illinois when its sturdy Iron Mask II., a son of Maintenon, accounted for the feature race at five and a half furlongs, which he won with consummate ease from a good band. Sanola, locally owned and well supported, finished in second place, a matter of inches in advance of Clenister II., with the remaining four starters well strung out. Iron Mask II. clearly outclassed the others in the going and came away in the stretch to win as his rider pleased. He had followed Sanola closely in the early stages, apparently allowing the filly to lead on sufferance in the early stages. He raced past her with a rush when straightened out for the stretch drive. Sanola began tiring near the end and just managed to save second place. The leading trio at the finish dominated the race from the start. The second race brought with it a fall, in which Infante, ridden by Zucchini, was the victim. The Baker owned gelding just moved into a slight lead after having closed a good gap and seemed on his way to victory when he suddenly began blundering and went down in a heap. C T. Worthington. Monastery, Cas Welch and Revolt were close attendants on Infante at the time of the mishap and Infantes elimination gave C. T. Worthington the lead and he held sway to the finish, though near the end he was forced to a drive to outfinish as Welch. On the extreme outside of the pair came Revolt in third place. His rider seemed to have ridden him unnecessarily wide for most of the way. Zucchini had to be carried to the jockeys room and receive the attention of a doctor. AL STKBLF.R DISAPPOINTS. The opening race at five and a half furlongs brought out the limit number of starters, with Al Stebler, because of his well-known mud running ability, being given the call. He flattered his many supporters extensively by leading until the last sixteenth, where William Diggins, coming with a rush, overhauled him to win by a short length. Al Stebler held Escolane safe all through the last sixteenth. The early contention was spirited, most of the field racing closely grouped behind Al Stebler. The stretch racing found the stragglers dropping completely back and leaving the leaders in full sway. Another outsider was victor in the third race, when Iiushee got home in advance of Voorflor with Martins Caddy in third place. Cnldcn Lynn was the favored one in the race, but a poor beginning, coupled with inability to improve her position to any appreciable extent during the race, easily resulted in her undoing. The winner was also prominent and when Martins Caddy showed distress, Rushee had little difficulty taking command Continued on sixteenth p:ige AURORAS INAUGURAL Continued from first page and steadily urged, held the fast finishing Voorflor safe to the end. Martins Caddy finished in third place, with the others strung out for nearly an eighth mile. Tromping To Day having acted badly at the post and gotten away poorly and as a result serving as the whipper-in. Gunsight showed speed in the rough going and succeeded in outstaying Blue Torch in the sixth race. Updike finished in third place. The winner came from far back in the last eighth of the race and. continuing fast, had little difficulty earning the purse. Smoky Day, the early leader, began tiring badly in the last eighth. The final race, which was at a mile and seventy yards, brought two falls, the going and distance being too trying for the pair of victims. Halu was the first to go down. Her fall occurred in the first three-quarters at a time when she was well up. Levoy was the other to go down. He fell when straightened out in the stretch. There was no damage to either rider or horse. Letter Six was the winner of the race, and won easily after assuming the lead just before reaching the stretch. Foolscap, coming from far back, finished in second place, and Geo. Dever held on well to take third place. Foolscap was claimed by H. Neal at a cost of ,600.
