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ARLINGTON TRACK AT BEST Faster and Safer Than Ever Before — Expect New Records to Be Established. "Arlington Park may be the fastest track in America this year," is the statement credited to trainer Thomas Rodrock after several horses he is handling for Mrs. Kather-ine Elkins Hitt had worked at Arlington Sunday morning. Discussing the outlook for some record-breaking performances at Arlington, Rodrock goes on to say: "At Belmont Park on September 13, 1929, our homebred horse Hot Toddy set a new world mark of 1:48% for one mile and an eighth. I am confident that if I could have the old fellow, which is in the Stars and Stripes Handicap, at the post July 4, as good as he was on that occasion, he would shade 1:48 for nine furlongs. It wont do, however, to expect too much of Hot Toddy. He is six now, with a lot of mileage behind him. "Dont be surprised if some such speedy colt as Epithet, which beat Jamestown at Saratoga last August in a Hopeful, covers seven-eighths in better than 1:23 in the Inaugural Handicap next Monday. The American record for seven-eighths, Rosebens 1:22 flat, made at Belmont Park, has stood since October 16, 1906. It is a cinch that some fast sprinter such as High Foot may shade 1:10 for three-quarters. "Henry McDaniel says that Epithet is the fastest horse he ever trained. If that is so, there wont be anything to prevent his running a mile some bright July day in faster time than 1:35, which is the American record Jack High made at Belmont Park a year ago last spring when he won the Metropolitan Handicap. Nor is there any good reason why Twenty Grand or some other first class horse past three years old should not go one mile and a quarter in close to 2:00 flat. Twenty Grand won the last Kentucky Derby in 2:01%. Last year Valenciennes and Lady Broadcast ran miles here in better than 1:36 and eight or ten other horses beat 1:37. Balko may be the horse to hang up a new mark for a mile. Gallant Knight, Questionnaire and Mokatam are among others gifted with great speed that may lower some of the existing records. "This going is as safe as it is fast because of a cushion of four or five inches. It is fast because this cushion covers an absolutely smooth surface. I dont want to disparage any other track superintendent by inference, but our old friend Billy Myers is a master of the art of keeping up a race track." Myers did a lot of resurfacing at Arlington last winter, but his harrows have been busy since the beginning of April, so the new soil has been thoroughly assimilated.
