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Here and There on the Turf Bright Plumage Wins Easily Is Hardly Star Derby Hope Bright Light- Impresses at Bowie The Fighter Continues Streak Floridas long season of winter racing was brought to a successful close Saturday with the running of the Derby Consolation Stakes at Tropical Park, which established Cornelius Whitneys Bright Plumage as the second-best three-year-old shown in the recent Miami campaign. The son of Macaw and Beaming can hardly be rated in the same bracket with Brevity, which beat him five lengths while equaling the worlds record for nine furlongs in capturing the Florida Derby. Bright Plumage did not even gain second honors in the Hialeah Park feature, being nosed out for that placing by Dnieper, from the same barn as Brevity, but he turned the tables on the Kiev gelding in the Derby Consolation, leading him to the wire with more than two lengths to spare. Because of his clean-cut triumph in the Tropical Park event, the son of Macaw, which distinguished himself last fall by taking the Endurance Handicap at Bowie, is being hailed as a stout candidate for the Kentucky Derby, a contention offered by very few of the experts. Bright Plumage may be considered a likely starter in the Churchill Downs special be-1 cause of his present fitness, and he should give a good account of himself, as he is partial to any kind of track and is an honest performer. However, he lacks the size and strength of the true Derby horse and so far he has not been able to hold his own against those colts rated as the leading candidates for the Blue Grass prize. But with the fair amount of ability he possesses the Whitney colt will continue to cause plenty of trouble, especially when not overmatched. His next engagement probably will be in the Chesapeake Stakes at Havre de Grace, and he should test thoroughly some of the good three-year-olds coming up at that time. The decisive manner in which he defeated his J four opponents in the Derby consolation just ; about eliminated them; further consideration ; in connection with the outstanding three-year-old events to come. Three-year-olds were busy on two other Nine members of the fronts last week-end. division were engaged at six furlongs in .the Rowe Memorial Handicap, Bowie s feature, with the Shandon Farms Bright Light getting the verdict with a strong stretch run The iast colt Speed. 0 .Spare was second, and Night Play was third. The latter two are, while, than anything else sprinters more of Sun Flag and Dark I Brieht Light, a son of staying abUlly last HouT gave evidence , Si when he was second to Bright Plumage Bowie fea-ture traditional in th Endurance, a "Off his Rowe Memorial race, his sec- ondof the year, the Chicago-owned colt nrobably will be pointed for longer efforts, S tbo, can be regarded as a likely candi-, date for the Chesapeake Stakes, spring fea-, Of the horses he ture at Havre de Grace. Challephen and Winter Sport beat m?y Saturday, be regarded as the best prospects for in longer races. improvement made the Blue Bonnet Han The Fighter sprint f .urmg the dip. a si furlongs third stiaignt his Arlington Downs program, triumph, in four starts this .sea on Ta"Z the three under scale, 116 pounds, one un yLr oldPson of Bull Dog and Bridgeen in of Mrs. Ethel Stable the Milky Way Farms $ Mars handily turned back some capable older speedsters, all of which had imposts Sat were well below the scale Under the accomplished handling of Alfred Robertson and held a good well The Fighter was away the position until called upon approaching stretch, where he advanced strongly to score with something to spare. Trainer Robert McGarvey has yet to extend The Fighter beyond sprinting distances, but with the Texas Derby, at a mile and one furlong, less than two weeks hence, the Bull Dog colt probably will be tried over a longer route before long. Rockingham Parks new owners seem to i . 1 i j I , I i , ; I be acceptable to the managements of Narragansett Park and Suffolk Downs because they willingly have revised their schedules to give the New Hampshire course two meetings this season without conflicts. Under the new schedule, which apparently has been worked out in harmonious and amicable fashion, the-three New England tracks will operate continuously for 166 days, commencing on May 2 at Narragansett Park and ending at the same place on November 11. Rockingham will follow Narragansett in the spring and will come between the two fall terms at the same course, while Suffolk Downs will run for fifty-three days from the middle of June to the middle of August and be done with it. The co-operative feeling existing between the three tracks in greater Boston now cannot help but work for the betterment of the sport, and it certainly is welcome after the chaotic condition that has prevailed since last fall.
