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j y j j 1 - TWO TURF MYSTERIES By SALVATOR. t v J t I , , . . t l i j ; , ! : ! j : . , . , " 5 3 I treated myself to a real holiday a short e time ago. One such as is seldom possible, v so, when the occasion presents, I do not o of willingly pass it by. i it Which, being Interpreted, means that I J went out to Lincoln Fields on Wednesday, October 7, expressly to witness the race for the Long Trek Purse, the seventh on the card, over the distance of two miles and a furlong. During the afternoon I was again and c again greeted by the statement: "I never t saw such a long race before," either made to me personally or else in my hearing. a Various qualifications were also offered by way of obbligato. Some of them were quaint, j For instance, one gentleman, who is more or less of a regular, remarked: e "I didnt suppose they ever raced horses c farther than a mile and. a quarter. Of , course, I know they used to, way back j when. But this will be the first time I ever saw em go more than ten furlongs." i To this sally I responded by calling his t attention to the fact that three years ago at Washington Park a race dignified by the i title of the Washington Park Cup was staged t over the time-honored "cup" distance of two miles and a quarter and won by Sidney t Grant in 3:54. t Also that during the last three seasons at Sportsmans Park a number of long races had been given, including one at two miles and an eighth in 1934, won by Kentucky i Moon; and one at a mile and seven-eighths j last fall, won by BosopI; also another two mile3 and a furlong contest, won by Nasslyn. "Are you sure of that?" he queried. "Perfectly sure," I replied, "because I saw . them run." "Well," he rejoined, "I dont recollect any- ; thing about the Washington Park affair. And as for those at Sportsmans Park, I j never go racing there as Im generally out i of town the latter part of Ocotber." j He then proceeded: 1 "Theyve never had any such things at Arlington Park. Ive been a regular there i ever since it was opened and Ive no rcol- 1 lection of ever seeing a race there longer i than a mile and a quarter and mighty few : as long as that." This, I told him, was substantially correct, j Arlington Park has never given anything i longer than a mile and a quarter race, with the exception of one or two overnight events : for cheap platers at a mile and a half and a mile and three-eighths. But even of this class it has carded nothing for the past four years that is to say, since 1932. My questioner then inquired ibout Washington Park, aside from the one long race I had mentioned, and I was forced to admit that it was the only thing of the kind that had been raced there. And that since a quarter of a mile had been clipped off the American Derby distance, it being reduced from a mile and a half to a mile and a quarter in 1928, I could recall no race run at the Homewood course beyond the distance last named. Hawthorne was next inquired about, and again I admitted that I could remember no race staged there in recent years that was of more than a mile and a quarter; but, I averred. In former times there were many of them at distances up to two miles. Aurora was next asked for. I responded that I didnt believe there was ever a contest seen there beyond a mile and a quarter, though the track had been operating at least a dozen years. When these facts had been threshed out, it was not, of course, surprising, when the gentleman asserted: "Well, under the circumstances you cant say its strange that I have never seen a real long race. All those you have dug up have been given at the tail end of the season, or else been cheap affairs of no importance. So Im hoping to get a kick out of this one, for it will be a new thing to me." Whether he did or not I do not know, as he drifted away and I did not see him again during the afternoon. But I do know that, as has been the case with each and all of the others I have referred to, when it was contested it aroused a brand of interest dlf-, ferent from any that the run-of-mine events ever produce. From the moment the horses started on their long journey, the entire assemblage began to seethe and bubble and explode. Shouts and cries attended the horses for the entire two miles and a furlong, which at times rose to a regular tempest. It was a very unpleasant day, with gloomy, drizzling skies and a chilly wind, considering which the attendance was unusually good. But that didnt dampen the ardor of the specta-: tors. They gave vent to their feelings in the most unrestrained manner. It was not the kind of an uproar that one hears at the close of a six furlongs sprint. It was not such as one hears when, at the climax of a great stake, contended for by the stars of the turf, a record breaking crowd that has staked an immense sum of money upon the outcome turns loose in a cyclonic outburst. This was a comparatively small crowd; and no sensational amount of money had been wagered by it. But the per capita amount of genuine interest in the race, and enthusiasm over it, was something that none of the big time affairs could equal. It seemed as If every individual present was sharing in it and having a grand and glorious moment. Or rather, three minutes and forty-three and one-fifth seconds, the inter- val required by the winner, Zenka, to complete the course about three lengths in front of Mopeco, he about the same distance ahead of Countess Bye. They knew very well that the horses en- gaged were without exception entered to be sold for but ,100 each; that none of them . e v o of i it J c t a j e c , j i t i t t t i j . ; j i j 1 i 1 i : j i : ever was or ever would be famous; that they were racing for but ,000, and one division the purse would bring the steed that won the sum of but 5; and yet they were worked up to about as high a pitch of enthusiasm as one will ever see at, a race track. And why? Well because they were being, offered something really entertaining instead of the eternal grind of monotonous sprints that occupy about one minute of spectacle and contest They were also seeing something that was a true test of gameness and stamina, and to such a test the genus homo will always turn a bright eye and a warm heart, for we know that these are among the most valuable qualities of a thoroughbred whatever the breed. That their demonstration, even by horses of humble class, is worthy of respect and of applause, sincere, honest and hearty. As I have stated, I have personally made It a point to witness all the true long distance races that have been staged in and about Chicago since the revival of the sport here, over a dozen years ago. And every time it has been the same. The public has exhibited an interest, a pleasure and an enthusiasm which one may say was due wholly to the race itself, and in no way to either the glamour of an immense amount of stake or purse money, or money wagered upon the outcome, or sensational horses with famous jockeys up but solely to the character of the contest as a spectacle and a source of entertainment. I have entitled these comments, "Two Turf Mysteries," and the fitness of that title consists in the following explanation: First: It is a notorious fact that the average race goer prefers a race over a distance of, say, a mile or more, to those of less than a mile. It affords him more entertainment, more enjoyment and more thrills. This is admitted by all observers who have studied the psychology of racing crowds. Second: It is also a fact, admitted by managers of race tracks, that the public will turn out in larger numbers to witness such a race, if properly publicized, than any short race; and will also bet more heavily upon it. These two facts being undeniable, the two great turf mysteries to which I would call attention are these: First: That track managers stubbornly refuse to give race goers more than a scattering few races over distances that are real tests of a horses strength and courage. Second: That when they do so condescend, as a rule they cast such events In the cheapest form, conditioning them for horses of low class and making the purses proportionate, in which respect they resemble the "chasers" programmed at vaudeville theaters. Strange isnt It?
