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JAMAICA OPENING NEW YORK SEASON THURSDAY PAUMONOK ATTRACTION Crack Sprinters Scheduled to Strive for ,500 Prize. Wood Memorial on May 1 Test for Eastern Kentucky Derby and Preakness Candidates. NEW YORK, N. Y., April 12 The 1937 New York racing season, under the jurisdiction of The Jockey Club, will begin on Thursday and continue for 171 days, one less than last year. As customary, the Metropolitan Jockey Clubs remodelled course at Jamaica will be the scene of the seasons Inaugural meeting, and will continue for twenty-one days, including four Saturdays. According to assistant secretary John J. Kane, the open winter and spring-like weather have been conducive to an advanced stage of conditioning and training of the thoroughbreds, which will give the opening session of the years sport an unusual zest and attraction. Since the fall meeting many extensive improvements have been made at the Jamaica course under the direction of Dr. Edward P. Kilroe, president of the Metropolitan Jockey Club. Included in the renaissance are an addition to the clubhouse, enlargement of the grandstand, removal of the judges and stewards stand to the roof of the grandstand, with a broadcasting booth, and a dark room for instantaneous development of photographs of the finishes. EXTENSIVE REMODELING Extensive remodeling of the stables has also been done. It is predicted that these improvements will attract an increased number of spectators and popularize the sport. The Jamaica course is considered one of the safest as well as one of the most popular race courses hereabouts, owing to its compactness, accessibility and the opportunity it affords spectators to get a close-up view of the various contests from start to finish, noticeably so with the distance races. The structural improvement is only one of the many money spending features undertaken by the Metropolitan Jockey Club for the betterment of the sport. President Kilroe and his associates have -made generous increases in the amount of added money offered in several of the main attractions. The Wood Memorial has been increased to 0,000, the Excelsior and Paumonok Handicaps to ,500 each, the Jamaica Handicap to ,000, the Stuyvesant Handicap with ,500 added is restored after an absence of thirteen years, while the Youthful and Rose-dale Stakes for two-year-olds now have ,500 added. HIGHLIGHT OF MEETING. The 0,000 Wood Memorial, the highlight of Jamaicas spring meeting, should prove a memorable event this year and the keynote of the racing season, as well as affording a line upon the respective merits of Kentucky, Derby and Preakness contestants for championship honors. For the opening day Thursday, racing secretary John B. Campbell has arranged a special program of diversified events, the hcadlincr of which will be. as usual, the time-honored Paumonok Handicap, with ,500 added, for three-year-olds and upward, over the six furlongs course. Among the eligibles are Riparian, Jay Jay, Clodion, Tin-tagel. Whopper, Cycle, Pompoon, Emileo, Sgt Byrne and Speed to Sparc.
