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STARTER WILLIAM HAMILTONS TWELFTH CONSECUTIVE YEAR LOUISVILLE Ky May 7 When the field is sent on its way in the sixtythird Ken ¬ tucky Derby William Hamilton will be in the starters box dispatching the thorough ¬ breds in the Churchill Downs classic for the twelfth consecutive year yearThe The starters job of course Is to see that all the horses have equal chances at the break an assignment considerably more dif ¬ ficult than it may appear and in this work Hamilton ranks among the best in his pro ¬ fession He has both the patience to deal with unruly horses and a wide knowledge of their especial peculiarities which make him particularly suited to his work workHamilton Hamilton received his rudimentary train ¬ ing as an assistant or ground man under the late A Barrett Dade in his day one of the peers of his profession Dade died in 1922 in New Orleans and shortly af terwrd Hamilton assumed his position in the start ¬ ers stand The late William Snyder started the next several Derbys and then Hamilton dispatched his first Kentucky Derby field in 1926 the year Bubbling Over won and he has been starting them ever since sinceStarting Starting a Derby is just like sending them on their way in any other race according to Hamilton although there are a lot more people watching him If hes just a little nervous when theres so much at stake he wont admit it Besides doing all the starting at Churchill Downs Hamilton also serves in a similar ca ¬ pacity at Latonia and at Lincoln Fields He did the starting at Oaklawn Park until this spring when he was appointed steward at the Hot Springs track for the Arkansas Rac ¬ ing Commission
