view raw text
----------------------------t Here and There on the Turf Outlay of 5,000,000 Likely I New Record Will Be Estah- i lished I Xalapa Clown Denied Chance j Interest in Cuban Meeting Rises j I.---- ...... . -A Total distribution in stakes and purses at the recognized tracks operating in the United States, Canada, Cuba and Mexico promises to exceed 5,000,000 for the 1938 season, marking the first time this figure has been reached. To attain such a distinction, the outlay for the season fast coming to an end must exceed that of last year by some 37,000, but when the curtain is dropped at Tropical Park, Fair Grounds and Santa Anita on December 31 it is believed the difference will have been overcome. If the new record is achived, most of the credit should be given Hollywood Park, whose inaugural meeting during mid-summer had sufficient stakes and purses to cut deeply into the amount necessary to go over the top. At many other tracks, such as Hialeah Park, Santa Anita, Del Mar and Longacres distribution was greatly increased, so it is believed the new mark will be set. The earning opportunities of the thoroughbred have increased steadily since the low figure of ,516,325 for modern times was set in lrf33. That sum represented a drop of a million and one-half from the outlay of the previous season, which in turn had fallen off ,000,000 from the distribution of 1931, which had been the sixth consecutive year in which the awards had been in the 3,000,000 bracket. From the war year of 1918 to 1926, the increase had been steady, with the sharpest jump being made in 1920 when the total was hiked more than ,000,000. The lowest ebb since 1907, when the statistics were first compiled, was from 1910 to 1915, the period during which New York racing encountered its greatest trouble. Smallest distribution was ,337,957 in 1,037 races in 1910, and, although more than six times as much money was given away this year, the increase in the number of events was less than a hundred per cent. Richest of the events contributing toward the probable record total of distribution is the Santa Anita Handicap, followed by the Belmont Futurity but these races are not .new and the increase must be forthcoming from such races as the Hollywood Gold Cup and the American Invitation Stakes at the new Inglewood course, the Seabiscuit-Liga-roti and Seabiscuit-War Admiral specials and the considerably larger awards made available in the Widener Challenge Cup, Pimlico Futurity, New England Futurity and other such important attractions. Likewise, the purses for the crdinai- horses were raised at many tracks and the sport encountered its most prosperous season in years. And even though conditions may not be as settled as they might, an even larger distribution appears certain for 1939. Xalapa Clown, which John B. Campbell considered the most powerful candidate for the Endurance Handicap, as evidenced by his assignment of 126 pounds to the son of Eternal Loma Linda, was deprived of what appeared an excellent chance to improve his record when the Bowie meeting was curtailed. The unbeaten colt in Mrs. Bessie Franzheims establishment had been carefully pointed for the Endurance, a ,000 affair of a mile and seventy yards, following his- handy triumph in the Ardsley over the Continued n nineteenth page. HERE AND THERE ON THE TURF Continued from second page. same route at Empire City, and his connections were confident of victory. They now must wait until the winter season at Santa Anita to see if Xalapa Clown can further his unblemished record. His principal objective, of course, is the Santa Anita Derby, but the Eternal colt undoubtedly will see service in several events leading up to that 0,000 attraction. Francis Albertanti seems to be doing a fine job of extolling the virtues of Oriental Park and its forthcoming meeting and much interest naturally is being displayed in the Cuban track, particularly among horsemen. Albert Levey, head of the syndicate operating Oriental Park, and his principal aides, general manager James F. Milton and racing secretary Robert S. Shelley, have gone about the business of preparing for the meeting in such a substantial fashion that many owners have been tempted to seek stabling accommodations. As a result, a full quota of American horses is likely to be on hand for the" opening on January 12, or very shortly afterward as the Tropical Park meeting ends. With Hialeah Park certain to have a greater amount of material than it can use, numerous owners are planning to take advantage of the opportunities offered just a couple of hundred miles away. 4
