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»----------------------------t Here and There on the Turf Johnstown Is Sensation Will Be Short Choice in Wood El Chico Gets Trial Big Jamaica Crowd Expected A,... ...... ..i Johnstown may not be considered quite the favorite in the futures on the Kentucky Derby, but he undoubtedly will go to the post Saturday in the Wood Memorial Stakes as the choice, more than probably at odds-on, whether or not the Wheatley Stables Gilded Knight is coupled with him or passes up the engagement. Both horses are trained by the masterful James Fitzsimmons. By winning the Wood Memorial, the fleet son of Jamestown and La France, by Sir Galla-had TJL, most likely will be post favorite in the Derby, as so many other starters trained and raced in New York have been. In winning the Paumonok Handicap and then the Woodhaven Purse at Jamaica Tuesday, Johnstown simply displayed too much speed for his opponents and his supporters have visions of him taking the track at Churchill Downs a week from Saturday and galloping in front all the way over the mile and one-quarter. His effort Tuesday marked the first time Johnstown, was called upon to perform at a distance beyond six and one-half furlongs, that being the route of the Hopeful, Junior Champion and Futurity last season, and he covered the mile and seventy yards quite i easier than he did the sprints last season as a two-year-old. Enjoying a wide margin fuming into the stretch, William Wood-, wards latest hope for championship honors , made it more in the run to the line, even ■ though Jimmy Stout was doing everything but swinging the colts head. It seems impossible that he can be beaten in the Wood Memorial if he repeats that race in which he came within one-fifth of a second of the worlds record for the distance, a mark he could have broken if given a challenge in the late stages. The Wood is over the same course. A more severe test may be given Johnstown in the Wood, although he should benefit from his two races because his opposition promises to be more determined. Gilded Knight, although coupled with him in the wagering, will be striving for victory, in his own right, because he belongs to another owner and his triumphs in the Chesapeake. Stakes and in a sprint over El Chico give him a chance. More than one of the Jamaica commissioners will be willing to lay a distinct price against him Saturday. Lovely Night may not improve very much over his race against Johnstown, but something better may be expected of Eight Thirty, as the George D. Widener colt was making his first start of the season. The son of Pilate and Dinner Time had it on Johnstown last season but it appears he will have to improve smartly if he is to continue to hold that edge. T. M. Dorsett, fresh from his triumph in the Stuyvesant Handicap, went through a fine mile workout since and is another likely colt with which Johnstown will have to contend. El Chicos status among the three-year-olds Continued on twenty-third page. HERE AND THERE ON THE TURF: Continued from second page. may be established with the Wood running, although trainer Matt Brady is looking beyond Saturdays engagement to the Kentucky Derby, a week later, is his training program. He sent the 1938 juvenile champion a mile and one-eighth Tuesday as a final test for the Wood, but the colt galloped on out an additional furlong to complete the Derby distance. In exhibiting good speed for the mile, his time being 1:39, the son of John P. Grier and La Chica had just the proper tune-up for a race like the Wood, while getting further conditioning for his Derby engagement in going the extra distance. However, he did not work like a colt which will be particularly fond of the Derby route, as his pace slowed down considerably after he had gone the first six furlongs, and he was driving to do the mile and an eighth in 1:52%. With weather conditions favorable, the Metropolitan Jockey Club should have one of the greatest days in its history Saturday, as the Wood has excited much interest in the New York sector and, at the same time, racing fans " all over the country will be anxiously awaiting its results. In its own right rather than as a prelude to the Derby, the Wood is an important event and also a valuable one in having a 0,000 added purse. Perhaps its distance ought to be more testing, such as a mile and one-eighth, but the Jamaica feature, nevertheless, has proven an excellent seasoning spot for championship contenders, Twenty Grand, Gallant Fox, Omaha and Granville having been some of the good colts which either won or ran well in it before arriving at the zenith of their careers. This years running should be no exception in this respect.
