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JOCKEY J ADAMS Has unorthodox riding style Eight Riding Champions in Recent Years Plied Trade at Local Ovals James Adams Longden and Westrope Gained Fame in This Sector SectorCRETE CRETE 111 May 23 Since 1926 the year racing was revived in this terriiory eight of the boys who have earned the figurative iockeys crown did most of their riding in he Windy City area Most notable among the saddle artists who were developed here of course is Eddie Arcaro but the boy who reached the peak of his fame when he was able to make Warren Wrights Whirlaway burn up the straight arid narrow path to fame and fortune in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness has not won the riding crown as yet He is however acknowledged oday as the legitimate successor of Ray ¬ mond Sonny Workman as the outstanding ockey in the sport Those who won the riding crown and were familiar figures around Chicago race tracks when they vere at the top are Bobby Jones the 1926 cham ¬ pion Lee Hardy of 1927 Mel Knight of 1929 EL R Riley of 1930 Harry Roble of 1931 Jackie Westrope of 1933 Basil James of 1936 Johnny Adams of 1937 and Johnny Longden of 1938 The late Earl Dew who won the crown in 1940 rode mostly around Detroit and Cleveland last year but he was seen at Sportsmans Park when he was an apprentice apprenticeA A review of the achievements of these sad ¬ dle champions in the Chicago area makes us wonder if Lee Haskell and Jimmie Berger are not the timber of which title riders are made Right now of course Berger appears to be the better prospect because of the fact that he seems to be able to make the most of opportunities which present themselves during the running of a race This is not to discredit the ability of Haskell however because Clarence E Davisons rider gets a lot of run out of a horse horseDIVISON DIVISON HIGH ON HASKELL HASKELLDavison Davison will be remembered as the man who developed Arcaro when a couple of others had given up on the Newport Ky lad as a riding prospect In view of that fact it is significant that Davison is high on the ability of Haskell and that the young ¬ ster has lived up to all the nice things his contract holder said about him prior to the opening of the Chicago season seasonTaking Taking just the Chicago developments of the past decade Riley Roble Westrope James Adams and Longden it is probable that the achievements of Westrope James Adams and Longden will be remembered long after the others Westropes feat of riding 301 winners during 1933 to win the crown is something no rider has come close to doing since Vince Powers booted home 324 winners away back in 1908 1908Without Without doubt Basil James is one of the best of the modern riders Eddie Arcaro when interviewed after the Kentucky Derby pointed out that Basil probably would top the field if he had a little different tempera ¬ ment but who knows enough about the makeup of human beings to say that this temperament isnt what makes James the rider he is today todayThe The story of Johnny Adams parallels in some phases that of Johnny Longden Both boys are short of stature with a well devel ¬ oped body on stumpy legs Both rode for years around the mfnor circuit before they reached the big time as riders and even upon arriving full recognition of their abil ¬ ity was delayed delayedTARN TARN INTRODUCES LONGDEN LONGDENAfter After riding around the northwest and on the minor tracks of Canada and the Far West Longden first came east with Al Tarn He rode around Chicago and then went to New England and New York Wherever he rode he had his share of winners and finally there was no denying the fact that he could horseback a little littleAdams Adams did most of his early riding around the tracks of the Middle West The same criticism was made of his riding style that was made of Longdens Being short of stat ¬ ure both riders have a peculiar seat on a horse They sit high up on the withers of their mounts and are not the most graceful riders in the business but there is no deny ¬ ing that they both get a lot of run out of any horse they ride rideEven Even the most cryptic critics of both Long ¬ den and Adams among the horsemen grudg ¬ ingly admit that they have something In every sport whether it is horse racing base ¬ ball or golf a jockey or a player comes along who has an unorthodox style but if they get results this does not handicap them for long Al Simmons stepped in the bucket when at bat but became one of baseballs great sluggers No golfer in the game swings more like a rusty gate than Paul Runyan but he has a little something on the stylists around the putting green and twice has been champion of the money brigade of the game the professional golfers Perhaps golfersPerhaps Longden and Adams are the ex ¬ ceptions who prove the rule in riding styles When Tod Sloan came along to ride in the style now generally accepted as being con ¬ ventional he was regarded as being un ¬ orthodox
