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CHALLEDON CHALLEDONTraining Training for Gold Cup at atHollywood Hollywood Park REFLECTIONS By CHALLENGER New Attendance Record at Belmont Whirlaway in Action Next Saturday A week ago we predicted a throng of 42000 and a mutuel play of 2000000 at Belmont Park on Decoration Day We were wrong on both counts for 53904 passed through the turnstiles and a total of 1881116 was wagered on the eight races and the Daily Double Even though the 2000000 mark was not reached many new records were created It was a new high for total wagering in New York state also a new high on the Daily Double and also a new high on a single race when the throng wagered 355806 on the Suburban a figure fa surpassing the 277646 bet on the Suburban last year The records do not end there however for the attendance was the largest ever to attend a days racing in New York state Mioland failed his backers the Suburban but to spectators it was obvious that after he made a stout bid at the head of the stretch he could not hold it under his weight assignment True 127 pounds is not exactly a crushing burden but it is a package to tote with horses such as Your Chance carrying 114 Hash 119 and Shot Put 110 Charlie Howard will now return Mioland to the Coast after the poorest trip he has ever made East New York was not the only course to cater to vast throngs on the holiday At Suffolk Downs 50000 persons wit ¬ nessed the victory of Sweet Willow in the Tomasello At Lincoln Fields in Chicago 30000 were on hand as Vis county defeated Technician in the Fran ¬ cis S Peabody Memorial Handicap At Hollywood Park Joy Boy won the Ar ¬ gonaut Handicap before a throng of 50000 and at Delaware 20000 were on hand to see Ben Shaba take the Dover Stakes opening feature event These linesare written as Saturdays racing is about getting under way but we think that when the returns are in we will have been justified in our statement that the FridaySaturday throngs ex ¬ ceeded those on any two days in pre ¬ vious years Good racing and especially good racing on a holiday clearly in ¬ dicates that the sport is becoming more popular with each passing season It is doubtful if Belmonts new record attendance is broken this year al ¬ though it could be possible at the Holly ¬ wood Gold Cup to be run on July 15 Hollywood fans turn out in great num ¬ bers for both the Santa Anita Handi ¬ cap and the Hollywood Gold Cup Should Challedon regain his form of last year there is no telling how many persons will be attracted to the beauti ¬ ful course in the movieland capital With Eight Thirty now out of train ¬ ing Challedon begins to loom once again as a contender for handicap honors Word from the Coast states that he worked six I furloners over the Hollvwood Park main 53000 Fans Wager 1881160 WellBred Babes Race at Aqueduct course in 117 The accompanying note states that he was breezing and appeared to be full of run As the big race will not be run until July 19 they will have plenty of time to bring him to his peak Mioland is certain to oppose the Brann champion in the Gold Cup Since winning the San Juan Capistrano on March 8 the Howard horse has been beaten by Haltal in the Dixie by Whirlaway in the Henry of Navarre and in the Suburban was out of the money to Your Chance Hash and Shot Put Undoubtedly both Challedon and Mioland will be seen in competition prior to the Gold Cup and should both come up to their race for the 75000 event it should prove one of the most interesting races ever contested on the Pacific Coast With Whirlaway in there it will be a natural but we doubt if the Calumet horse will be seen West of Chicago this year Another large throng will probably be attracted to Belmont Park for the Belmont Stakes to be run on Saturday With Whirlaway a certain starter a small field is the outlook There are times however when the presence of a champion will draw spectators and especially when Triple Crown history appears to be in the making At the moment we cannot think beyond Robert Morris and Bold Irishman as opposition for the Calumet cannonball Whirl ¬ aways campaign after the Belmont is a question He is named for the Shevlin to be run at Aqueduct on June 11 the Dwyer to be run at the same track on Saturday June 21 and also the Brooklyn Handicap for threeyearolds and older horses on June 28 As Ben Jones has already said he is not anxious to have his champion meet older horses for the present the chances are that Whirlaway will be in Chicago on the day the Brooklyn Handicap is staged at Aqueduct The Arlington Park meeting opens on June 23 and in all probability with Warren Wright being a Chicagoan the threeyearold champion will be seen in the Classic Stakes and also in the American Derby at Washington Park which opens on August 1 When Belmont closes next Saturday Aqueduct will open for the summer meeting which willrun from June 9 to July 2 While the Brooklyn Handicap will be the feature event of the meeting twoyearolds will come into their own with the running of the Astoria for twoyearold fillies at five and a half furlongs on Saturday June 14 the Tremont for juvenile colts and geldings on Saturday June 21 and the great American for twoyearolds at six furlongs and to be run on Saturday June 28 In these events many of the finest bred youngsters to come up this year are nominated Walter Chrysler Jr is one of the heavy nominators in all of these races along with the Brookmeade Stable Calumet Farm Coldstream Stable Glen Riddle Farm Greentree Stable Wheatley Stable C V Whitney John Hay Whitney George D Widener and Joseph E Widener In the Tremont Walter Chrysler Jr has named Raj Kumar a bay colt by Bahram Quick Action Ramillies a bay colt by Blenheim II Risky and Brabant a bay colt by Quatre Bras II Gayoso In the Astoria he has named Hespera a brown filly by Blenheim II Vesper Bells II while Glen Riddle Farm has named the brown filly Military Brush by Man o War Brush Up and Calumet Farm has named MarKell a bay filly by Blenheim II Nellie Flag Such youngsters as these are just about the tops in pedigree