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REFLECTIONS fly CHALLENGER California Rule May Be Changed Geisler Asks Horsemen to Help Sentiment Strong for New Ruling Protection of Horses a Problem HOLLYWOOD Calif June 24 At the Monday meeting of the California Horse Racing Board chairman Jerry Geisler stated he would welcome opinions of horsemen on the question of the ruling that owners be held responsible for the acts of a third party with regards to their horses The exact wording from rules of racing in California is found in rule 313 as follows Owner and trainer or either of them shall be absolute insurers of and responsible for the condition of a hoise entered in a race regardless of the acts ofi third parties During the past week this writer has discussed that ruling with horse ¬ men big and little arid can say the sentiment is overwhelmingly against it We need go no further than the present situation in California to realize that it can serve as a boomerang to the reputations of men who give freely of their wealth to race good horses and lend their names that in many cases is nationally known and respected Not one person in California or any other place believes men like W L Brann Louis B Mayer or Harry Warner would stoop to or condone foul means in racing horses Yet under this ruling the commission had no alternative even though it was clear that the chairman Jerry Geisler had no more respect for the ruling as it is written than has the vast majority of others interested in the welfare of racing Wliile the vast majority agree that it is unfair to hold an owner responsible it remains that someone must be held responsible for the horses and their conditions Next in line to the owner is the trainer and regardless of how it is worked out eventually he must be the man on whom most of the responsibility is placed Yet the trainer cannot be with his horses at all times and his repu ¬ tation and livelihood would be constantly in the balance It ismerely a catch all as it is now worded and even if the owner is eliminated it will still be a catch all that could bring a trainer innocent of wrongdoing to discredit in his profession Vheiixa trainer takes a horse to the saddljng ring he must depend on some one lie leaves in charge of the barn That brings in the grooms and there again we have a group who are not constantly with their horses A groom innocent of wrongdoing could also be held This is by no means a pica to relieve the trainers or grooms of their responsibility but it is a sugges ¬ tion that some system be worked out so that it would be impossible for anyone beyond the owner trainer or groom to tamper with a horse It is for that reason we hope seasoned horsemen will take advantage of chairman Geislers invitation to offer suggestions as to how to eliminate this practice wliich has already struck the very bedrock of the American turf turfAlthough Although it is this writers opinion they have made a mountain out of a mole hill In this case it remains that it is one more instance where the turf in general has been dealt a body blow In this respect racing is no different than a fighter who eventually collapses from a series of blows The general public is not only given the wrong impression but listens in bewilderment as the names of men who stand high in their chosen fields are mentioned in connection with such cases Where would racing be without such men as W L Brann Louis B Mayer and Harry Warner For its own preservation and for the protection of these men who spend untold sums a fool ¬ proof system of protection must be worked out so that a racing commission is not called upon to perform an unpleasant duty under the rules or honored men dishonored Any person caught administering a drug or stimulant to a horse should be punished to Lie full extent of the law But let us adopt a system where a stimulant is next to impossible insofar as a horse is concerned or catch and punish anyone using stimu ¬ lants and bar them from race tracks for life But above all change a ruling which now shrieks If you race in California Mr Owner you do so at the risk of your good name The chairman of the racing commission a man with a brilliant legal mind sees the danger and the unfairness and what he is asking of horsemen is a rule to replace it Racing is on the boom in California It has been hurt by this investigation and when you hurt racing you also hurt breeding In the latter part of July California breeders will offer their yearlings at the annual sale to be staged at Santa Anita and we hope for their sake besides those whose names are in ¬ volved that the whole sorry affair will be cleared up by that time How can breeders expect good prices for yearlings in which they have invested time money care and many a headache when we hear rumors on all sides regarding the future of the sport in California This writer has seen racing at Santa Anita and Hollywood Park and it is little short of a tragedy that Jack Mackenzie who has worked like a Trojan for his track and for the good of the sport in general should have a bomb such as this explode right in his own backyard But even so he Is anxious to clear it up and has offered to defray all expense of the investigation Frankly we doubt if the matter is ever cleared up for if there lias been sabotage you can be assured those involved are now far from the scene But if caffeine was used what good is it when a filly like Painted Veil returns to win the Sequoia the most important race of her career It fails to make sense senseThe The whole point is that racing must be protected and so must sportsmen who race horses With leaps and bounds racing has grown and the breeding industry has grown with it Today it is of gigantic proportions and like any other business draws some who will take an unfair advantage regardless of the fact that they strike at the structure of the sport Now is the time for California racing managements the California Breeders Association and the American Trainers Association to work with the California Horse Racing Board and eradicate this danger even if it means the per ¬ manent presence of squads of detectives and a rigid network whereby only men employed have access to their employers stables Honest jockeys have no objection to the film patrol even though it takes a picture of their every move Honest trainers and grooms would not object to detectives in fact they would welcome anyone who would aid them in the prevention of acts which smear their names in mud But whatever it is something must be done to prevent a repetition of this affair
