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SIRES AND DAMS Bv CHALLENGER More Races forFmies and Mares California Sales July 21 22 Breeding Horses in Illinois Statistics on Thoroughbred Farms HOLLYWOOD Calif June 25 Fillies and mares will have their innings at three major tracks on Saturday but if anything the three events they will contest only serve to center attention on the very few races of a worthwhile nature which are exclusively for members of the weaker sex At Hollywood Park they will stage the 10000 Vanity Handicap and unless we are much mistaken it will prove one of the best events at the long Hollywood meeting It is not my purpose to discuss the pros and cons of the oftheard statement good race mares make good brood mares But rather to point out that it is such events as the Vanity the Matron at Arlington and the Polly Drummond at Delaware which point out whether a filly or mare has speed and can carry it over a distance of ground It is not necessary that a mare be heavily campaigned to prove her speed in fact although admitting some exceptions mares which were raced extensively fail as producers in greater numbers than those that make good Different angles can be brought into such a discussion but a point is that the improvement of the breed would be an expression held in more respect if more track operators would card worthwhile events designed exclusively for fillies and mares Races for the ladies with 10000 added or even 7500 can be counted on the fingers Catalogs for the annual California sales to be staged at Santa Anita on July 21 and 22 are now being printed From all indications approximately seventy five yearlings and twentyfive brood mares will be offered and on glancing through the lists we find quite a few yearlings which should have appeal to buyers seeking material for races exclusively for Californiabreds Breeding in the Golden State has improved in the past few years and from what can be judged on paper this is the best lot to be offered in California since racing came back to the state Most of the consignors are offering small groups and that is only natural in a locality where the industry is comparatively new As an ex ¬ ample Sandy MacKay of Kinmead Farm at Santa Ana is offering the following trio Bay colt by Special Agent Truce by Tick On bay filly by Time Supply La Sorpresa by Challenger II and a brown filly by Time Supply Southern Ayre by Neddie There is no claim that the yearlings to be offered in California are up to Saratoga standards but due to the many races staged for horses bred and foaled in the Golden State these sales perform a most useful function in the racing and breeding worlds of California In the recent forming of the Illinois Thoroughbred Breeders Association it is expected horse production will increase The new organization is proceeding slowly and cautiously and we understand will endeavor to rebuild on solid lines No rush has been made to ask the racing secretary to put on a race a day for homebreds for the Illinois breeders are aware that the sparseness of their annual output hardly warrants such demands The present situation in Illinois is very similar to that of California some fifteen years ago In the early eighties Illinois bred some very good racers an example being the great Spokane which was bred in southern Illinois though foaled in Spokane Falls Wash The new Illinois organization plans to meet at frequent intervals and discuss the various problems that beset the individual members The first problem is to get good stallions and mares That is vitally necessary as in time the new organization is certain to ask the racing association to promote the Illinois breeding structure by carding racing for homebreds What few races for Illinoisbreds that have been staged in recent years have proved unprofitable to the track operators and this can only be overcome by establishing high standards of production productionAt At the moment this data is taken from The American Racing Manual there were 9244 acres up to the end of 1940 set aside for the breeding of race horses in Illinois A total of thirtynine farms are scattered throughout the state The largest being that of the Reichert Brothers in St Clair County and where the gallant gelding My Dandy is pensioned to a life of ease Three other farms are listed at 800 acres while the smallest one is of thirtyfour acres Sixteen of these Illinois farms have training tracks from threeeighths of a mile to a half mile The list shows that 242 mares are quartered in the state this being about onefifth of the number that roamed there in former years A total of thirty eight stallions are recorded and though none are outstanding the roster includes Blackwood by Black Toney Minotaur and Nusakan both by Sun Briar Xavier by Whichone Infinity by Eternal and Cannons Roar by Man o War Quite a few of the Illinois stallions are well on in years and if the industry is ever to flourish there again these older studs must be replaced by younger ones with pedigree and racing success to recommend them The same must be added about the mares In recent years many Illinois breeders have moved their farms to other states Commenting on this recently Mrs Emil Denemark stated The soil water and climate of our state are as favorable for the production of highclass race horses as any in the world We need and can accommodate more breeding farms but to get them we need inducements which must come mainly from the track operators We have one of the greatest spots in AmericaChicago and Illinois When racing began to get under way as a tremendous business some sixteen years ago Chicago paved the way for all the new successful tracks throughout the country Breeding was then en ¬ couraged here in the manner it is now being encouraged in Maryland and California All that the Illinois breeders ask is the cooperation given by track owners in other states to those who raise thoroughbreds on home territory
