view raw text
Charles Hatton THE JUDGES STAND By Charles Hatton Disqualification Rule Forum Some Points For and Against Whirlaway Alsab Rated Evenly Tracks Slower Than in 1942 NEW YORK N Y May 22 There is something about the current symposium over the disqualification rules that has aroused yottr correspondents interest in this intrinsically dull subject We find that racing officials who are able to discuss almost any other topic with perfect equanimity are prone to react strangely to the merest mention of this matter of whether a horse disqualified for foul shall be automatically placed last or whether the stewards shall be empowered to award him a placing among the frist three It seems racing solons feel very strongly about this They incline sharply to either the liberal or severe scana am invariably becomes more controversial than detached These displays of soaring bloodpressure and ruffled poise so excited our curiosity we have sought out the most authoritative advocates of each rule we could find with an object of presenting both sides It would doubtless add a fillip to this little forum were we to name names But that is out ofthe question The proponents of the two rules are on rotarian terms and neither would be comfortable were he to suddenly find himself in the middle of a publicdebate with the other otherIn In New York the first shall be last in case of a disqualification In an increasing number of other turf commonwealths the offender may be awarded second third or fourth monies at the stewards discretion discretionThe The average horse players natural impulse is to sniff in the direction of The Jockey Club s canon and complain bitterly of an odor simultaneously jumping upon a chair to demand universal adoption of the more liberal rule But that is the sheerest manifestation of the instinct of selfpreservation selfpreservationBefore Before proceeding any farther we shall have to confess we are prejudiced to the extent we consider these horse players clamorings more mercenary than reasoning reasoningLetters Letters to the editor from resentful readers doubtless will ensue but our observation is that the less cognizance of betting taken in the rules of racing the higher the quality of the sport Probably we could not explain that phenomenon at all intelligently We only know it is so soContemplating Contemplating the merits of the New York rule as described by its sponsor it seems to us that its principal virtues are area a It renders a foul completely unprofitable excepting instances of having havingb b It discourages jockeys from committing a foul on the premise that even if they are disqualified from first they may be awarded second money moneyc c It is open to question if a jockey guilty of an infraction warranting dis ¬ qualification is entitled to such consideration considerationThe The rule that so gratifies place and show bettors also has its points to coin a phrase A distinguished steward at midwestern tracks champions this less stringent regulation with Socratic judgment The salient features of the case he has presented appear to be bea a It must be admitted that the degree of foul is not always the same and that some infractions arc more serious than others othersb b In dealing with a jockey guilty of foul the stewards have a number of recourses in that the rider may be reprimanded fined or set down for periods of from one day to life whereas the stewards have no alternative in dealing with offending horses beyond complete disqualification under the old rule ruleThere There is abundant fuel for serious thought on this curiously inflammable subject as you have seen It is scarcely probable but barely possible some inspired bystander will hit upon an important angle that has completely escaped us here If any does we would be grateful for having our attention called to it Perhaps it is even possible some better rule than either of these may be suggested in the end one meriting the approbation of both sides in the present issue Jack Campbell who balances weights with such infinite guile he seems to fairly hypnotize horses into finishing on excitingly even terms cannot usually be badgered into expressing his opinions in such matters Nevertheless he last fall ventured to think aloud that Mrs Al Sabaths doughty Alsab deserved the ethereal horse of the year Honors and a flying squadron of newshawks broadcast that interesting bit of Campbelliana Even so Whirlaways fame was such he received the more votes And whatever became of the Pimlico Special The other day Campbell again weighed the records of these traditional rivals and found them pound for pound exactly alike on the scale scaleThe The Suburban Handicap was the medium of extracting this comparison from the reluctant Louisianian Although Whirlaways 132 and Alsabs 131 are interesting only for acamedic reasons so far aS concerns the Suburban in which neither will appear these assignments do have future reference value a quality that will not be lost on racing associations horsemen nor public and private handicappers the length and breadth of the land Operative 6 78 our foreign correspondent to the mile pole at Belmoni Park trekked back across the centerfield the other evening and assured us It is really quite true what they say about Belmont It is all very beautiful as far as the eye can see seeHe He thinks it is regrettable incidentally it has not yet occurred to any ¬ body to put a sperm whale in the centerfield lake This bulbouts mammal would be at least as novel as Hialeahs pink flamingos he suggested Besides think of its utility They then could turn off the fountain and save on the water bill if they liked likedRacing Racing strips at most Americas 50odd parks are less speedconducive than in any previous season since Tommy Mara introduced the first horseless harrow at Jamaica some 20 years ago It is virtually impossible to manicure a track surface as efficiently with teams as with tractors Experts in this obscure craft tell us tractors can make nearly all of three laps of a mile oval while a team makes one in addition pulling more harrows and other implements for drying and speeding up race courses coursesYou You may think this is a small sacrifice and indeed it is but track equipment consumes surprisingly small quantities ofgas and virtually no rubber rubberMany Many horsemen prefer teams to tractors for this purpose on the theory tractors are harmful to a track originating some unsoundness and aggravating more in the thoroughbreds But that does not exist at parks where the superintendent enforces the rule of Belmonts Neil Boyle that all tractors roll to a stop instead of setting their brakes
