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REFLECTIONS By Nelson Dunstan Eastern Breeders to Have N Y Sale Count Can Top Gallant Foxs Mark AlsabWhirlaway May Meet in July Champions Run During War Years NEW YORK N Y June 7 Virginia breeders met in Warrenton Saturday night and with possibly one exception will ask for an eastern sale immediately following that in Kentucky Bill Kyne refused to accept the governments pay for the use of Bay Meadows during 1942 Oscar Otis wellknown coast turf writer is in the Marines A prominent Frisco sportsman is being whispered as a new member of the California Horse Racing Board Neil McCarthy coast lawyer breeder and owner was a Belmont visitor on Saturday Bill Kyne will ask for 65 days at Bay Meadows in the fall The governmental building program at Tanforan will amount to 377000 Many name horses will be in action at Garden State Park which opens on July 7 Due to a heavy cold Ben Lind ¬ heimer was forced to cancel his trip to see Count Fleet in the Belmont Englands campaign help to save Russias wounded horses is far more admirable than her own treatment of horses after the last war Tom Piatt will offer a halfsister to Alsab at the August sales in Kentucky Ocean Wave will resume training this week Lord Astors Way In is a favorite with many for the Epsom Derby on June 18 and Lord Derbys Herringbone for the Oaks on the following day Harry Straus of Tropical Park says that more than half the money that was borrowed by stranded horsemen in Florida last winter has been repaid At the twentyone race milestone where Man Mano o War stopped Count Fleet strengthened his claim to that mythical title the best since Big Red And his campaign from now on may establish him the equal if not superior of that big chestnut who thrilled the fans of World War I To say that Saturdays children at Belmont were thrilled would be putting it mildly As the Hertz champion tore through the stretch far in advance of the two who were fighting it out for second money the throng gave him an ovation seldom accorded a race In his victory The Count boosted his earnings to 250300 and curiously enough that Belmont victory which added his name to the Triple Crown roster was also the run which sent him 835 above Man o War on the worlds moneywinning list To date this season Count Fleet has earned 174055 leaving 134220 to go to tie Gallant Foxs 308275 as the greatest sum to be earned by a horse in one season Unless an injury or something unforeseen stops his onward march of triumphs we see nothing to prevent his establishing a new record Many rich races are still ahead and if he can hurdle Occupation and Ocean Wave in Chicago he will be on his way to earnings known only to Whirlaway Never was the opportunity for a threeyearold to pass Gallant Fox better than it is this season Both the Classic and American Derby have 50000 in added money and over the weekend it was announced by Ben Lindheimer that the Stars and Stripes Arlington and Washington Park Handicaps would also be increased to 50000 in added money Never before in the history of racing has it been possible for a horse to win 250000 and still not move off the one race track It must not be forgotten that Suffolk Downs will also offer a 50000 race on July 5 and that still other tracks will stage races that will prove magnets to threeyearolds and older horses It could come about that Alsab and Whirlaway will renew their feud in Chicago on July 5 There is no doubt in our mind that Don Cameron will confine Count Fleet to his own division until the fall but it could also come about that the Hertz champion will be sent after these older horses in one of these rich events Whoever gets the plum which will result when Count Fleet steps out to meet his elders will also get one of the greatest drawing cards in the long history of racing We cannot recall such spirited controversies that are now taking place regarding the outcome of a threeyearold against older horses Ask Ben Jones what he thinks of these meetings and about all you can get out of him is with a wry grin Lets wait and see seeOver Over the weekend Al Sabath announced that Alsab would open his 1943 season in the Stars and Strines Handicap at Arlington Park Ben Jones has not fully made up his nfind whether Whirlaway will race in Chicago against Alsab on July 5 or send him to Suffolk Downs for the 50000 Massachusetts Handicap Sabath said he would like to see Alsab race Whirl away once again and on quite a few occasions Ben Jones has stated he would like his longtailed champion to have another chance to equal the score with the game little Sabath horse Both factions mean it so it is a foregone conclusion that they will meet before fall racing rolls around Sabath further stated that he thought Alsab would give Count Fleet plenty of trouble and probably whip him Jones has had practically nothing to say about the outcome of a race between Whirlaway and Count Fleet beyond what we said above Don Cameron has expressed no opinion but this talk of a three cornered race is one that is going to cause plenty of argument in the imme ¬ diate months to come At weightforage it is about as tough a race as handicappers would have to handle Ask any of them today who they would select as the winner and they would tell you they have no answer until they see Alsab and Whirlaway in action again againWar War years have seen great horses in action Man o War in World War I and now Count Fleet along with Whirlaway and Alsab in World War II England has had no outstanding horse so far in this war but back in 191718 Gay Crusader and Gainsborough respectively not only captured the Triple Crown events but won the Ascot Gold Cup as threeyearolds in the sameyears Many maintain these were war substitutes and should be so distinguished Bayardo was the sire of both horses but while Gay Crusader was a failure in stud Gainsborough was a success and entitled to full honors He was the leading sire of England in 1933 and gave the breeding world the famous sire Hyperion whose sons are eagerly sought by breeders Hyperion has led the English sire list on two occasions and sired many of Englands best racers of the past decade There is no sound reason as we see it to distinguish war substitutes from the regular Triple Crown events We do not belittle Man o War or Count Fleet because they raced in war years and if English breeders could get a Gainsborough every year they would be lucky indeed France did not stage her important races between 19141919 and needless to add her racing of the past four years has been far below her previous standards
