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REFLECTIONS By Nelson Dunstan DunstanAqueducts Aqueducts 100000 for Relief Lucky Draw Has Job on WeekEnd Arlington Opens Next Monday Epsom Derby Oaks This WeekEnd WeekEndNEW NEW YORK N Y June 12 Aqueduct had a bad break in the weather ior its War Relief program on Saturday At that over 25000 fans turned out for the sport and at least 100000 will be real ¬ ized for the American Red Cross National War Fund and the three Long Island hos ¬ pitals which were named It is only nat ¬ ural that these hos ¬ pitals so close to the course should benefit for when jockeys are injured they are taken to one of the three and given the finest of care Racing can well be proud of its ac ¬ complishments to date and it would not be surprising if before the season ends the fund since its inception will soar not only to the 12000000 mark but well above it Racing critics have been very silent on this activity since the eastern season opened but those who love the sport would be derelict in their duty if without boasting about it they did not state the simple facts And the simple facts are that rac ¬ ing has done more than all other sports put together to take care of our armed forces and their families It may well be that the Turf Committee of America will continue to function in 1945 and if so it is a foregone conclusion that the turf will have contributed over 15000000 for four years Thats a record that will stand and be magnified when all this mess is forgot ¬ ten and the cold figures reveal the true facts factsOver Over the weekend fans were dis ¬ cussing the threehorse dead heat in Saturdays Carter Handicap We have been checking the records and in this column tomorrow will give a resume of some of the most freakish dead heats in the history of horse racing in this country England and Australia But looking ahead we find two important events on the Aqueduct roster Wednesdays fea ¬ ture being the 7500 Tremont and the weekend attraction the 10000 Shevlin for threeyearolds The Tremont should draw a fine field and the appearance of Flood Town will undoubtedly attract a large throng and especially so if the Las ker colt is opposed by Jeep Burgel Arab and Hindu Kush from the Whitney barn to say nothing of Esteem Baron Jack Spartan Noble and other babes that have given promise this year to date On the weekend Lucky Draw faces the toughest race of his career for with the 122 pounds he must shoulder under the conditions he will be asked to dispose of high class colts at one mile and a sixteenth Both these races should be definite factors in shaping the respective divisions of the two and threeyearolds threeyearoldsNext Next Monday will usher in an important race meeting when Washington Park opens with the Arlington Park meeting and con ¬ tinues that of Washington Park for 70 days of high class sport During these two meet ¬ ings no less than five 50000 events will be staged and no stake event will have a value of less than 5000 Ben Lindheimer and his associates have striven to make these the finest meetings ever staged in the Chicago area and judging by the entries to the various events they will probably reach their goal The Hyde Park will be the first Stake event and the 10000 Equipoise Mile will be the weekend feature The first 50000 race will be the Stars and Stripes Handicap to be run on July 4 and this event will be attended by members of the National Association of State Racing Com ¬ missioners who will hold their annual con ¬ vention in Chicago from July 3 to 6 inclusive Threeyearolds will have their innings for the 50000 Classic will be run gn July 22 and the timehonored American Derby on Saturday August 26 The meet ¬ ings will close on Labor Day with the run ¬ ning of the 50000 Washington Park Handicap We cannot recall a finer list of stake events in joint meetings of over two months duration durationThere There was some doubt at first that the Epsom Derby and Oaks sched ¬ uled for this weekend would be run But with the invasion a success to date the feeling now is that these war substitutes will continue to be staged as they have at Newmarket since hostilities began England did not flinch when she was being bombed by the Germans and she staged her classic events regardless With the war now in her favor there does not seem to be much doubt that the Derby and Oaks will be contested as scheduled The hunch play of course will be Happy Landing a name that fits so well with the in ¬ vasion Some breeders seem to doubt England will ask our postwar aid but we go on record here as stating thai three services to a famous American stalliqn have been reserved for the 1945 breeding season At present we are pledged to secrecy but within the next two months will reveal the stallion jind also the English breeder wKb has made tjfife reservation This bulj well be tlgl forerunner to the itaany fcpplicftf war is in sight
