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R E F L E C T I O N S wtsow PIMLICO Baltimore Md May 14 It Ts difficult to say what the exact track condition will be tomor ¬ row afternodn when the Preakness is run There is no doubt that a track that is off will be in favor of Bo vard but we are not too sure that it will be to the disadvantage of Cita ¬ tion During this past winter we were at New Orleans when Bovard defeated Shy Guy in two events bne being the Louisiana Derby As we recall it the first race was run over an off track while good was the official condition of the track during the Louisiana Derby run ¬ ning Bovard is a good colt and will hold his own against the majority of the threeyearolds whq have shown to date this season But we doubt whether he can defeat Citation regardless of the going Citation won from Coaltown on the Churchill Downs track ovev a strip that was sloppy and while we Chink he would be better suited by a fast racing strip we do not believe that any of his three opponents are going to lead him to the wire in to ¬ morrows renewal of the Preakness It istrue that Chal ledon turned the tables on Johnstown when there was a change in track conditions from the Derby running to that of the Preakness but we doubt if the track is going to make much difference to Citation A A A AAlthough Although Coaltown will not be a starter in tomor ¬ rows Preakness it is obvious that the Jones boys are pointing their speedster for a race in the near future On Wednesday Coaltown worked over the Churchill ChurchillDowns Downs course going a quarter in 22 half in 46 and five furlongs in 58 Along with Citation Coaltown has been named for the Swift Withers and the Belmont Stakes at the Elmpnt course The Swift which is at seven furlongs and the Withers at one mile seem ideal events for this son of Bull Lea who ran second in the Kentucky Derby and we rather imagine that Belmont fans will see him in one or both of these races There are many people who would like to see Coaltown in the Withers for they feel he would have a good chance to Wet or Dry Citation Looms the Winner Coaltown Eligible for Swift Withers Belmont Officials Ponder Belmont Field New York Attendance Play Surprih better the time of l354 turned in by Man o War and Snob n winner of the stake in 1920 and 1922 respec ¬ tively The Belmont track record for one mUe is 134 established by Count Fleet in 1942 and is twofifths of a second slower than the American standard set by Equipoise at Arlington Park in 1932 1932A A A A AThere There is no doubt that the Belmont officials are somewhat concerned over the fact that the Kentucky Derby drew onty six starters and that but four will an ¬ swer the bugle for the Preakness The Belmont Stakes which is the third and last event of the Triple Crown is at one and onehalf miles and there is now a ques ¬ tion as to how many in the division will be prepared for that fixiture on June 12 It was not so long agocthat many people were wondering whether a son of Bull Lea would negotiate one and onequarter miles but now the question seems Jo be how many threeyearolds will be ready to oppose Citation over that distance Whirling Fox is back in training and past performances would indicate that the son of Whirlaway will be one of those to try conclusions with the Cahimet champion Bovard is not an eligible for the Belmont but another who might return to face the starter is Relic who was sent to the sidelines before the running of the Flamingo a t Hia leah Escadru may come back for a try at the longer distance but how many of the other eligibles will ac ¬ tually be named for the Belmont is very much of a question at this writing x A A A AThe The welter of predictions that both attendance and andmutuel mutuel play would drop drastically this season does not hold good in New York We have the figures for both 1947 and 1948 and are certain they will surprise you youJamaica Jamaica staged two meetings in 1947 one in the spring and the other in the fall and the daily average attends ance during the first 36 days of these sessions was 28423 The average for the same number of days this year was 28435 an increase of only 12 per day but an increase nevertheless During the first 36 days of 1947 the aver ¬ age mutuel play was 2164833 while in the same period this year the average has been 2018390 The drop there is just 67 per cent under last year That is a long way from the earlier predictions of an expected drop some where around 25 per cent In recent days we have heard that there would be quite a decrease in Both attendance and play at the Belmont Park meeting which opens on Monday Just why anyone would expect smaller crowds at Belmont when Jamaica held its own is a point that puzzles us There will undoubtedly be a drop in inu tuel play but if it is no more than was the case at Jamaica the Belmont officials will hardly have cause forv complaint t A A Aimprudence imprudence the French filly has been causing quite a bit of comment among the dockers at Belmont The Gain Hoy miss has been nominated for the Metropolitan Suburban and the Top Flight Handicaps at the Belmont Park meeting In the Horsemans Year Book which has just been published they speak very highly of this daugh ¬ ter of Canot Indiscretion saying Imprudence is what she looks a beautiful filly in every way and a good one A clever victory in Tthe One Thousand Guineas was fol ¬ lowed by a runaway triumph in the Oaks and there is no getting away from the fact that Imprudence is of out ¬ standing racing merit and those who are overeager to condemn British blood should not lose sight of the fact that she is out of an English mare It is possible that Imprudence will start in the Metropolitan but it is al ¬ most a certainty she will go in the Top Flight Handicap which at one and onesixteenth miles will be run on June 9 She will be given an acid test in the latter event for among the eligibles are Gallorette But Why Not Carolyn A Miss Grillo Earshot Harmonica and Riso later That is tough enough for any f illy and especially for one who would be starting for the first time in this country
