view raw text
BETWEEN RACES By Oscar Otis Correos Here on Liaison Mission To Report Our Methods to Argentina Studies Transportation Climate Firm Believer in Merit of British BritishHOLLYWOOD HOLLYWOOD PARK Inglewood Calif June 16 Juan Correas noted Buenos Aires turfman and breeder is in our midst on a dual mission the racing and perhaps sale of three stakes or classic winners in the Argentine plus the establishment of a liai ¬ son between the organ ized owners and breeders of the Argen ¬ tine and like groups in the United States Senor Correas has full credentials from the Associacion Propietaros de Caballos de Car rera of Buenos Aires the owners associa ¬ tion to establish friendly relations in American turf circles and also become fa ¬ miliar with American racing methods Upon his return to the Argentine he will make a full report to the members and the chances are that his trip will presage a truly full scale invasion of the United States by leading Argentine owners and breeders Correas is emphatic that the movement of horses is not of necessity one way for he has been commissioned to keep his eyes open for worthy breeding stock which could add to the prestige of Argen ¬ tine haras harasA A A A ATwo Two things struck Correas as obstacles to be overcome by invading horses from the Argentine One is transportation the other is climatic changes experienced in trans ¬ ferring from one continent to another par ¬ ticularly where the seasons are exactly re ¬ versed as prevails between North and South America His own experience in shipping his trio of horses may be taken as a criterion The horses were on the steamer for about 21 days and because of a customs complication at the port of New Orleans were held aboard ship for two more days We didnt mind the trip so much but the stay aboard ship in harbor was quite unnerving for the horses ex ¬ plained Correas Heavy winches unloaded bales and crates right over the heads of our horses The noise was terrific Follow ¬ ing the final settlement the horses were taken to a farm near New Orleans later shipped to California Since they have ar ¬ rived here they have thrived enormously and will be ready for racing perhaps the latter part of the season here at Holly ¬ wood The conclusion of Correas in the transportation respect is that quick pass ¬ age through customs through brokers who understand thoroughbreds is of paramount importance to any exporter to the United States StatesA A A A AAs As for the climatic changes Correas be ¬ lieves that shipping from winter to sum ¬ mer does a horse no good and thinks the showings of Endeavour II and Ensueno in New York last year pretty much proves the point He thinks better results can be obtained by shipping to a mild climate such as is provided by California Once acclimated he believes the importations will show to their true form It is to be gleaned from these statements that he will advise owners seeking such races as the 100000 International at Empire City to ship well in advance of the running date of that race At the same time he admits the worth of American stakes races makes such a prolonged campaign well worth ¬ while whileA A A A AIt It may come as a surprise to many to hear that Senor Correas a member of the Jockey Club as well as an owner and breed ¬ er is a firm believer that English stock is better than French and that despite the brave showing of French race horses in English stakes there will be no rush to France on the part of Argentine breeders We have been importing English and French stock for some years says Cor ¬ reas and in the long run the English stallions and mares have outproduced the French when it came to horses of class We usually import at least 10 English stal ¬ lions a year sometimes more I would venture a guess that at least half our worthwhile foals each year have either an English sire or an English dam From the best information we can get the French horses even during the occupation by the Germans were far better fed and received better care than the English thorough ¬ breds This too our way of thinking ac ¬ counts for the success of French stock Of course we could be wrong but I think in the long run the situation will return to normal It might interest you to know that Senor Correas thinks American thoroughbreds are priced high in relation to the world market Sure the purses are here and if a horse can win himself out prove of merit in the stud and the same with a filly then no one has spent his money un ¬ wisely for thoroughbred stock But foreign breeders horse for horse have found Eng ¬ lish and French horses cheaper Hence Correas finds it no surprise that we are assayed as an importing rather than an exporting nation However this same situation may well lead to increased com ¬ petition within our borders The racing here is seemingly unlimited as compared to some countries and stake after stake is raced for which has far greater value than offered anywhere else The jwriter has heard gossip of an Argentine syndicate which may send up a galaxy of stake horses to this country and it well may come true in connection with the report to be made to his people by Senor Correas
