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Belmont Park Doing Better Than Anticipated: Widener BELMONT PARK, Elmont, L. L, N. Y., May 27. "Actually, Belmont is doing no worse than the economic conditions at this moment call for. Indeed, it is doing slightly better than we anticipated a few months ago," so stated George D. Widener, president of the Westchester Racing Association, in discussing the attendance and play for this meeting. "To compare Belmonts meeting with the Jamaica meeting," he continued, "one must understand that Jamaica opens the season each year when there is no such competition as develops later. Between 1945 and 1948, Jamaica drew from 1,100 to 5,800 more persons daily at its spring meeting than Belmont at its spring meeting, yet, at the close of each year, the years daily average attendance for the meetings at the two tracks showed Belmont either practically even with Jamaica, or ahead." Two interesting facts were made public in regard to the attendance figures at Belmont Park. "In the first 17 days of this meeting, Belmont Park has parked 10.7 per cent more care than we did in 1948, but the train count dropped 17.5 per cent. The grandstand mutuel play dropped 10 per cent compared to last spring, but it is up 13 per cent compared with last fall," Widener said. He concluded in saying that, in the meantime, Belmont Park will adhere to those standards which have made it Belmont. : 1
