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mmmma Arlington Notebook By J. J. MURPHY 1 ARLINGTON PARK, Arlington Heights, HI., June 20.— The Equipoise Mile, which will be run for the twelfth time at this track track Saturday, Saturday, is is track track Saturday, Saturday, is is named for a horse whom many regard as one of the best dozen thoroughbreds of the past 50 years. The son of Pennant — Swinging was in his hey-day in the early thirties and was looked upon as the champion of that period. He won his first race as a two-year-old at at Bowie Bowie and and his his first first mmmma at at Bowie Bowie and and his his first first stakes victory in the Keene Memorial at : Belmont. Then, in succession, he took the , Juvenile Stakes and the National Stallion j Stakes at Belmont and the Great American Stakes at Aqueduct in rapid succession. ! He climaxed his juvenile year in winning ; the Pimlico Futurity. As a three-year-old, "Ekky," as he was fondly known in those days, failed to respond to training and was sent to the farm after starting three ! times in the spring, but he came back at four to win seven straight races and after , being beaten a neck by Plucky Play in the Arlington Handicap, due to a great ride , by George Woolf, won two more stakes. His most important scores were the Stars and Stripes Handicap and the Arlington Gold Cup. He started off like a whirlwind again at five, again winning his first seven starts, including the Arlington Handicap and the Hawthorne Gold Cup. He was defeated in his last two starts of the season. He began his six-year-old year successfully winning two stakes before being disqualified after finishing first in the Metropolitan Handicap at Belmont. As a seven-year-old the Whitney racer was sent west, where Santa Anita was offering fabulous purses. He was again disqualified after winning his second start there when he was held guilty of fouling Twenty Grand and his only start thereafter was a try for the 00,000 Santa Anita Handicap in , which he finished seventh in one of the poorest races of his career. His total score for six years of racing was 29 victories in 51 starts, and he was unplaced but eight times. His lifetime earnings were 38,610. In addition to his vast earnings, Equipoise, for a number of years held the worlds record of 1:34% for one mile and that still stands as a record at Arlington Park. It was the disqualification of Equipoise at Santa Anita that brought about a change in the rules in California and on most tracks governing fouls. Prior to that time a horse held guilty of impeding his rivals was automatically placed last. The relegation of Equipoise, on which a great amount of money had been wagered to place and show, to last place resulted in such a reaction from the public, that the California Horse Racing Board and other racing organizations realized the unfairness of the rule. Shortly afterward a new rule was written stating the placing of the offender should be at the discretion of the stewards. At virtually every track, with the exception of those in the states of New York and Delaware, offenders are as a rule placed immediately behind the Continued on Page Thirty-Nine ARLINGTON PARK 1 NOTEBOOK Continued from Page Three horse with which they have interfered. In the Equipoise -Twenty Grand melee no other competitor was close to that pair coming to the wire. Therefore, had the present rule existed, Equipoise would have been placed second and his backers for place and show would have saved their money. Also as to the Equipoise Mile, it is deemed only fair to state the race was so named by Frank Butzow, now Lincoln Fields publicity man, and president of the Illinois Thoroughbred Breeders Association, when he was connected with Arlington and Washington Parks. Butzow induced C. V. Whitney to present the challenge cup as a trophy for the race. It is one of the most beautiful trophies in American racing and to be retired it must be won three times by the same owner. Calumet Farm has won it twice. Howard Wells, who has horses racing at this meeting, also won it on two occasions with Equifox, a son of Equipoise, but the first of those victories occurred in the inaugural running in 1941 before the Whitney challenge cup became symbolic of victory. Best Seller, owned by Darby Dan Farm, also won the race twice before the cup was offered. Jimmy Durante, one of the most popular of all entertainers, has been an Arlington regular since opening day . . . John A. Kinard, owner of John Joy, was a guess in the press box prior to Tuesdays races ... J. Leslie Younghusband, whose Valley View Farm is not far away, has been a regular visitor at Arlington. . . . The two-year-old filly Hadraini should not have been beaten last start. Her rider lost a stirrup nearing the finish . . . Two socialites just back from foreign vacations and attending the races opening day were Mrs. J. Hampton Monroe, who has been in Europe, and Miss Elita Mailers, who has been spending some time in South America. . . . Jockey Billy Fisk is returning to New England immediately after riding Sickles Image in the Cleopatra Stakes. . . . Robert Laughlin, TRPB representative in New England, who recently attended the wedding ceremony for his daughter in Oak Park, 111., departed for the East to resume his duties. Ed Coffey, vice-president of the TRPB, arrived from New York for a short visit. . . . Sam Wilson, Jr., is spending the week here following which he will depart for New York . . . A. R. Evans, who has several horses here in charge of McKenzie Miller, got in from his home in Danville, Ky. . . . Mr. and Mrs. Jack En tine, of Miami, Fla., are spending a couple of days at the races before leaving for New York and Europe . . . Mr. and Mrs. A. B. Karle are here from Crawfordsville, Ind. They have shipped the three-year-old filly, Betty Doe, from the farm at that point to trainer John Goode ... J. Graham Brown, of Louisville, was on hand for the running of the Cleopatra Stakes . . . Mr. and Mrs. Frank E. Brown arrived from Joliet, 111., for a few days. They have horses here in the care of Robert Lerner ... Dr. Alex Harthill, Louisville, Ky., veterinarian, was renewing friendships among the horsemen. Has been attending the races at Detroit. . . . Harry Trotsek was a press box visitor today and answered numerous questions shot at him by the newsmen. Our selections for tomorrow will not pay fabulous prices, but they appear to be fairly solid. They are: EASY LAD in the fourth, AMOUR AMOUR in the fifth, and NIGHTMARISH in the seventh.
