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BETWEEN RACES By Oscar Otis NEW YORK, N. Y., May 19.— In ap- praising the victory of Blue Man in the Preakness, a most popular one, we may add, a great deal of credit must be given to trainer W. C. "Woody" Stephens, who, after analyzing the mistakes made in the Derby, did a notable job in accomplishing something of a personality change in the son of Blue Swords. At the Derby, Blue Man irked himself and possibly his temper by scraping the side of the stall as the gates swung open, and, after that, he was in a deal of trouble. The key to the Preakness, Stephens reasons, was to work on Blue Mans post manners, and while he did not exactly convert the horse into an angel at the post, he did succeed in making him far more placid and amenable to regular starting gate routine. Blue Man had the failing of not liking to enter a closed gate, and without a pony. Stephens doesnt know how the colt acquired this phobia, but he had it to contend with nevertheless. At the start of the Preakness, the faithful pony was there,! and the gate was open. Blue Man acted up for just a few seconds, then settled down, walked in like a gentleman, and that was that. Stephens tells us that, he believes the colt left the gate in the right frame of mind, an item which can have a great deal to. do with his subsequent running. It so turned out in the Preakness, for Blue Man dropped way back early, as he likes to do, then made a dramatic surge from near the half-mile, and once he wore down Jampol in the stretch it was just a question of how far he would win. It turned out to be exactly three and one-half lengths. AAA The seventy-sixth running of the Preakness turned out to be something of atri-umph for American democracy, if one wishes to moralize, and we are happy to report that some are so inclined. Blue Man is owned by A. W. Abbott, who is engaged in the prosaic business of selling ice cream, and the runner-up, Jampol, by an immigrant who has made good in America, Max Kahlbaum. We understand that the State Department has asked Kahlbaum to speak on the "Voice of America" program, in his native German, for a broadcast to be beamed overseas and behind the iron curtain. As a matter of fact, Jampol made a noble bid, but simply was not good enough. Personality Change Aids Blue Man Makes Thrilling Move in Preakness Seek Preakness Conditions Change Need Uniform Crown Eligibility But even running second in such a classic as the Preakness is an honor that is sufficient to most men. The Preakness also is a personal triumph for jockey Conn Mccreary, who hung up his tack a couple of years ago, but came back with a win on Count Turf in the Kentucky Derby a year ago, then came back with another brilliant performance in the Preakness. We say brilliant because it took nerves of iron to time the move the way he did, and not be trapped into using his horse up early, a course which could have spelled defeat. It was the secorid Preakness for McCreary, his first having been with Calumet Farms Pensive back in 1944. AAA Insofar as the Preakness is concerned, we believe it sets the stage for an exciting renewal of the Belmont, and if this turns out to be true, the "Triple Crown" this year will have added to itself great prestige and lustre. We say this because some of the horses who were also rans in the Preakness also are Belmont eligibles, and a different pace, going a full mile and a half, can spell a great deal of difference. Blue Mans dramatic run was spectacular enough," but it was made under ideal conditions, with fast pace battling in out early, thus setting the stage for a run such as he made. But the early pace going a mile and a half is not as a rule as fast as that in a test of a mile and three-sixteenths, and therein lies the difference. Often horses such as Blue Man do not look to such good advantage if the pace is such that "it does not tend to come back to them." This is not taking anything away from a brilliant Preakness score, but we are merely pointing out that not everyone is ready to hand him the Belmont on a silver platter. AAA T,he first step toward making the Preakness an even greater race that in the past has been taken by the Pimlico management in skipping the date for making original nominations to the stake, and the future conditions will be decided at a board of directors meeting in the next few weeks. It is probable that the new Preakness will have a late closing date, perhaps simultaneous with that of the Kentucky Derby, February 15, and with the additional pro viso that any horse starting in the Derby, if not already eligible, will become so upon the payment of a modest fee. By doing away with the early closing of the Preakness nominations, a more representative race will be assured in theory, at least. Whether the Belmont will follow suit and change the conditons of its race on closing date and admission of geldings remains to be seen, but it is not unthinkable as there is a great deal of support, both in official and public circles, to build up the "Triple Crown" races as a unit as a "showcase" of the finest in American racing. Uniformity of conditions would tend to stimulate interest in all three races, and, as we see it, could in no way detract and very possibly could improve the caliber of the fields in all three. Horses have a way of getting good in the early part of their three-year-old year, as some of the converted claimers who are now in the three-year-old stakes division will attest. If the. Preakness were thrown open to this type of thoroughbred, it would make for a championship affair. Some good three-year-olds have missed a classic race because they were not eligblie, to mention one, Reigh Count sitting on the sidelines when the Belmont of 1928 was decided because someone had overlooked ! making him eligible, and the Belmont was then an earlier closing stake than now. AAA We also predict that by next Preakness time, old Pimlico will have undergone some changes. As one citizen aptly put it, "The present stockholders of Pimlico do not have fundamentally the same thinking" although everyone does have a desire to see horse racing in Maryland in particular, and the United States in general, prosper. But they seemingly cannot agree as to the best approach to attain the desired ends." We have serious doubts that a group of horsemen will purchase Pimlico and operate it "nonprofit," and we understand that the offer was made more "just for the record" than in any real hope that such a deal could ever be made. As for the changes in the condition of the Preakness itself, we believe any change, away from an early closing will prove to be for the better. The only older race in the country which now has a real early closing is the Maturity at Santa Anita, and the California officials discovered that this race would fade, without supplementals, unless some vigorous work were done on a national scale to see that nominations were made on the part of breeders. This is being accomplished, quietly, but nonetheless efficiently.
