view raw text
4 Monmouth Park Set To Open Tomorrow Three New Stakes, General Increase in Purse Outlay in Effect for 49-Day Meeting By WILLIAM C. PHILLIPS Staff Correspondent MONMOUTH PARK, Oceanport, N. J.. June 12. — The second of the three race meetings that have placed New Jersey as a leader among the racing states in the nation is ready to open on Saturday. Monmouth Park will inaugurate its seventh year of operations at this vacation play-land by the sea." The meeting will officially begin at 2:30 p. m., post time, continue through six days a week and end on Saturday. August 9. Three new stakes have been added to the already rich schedule this season, and the overall purse distribution has been given a healthy increase in well-founded anticipation of records to be shattered in all departments. The season last year brought a peak of success, with the wagering reaching close to a daily average of a million and a quarter. Both the increased prosperity of racing throughout the country and local conditions, of which ; the New Jersey Turnpike is an important factor, point to even greater patronage this summer. The thoroughbreds have been arriving j hourly from various racing centers, although ! about two-thirds of the colony will be made up of stables recently active at Garden State Park. The departure of • Spartan Valor and Woodchuck to the Chicago . area deprives the handicap ranks of • some of its lustre, but at the same time it ■ will tend to bring about larger fields and 1 possibly more spirited competition. Can Depend Upon Invaders There is no dearth of star equine performers on the grounds, and racing secretary • John Turner, Jr., can always depend 1 on the New York and New England stables ; supplying invaders for the more important stakes. Two-year-olds have been almost ; completely free of coughing and other ailments this spring, and they will come out in particularly strong force. Three new barns were erected during the winter, . raising the capacity accommodations to about 1.150 horses. The jockey membership will again be i large, with Jimmy Stout, Fernando Fernandez and Sammy Boulmetis expected to again fill their rolls as the perennial leaders. Apprentice Robert Louis Stevenson, the leading young rider at Garden State 1 Park, is also expected to make his mark, ; while several new boys to New Jersey are reported to be coming in this season with stables from New York. Training has been brisk and heavy both here and at Garden State Park, where 1 many horses have been prepping for this meeting. The Monmouth Park racing strip has undergone a thorough treatment by track superintendent Everett Wilson and the few complaints heard from horsemen about the course being deep on the outside and hard near the rail has been corrected with a safe and smooth cushion overall. The Oceanport Handicap, a 5,000 added six-furlong fixture, will launch the meeting on Saturday, and in the line-up are expected to be F. Ambrose Clarks Tea-Maker, highweight under 120 pounds; Har-borvale Stables Dark Peter, 119; H. A. Kimballs Algasir, 117; Alan T. Clarkes Senator Joe, 117; and Alfred G. Vander-bilts First Glance, 114. N Many new improvements have been added along with the general refurbishing, and the modern plant is shining like a new penny. Among the more noticeable changes are the cement apron fronting the stands that replaces the old blacktop surfacing, a new winners circle and weighing stand, an enlarged clubhouse terrace with additional seating for 1,200, increased parking spaces to make for a capacity of 10,500 cars, and the new barns. As usual, the season does not enter full swing until the vacation period begins near the end of June, when this area teems with the masses "getting away from it all. ► 4 Hi? flBk .1 B ****** B mmr jTb 1 BA i / J. Samuel Perlman, publisher of Daily Racing Form, is pictured above with Dr. Harry W. Lindy, left, and Joseph G. Kohout, during their final meeting before the HBPA representatives canceled their strike notice against Arlington Park.
