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__■_________— **~" 5 - t t j ! - j | t t J Weighing In I By EVAN SHIPMAN DELAWARE PARK, Stanton, Del., June 14. — Patrons of Delaware Park appear to us more "horse wise" than is usual at other tracks, tracks, and and we we are are in- __■_________— t t J , j 1 i 5 j I x 1 I t . ; , J t tracks, tracks, and and we we are are in- in-j eluding the Metropoli-x tan circuit, where rac-k ing certainly has an old enough tradition. Some years ago, on the after -1 noon of the running of the Sysonby at Bel-j. mont, a race in which the great Citation was to take part, we re- marked to the veteran John B. Campbell that Citations Citations presence presence , J t , 1 J j 1 t | J j j , j , j $ . 1 ; ! 1 1 1 : [ j b s so t r Citations Citations presence presence **~" should draw a big crowd. "Oh, you think so, do you?" was the gruff reply. "Well, there may be 10 or 12 extra in the stands today— make it a bakers dozen — but I do not believe Citation or any other horse draws people to the racetrack. They come to see the races, not a race." Allowing a little for Mr. Campbells customary cyni- cism where human nature is concerned, we were forced to concede that the handicap-- per for The Jockey Club had a point, and the more so when the size of the crowd on that particular day, which saw one of Citations greatest performances, actually bore out his observation. Down here at Delaware, on the other hand, we believe Camp-1 bell would have been under-estimating the genuine enthusiasm for fine horses that is obviously widely prevalent. On the days when the better class of thoroughbreds are in action, both attendance and wagering soar; on the dull days, such as yesterday, for instance, you have plenty of room to move around, and both grandstand and clubhouse are rather listless. Next weeks solid attractions here will be the Georgetown Steeplechase Handicap on Friday, and the Delaware Oaks on Saturday. Both stakes are the type of race that engender the excitement of which mention has been made. The Georgetown, together with the subsequent Indian River, annually draws the best of this limited division in training, while the Delaware Oaks, since Handcuffs inaugural victory in 1938, can boast fields second to no filly race in the country. We do not mean to weary you with a list of names, but take a look for a moment at the quality that it takes to win this mile and an eighth feature. In the relatively short history of the race, the Oaks has fallen to such as Vagrancy, Gallorette, Bonnie Beryl, Miss Request, Next Move and Kiss Me Kate, while Rose-town, War Plumage, Elpis, Cosmic Missile, Fairy Chant, Level Best, Monsoon and Busanda finished among the first three without being able to score. We do not need to emphasize that this is an impressive list, and one hardly matched by the Coaching Club American Oaks, Americas filly classic in the strictest sense of that much abused term. The Coaching Club Oaks merits the designation because it is run at scale weights, and over a classic distance. The Delaware race, at nine furlongs instead of a mile and three-eighths, has allowance conditions, an explanation for the defeat of some of the grand fillies listed above. Just as the Kent drew a field of colts below Delawares high average this season, the Oaks does not contain any very thrilling names among the nominations. Calumet Farm, that has never raced here in the memory of secretary and handicap-per, Gil Haus, now has Real Delight at Chicago, while A Gleam remained on the coast. This pair appear to be outstanding in the division, it being the general opinion that their rivals do not possess too much class this year. We all thought otherwise when these misses were" juveniles, but hard racing has sadly depleted the ranks. Unless there should be a surprising return to form on the part of such as Rose Jet, Place Card or o Landmark this is bound to be a "Calumet year" as far as the fillies are concerned. A slight reservation, however, might be made in favor of Foxcatchers Faberose, likely to be the choice for Saturdays renewal of the Oaks, and a filly who has always impressed us as a good individual v: — well put together, willing, and of a stature to carry weight. Hummy, a less attractive type perhaps, but a genuinely speedy miss nonetheless, is also a candidate for the week-end feature who may make her presence felt in the field. This pair raced one-two in a conditioning sprint last Thursday. It was not a race that sent any hats flying in the air, but it served as an indication that Faberose and Hummy a: are at least sharp. Mrs. Phipps Oedipus, who just missed in the recent Temple Gwathmey at the United Hunts behind the much improved The Mast, has been assigned high weight of 164 for Fridays Georgetown, and that was no surprise. Oedipus is unquestionably the leader of our fencers, and it is hardly to be expected that handicappers will be generous where he is concerned. ] Last year, the champion was forced to 1 bow to the lightly weighted Crooning Continued on Page Forty-Five i I WEIGHING IN I By EVAN SHIPMAN Continued from Page Four Wind in the Georgetown, but he handles himself better over big jumps all the time. Weight or no weight, Oedipus will be redoubtable this week. A couple of years ago, we took exception to this fine horses way of negotiating his obstacles, and, at that time, he was hardly a Delaware specialist. These are jumps that command respect, and Oedipus then had a careless style that, for all his speed, must have cost him races. In the interim, trainer Bostwick has given this well-bred son of Blue Larkspur — Be Like Mom many profitable lessons. Last year, his style at Saratoga was impossible to fault. We did not see him in his lone Delaware performance, and the only hint that he may have been, let us say not quite comfortable over the fences, is that he did not -stay for the Indian River, contested over an even stiffer course than the Georgetown. Stranger things could happen than for Oedipus to capture both stakes this year. If a review of Oedipus career over the jumps emphasizes that steeplechase horses have to be patiently "made," the same point is plain when you consider the races of his recent rival, Mrs. E. duPont Weirs The Mast. This is an Annapolis gelding, and he comes from what has often been called a jumping family, and yet trainer Jim Ryan has had his work cut out for him teaching this fellow to stand off and clear his obstacles in the proper manner. The Mast, like Oedipus, has a lot of quality — much more than is ordinarily found in members f this division. Too often recruited from horses who have shown little or nothing on the flat. He has always had class, but it is only recently that Ryan has succeeded in teaching him to make full use of his potentialities. At Belmont this spring, The Masts education bore fruit, and, from now on, he will be hard to handle. If he continues to improve, it is not too much to hope that we can look forward to a series of duels between The Mast and Oedipus such as those that engaged Jolly Roger and Fairmount, Anni-bal and Ossabaw, and Rouge Dragon and Mercator. Nothing, may we add, would be of greater help in reviving interest in this branch of the sport.
