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i BETWEEN RACES * ..« HOLLYWOOD PARK, Inglewood, Calif.,f June 25.— Yesterday, we outlined some of the results of the trip to Europe of Santa i Anitas Anitas Dr. Dr. Charles Charles Anitas Anitas Dr. Dr. Charles Charles Strub, and today, wed like to bring you his impressions of where we on the American turf might be going. "We have made a lot of progress in American racing," comments Strub. "Comparisons are usually awkward and ill advised, and I have a great respect for for the the quality quality of of the the for for the the quality quality of of the the racing abroad and the fine sportsmen that are in racing and breeding. But in the I handling of the public, I believe we set a i standard for the world. American people will not be herded, and they demand com- : fort and convenience at a race track, a de- • mand that Santa Anita has endeavored to meet. The so-called front side operation of a race track is looming larger and larger in the racing picture, and if we can make 1 people happy and give them an enjoyable afternoon of sport, I believe racing will make far greater strides in the future than it has in the past. But if we surpass Europe in many ways, we also can learn much * from abroad perhaps the next big step rac- • ing must take is to endow its personnel with more stature in the public mind. I am t thinking particularly of the status abroad * of trainers and jockeys. The trainers are I gentlemen in every sense of the word, dress 1 like gentlemen, and are accepted into the * most select circles and enclosures. The profession carries dignity and standing * a abroad. A trainer is a man of some conse- 1 quence in the community and the nation." AAA Strub cited as a classic example of the * dignity of the English training profession i Cecil Boyd-Rochfort, trainer for the Royal * family and for the American, William t Woodward. Boyd-Rochfort was given the 1 pleasant task of "showing" the Doctor the i English tracks, and English racing. "I was i sitting with Rochfort watching a race one t afternoon," says Strub, "and as the horses t came into the stretch, one of the horses he c trained was slightly impeded. I asked him • if he saw it, and the man replied Yes, but 1 that he would make no objection, it seem- c ing that an objection over a comparatively s minor matter would be unsportsmanlike." c Now, we arent attempting to moralize on ti I i : • 1 * • t * I 1 * * a 1 * i * t 1 i i t t c • 1 c s c ti U.S. Tracks Set World Standard t Comfort of Public Comes First Dignity of Training in England i Strub May Revive Selling Race the incident, but it does seem that losing , in America should be accepted as grace- j fully as winning, and if this were the case some of racing irritations would be re- moved. It is just possible that an owner who has to be cooled out with the usual i run of excuses, by now well standardized, ] would get a lot more out of racing if this j were not a necessity. It is axiomatic in the i United States that the privilege to beef t goes with every two dollar ticket sold, if ] this free American prerogative was not ex- j ercised, we dare say that racing afternoons j for the public would be more enjoyable, too. j A A 1 We asked Dr. Strub his ideas as to why, i in California, the attendance had not kept j pace with the growth in population, per capita wise, and he observed, "We had two i or three unusual years during the late part t of the war, and thereafter. These years were not normal years to base comparisons. After these unusual times, there was i a drastic decline nationally, then a leveling j off period, which I regard as normal, and s then, from that normal, there has been a ] steady increase. This increase has been r accomplished through catering to the pub- v lie comfort and giving them clean, honest e sport, sport in which they have confidence. The recent growth of racing has been on c sound, substantial basis, and it is this r factor which makes it significant." c * A A 1 "We in the United States have improved 3 and modernized," adds Strub," but the c modern generation of racegoers does not £ remember the days of the past, an item t that was brought to me very forcibly in e England. That is why we are thinking of I reviving the old fashioned selling race, 8 a where, after the event, the winner is auc- t tioned off. I saw them in England, and c they revived fond memories of my early c days around the tracks at old Emeryville. I Thought we might try one such race a week, and hold the auction in the paddock t circle, by the George Woolf Memorial, a spot where thousands could take advantage t of the spectacle. Such an event each week I would forcibly bring home some of the old I t i , j i ] j i t ] j j j 1 i j i t i j s ] r v e c r c 1 3 c £ t e I 8 a t c c I t t I I ; ►traditions of racing as we once knew them in America, and which still prevail in" Eng- land. Nobody today would want to return from the automobile to the horse and I buggy days, but even in this day of the auto, horseback riding can be fun. The I fact that we may revive the old fashioned I selling race is by no means to be taken as , , a sign that we have stopped growing, and improving. As long as I live, Santa Anita will make progressive steps each year in either the quality of its horse racing, or the i spaciousness and beauty of its plant, or , I both. To return briefly to the Florida competition in the matter of stakes, I might say the whole thing makes me happy, for this proves that we are in America. The [ American way is to improve through com- petition. Surely everyone must realize that : race track managers everywhere are improving their tracks and their purses as best they are able, and are not, as behind the iron curtain, monopolizing and seeing i how little they can give out. Horse racing itself is the very epitome of competition, j and with tracks everywhere in competition for the very best in horses and horse rac- ing, everyone is the winner, and most cer- tainly the greatest winner the public.* * A A | Horses and people: Mrs. Richey Rolph j has sold her vast 5,000 acre Alpine Ranch ] near Redwood City and is shopping for smaller acreage in Southern California . . * 1 Bric-A-Bac, her well proven sire, will be moved to the Southland and, having gotten winners, and hard-hitting ones, from most every mare to whom he has been mated, his book in the Southland should be on the J creditable side . Attention Ben Lindhei-mer: There is a loosely organized new club in Southern California called the "Ar- ! lington-Washington" marching society ... There being no racing at Hollywood Park J ! on Mondays, its members fly to Chicago Sunday night, go to the races Monday, fly back that night and, after a bit of sleep, are on deck for the first race of a Tuesday here. The club had its foundation when gent who wagers heavily to show, made this junket to bet on Real Delight. Now others who are well heeled and fancy six-day a week racing are joining in . . . Johnny Longden will ride the opening day at Denver. . All but four of the 18 thoroughbreds to be sold at public auction here Monday the dispersal of Bill Goetz are California -breds. Three are two-year-olds, Bedizened, Helenus, and Tittle Tattle, acquired at Keeneland last summer as yearlings.
