view raw text
mi: ** ■ BETWEEN RACES * °*** ore GARDEN STATE PARK, Camden, N. J., May 11. — Royal Bay Gem won his Jersey Stakes the hard way here Saturday before some 34,000 enthusiastic fans and in snapping back to his form declared himself right back as a primary factor in the Preakness and Belmont Stakes still to come. He won in in deep aeep slush siusn after alter threading wireaaiiig his 1115 way way ■ in in deep aeep slush siusn after alter threading wireaaiiig his 1115 way way into contention nearing the far turn, then being forced extremely wide entering the stretch, so we suppose he ran considerably further than the official mile and a furlong. It was a far better effort than he disclosed only the Saturday before in the Kentucky Derby, and while admittedly Dark Star and Native Dancer were not in the Jersey Stakes, he did run a more "zippy" race than he unveiled for the people at at Churchill Downs. As for a final judgment to his class in this years three-year-old picture, no rating would be fair at this time. So far he has just missed being really tops. Incidentally, in winning the Jersey, Royal Bay Gem lifted his seasonal earnings to 10,225, his lifetime to 27,395. What makes us think he may be better than shown was his manner in winning even though his competition was a trifle softer than usual in the Jersey, but even so, it was far from being an actual soft spot. AAA Perhaps the best story connected with the running of the Jersey was the placing of Park Dandy, the hero of Lincoln Downs, who ventured down to Garden State for the week end to find out just how good he was. Park Dandy, bred in New England, won three overnight handicaps in a row in Rhode Island. As it turned out, he indicated himself better than the proverbial empty stall. He was smartly placed throughout and, although passed near the end, did not give up or weaken. The New Englander Royal Bay Gem Won Jersey Stakes Hard Way Your Host Doing Well at Armstrong Farm Is Pioneer in Syndication of Jersey Sire Providing a Study in Equine Psychology was accompanied on his Jersey junket by his owner, W. J. Beattie, a lace manufacturer of Providence, and John Aborn, turf editor of the Providence dailies. While Beat-tie is the official breeder of the horse, he purchased the mare in foal from B. A. Dario, who is attempting to prove that worthwhile thoroughbreds can be produced in Rhode Island. They left convinced the trip did prove a point and with ,000 in second money to help defray expenses. Park Dandy is not an eligible for either the Preakness or Belmont Stakes, which is perhaps just as well, but he will return to the North with a great deal of prestige. In turn, we believe his Jersey invasion will instill some new interest into New England racing as only intersectionalism can. AAA Over the week end, we took time out to take a look at an old friend from California, the once controversial Your Host, currently making his first season at stud in New Jersey at the farm of Mr. and Mrs. F. Wallis Armstrong, Jr., at nearby Moorestown. Your Host, as everyone must know, has a "game leg" as the result of a shattered forearm sustained in a race at Santa Anita. What the son of Alibhai has accomplished in the way of learning to compensate for the injury has been under close scrutiny by students of equine psychology, and some of them have professed themselves as being utterly amazed at the way the stallion handles himself. The Armstrongs have had countless suggestions and letters offering suggestions for his welfare, and while everything has been done to make him comfortable, the horse has had to work out his own salvation, so to speak, if it were to be done at all. This he has done. His fighting heart, which sustains him through each day, is clearly evident in his eye, which flashes. He has done any number of things which some have proclaimed impossible for a horse with only three good legs. One example of this is that Your Host has taught himself to stand while his feet are being trimmed, a process which, in his case, necessitates two legs off the ground. He accomplishes this feat with a slight assist from the groom, who gives him just a wee bit of support when the injured leg is one of the three on the ground. AAA Your Host may be more important to New Jersey breeding than many people realize, for he is the first syndicated stallion to hold forth in Jersey in several years, and the success of the syndicate may be a forerunner of many more syndicates, about the only way that class of sires in the state may be dramatically upgraded. As for mares. Your Host has a book almost dominated by stakes winners and dams of stakes winners, and has set something of a precedent by drawing mares from Kentucky. He stands at a fee of ,500, and the cost of the shares to syndicate members was ,500. Normally, a member should just about get out in three years on such a set-up, but in the case of Your Host, it will be closer to four. The cost of insurance is high, but the faith of Lloyds of London that the horse will make it is evidenced by the fact they have given the syndicate full coverage on mortality, and two-thirds coverage on death or destruction due to the leg itself. A A- A Quite some time ago, we quoted the views of Leslie Combs, n., master of Spendthrift, as to the advantage* Continued mi Page Forty BETWEEN RACES By OSCAR OTIS Continued from Page Forty-Four of syndication, especially for the small man, and without going into the matter in detail, we can say that the Spendthrift plan "offers a solution" to the so-called small man in breeding. We rather look for the idea to spread, even though more slowly than anticipated, in such areas as California, New Jersey, Virginia and Maryland. However, the Your Host syndicate might be likened to a "test" of the plan in New Jersey, and so far, it has worked out rather well. Shares are in active demand, and the syndicate members, to a man, are ardent Your Host rooters. One member even went so far as to offer to build, at his own expense, a glass solarium for the horse, to be used during the inclement winter months, but this was vetoed in favor of infra-ray lights in his stall. As we pointed out several days ago, a precedent in favor of syndicates was established when Dark Star won the Kentucky Derby, for in winning, Dark Star became the first offspring of a syndicated stallion to win the great Kentucky classic. The first foals of Your Host already have arrived in California, where the colt stood a limited first season at stud. They have met with general approval. Because he was such a well-known horse before arriving in New Jersey, Your Host already has done something for New Jersey turf public relations in that he has made the idea, with the general public, of looking at a thoroughbred farm popular. On some Sundays as many as 50 visitors have checked in at the Armstrong place and asked to see him.
