Arcaro Captures Narragansett Feature Named in His Honor with Good Shot: Helps Celebrate Opening and 20th Anniversary of Track; Trainer Goodwins Big Day, Daily Racing Form, 1953-06-30

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Arcaro Captures Narragansett Feature Named in His Honor With Good Shot HelpsCelebrate Opening and 20th Anniversary of Track; Trainer Goodwins Big Day By A. E. BROWN Staff Correspondent NARRAGANSETT PARK, Pawtucket, R. I., June 29. Eddie Arcaro, Americas premier rider, journeyed in from Chicago to help celebrate Narragansetts 20th anniversary and showed a crowd of 13,044 opening day fans the ability that gave him his pre-eminent position, winning on his only two mounts of the afternoon. After winning a three-horse special race in which he competed against fellow old-time riders, Joe Renick and Jimmy Lynch, Arcaro captured the featured race which was named in his honor on W. J. Beatties Good Shot. The English-bred colt was skillfully handled by Arcaro, being reserved off the pace until rounding for home, where he made his bid and went on to score by a length and a half over Melpet Stables Noch Eins. Third in the field of seven was P. Schwartz Charleston, while Jake Lingles favored Larry Ellis, with DeSpirito up, finished fourth. Good Shot paid .80 and rattled the six furlongs in 1:10, only two-fifths off the track record set by Psychic Bid back in 1935. Trainer J. Goodwin had a "field" day, when he saddled four winners out of the first five races. There was an unusual twist to the proceedings. When DeSpirito, the local favorite and last years riding champ, came back to the unsaddling area, he was greeted with a resounding chorus of boos, a salutation generally reserved for Arcaro. This time Eddie got the applause and it swelled as he brought his mount into the winners circle. DeSpirito responded to his tormenters by gayly doffing his cap to them as he walked to the scales. Good Shot, a four-year-old colt by Big Game Fair Profit, was bred by the National Stud, maintained by the reigning monarch of England, and has won four races in this country in 14 starts, all of them in New England. Good Shot scored in the Governors Handicap at Suffolk, at the same distance, and then was stretched out to a distance in subsequent outings. Last week he finished fourth in a division of the Longfellow Handicap over the turf at Monmouth Park. Arcaro got Good Shot away smartly and snugged him into fourth position behind Noch Eins, Soldier Son and Andre. The position didnt change going down the backstretch, with Arcaro having a snug hold on Good Shot. Good Shot made his move midway of the turn, going up in company with Andre. As they came around the final bend, Noch Eins still maintained his lead, with Andre and Good Shot moving in on him. Andre couldnt keep up and dropped out of it while Good Shot continued to roll down the middle of the track. Midway of the stretch he had taken command and was home free, while Noch Eins continued on gamely to be second. Charleston, who had won his two previous outings, came from next to last to be third in a photo over Larry Ellis, who was last going down the backstretch and taken to the outside for his bid, but didnt figure in the race when the chips were down. It was propitious that Arcaro enjoy a gala afternoon as he was to be the guest of honor at a testimonial dinner tendered him by his friends in Rhode Island this evening at the Sheraton Biltmore Hotel. Riding here on opening day in 1934 were Arcaro, Joe Renick and Jimmy Lynch, and the trio came back to help celebrate this anniversary by appearing in a special winner-take-all three-horse heat. The mounts were decided by lot before the race, the selections made in the winners circle by a woman patron selected at random from the crowd. In the draw, Arcaro was picked for J. Goodwins Will to Win, while Renick drew Red Cap, and Lynch Bogan. That was the way they finished in the mile and a sixteenth event. As the three old-timers came on the track there was a ripple of applause, mixed with the usual amount of boos, and after the race a good portion of the crowd gathered around the winners circle to see the ceremonies.


Persistent Link: https://drf.uky.edu/catalog/1950s/drf1953063001/drf1953063001_4_4
Local Identifier: drf1953063001_4_4
Library of Congress Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/unk82075800