Weighing In: Hasty Road Home First in Roughly Run Preakness Winner and Correlation Both Bother Hasseyampa, Daily Racing Form, 1954-05-25

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W E I G H I N G I N *y EVAN SHIPMAN PIMLICO, Baltimore, Md., May 24. — Hasty Road, Hasty House Farms-big son of Roman who had forced little Determine out in the Kentucky Derby and then ran a bang-up second to Correlation in the Preakness Prep, finally came into his own last Saturday when he captured a rough, and and far far from from satisfactory, satisfactory, Preakness Preakness and and far far from from satisfactory, satisfactory, Preakness Preakness from the favored Correlation, the unfortunate Hasseyampa, Goyamo and seven other colts of varying abilities. At the end of the mile and three-sixteenths trip, run in smart time considering the "dead" nature of the strip, Hasty Road held a long necks advantage over the odds-on choice from California, while Walmac Farms Hasseyampa was a length and a half farther back in third place, but, in view of the bumping and crowding that went on from above the furlong pole right to the wire, this result must be accepted with serious reservations. Following that finish, Arnold Kirkland, Hasseyampas jockey, entered a claim of foul against Correlation. This claim, following examination of motion pictures of the race by the stewards, was disallowed, the numbers standing as originally posted. AAA .For all that, many who were in a position to watch that last quarter carefully, including this observer, believe that Kirkland would have been justified in entering a claim against both Correlation and Hasty Road. As we saw it, Hasseyampa had been bothered by both colts, Kirkland was compelled to snatch Hasseyampa up and change his path if he were not to be sandwiched between Correlation, lugging in, and Hasty Road, bearing out. Neither the winner nor the runner-up maintained a straight line in the long drive, but we will add — although we know that it weakens the effect of our previous state- Hasty Road Home First in Roughly Run Preakness Winner and Correlation Both Bother Hasseyampa Shoemaker Tried to Keep Favorite Straight Roman Colt May Find Belmont Distance Too Far ment — that we do not believe Hasseyampa could have finished in front, even had he not met with interference. That last is pure conjecture, but we imagine that a similar point of view was shared by the Maryland officials. AAA Unlike the Kentucky Derby, which had been marked by bad crowding immediately following the start, the Preakness was without untoward incident until the field reached the final quarter. Up to that time, it was a perfectly clean race, and when the trouble did develop, it was in spite of the efforts of both Johnny Adams, on Hasty Road, and Willie Shoemaker, on Correlation, to keep their mounts straight. In justice to Shoemaker, we would say that, from the top of the Pimilco Stretch to the wire, he was solely and completely occupied in striving to keep Correlation off Hasty Road; he did not dare disengage a hand to go to the whip, nor did he hand-ride the big Calif ornian, it being quite clear that the moment Shoemaker might relax his tight hold, his mount would almost certainly veer sharply to the left. Hasty Roads offense, and Adams predicament, were less obvious. Nevertheless, Hasty Road was not far off the rail as he took the final bend, while he finished well out in the middle of the track. From the moment Correlation and Hasseyampa seriously challenged — and that was at the eighth pole or just above — Hasty Road came over in such fashion that Kirkland was forced to pull up if he were not to run smack up on Hasty Roads heels. Hasty Road showed exactly the type of race expected by his many friends. Adams had him away winging, and the big colt was in front at every pole. He had set a sustained pace, and when the favorite caught him, drawing almost level an eighth of a mile out, Hasty Road, who never needs the whip, continued on with rare courage, stamping himself as the best and most enduring of the Romans.. Correlation and Hasseyampa — and this, too, was anticipated — employed completely diffent tactics. The favorite was snugged along the rail, saving ground in the run through the front stretchafter leaving the gate and around the sharp first turn. As soon as that turn was rounded, Shoemaker took Correlation to the outside, beginning a strong move. Between the far turn and the stretch turn, as he approached the leaders, Shoemaker risked taking Correlation between horses, and the wonder is that both here and when he had been making up ground on the backstretch, he did not bother his close neighbors. As Correlation finally turned for home, now only two or three lengths off the front-running Hasty Road, Hasseyampa was right with him, and the Walmac Farm colorbearer was still with the favorite as they joined issue with the leader. AAA Behind the first three, nobody had any excuse on Sat-ural. Once again, Goyamo finished with some power, but he was no closer than he had been at Churchill Downs, and this time nobody got in his way. Jet Action and Ring King, a pair from whom much had been expected, were both prominent in the early running, but Hasty Roads initial mile in 1 :38% was enough to retire them effectively. For Free showed an even effort to wind up fifth, but he had never been a serious threat. In the paddock be-lore the start, Hasty Road and Correlation both earned Continued on Page Forty-Nine WEIGHING IN 1 By EVAN SHEPMAN Continued from Page Fifty-Two compliments for their condition. Hasty Road took matters calmly, while the Cali-fornian was pretty well broken out, despite the agreeably cool afternoon. A A A We were disappointed by a close view of the well-bred Jet Action, the chestnut son of Jet Pilot— Busher lacking any of the distinction he might have inherited from both sides of the house. Not girthing much, Jet Action is also light in the loin and rather long backed, definitely scanty behind the saddle. We had previously compared the Alsab colt, Ring King, to Cain Hoys Armageddon, but we were doing the latter an injustice; Armageddon has genuine good looks, while this younger son of Alsab is a trappy little chunk, nor does he possess the class that we had given him credit for. As for Hasseyampa, this is an unusually large colt for an Alibhai, nor does he have the early speed of that tribe, although he runs with notable power and is honesty itself, as this Preakness and his previous effort in the Derby will testify. AAA As for the influence this Preakness renewal will have on our thinking concerning the imminent Belmont Stakes, we would say that Hasty Road, in spite of his game finish on the week end, still does not look like a colt who will favor a mile and a half. True, he was drawing gradually away from Correlation in the Maryland classic, and he also finished well behind little Determine at Louisville, but we are fairly certain that, in both cases, this son of Roman was running the final two furlongs on his courage. The rich three-year-old stakes in the Chicago area this summer should suit him far better than the gruelling Long Island race. Where Correlation is concerned, the problem is one of soundness, or correcting the condition that makes the colt persist in lugging in. He was supplied with a formidable bit last Saturday, but that bit did not make him run straight. He was pin fired from a blind splint, the probable cause for all his mistakes, between the running of the Derby and Preakness, but the application of the needle could hardly have been deep enough to reach the seat of the trouble. Maybe a rest is what Correlation needs. In any case, he will have to show an entirely different kind of effort than he did at Pimlico if he is to threaten Porterhouse in the Belmont next month.


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Library of Congress Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/unk82075800