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New England Notebook By JOE HIRSCH I Blessbull in Limelight at Suffolk Establishes Mile Mark of 7:35 Eternes Victory Pleases Trainer SUFFOLK DOWNS, East Boston, Mass., May 31. New England racing was in action on two fronts today as the .Suffolk Downs getaway program ana Rockingham Parks inaugural card vied for customers in Yankee-land. Tomorrow the spotlight will focus solely on New Hampshires picturesque oval but Blessbulls record breaking performance in the 0,000 Constitution Handicap here over the week end was sf.ill n. siiVtipp.f. rf rnn- siderable interest to local patrons on a warm and sunny Memorial Day. Maurice Sims Bless Me gelding circled this mile oval in 1:35 shaving three-fifths of a second off the time recorded by Clingen-daal back in 1937, and at the same time took several sizeable strides toward annexing the seasons three-year-old laurels in the Northeast. In whipping the place-running Royal Battle by four lengths, the Sims speedster avenged his only previous loss of the campaign, both Switch On and Brisuet who finished third and fourth have good competitive records for 1954, particularly the latter, who invaded the area for the week end after a solid triumph in the second division of the 0,000 Delaware Valley Stakes at Garden State two weeks ago. The victory of Blessbull was particularly satisfying for George Handy, Sims youthful trainer, coming as it did after the birth of his second child this week. Handy, told us this morning that he and his Boss have discussed running the powerful sprinter in several New Jersey and Saratoga stakes during the summer and fall. Blessbull won a front-running race at a mile and 70 yards on May 10, beating a mediocre field by 15 lengths and nine days later scored another handy triumph in a six-furlong event. Saturdays race followed the same pattern. Drawing the inside post position, Blessbull shot out of the barrier and was leading by a length and a half at the clubhouse turn. He increased his margin steadily although he won ridden out, pro- Sontmuetl. jn fjjit. ffrtf-fjff j i " tesH4srto aoF mo hot Mi ni rKtatrfni o!rf? -..v . ....... New England Notebook By JOE HIRSCH, Continued from Page fne tecting his score against a driving stretch run by the favored Royal Battle. While Blessbull has been victorious at the middle distances, it appears that the gelding is best suited for sprint distances. Bless Me was a speed "horse and sired Noch Eins, another consistent New England sprinter who has campaigned with success here. Sims, a Massachusetts liquor dealer, purchased Blessbull last year for ,200 at the dispersal sale of Isaac Silvermans Paragon Stable. The Constitution victory increased the thoroughbredsearnings to 3,500. Eternes victory in an unpretentious event here this past week was the maiden triumph for the four-year-old filly, and thereby hangs a tale, if youll pardon the expression. The Perpetuate miss never raced until this season. She belongs to L. N. Gilman, of the socially prominent Greenwich, Conn., family. Gilmans daughter Mary trained and rode the thoroughbred in Connecticut hunt meets and shows and Eterne displayed such good form and speed that the family decided to give her a crack at flat racing. Shes brought home three straight checks so far, with a third and a fourth to her credit in addition to Wednesdays win at a mile and 70 yards. M. J. "Mike" Bresnahan Jr., who trains the filly, admits she is very green because of lack of competition. The veteran con ditioner is planning to use blinkers on her in her next outing, as she has a womans curiosity and is constantly gazing at everything about her. She will even stretch her neck out of the stall at watch planes that fly .over Suffolk .Downs on their, way to nearby Logan International Airport. But Bresnahan thinks she has possibilities once she learns the Topes, and hes been around enough to know the "score. He rode in steeplechase events in Canada and got his trainers license at the Mount Royal track there in 1939. During the war he was stationed at Fort Riley, Kansas, for a while with the horse cavalry, which was gradually being replaced with mechanized equipment. From Riley he went to Burma with Task Force Mars, including his own 124th cavalry regiment of the Texas National Guard, where the unit helped to secure the Burma Road with the aid of mule trains to haul supplies. The outfit included many horsemen now active on the American turf. AROUND THE TRACK: Tony DeSpi-Titp, who is hotter right now than Liber-ace, with a whole rack of candelabras, ,-rode his second quadruple of the week on Saturday to clinch honors for the spring, meeting. He has 46 wins in 172. attempts as against Bobby TJsserys 44 firsts aboard 249 mounts. Both reins-men left this seaside oval over the week end to ride at Rockingham on the inaugural card. ... J. M. Keefe is leading trainer with 13 wins, while Woody Sed-lacek has 12.
