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class pace pace stake stake v i : ! IMMBk mk m : On the Trot By MOBBIE KURLANSKY Knox Hanover Shows Superb Speed Easter Bunny Wins Third of Season No. III. Colt Stakes Set Tonight SPORTSMANS PARK, Cicero, HI., June 28. In Friday nights feature event, a 12-class class pace pace stake stake v with irith the the as as yet yet highest highest i : purse purse of of the the current current with irith the the as as yet yet highest highest purse purse of of the the current current Chicago harness season, ,000. for two dashes, the four-year-old son of Hoot Mon, Knox Hanover, demon-s t r a t e d superlative speed qualities, which without any doubt make him the undisputed leader of a group of fast-class sidewheel-ers, ers, the the like like of of which which ! IMMBk mk m ers, the the like like of of which which never before had been assembled at a local sulky track. Driven by : cool Don Hall, who catapulted into prominence last fall when he drove four members of the Saunders Mills stable to marks in : better than two minutes, Knox Hanover I won both dashes in such great style that even the excellent track record-breaking performance of Battle Prince was overshadowed by the brilliance of this double victory by a unique combination of an outstanding horse and a remarkable reinsman. In the first dash, Knox Hanover out-sprinted his opponents around the first turn, but did not set too fast a pace once in the lead, which caused Mel Harmening behind Countess Vivian to come out with the filly, followed by Miss Shine-A-Mite. The field of six pacers reached the first quarter in the following: order : Countess Vivian, Miss Shine-A-Mite, Knox Hanover, High Frisco, Gay Order and BHaven. There was no change in the second quarter and when the -field reached the backstretch, .they were still going Indian file. If the race, up to that point, lacked suspense, the final quarter more than made up for the somewhat monotcus, if fast, procession during the first three-quarters mile. Nearing- the quarter pole, Hall took Knox Hanover away from the rail to start what might be called a rocket flight. Harmening, still a length in front with Countess Vivian entering the final turn, dug into the game daughter of Kings Counsel, while Miss Shine-A-Mite defended her second position, saving ground on the rail. In the middle of the turn, Knox Hanover had disposed of the Volomite mare and entered the homestretch on almost even terms with Countess Vivian. Once they were straightened out for the stretch, Knox Hanover instantly pulled away and, under hard urging, crossed the finish line two and a half lengths in front of Miss Shine-A-Mite, who outfinished Countess Vivian by a nose, while Gay Order, another half a length backalso finished resolutely. Knox Hanovers time for this first heat was a fast 2:03, two-fifths off Battle Princes track record, which very likely would have been broken if the pace in the first half had been a bit faster. The first quarter was raced in 31 seconds, the second panel in 32 seconds, third quarter in 31 and the final quarter was the fastest ever run on a Chicago half-mile track, a sensational 28 seconds for Knox Hanover, who was still one and a half lengths behind Countess Vivian at the final quarter pole. In the second heat, Knox Hanover had the rail and if some in the big crowd might have feared that the four-year-old again would leave offstrided as he did on two occasions over at Maywood when he had the pole position, their doubts were not justified. Knox Hanover left on his proper gait and again led his field around the clubhouse turn. His pace, however, was top slow for Countess Vivian, who took the lead on the backstretch, but her pilot, too, was not in a hurry, once on top. "When they passed the stands the first time, BHaven surged up from last position to take command. AU the way down the backstretch and around the final turn BHaven increased his speed and many of the spectators began to wonder if Knox Hanover would be able to catch the Illinois pacer, for Hall hadnt made a move. BHaven turned for home a good length in front of Knox Hanover, with the rest of the field too far back to threaten. At the "sixteenth pole, BHaven still had a clear lead over Knox Hanover, but the Hoot Mon colt then really began to fly. Twenty yards from the finish, Knox Hanover drew even with BHaven and at the wire it was the latter by a neck. After an extremely slow first quarter :33 and a jogging 1:06 for the first half, BHaven was clocked in 1:37 for the three-quarters, while the final time was 2:06, last half in 1:00, last quarter in :29 seconds. Knox Hanover, who paid .40 in the first heat and was a 1 to 2 faVorite in the second dash, added ,000 to his bankroll for seasonal, earnings of ,850 gleaned in 12 starts, of which he has won eight. Boy Corrells much-improved Easter Bunny, with Harry Burright in the sulky, won his third race of the season Friday, defeating a field of BB-class pacers by four lengths in 2:06. A trotter that is steadily on the upgrade, the five-year-old gelding, Red Blaze, annexed Fridays BB trot in 2:06, a new record for the son of The Abbot. Roy Riegle was at the reins . . Peter Vangundy, three-year-old pacing gelding trained and driven by Harmening, won his race, a 22-20-class pace, in 2:06 for a new mark . ..Hambletonian aspirant, His Victory, annexed a 19-class trot stake m 2:07 to lower his previous record by almost three seconds. Dee Stover drove the black gelding, owned by Mr. and Mrs. John H. Doesburg of Chicago. Three races in the series of Northern Illinois Colt Stakes will highlight Tuesday nights program, which consists of ten wagering events plus a schooling race. In the three-year-old trot, the winner of the last 6,000 Illinois State Fair Colt Stakes at Springfield, Bagdad, will meet a formidable foe in Mr. Shelt, who will be driven by Edgar Leonard.
