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I Weighing In By Evan Shipman Seasons Shortest Priced Choice Loses Off Surface DidNot Suit Boston Doge May Not Have Been Sharp After Injury BELMONT PARK, Elmont, L. I., N. Y., May 2.— Deprived of his aura of invincibility, Boston Doge is, of course, just as good a colt this morning as he was be fore the defeat in the Swift Stakes, administered last Saturday by Nances Lad and Informant. The little fellow had run up a remarkable series of 10 victories — the same number as was credited to Native Dancer before the gray champions dramatic misadventure at Churchill Downs — and this last test at scale weight against adversaries many of whom he had met and humbled before, appeared his for the ask- I ing. The week-end crowd, either convinced by what it has itself seen of Boston Doge or persuaded by enthusiasts such as this observer, sent the New England colt to the post at odds of one to five, or the shortest-priced favorite of the young Long Island season. No valid excuse can be offered, Boston Doge was simply beaten. Hal Price Headleys Georgian cut out a torrid early pace, while Boston Doge, racing on the outside of horses, was always within striking distance. With a quarter of a mile to go, just as they looped for home and with the pacesetting Georgian wilting badly, jockey Eric Guerin was seen to make a serious demand on the favorite. Nances Lad was charging on the leaders along the rail, while Informant was sticking it out bravely after having disposed of Georgian, but Boston Doge had no response to offer as Guerin plied his whip. Taken to the inside in a last, desperate attempt to save ground, the previously unbeaten colt did as he always does; he gave his best. But on that particular afternoon, Boston Doges best Tvas mot good enough. No Alibis for Swift Defeat No, there were no alibis for Boston Doges downfall in this renewal of the seven-furlong Swift, but, now that the race is over, an explanation, or rather extenuating circumstances do occur to us. As Guerin later said, he did not like the drying-out strip he found on Saturday. Between the turns, Boston Doge found a dry path and, for a furlong or so, his jockey says he was running easily; then, straightened out for home, the surface was sticky and holding again, and the favorite was floundering. Last fall at Narragansett, Boston Doge encountered slop. In the Rhode Island race, he splashed his way to an easy, eight-length victory. Last Saturday, the Belmont strip was classified as "good," the latter condition notoriously tiring, and we may not be fa off the mark if we ascribe Boston Doges defeat to the rough footing. And another thing, the margin between a winning performance and a six-length defeat, such as Boston Doge met with, is by no means as great as it appears at first sight. Distribute the second or so that it represents in time over a distance of seven furlongs, and you will grasp our point. Even a trifling loss of condition will account for the set-back, and, in retrospect, it is hardly far-fetched to doubt Boston Doges condition. In his previous start — the Governors Gold Cup at Bowie — he had received cuts on the near hind leg-nothing serious mind you, but still enough to keep him on the sidelines for the running of the recent Chesapeake Stakes at Laurel. In the best of circumstances, Boston Doge is trained with almost no work between engagements, and this time we believe he was a little "short." Like any other athlete, a race horse can have a "bad" day, Margin Between Great and Good All this brings us to the question of terminology. When we speak of a "great horse" — a Native Dancer, a Tom Fool, a Citation or a Count Fleet — we mean a horse who is intrinsically 10 pounds or more better than the best of his contemporaries. That is a serviceable definition, and yet, as you will recall, even those champons we have cited were beaten on occasion. The turf is very jealous of that adjective, and long periods may pass when it is not put to use. It is generally conceded that a "good horse" is one who either wins stakes from his contemporaries with scale weight up, or who can win handicaps when, carrying scale weight. It has long been our opinion that colts or horses failing to meet that standard do not deserve a chance at stud, and it may come as a surprise, in studying the records, to discover* what a small proportion of horses in training will qualify. Beyond any doubt, Boston Doge is a "good" colt, and, as we have emphasized, that is not light praise; However, even at his own sprinting distances, he is not 10 pounds better than the best of his contemporaries, and the fate that finally caught up with him oif Saturday had been lurking in the offing all the while. It might well have happened last winter in the Bahamas Handicap at Hialeah; that too was one of his "off" days, but, aided by sheer luck as well as by his admirable competitive spirit, he got up that afternoon to catch the same Nances Lad who this time in the Swift was not to be caught. Even those horsemen who are fondest of game little Boston Doge will not waste time in bewailing this defeat; they understand only too well that campaigned long enough, it had to come. The only real damage done is to his stature as a box-office lure, and that may eventually be restored, and on a less-fickle basis, if he justifies the high regard in which many of us continue to hold him.
