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Ancestor Defeats King Commander Weight Concession Factor in Appleton Belmont Fans Favor Phipps Chaser; Evening Out Wins Flat Feature Over Dispute By BOB HORWOOD Staff Correspondent BELMONT PARK, Elmont, L. I., N. Y., May 5. — A crowd of 19,675 that turned out in hot, sultry, and occasionally tempestuous weather, was treated to a thrilling contest in the 34th running of the ,150 Charles L. Appleton Steeplechase. Profiting by a 28-pound advantage in weight, Mrs. Ogden Phipps Ancestor scored by three and a half lengths over Lawrence R. Troianos 1954 champion, King Commander. Eight lengths farther back after setting a blistering pace for almost a mile and three-quarters of the about two-mile journey came James F. McHughs River Jordan, while Mrs. C. E. Adams Errolford was four lengths out of the money. Ancestor, who was scoring his sixth straight and his second at this meeting, was the favorite, paying .20 after getting the distance in a clever 3:41%, only two and a fifth seconds off the track record held by Mrs. Phipps Oedinus. Mrs. Phipps netted ,400 as the winners share of the purse and was presented with the memorial cup by Col. Francis j Appleton, brother of the late Charles L. I Appleton, who was for years top rider for Greentree Stable, which donated the trophy. Frank "Dcoley" Adams rode the Challedon gelding brilliantly. River Jordan Off Fast After a false start in which Ancestor was on his way, River Jordan took a swift lead at the actual start, opening up several lengths on Ancestor, who was followed by Prince Glorieux, with King Commander a distant fourth. The order didnt change until the middle of the backstretch the j second time around, when Pat Smith wick asked King Commander to move and Condor II. fell. Taking the water jump the first time, River Jordan took off early and put in a tremendous leap, but he fenced I well the rest of the way, as did all of the [ others with the exception of Condor II., j who made a couple of very slight bobbles before he came down at the eighth fence. | While River Jordan continued to enjoy , a daylight lead after clearing the next-to-j last fence, it seemed that Adams was playing cat-and-mouse with the leader and was not unduly disturbed by the brisk rush of King Commander. Rounding the final bend, both Ancestor and King Commander swept past the pacemaker, and the pair were on almost even terms coming to the j last obstacle, but Adams had only to use j his stick once to induce Ancestor to draw away. Ancestor took that final fence cleanly and drove straight for the wire, while King ! Commander, probably tiring under his 162 pounds, bore in somewhat. In the run through the stretch, Ancestor held his rival safe and probably could today have beaten him at a considerably smaller margin of weights. Whether or not this will be j true when King Commander has had a j race under his girth promises to make the | future chase stakes here of growing interest. ! Evening Out Tired at End I Making her first start since she finished third in the Diana Handicap at Saratoga last August, Mrs. George D. Wideners Evening Out captured the Creole Maid Purse that followed the steeplechase without feel-j ing Eddie Arcaros whip, but was a very j tired filly as she staved off the belated rush ; of C. V. Whitneys Dispute by a neck. Jack | C. Pollards Ever Bright was a length away after getting to the lead for a few strides at the three-furlong pole, while Eddie Hol-tons Trisong was another length out of the money. Heavily favored by the crowd who remembered her earlier brilliance, Evening Out paid .6.0 and completed a triple for Arcaro, who won the third on Long Row and the fourth on Pollys Jet. The handsome daughter of Shut Out — Evening Belle, by Eight Thirty, stepped the six furlongs in a creditable 1:11% over a fast track. The varieties of weather offered during the afternoon did not include rain. Evening Out was rated confidently behind the pace tf Miss Weesie and Ever Bright, who raced as a team and took the lead above the quarter pole. Ever Bright held on well, however, and Evening Out didnt draw clear. Meanwhile, Dispute was a distant trailer most of the way and was still six lengths bebind the winner at the eighth pole, when she suddenly responded to Paul Bailevs urging and literally flew through the final yards. In another stride, the gray filly would almost certainly have won as Evening Out appeared to stagger a trifle in the last 20 vards. An odds-on choice finished an ignomin- Contmued on Page Forty-Four Ancestor in Handy, Popular Appleton Steeplechase Win . Continued from Page Seven ious sixth after leading in the early stages and a paddock tip scored a daylight triumph in the King Cole Purse. The favorite was C. TJlrick Bays Viking Victory, a son of Coaltown, who had won impressively for his debut at Jamaica, but backed up steadily after leading for about three of the five furlongs. The winner was Barclay Stables Pollys Jet, a chestnut son of Polynesian from Marys Dell, by Ca£e Ace, who had won his only other start at Gulfstream Park. With Eddie Arcaro in the saddle, Pollys Jet scored by two and a half lengths over Mrs. Henry H. Hechts First Cadet, who led Mr. Hechts Beau Fond another two lengths. The winner paid 1.70 and was clocked in :57%. Viking Victory is the second disillusioning juvenile to appear in the silks of the former Ambassador to Norway. Bays JNoor-saga finished third to Smooth Stride and First Cadet in the Rosedale Stakes at Jamaica after having won by eight lengths. Immediately after this debacle, a sudden and violent thunder and lightning storm drove the crowd from the lawn.
