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Reflections By Nelson Dunstan -— Madden Said: Opinions Die, Records Live Eddie Arcaro Talks on Fixing of Races Film Patrol Ended Monkey Business NEW YORK, N. Y., May 9.— John E. Madden, one of the countrys greatest breeders, once said: "Opinions die, but records live." That appears to be the case, but down through the years many turfmen have advanced opinions that should have lived on. Scarcely a week passes but that someone qualified offers an opinion, and one that we recently read and gave us great satisfaction was Eddie Arcaros comment on "fixing." In Look Magazine, Arcaro declared: "Id be a fool to say there havent been fixed races in the past, or that Ive never seen horses that I felt were being held. But that was in the days before the Film Patrol. Racing has grown into a multi-million dollar proposition. When they established the Film Patrol they put an end to much of the monkey business at the tracks. Figure it out this way, on any day of racing around New York how much money could you give Ted Atkinson, Eric Guerin, Hedley Woodhouse or myself to fix a race? You cant do it by tying up just one rider, so youd have to handle all of us, and remember these boys make from 00,000 to 50,000 a year. Assuming that you could get the top jockeys to take that kind of money, where would you place your bets? If you stepped to the mutuels and bet 0,000, youd murder the horse, and if you tried to place it outside the track, who would handle it?" Jockeys Do Not Have All the Answers" We discussed this subject with Arcaro many years ago when we were riding to Providence or Boston — we have forgotten which. But we have not forgotten what he said", while he was not as positive in those days as he is now, it must be remembered that racing today is as clean as any sport you can mention. Arcaro dispelled the belief that jockeys know who is going to win. His mother once said to him: "Eddie, why dont you give me some winners?" Eddie answered: "If I .could pick winners, Mom, I would not have to ride., It is strange how many people entertain the thought that jockeys know more than the rest of us about the outcome of a horse race. The average jockey can hardly be termed a handicapper. While they may have an opinion, it is little more than a guess. Arcaro has been through it all and he is not only honest, but we have always found him very frank. We remember standing with Joe Notter, who rode Regret to victory in the Kentucky Derby, when a friend walked up to him and said: "Joe, whos going to win?" Notter shrugged his shoulders and said: "I imagine the best horse." True, opinions die, but we wonder if our old friend Freddie Hopkins is correct in his when he says that Nashua is a good horse, "but not to be classed with those of the past, not even with Native Dancer." Hopkins trained one of the greatest horses of the century and that was Equipoise, the "Chocolate Soldier" of some 23 years ago. In a discussion with Bill Bloome, Hopkins mentioned Grey Lag, Exterminator, Boniface, Cudgel and others of a bygone day. "Nowadays the grade drops sharply for the top few," he said. "Nashua hasnt met up with that kind of contention. Native Dancer has to be placed with the best. He tackled good horses." There we have the bid, old question of attempting to compare horses who raced in different periods. While Hopkins has every right to his opinion, he is condemning the present group of handicap performers as a rather mediocre lot. While there may have been more top horses in years gone by, there could hardly be the difference in class and quality that Freddie would have us believe. No horse can go out and do more than beat the opposition that is sent against him and Nashua has done that about as well as any horse since he was a two-year-old. We agree with Marshall Cassidy, who, when asked to estimate the "greatness" of Nashua, said: "Lets wait a year." Nashuas Mark Cannot Be Disputed [ The opinion of "Sunny Jim" Fitzsimmons is in direct contradiction with that of Hopkins. Until three years ago, Sunny Jim stoutly maintained that Gallant Fox was the best horse he ever trained. This year, he has said on several occasions that Nashua is the best he has ever had in his care. As this writer sees it, the present handicap division is a fairly good one and Nashua is by far the best of the group. In the Grey Lag Handicap last Saturday he redeemed himself for his defeat in the Gulfstream Park Handicap in which he finished fifth to Sailor, the ill-fated horse who might have gone on to be a champion. No one can take from Nasliua the records he has made. He is almost on the top rung of the money-winning ladder. As much as we respect the opinion of our friend Hopkins, it may be that by the end of this year he will have to eat his words. What puzzles us is that if Hopkins is behind a mutuel window every afternoon how he gets out of his booth to see Nashua race?
