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Sportsmans Park By J J Murphy Meaux RedHot Contender for Jockey Honors Youngster Boasts Impressive Illinois Recor3 Collier Basile Suspended Jessop Recovers RecoversSPORTSMANS SPORTSMANS PARK Cicero 111 May 4 A red hot contender for the jockey honors at this meeting has loomed up in recent days in 20yearold Clarence Meaux a native of Abbesvule Young Meaux to all intents and purpose should now be at Cahokia Downs where he has ridden for the past few seasons In fact he had made plans to journey down state for the Cahokia session but when he began to show good saddle form here and his services became in demand he decided to remain at Sportsmans Park Meaux was third on the jockey list here Saturday morning with the leaders veteran Bob Baird and youthful Willie Collier but two winning mounts in front of him How ¬ ever Collier drew a 10day suspension for careless riding in the second race last Wednesday and will not be seen in action again at this session and Baird lost a days racing here when he flew to Mexico City Friday evening to have a mount in an important stake at Hipodromp de la Americas on Sunday That gives Meaux a slight edge in that he was engaged on half a dozen runners Saturday He could possibly be all even with Collier and Baird going into Mor days program when Baird will again be seen in action here First Gained Attention at Cahokia Downs DownsCahokia Cahokia Downs loss is Sportsmans gain The boy who won the first race of his career in June of 1954 was the leading jockey in Illinois that year He piloted six winners in succession at Cahokia Downs on the evening of August 5 1954 and compiled a record of 81 victories in 60 nights of riding at that course In 1955 Meaux topped the jockeys riding in the state with 68 winners at Cahokia and 46 at Fairmount Park Last season Clarence won 76 events in 58 nights of racing at Fairmount scoring with five of his six mounts one evening He later drew a 10day suspension following which he figured in three spills in eight days and was absent from the saddle until the opening of the Fair Grounds meeting at New Orleans His total winners Illinois in 1956 was 119 and for the year 130 Meaux was under contract to Felix de Mary when he first came to the races at a small track at Orange Texas He was with de Mary for a couple of years and has been free lancing since About a year and a half ago Meaux married his childhood sweetheart in Abbesville where his parents still reside The couple have no children as yet His cousin Louis Meaux is also a jockey Clarence rides at 110 pounds and his agent is Dudley Woolfolk WoolfolkJockey Jockey Collier was not the only rider to draw the wrath of the stewards this week Another to come under the iron hand of the officials was Mike Basile a vet ¬ eran Basile was suspended for 10 racing days for careless riding leaving the starting gate on May 1 He was on a horse named Sheer Madness and if the name means anything it could have been the horses fault Incidentally the thoroughbred that brought about Colliers penalty was Todays Story It was a sad one for Willie who following Saturdays program planned to go to his home at Keoukuk Iowa to rest up Jockey Job Jessop who was thrown Friday and taken to a Chicago hospital was back in action again Saturday He was kicked in the head by a horse but credits the newly adopted helmet from preventing seri ¬ ous injury Jessops mount the gray fouryearold Msgr Dugan owned by Carmody Vanscoy broke his left shoulder in the spill and was destroyed destroyedKeeneland Keeneland Sales Product Repeats The addition of blinkers once again proved bene ¬ ficial to a twoyearold when Nagol a son of Free For All after having been off badly raced around his field to take Fridays juvenile The race marked the second score at this meeting for Nagol who was purchased by by owner Dan Logan at the Keeneland sales last sum ¬ mer for 4000 He ran for a 10000 claiming teg Friday Jockey Robert Mundorf whose mounts won both ends of the Daily Double Friday is a 26yearold rider from Valentine Nebr He now has ridden seven winners at the session Ralph Salvino who spent the winter in Chicago looking after a dozen horses and his 12 children brought his runners back to the races in top shape A couple Picafriend and Asking have won at long prices Honey Carey beautiful daughter of Robert F Carey head of the Hawthorne course visited the Sportsmans Park press box for the first time Friday Miss Carey is secretary to her father who spent the week end watching the Derby at Churchill Downs Of the jockeys on the grounds Baird Jessop Howard Craig and Larry Gilligan have ridden in Kentucky Derbys DerbysIncidentally Incidentally Gilligan is an intelligent young man Invests his earnings in California real estate Is build ¬ ing a 20unit motel not far from Hollywood Park and has a couple hundred acres at Lancaster Calif on the edge of the Mojave Desert Andy Mabon who has horses here in partnership with his trainer A P Weller conducts a prosperous radio business in Chi ¬ cago Trainer Eddie Cole returned from Churchill ChurchillDowns Downs where he saddled Lady La Rue in Fridays Kentucky Oaks The filly also returned Apprentice ApprenticeContinued Continued on fag Fiftyfir SPORTSMANS PARK PARKBy By J J MURPHY Continued from Page Seven SevenMike Mike Mulkerrin accepted his first mount of the meeting Saturday Mike plans to go to Hazel Park for the opening of that session Horsemen banded together to give racing secretary Bob McAuliffe a birthday present in filling the races on time for the first time in many days McAuliffe imme ¬ diately recovered from an attack of the shingles Racing secretary Fred Burton opened his office at Washington Park Sat ¬ urday morning and Bennett Park arrived from Florida in time to give him a hand handThe The principals in the New York Ballet Company currently appearing at Chicagos Civic Opera House will be luncheon guests of president William H Johnston Monday One of the races will be known as the Nut ¬ cracker and among those appearing in the winners circle will be Maria Tallchief Melissa Hayden Diana Adams Mr and Mrs Andre Eglevsky and Nicholas Mag allanes Swoons Son sensation of Chi ¬ cago racing last summer will be seen in action at the Balmoral meeting Is expected to make his first start locally in the LaSalle Handicap May 18 He may meet the 1956 champion sprinter Decathlon in that event
