view raw text
■ ■ «■■■■"— mjmmim Ascot Park By Dick Kumble : Ascot Park Owner Interesting Personality Horace Adams Man of Many Achievements Surrounds Self With Best Men Available ASCOT PARK, Cuyahoga Falls. Ohio, April 30.— Horace Adams, president and sole owner of this race track, says that he is 60 years old. I dont believe him, ■ ■ and and neither neither would would anyone anyone given given and and neither neither would would anyone anyone given given an opportunity to watch him closely and listen to his interesting thoughts on a wide variety of topics until they study his achievements. He has accomplished more in part, of one lifetime than we could possibly include in this piece. To briefly sketch the background of the man who still appears in excellent physical trim, we begin with his childhood childhood and and preliminary preliminary school- «■■■■"— mjmmim childhood childhood and and preliminary preliminary school- schooling, all in the Cleveland area, finally resulting in his graduation from the law school of John Marshall College, and his setting up legal practice in 1929. Only one year later, he single-handedly formed the Industrial Advisors Bureau, Inc., which, now operates with a staff of more than 70 skilled employees. They are management consultants, specializing in payroll tax situations. It is not to be confused with an engineering organization as the May Company. The I. A. B. sen-ices many of the Midwests largest concerns, and much to his" pleasure, Adams has placed full authority in the hands of outstanding personnel. He entered the theater business many years ago, and formed one of the largest independent chains in the nation. He received the greatest honor in that field when the Allied States Association of Motion Pictures Exhibitors including almost 6,000 theaters elected him to its presidency in the city of Louisville, same place that Governor Happy Chandler converted, him to a Kentucky Colonel. Sound Theory of Operation Adams viewpoints on business in general, and racing in particular, are not shared by many. "Never do anything yourself when you can delegate it to someone else who knows more about it and will turn out a better product. I never bother peopleVhen I put them in charge of a project, and let the final results bear me out. I always aimed to retire at 50 and did so, moving to a winter home in Hollywood/Fla., but after three years began to get active once again. I-realized the potentialities of racing and, after .failing to obtain controlling interest of Bay Meadows on my basis, bought this track. "I knew the only way to make it a success was to get the BEST men available for the positions. I got Peter CDonnell for general manager when everyone told me it was impossible, and was overjoyed once again when I brought Charles Henry here as racing secretary. I hired Larry Bogenschutz and Pat Farrell as stewards, along with some of racings other outstanding officials, and filled every position at my track with the best. I gave them all a free hand, and simply stand by and watch the progress. Show business was always my specialty, and racing is a form of same. The public must be satisfied. Give them a good show, and youll do business. A bad show with bad facilities, and it will .show up in the figures. My greatest pleasure has been the overhauling of Ascot Park. Dont get me wrong, it was the others who did it, not me. How could I go wrong with that talent. You always get what you pay for in this country, and Ascot is living proof." Jockey Boyd Morris, an unkown in major racing circles, has compiled a fine record in his short span in the saddle. The 5 ft. 5 in., 108 pound native of Blan-chard, Oklahoma, is 21. He rode quarter-horses before coming onto a recognized track Phoenix three years ago. In 1957 Morris accepted 781 mounts and rode 15G winners, a percentage of .20. He ranked fifteenth in the nation in this category, but more prominent was the fact that among all the riders who competed in more than 500 races, only Avelino Gomez 34, Manuel Ycaza 33, Bill Hartack 28, and Willie Shoemaker 25 ranked ahead of him. Also-tied at 20 per cent were Clarence Meaux, Howard Grant, Guy Smithson and Francisco Saumell. Man on the Go Wont Lie Down Morris travels first class, according to the statistics, which do not lie. Three weeks ago he was galloping a horse in the morning" and suffered a severe pain in his side, plus cramps. He dismounted, and after an examination, was rushed to a nearby hospital for an emergency appendectomy. He returned to work last Saturday, and became sick to the stomach after his first "race. He cancelled his remaining engagements. Boyd rested over the week end, and made up his mind that he was ready to ride once more, proving it quickly by booting in both eds of the Daily Double plus one other winner on Mondays i rr?ram. This free-lance rider is headed for the big time and lias the equipment to make jg6od. Ojie of Silky Sullivans genuine admirers is William RBill" Mills, official starter at Ascot, who performs Identical duties at Santa Aiiita, Del Mar and Ak-Sar- Ben. He starts more 00,000 races than any other man in this country. The list includes the Santa Anita Handicap, Maturity, and Derby, and San Juan Capis-trano. One year he started seven of those rich renewals. ASCOT PARK By DICK KTJMBLE. Continued from Page Scren Mills, born in Denver, Colorado, looks more like a college fullback. He has two sons and two daughters, and his oldest. Bill Jr.. is a student at the Colorado College of Mines.- The elder Mills, now 45 years old, has a home in Arcadia, Calif., and, despite his large muscular frame, started in racing as a jockey almost 30 years back at Bain-bridge, .Ohio, Riverside Park in Kansas City, and Agua Caliente. He got too heavy and went to work for Clay Puett who invented the gate of the same name at Juarez, Mexico, and continued to "travel with Puett until he received his first appointment as starter at Omaha in 1938. Mills, who is known to bring many men fnto the sport-and train them to become efficient assistant starters, states that Silky is a good gate horse, and, contrary to the opinion of many people, breaks quite alertly from the barrier, -and then begins to drop behind, his field. Mills begins working on the schooling of two-year-olds at Santa Anita on November 1 each year. "There are some 600 yearlings ready for their les-. sons and it is my job to weed the group down to 225 for the races in mid*-December. The horsemen call me Mr. Mills when their youngsters begin their trials, but Im called quite a few other names when my list goes in." Bill Mills claims that the three basic reasons for horses acting up in starting gates are: "Lack of schooling, being frightened when first introduced to gate, and others who race too much are suffer-. ing from a condition of nerves."
