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Here and There on the Turf TurfCoffrotli Coffrotli Handicap and James JamesW W Coffroth Enchantments Peculiarities Peculiaritiesand and Chances In a spot where nature has dealt lavishly with her beauties where a golden sun makes for a hearts desire when the chill of a No ¬ vember December or January summons an urge for the balm of spring there has been established the capital of winter racing in America This place is Tijuana Mexico fif ¬ teen mihs south of San Diego Cal a thriv ing city rich in historical fact and legend and promising as to a great commercial future This San Diego is the most southwesterly city in the United States StatesIt It was six racing seasons ago or seven cal ¬ endar years that this western racing came into being beingTijuana Tijuana is now preparing with the eyes of the turf world turning toward it for its great ¬ est endeavor It is the annual renewal of the Coffroth Handicap at a mile and a quarter It will be decided March 25 It has 30000 added money this year and with the nornina lion and starting fees provided that fifteen horses go postward will have a total value of 37375 with 29S75 to the winner It will be the richest handicap in America Whos responsible 1 1James James Wood Coffroth president of the Ti ¬ juana Jockey Club The vehicle in which he rode to achieve the crown of impresario of western racing had as component parts hon ¬ esty ability and abiding faith of horsemen that he would carry out his every promise promiseJames James Wood Coffroth was never intended to be a salaried man His ability and desires to which was added a 100 per cen plus per ¬ sonality refused to be compassed even years ago by the routine arrival of a salary check This is the reason why tH Superior Court of San Francisco lost its best secretary and box ¬ ing was given a promoter who today still holds the record of having promoted more championship glove contests than any other Like a Columbus with a new world to con ¬ quer Coffroth turned his feet again from the beaten path and launched his dynamic energy in the building of a racing plant at Tijuana Then and there he became the emancipator of western racing and really a godfather in deeds to the men who breed thoroughbreds in the western country Racing had been leg ¬ islated out of California some few years pre ¬ vious Before its passing the breeding of thor ¬ oughbreds stood third in the list of California industries One has only to remember the 1 notable turf conquests of the late E J Luckj Baldwin when his Californiabred 1 Volante Silver Cloud Emperor of Norfolk and Rev el Santa Anita won glorious Ameri ¬ can Derbys at Chicago And there were not ¬ able achievements of other California gentle ¬ men in breeding horses to remind that this industry was of expansive proportions in the Golden State StateJames James Wood Coffroth is the one man who i has been responsible more than any other in the rapid strides being made in the restora ¬ tion of this business in California This rac ¬ ing venture of seven years ago in a land for ¬ eign to him gave an encouragement to the breeder which soon began to show its good effects in a restoration of this industry industryProbably Probably no amusement enterprise and quite correctly none concerning contests of ths blue blooded thoroughbred has ever successfully traveled the gantlet of obstacles like that defined in the history of 1hc Tijuana race tracks operation In brief it has survived a flood when in its infancy a world war and the uncertainties of passport regulations which however have long since bsen abrogated There were times when a man of less stout heart and one of less steadfastness of purpose would have turned from the task in despair Not James Wood Coffroth He is not of that stamp With the flood waters of 1916 scarcely receding he was rebuilding his plant He has surmounted every obstacle He has made the Tijuana race track a going concern He has solved perplexing problems and best of all he seems to thrive on this work He still is Sunshine Jim He smiles James Wood Coffroth was not born to racing He knew it merely as a casual patron years ago but he possessed a business acumen and executive ability that told him to engage officials whose names were synonymous with honest and en ¬ tertaining racing racingThe The Coffroth Handicap is near at hand Its first decision in 1917 was for a money value of 4000 On March 25 it will be heralded throughout the world as the richest handicap stake race in America On this day even before and long after the best wishes of a great army of sportsmen will be with James Wood Coffroth His and the success of his Tijuana are deserved Jus where Harry Payne Whitneys En ¬ chantment will fit in among the threeyear olds this year is a question This good son of Chicle and Enchanting being a gelding is barred from storting in the Preakness Stakes just as he will be barred in several of the other rich threeyearold fixtures but his be ¬ ing unscxed does not bar him from the Ken ¬ tucky Derby James Rowe has bright hopes for this fellow in that race and if he comes to hand as readily as is expected he will force consideration in that 50000 race raceEnchantment Enchantment was started nine times last year and was th3 winner of four races but his record would have been better had it not been for his slowness in leaving the post In all of his races he was particularly sluggish about leaving the barrier and that was a se ¬ vere handicap to overcome when racing over the twoyearold distances distancesThere There was one race his victory in the Ken ¬ tucky Jockey Club Stakes at a mile in which he showed decided Derby credentials In that race as was usual with him he was almost left at the post but the distance afforded an opportunity to offset the handicap and he was an impressive winner Then in his last race of the year the Breeders Futurity he was again virtually left at the post and in infact fact away so badly that no serious effort was made to catch the others othersOf Of course there is truth in the old saying that a champion docs not need excuses and that may apply to the son of Chicle and En ¬ chanting but the fact remains that taking a line through his twoyearold racing he is sure to show to better advantage over the threeyearold distances Many who saw the running of the 30000 Hopeful Stakes at Saratoga last August have every right to their opinion that Enchantment ran the best race The Whitney gelding was practically left at the post in a field of twelve and when he left the barrier he met with considerable inter ference for the reason that he had an inside position He closed an immense gap and with better racing luck would surely have at least crowded Dunlin in the finish finishThe The fact that Enchantment is a gelding will make his big threeyearold opportunities so limited that Rowe will make every endeavor to bring him to the post cherry ripe for the Kentucky Derby
