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REFLECTIONS By Nelson Dunstan Acara Captures Kings Plate Delaware Opens 30Day Meet Thirteen Stakes Will Be Run National Stallion Draws Best TORONTO Ont May 27 Before one of the largest Woodbine throngs of all time they tell us 38000 the colors of H C Hatch were victorious for the fourth time in the his ¬ toric Kings Plate with Acara the winner and his stablemate Ompalo second Before the race Canadian veter ¬ ans told us it was the most open renewal in the past 20 years but at the finish the open daylight between the Hatch colorbearers and their opponents had ti 3 j ve rans wondering how they theycould could have figured it that way Acara is a gray colt by Belfons Luress by Sweepster and was bred by his owner His time of 154 was the fastest since Archworth won in 154 back in 1939 Bobby Watson lead ¬ ing jockey of the Woodbine meeting gave his mount a splendid ride and was a definite factor in the Hatch triumph Seldom has a Kings Plate winner scored so easily From the head of the stretch it was obvious that the winner was home homeThe The Woodbine track differs from any in the States In some ways Kings Plate Day is remindful of Preakness Day at Pimlico The col ¬ orful ceremonies of peacetime re ¬ newals have been discontinued until a happier day but with the Army and Royal Navy uniforms standing out in bold relief the scene is an im ¬ pressive one nevertheless Wood ¬ bine stewards still use a stand in the centerfield and when we first viewed it we were reminded of the Saratoga of a quartercentury ago Only English racing could duplicate the Highlanders band that in kilts parade up and down the centerfield playing at the top of their lungs We could never tell one bagpipe tune from another The Royal Box in front of the clubhouse holds many dignitaries from other countries but loyal Canadians will tell you and very proudly that some five years ago the King and Queen witnessed the Kings Plate from that box In the morning hours we sneaked up in the stand and placed one foot in that box just for luck AH kidding aside Woodbine on Kings Plate Day is a sight we will never forget One thing that impressed us greatly was that 30000 fans were present and there was little confusion Imagine that in a track about onehalf the size of Belmont Park ParkDelaware Delaware Park will open on Monday and although there will be no Daily Doubles there is every evidence that the fans in the Wilmington area will see some fine horse racing betwen now and July 4 the closing day of the meeting Thirteen stake events are scheduled and many of the best horses in the land have been named for them Almost a half million dollars will be dis ¬ tributed to horsemen during the 30 days Post time has been set back to 330 eastern war time so that the traffic will in no way interfere with commuters or with wartime activities in that area Steeplechasing has always played a prominent part in the Del ¬ aware meeting and after June 14 the day Aqueduct ends its meeting it will again be ¬ come a prominent factor in the sport at the Wilmington track Among the fixtures to be renewed are the Diamond State Stakes Delaware Oaks Kent Newcastle Handicap and the Sussex Handicap No less than 60 have been named for the Kent including Pensive and other stars of the threeyear old division The Delaware Oaks has drawn the nominations of Twilight Tear Miss Keeneland Thread o Gold Everget Boo jiana Whirlabout Mrs Ames Plucky Maud and Cocopet This race will be re ¬ newed on June 8 8The The Suburban Top Flight and Bel ¬ mont Stakes are the three big races this week at Belmont but with all that interest is high in the National Stallions Stakes which will be co featured with the Belmont on Satur ¬ day A few days back we wrote of the high rating that veterans have given many of this years twoyearolds It is doubtful if any former renewal of the National Stallion boasted so many beautifully bred youngsters and also a group by imported stal ¬ lions who show very clearly how the war has benefited the thorough ¬ bred in this country Not the least of these importations is Mahmoud whose Jeep and Alabama arc both eligible for Saturdays race Pericles will not be a starter but William Hells colors will be carried by Spartan Noble the Bull Dog Nimble Hoof colt who ran third in his first outing and gives every evidence of improvement The National Stallion will develop into the best twoyear old race so far this season and it will do much toward shaping tho juve ¬ niles before the horses move over for the Aqueduct meting which opens next Monday MondayA A recent news item said that a San Mateo inventor has obtained a patent on a motion picture machine designed to pho ¬ tograph an entire race This machine operating on a track in the center field will hardly appeal to racing fans as it smacks too much of dog racing and its nevertobecaught rabbit We doubt very much if such a device will ever come into popular use even though some track head who likes to toy with experiments may try it as a novelty if nothing else With such a contrivance playing on them constantly the jockeys are likely to be cautious in fact it may have a tendency to make them overcautious and thus take out of racing same of that will to win which is just as important in a rider as it is in the horse Furthermore this new camera would in no way duplicate the photo finish now being used as the auto on which tho camera is erected would na ¬ turally bo in front of the horses at the finish line A true picture of the finish could not be obtained from that angle
