Show STARTING BOSSES SOME OF THE REASONS WHY THIS 13 A i FICULT BUSINESS Why It Is Harder Hero Than In Other Countries Bother of Short Dashes Popular Pop-ular Mlsucdcrstandines of Good and Bad Starts Starting race horses is a fine art and the man who fancies it isnt will never be convinced until he stands flag in hand facing 10000 persons and with a dozen i or so thoroughbreds ridden by anxious I jockeys upon the track each rider doing his best to get an advantage over his fellows In 19 cases out of 20 it is not the thoroughbred that is to blamo for tho trouble at the post nor is it the jockey directly but it is the owner trainer or some speculator in the background back-ground who has told the jockey to get off in front JiO matter what happens and who has promised to pay his fine oi reimburse him for any penalty he may incur in carrying out instructions It ts all very well to sit in the grand stand and criticise tho work of the starter One must try the business himself to appreciate its difficulties and its trials It is a much harder task to start racehorses race-horses as we race in this country than in England France Austria or Australia Aus-tralia where the pace is very slow at he start and a length or two advantage when the flag falls does not count for much With us and especially of late I years since the system of short dashes has become so popular with horse owners own-ers which by the way has had such a depressing influence on the improvement improve-ment of the blooded horse the style has been to ride pellmell from the start and races are won and lost very frequently frequent-ly when th9 flag falls Judgment of pace is fast becoming a lost art and even our best jockeys now with very rare exceptions have no more idea of race riding than to get away well and take tho shortest course home in the quickest possible fashion Consequently very boy becomes imbued with the idea that to win ho must get off ia front The reader can easily picture to himself him-self the scene at the post when then are 15 or 20 horses many of them ridden rid-den by boys not 1G years of ago all ot whom have been toldsome of them with threats and others with promises of large rewardsto get the best of the start Any visitor to our race tracts is familiar with the scene at the pot Half a dozen horses will rush away ai a false break when there is no possible chanco for an equitable start and when they come trotting back and before they have had time to wheel and get into line thco that remained behind tha first time will dash out and run perhaps a hundred yards leaving tho first squad In their places This goes on indefinite lyTho I Tho public iu also familiar with tho sight of one or more horses standing motionless some lengths behind their Competitors TLo starter asks tho rider of the horses in advance of the laggards to wait until they have taken their po sitious Each boy seems to think it is his bounden duty to walk his horse when those in the rear attempt to move up at a walk and to break away madly if an attempt is j made by those behind to come up at a run A starter should have a thorough knowledge of racing should be a man of a high degree of intelligence be quick of eye and hrmO and above all be of unimpeachable integrity The issue is-sue of mi ny thousands of dollars oftentimes often-times hundreds of thousands of dollars is decided DV tho fall of his red flay and it is his duty to see that every horse no matter by whom he is owned has an equal chance when he leaves the post Every effci is made to catch the horses in motion and on as nearly even terms as possible The eye must take in the field in a twinkling and if the judgment is that the start is satisfactory satisfacto-ry the hand will act in unison with the eye and tho brain Very often horses are in bad places und what might look tc be a good star from the grand stand could be a poor one in the judgment of tho starter and the flag docs not fall Criticism follows and generally it is of the harshest and most unjust character Some horses aru quicker on their feet than others and will make a good start look like a poor one through their ability to get underway under-way much more rapidly than their competitors com-petitors A good start when the flag drops becomes to tho unthinking and ignorant a poor start and abuse is heaped heap-ed upon the head of the official From time to time mechanical appliances appli-ances for starting race horses have been invented but they have not icon practical prac-tical and have not achieved success A swinging gate to be raised by electricity electrici-ty was spoken of some time ago but fractious thoroughbreds could not begot be-got near it There are again horses that are not to be controlled at times and collisions with the obstacle would undoubtedly be of daily occurrence Then too it would take months of drilling drill-ing to get horses to overcome the idea that they were not going to run into the gate This and many other objections objec-tions can bo raised against this system I A western inventor has patented a gate to I to lowered before the horses whil they stan at the post which may be 1 moved away from them at a rapid rate I rf speed by electric power the barrier moving onward and pward at the same ¼ bao iTew York Sun |