The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-08-22
FASTESTFIRSTHEAT
RECORD BREAKING PERFORMANCE
BY STAR POINTER AT WASH
INGTON PARK.
BEST FOURTH QUARTER ALSO.
PATCHEN BEATEN IN STRAIGHT
HEATS BY THE GALLANT BAY
PAGER.
THE CHIEF EVENT ON THE CARD.
Fifteen Thousand People Out at Chi
cagO to See the Great Special
Match Race.
BEST FOURTH QUARTER ALSO.
THE CHIEF EVENT ON THE CARD

CHICAGO, Aug. 21.-Those who went
to the Washington park course this
afternoon-and there we're some fifteen
thousand of them-saw the fastest first
heat ever performed and probably the
fastest fourth quartz. The conditions
were good for fast time. The track
was springy and fast, and the weather
was warm; but, during the ea1lier part
Of the afternoon, there was quite lit
tie breeze which the PAGERS had to
breast through the half-mile back
stretch The chief event on the card
was the match race between Joe Patch
en-, with a record of 2:O1ia, and Star
Pointer, record 2:01%. The conditions
were that they should pace three heats
and to have the inside position alter
mated.
The toss of a coin gave Patchen the
pole for the first and third heats. Not
Withstanding this advantage and the
fact that he had a quarter Of a second
the better of his opponent in the mat
ter of records, the race demonstrated
that Star Pointer was too fast for him,
at least on this occasion, for the lat
ter won all three of the heats handily,
outfooting the black horse.
For the first heat they were given the
word and went away we'll together.
Rounding the first turn, Patchen Sc
cured lead of a length. The first
quarter was covered III :3O1a, a POP gait,
which proved to be the rating for the
heats. Turning into the far side they
faced the wind, but Pointer began to
come up, tapping his antagonist and
Cd Hn h01f mil
being done in 100 fiat, or :291a for the
second quarter, a 1:5S gait. Then the
wind and the terrible pace began to
tell on them and the timers caught
them at three quarters post in 1929,
or 2:10 gait for the third quarter.
At that point Pointer, on the outside,
had fallen an open length behind
Patchen. Swinging into the straight
McClary called on the bay horse and
he responded gamely with one of the
greatest bursts Of speed ever Seen on
trotting track Steadily, inch by
inch, he crept upon the black stallion.
Curry shook up his horse, lifted him,
laid the lash with singing emphasis
on his flank. He responded nobly and
let out another link, pacing without
waver like a piece of well-balanced
machinery. But he could not shake off
the big bay. Inch by inch, Pointer
crept I'D on him. Now the cry was
''Patchen wins as they neared the
Wire, but twas met with the answer
ing cry Pointer wins" And he did
win, but it was only in the last half
dozen strides, and only by nose. The
time for the mile was 2:O2, and
a first heat record was marked
up. This made the time of the
last quarter :291a seconds. If the fact
that Star Pointer was an open length
to the bad when the judges caught
Patchen's time at the three-quarter
pest is taken into consideration, it is
evident that Pointer must have trotted
the last quarter in about 90 seconds, or
at a 1855 gait, which was probably
never before equalled in the fourth
quarter of a race in which previous
quarter had been trotted at a 1:56 gait.
The strength with which Pointer fin
ishe9 in this heat made it almost a