The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-04-04
TOD SL0ANE'S GREAT RIDE.
Cleveland Plain pealer.l

| land last saturday to be on hand for the
opening of the English racing season-he' 5
going to ride one of the best of 'en in
the Lincolnshire handicap, the initial
event-and we can stand by to hear of
him burning up the tracks over there I'M
| til Thanksgiving, when the British run
ming season. Closes said the trainer of a
string now out at Benning. Il saw the
| little chap over in New York last week,
and mes on edge. All of these yarns you
read in the yellows about little j. Tod dis
sipaGng and abusing himself are hasheesh
phantasies. He mixes with a swift gated
bunch. but he lets them do the carous-
ing, more than keeping up his end when
the footings are presented and takes his
part out in looking on. He has a lot OF
shrewdness in his diminutive noddle, and
he perfectly understands that a jockey
can no,more dissipate with IMMUNITY than
can contortionist.
Sloane will have the pick of English
horses to ride this season and | think II is
the safest Kind of a gamble that he Will
haul down at least three out of five events
in which he rides. The English folks, I've
observed during a couple of trips over
there. are extremely jealous of us in the
matter of sports. but they're fair and on
the level, all right and, although it must
go against the grain pretty hard, the most
eminent racing people in England have
put themselves in type to the effect that
SloaneS riding is an absolute revelation
to them and that there has been but one
jockey in the history of British racing
who could even APPROACH him-Fred Arch
er. Well perhaps need ]. Tod over there
this year to hold our end up in inter
national sport. for I've been told by some
pretty shrewd yachting sharpS that the
English have got boat this year that'll
probably beat us out in the run for the
American cup.
II saw Sloane ride most of his great
races in this country. including his win of
the Suburban on Ornament last year,
which was pretty gorgeous bit of riding;
but the best race he ever rode. to my way
of thinking was the very last race in
which he figured. in this country. This
was in the Autumn cup on the. last day
of the Sheepshead Bay meeting last
August. Not much was said about
Sloane's magnificent riding in this race at
the time, for some reason or other al
though, as 1 say, 1t was about the great
est race he ever rode. He says so him
self, and l suppose he ought to know: In
the first race on this day Sloane had
ridden the 2-year-old FLY Black Venus to
victory in a So GOO stake event, winning by
a block with the animal under him sec
ond or third choice in the betting. The
Autumn cup was the last race on the
card, and it was known that Sloane had
of days later. The Autumn cup is one
of the clissic events of the American turf,
and it is at two miles. Last year it was
run for a S5Oe0 stake. There were only
four starters. The great horse in the race
was The Friar, a Morris clipper who had
captured the same stake the year before.
and who was almost classed with Ben
Holiday as a slayer and weight carrier.
The next best horse was another Morris
horse-Mirthful, another crack-a-jack-a
long distance goer whose chances were
considered unbeatable for second money
These two We're coupled as the Morris
entry. Then there was Sir Vassar, a
horse that had captured many stake
events on the fiat over distances of ground,
and who had been Schooled over the Jumps
until he was practically invincible as
h1,rf lar nd etc a
good selling platter named George Boyd
a horse that had a good turn of speed,
but that had never done anything to war
rant the insertion of his name in the stake
class He had won a few races during
the season, but he was not considered
anywhere near the class of such horses as
The Friar and Mirthful.
fTherefore there was d heap of surprise
when the Jockeys names went up, and
the crowd say that Sloane was billed to
ride George Boyd. The bookmakers. as
well as the public had figured it out that
George Boyd ought to be about 10 to 1
shot in his company, but when it was an
nounced that Sloane was to ride the horse
the whisper. Something doing on George
Boyd went around. The bookies opened
up with the Morris entry at to 5 on,
George Boyd 8 to l. and Sir Vassar about
to l. Few of the plungers thought that
George Boyd had a chance in life against
Morris entry. The public. however be-
guiled by. Sloane's magic reputation,
whacked the books all over the ring on
the selling platter George Boyd, with the
result that at post time the Morris entry
was even money. and so was George
Boyd-even and out, the bookies declining
to offer place money on Sloane's mount.
"'They got off at the chute in process
sional order The Friar in the lead. Lit
tlefield was aboard of The Friar. The
public knew that The Friar had to win
his races out in front; that if he did not
at once take the lead he would sulk and
Col hoo 10 mn not n hnrcn
be held under double wraps for the great
er part of the journey and let down at the
finish. So when it was seen that The
Friar was way out in the lead by twenty
lengths or so at the quarter with Mirth-
full, his stable mate. next, and Sir Vassir
and George Boyd just trailing far in the
ruck the betters on the selling platter
ridden by Sloane sighed like furnaces.
The Friar went along beautifully. with his
enormous stride, and it looked something
easy for him passing the stand the first
time around. He was then about ten
lengths in the lead, Mirthful still second,
although already in distress, and George
Boyd going cody AMI easily, couple of
heads in front of Sir Vassar.
Turning the bend for the second mile
The Friar looked like a pipe, but Mirth-
full was in palpable trouble and at the
mile and a half Mirthfuls jockey pulled
the horse up dead. Mirthful had broken
down hopelessly. 1t was M1rtnful hnlsn
by the way. for the horse will never look
through a racing bride again. This left
George Boyd second. and goin = around the
far turn the people in the stand with field
glasses saw Sloane begin to bunch up mis-
selling platter. A roar arose such as you
don't often hear even in a race track
grand stand. The F'riar was still swinging
along like a giant but turning the bend
for home he was only two lengths ahead
of George Boyd, and Eittlefield was whip
ping. Sloane sat like a statue, with his
head down. just launching George Boyd
with his knees. Coming down the stretch
little George Boyd. the platter, held in
previously for just that minute. began to
pump like a black devil. He collared The
Friar in the last hundred yards and won
on the wire by an eyelash. I've been at
this game for twenty years. but 1t was
the most glorious finish / ever saw. There
was a plunger in the stand next to me
who had bet 5000 on The Friar: When
he saw George Boyd overtaking the great
stake horse he turned to me, with a dry
grin. and said:
maker and a jockey which meant that
little Sloane could have won on either
horse"
-<s~4D-e---
At Mullet's.
On Friday, April 18th, big shoe sale.
Your choice at $1.T5 a pair. See show