The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-07-25
GENIRY AND REIFF
Two Wichita Products Attracting
Fresh Attention.

Fresh Attention.
Two Wichita figures on the race course
are topmost just now. One is J. ReiR;
the other John R. Gentry. John r. Gent
~ has made the fastest mile of the seas
on, 2:03 on an Indiana track the other
day. ]. Reiff is called by the New York
Journal the greatest of Jockeys, not ex-
cepting Tod Sloane. The Journal devotes
a page to the Reiffs some. of the facts
It relates ara old and first appeared in
the Eagle; others are new. The Journal
says:
Johnnie Reiff is the new American
wonder of the English turf.
He is a little fellow Of fifteen years
who is making $4,000 a year.
He weighs but y pounds and stands
only Az feet high.
GAS hight as a flea he sticks 10 a horse
like a flea is what they say OF him
over in turf-loving London.
He is the youngest and lightest weight
licensed jockey in the world.
He has beaten Tod Sloane, the hitherto
jockey champion
He is ten years younger than Sloane
and weighs thirty pounds less.
He has been presented TO the Prince of
Wales
He has shaken hands with the Duchess
Of Marlborough
Johnnie Reiff began the season in Eng
land this year by winning a race on the
English horse Poitiers on the 26th Of last
month.
He has kept on adding to his victories
ever snice.
Little Johnnie Reiff was just getting
used to grand stand applause and be-
ing introduced to celebrities when he re-
ceived a new kind of iionizing.
The sight of this mite of a boy riding
TO victory the widest and gamest OF
horses has quite turned the heads OF game
loving English women, and they started
the custom of kissing the little jockey.
The first episode OF this sort occurred
last year on the Newmarket track
The American midget was mounted on
Bishopwood. a gigantic horse with a vic
ious temper. Just after the start Reif
lost control OF his animal and Uncle
Mac" his chief opponent, seemed TO have
the race well in hand. The plucky little
Kansas boy fought his mount fer an
eighth of a mile and brought him into his
stride close to the rail. Then with a ter
rife squirt he moved up on "UucIe Mac"
and won by a full length
1t was truly an grand stand" finish
Little Johnnie Reiff had turned his horses
head back to the judges stand and was
dismoun.ing.
A handsomely dressed woman rushed
up, caught him in her arms and kissed
him rapturousIy Blushing and wrigglins
himself free, the little fellow made his
escape IN a hurry.
That incident set the fashion for kiss
ing little Johnnie.
Johnnie Reiff does not live at fine Lon
don hotels and make the social preten-
sions that Tod Sloane does He stays
most of the time at Newmarket, near the
tracks. He is always on the alert. look
ing the horses over and exercising. In
this way he manages TO keep his weight
down.
The advantage he has over Tod Sloane
in the matter of weight IS considerable.
Sloane formerly rode at ninety pounds.
but he now has to train down to weigh
in at 1O3 pounds. This is Just thirty
pounds more than Johnny Reif.
Brown-haired with blue eyes and rudy
face. when running about In nickerbockers
In the winter, when not racing. Johnnie
devotes his time to reading and study.
He is especially fond OF history. He
went TO school regularly only three years
before he began his racing career But
ne has since picked up ABOUT, as much in-
formation as most boys IN the middle OK
a grammar school course.
His elder brother. Lester, first induced
Johnnie 10 take TO riding. Lester, who
IS q years old, has been a successful
jockey for nearly ten years Three years
ago he persuaded his little brother 20
come to New York. Johnn3e's first @ork
was a Morris park
He began riding three years ago and ex-
ercising horses on the track for EnOch
Wisba-d. the noted horseman-
He rode in several races IN the east in
1891 but did not win anything untn he
went west IN 1s9s.
His first winning mount vas Mary
Black. q. Washington Park track near
Chicago. Mary Black was what racing
men called - % / chance. But the
tiny jockey handled her - skiituliy that
he brought her under the wire frs The
women on the grancstsnd and OF TIA
Clubhouse lawn were the most enthus.-
as,ic ohee-ers.
~. seems just Ike a baby riding" they
said
John-fe's ac,1al weight that day vas
onIy aftyeieht pounds
Young RelT has = style % his own %
riding. Tod Sloane had se+ ne fashion Of
riding high Up on TIRE animals withs-s
and alraost hggg.ng dis necs- That lad
beer thought ne secret o. sEccess %
American jockpyshlp.
BIZ Johunss Eetn sits BOLT upright lie
rides his horse 20 victory with II more
apparent efgor- raan Il CT an exercising
3auut Il IS on'y Enan horse la ~-!ols
that TIE little feTlgse Shows Taen zlfn
7xnip ard spur ard zen re w9li fEbt IRE
animal into lire ard make am snox rs
psoYsv s-zt5e
~ the lats- messing az tha Harlem ara
Hawthorne frack X a. CHtcag5 &c pscaurs
q POPULAR fzYor5te- Tae cozrsEe ard 1aah
q TIE acy amszed ID ho-senen
II - IL. RS manager. Euoca Wis.,
ard took ts1e Roy - CzEsa-raz Fes@
scove6 many szc-szsea a. tas ozxsarss
a-ackz lie was s2a auaed as q proc ~.
YourE - Ref = 80 ass saown wszgs-
ius socxe5sasls. i ssnt merely IS ssazh-
- Eelz1t thst kAs made nirn wsn ~ 20
may mounts.
Isass year Toana4a Eew vezt - Eng
lard Tor sha FRS t4gze u4fs his a3er
s-otke- Lester Lester Is swszty shEes
years % al - exsests1cs1 socksg- Esat
&c sool sa1z4 thai a-s Sszaxer bE1tS-es