Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-11-29
Horses at Benning Raced in
the Rain.
TWO FAV0RITES WON
KOMOKA AND AZELINA UPSET
CALCULATIONS OF BETTERS.
All Ready for Carlisle Georgetown
Game-McGovern and Nelson Match
ed-Golf at Pinehurst.

sport yesterdays gathering at Benning
fully demonstrated The stand and club
house We're well patronized. while there
seemed as many patrons as on fair days on
the walks, In the paddock and betting
ring. District sport lovers cannot be
classed as fair weather BIRDS after yes
terday's goodly attendance.
While the rain had not hurt the track to
any great extent it affected it enough to
handicap horses that are not partial to soft
going and that perform best when they
can hear their heels rattle 1t was prob
ably two seconds slow to the mile. enough
to give horses that have shown well on
slow tracks shade" over competitors
that have not. And several of the
events upset all calculations as to form
the first four favortes going down like
chaff in a high wind.
The dismay of the talent at this stage of
the afternoons proceedings was something
ludcrouS to witness, and speculation on the
last two races was of the hurricane Or
der. While many of the losers evened up
matters on the last two events, won by the
favorites, others got in deeper on other
horses.
The wide range of speculation at this
meeting has surprised ever veteran book
makers. So many horses are backed in al
most every race that conservative layers
can make "a round book" on such events
If they chose. But the trouble WIN most
of the layers is that they do not stick
closely to booking principles, but hold
this horse and lay that one, until they
virtually become hackers themselves.
Long Shots Paralyze the Talent.
That a horses price is not by any means
always O safe barometer as to his chances
has been the case in racing from time i'm
memorial. and every day at Benning should
impress this axiom more emphatically on
the public Yet. as In the case of Echodale
on Monday, horses like Azelina and komo-
kar close up In their previous essays, were
neglected in the betting yesterday, to the
chagrin of form players, who saw them win
at the comfortable price of 10 to l about
each
The eighteen horses in the first event
looked such difficult problem to unravel
that some long headed operators kept out
of the betting ring rather than be tempted
into investing on such an uncertainty. Free
booter and Lochinvar Were backed as il
the race was match between them, the
partisans of each being remarkably conf
dent. and the dismay of these knowing
ones when three 10 to l shots filled the
places at the finish and the favorites no.
where was enough to make even one of the
horses smile.
Freebooter did not have the best of luck
in a rather struggling break that was all
against his chance, as well as that of Yer
ness and Gavin c. Lochinvar. however,
had no excuse on this score and
of the first division from the start, with
Subtle and Azelina. In the long home
stretch, however, where Lochinvar did his
successful stunt four days before with
better horses, he was outrun in unaccount-
able fashion by horses that on form did not
look to be in his class. So was Subtle. how
ever, and hackers of the choices looked
their amaZement at AzelinaS easy win with
Suffice and Goldf1eur both beating Lochin-
var out. 1t was a most unexpected result
for Iochinvar'S hackers.
Lochinvar's Bad Race.
Lochinvar, a horse that is at his best over
sheavy track. defeated Scotch Plume and
Platoon on Friday on a fast track Yester-
day. on a track some two seconds slow, he
is beaten off by horses that. Platoon can
lose and probably Scotch Plume also. TAX
ing the line through Platoon, Lochnvar
should have walked in a victor but
instead OF that he walked in outside of
the money to the utter confusion of recent
form. Racing, as the Indian says about
the white man, is very "onsartin."
Goldfieur closed big gap in the run home
and the Carson gelding was running over
all but Azelina at the end. Suffice more
than ran up to her previous race which she
miss to be reckoned with. Freebooter's
close fifth emphasized his misfortune at
the start.
Komoka's success at 10 to 1 was almost
great a shock to the talent as that of
Azelina- Like the latter. he was meeting
horses such as Andrew Mack Nutcracker
Jane Holly and others. who, judged by the
prevailing quotations. could beat him
shoes to plate as Wanderer Jim Nc
Cormick used to say. Even Tom Ryan.
Komoka's owner, was uncertain. as to how
he would perform in the going, although he
placed some money away from here.
But Andrew Macks preliminary was good
enough to send the race birds as we'll as
the club house contingent to his standard,
and rush on him supplanted Nutcracker
as favorite, both carrying the bulk OF the
money waged the race. Many of the
layers would not accept all the Andrew
Mack money offered them.
Komoka's Great Stretch Run.
Considering that Komoka at the start was
squeezed and knocked back to the extreme
rear. and that at the big tree on the home
turn he was only in sixth place with five
horses ahead of him. the horses successful
stretch run was revelation to the crowd
One by one he picked up his horses and
actually won cleverly at the end. 1t was
one of the gamest and most sensational ex-
hibitions of the meeting. and to add to its
merit komoka was carrying equal weights
with the favorites.
Nutcracker looked slightly lame going to
the post, and Andrew Mack did not get
away any too well. Added to this Jones
anxiety caused him to make up his ground
too quickly, and by the time he reached the
homestretch the long drive told against him.
Fiat finished like slayer.
Samson's stable companion, Royal Scot
in the second event, attempted to emulate
the formers achievement on Monday but
failed signally as the slow track was evil
IDENTIFY not to his liking. Some good judges
played both Akbar and Paeon to beat him,
and they wore him down after tussle in
the homestretch
There quite some swerving In the
race. Royal Scot carrying Euripides out in
the upper homestretch while Paeon swerv-
ed under punishment in the last hundred
yards. narrowly missing Royal Scot. who
was at his saddle skirts. The start was all
against Pulsatiller. Meddler Jr and Bob
Edgren, who might as well have been pull
ed up for all the chance they had.
Hocus Pocus No Joke.
Hocus Pocus was far from a joke In the
second two-year-old, fourth on the card.
The Horoscope FLY warmed up so well that
there was a rush to back her. and as the
stable commission also went In at the same
time the layers chopped her odds right and
left On form Nellie Burns large following
as favorite was justified, but she failed to
make good after Hocus Pocus had opened
up a big gap in the first quarter by her
quick break at barrier rise.
Humpty Dumpty showed speed. but he
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