Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-01-17
RACING STEWARDS
PUZZLED OVER DATES
PimIico's Late Opening May
Postpone Season in New
York State.

NEW YORK. January 1.-THE stewards
of the Jockey Club are just now puzzled
over the racing dates for the season. says
the New York World. How to allot days
SO as to satisfy all the racing associations
is the problem with which they are
wrestling. The temperance of Brighton
has seriously confused the schedule OF
last year, and the announcement thal
Pimlico would not open its gates De1ore
April % has added to the trouble, as the
Aqueduct and Jamaica tracks would De
shorn of much patronage IL they raced IN
opposition TO the Maryland course so
the stewards are at SKIES and SeVenS re-
garding the situation.
At the recent meeting o. the Jockey
Club the dates were the paramount sub
ject of discussion. The authorities OF
the turf found ii SO complex that. they
| laid it on the table, figuratively speak
| ing to be tbreshed out later. But one
member of the club. man who Is IN
terested greatly in the welfare of racing
| and has at heart the success of the
| local meetings, formulated schedule
of racing days which could be adopted
without fear of friction between any
meeting here or with Pimlico and
Saratoga.
| On the basis that neither Aqueduct
nor Jamaica will race against PimHco
as Philip ]. DWyer has intimated they
would not, the following schedule was
arranged by this member of the Jockey
Club. Here is the tentative list of dates
Good Schedule.
| Aoueduct-May 10 to May 10, both dates
inclusive, Seven racing days.
| Jamaica-May 20 to May q. Seven rae
ing days.
| Belmont Park-Belmont Park, May 2s
to June 10. Twelve racing days.
Gravesend-June IL to June L. Twelve
racing days.
Sheepshead Bay-June 25 to July s.
Twelve racing days.
| Brighton Beach-July to July ..
Twelve racing days.
Empire City-July q to August g.
Thirteen racing days.
! Saratoga-August to August q.
Eighteen racing days
1t will be seen by reference to this list
| that il Pimlico should continue Its meet
1 ing to May IA, which falls on Saturday.
Aoueduct would perforce only have
to face an open book rival for the last
two days of long meeting. With rae
fever in the veins Of racegoers for the
sport after a long spell of enforced idle
| ness, Pimlico, with all its attractions,
| would not prove very injurious 10 the
financial success OF the local opening,
! In the remainder of the schedule there
| is not the chance of a clash between two
meetings. 1t has its ADVANTAGES. In
asmuch as the spring meetings at Aque-
duct and Jamaica will not be entirely
| wiped out, and will afford those tracks
a chance to take In few dollars SO as
to meet any possible loss in the fall II
| also provides Belmont Park and SheepS-
| head Bay with two NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
day and Independence day-which have
| been allotted to them Tor Some years
past.
Solves the Riddle.
This list solves the racing date riddle.
1t furnishes ample Saturdays. the big
days to an association. and all are treat
| ed on an equitable basis. Empire City
has one more day than Belmont Park.
1 Gravesend, Sheepshead Bay and Brigh-
| ton Beach, which gives ii three Satur-
DAYS. The other tracks can easily af-
| ford this concession to Mr.. Butler. for
with it he may be willing TO concede 10
| the other associations his dates IN the
! fall. A racing meeting at the extreme
I end of the season. the time usually set
apart for the Empire track. is not very
attractive. In the first place. it is hard
matter to induce owners to ship their
horses to the hill top track for six days
say. for the chance to race horse only
| once or twice. With fall meetings con-
fined to the Long Island tracks the mat
ter OF transportation is NOS a serious one:
| The only obstacle to the adoption OF
this schedule lies In the cupidity of the
big racing magnates. They want all the
spring days that they can grab. Hav-
| ing been accustomed to seventeen OF
| eighteen days they may not be willing
to accept twelve days. But II they are
content to permit this season to pass on
the principle that every little bit helps
| to keep the sport In existence. then har-
mony will prevail and all the racing
meetings will prosper.
| There is just one way TO increase the
number Of racing days for the big early
meetings-to cancel the dates for Aque-
duct and Jamaica, assuming that those
tracks will not race before Pimlico ends
With both tracks closed. elementary
| meetings at best, there would be four
| teen days which could be split up be-
tween Belmont Park, Gravesend, Sleeps
head Bay and Brighton. Four days each
could be assigned Belmont Park. Graves
end and Sheepshead Bay. making total
of sixteen days for each, and two days
| to Brighton. a total Of fourteen days for
| the old track.
Last year the schedule of dates. be-
cause Brighton Beach was missing from
the list, allowed a larger number of DAYS
| to each association. Belmont Park. which
opened the SEASON May IL, did not close
until June 2 II did not accept all of the
| week days in this interval of time. how
ever During the early days of the meet
ing Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays
| were the racing days. When the race
| goers Hooked to the track in greater
numbers than the management had an
| ticipated the racing days were increased
to four a week.