The Fargo forum and daily republican., 1918-05-17
COLONY OF HORSE
TRAINERS ARRIVE
WITH GOOD OLD
SUMNER TINE"
Railbirds Gather Daily in
Grandstand and Watch
Horses Perform
Curtain-Raiser Will Be
County Fair at Coopers-
town, N. D.

arrived and with 1t have come some
of the leading horsemen Of the
northwest to Fargo with their strings
to train for some of the early en-
fragments in the North Dakota cir
cult, the first Of which will be held
at Cooperstown on July 9, 10 and II,
Trainers at the track to date are
p. r. Oleson Of Fargo, Jack Craw-
ford of Fargo, John T. Flack Of Page,
Y. D.; Gene Patch of Nissoula,
Mont, and W. Heimbaugh Of Brit
ton, s. D, Between 35 and 40 horses
are ouartered in the stables, their
owners planning on taking in the
North Dakota circuit and then ship
to Wisconsin, Iowa, South Dakota
and Minnesota.
Big Purses For Events.
According to F. W. McRoberts,
secretary Of the North Dakota Fair
association the purses for the fair
this year should be a drawing card
for the queens" and the kings" Of
the dirt track. A close inspection
made Of the famous North Dakota
bowl" this week discloses that 1t
is in its best condition now. A
sprinkling of railbirds gather in the
grandstand each afternoon and
watch the trainers make the ''hosses'
perform. With the track in such eX-
ceilent condition, the trainers admit
that 1t is hard for them to hold the
horses back. At any rate some fast
eights and quarters have been step
! ped by several green horses that are
; delighting their owners and train
ers, who predict bright seasons
ahead.
Billy Smith. reputed as the
youngest driver on the tracks in the
United States who owns a string Of
fast ones and does his own training.
has already booked accommodations
on the grounds and provided his
stars" with berths. BILLY Smith
has been driving on the Fargo track
since 1910 and since then has been
seen on the track in the west, mid
die west and the east. He had "big
luck" with BUSY Time" headltner
Of the Jack Smith string. last seas
on at all the races in which she was
entered, including the Minnesota,
Iowa, North Dakota and the South
Dakota. classics. Under the tutor
ing Of BILLY" Smith. Busy Time"
won six straight races during the
season Of 1917 after leaving the
North Dakota. turf She has been
winning in the west and the middle
west for the last three years, and she
looks so promising this season that
her owner declared this afternoon
that he was going to stake her in the
big races this season. Busy Time
is a bay mare, g. PAGER with a record
OF 2:13h.
Other Stars to Make Trip.
Other 'stars Of the famous Jack
Smith string which will swing into
the big reserves this season under
the tutoring of BILLY" will be j. H.
Bottger, b. &. PAGER, 2:12A, bought
by Smith at Montevedio, Mimi. last
fall while on his way home from the
south. Bottger will become a stable
mate for Busy Time" this season on
her Junket into fast eastern COM
pany. It was also announced that
''Au-the Time" b. g. PAGER, brother
to Busy Time" who has been held
over for several seasons for the 1918
convention of harness events, will
also take the trip east. "All-the-
Time" will be a candidate for the
2:25 class at the North Dakota ex-
position this season.
Other performers that Smith has
On the Fargo track are Baron Co
pher, brown trotter, 2:20A, raced
the past three seasons in North Da-
kota and Minnesota; Kelly Moore"
black trotting stallion, showing good
for the slow classes, and several two
year-old colts by the world champ
ions, Abbey and "Argot Hail." also
"a promising colt, related to Busy
!Nn:s," and brought to the Fargo fair
stables from Murfreesboro, Tenn, on
April 8. 1918, purchased from John
w. Alexander. About a half dozen
others, owned by Smith are being
trained.
Billy Smith, who took second
money at Hamline and Des Moines
last season with Busy Time" has
all his horses in good shape, and
moreover has mastered the mathe-
matics Of racing. To a newspaper
man who visited the training stables
this week, Billy proved a wonder
in reeling off the names of all the
horses in training, their records and
what can be expected from them. His
forecasts are generally well accept
ed by the horsemen, for if Billy"
Smith says something, they all stand
pat behind any assertion for the
young horseman has become an
authority on racing mathematics
within the last few seasons, and es-
pecially since his brilliant career on
the track in 1917 at Grand Forks,
Fargo, Hanline and Des Moines.
"Getting 'Prepped Up.'"
Every trainer on the grounds is
getting his horses 'prepped up for
the circuit meetings in the state,"I
said BILLY Smith. THE colony we
have in training this year is the
best that I can recall, and the driversI
will surely uncork q wealth Of speed
on the tracks. More will drop in asi
the season advances and when the
meetings open at Cooperstown on
July 8. which will be the curtain
raiser for the harness events in the
state, I am certain that the Fargo
stables will be filed"
Trainers and owners Of horses say
that the spring has been most fav-
orable for workouts waicn will be
evidenced at the grand opening OF !
the matinee in Fargo duriog the mid
die OF July. The horses quartered
here are all full of life, strong and
their owners are wearing smiles that
sparkle for distances and as alluring
as o. comedians diamond. The boys |
have all been faithful subscribers to
the Red Cross, the Liberty loan, theI
Il. M. @. A. war funds and are all
wearing the buttons. American flags
float over the buildings of the
grounds, not in such vast numbers as
they will when the exposition opens, |
but the flags are there just the |
same. tt really seems that the |
horses are even taking patriotic stepsi
this season.
Meet Jack Crawford.
Jack Crawford, of Fargo, matt
nee idol, has three fast ones on thel
grounds being ''Buddie,,' PAGER.
2f1T4z. who made his first appear
aElea ON the track last saaann and |