The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-09-29
UNsHACKLE THE TRoTTER,
SAYS RACE TRACK EXPERT

= ! :, -zahlAh With th4 four se1onft DIFF
ference between the two courses leaves
4 very narrow margin III favor of the
i4rrtr cvals
Weok after week the newcomers
on thu milc tracks drop lower and
lower tG Tho ,WinraCe list until they
reath the point where as racing pros.
paeta their value disappears forever
They are shackied b. the present
eternal record system Everyone ad-
mits that II is wrong Instead of
changing IT, however a few try to
cV1de fast W.nr1ce by misrepre sen
tat!an ~ time or not winning.
After the futurities ali TINT is left
FOR The Winning is tho free for all or
possibly the fastest class race. They
are marked for life. Very few paccra
come uader this head As usually their
coH races are ono sided contests. Still
they age outelaAsed tust as quickly in
thg class rarua mid forced INTO the
free for ali which is. as a rule doni-
mated by TWO or three top liners each
season
LII Light harness raging. all that
there Is 10 class divisions on the mile
tracks or The loa fing half mile tracks
IS an opportunity to make engage
ments Tho time in all the races for
totterS and PAGERS when tho differ
ence i@ tracks arc considered is be-
tween : .G2 aud 10 All If The horses
cannot race in thrCe or four classes and
chat is what il amounts 10 at present
after few meetings. except for those
chat have. engagements in early closing
events
On the running turf stake winners
are raced as long they remain
soand weight bringing them together
he trottcts and PAGERS continue unti
they get "!Nracos which they cannot
reduce This year the limit for class
races for trotters was . o5 Ia. Next
war it viii be z o.. IA. Below than
horses have no elrnine capacity. They
ARE pushcd against the wall forever
LA Princeton 2:o2, and Mabel Trask
~ "a are now in that list In
1890 McGregor the Great, 2.o3 IA
viii join them, while Finland will
set into. the 2;05 class ON time al
lowance
The only remedy is 10 amend the
rule which fixes winrace forever
After a horae has had ample time to
show that he cannot win. cancel It
aud let ht3H race down again 10 a
point where he can put up a contest
With either the old or new racing ma
tcrial This VIII give horses an oppor-
tHnity to race where they have a
their earning capacity
The following amendments viii
accomplish this:
~ After a horse has acquired n
winrace ana failod to reduce ii for
'Wo years exclusive OF the year IN
which q was made, II shall be can
cellcd and tho horse become eligible
10 any class until he acquires another
Winr4ce.
~ Winracos made in dash races
at distances other than mile shan
not be considered in determining elig-
ibility
DaGh races a odd distances win
make meetings attractive and give
horses hat can no longer go the
ronte ara opportunity 70 win at FIVE or
six turionGa while a few Of the stout
going ones can hc raced at a mile
ara quarter or even further BY
keeping them at odd distances the
chance OF confusing the time with the
mile wtnrace system on which eligi-
hility ia based viii be avoided
The first amendment viii reduce
the wlnrace last TO three years per-
torplances ana cut all time allowances
except the difference between the mile
ana half mile tracks. 10 one second
II VIII also In 1920 release for slow
classes all horses which made winraccs
prior 10 1917, while after that date
one years crop will be released auto
matically II will abolish the mass Of
records which have reached the bulk
Of Q city directory and give a horse
an opportunity 70 race 90 long as he
can be trained. The qutclasaed horse
I In 1919 that made %inracc in 1916
mas a chance 10 be "a winner In 1920
with corresponding increase in