The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1922-12-06
by FRANK c. MENKE

IneyVe written the name or Earl
Sande into the book of turfdom which
chronicles the immortal deeds of Tod
Sloan, Snapper" Garrison, Walter
Miller and Isaac Murphy.
And not without reason.
For Sande has performed feats of
jockeyship through several seasons
that make him not merely the greatest
race rider Of his day and his genera
ton but one of the greatest of all time.
Whatever l am today" insists
Sande, 81 really owe to the fact that
l was raised with horses in my boy
hood on an Idaho ranch, came to know
them, to understand them-and they
have come to know and understand me.
1T shall always be my belief that no
matter how great may be jockey and
how great may be his mount, they'll
never go far as a winning combination
unless there is an almost perfect un-
derstanding between them. The man
must know the strength and the weak
ness of his horse; know how to rate
him; know how to handle him to get
every ounce of energy out of him. And
a horse must have love for and a
faith in the man who rides him-or he
won't give the best that is in him"
Gets First Experience
Sande was born in 1899 in Groton,
Is. d. When he was eight the family
moved to a ranch near American Falls.
Idaho. And there it was that the
youngster. destined to become one of
the satellites of American turfdom,
got his first riding experience.
In the earliest days my great am
bftion was to be a cowpuncher" related
Sande. The wilder the horse the
better I liked it for I figured that was
giving me bronco busting experience
Some of the mustangs l straddled in
those days were among the toughest
of the tough.
along about the time I was IL or
10 l began reading about race horse
jockeys. Then my ambition shifted
l decided l wanted to be a jockey.
got my earliest practice racing kids
from the neighboring ranches. 1t was
on those early duals that | began to
study horses, their powers and their
/ limitations; how TO judge space, how
to nurse their energy.
1T wasn't very long before | be-
came champion among the kid riders
/ on the ranches out near home. And
then l began to look forward to the
day when l could ride real race
/ horse"
Goes To Meeting.
/ Sande got his chance in 1917-in
/ New Orleans. The kid, then IS, got
permission to leave home and set out
| for the Crescent City where a race
meeting was in full swing.
my first job was galloping horses
/ for Joe Goodman" said Sande. "He
kept me at it for two months. Then
| he decided to give me chance in a
real race. He put me aboard horse
named Liberator. With any other
| Jockey but me aboard him that day,
Liberator would have won by 20
lengths, with me on board he was
lucky to finish second.
"But the mistakes l made on that
| first race were lessons to me. When
Goodman gave me a second chance !
made good by driving Princess home
a rather easy winner"
That marked the real beginning OF
/ Sandes meteoric career in the saddle.
Some months afterward his work
had improved to such an extent that
the racing combination known as
Johnson and Kane bought his contract
from Goodman. And not so long after.
ward ]. X. L. Ross. the Canadian multi.
millionaire paid them big sum for
their contract.
Achieves Recognition.
Sande'S brilliant riding in the Ross
colors made fame for himself and for
4 tune for the Canadian. A marvellous
Judge of pace, blessed with splendid
pair of hands, instructive riding skill
and superlative gameness, Sande roll
ed up an amazing score of victories
for Ross and the Ross horses.
Then came the break-oyer the Sir
Barton-Man O'War match race run in
Canada for a $4,000 purse
Sande. who always had ridden Sill
Barton for Ross, was slated to pilot
the mighty racer in the classic with
the super-horse. But, for some reason
still unexplained, Ross substituted
Keogh for Sande at the last minute
! 81 don't know to this day why he
did it," declared Sande. concerning
the Ross action. But l do know thai
it hurt my pride. And l went to Mr.
Ross and told him so-told him, too
that / no longer cared to ride for him
Mr.. Ross released me from my con
ltract-and l signed up almost imme
diately afterward with the Rancocas
& Stable"
i It's history that while Sande rode
Ross horses he led the world on purse
winnings; that as soon as Sande LEFT
his horses won fewer and fewer races