The Waterbury Democrat., 1933-03-23

horses for stamina and game is unparalleled.
 Horses quoted at odds of 100 to | winff it. Short-priced favorites ftcofiae a cropper at Becher Hrookv or sorpersauit to failure at another of the 30 hedges, water holes and other dangerous hazards they are supposed to jump. Horses without pedigree have won 1t. some of them taken from between the shafts of cabs. Horses in their dot age have beaten the best trained, finest biooded animated hides in the world over. the 1-2 miles Of try A Grand Sight
 1T combines the mad scramble of iasflinp horses making impossible laa ps from usually muddy footing with the inspiring spectacle of bcauitifuI jumps. clean cut and Slear. From 200, 900 to 30O,000 peo- I,le sit in the stands. the barges on the canal that runs along one side f,f the course or walk about in the Enclosures beside the jumps.
 The Prince of Wales is there. so are all the porters in Liverpool. So are the country folk from miles around. London society is there. but this is not a day for London society to be noticed. It is day for horses. Throngs of Irish. with money to back the Irish steeple- ciiasers fthe finest in the world) fill fhe air with their rich brogue, and drive bargains with the bookies.
 It is impossible for one to see more than two or three of the jumps taken by the horses in their 10 minutes of tremendous trying. Thousands jam themselves at van- tssge points near the more difficult Of the hazards. They push one an- other about on roofs. climb trees or run across country from one point to another, frantically trying to see their bit of the show as the horses flash out of the fog, soar or stum- ble, and fade into the distance. A PeriIOus Course
 1t is nearly always foggy and us- uaIly 1t ranis for a few days be- fore the event, making the course perilously soggy.
 It is a hop,step and jump of some 40 yards from the start to the first jump. Rarely do all the horses clear this barrier, and there Is much crowding and swerving as the field of 30 or 40 struggles for a good position.
 The more difficult of the jumps are Becher's brook tpronounced ..Beecher's," by the way). the Can- sAl Turn, Valentines Brook. the Open itch and the Water Jump.
 Becher's brook, the sixth hazard, is a thorn fence feet 10 inches high, and 3 feet 3 inches wide. On the far side there is natural brook, 5 feet inches wide.
 The Canal turn consists of thorn fence 5 feet high and feet ! inches wide. On the take-off side there is ditch 6 feet wide, 2 feet deep. banked up to the guard rail. The fact that this jump is on a ntaural turn adds to it's difficulty.
 A Thorn Fence
 Valentines brook actually is a continuation of Bechers brook which flows across one end of the triangular course. It is thorn fence s feet high, 3 feet 3 inches wide. with a natural brook on the far side that is 5 feet 6 inches wide.
 The Open Ditch Is a thirn fence s5 feet ? inches high, 3 feet inches wide. On the take-off side is ditch 6 feet wide, feet and 6 inches deep.
 The Water Jump is a 15-foot overall thorn fence. 12 feet 6 inches of water 2 feet 6 inches deep.
 M Hazards Total Five
 The five hazards above are usu- ally the ones where they take those pictures showing horses doing handsprings, with jockeys sprawled in the exact spot where horse is about to roll on them.
 Miraculously. however. the horses always seem to miss these fallen riders. Considering the number of croppers, it would be reasonable to assume that half of the horses and men would be killed. But injuries are few.
 The long story of the Grand Ma .tional, dating back nearly 100 syears. is sprinkled with romance. 9laring, humor and the unexpected. No American rider ever has won it. Zone American bred horse tri- cart horse named Rubio, of uncertain lineage. Sev- eral American owners have scored Ivictories. This year the finest rider in America. G. H. Pete" Bostwick. NiH risk his neck for the difficult ,prize. His story will come later.