The Wilmington morning star., 1940-05-05
BIMELECH runs
A POOR SECOND
: "A SON
Dit Is Third AS Rank Outsider
Upsets Churchill Downs
Dope Yesterday
BY SID

CHURCHILL DOWNS, Louisville
KY, May 4-LP-Bimelech and the
last long quarter mile broke the
Blue Grass today, as G~allahad1on,
a bargain counter horse" from
the yearling sales, out-gamed v
other gallopers to win the seth run
ming of the Kentucky Derby.
second-longest priced winner in
the IS year history of this mile and
a quarter classic, Gallahadlon not
only ran with Bimmie. but actually
made him "holler uncle in a roa
ing stretch drive to come winning
home a length and a half in front.
Throng Astonished
A Shrek of establishment chok-
ed in the threats of the spectators
at the failure of Big Bim,' most
popular favorite in IS years.
Col. Matt J. VIM, president of
Churchill Downs, estimated the
crowd at IS. 900, which he said was
the largest ever to see a horse race
in the United States.
By taking the top portion of the
Derby stake, G~allahadion marked
paid in full" the score Mrs. Ethel
V. Mars of Chicago, his owner,
has held since she bought him for
So. 900 at Saratoga two years ago,
among a number of youngsters
whom she bid in for a total of more
than 500, 900. None of the other
purchases had paid any kind of
dividend to compare with this
s6O.15O as the winners share of the
richest Derby in history plus the
glory that goes with the victor's
necklace of roses.
Bimelech was second, but he
might as we'll have been 22nd. He
was a beaten horse in the last quar-
ter mile, for this son of Sir Gallahad
III did what none had ever done be-
fore-run with Bimie to the wire.
And in the defeat lay not only the
end of Bimmie's all-triumphant run
of eight straight races, but the
ashes Of ~SO-year-old Col. Edward R.
Bradley's dream of breaking his
own record with a fifth Derby win
ner today.
A Perfect Ride
With all due respect to Gallah-
adion, it was a perfect ride by
Jockey Carroll Bierman, the veteran
from C%entralia, Wash, which told
~ +bo o,G Piorp,op broLa Co11ob.
adion from the inside position, saw
ed ground with him all the way to
the stretch, and then finished just
as he started-on the rail.
AS for Bimmie, a 4 to 10 shot, he
appeared stale" from three aces
in the last nine days. He showed
this particularly in the final cruel.
ling quarter, where the true test
comes for a three year old this early
in the season.
He took the lead momentarily at
the head of the straight road home,
but just couldn't hold on when Sir
Gallahad's big, handsome bay son
looked him in the eye.
LII ldCL, dI LIE IlllSIl, liz DdI6ly
saved second place, for Arnold Han
gers Dit, another yearling 'buy" at
$4,000, came on again after being
forced wide rounding the stretch
turn.
Dit just missed the place spot by
a nose. He was in third place by a
length over the California CLAM
u Boy, Charles S. Towards Mo-
land, while the rest Of the field Of
eight-Charles T. Fishers Sirocco,
Joseph E. Widener's Roman, Har-
old S. Clark's Royal Man, and the
undermining Marylander, William
L. Brann's Pictor, trailed in that
order.
Warm Sunny Day
Although run on a fast racing
strip and in warm sunny weather
which had smiled it's way in for the
Blue Grass classic after a four-day
touch of winter in Derbytown, Gal
%lahadion's time of 2:05 was the
slowest since Omaha came bounc
ing home first in 1885, on an of
track. Omaha, incidentally, is a
cousin of today's winner.
On accurate check Of the tremen
dous crowd, which jammed the
grandstand and clubhouse, chokee
the picturesque clubhouse lawn, an(
packed all the front of the infielc
grass, was available Immediately.
In the press box. the experts
estimated some $4,000 to $4,000 saw
the show. But the experts hat
climbed all the way out on the liml
in picking Bimelech to win, virtual
ly unanimously, so that they weren'
too sure about this.