Evening star., 1946-05-08
Surprise Assignment
Shifts Odds; Assault
Sill Is favorite
By Sid FEEDER

Oy SIu TSuSI
BALTIMORE, May 8.-Around
race tracks, when they're talking
jockey talk, horsemen who should
know tell you that Eddie Arcaro
moves any horse up 10 pounds
he's that good. -
So, word around these parts today
was that the Delaware dandy,
Hampden, which, good enough to
finish third in the Kentucky Derby
with a jockey who forgot where the
finish line was, will be speaking a
mighty loud piece, come Saturday
and the 56th running Of the Freak
ness, because Heady Eddie-rider
with stopwatch for brain-will be
plotting him.
Now, this Is not saying the Texas
terror, lanky, ambling Assault, ism t
still the fair-haired galloper for
this richest race in American turf
history-S141 ,620-because Assault
won by eight lengths buck-jumping
last Saturday. And he got off the
train here from Louisville yesterday
with no indication he couldn't re-
peat against II others that figure
to be in the P1eakness field.
Switch Changes Odds.
Rode the train jes' as pretty as
his daddy" reported Will Daniels,
the same smiling Negro groom who
took the same ride with Assaults
father, Bold Venture, 10 years ago,
when the old man came to Pimlico
and added the Preakness jewel to
his Derby crown.
Nor is it saying that Heady Ed
die may not be guessing wrong
again, as he's done in past, like back
in ~, when he thought Devil Diver
was going to win the Derby and he
gave Divers teammate, Shut Out,
to Wayne Wright-and Shut Out
got the roses.
But when he confirmed to the
Associated Press last night that for
Saturdays run for the blacx-eyed
Susans he'll be aboard Willie Du-
points front-running fier instead of
Mrs. Elizabeth Graham's Lord Bos-
well, with which he failed to win
his fourth Derby last Saturday, it
Immediately reshuff1ed the odds for
this week-end's whizz-bang, and
moved the Delaware galloper right
up back of the Texas stopper be-
cause the black haired Kentucky
booter admittedly is the headman
of them all. Even the rest of the
jockeys admit it.
Change Surprises Eddie.
Apparently the switch was as
much a surprise to Eddie as it was
to every one else who has a roofing
interest in Saturdays scramble.
After bringing Lord Boswell nome
fourth in the Derby, Eddie told
Trainer Jimmy Smith he wouldn't
mind taking another shot at the
heavy sugar with Lord B this Sat-
urday.
But when he got back to New
York he found out his agent al
ready had signed him for Hamp-
den. AS a result Ted Atkinson
probably will do the job aboard
Lord B this trip.
In trying for those black-eyed
Susans again-he won them with
Whirlaway in 1941-Arcaro will be
steering the stopper he piloted to
victory in the Chesapeake States two
weeks ago and to 1o-length win
couple of weeks before that.
The only winner among the three
sons OF the mare, Evening Shadow,
Hampden was $11 1000 yearling buy
which couldn't run enough to get to
the races last year. So far this sea-
son, however, he's been out six times.
win three, never been worse than
third and has won bankrol of
$40,175.
Nursed to Health BY HandIen.
In California; early this year, he
started his racing, won one, but
finished second in his next a sick,
ailing horse. Quiet, pipe-smoking
Dick Handlen, trainer who halls
from Manhattan's wide open horse
ranges, nursed him back and he's
now.
Last Saturday, in the Derby, Jockey
Job Dean Jessop, the Nibley, Utah,
firecracker who won the. national
riding championship last year, did
the steering. The son of Heliopolis
was giving it an|express train run
up the stretch, when suddenly Jessop
Stoop up in the StirrupS and began
to pull up, like a jockey does when
the race is over. But there was still
nearly an eighth of a mile to go,
and, although. Jessop tried to make
up for his lapse, he couldn't quite
get up to second.
There's no doubt this was Just one
of those unlucky accidents that can
happen anywhere. But around and
about today they'll tell you those
aren't the kind of mistakes that
happen to Heady Eddie.