Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1957-02-18
WIN, LOSE OR
DkAW By FRANCIS s1AAn
The One and Only

H1ALEAH, Fla, Feb. l8.-Sunny jim FltZSimmonS
usual at am. and Shuf1ed into the kitchen of his
home in Aapattah, the reached into
the refrigerator for the pot in which he had mixed pan
cake batter the night before to time The pot
empty.
Puzzled Sunny jim mixed new batch and then his
kids came to the breakfast niche grnnng broadly The
kids John and James, ages So and 6l respectively
You prepared batter last night all right John said
but we bought mixer and put the batter into il"
Sunny Jim regarded the two patches of batter and
said Il hope you boys are hungry We're going to have
heap of pancakes this morning" And he began cooking
as to get to Hiaeah by 6 am
He is remarkable lovabe old gaffer He is 80 now
but he insists cooking breakfast dinner for
his boys" Then off to the track where he personally
trains 80 thoroughbreds John his assistant James his
stable agent, keeping the books and records.
SEVEN DAYS A WEEK Mr.. Fitz prepares a predawn
breakfast and at Haeah before the to supervise
the morning workouts of his insists on driving
his boys to the track nspecs his horses and then usually
drives, alone to the top of the backstretch rail- There
stopped and leaning heavily his single aluminium crutch
he shields himself behind long-needled fir tree as
not to fghten kittery horses and watches the works
Workout time is over by 10 am. and Mr.. Fitz returns
to Barn A, where he has been stabbed the Famngo
track since 1882 final check of his then
returns to Aapattah for lunch nap Shortly after
noon he dresses again and heads back Haeah
the horses he has entered in the days he lucky
ne will be home again at sunset to cook dinner.
TIME HASN'T BYPAssED the little old man from
sheepshead Bay To facilitate his chores he
to finish in time to watch televson which he does from
his bed
I've got it rugged with control so that can
turn it and of from my bed" Mr. Fiz explained 81
lose darn sleep that thing than should
Despite his more-than-7O years in racing-he got his
first job at track the day Grover Cleveland was
augurated-Mr. Fz ranks today as one of the 10 top
trainers in America and surely is the most beloved Stats
tcians estimate that horses he has trained well
in excess of Sc million When he is asked health
the spry octogenarian always has qup like Il wish
do
Actually, his close friends believe he is in constant
pain but they'll know On the day his Nashua
beat Swaps in the match in Chicago Mr. Fz
offers OF ride in the official the winners circle
to the barn. good half mile away.
THE OLD MAN SHOOK his head. thanked the mean
welers and took off for Nashuas barn foot alone He
could not walk straight high but there was catch
in-the-throa dramatic dignity he imped his cruch
its tip digging into the soft ground along
the outside rail at Washington Park to his horse
Mr. Fitz has six children II grandchildren and Is great
grandchildren although this is always subject change
But when asked why he doesn't retire. Sunny Jim shakes
his head
Quit? AS long feel all right in the head and my
bosses satisfied with the job doing I'll keep right
at it."
In 1854, when he started his ninth decade on earth
he % produced winners of 81 whose earnings
amounted TO nearly 81 million, 90 developed and trained
the best juvenile colt in the country, Nashua 80 ditto
the best juvenile fly "a had stakes winners two
different tracks the day after his Goth birthday in July
TWO YEARS AGO NASHUA won the F1amingo here
earned more than $750000 during the season and was
selected Horse of the Year Mr. Ftz winners cleaned
$270055, record for trainers Nashua was retired last
year as the world winning champion with earnings
of $l,28S565.
Sunny Jms feats fantastic Twice he saddled
Triple Crown winners derby, Preakness and Belmont
Thrice he won the at Kentucky. All together he
trained than 200 winners the 90 most important
stakes In America And right his big goal capture
again the $l0000O-pus Famngo Stakes most important
3year-old race Of the winter and preview the 1857
Derby His candidate? The royalty bred Wheatley Stable
cold Bold Ruler, who could be Nashuas successor
us 1t possible to beat the races?" he was asked
Mr.. Fitz smiled benignly. Racing is a sport and en-
ertanment" he said IF you take your wife out to dinner
and movie 1t costs you $10 maybe You can take
that same money to the track and maybe hit the
jackpot and all the while have fine clean afternoon
outdoors.
III you go to the track only to win you're going to
be disappointed There is way TO beat the races
I've been in the game 70 years and I'm naturally lazy.
hate to get up at o'clock every morning but I'm s
doing 1t seven days week II there's way to beat
the races then I must be an awfuly stupid man."