Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1958-06-24
AT THE RACES
With JOE KELLY

the world and the depression
was still with Us. Westrope
turned 10 and was sitting on
top Of his world. When he
celebrated his 18th birthday IN
January Of 80. he had Just
been crowned the country's
winningest rider.
During 1888. westrope, q kid
from Baker. Mont. rode sol
winners. finishing FIRST with Is
per cent Of his mounts TO be-
come the national champion.
He was the FIRST rider In rs
years 10 exceed 800 winners
Vincent Powers rode ga In
1908, two years after Walter
Miller set the long standing
mark Of 388-and no one broke
800 again until I9AT when
Johnny Longden had 3i6.
Distances mean little 10 race
crackers and the 5000 miles be-
tween Delaware Park and the
West Coast did little TO soften
the report Of Westrope's tragic
end for riders and horsemen
who got TO know him rather
well Just a few years back. One
OF his closest friends was Sonny
Workman Of Washington, a re-
tired riding great. Workman
was a pallbearer yesterday, as
was Eddie Arcaro.
Trainer Jim Ryan, a Ros-
common man who has exiled
himself about 30 years now
from the Ould Sod. perhaps was
closer to Westrope than any,
one else at Delaware Park and
he was shaken about the Hol-
lywood Park accident.
1t was with Ryan's stable.
owned by Mrs. John H. r.
Thouron, that Westrope hit the
heights again in 1858 and 1854
at q time when 1t looked as IL
he might be on the way out.
Jackie, whose older brother,
Tommy, was killed in a riding
accident at Aqua Caliente in
1882, had two great summers at
Delaware Park and led the
jockeys in winners both years.
1t might have been the same
way this year II Westrope had
not decided to stay with his
family in California. Ryan
asked him last winter to come
to Hialeah and work with him
through the winter and Their
move north to the New York
and Delaware meetings.
He said he wanted to stay
with the family: they were
expecting q baby then and I
couldn't blame him." Ryan re-
marked outside his barn the
morning the news broke here
about Westrope's death.
He was a fine jockey and a
great horseman-there is q
difference, you know. A horse
that he couldn't ride had no
place on a race track. There
was hardly a time when he
came back from riding a race
that he couldn't tell you some
thing you didn't know about
your horse.
"A lot Of people said we
would never get along but that
never happened. He was one of
the hardest working fellows I
ever met. He thought nothing
Of getting on nine or 10 horses
in the morning and riding the
whole card in the afternoon.
And he kept up the spirits
OF the men in the barn, espe-
cially when things were going
all wrong and we hadn't had
a winner in days.
II can truthfully say I never
met a man with more conf
dence than he had"
Ryan brought up another
memory Of Westrope, pointing
up his brash independence and
confidence.
Right after he broke his leg
last year." the Irish trainer
said. Il called him on the
telephone. Mrs. Thouron told
me to offer him a contract and
1t was a nice one. We knew he
couldn't possibly ride for a few
months, but that was the way
we felt about him. However, he
turned it down fat"
According to the statistics
Westrope's mounts earned in
excess of SO million. That's
real money. especially in view
that the chunks were smaller
when Jackie was winning a lot
Of stakes in the earlier days
OF his 25-year career.
Assuming he got 10 per cent
OF those purses, Westrope
should not have had to worry
about where his next saddle
and whip were coming from.
Unfortunately, frugality was
not part of his makeup.
Ryan said that he heard
that Arcaro already has started
a trust fund for Westrope's four
daughters, the youngest of
whom is only three months old.
That's a fine idea and a
comforting thought" the vet
eran horseman concluded.
You must 60 along with
that