RACEALONG 271 



PREPARING A CHAMPION 



One day at Macon, Ga., Thomas W. Murphy made 

 a few remarks in reference to the handling of 

 champion light harness performers which won their 

 laurels with him in the sulky. He had all kinds from 

 two-year-olds to aged performers and only one ever 

 reduced his mark "after leaving the stable. 



He said, ''Every effort must be made to not 

 make a horse dull or in other words knock the edge 

 off his speed. A horse should be worked within four 

 or five seconds of where he was expected to go but 

 a part of the mile should be at top speed." 



*'I found," he continued, ''when getting game 

 cocks ready for a main if they were worked until 

 tired they put up a good contest but did not have 

 the whizz to win. By stopping them short of the 

 limit they had enough reserve left to carry them 

 into a fight with a dash that usually resulted in a 

 victory. 



"I tried this with horses and got satisfactory re- 

 sults. By training them well within themselves 

 they always had a flash of reserve speed which 

 reached the point desired. Peter Manning was a 

 splendid example of this kind of work. He never was 

 permitted to rush up to the top of his speed until 

 it was wanted and he always had more than was 

 expected." 



The reference to this horse recalls years that have 

 elapsed since he trotted in 1:56% at Lexington. 

 There is not a horse in sight that looks as if he had 



