128 THE TWO-MINUTE PACERS 



ville, Mass., August 23rcl, of 2:031/4- No attempt was made 

 that year to give him a faster record and the following year 

 found him retired from the track so that his thousands of 

 admirers who believed him destined for two-minute honors 

 were compelled to wait two years before they were able to 

 say "I told you so." 



Mr. J. Y. Gatcomb, who had become sole owner of Audu- 

 bon boy at the dissolution of the partnership with Mr. 

 Hudson, gave Audubon Boy his opportunity in 1905 and 

 made but three attempts to drive him into the list of two 

 minute pacers. After a mile in 2:00^/4 at Syracuse, N. Y., 

 on September 15th, he took the horse to Readville and started 

 him on September 22nd. That trip was a successful one 

 for Audubon Boy paced a nice mile in 1:591/4. That really 

 closed his career as a public performer and he was retired 

 to the stud where, with limited opportunities, in fact one 

 might truthfully say, none at all, he demonstrated that he 

 had the ability to sire trotting speed of a high order. His 

 1906 efforts are worthy of note for the reason that he paced 

 a mile in two minutes and another in 1:591/2, making three 

 miles in two-minutes or better to his credit. 



Mr. James Clark, Assistant Secretary of the American 

 Association of Trotting Horse Breeders, and who was for 

 many years a leading shoer on the Grand Circuit, furnishes 

 the only available information concerning the shoeing of 

 Audubon Boy. He wore 51/0 ounce swedge bar shoes with 

 full pad in front and 4 ounce outside swedge shoes behind. 

 His front toes were 3'^ inches with a 48 degree angle and 

 his hind toes were 3^ inches with a 55 degree angle. He 

 wore no extra rigging of any kind, except, possibly at times 

 a shadow roll and never wore hopples. 



There never appeared on the Grand Circuit a more coura- 

 geous race horse and many of his victories were achieved 

 in the face of most formidable odds. His stake race at 

 Providence, in which there were seventeen starters was a 

 case well in point. He won about as he pleased and it did 

 not seem much difference to him whether he got away in 

 good position or bad — the result was the same. He was 

 an airy, showy horse in action and one of his infirmities, 



