174 ^^^ TWO-MINUTE PACERS 



2:05. I always let him finish through the stretch good and 

 strong and a few weeks before his time for starting in a 

 race I would work him the last half of his 2:04 or 2:05 miles 

 in about one minute. Then, with that work he was ready 

 to pace around 2:02 to 2:03 in a race. Then two or three 

 races would put him in order to go a mile better than two 

 minutes. 



"Of course, if I had been conditioning him for fast miles, 

 only, or one fast mile I would have brushed him a little 

 more and would have gone miles around 2:02 to 2:03 with 

 the last half better than one minute. 



"As to his rigging. When he took his record he wore 

 a plain open bridle with over-check and snaffle bit. He wore 

 a light swedge bar shoe in front and each shoe weighed 5^/2 

 ounces. The front toes were 3')>^ inches. He wore about 

 the same behind except with calks and the hind toes were 

 about 3I/2 inches. He also wore very light shin and coronet 

 boots behind. He wore no boots at all in front the year he 

 took his record of 1:59'^." 



As Mr. Geers indicates in his very interesting letter. 

 Napoleon Direct was used as a race horse during his entire 

 career and it is notable that while he was a two-minute horse 

 practically all of the three years he was raced, he was never 

 shaped up for anything but fast race miles. And those he 

 showed the public in profusion. His record of 2:02^, 

 taken in 1914 was not at all a measure of his speed; nor 

 was his record of 2:00'^ taken in 1915. And, for that 

 matter, neither was his record of 1 :59'^. His wonderful 

 bursts of extreme speed through the stretch were the talk 

 of the entire Grand Circuit but it was his racing ability that 

 made him one of the most popular pacers that has ever 

 appeared. 



His three years on the Grand Circuit were all great 

 years for him but his final year was one that will never be 

 forgotten. He had no easy task, for he had the redoubtable 

 two-minute pacer Single G to show^ his speed and stamina 

 against and any pacer good enough to beat that kind is 

 worthy a very high place on the roll of honor. 



Single G defeated him at Kalamazoo but Mr. Geers, pu- 



