JC / Railbird

Weekend Odds & Ends

Suburban Day at Sheepshead
– Mr. Railbird and I joined the hipster hordes at Brooklyn Flea this afternoon, lured by the promise of Wafels & Dinges (delicious) and the possibility of sports memorabilia (non-existent), although I did find a postcard of Suburban Day at Sheepshead Bay (above) at the stand of a vintage postcard purveyor. The card was mailed by one Mae Sterling of Brooklyn to A. F. Rockwell of New Haven (with the request to “Please send one in return”) not long after the 1905 renewal of the Suburban Handicap, which was won by the great racemare Beldame, who conceded weight to all 10 rivals and finished 1 1/2 lengths ahead of a horse named Proper as the 6-5 favorite. Beldame raced twice more, then was retired and bred to Meddle, a stallion selected in part by an essay contest and a committee of breeding experts. No mention of the Suburban in Mae’s note, unfortunately, so I can only guess that she was a fan of the enormously popular champion filly once called “super-colossal” and “a public idol” for her considerable achievements, for which she is honored annually by the G1 Beldame Stakes at Belmont Park.
– Trainer Todd Pletcher said Lexington Stakes winner Behindatthebar would probably skip the Derby, even though his $204,500 in graded earnings are enough for a post. “I’d say if he’s going to run in one of the classics, the Preakness would be more likely” (Courier-Journal). That must be welcome news to all connections with horses on the bubble. Behindatthebar was credited with a 99 Beyer speed figure for the race, which looked more like a route over dirt than Polytrack with the Bob Baffert-trained Samba Rooster blazing through opening fractions of :22.78 and :45.21.
– On the Sunday worktab: Colonel John breezed five furlongs in :59.40 at Santa Anita. At Churchill, Adriano worked five furlongs in 1:01.80 with jockey Edgar Prado aboard. At Keeneland, Eight Belles worked four furlongs in :46.40, the second-fastest of 39 at the distance.
Trainer Rick Dutrow plans to go all in on Big Brown in the Derby, just as he did with Saint Liam in the 2005 Classic.
Freshman sire Chapel Royal gets his first winner.


5 Comments

Wrong Color Drape, Joe: “A chestnut colt…”
Kent will be sitting on the back of a bay.
Amazing postcard.

Posted by Ernie Munick on April 21, 2008 @ 5:08 am

Amazing postcard … what a find.
Looking forward to getting over there myself one of these weekends.

Posted by Teresa on April 21, 2008 @ 8:09 am

“Around 1888, E.D. Rockwell and A.F. Rockwell, who ran a hardware store in Florida, invented a doorbell run by clockwork called the “New Departure Bell”. It was named so, because it was unlike anything else on the market. In 1889 they organized the New Departure Bell Company in Bristol, Connecticut, and later added a bicycle bell that became very popular. In 1898, the two brothers invented a device that would permit a bicycle to coast while the pedals remained stationary, and so, a year later, they added what was to be known as the “New Departure Coaster Brake” to their product line list. In 1908 the company started development and manufacture of ball bearings, and at one time, was the world’s largest maker of ball bearings.”
— John S. (from the Web site of D & D Antique Auto Parts)

Posted by John S. on April 21, 2008 @ 8:52 am

I love that bit of detail about Rockwell, John. Thanks for digging that up.
Ernie, there were a couple points in the article where I wondered if Drape had been mis-edited. For instance, the bit about Big Brown being the “most accomplished” in the Derby field …

Posted by Jessica on April 21, 2008 @ 9:08 am

That picture of Beldame before the Suburban… I’ll say she looked colossal.
Nice to look back through the Beldame Stakes history and see that my personal hero Go For Wand still holds the stakes record. I was a casual race fan until I happened to be at the Spa for the 1990 Alabama. Just weeks after winning the test in 1:21 flat she won the Alabama in 2:00 4/5. Both stakes records at the time.
Rose colored glasses maybe, but I still say she’s the best I’ve ever seen in person (and I’ve seen Cigar, AP Indy, Skip Away, Silver Charm, Lure and every Saratoga stakes winner in the last 5 years.)

Posted by ljk on April 21, 2008 @ 11:21 am