South Australian Advertiser (Adelaide, SA : 1858 - 1889), Saturday 15 February 1873, page 3


TIME COMPARISONS.

[From the English Sportsman.]

Few races have been run at a greater pace than the Liverpool Cup. which Vanderdecken carried off in such fine style on Friday, for the mile and a half was covered in 2 min. 33½ sec.

back, in 4 mm. 27 sec. Boekstone was only 4 mm. 24 sec. in running the same distance with 8 st. 7 lb. in the saddle, and moreover had a race in him at the time. Buckstone ran his two miles and a half, a considerable part of which was up hill, at the rate of 1 mm. 45} sec. per mile, and this we regard as the best authenticated performance on record. We should have liked to see Buckstone gallop the Beacon course at Newmarket with 8 st. on his back, and with something in the race to lead him along at his highest speed from start to finish. We venture to state that he would have run that course in a shorter space of time than any horse was ever known to run a rfmitn. distance in. The fastest races in England are almost invariably run over the Doncastcr course, and the reason is simple—the course is light and springy, and the greater part of it is flat. TheStLeger, which is only about a furlong short of two miles, has been run at the rate of 1 mm. 47J sees, per mile. The fastest time onreoord is stated to have been made by Reveller in 1818, but this is erroneous, for he did not carry nearly such a heavyweight as horses do nowadays, and what is more important still, the course was shorter then than it is now. Caller Ou is entitled to the honor of having run the St. Leger in the shortest space of time, and for this she has to thank Kettledrum, who got the better of his jockey, and brought the field along as a St. Leger field was never brought along before, not even when Den John made such splendid play in 1838. Returning to the victory of Tanderdecken, we may remark that he is a worthy descendant of Sweetmeat. We have always had an idea of his great ability, and last winter bestowed a column in advocating his claims as one of the best outsiders in the Derby, though before the day we were induced to change our opinion, and recommend Pell Hell as the outsider par excellence. It is true that Sacoharometer, the sire of Vanderdecken, could never stay mere than a mile— there were few better hones at the distance, and none handsomer^—but in disparacing him on that account it appears to be forgotten that his dam has a pedigree. There are few more famous *i«wnftw in the Stud Book *^«? Stolen Moments. In addition to Tanderdecken, she can claim Golden Pledge, who won the Ebor Handicap through a sea of mud, and ran well up in the St Leger, with Fordham on his back, in Lord Olifden's year. Nor can racing men have forgotten her daughter, the fine, sterling Lady Trespass, for whom no distasce was too far. Vanderdeeken instead of having a "flash" pedigree, as we have seen asserted, is in reality as stout bred a horse as any there is in training. With Sweetmeat for his grandsire on one side, and Melbourne on the other, what more could possibly be wished?

There ia no reason to doubt the correctness of the timing, for Liverpool is one of the few places where a stop-watch can fee used with some degree of certainty that the result will be accurate. The horses start for the cap close by the Grand Stand in the same way as they do for the St. Leger at Doncaater. Xo ran a mile and a half in 2 mm. 331 see. is equivalent to limning a mile in 1 mm. 42 sec., which is very fast for even a mile course, though we have known two year olds ran on the Fitewilliun HUeatDoncaaterinlmin.4l.Beo. The brilliancy •f this performance, however, lies in keeping np this rate of speed for the extra naif-mile, and Vanderdeeken'e achievement must be eonaidered an extraordinary one, not only because of the snort time it took him to run the course, but because of the weight he was giving to a number of old horses. The shortest time in which the Derby was ever run was 2 mm. 43 sea, which is the recorded time of Kettledrum and Blair AthoL The latter, however, it i< notorious ran some yards further than Kettledrum did, as the starter dropped bis flag when the horses were far down in the valley, but the Derby coarse is not one over whioh horses can possibly show their finest speed. There is a severe hill to dimb to, commence with, and the turn coming down the bill at Tattenham Corner requires caution on the part of tie jockey. There are no such disadvantages at Liverpool, and therefore we do not regard Vanderdeoken's 2 Imin. 33£ see. as a more creditable performaaoe than Blair Athol't Epiom victory in 2 mm. 43 sea, more especially when we take into consideration the fact that, though Vanderdecken won the Liverpool Cup with a heavier weight than any three-year-old ever won it with before, he was still carrying upwards of a atone less than the Derby horses put up; and, moreover, he is about four months older than they are, which is an important consideration. The great pace at which the race was run on Friday was mainly owing to the make-play of Black Qown and RabyCastte, who made use qf their light weights to the ntmostextent, evidently with the view of bringing Homington to grief. First one and then the otter had a cut at Mr. Brayley's horse, who stalled them off gallantly, but when Barmston. Kingcraft, and Vanderdecken challenged in tarn, he showed signs of having had enough of it, and the moment .he was in difficulties he was polled up. It is impossible to say that he did not run to his public form, for in the opinion of nearly every one who saw the race, he would have been placed if he had been persevered with. Assuming this to be the fact, he never ran a better race, if we ignore his 20 lengths victory in the Lewes w ""*?"y. when the uncertain Taraban and HanQle were behind him. In running second for the Chesterfield Cup, at Goodwood, he showed his true form, which was about 21 Ib. inferior to that of Sterling. That Vanderdecken would beat Sterling at 21 Ib. over anile and a half few would, we think, doubt. Thereoa?.be no question that Vanderdecken owes his victory in a great measure to the excellent riding of Jeffrey. But for Homington being in the race, we have no doubt that it would not have been run at such a great pace. There was an adtlitiftnfl^ inducement to "cut him down" from the fact that when he is called upon to make a supreme effort he is rather apt to burst a blood-vessel. He did not do so on this occasion, and he is, we believe, as sound as could possibly be wished. In A*— ""*i where the time in a race is the first consideration, all other ideas are sacrificed to it The horses are, for the most part, ridden by execrable jockeys, who from the moment the flag falls whip and spur to their heart's content. We have already shewn— and have instanced our facts—-that in a race with good animals the result is almost invariably the same, no "?*tfr"' whether strong running or waiting policy is adopted, and under trimr circumstances no object is gained by strainiDg ahorse to its utmost pitch every time be runs. The master of fence can tell in a few passes whether he has met his auperiorj and the same thing, to a certain extent, may be said of jockeys as representing the horses they ride. Good «"""■*« almost invariably run true, no matter the tactics adopted with them. Aldcroft was said to have thrown away the Derby on General Feel by making such strong running with him, or, rather, by allowing the horse to get the better of him. In the St. Leger, Wells had the mount, but in both races the General was second to Blair Athol. No jockey was perhaps, ever, more denounced than French was on account of his riding of Savernake in the Derby. It was said he had the race in hand, and rode his horse home to the finish, and lost the race by a head. If he had waited, every one said he would have won. In the St. Leger Savemake was T*d^«m by Chsloner, and again was beaten by a head by Lord Lyon, and this time waiting tactics were adopted. IfChaloner had made running, Savemake would have won —at least so all the critics said. Verily the critics are hard to please. The *«wftrifian idea ! of JEtigHA racing is that no horse ran over a cup conree in such a short time as West Austcalian did when he won at Ascot. Tht« js a 1". West Australian won the Asoot Cup, twonulH and a half, with 8 st. § lb. on hi«