Tod Sloan's Stories

Horowhenua Chronicle, 23 October 1915, Page 3

Tod Sloan's Stories

HOW THE CROUCH ORIGINATED. (From the Sydney Sun.) London, August 2'/. "1 may as well be frank about it. The truth is that 1 was so bad until 18i)3 that 1 was a by-word among trainers. They used to say that if a man didn't want his horse to wiu he needn't have him pulled. All that he had to do was to send for Sloan. Ilis riding won Id be handicap enough."

This is the frank confession of I oil Slonn, originator ol the luonkey-on-the-stick 'crouch in the- saddle. Fifteen years ago. when lie had achieved world-wide fame, he backed his mount in the Czarewitch to win £00,000, and a big punter laid liiin a small fortune to nothing -against himself. The truth leaked out and the stewards ot the jockey club sent him down. They have held liiin down ever since, and apparently in despair ol ever regaining a liccnsc, or in the hope that candid confession .may win a reprieve, he has written tJL reminiscences of his life chequered byMhe most, remarkable varieties (Kid of fortune.

Tod Sloan of very suggestive hints to give to those who have the training or rilling of racehorses. His book (published by Grant Richarils) is a mine of hTlormation, ami eontains a fund of gossipy anecdote which will commend it to every lover of the racecourse. What he lias to say must interest every stable, and there are pages which have sipeoirfl concern for Australians. Eor example, he rede Merman when Mrs Langtrv's horse won the Ascot Gold Cup. and ho was on Caiman when that horse beat the peerless Flying Fox. Caiman and Caiman's stock are well-known to Australians. What Tod Sloan has to say about the horse is not highly cornpliT..entary. Just to pique your curiosity tfiid give you some idea of the book, 1 make a few excerpts

"One day, when T and Hugliie l'enny. avlio was thon a successful jockey. were galloping our horses to tln> ro.st. my horse started to holt, and in trying to pull liiin up i got. up out ol the saddle and 011 liis nock. Penny started laughing at the figure I cut, and 1 laughed louder than lie, but i couldn't help noticing that, when 1 -was doing the neck croud), the horse's s+ride seemed to be freer, and that. 1 had seen a jockey, named Harry Griffin, riding with short-stirrups and leaning over 011 the horse. As he Avas tlm best jockey of the day 1 put two a'nd two together and thought there must he something in it. and I began to think i' out, trying all sorts of experiments on horses at home. The 'crouch seat, the 'monkey mount.' or the thousand and one other Avays it has been described. Avas the result. Then the time come when I determined to put it mto practice. But. I couldn't soroAv up enough courage tiie first time T had a chance. I kept put {Trip: it off. At S last, though. T did really spring it on them. Everybody laughed. 1 was too e<cksure to be discouraged. I was certain that I Avas 011 the right track. 1 persevered, and at last 1 began to avu, races. XKRVOFS JOCKEYS MftST. ''11l the whole 01 my experience <■ lave found that a boy wiiu a nervous temperament makes (.Tie best jockey. He is quick and alert to take in a iliition, and he a human ferret, finding out things for himself. The Tod Sloan of that day was a bundle 01 nerves, and he discovered new tilings every day. 1 will give you an instance. .It Avas at the lngleside track, at ban Francisco that 1 learned that a hor.it! luns better when 'pocketed.' ,Oi cour.-t----it is rough o-n the nerves ol a rider, bin the horse breathes in a space Avheri. the air doesn't come to him in a rusn, aiul all a rider lias to do is to watch his chance and slip through when he ihinkh the time has come lor ilie effort. Ue will find his mount fresher and quicker to put it all in. Another thing which 1 learned about the same time was that, however tired a horse may be in a race, and 110 matter how bard it may be for his rider to keep Ins position, yet the horse will take on new energy if lie gets the chance to go 'hrough a gap between two other horses and the rails. 1 have studied horses all my life tsince the time 1 have just spoken of, and I am quite sure that it s a kind of compelling instinct."

"1 shall always remember the Middle i'ark Plate, wJiich l won on Caiman with Flying Fox second. I should fay that Caiman was one oi the poorest class oi horses that ever won the race,' laid it really was a shame that a horse like Flying Fox, a superior animal in every way, should have been done o-iu of what he so much deserved. 1 repeat, Caiman was one ol the most overrated horses 1 ever knew. Tiro truth ivas that I understood him, and hud him under such perfect control that it was possible to do more with him than with perhaps any horse of similar fctamp. Caiman had been a winner, 1 lit why they should have taken 7 to -1 ; bout him—Flying Fox was at the sa.no price- ; t is difficult for me to say, ex<opt for the fact that they didn't knowhow poor an animal lie was by the side of the other. In the race the other jockeys let make my own pace, 'Morny holding off on his crack until the place at which he generally began nis run. We went slower and slower till we got almost to a walkTjust before striking the rise out of the last dip. I was watching him, and saw him proparing to come along. 8o 1 shot mine out hofore he got" moving and stole the race, Flying Fox, although going great gjns, not having, quite time enough to yet up.