Page 176 - Speedhorse February 2018

Woven Web TB (Miss Princess) sets a New Track record for 440-yards at Del Rio winning a Special Matched Race wire-to-wire on May 3, 1947, over Shue Fly.
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The first era was what you’d call a horse
of a different color. It was the time of the late 1940’s and through the fifties when Del Rio was the Queen City of the Rio Grande and hostess to some of the most swinging match game contestants ever congregated in Texas. Both Mr Kid Charge’s era and the earlier one reached national prominence. The Kid, because of the vast publicity given to any All American race, and those before him, because of the running reputations the contestants bore and the willingness of the owners to put up or shut up. That earlier era was one of mix or match; either you ran for modest purses or you ran against your money or your opponents. If you had a horse good enough to attract a crowd, you could get the sponsoring race meet people to put up a little something, too.
Del Rio, during the mid-40’s and right through 1950, had her share of the big match race game. The star of the era had to be Miss Princess (Woven Web TB), the great sprinter from King Ranch. The supporting cast included
he sign on the fence reads, “Home of Mr Kid
such luminaries as Shue Fly, Barbra B, Stella Moore, Miss Bank, Blondie L, Danger Boy, Mae West, Miss Panama and several others.
In that era, before the fabulous futurities of today brought worlds of wealth to the quarter runners, the big money was in the match race. In the spring of ’46 things began shaping up at the border city track when Miss Princess arrived on the scene. During the spring meet, the King Ranch sprinter tuned up with two triumphs over a 440-yard strip, both impressive :22.4 figures. Later that year during the fall meet here, the racing crowd jammed the fairgrounds to view the famous four horse match race, worth $11,000. Miss Princess was entered by Ernest Lane of Odem; Blondie was entered by Dan Logan of Mercedes; Mae West was entered by Johnny Ferguson of Pierce; and Danger Boy was entered by George Parr of San Diego.
The railbirds and fence-lined crowd craned necks while the box seat section sitters and members of the general admission crowd stood and cheered as Miss Princess got home first in 23-seconds flat. Blondie, Danger Boy and Mae West were within blanket length apart.
The honored guest that memorable day was another horseflesh celebrity, General Jonathan E. Wainwright, one of the greatest horsemen ever to wear a U.S. Army uniform.
Possibly Del Rio’s greatest moment in the quarter running sun came on May 3, 1947, when Miss Princess and the great Shue Fly were matched. The purse of the day was said to be 30-grand and the imposts were at 111 lbs. even.
Pat Castile, who rode the King Ranch mare for Ernest Lane had to sweat off 2 1⁄2 pounds the morning of race day. He steamed in the sweat box without a murmur. Earl Southern, the rider selected for Shue Fly by Elmer Hepler, reported a trim 111 pounds.
One other unique incident before the race. The center of the racing strip was laned to prevent any possible bumping or interference and to insure running room. At the starting gate, Shue Fly gave ‘em some problems acting up. A delay, which seemed to be an eternity, but which was probably 20 minutes or so, had the fans fretting and frittering. The opening of the gates echoed, “They’re off,” and Miss Princess eased ahead by a nose. Around the 8th pole, the King Ranch runner was on top by a neck. About the 300-yard mark, Miss Princess got into high gear and Pat Castile rode her in to win in :22.3. The Hepler mare, then 10 years old, ran her race in a shade under :22.5 for a remarkable performance.
The fall of ’47 again attracted the cool Quarter Horse fans to a red hot match race at Del Rio. This time, Miss Princess was to face Barbra B with dual format. The event was to be contested at both the 350 and 440 yard marks. The King Ranch runner won it at both distances.
Then, in the spring of 1948, Miss Princess was matched against Lightfoot Sis at equal weights and would give Stella Moore 32 pounds. The race developed between the lightly imposted Stella Moore and Miss Princess. The
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Charge, 1971 All American Futurity winner.” The wrought iron letters in the tall arch over
the main entrance reads, “Val Verde County Fairgrounds.” Through these portals have passed some of the finest Quarter Horses in the world. They’ve been doing so for years. Mr Kid Charge is of the second era. He’s the winner of the 1971 All American who got his early racing experience right here on Del Rio Downs’ racing strip at the Val Verde Fairgrounds.
174 SPEEDHORSE, February 2018