Los Angeles County Fair at Pomona : Longden, Shoemaker Not an Unbeatable Combination

It’s an old story that may or may not be based on fact, but Johnny Longden told it convincingly.

“One time, they were running a two-mile race at Pomona,” Longden said. “We had to go around the track four times. So I put four peas in my mouth, and every time I passed the finish line I spit out a pea. When I got down to the last pea, I knew the next time to the line the race would be over.”

Now, Longden is a trainer and he told the story Thursday before he sent out a 6-year-old gelding named Cold to run in the 10th race on opening day at the Los Angeles County Fair in Pomona. Years from now, Cold will be the answer to a trivia question. It will probably be the only horse Bill Shoemaker ever rode at Pomona.

Although Pomona’s track is now five furlongs instead of four, Shoemaker needed to put another pea in his mouth, because after the field for the 1 1/8-mile 10th race had gone around the track twice and the race was over, Cold was second, four lengths behind the winner, Post Flag.

Gary Stevens, who rode Post Flag, displaced Ron Hansen for at least a day as the king of Pomona. Hansen has led Pomona in wins for the last three years and rode two winners Thursday, but Stevens won on all three of his mounts, including a sweep in both halves of the Foothill Stakes.

Stevens’ winner in the first half of the Foothill was League Hitter, who rallied on the outside for a half-length victory over Lucky N Green, who closed on the rail inside of the pace-setter, Relaunch a Tune.

League Hitter paid $10.60 to win. Stevens’ winning mount in the other Foothill division was Santa Rosa Prince, who had broken the Del Mar track record for 6 1/2 furlongs in his last start 10 days ago. Santa Rosa Prince, paying $3.40 to win, raced closely behind Stan’s Bower on the early pace, then closed through Pomona’s longer stretch (757 feet contrasted with 654 feet on the old track) to win by a neck over Private Jungle.

Stan’s Bower was originally scheduled to be ridden by Shoemaker, but he was replaced by Jorge Estrada. “They took me off the horse,” Shoemaker said. “He hadn’t run in a long time (not since July 27), and they wanted somebody else.”

Ted West, who trains Stan’s Bower, indicated that the change was Shoemaker’s decision. “Bill came to ride Longden’s horse,” West said. “But he really never wanted to ride this horse.”

After Cold’s second-place finish at even money, Shoemaker heard some boos from a crowd estimated at 14,000. It took a lengthening of the Pomona track to get Shoemaker to ride there. “Never rode at a half-mile track and I never will,” Shoemaker said.

Reviews of Pomona’s longer, wider racing surface were generally favorable, but Hansen said the extra distance has done nothing to reduce the severity of the turns.

“The turns are the same; they’re still pretty sharp,” Hansen said. “The only difference is that it’s a little longer between the first turn and the second turn.”

Hansen had to take up with his mount, the 7-5 favorite Bolger Boy, going into the first turn in the fifth race, and they finished last.

Perhaps warming up for Shoemaker, the crowd booed Hansen when he came back. There were nothing but cheers for Stevens, of course, and Hansen shouldn’t worry. Stevens, a fixture on Southern California’s major circuit, won’t be at Pomona regularly. Hansen’s journey to the fair, from Canterbury Downs near Minneapolis, should still be worth the trip.

Horse Racing Notes

Pomona’s handle of $2.4 million easily broke the fair record for an opening day and for a weekday. . . . Alex Solis, whose winners at Del Mar averaged more than $26 apiece for a $2 win bet, continued his longshot run, winning with Alisage at $63.20 in the sixth race. . . . At the Bay Meadows Fair Thursday, Louisiana Slew, the $2.9-million yearling, was upset by Powder Pack, a California-bred, in the Mid-Peninsula Stakes.