By a Head

The overwhelming favorite, Native Dancer, was brushed down and saddled at 7 a.m. for a jog around the track. After a couple of turns around the course, he was . cooled off and le$ back to his stall. Inf mid-morning he polished off two quarts of oats, then drowsed in his stall jqr a while, as relaxed as a puppy.

Elsewhere at Churchill Downs, as Derby Day dawned last week, ten other three-year-olds were also being got ready for the big race. The fast California colt, Correspondent, drew a lot of attention; his jockey, Eddie Arcaro, felt reasonably confident of winning if Correspondent could only outrun the great Dancer. Other owners, riders and trainers were not figuring it quite so closely. Each had his hopes, but the betting odds reflected something like a U.S. consensus. At post time, the Dancer, coupled with his stablemate Social Outcast, was the odds-on favorite at 7-10; Correspondent (Arcaro up) was the second choice at 3-1. The rest of the field went into the gate at odds up to 99-1.

At the break from the gate, a brown colt cut in fast from an outside post position, making a strong bid for the rail and the early lead. It was Dark Star, 25-1. As the horses swept past the grandstand for the first time, it was Dark Star in front, with Correspondent a close second.

The Dancer was running easily, a few lengths back, under Jockey Eric Guerin. Nobody expected the Dancer to be setting the pace; he had won all his eleven races coming from behind.

The field swept into the first turn with Dark Star in the lead. Eddie Arcaro kept Correspondent second, close to the pace, well ahead of possible traffic jams on the turn.

A jam did develop for latecomers at the first turn. Native Dancer was bumped by a swerving horse. Jockey Guerin eased him back, looking for racing room, then took him around the rest of the turn on the outside. At the half-mile mark, the

Dancer was eighth, a good ten lengths behind.

Dark Star still led at the mile mark, with a quarter-mile to go. Some fans found it necessary to take a quick glance at their programs: Park Star was New Yorker Harry Guggenheim's colt, ridden by Jockey Henry Moreno. Correspondent was still second. And where was Native Dancer? It was getting late.

The Dancer was fourth, 2^ lengths behind, just turning into the stretch along the rail.

The Dancer was coming up strong. At the top of the stretch he passed the bay gelding Straight Face, passed the ridden-out Correspondent a few strides later. Running outside again, he had only Dark Star in front of him. Native Dancer had never been whipped--in eleven races Guerin had never given him more than a single hit with the bat. This time Guerin laid on, all the way down the stretch. The big grey colt came pounding on in one of his famous finishes. But this time his drive came too late; at the finish line Dark Star was still leading him, by a head.

Jubilant Jockey Moreno, who got every last ounce out of Dark Star--the time was 2:02, just three-fifths of a second off the Derby record--knew that the Dancer was going to win in another pair of strides. "I thought the finish wire was two jumps too far," said Moreno. "But it wasn't."

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