Orange county has always been horse racing country. My great uncle Miguel Pryor was a race winner down Capistrano way and once won a thirty-mile race. When the old Orange County Fair opened in 1892, the track would see the first use of pneumatic tires on trotting sulkie racers.
You don't see sulkies raced much these days, but back then it was a famous race rivalry between Santa Ana's underdog pacer Silkwood, out of Willits Ranch and the Los Angeles trotter favorite McKinney. Two straight years of wins made McKinney the odds on favorite to win the $1500 purse.
The race grounds were filled with onlookers. A newspaper reporter wrote: "There never was such a crowd in Santa Ana before. As I looked down from my box at the sea of heads,
the forms on both sides of the track, up and down, hanging over the fences and ropes, all over the shed roofs, on carriage seats, on top of buses and coaches, swarming, clinging everywhere, while the boxes around me and grandstand back were crowded to bursting."
The L. A. boys smirked at Silkwood, joshing that he was fed on "alfalfa and pumpkins" down in slow agricultural Orange county. The big bay trotter edged Silkwood close after the quick takeoff. Silkie took the lead, expecting McKinney to thunder past closer to the finish. With a glance over his shoulder, however, as if measuring the distance, Silkwood pressed on harder and finished -- winner! -- the one mile race in 2:13 minutes.
And, yes, the Santa Ana boys did go up to the next Los Angeles races and shout "Al-fal-fah! San Tan-ah! Pum-kins! Silkfood Forever!"
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