By Mike Paradise
For Friday, February 27
Three stables off to a hot start at Maywood Park this season belong to Lavern Hostetler, Tom Busse and Joe Cassano.
Going into last night Hostetler has sent 11 horses postward at Maywood and has 6 wins, 1 second and 2 thirds. The 56-year-old Indiana native entered 2009 with 3,600 career driving victories and 425 trainer wins. Busse, a 51-year-old native of Beaver Dam, Wisconsin who now resides in Kirkland, Illinois, has had 5 winners, 3 seconds and 2 third in his first 16 starters at Maywood in ’09. Cassano, a Chicago native who celebrated his 61st birthday last week (Feb. 18), has started 15 on the circuit’s half-miler thus far, producing 4 wins, 2 second and 2 thirds.
Making their Maywood Park debuts in Friday’s second race is Western Place, a Rick Schrock trainee, and the first time starter Mischa Hanover, conditioned by Robert Mohr. Western Place sold for $28,000 at the 2007 Cottonwood Sale under the name Couldntbelucker. The three-year-old Mischa Hanover was bought for $10,000 at Harrisburg, also in 2007.
Friday night eleventh race starters Well To Do Guru and The Steelman make their first season starts on the track where they fared very well last year. The Illinois bred Well To To Guru made seven starts at Maywood, winning three and two came at tonight’s high conditioned pace level. The Terry Leonard trainee was the winner of Hawthorne’s $29,200 Cub Series Final last year when he pulled own over $76,000 for Schaumburg, Illinois owner James Goman. The Steelman, a Joe Seekman trainee, won 4 of his 6 starts at Maywood in November and December for Michigan owners Steel A. Mile, LLC. Now five, The Steelman was an American National finalist as a two-year-old.
The first Free For All of the local season is a go for Saturday night at Balmoral Park. The $18,000 ninth race feature will have a nine-horse field. We’ll have more about that on Saturday’s Notes & Quotes column.
