Fox Valley Shania’s Violet ICF stake victory was one of Cordarius Stewart’s eight winning drives the past two days at Springfield. (Patricia Fryman Photography)

By Mike Paradise, for the IHHA

The temperature in Springfield, Illinois reached the 90’s Friday but the weather wasn’t the only thing that has become hot. Driver Cordarius Stewart has been sizzling.

Stewart had the hot hand on both days of this week’s Springfield races. The 29-year-old Mississippi native brought home four winning horses on Thursday and visited the winner’s circle four more times on Friday.

 
The trotter on fire at the State Fairgrounds has been Reign And Shine (Jamaica Patton), triumphant in all three starts at Springfield this year for his owners and breeders Mr. Carroll and Diane Hays of Williamsville, Illinois

The six-year-old mare out of the late sire Cassius took the featured trot in 1:55.1 for trainer Carroll Hays and did it taking air from the half mile (:57.4) on. Lousdobb (Casey Leonard) had another big effort to be second, less than a length behind,

Springfield Notes: The fastest last quarter paced on either of Springfield cards was by the Rob Rittof trained two-year-old colt Guitar Man with a swift 26.2 clocking yesterday. The Somestarsomewhere colt is owned by Doug Overhiser who had six winning horses on Thursday and five came in either in a Cardinal or Violet ICF stakes.

It’s just the beginning of the two-year-old state-bred season but you have to be already impressed with the first two winning starts from Guitar Man who came home in 27 flat in his 1:57 successful debut on June 3rd. His winning time Friday was 1:57.1 however the half was in 1:01.3 with Guitar Man racing fourth, more than four lengths behind the leader.

Guitar Man, a $20,000 purchase at the 2021 Illini Classic Sale, is Incredible Finale stakes eligible.

Fox Valley Farm’s Somestarsomewhere, the 2022 Illinois Pacing Sire of the Year, had six of his sons or daughters win races on Thursday or Friday’s cards.

Well Deserved: Congratulations are still pouring in to the Amy and Kyle Husted Stable after their talented three-year-old Fox Valley Landen dazzled Thursday’s Springfield crowd with a sizzling 1:50 flat mile in the second Cardinal place split.

The Somstarsomewhere offspring certainly deserved those smouches he received from Amy in the winner’ circle.

The Name Game: People name their horses for all kinds of reasons and sometimes you can’t help but smile when you come across some.

The Megan Rogers Stable of Chicago has had dozens of horses over several years and they’ve come up with some doozies that have gotten my attention.

The stable’s latest is the two-year-old ICF colt Erico Pallazzo. The name might ring a bell with some of our not so young readers. He’s a character in the slapstick movie from 1989 called “The Naked Gun” featuring Leslie Nelson, the same actor who starred in the all-time great comedy “Airplane.”

The Chicago stable also gave us Lily Von Stupp, from the movie “Blazing Saddles,” and Dr. Drake Ramoray, a fictitious character played by “Joey,” on the long running TV hit series “Friends.”

Still to be unveiled is another Nelson Willis trained two-year-old with the moniker of Kurt Longjohn, a personality from the film “Boogie Nights.”

Heading South: Next Friday and Saturday Hawthorne’s State Fairgrounds racing programs moves to Du Quoin in southern Illinois where the stretch is 900 feet, almost 100 feet more than Springfield’s.