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I On the Trot i I By MORRIE KURLANSKY 1 Double Feature on Tonights Card Down Town, Miss Abbe Cash Clash Fraser Shows Alertness, Courage MAYWOOD PARK, Maywood, 111., Aug. 28. Saturday nights program here not only provides a very interesting free-forloll trot with C 1 i f f W i n Wilbur Long , Express Colby Dee Stover , Comets Royal Bob Parkinson, Little Steve Elmitt Norman , Mary Hall Jack Hankins and Tru Astra Virgil Altizer named as the six starters, but a companion-feature, an A-class pace that promises to be a humdinger for several successful three- year-olds will match strides with proven veteran sidewheelers. Chicago fans will get acquainted with Down Town, an Illinois-bred colt by Brook dale Sue Adam 2:03, thus a full brother to Atomic Bomb 3, 2:00, Imperial Siskiyou 4, 2:03, Stay Lucky, 2:08, Atomic Sue, 2:09 and Lady Susan, 2:06, among others. The colt is the property of George P. Ben-hman of Baldwin, N. Y., who ecquired the chestnut pacer for the express purpose of having a starter in the rich Illinois State Fair Colt Stakes. Down Town more than realized the ambitions of his owner in the 6,000 Springfield Stakes last week when the colt won his first elimination heat from B Haven and Gene Jester and was second in the final elimination and the deciding run -off between the three heat winners for earnings of over ?10,000 in that race alone. With Everett Osborn in the sulky, Down Town will face his old opponent Miss Abbe Cash, who earlier in the week got a record of 2:05 here; Fred Scott, a winner of ten races this season for owner Dr. J. Howard Young of Elkhorn, Wis., and trainer Dee Stover; as well as Counterpart Hanover Dan Peacock, Josedale Double Hal Red Scott, Tempered Volo Harold Wilson, Lorraines Boy Howard Beissinger and Gary Mc Red Ross, all good winners in 1953. The ,070 Great Midwest Trot, annual .stakes fixture of the Fox Valley Trotting Club meeting for three-year-olds, ended with a surprise Wednesday when the Guy Abbey gelding, Maximilian, owned by Robert E. Agner of Ottawa, Ohio, made a clean sweep of the two heats. With Jerry Neikirk, better known in Chicago as the driver of the hardy pacing mare, Chief Mite, at the reins, Maximilian trotted to two front-going victories, which netted ,988, almost three times as much as he had earned in nine previous starts this season. The Kentucky-bred trotter made his last two starts at Springfield in the Review Futurity, but, owing to breaks before the field got away, Maximilian finished far back in both trips. Prior to that he had shown good form at Northville Downs in Detroit, but his record of 2:08 was over two seconds slower than that of Jochovolo, the Volation colt owned by Herman Graham of Salem, 111. Before the start of the Great Midwest Trot, the field seemed at the mercy of Jochovolo, who had been the winner in 21 out of 28 dashes this year and, contrary to Maximilian, gave a good account of himself in the Review Futurity, finishing fourth in Kimberly Kids 2:01 mile. Having drawn the pole position for the first heat, Jochovolo nevertheless was out-trotted by Maximilian around the first bend and, trying hard to overtake xhe leader in the stretch, could not make up appreciable ground and was beaten one length. The second heat was hardly different from the first one. Maximilian, starting on the rail, got the lead immediately after the start with Jochovolo right behind him. Jochovolos bid on the backstretch made no impression whatsoever on Maximilian, who pulled away in the stretch to win by- two lengths and peg his mark at a very creditable 2:06. While it was obvious that Jack Beasley gave Jochovolo, who went to the post in both heats as a heavily-backed favorite, at 2 to 5 the first time and 4 to 5 in the second dash, an overconfident ride, the Ohio trotter was defnitely the better horse Wednesday night. Not much can be said about the rest of the field since almost all of them made breaks in both heats and were never in contending positions. General Tompse especially was a complete failure and Scotch Lass, the other half of the E. C. Moriarty entry, was withdrawn after a dismal showing in the first heat. Jack Hankins, who trains for commission member, Paul S. Dougherty of La-Grange, scored a double victory with Guy Gallon and Mary Hall, both trotters belonging to the southside manufacturer. The value of Maximilians performance was underlined when Mary Hall annexed the A-BB trot in a modest 2:096, over two seconds slower than the three-year-old. For the1 first time this season three drivers steered two winners on Wednesday. In addition to Neikirk and Hankins, Red Ross was credited with a double behind Ima Hanover Dale and Kahoka Bud in two successive races. Both horses, incidentally, reduced their best times of the year. Gordon Fraser, Jr., figured in a spill in the second race when the leading Dusty Stanford, with Tony Pauly ,in the sulky, made a bad break, impeding the closely buched field on the final turn, and Sir Edward, Frasers mount, got all the worst of it, throwing his youthful reinsman out of the seat. Fraser must be complimented for his alertness and courage in holding on to the reins and avoiding a disastrous collision.
