by Mike Paradise, director of publicity, Maywood Park

MELROSE PARK, IL—Two-time Maywood Park Pacing Series champion Constant Change makes his season debut on his favorite oval as the 9-5 morning line-favorite in Friday night’s $20,750 Tavern Talk Free For All Handicap Pace.

Drawn by groups (1-3) and (4-6), the Tom Simmons trained Illinois bred star pacer has the outside six-slot after going winless in his first three starts of the year at Balmoral Park in Free For All events. However past history shows the seven-year-year-old gelding rates as the horse too beat in Friday’s fifth race feature with driver Dale Hiteman.

While Constant Change has chalked up victories on a regular basis (a gaudy total of 24 in 2003 and 2004) on all size tracks in Illinois, his record at Maywood Park is especially spectacular. Since his first season (2001) of racing Constant Change as been either first or second in 24 of his 32 career starts at Maywood Park (a 75 per cent clip), winning 14 times, including a division last year’s Associates Stake that helped earn him a share of the Maywood Pacing Series title with Taser Gun. Constant Change took the 2003 series crown outright.

Owned by Illinoisans Benita Simmons (Springfield) and Hunt Harness Horse Inc. (Big Rock), and Helen Logan of Coffeyville, Kansas, Constant Change boasts a $473,942 career bankroll and a 1:49.4 lifetime mark, taken last summer at the Springfield State Fair.

The Cole Muffler offspring comes off a disappointing seventh place finish in the February 19 Free For All at Balmoral and finds last Saturday (Feb. 28) might’s FFA second place finisher Pulse (2-1, Ryan Anderson) starting inside of him with the five-post tonight. And Pulse paced a sizzling :25.4 last panel when he was second-best behind the winning Big Sham six nights ago.

Pulse has finished either second or third in four FFA events last month at Balmoral. In January the Joe Anderson trained horse had a second and sixth place finish in his only two career starts at Maywood Park for his Del Mar, CA owners Summersby Stable.

Roland John N (8-1, Sam Widger), Black Oliver (9-2, Tim Tetrick), Papa Deck (12-1, Dave Magee) and Dashing Diplomat (4-1, Andy Miller) have posts one though four respectively, and offer the credentials to win the FFA event.

Dashing Diplomat captured Maywood Park’s Spring Championship as a three-year-old and last October, sprinting to a 1:53.4 clocking in an ICF Open Pace. Earlier last season he paced a career best 1:49.1 mile at Balmoral Park for Mc Henry, IL owners Penny and Michael Yates.