Maywood Park (2/24/12)
Contact: Tom Kelley
(708) 672-1414
JERALD GREVENGOD, 69, PASSES AWAY
Friday, Feb. 24 was a tough day for horsemen and fans of Maywood Park as longtime trainer Jerald Grevengoed passed away late Friday afternoon and then a trio of drivers were sent to Gottleib Memorial Hospital after a nasty wreck in the 10th race of the night.
The 69-year-old Grevengoed, who had sent out almost 300 winners after embarking on a training career in 1992, was found unresponsive in a tack room on the backstretch at Maywood Park after bringing a pair of horses to the track for Friday’s races from his home base in Paw Paw, Illinois. A longtime fixture on the Chicago racing circuit Grevengoed also racked up more than 400 victories in the sulky after starting his driving career back in 1977.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
In the 10th race of the night a nasty wreck in the final turn sent four horses and drivers tumbling to the ground after Stylish Soiree N and John Roberts set off a chain reaction accident while storming to the lead while three wide after the three-quarter-mile mark.
Just after clearing to the top the Tom Harmer trainee appeared to take a bad step and went tumbling to the track leaving drivers Josh Sutton (Wating And Hoping), Todd Warren (Not Justaprettyface) and Marcus Miller (Bluebird Regal) with nowhere to go as the field bunched up heading towards the top of the stretch.
Miller walked away under his own power while Warren and Sutton were transported to Gottlieb Memorial via ambulance. Roberts also headed to the nearby hospital moments after the wreck had been cleared from the track.
No further information on the conditions of the drivers was available as of press time. All four horses involved in the spill were believed to be unhurt.
