Page 35 - Canada Spring 2021

ROD LOWE
Industry Question & Answer
by John Moorehouse
Seven years ago, Grants Pass Downs was looking to close for good. Rod Lowe stepped in and
persuaded his colleagues at the Southern Oregon Horse Racing Association (SOHRA) to keep the facility open. Hindsight might be 20/20, but Lowe didn’t hesitate when asked about the impact on Oregon racing had the SOHRA not taken that step.
“Racing would be over in Oregon, for sure,” Lowe said. “It’d be done.”
Some feared that was an even- tuality after Portland Meadows shut down in the spring of
2019 after 73 years. Grants Pass responded by holding its first commercial meet. The track is under new management; TMB Racing signed a 50-year lease
to take control of the track last summer. Lowe serves as Racing Director and Chief Operating Officer for the track.
Grants Pass’ meet in the fall of 2019 went so well that major expansion was planned in 2020. The track ran 35 total days
in 2020—matching the num- ber typically held by Portland Meadows in its heyday—with meets taking place in the spring, summer, and fall.
Opening day will be May 10, 2021, for the Spring Race meet.
“It’s going to keep racing alive in Oregon because without a flag- ship, without a commercial race meet, it’s hard for fair meets to survive,” Lowe said. “It doesn’t justify a breeding program or people holding onto races for a two-day meet. This gives people some validity to hang onto their horses and race in this state.”
Lowe’s duties at Grants Pass
are just part of his involvement in the sport. He was President of the SOHRA for 20-plus years. He’s been an AQHA Director, also serving on the AQHA’s commit- tees for racing and Champion selection. Lowe is on the board
of the Oregon Quarter Horse Association—and does it all while also running his own construc- tion business.
For Lowe, his involvement in the world of horse racing goes back to his early 20s, when he owned a 20-acre ranch in Park
THE LIGHTER SIDE
“I sold Quarter Horses that went on to be barrel racers, rope horses and cutting horses after their racing career. I like the versatility of the Quarter Horse.”
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