Page 83 - SpeedhorseMarch2021

Lola was very supportive of anything Malon wanted to do... If he wanted a horse or wanted to do something with the horses, she was right there saying, ‘That’s fine, let’s do it!’”
—Kathy Meneely
Malon was influenced by northwest horsemen such as Bill Hoburg (Left) and Lin Melton (Right).
oldest horse,” Malon says. “He’s a hard- knocking horse, running in allowance and stakes races on the Oregon circuit, and
I appreciate a horse like that, giving you everything he’s got.”
Jesstafiably Jess A Cowgill-bred 2016 stakes-winning gelding by One Sweet Jess and out of the Strawfly Special daughter Fly Thru Time. He has earned $44,752 over three years, winning three, running second three times and third once. He qualified for the Pot O’Gold Futurity at Sun Downs and the Firecracker Futurity at Grants Pass, and won the Far West Futurity Consolation at Portland Downs his first year out. At 3, he won the Sun Downs Derby Challenge and ran in
the AQHA Adequan Derby Challenge Championship-G3 at Albuquerque, and at 4 he ran second in the Emerald Downs Championship Challenge. “He’s in good shape and sound, and a solid horse from top to bottom,” Malon says.
Fooses Flyer Also Cowgill-bred, this stakes-winning half-sister of Jesstafiably Jess, by Foose and out Fly Thru Time, was foaled in 2017. She earned $23,113 with a 13-3-3-2 record in two years on the track, including a win in the Autumn Derby at Grants Pass in 2020. “She’s not what you’d typically call a stakes horse, but she’s a real good horse,” Malon says.
Looking Back
Through the years, Malon increased his herd from his original half a horse to six or eight runners each year. Along the way, he was influenced by his mother’s cousin Lary Daniels and Northwest horsemen Verl Hodges, Lin Melton and Bill Holberg.
Along with their advice and example, he attributes his success to “just keeping at it and buying a decent broodmare here or there that would enhance and improve my horses. Some things worked out okay, and I’m still at it so
I must have done some things right along the way. But that might depend on who you talk to,” he says with his typical dry wit.
He admits he occasionally lost heart when one of his horses passed on, but his love for the horses and the industry kept him going. That love also kept him involved in giving back by serving on the boards of the Tri-City Horse Racing and Northern Quarter Horse Racing Association, and the Oregon Quarter Horse Racing Association, where he still serves.
In his down time — of which there’s more than he’d like lately due to COVID-19 shut- downs and consideration for friends who wish to isolate — he and Lola center their attention on their church family. “I’m a pretty boring guy,” he says. “I don’t have any hobbies. I have a few close friends and we used to go out and talk and enjoy each other and maybe go to a restaurant once in
a while. These days we mostly stay right here at home like everybody else.
“I still make decisions on breeding the horses and that brings me a certain amount
of pleasure. But as you get older, your highs become a lot lower and your lows become much fewer. You just mellow out. Nothing gets me down much anymore.”
When needed, though, he finds comfort in what he calls his greatest success: finding the Lord. “It’s the only one that really matters,” he says. “Success in the business world and the horse world all just fade away and become memories.”
That ultimate success has defined him as a person. “He’s been nothing but supportive of racing at Sun Downs; he’s worked his tail feath- ers off,” says Kathy Meneely. “I can’t say enough good things about him. He’s a salt-of-the-earth guy who would bend over backwards for you in any way he could to help out the racing up here, both monetarily and in physical labor.
“He’s got a lot of stick-to-it-iveness to him,” she adds. “Junction City [Oregon, where he’s lived for the last nine years] is about a seven- hour drive from Kennewick and even after he moved there, he’d drive up here and you’d find him out on the tractor working the track and going through the stalls. His bulldog mentality is a big part of how we were able to keep racing going as long as we did, and hopefully after this COVID stuff we’ll start up again.”
“He’s a man of his word,” adds Benito. “He gave me a chance to train for him when I first started and he’s very loyal and a very good friend who will help you anytime he can, not just as a boss but as a friend and as a person. He’s just an overall nice person.”
“He’s a man of his word.
He gave me a chance to train for him when I first started and he’s very loyal and a very good friend who will help you anytime he can.” —Benito Curiel
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William Zuazo Photography
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