A scary and unbelievable event during the last race of the final day of the Grants Pass Downs racing season in Oregon on November 9 led to two jockeys being injured and questions raised as to what exactly happened.
“The lights just went off,” track announcer Jason Beem said when the track went dark. “Somebody just turned the lights off. All the lights went off. I’ve got no clue what’s going on and hopefully everybody is staying safe out there, because we can’t see a thing. Unbelievable.”
Six horses broke from the gate in the final race at 10:28 p.m. and in a matter of strides, the track was plunged into darkness. By the time the field came to the finish line, lit up by the photo finish lights, there were two horses without riders.
Officials said jockeys Patrick Henry Jr. and Alex Anaya were taken to a hospital with undisclosed injuries and were released Wednesday. Officials said the horses were all caught and were not hurt. The race was declared no contest.
It is believed that the lights were on a timer and set to go off at a certain time but that the timer had not been adjusted for daylight savings time.
Courtesy Paulick Report for obtaining this extraordinary video:
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