Michael Wrona to be announcer at Grants Pass in Oregon

Michael Wrona, who has called races at every major California track and at a handful of other tracks in the U.S., will be the racecaller for the upcoming Grants Pass Downs meet in Oregon, the track announced on Monday.

Wrona, a native of Australia, will be the first racecaller under the new management of TMB Racing, a company owned by Grants Pass native Travis Boersma, the founder of the Dutch Bros. coffee company. Live racing begins on Sept. 22 for a 14-day live meet, running on Sundays and Mondays through Nov. 4.

“We’re thrilled to welcome one of the best announcers in the sport to Grants Pass to help us kick off a new era of racing in Oregon,” Boersma said, in a release announcing the hire.

Wrona has been the racecaller at Hollywood Park, Santa Anita Park, Bay Meadows, Golden Gate, Retama Park, Arlington Park, Fair Grounds, Turf Paradise, and Prescott Downs. He most recently called the races at the just-completed meet at Kentucky Downs.

Grants Pass is expected to apply for spring dates next year, and Boersma has said that the track is hoping to run as many as 35 live racing dates a year. TMB recently reached a deal on a 50-year lease for the track’s commercial operations with the Josephine County Fairgrounds, which owns the property.