When an editor at the Globe invited Michael Blowen to the race track one day, it sparked a new interest and, eventually, a new career. Blowen became a racehorse owner with several partners, and, in time, found himself working on the back stretch of Suffolk Downs for trainer Carlos Figueroa to learn more about horses.
After retiring from the Globe in 2000, Blowen accepted a position as the Operations Manager for the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation in Kentucky, and soon after, in 2003, he launched Old Friends, the non-profit Thoroughbred Retirement Facility in Georgetown, KY., that now supports over 200 retired horses, including numerous stallions.