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Wyoming's racing future could
include wagering on Rodeo Events
Dec. 4, 2011 - Eric Nelson never planned to sell
Wyoming Downs. Then a hedge fund approached him five years ago with
an offer he couldn’t ignore. He sold the Evanston track, even though
he hadn’t yet realized his vision for Wyoming horse racing.
Last month, Nelson decided to give it another try. He bought back
the track for $450,000 at a live auction.
The 43-year-old real estate broker plans to resume live races by
2013 and run rodeo events that customers can wager on, he said.
Ultimately, he’d like to open a second track in Cheyenne that could
attract customers from northern Colorado.
“We always felt we had some unfinished business up there,” he said.
“And we think we can put together a good program that works for
everybody.”
Nelson becomes the second businessman this year to bet on a revival
in Wyoming’s horse racing industry. In August, a group headed by
Eugene Joyce - whose father sold Nelson the track in 1998- began
running races at Sweetwater Downs in Rock Springs.
Before Joyce’s arrival, Wyoming Downs was the
state’s only operating track. But it experienced a decline in live
race days beginning in 2009, while it was owned by a group headed by
Eric Spector.
Spector did not host any live races in 2010 and allowed his
off-track betting permit to lapse.
Nelson makes his living buying real estate in down markets. Despite
the horse racing industry’s recent struggles, he believes it can
thrive in Wyoming.
“We are long term players,” he said.
The Las Vegas resident wants to complete the racing program he set
out to develop when he last owned Wyoming Downs. That includes
extended racing days and bigger purses to attract more horsemen from
other states.
Long-term, Nelson would like to operate a summer racing circuit at
county fairs to complement meets at Wyoming Downs and the future
track in Cheyenne. He also hopes to convince state lawmakers to
enact legislation that would permit slot machines at the track and
off-track betting site, or instant racing, in which gamblers can
wager on random videos of old meets.
“With the correct legislative changes, we really feel we can put in
a long-term stable program for the industry,” he said.
Off-track betting is a possibility in communities that don’t already
have simulcast racing. Joyce’s group runs off-track sites in Mills,
Cheyenne, Evanston, Rock Springs and Buffalo.
Joyce also attended the Wyoming Downs auction, but said he did not
bid on the track. He views Nelson’s return to Wyoming as a positive
development.
“It can only help to have a guy like that in Wyoming,” he said.
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