Live horse racing is coming to Laramie County thanks to local entrepreneurs and community support
Local businessmen Ryan Clement and Will Edwards, who are currently building a state-of-the-art equestrian center, that includes plans for a racetrack and tourist destination at Thunder Plains Park, today announced the addition of new members to its racing team.
David Vance, who built and ran Remington Park in Oklahoma City, Ramon Rionda, of Buenos Aires, Argentina with expertise in racing and gaming, and Dennis Moore, internationally renowned track superintendent, will join the Clement and Edwards team immediately.
We’re very excited about the opportunity to be involved with Ryan and Will and their vision for Cowboy Racing and Thunder Plains Park.
I’ve been extremely impressed with the enthusiasm and energy they bring to this project and look forward to working with them as we pursue the construction of an exciting racing and gaming facility with a customer friendly personality and an emphasis on safe racing for horses and jockeys alike.
This will be a facility everyone in Cheyenne and throughout Wyoming can be proud of. Special care has been given to the quality of the racing product.
I’m especially pleased that Dennis Moore will join our team at Thunder Plains” Vance said. Dennis has built a reputation over the years of designing and maintaining world class racetracks throughout the world, including Dubai and tracks in North America like Santa Anita and Del Mar in California. He is highly regarded in the industry.
Vance was responsible for the design and construction oversite of the state-of-the-art track and facilities at Remington Park in Oklahoma City, OK. He served as President of the American Thoroughbred Racing Association, was Chairman of the American Championship Racing series on ABC TV and served on the Board of Trustees of the New York Racing Association.
Ramon Rionda has more than 20 years’ experience running racetrack-casino operations throughout Latin America. He also has been actively engaged in international racing, including the Confederacion Hipica del Caribe, the OSAF, and the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities in Paris, France.
“We are excited to bring all three gentlemen on board the Thunder Plains and Cowboy Racing team,” Clement said. “Will and I wanted to make sure we put together a winning team for this undertaking.”
Support from Wyoming Horsemen
Thunder Plains and Cowboy Racing have reached an agreement with The Wyoming All Breeds Racing Association (WABRA) to be the official Horsemen’s association at Thunder Plains Park.
Dan Lee, WABRA chairman, says “WABRA is excited to be working with Thunder Plains and Cowboy Racing. The first full size racetrack in Wyoming, indoor training facilities, and other equestrian amenities will be a dream come true for Wyoming Horsemen.”
“They have listened to our concerns about track safety and have set out to build the safest track in the state. They’ve also listened to us about the economics of horse breeding, training, and racing. Their plans for sustainable OTB expansion to support the breeder’s award fund and increased purses at Thunder Plains races are innovative and exciting”.
Cowboy Racing Off Track Betting (“OTB”) to support local small business.
Cowboy Racing has reached an agreement with Westby Edge Brewing to be the flagship OTB for Cowboy Racing.
Our highest priority at Westby Edge is aligning our brand with the right partners. Will and Ryan have impressed us with their incredible vision for Thunder Plains and what an equestrian facility like that can do for Wyoming. We love that a couple of Laramie County guys have the courage, smarts, and skill to take on a project like this. Another thing we love, they’re going to keep the OTB money in Wyoming. The OTB will be housed in our current event space, while the brewery / bar and grill will remain unchanged. Finally, as a small business owner their sustainable OTB expansion concept is very exciting. We’re proud to be involved with Thunder Plains and Cowboy Racing and look forward to becoming their flagship OTB location.
Diversifying Wyoming’s economy
When the Wyoming legislature had the forethought to allow OTB to support horse breeding, racing, and training, they created a unique opportunity for the state to diversify its economy through the breeding and racing industry. While racetracks are closing around the country, Wyoming racing is poised to take the next step in its evolution and bring the intent of the legislation passed in 2012 to fruition.
With sustainable OTB expansion and a world class facility at Thunder Plains, Wyoming will be able to attract breeders from around the country to race and train in Eastern Laramie County, and eventually attract breeders to relocate to rural areas of the state to breed horses and establish a rural economic development engine for our state.
100% Privately funded / Reinvestment in the community.
Thunder Plains and Cowboy Racing are 100% funded by private equity. The vision includes not only equestrian facilities, but also a host of community amenities for Laramie County. Altitude multi-use Sports Complex, which includes indoor and outdoor facilities to provide year-round training opportunities for regional youth sports.
Altitude will attract tournament dollars from every sport year-round. In addition to the Altitude complex, future plans also include a golf concept facility, a monster go kart track, a water park, an amphitheater, polo fields, and a drive-in movie theater.
A hotel with OTB facilities is planned for the equestrian center and another hotel is planned to serve the sports and leisure part of the property. Obviously, restaurants, retail shops, and other entertainment venues are in the works. “This is an unbelievable opportunity to put Cheyenne on the regional sports and tournament map,” said Jeff Bailey of the altitude sports complex. “Youth sports, high school sports, and high-level training for professional athletes will be made possible by what the guys at Thunder Plains are doing.”
All of this is made possible by keeping OTB profits in the community from which they come. By re-investing a portion of the OTB profits back into the facilities we can make this dream come true and depart from the current way of doing things.