Barn Area Reopens at Ruidoso Downs As Racing Season Moves Forward to Opening Day May 23

(Ruidoso Downs, NM) Quarter horses that will be competing this summer at Ruidoso Downs Racetrack began arriving to the barn area this week in preparation racing season is scheduled to begin on Friday, May 23.

“It’s never too early to get horses acclaimated to the altitude of Ruidoso Downs,” General Manager Rick Baugh said.  “We have almost 200 horses that have already arrived, and we’re expecting several hundred more to arrive later this week,” General Manager Rick Baugh said.

Track repairs are in the final stages of completion from the flood damage that occurred last summer. Training will begin on the racetrack as early as next Monday when the track is expected to officially open.

“We are preparing for as many as many as 1,700 horses to be housed in the barn area by the time we open Memorial Day weekend,” Rick said. “We’re off to a good start and we anticipate more quarter horses will be arriving from Remington Park as their season starts to wind down by mid-May.”

Meanwhile, Ruidoso Downs continues to prepare for a “Comeback Concert and Barbecue” festival on Saturday, May 3rd that includes a $25,000 barbecue contest and a concert featuring Texas legend Pat Green to be held outdoors in the parking area.

“We want to get the word to our tourists that we’re going to have a fantastic race meet and invite everyone to come to this pre-season party,” Rick said. “Tickets are available at the box office and online and we hope our racing fans will come out and see all the work that’s been done in preparation for the upcoming season.”

The festival will bring together many regional barbecue teams competing in food categories that include beef, chicken, pork and ribs. The winning team for the weekend will receive an automatic bid to the American Royal national barbecue competition this fall.

The Kentucky Derby viewing will also be held on Saturday, May 3rd from Churchill Downs. Patrons are invited to view the race inside Billy’s Cantina and Billy the Kid Casino. There will be a contest inside Billy the Kid Casino to win $50 in free slot play for picking the winner of the Kentucky Derby.

Tickets for the concert and the entire season are available by telephoning the box office at 575-378-4140 or online here.