Two years ago the North Dakota Horse Park was forced to close its doors due to rising debt. Now after some big changes, the races are coming back.
Glen Thompson was there on day one as the building and grounds manager and helped design the park. He says, "It was kinda disheartening that we ran into a problem."
He said there was nothing. It meant starting from the ground and working their way up. All available money was put towards the track leaving little room for anything else.
Thompson says, "We pretty much winged it from a county fair atmosphere."
Racing began in 2003. Quickly major debt caught up with the park. In 2010, the doors were closed due to an outstanding balance of $150,000.
But now the debt has been managed and volunteers are stepping up to do anything they can. "A bunch of us are just volunteering, trying to get it back," says Thompson.
Saturday the bets will be in and the horses will take to the track and they will once again be racing. "If it succeeds in two weeks, I really think they're gonna be looking at about seven weeks next year," says Racing Secretary Wayne Epsteen.
Epsteen says it would be a blessing to break even in the two weeks. He explains the ultimate goal is to get enough funding to be self-sufficient and get the community on board. "We were well-received everywhere we went. People were excited to hear that we were coming back," he says.
The racing will be held July 14-15 and 21-22 starting at 1 p.m. Admission is $3.00, and kids ages 12 and under get in free.
For more information, you can check out the North Dakota Horse Park's website. You can find the link under the Hot Button on our website.
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