Bandera Downs was an American

horse-racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

track located in

Bandera Bandera - from a Spanish word meaning a ''flag'' - may refer to: Places * Bandera County, Texas ** Bandera, Texas, its county seat ** Bandera Creek, a river in Texas, with its source near Bandera Pass ** Bandera Pass, a mountain pass in Bandera C ...

, Bandera County,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. A thousand people were on hand for the first race at the new track known as Lost Valley Downs in July 1965 running

American Quarter Horse The American Quarter Horse, or Quarter Horse, is an American breed of horse that excels at sprinting short distances. Its name is derived from its ability to outrun other horse breeds in races of a quarter mile or less; some have been clocked at s ...

and

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...

events until closing after the 1967 season. The track was sold in 1984 and reopened as Bandera Downs by the new owners. It opened as for its first season of parimutuel racing on July 6, 1990, shortly after the Texas Legislature legalized

parimutuel betting Parimutuel betting or pool betting is a betting system in which all bets of a particular type are placed together in a pool; taxes and the "house-take" or "vigorish" are deducted, and payoff odds are calculated by sharing the pool among all winnin ...

. Despite a $6 million renovation and 284,690 people gambling $35.8 million the first year, the track faced declining attendance and wagering due to its proximity to nearby Retama Park, and closed in 1995. The property was auctioned the following year, and renamed Bandera Downs Recreational Complex, hosting concerts, festivals, and other events. In February 1998, the track was again sold at a tax auction to the Bandera Independent School District for $1.475 million, but the purchase was nullified by District Judge V Murray Jordan the following year on the basis that the district could not bid at its own tax sale. The ruling was reversed after appeal, but the district could not develop the property without a bond issue. The track was sold again in 2004 for $1.2 million to a firm with plans to open a training center.Bandera Downs in Texas to Return as Training Center
/ref> The track remains intact, but is offered for sale.

References

External links

* http://www.banderadowns.com/ Defunct horse racing venues in the United States 1965 establishments in Texas Buildings and structures in Bandera County, Texas Sports venues completed in 1965 {{Texas-sports-venue-stub