[ad_1]

They used to sell horses inside the Plaza. 

Back in the 1970s, Plaza CEO Jonathan Jossel tells me, the downtown Las Vegas hotel and casino held horse auctions in its ballroom. Buyers would bid on mares and stallions while the graceful animals were led inside the hall and paraded back and forth before potential owners.

That was decades ago, though. Ancient history. 

Jossel is reviving that tradition on Dec. 13, when the Plaza showroom will host the Diamonds in the Desert Horse Sale, with 75 horses auctioned to the public through live and online bidding.

To cater to rodeo guests, the Plaza is opening the only permanent equestrian center in downtown Las Vegas.

It’s just one element of the hotel’s new foray into equestrian events, timed to coincide with the National Finals Rodeo’s (NFR) annual arrival in Las Vegas, where the event brings more than 150,000 visitors and turns the town Western over 10 days each year. 

“Rodeo in December is a huge business in Las Vegas,” Jossel said, but for years the Plaza didn’t see the boost. The NFR’s main events are held at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, and the peripheral entertainment — including rock shows, marketplaces and other rodeo-like competitions at hotels with a strong connection like the South Point — never had a meaningful impact on the downtown casino. 

Three years ago, however, the Plaza did an event called Country Christmas that proved a revelation for Jossel. “It opened my eyes to how big and how exciting those 10 days of rodeo were. We decided we would become an official sponsor of NFR and a host hotel.”

Last year, the Plaza brought on Linnea Mitchell to head the hotel’s rodeo division, and she created a temporary practice arena for visitors participating in NFR-related events along with 80 stalls for guests who wanted to keep their horses close. 

“We actually sold all 80 stalls, and the arena got used,” Jossel said. That rodeo bump? It had arrived. 

Now, the Plaza is making its relationship with the rodeo into a permanent fixture. Just in time for NFR to buck into town on Dec. 6, the Plaza is opening the Core Arena, a year-round outdoor equestrian center that can host barrel racing, team and tie-down roping, bucking shows, mini-saddle bronc and mini-bareback. One hundred and eighty rodeo-ready stalls will allow cowboys and cowgirls to keep their mounts close at hand, and 80 of those will remain open throughout the year. 

“It is really important,” Mitchell said of having stalls available for guests whose animals travel with them. “Even if you aren’t rodeoing for a living, you have a huge investment in each animal. … For you to be able to see your truck and trailer your horses, it creates a home atmosphere and [you can] feel very secure about where they’re located.” 

“Kiss your horse good night and then walk inside and gamble and eat right next door,” Jossel said, adding that the South Point, which has long been the go-to equestrian-oriented property in the city, is less competition than inspiration. 

“If you’ve been to the South Point on a Tuesday afternoon during rodeo, this is huge, and I think it’s only going to get bigger. Nobody has the land. Maybe this is crazy. Maybe this is genius. We’re willing to take the risk.”

While the rodeo is in town, the Plaza will go country, with themed decor, restaurant specials, a giant Christmas marketplace and lots of touches to make rodeo guests feel right at home and cement the property’s status as a Wrangler NFR hotel partner. 

And when the NFR packs up, the Plaza will maintain its equestrian center throughout the year. Mitchell is hoping to book at least one major event in the arena per month, from smaller rodeos to paintball competitions to demolition derbies to BMX. And when NFR returns in 2019, the Plaza will be ready.  

“Downtown was the home of the rodeo for many years,” Jossel said. “We want to bring that back.”

Let’s block ads! (Why?)

[ad_2]

Source link