In June of 2024, two wildfires swept through the Sacramento mountains, forcing the evacuation of the entire town of Ruidoso, eventually burning around 17,000 acres along with 1,400 structures in and around the village.
The burn scars brought destructive and deadly flooding during the 2024 and 2025 monsoon seasons, effectively shuttering one of the area’s main economic drivers, the Ruidoso Downs Racetrack.
Now, nearly two years after the initial disaster, the racetrack announced it will be shuttering again in 2026 due to the continued risk of dangerous flooding, dealing another blow to the long-term economic health of the surrounding area.
Checking in with the Locals, the Data
Arnold Duke owns the Ruidoso Trading Post. His wholesale jewelry warehouse was engulfed by floodwater in July of last year. Duke said that the town lives and dies by its summer season, and that the absence of horse racing for at least another year will be another blow to local businesses.
“We generally do all our business between June and September, primarily from the racing community. So without having them there, that’s a loss for everyone. I believe they bring more than three hundred million dollars to this little village in three months,” he said.
Even after what he described as a decent spring break, Duke said that business is noticeably slower than the years prior to the disasters, but he remains resilient.
“It’s quite a bit slower. And I’m sure a large portion of that is there’s less tourists, less activities. Unfortunately we lost the Flying J Ranch, which was a big attraction, one of my favorite places to go. So I think we’ve got a tough future, but I do think we have a good future,” he said. “We’ve had fires and floods back to back, two years in a row. And we’re actually expecting more floods this year. So it has been very difficult for everybody. But if you’re here, you have to be strong and determined. And this is a wonderful, wonderful place to live.”
According to data pulled from the Village of Ruidoso’s financial reports, the town’s revenue from its lodgers’ tax fell nearly 30% between FY2024 to FY2025.
Additionally, taxable receipts for accommodation and food services in that same period fell nearly 19%.
Recent data covering the first eight months of the current fiscal year show that the lodgers’ tax is about 3% above where it was in FY2025, with the critical surge of tourism season still ahead.
And the shift has been noticeable for locals in the area. Marissa Pater has lived in Ruidoso for nearly 40 years, and currently works at the Ruidoso T-Shirt Outlet on Sudderth Drive. She said she appreciates the effort put in by the village government, but said that state and federal governments disaster assistance has been frustratingly slow.
“You can just drive around town and see the disaster areas. It’s been over two years. I don’t think we’ve gotten the funding, the help that we’ve needed. They put in the [money] the first year to stop the floods, and one flood took everything out in seconds.”
On the racetrack’s absence, Pater said that long-term survival will depend on how businesses adapt.
“This year we’ve seen an uptick in business from the past two years after the fire, but it’s still not where we were, especially with the racetrack closing down,” she said. “Now, with [a] bad winter and without a racetrack being here, it seems like we’re going to have to get creative with what we’re going to do to get people to still come to Ruidoso.”
Rebuilding
Dr. Jay Lillywhite, Associate Dean for NMSU’s College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences (ACES), echoed the importance of economic diversification and explained that with the toll of the destruction and the absence of the racetrack, the village will be feeling the effects for years to come.
“When an individual comes to the racetrack, let’s say it’s an individual coming for recreation, they may purchase gas at a local gas station, they might purchase groceries or food from a restaurant. Those are impacts that, without the racetrack being there, they won’t be felt anymore unless something takes its place,” he said.
Dr. Lillywhite also spoke to the difficulty for locals in the community, who are still dealing in the process of rebuilding what was lost.
“I’ve heard stories right, some coming out of California with anecdotal evidence, where insurance companies say, ‘hey, we just can’t afford to be in this market anymore,’ and I think that’s been broached at the state [legislature],” he said. “We’ve had a number of severe fires in New Mexico over the last five, ten years. So it’s something we have to look at and try to identify ways that we can support these areas when that happens.”
And beyond the numbers, Dr. Lillywhite said that some aspects of disaster recovery are simply difficult to analyze.
“There are things that are really difficult to quantify that are important. The emotional toll, the family stress. So I don’t want to understate that as well. It’s certainly a challenge,” he said. “I’m optimistic. I think people are resilient, communities are resilient, I think they’ll figure it out. I’m not saying everything will be the same, but they’ll work together and hopefully the state and the extending communities will work together to support them through that process.”
Mayor Lynn Crawford acknowledged that the road ahead for the village will be hard, but pointed to the recent data showing a slight uptick in the town’s revenue as a reason to be optimistic.
“For the last 10 or 15 years, we’ve been working very hard to stabilize and build up our shoulder season so that we have a more stable economy. And we’ve had a lot of success in that,” Crawford said. “We haven’t taken our eye off the ball, we still expect the track to stay in Lincoln County. And I’m still hopeful that it’ll stay in the same location with quite a bit of modifications.”
As tourism season draws closer, Crawford said the village has been working to replace some of the revenue brought by the racetrack, and is hoping for more federal funding to be used in the town’s rebuilding effort ahead of the monsoon.
“The concern is going to be this summer. We’ve been working with our tourism team on how do we replace the events that people usually come and spend money at the racetrack, and then stay here all week, in fact for three or four months at a time. We’re not going to be able to replace all of that revenue the first year. But we have some other [good] economic indicators. We’ve got the green fuels energy conversion plant that’s starting,” Crawford said. “So there’s a lot of different things that are happening to help work to the replacement.”
With the summer rains approaching and the racetrack absent for another year, Ruidoso’s path to recovery remains rocky, and the season that could define the town’s recovery is still ahead.
This report is supported by the Southern New Mexico Journalism Collaborative.
The Reader is proud to be sponsored in part by great companies like Off the Beaten Path:
Learn about sponsorship opportunities for your business in support of the Reader. Contact us for more information at sponsorship-info@cloudcroftreader.com
Cloudcroft Reader is proud to be sponsored in part by great businesses like:
Cloudcroft Art Society
Located in Old Red Brick Schoolhouse: Holiday and Saturday art showsNoisy Water Winery
Family-owned winery crafting thoughtfully made wines from New Mexico grapes, inspired by mountain living.Be in the Mountains Yoga & Massage
A cozy space for yoga and massage therapy at the Village PlazaOsha Trail Depot
Your destination for unique, hand-crafted treasuresThe Stove and Spa Store
We offer a variety of services to ensure your hearth and spa dreams are met!The Lodge at Cloudcroft
Landmark Choice Among New Mexico ResortsCloudcroft Art Workshops
Enhance your artistry while enjoying the beauty and coolness of the mountains!Sacramento Camp & Conference Center
Come to the Mountain — Let God Refresh Your SoulLaughing Leaf Dispensary
Discover a world of wellness at Laughing LeafInstant Karma
Adventure Within: Transformative Yoga, Ayurvedic Wisdom, Nourishing Organics, Fair Trade BoutiqueOff the Beaten Path
Eclectic gifts & original artworkFuture Real Estate
Raise your expectations.Ski Cloudcroft
The Southernmost ski area in New Mexico.Cloudcroft Therapeutic Massage
Maximizing Movement, Quality of Life ImprovementHigh Altitude
Your favorite little outdoor outfitter on Burro AvenueBlushing Yucca Esthetics
✨ Book your glow-up today✨The Elk Shed
Purveyors of Southwest + Mountain Provisions, Goods & FineryThe PAC
Pickleball Addicts of Cloudcroft—Pickleball in the CloudsPeñasco Valley Telephone Cooperative
For all the ways you love to connectBre Hope Media
Professional photo and video services
And, individuals like you. Buy us a cup of coffee—pledge $5 a month to the Reader and sustain our efforts.
Thanks for reading. Subscribe for free articles and newsletters just like this, direct to your inbox.
