Sandy’s Racing and Gaming in brief: one license, two sites
Revolutionary Racing won Kentucky’s ninth and final racetrack license in 2022 and picked Boyd County for both parts of the project. The gaming hall came first: it opened in 2023 off US Route 60, with 675 historical racing terminals installed at launch, nearly 60 percent of them on Ainsworth’s HHR system. The operator now advertises more than 500 games.
The license required live racing, and before the home track existed the company staged its first quarter horse meet at the Red Mile in Lexington from April 1 to 6, 2023. Sandy Ridge, built directly behind the hall, finally hosted racing in Ashland in August 2026, after an investment the operator puts at more than $120 million in Boyd County.
Sandy Ridge: horse racing returns to eastern Kentucky
Governor Andy Beshear cut the ribbon on August 19, 2026, before an 11-race opening program with a noon post. The first winner, Jd Heza Paintedeagle, took a 300-yard allowance for three-year-olds and up in a photo finish at odds of 9-1. Reports described it as the first live horse racing in northeastern Kentucky in more than a century.
Quarter horses race short and straight, reaching about 55 miles per hour and covering a quarter mile in under 22 seconds, so a whole race lasts only seconds. The meet was planned with roughly $250,000 in purses per day and about $3 million in total, including trials for the BOCA Futurity and the Blue Grass Derby.
What race day looks like
Admission to Sandy Ridge is free. Food trucks and snack vendors replace a grandstand restaurant, mobile bars and a beer garden serve drinks, and fans can sit at picnic tables or book a VIP box on the rail. Paddock visits and live music round out the day, and wagering is offered both at the track and inside the gaming hall.
The gaming floor at Sandy’s Racing and Gaming
Like every Kentucky racing venue, Sandy’s Racing and Gaming offers historical horse racing machines instead of slots. Each play is pooled with other bets on a past race, and the result is shown as spinning reels. Kentucky also bars complimentary cocktails, so drinks on the floor are paid, although a free soft drink station is available.
The building is non-smoking except for a dedicated smoking room. Source Rewards, the player club, gives points for play that convert into Free Play, kiosk games and drawings. Promotions change weekly. Anyone playing should decide on a spending limit in advance; the operator’s materials list 1-800-GAMBLER for help with problem gambling.
Sportsbook, dining and entertainment
The BetMGM Sportsbook at Sandy’s Racing and Gaming lets guests watch and wager on football, basketball and other sports, with hours that vary by day of the week and run longest from Friday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to midnight. The restaurant, kitchen + spirits, serves appetizers, burgers, sandwiches, flatbread pizzas, salads and desserts, with a Friday meal special for members.
The SandBar mixes signature cocktails and pours local craft beer, and it hosts most of the live entertainment, from weekend bands to trivia nights and seasonal parties. Private rooms can be reserved for events. For a broader night out, the Camp Landing Entertainment District sits close by, the area the operator chose when it selected this site.
Getting to Sandy’s in Ashland
Sandy’s Racing and Gaming is at 10775 US Route 60 in the Rockdale area of Ashland, and the track’s own address is 11000 Paul Coffey Boulevard behind it. The hall is open daily from 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. There is no hotel on site, so overnight visitors stay in Ashland or across the river in Ohio and West Virginia.
The nearest other Kentucky track is a long drive west. Turfway Park in Florence races thoroughbreds in winter, and the Red Mile hosts harness racing from late July into October. The Kentucky overview lists every licensed track and gaming hall, and racinos near me helps compare drive times from the Ashland area.