New Mexico Ranch To Become Western Resort/TV Production Facility
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 8, 2018
Santa Fe, New Mexico – RFD-TV announced today the purchase of the historic Imus Ranch located near Ribera, New Mexico. Established in 1998 by Don, Deirdre, and Fred Imus and built to headquarter the Imus family charity’s efforts to support Kids With Cancer, the 3,000+ acre spread has its own western town, 14,000 square foot Hacienda, an indoor & outdoor rodeo arena, greenhouse, plus a 25-stall horse barn and other facilities to support traditional ranch operations. Terms of the sale were not disclosed.
“The Imus family built this ranch from scratch that is so well designed that the complex can now be adapted immediately for a wide variety of uses,” stated Patrick Gottsch, Founder & President of Rural Media Group, Inc. “RFD-TV The Ranch fits perfectly into our desire to produce more original television programming that embraces western sports and the western lifestyle for both RFD-TV and The Cowboy Channel.”
Trigger and Bullet, Roy Rogers’ famous horse and dog, will be on display in the authentic western town, which also features its own Marshall’s office, company store, and other buildings whose exteriors rival any movie set. RFD-TV bought Trigger and Bullet at the 2010 Christie’s auction of the Roy Rogers museum.
Plans also include using the property to host a wide variety of company sponsored events, inviting key clients to be guests of the network(s) for sales seminars and corporate retreats in a totally unique, and private, setting. In addition, the present facilities will be expanded in 2018 to include a health spa, shooting range, dance hall, ATV experience, convention center, bass fishing and other recreational activities to eventually transform RFD-TV The Ranch into one of the world’s premiere western resort destinations. In March/2019, RFD-TV The Ranch will open itself up to the public for family-oriented, western-themed vacations. Currently, there are 35 beds available for guests in the Hacienda and western town, along with a commercial kitchen, heated pool, and many horse trails located throughout the spectacular grounds and up to the scenic mesa.
For the past year, RFD-TV has been producing the new hit series Debbe Dunning’s Dude Ranch Roundup, which visits a different dude ranch each week. The series has proven to be very popular with urban audiences, who are expected to be the first in line for a chance to experience genuine western entertainment from RFD-TV. The series will move production to RFD-TV The Ranch in 2019, where the former Imus television and radio studio can be used for interviewing celebrity guests on location.
For more information, go to www.RFDTVTheRanch.com or call Patty O’Bryan at (402) 618-6548
For more information, visit RFDTV.com, RuralRadio147.com, TheCowboyChannel.com, and AmericanRodeo.com.
Media Contacts:
[email protected], (402) 618-6548
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About Rural Media Group, Inc. (RMG):
Rural Media Group, Inc. is the world’s leading provider of multimedia content dedicated to the rural and Western lifestyle. With a mission of reconnecting “city with country,” RMG is the parent company of RFD-TV (52 million homes), RURAL RADIO Channel 147 on SiriusXM Radio (33 million units), The Cowboy Channel (42 million homes), and RFD-TV The Magazine. RMG networks are distributed worldwide by DBS, telco and cable systems, including DISH, DIRECTV®, Comcast, AT&T U-Verse, Mediacom, Charter Spectrum, Suddenlink, Cox, and more than 600 independent rural cable systems. Corporate headquarters are in Omaha, Nebraska; broadcast operations are in Nashville, Tennessee for RFD-TV and RURAL RADIO Channel 147 on SiriusXM Radio, and in the Fort Worth (Texas) Stockyards for The Cowboy Channel.
About The Cowboy Channel, RFD-TV & Rural Radio XM147:
The Cowboy Channel is the first 24-hour television network totally dedicated to western sports and the western lifestyle. Headquartered in the Fort Worth Stockyards, The Cowboy Channel features content focused on rodeo, bull riding, roping, reining, barrel racing, and other western sports genres, along with western fashion, music, and movies. The lineup also features a wide variety of “live” coverage from major western events showcasing the world’s toughest and most talented cowboys and cowgirls. The network enjoys distribution into 42 million homes on cable/satellite systems on DISH, DIRECTV®, AT&T U-Verse, Charter Spectrum, Cox, Comcast, Mediacom, Verizon FIOS TV, and many other rural cable systems. In addition, The Cowboy Channel can be streamed via Sling TV’s Heartland Extra package.
RFD-TV is the flagship network for Rural Media Group. Launched in December of 2000, RFD-TV is the nation’s first 24-hour television network featuring programming focused on the agribusiness, equine and the rural lifestyles, along with traditional country music and entertainment. RFD-TV produces six hours of live news each weekday in support of rural America and is a leading independent cable channel available in more than 52 million homes on DISH, DIRECTV®, AT&T U-Verse, Charter Spectrum, Cox, Comcast, Mediacom, Suddenlink, and many other rural cable systems. In addition, RFD-TV can be streamed online via The Country Club at rfdcc.com, DIRECTV NOW, Roku, and Sling TV’s Heartland Extra package.
Rural Radio XM147 Found exclusively on SiriusXM Channel 147, RURAL RADIO 147 is the agribusiness and Western-lifestyle channel for the U.S. and Canada. RURAL RADIO 147’s program schedule revolves around original productions focused on agriculture, equine, hunting, fishing, Western sports, and living the country life in small towns around rural America. Broadcast operations for the station are located in Nashville, Tennessee. The channel airs multiple exclusive news and agriculture series along with live broadcasts of Western sports competitions from the PBR, PRCA rodeos, and WPCA Chuckwagon races.