Q&A with Remington Park's Scott Wells: 'We have a lot of momentum now'

Editor's note: Scott Wells recently retired as Remington Park's president and general manager, as well as president and general manager of Lone Star Park. He also served as Chair of the Oklahoma City Convention & Visitors Commission among other community activities, and was known in the industry for his work in making racing at Remington Park a success. He also received a Hometown Hero award from the Oklahoma City Convention and Visitors Bureau in 2022. He graciously sat down with us for a quick chat about his career and legacy.

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VeloCityOKC: What was your title at Remington Park?

Scott Wells: President and general manager.

Would you mind first giving me a little bit of information on your background, and how you ended up in this business?

I'm a native Oklahoman, and my father graduated from rodeo to horse racing early in life. He was a professional horse trainer who ended up in the American Quarter Horse Association Hall of Fame. I got involved in the racing sport then as a child and, after attending TCU in Fort Worth, I traveled some and then I got involved in training horses, and I trained Quarter Horse and Thoroughbreds for 17 years. And in 1990 I decided to do what I thought was going to be a six-month experiment and I had seen the brand new Remington Park, and it was just fantastic. So I ended up with working at Remington Park for a couple of years --  then other opportunities followed elsewhere, but in 2005 I returned after the passage of State Question 712 and, was faced with building the casino and all the renovations that had to be done.

So what would you say about Remington that made it attractive to you?

I had raced at many different racetracks. I was a licensed trainer in 14 different states. I had seen most of the nicest racetracks in America and Remington was right up there at the very top level when it was initially built.

If you could describe your career at Remington in one word, what would it be and why?

Well, you know, one-word descriptions are hard to come by, but pride would be one word. I have a lot of pride in how the facility was operated during my tenure and we're proud of the whole team. I've always insisted that we focus on those big checks we have at each entrance, which shows how much we give to Oklahoma education, which is over $300 million now.

What would you say is one of your favorite highlights of your career at Remington?

I would say seeing the Springboard Mile, which is a race we run the final weekend of the thoroughbred season, seeing it become an official part of the road to the Kentucky Derby. And I think it was about 2015 or 2016 Churchill Downs approved us as one of the official prep races for the Kentucky Derby. That's a great thing to know that right here in Oklahoma City you might go out and see a horse that goes on to win the Kentucky Derby. In fact, Rich Strike, the winner of this year's Kentucky Derby, was entered to race at Remington and he got a cold and ran his temperature and they had to withdraw him from the race. That's the kind of horses that come in for that race and it's really put Remington Park on the map nationally.

So how has Oklahoma changed since you first started at Remington?

Well, there are 124 casinos in the state, at least, and there were none when I first started so that's changed the entertainment landscape quite a bit. Remington Park itself, after sort of a long down period, has come back to be just better than ever in every way.

So with that being said, what would you like to see in the future?

Well, I would like to see the Adventure District -- which has all those wonderful attractions right there in close proximity – have continued investment and focus on that area of the city. I think it has been an underserved area and we have a lot of momentum now with the softball situation flourishing the way it has, with the Girl Scout camp going in there, the wonderful expansions of the zoo and so on. I would just like to see city and state governments focus even more resources on helping that part of town.

Now that you're retired, what are you looking forward to in your retirement?

I'm going to get to spend more time with my family, especially my five -year-old grandson. And so those are the big things. I will continue to be an advisor to people who are interested in participating in the sport. And by that, I mean I'll help them acquire horses or give them advice when called upon to do so.

Is there any additional information you'd like to share about your time?

It has been a wonderful pleasure working, not only with my great team at Remington Park, but especially with the with the Chamber of Commerce and the Convention and Visitors Bureau. I was honored to be chairman of the Convention Visitors Commission for a period of time. I'm just very proud to see how Oklahoma City has changed in the past 20 years. I also want to give a lot of credit to the Chickasaw Nation, which was the best thing that ever happened to Remington Park. When they acquired it in 2010, they dedicated themselves to making all the improvements necessary to move it back onto the top level of American racing and gaming facilities.