The state of New Mexico is saddling up with its most famous outlaw, Billy the Kid, in a new effort to promote tourism there.
In one promotion, the legendary outlaw’s trail when he broke out of the Lincoln County jail has been outfitted for horseback riders.
“We looked at this as an opportunity to promote horse riding, or equi-treckking, because it’s showing up in our research. It’s big in Ireland, for instance,” said Jon Hendry, New Mexico’s Tourism Department’s marketing director.
Trail ride officials say the road is beginning to attract tourists from all across the US and as far away as Russia, according to the New Mexico Business Weekly.
“This ride has gotten more press than we could have imagined and the beauty of the thing is, people are coming from all over the US and bringing tourism dollars to rural New Mexico,” said Wally Roberts, owner of an outdoor catering company called High Country Trail Rides.
Report by David Wilkening
