83-acre equestrian competition venue in Langley under new ownership
“As we look to the future, we knew new owners must share our commitment to Langley and passion for this sport. In the Mathesons, we have found exactly that,” said Jane Tidball, describing the original creation and longtime ownership of the venue as a “labour of love for our family.”
Location of Thunderbird Show Park. (Google Maps)
Layout of Thunderbird Show Park. (Google Maps)
Layout of Thunderbird Show Park. (TBird)
The value of the transaction was not disclosed. According to BC Assessment, as of July 2025, the 83-acre property at 24550 72nd Ave. — situated east of Highway 1’s 232nd Street interchange — has an assessed value of over $11.2 million, with $7.96 million attributed to the land and $3.28 million to the structures.
The property is surrounded by farmland within the provincial government’s Agricultural Land Reserve.
According to TBird’s website, the venue’s origins began at another nearby site in the 1960s, when the Tidball family sold their house in West Vancouver and moved to Langley Township, as it was a more suitable place for horses. After acquiring property on 200th Street at Highway 1 in 1970, they built an indoor riding arena, outdoor riding rings, and stables. The family initially lived in a trailer before building a house. They held their first show in 1972, and jumping horses quickly followed. The indoor riding arena even had an attached Keg Steakhouse restaurant at one point.
By the late 1990s, a decision was made to redevelop the original 200th Street property and close this original equestrian centre, as it was increasingly being encroached upon by new developments.
Thunderbird Show Park. (Kim Gaudry)
Thunderbird Show Park. (Kim Gaudry)
After the closure and redevelopment, the family gained exponentially larger ambitions and acquired the current 83-acre property and contracted Robert Jolicoeur of International Equestrian Design — the same firm that designed the equestrian venue for the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Summer Games — to create Thunderbird Show Park.
It opened before the turn of the century, and major reinvestments have been made over the subsequent decades to continuously expand and improve the site’s facilities and amenities to a high standard.
Competitions held at this venue accommodate thousands of spectators in large grandstands and various other seating and grandstand configurations.
Thunderbird Show Park. (Kim Gaudry)
Thunderbird Show Park. (Kim Gaudry)
“Our family is passionate about Langley, about tbird, and about horses. Our goal is to carry the torch forward and ensure tbird is around for many more decades,” said Dana Matheson.
Chris Pack, the CEO of TBird, added, “The Mathesons share the same values and ethics as the Tidballs. They are committed to honouring the legacy — including the ‘George & Dianne Tidball Legacy Scholarship Program’ — while continuing to develop tbird’s reputation as a world-class venue.”
For those unfamiliar with equestrian, this should not be confused with horse racing, as that completely separate sport in British Columbia came to an end in 2025. Horse racing operations at Fraser Downs in Surrey and Hastings Racecourse in Vancouver — both located on municipal government property — ended with the expiration of their longtime leases.