Iron Horse in Forsyth a progressive place
By Cole Boehler
For the Montana Tavern Times
As I rolled into Forsyth, I halted at a four-way stop on the town's main street. Across the intersection was a guy wearing a helmet on a Harley Davidson who seemed vaguely familiar. He nodded as we passed mid-intersection. Hmm.
It was a hot day and I had been on the road for too many hours. I was working up a thirst, so I angle parked at the Iron Horse a block away, and in moments the HD rider angled in alongside.
I dismounted and so did the other fellow. When the helmets were off, there was a mutual and pleasing recognition: Dick? Yes! Cole? Uh huh!
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| Dick Smith purchased the Iron Horse in 2002. |
"Hey, I've got my camera and a notebook and pen. Got time for an interview?"
“Well, I'm supposed to be heading to my brother-in-law's wedding, but, hell, I'll make time."
Proprietor Dick Smith escorted the writer into the cool interior of the establishment and ordered up a couple of icy mugs of beer. Ahhh, did that hit the spot!
In talking, I learned Smith acquired The Iron Horse July 1 of 2002. I also recalled I had spent an enjoyable evening in the place a few months after the purchase during a fall mule deer and pheasant hunt in the Forsyth area.
Smith says he bought the business from Jimmy and Alecia Cutler who'd been in the bar business for 35-40 years. Before being tagged "The Iron Horse," the tavern/restaurant/former hotel had been known as Tom's Lounge and before that, The Joseph, which was run by a local pioneer named Tom Alexander, Smith relates.
But the name "Iron Horse" makes sense on a couple of levels, Smith says. First, Forsyth always has been, and still is to a large extent, a railroad town, and early locomotives were characterized as "iron horses." Nowadays, the term is more often applied to motorcycles, especially those of Milwaukee pedigree, the Harley Davidson brand. And Smith is an HD loyalist and caters to the bike crowd, as well as anyone else with money to spend.
In fact, The Iron Horse gets behind regular motorcycle poker runs and rallies, and Smith says a run to benefit breast cancer research was coming up shortly.
"And we'll do a toy run in winter, too," he says. The runs often encompass nearby Colstrip, Ashland, Broadus, Miles City, Rosebud, Hysham, Sarpy Creek, Hardin and Custer in one or another configuration.
Smith is currently serving as the Rosebud/Treasure County Tavern Association president, but concedes Montana Tavern Association pioneer Jack Snyder of Buff's will forever remain "honorary president" of the outfit.
The bar is located between the Lariat and Buff's, and Smith says customers usually patronize all three, moving back and forth. "We get the late night crowd," he says.
It takes a dozen full-time staff to keep The Iron Horse train on the tracks, Smith says, including casino attendants, swampers and bartenders. "We're open 8 a.m. to 2 a.m. seven days a week, no matter what. It has served me well."
Smith has invested some money in the place: a modest updating of the interior, but $12,000 for the fancy retro tin and neon sign on the exterior as well as $6,000 each for two side awnings and $11,000 for the main one, all of which complement the sign and exterior facade. The immediate effect is to inform the public this is a business that is up-to-date and progressive.
The weighty brick structure is situated on the corner, so the tavern/casino entrance fronts the building, while around the corner is the entrance to the leased restaurant space. The interior of the eatery is striking in its elegance and homage to an age gone by.
There is a stage and small dance floor off to the side of the pub, which is in turn backed by a casino floor. In that space is an ornate stairway and banister that goes ... nowhere anymore, but used to lead to the hotel rooms upstairs, now unfortunately ruined by water damage resulting from a previous bad roof. The back bar features fancy pillars adorned with pretty stained glass.
The business sponsors two darts and two pool league teams and has three big-screen TVs which are often tuned to golf or NASCAR events, Smith says. There are six beer taps and a Jagermeister machine is humming on the back bar. The Iron Horse features live music every four to six weeks.
Smith says the Oct. 1, 2009 smoking ban put a 25 percent dent in his casino business, with a much smaller contraction – maybe 5 percent – in the bar business. He said he thinks both departments may be coming back a little.
"Everyone in the business is sharpening their pencils," Smith says, in the hopes of building up revenues before the slow winter months set in. Typically Smith says he could expect a good business bump when the Colstrip power plants go into their annual overhaul phase, but no such overhaul materialized this year.
Smith was born in Kalispell in 1954 and graduated high school in Columbia Falls in 1973. He enlisted in the Air Force and was in Vietnam when it fell. He finished his overseas duty in Thailand and was discharged in September of 1977.
He then operated heavy equipment in California before joining his step father's gaming machine route business, Big Sky Amusement, based out of Worden. He bought the route in 1978, then sold it to Tim Carson in 2008. He has since focused on The Iron Horse. "I'm here every day, here in the daytime, the evening, nights, closing it up," he says.
When he does manage to grab a few spare hours, he likes to spend them on his own "iron horse," now a 2008 Electra Glide Ultra Classic. This, after having worn out two Honda Gold Wings, he says. He may squeeze in a round of golf occasionally, too.
In the meantime, Smith and the Iron Horse will be gearing up to do their part as a co-sponsor of a mid-August car and bike show in Forsyth.
As for the future, area businesses are hoping the massive Otter Creek coal reserves will be developed.
"It could be a good shot in the arm. I think it will go through," Smith says, but with the skepticism acquired from years in business adds, "in maybe four or five years. But I have no expectations."