Kentucky Derby Trip--Day 4

After a leisurely breakfast at our hotel on Sunday, we left for the trip home. There was one more interesting stop to make.

In French Lick, Indiana we stopped at the French Lick Resort Complex. First we saw the French Lick Springs Hotel. The balconies reminded us a bit of the Grand Hotel at  Mackinaw Island!  It was first built in 1845, burned in 1897, but was re-built even bigger and grander. The attraction of the area is the healing properties of the sulfur springs that are nearby.

It hadn't been that long since breakfast, but we enjoyed a very nice brunch at the Grand Colonnade Restaurant in the Hotel. As always, there is no shortage of good food on our trips. We walked around the  hotel and admired the architecture. It is very grand! 

Here we are in the lobby area of the hotel. It was huge and can accommodate the large crowds that come there for the casino, golfing, sulfur springs, etc. They had hosted people attending the Derby also--even that far away from Louisville. And there had been a big Kentucky Derby party!

  

We couldn't leave town without stopping at the West Baden Hotel which is just a mile away from the Springs Hotel. This hotel was built in 1902, and until 1955 it was considered the largest free span dome in the world. That distinction now belongs to the Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina.

This hotel is considered one of the best mainland US resorts. I, for one, was not aware of all that French Lick had to offer. It is not that far from south/central Illinois.

From there it was homeward bound. Everyone agreed they had a great experience, and that they could now make a check mark next to this item on their bucket list.

Thanks once again to Carol for planning this great trip for us!

Kentucky Derby Trip--Derby Day!

The Twin Spires on the grandstand of Churchill Downs welcomed us back for the big day. Another record crowd of over 150,000 filled the grounds to capacity. The weather was great!



There were lots of amazing hats and costumes. This man was literally wearing the twin spires on his head!

The Derby was the 11th race of the day. We again enjoyed lunch and the view of the paddock from  the Street Sense Lounge. And we all sampled a Mint Julep! Some had better luck at betting than others, but it makes you feel more a part of a race if you have a little stake in it--even if it is only $2.00.

Our Derby attire fit right in with the rest of the crowd. Some designed their own and others purchased them already decorated. Can you tell who the creative people were?

Josh Groban sang the National Anthem. Miss Kentucky, Katie George, was there--along with lots of other celebrities.



The excitement began to build as the bugler gave the call to the post. The band sang "My Old Kentucky Home" as soon as the first horse stepped onto the track. And then, they were off! 

Twenty of the nation's top three-year-old horses whose owners had paid over $50,000 each to enter them in the race stormed down the track. They were all trying to become a part of horse racing history and win the lion's share of the guaranteed $2,000,000 purse.

Our seats were not at the finish line, but it was right in front of us that American Pharoah took the lead. He is number 18 in the photo. He had been the favorite, and one of the newspaper writers said after the race that, "He did it his way." American Pharoah also gave a first Derby win to his owner.

In past years, the owner had three other horses finish second and one that got injured just before the race. He said, "It was a dream come true--no more seconds."  It was the third victory for the jockey, and the fourth for the trainer.

Today's news is: the owner of American Pharoah has sold his breeding rights for over 20 million. Mr. Zayat is retaining the racing rights. After winning the Preakness, the horse will be trying to be the first Triple Crown winner since 1978 if he can win the Belmont Stakes on June 6th.

For us it was time to collect our winnings and head for the bus. We didn't get lost this time and were happy not to have to fight the crowd for a ride out of there. After a late dinner at Cracker Barrel, I don't think anyone had trouble sleeping that night.

               

Kentucky Derby Trip--Day 2

Here we are all ready for the first day of racing. You will notice lots of pink. Even Norman had on a pink shirt! The feature race of the day was the Kentucky Oaks for three-year old fillies. It is comparable to The Derby which is largely considered a race for three-year old stallions. A filly enters The Derby once in a while, but not often.

Churchill Downs and the Kentucky Oaks have a partnership with Bright Pink, which is the only national non-profit organization focusing on the prevention of breast and ovarian cancers. Since it was the 141st running of The Oaks, there was a parade of 141 cancer survivors from across the country right on the racetrack. I should probably say that our "pink" outfits were pretty tame compared to some we saw.

There were over 123,000 people in attendance on Oaks day. That broke a previous record of over 116,000. This photo was taken from the Street Sense Lounge where we had lunch provided and could stay as long as we wanted. (Street Sense won the Kentucky Derby in 2007).  This is just a very small group of people that were gathered around the paddock area where the horses are saddled before going out on the track.                                             

The horses walked right underneath us as they came from the track to get saddled and then went back again to the race. As the day progressed we tried to read up on some betting tips and guess which ones would win. The Oaks was the 11th race of the day with 14 entries allowed. Each filly had to earn the right to be entered by winning prestigious races earlier in the year. There was a $1,000,000 purse guaranteed to be paid out in the race. Each owner had to pay $41,700 to enter their horse. Lovely Maria was the winner.

We were also able to watch the jockeys come out of their changing room and walk to the paddock. They are small! The fillies in the Oaks carried a total of 120 pounds and the tack is about 7 pounds. It has been said that jockeys sometimes sacrifice their health by eating so little to maintain the limited weight.

After watching Lovely Maria add her name to the history books, some people had winnings to collect. Then we headed for the bus. And we were very glad not to have to try to get out of there any other way! However, Churchill Downs is a big place, and some of us had to walk the long way around because we exited the wrong gate. Good thing we had comfortable shoes!

Dinner that evening was at Bravo-Cucina Italiana. The food was delicious, and then it was back to the hotel to rest up for the big day.

In case you don't know by now, American Pharoah won the Preakness today! He is now two thirds of the way to the Triple Crown. He won by seven lengths in a torrential rain storm. They say he had cotton in his ears to keep him from being bothered by the thunder. He didn't have any mud on him because he led all the way!



 

Kentucky Derby Trip--Day One

The IEAFCS Kentucky Derby trip was fantastic! Everyone who attended felt that it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience!

Two car loads of IEAFCS members and friends met in Louisville on the evening of April 30th. After checking in at our hotel, we had to take a photo with their Derby contender. He didn't move very fast, but had managed to get some roses anyway it seems.

Those pictured are Mary Ann Fugate, Norman and Pat Hildebrand, Joy Richey, Martha Speir, Carol Schlitt, Lois Smith, and Sheryl Hodges.

Dinner was in downtown Louisville at the Harvest Restaurant where some individuals arrived in a stretch limo. We were guessing they were wealthy owners?? There we enjoyed a four course meal--which, of course, was very different and tasty. We were told that 80% of their menu items comes from local growers.                                                      

Then it was back to the hotel for a good night's rest in anticipation of a big day on Friday at the track.