Our Anniversary at the Kentucky Derby

Finally! The long awaited photos from my anniversary trip to the Derby. My husband spent 4 years at Fort Knox and was an old pro at the Derby action, but he never had a seat where we were! We were lucky to be in the Clubhouse, section 316, row A and directly across from the finish line. Here are some highlights:


The Oaks: We arrived in KY at around 1pm (after a 10 hr drive) and we were off to the races! This is the race that is held the day before for a different class of horses. Still fun though! Unfortunately, the weather was bad, but they were still able to run the horse and take bets! No betting for me that day.












DERBY DAY
The Paddock: Gathering place before the races. The jockeys with horse trot in and say "hi" to the crowd. It was much easier to breathe from the first picture view, but we went into the crowd later and got some horse pics along with some arriving celebs (see below).










Celebs: In the Paddock area, I saw Joey Fatone, Kevin Sorbo and Kid Rock. After the races, we saw the Manning brothers. I got a shot of Eli. I also caught the side view of Larry Birkhead's head and saw Bobby Flay scoot by me as Rob and I stood in the snack area.












The Hats: The 2nd most important part of the Derby are of course the hats. I was very impressed with my Marshalls hat with Michael's flower arrangements.

















The Race!: I have to say that I'm a new fan of horse racing. For a race that is only 1 minute, 30 seconds, it is so exciting! I didn't realize that the Derby was actually just 1 race out of 11 in the whole event. Now i'm all the wiser. In any case, on the morning of the Derby, I watched the local news for the pro pics and favorites. Many people had their "money" on Street Sense(#7-see below)and so I went along for the ride. It ended up being a smart investment for me; I bet $10 on him to Place and won $32 back! Way to go me! Here are the highlights of the race:






































I have a lot more where those came from plus a bunch of pictures highlighting the architecture of Louisville. Gorgeous houses! That's for another day. Time for me to hit the hay (no pun intended). Enjoy!!