Kentucky Derby Factoid 5

Femininity is in Fashion: Derby Hats and Elegant Dresses. From its’ inception, the Derby was envisioned to be a luxurious event in American Thoroughbred Racing. Beginning in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, affluent women arrived at the race wearing fashionable hats, gloves, and stylish dresses. Throughout the years, the tradition of Derby hats and feminine couture has endured, and perhaps, grown more colorful and expensive with each new season. Today, women wear many styles of glamorous hats, along with a wide variety of dresses and suits. The feminine pageantry surrounding the race has become nearly as iconic as the horses on the field.

Kentucky Derby Factoid 4

One Sweet Day: The Mint Julep. The Bourbon-charged “Mint Julep” is the official drink of the Kentucky Derby and is composed of sugar syrup, fresh mint, crushed ice, and Kentucky bourbon. On race day, vendors weave through the crowds with fresh “Mint Juleps,” served in the commemorative annual Kentucky Derby glass. The famed “Woodford Reserve $1,000 Mint Julep” is also available through auction prior to Derby day, with the proceeds benefitting charity.

Although the mixing ingredients have varied in the past few years, the lavish drink remains served in a 24-karat Gold Cup and is made with Woodford Reserve Kentucky Bourbon. In 2006, the “Woodford Reserve $1,000 Mint Julep” benefitted retired horses and jockeys through donating the proceeds to the Thoroughbred Charities of America, That year, the Mint was imported from Morocco, the ice was obtained from the Arctic Circle, and the sugar was acquired from the South Pacific.

Kentucky Derby Factoid 3

The Gold Standard: The Kentucky Derby Trophy. The Kentucky Derby Gold Cup is awarded each year to the winning horse’s owner. The trophy is made from a combination of 20 and 14-karat gold and weighs more than 100 ounces. A sterling version of the trophy is awarded to the winning trainer, jockey, and breeder. The Gold Cup trophy takes over three months to produce and is one of the few solid gold trophies awarded in any American sporting event.

Kentucky Derby Factoid 2

Derby Pie: Decades of Decadence. On Derby Day, Churchill Downs will sell more than 25,000 slices of Derby Pie to track attendees. At off-track parties, many Derby events order the pie from Louisville and have it shipped to their home for dessert. The Derby Pie, a trademarked name, is made by Kern’s Kitchen with custard, chocolate chips, and walnuts – all baked into a 9-inch crust. The recipe is highly coveted – only three people know the actual recipe. All employees of Kern’s Kitchen are required to sign an agreement not to divulge any of the Derby Pie secrets. The Derby Pie can be ordered by visiting the company website at http://www.derbypie.com.

Kentucky Derby Factoid:

The Garland of Roses that cloak the winning Derby horse hold an interesting history. Roses first appeared on the radar when they were presented to all the ladies attending a glamorous Louisville Derby party, held by a New York socialite and attended by the President of Churchill Downs, Colonel Lewis Clark. The roses were such a phenomenon that Clark adopted the rose as the race’s official flower. The rose garland first appeared at the Derby in the 1896 when the winner received a floral arrangement of pink and white roses. In 1904, the red rose was chosen as the official flower of the Kentucky Derby.

Each year, a garland of more than 400 red roses is sewn into a green satin backing with the seal of the Commonwealth on one side and the twin spires and number of the running on the other end of the garland. Each garland is also adorned with a “Crown” of roses, ribbon and green fern. The “Crown,” is a single rose pointing upward in the center of the garland, to symbolize the struggle and heart necessary to reach the winners’ circle.

The 2009 Kentucky Derby Contest

* Very Important!!! I Want Revenge has been scratched. Anyone who picked him (which was most of us) needs to pick a replacement horse.

Welcome to the Annual Horse Circle Kentucky Derby Contest.

This contest is free to play and the winner will recieve a set of two Kentucky Derby glasses. The rules are:

Each contestant will pick FOUR horses. Points will be assigned as follows:
1st - 20 pts.
2nd - 19 pts.
3rd - 18 pts.
4th - 17 pts. .... all the way down to last place receiving 1 pt. This contest is open to anyone who wants to play. Here are the entries and Good Luck to all of you who play!

1. West Side Bernie
2. Musket Man
3. Mr. Hot Stuff
4. Advice
5. Hold Me Back
6. Friesan Fire
7. Papa Clem
8. Mine That Bird
9. Join in the Dance
10. Regal Ransom
11. Chocolate Candy
12. General Quarters
(13. I Want Revenge - SCRATCHED)
14. Atomic Rain
15. Dunkirk
16. Pioneerof the Nile
17. Summer Bird
18. Nowhere to Hide
19. Desert Party
20. Flying Private

Derby News

Quality Road is out of the Derby.

2009 Kentucky Derby Info

We are coming down to the wire on this years Kentucky Derby. Although the official entries aren't out yet, you can see the top 20 Kentucky Derby Contenders here, along with who is out. They also have some interesting Derby facts and trivia, and recaps of the prep races. This is also the site where you can bet on the Kentucky Derby or any other race for that matter.

Don't forget that Horse Circle has an annual Derby Contest that is free to play. The winner of the contest will recieve two Kentucky Derby 135 glasses. The contest will be posted when the official entries for the Derby come out, so check back in! Good luck with your handicapping.

Let's Start Talking Derby, People!

First, a few Derby preps have run so far so lets recap...

1. The Louisianna Derby - won by Freisan Fire

2. The Rebel Stakes - won by longshot Win Willy over heavily favored Old Fashioned

3. The San Felipe - won by Pioneer of the Nile

4. The Tampa Bay Derby - won by Musket Man

This Saturday will be the $500,000 Lane's End at Turfway Park. Be sure to watch it LIVE on ESPN2 at 5 p.m. (Turfway is also running the Rushaway Stakes but I'm unsure if this will be aired on tv.)

A full field of 12 was drawn for the Grade 2 Lane's End yesterday, including A P Cardinal, Bittel Road, Flying Private, Hold Me Back, Jack Spratt, Loch Dubh, Orthodox, Parade Clown, and West Side Bernie. The likely favorites for the 1 1/8-mile race are Bittel Road, a Todd Pletcher-trained colt who most recently was fourth in the Feb. 7 Robert Lewis Memorial at Santa Anita, and West Side Bernie, third in the Jan. 31 Holy Bull at Gulfstream Park for trainer Kelly Breen.

Last but not least, don't you think this years Kentucky Derby logo will look pretty on a pair of Derby glasses? Stay tuned for the upcoming Horse Circle Derby Contest where the lucky winner will get a set of Derby glasses as the winning prize!

The 2008 Kentucky Derby Contest

OK, we are going to follow the same format as last year. Each contestant will pick FOUR horses. Points will be assigned as follows:

1st - 20 pts.

2nd - 19 pts.

3rd - 18 pts.

4th - 17 pts. .... all the way down to last place receiving 1 pt. This contest is open to anyone who wants to play. The prize for the winner will be a set of 2 Derby glasses. 

Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1)

1 1/4 Miles | Open | 3 Year Olds Stakes | Purse: $2,000,000

Prg. #	PP	Horse	Jockey	Trainer	Wt.	Claim $	Equip.	Med.	ML
1	1	Cool Coal Man	Leparoux J R	Zito Nicholas P	126			LA	20-1
2	2	Tale of Ekati	Coa E M	Tagg Barclay	126			LA	15-1
3	3	Anak Nakal	Bejarano R	Zito Nicholas P	126		Blk-Off	LA	30-1
4	4	Court Vision	Gomez G K	Mott William I	126		Blk-On	LA	20-1
5	5	Eight Belles	Saez G	Jones J Larry	121			LA	20-1
6	6	Z Fortune	Albarado R J	Asmussen Steven M	126			LA	15-1
7	7	Big Truck	Castellano J J	Tagg Barclay	126			LA	50-1
8	8	Visionaire	Lezcano J	Matz Michael R	126			LA	20-1
9	9	Pyro	Bridgmohan S X	Asmussen Steven M	126			LA	6-1
10	10	Colonel John	Nakatani C S	Harty Eoin	126			L	4-1
11	11	Z Humor	Douglas R R	Mott William I	126		Blk-Off	LA	30-1
12	12	Smooth Air	Cruz M R	Stutts Bennie F Jr	126			L	20-1
13	13	Bob Black Jack	Migliore R	Kasparoff James M	126		Blk-On	L	20-1
14	14	Monba	Dominguez R A	Pletcher Todd A	126			LA	15-1
15	15	Adriano	Prado E S	Motion H Graham	126			LA	30-1
16	16	Denis of Cork	Borel C H	Carroll David	126			LA	20-1
17	17	Cowboy Cal	Velazquez J R	Pletcher Todd A	126			LA	20-1
18	18	Recapturetheglory	Baird E T	Roussel, III Louie J	126			LA	20-1
19	19	Gayego	Smith M E	Lobo Paulo H	126			LA	15-1
20	20	Big Brown	Desormeaux K J	Dutrow, Jr. R E	126			L	3-1