Kentucky Derby (redirected from Kentucky Derbys)

Kentucky Derby

One of the classic U.S. Thoroughbred horse races. It was established in 1875 and run annually on the first Saturday in May at Churchill Downs track in Louisville, Ky. With the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes, it makes up U.S. racing's coveted Triple Crown. The field is limited to three-year-olds. The track distance is 1.25 mi (2,000 m).

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Kentucky Derby

classic annual race in Louisville. [Am. Cult.: Brewer Dictionary, 516]

See : Horserace

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Kentucky Derby

First Saturday in May

The Kentucky Derby is the greatest and most glamorous horse race in America, run since 1875 in Louisville, Ky. Also known as the Run for the Roses because of the garland of roses draped on the winning horse, it is a one-and-one-quarter-mile race for three-year-old thoroughbreds and is the first race in the Triple Crown; the others are the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes. The site of the race is hallowed Churchill Downs, the track known for its twin spires, built in 1895.
The race is usually run in slightly over two minutes, but in 1964, Northern Dancer was the first to win the Derby in two minutes flat. In 1973, the great Secretariat, fondly known as Big Red, won in 1:59 2/5. That was the only time the Derby was raced in less than two minutes until Monarchos clocked in at 1:59.97 in 2001. Ridden by Ron Turcotte, Secretariat then went on to take the Triple Crown, exploding from the pack to win the Belmont by an unprecedented 31 lengths.
The Derby took its name from the English horse race that was started in 1780 by the 12th Earl of Derby, and Kentuckians hoped to duplicate the social panache of the Epsom Derby ( see Derby Day). They did, in a different way. The Derby became Louisville's major social occasion of the year; women to this day wear their most stylish hats to the racetrack, and there are numerous lavish Derby breakfasts and parties.
Traditional food includes Kentucky ham and beaten biscuits. And, of course, the Derby wouldn't be the Derby without mint juleps, the bourbon-and-mint drink served in cold silver julep cups or in special iced commemorative glasses at the track. Parties are not confined to Louisville; throughout the country and the world, Derby parties are held to watch the race on television. Stephen Foster's "My Old Kentucky Home," the official state song, is played as the horses parade to the post, and spectators in Louisville and far away stand and sing and (sometimes) dab their eyes.
Attendance at Churchill Downs is usually 120,000 to 130,000 people—most of them watching what they can from the infield and a select few, often including royalty, from Millionaires Row high in the clubhouse.
Derby Day is the finale of the 10-day Kentucky Derby Festival—a series of events that include a sternwheel steamboat race on the Ohio River, a Pegasus parade, fireworks, concerts, and a coronation ball.

CONTACTS:
Kentucky Derby Festival
1001 S. Third St.
Louisville, KY 40203
502-584-6383
www.kdf.org
Churchill Downs
700 Central Ave.
Louisville, KY 40208
502-636-4400; fax: 502-636-4554
www.kentuckyderby.com

SOURCES:
AmerBkDays-2000, p. 338
AnnivHol-2000, p. 93
FolkAmerHol-1999, p. 222
GdUSFest-1984, p. 63
HolSymbols-2009, p. 441

Celebration days: May 7, 2011; May 5, 2012; May 4, 2013; May 3, 2014; May 2, 2015