The Greatest 2 Minutes in the Bluegrass

It is SPRING in the Bluegrass State, and my mood is instantly lifted. I like Fall. I like Christmas. But December 26th comes and, I’m like, “ok what’s next… where is summer?”  

Spring time here is a lot like many places with the buzz of getting back outdoors, everything rejuvenatingly turning green again & seeing signs of new growth! But in KY it is especially special ( to us at least!) because it means the Derby Festival is upon us! Two weeks of our city shutting down to basically party! With Covid it will look a lot different again this year, but we kick it off with the biggest firework show in North America with Thunder Over Louisville at our majestic waterfront downtown. There are nightly performers, music shows and chow wagons ( omg the food!!!! Take state fair food and times it by 10!) every night of the festival, galas, balls, Hot Air Balloon races, a 26 Mile Marathon and 13.5 mile Mini Marathon, our Great Steamboat Race, a Pegasus Parade, Wine and Beer Fests, plus about a hundred other events leading up to the GREATEST 2 MINUTES IN SPORTS! Some of my fondest childhood memories are going to the Pegasus Parade and Thunder over Louisville in elementary school and I have added more and more events each year as I age.  

Derby comes like clockwork the first Saturday in May, but us locals really live up Oaks Day on Friday as well. Horse racing, fashion, the famous Mint Julep and Lilly drinks, celebrities, cashing tickets, it is something you can’t explain until you’ve done it. Really though, even the past 5+ years or so, it has gotten so crowded the locals have turned taking off work on Friday for Oaks Day, to even taking off Thursday which has now been lovingly deemed “Thurby”. We joke that there will be a Werby (Wednesday) or a Tueby (Tuesday) soon enough since it has become so popular that we basically just need to take the whole week off so we can attend Churchill Downs racetrack and watch the races every day! A newer tradition I have adopted is to go to the Backside (where the barns are, horses are housed, a community of workers live here & care for them around the clock) at “Dawn at the Downs” where you can wake up before the sun, to catch the beautiful thoroughbreds workout, train, and even catch them taking a bath! 

 It really is just wonderful living here and Spring time and Derby remind me that every single year. This city will always have my full heart and I love calling it home! Living just a few miles from everything Derby was a huge selling point when we bought this old fixer upper! We have even rented our home out to people from all across the nation for Derby week in the past and made some amazing money, but now have realized even that isn’t worth giving up having our own parties here! Happy Spring y’all! Happy Derby season! 

Oaks Day in the Vinyard Vines Seating 2019. Fun Fact. It felt like 100 degrees and my zipper got stuck on my jumpsuit after the Oaks Race. We were partying in the street post race (as the city does) and I left the whole back open on my outfit for the remainder of the evening. Classy as all get out. 

 

 

OH my the years of Oaks and Derby in the INFIELD. If you aren’t from around here the Infield = General Admission in the grass in the middle of the race track. Seating, even bleacher seating, in Churchill Downs is UNBELIEVEABLY expensive if you aren’t a big wig or work for a corporate sponsor. Though we have lucked into seats the past few years…my teen years age 16-25 were spent in the Infield. …Think Nascar crowd, meets high fashion, meets the biggest partiers. I have learned to NEVER be shocked by what you see in the Infield. That is a post for a different day. We used to tailgate for hours and hours at the Louisville Stadium before going into Churchill. 

My sister and I made it to a local scene magazine feature in 2012. I made both of our hats!

Balloon Glow one year. Same thing every year. The night before the race you walk around the field and can get into the hot air balloons. Absolutely beautiful.

To date, my FAVORITE and most memorable Derby of all time. 2016. 10+ of us snuck into Millionaire’s Row. This is where the celebs sit. I’m talking NBA players, Music Artists (got pics with George Strait), and movie stars. This is IMPOSSIBLE to do, and I mean IMPOSSIBLE. Another story for another day. I was so hungover from Oaks Day I was like 4 hours late and Uber’d alone into the biggest event there is in our state. I had to walk blocks and blocks through traffic in heels alone and had to do the sneaking by myself after everyone else had done it hours before. But there was no way in tarnation I was missing this. 

 

 

2007? 2008? 2009? I was really into the Chevron print

 

Another Derby, another hat by me <3

Dawn at the Downs with the Famous jockey, Pat Day. My grandma’s favorite of all time and a legend.

Dawn at the Downs after a work out.

Fun Fact. The owner of  the company I worked for owned horses. That is how we got into the Backside every year.

 Wine Fest. Some years its 50 degrees and raining. Some years 80 and sunny. Every year -100% chance of crazy with this group. One of my FAVORITE events. Regional Winery’s set up tents near the Ohio River and for $50 or so you get 10+ tickets for tastings, a free Derby Wine Glass and Derby Pin ( Pin gets you into most events during the festival for free) and they have music, wine pairings, cooking demos and lots of photo ops. This group has been going for close to 8, 9?, years. 

 

Derby 2018

 One of my favorite facinators made to date. I used to only wear hats from like 2012-2018 but fascinators are so much easier to see your surroundings in.

Derby program viewing 5 minutes before the race is a sh*t show. It is crowded, fast paced, you are managing a clutch/wallet, drink, program, cash in hand, and the betting windows want you in and out in 10 seconds. I don’t know why we always end up sharing 1-2 programs for 10 people.

Oaks 2017

 Derby 2019. I made my fascinator and the coral and yellow one 🙂