My Trip to Kentucky: Our Day at the Kentucky Derby!

 

For my birthday, my boyfriend likes to take me on a trip. Last year we went to Nashville (read that blog post here), and this year he took me to Kentucky, mainly to see the Kentucky Derby! I've always loved horses (never grew out of my "pony phase" from childhood), so going to the famous race at Churchill Downs has been on my bucket list for a while. 

I knew I wanted to see this Annie Oakley cow at the Lost River Trading Post!

To save money, we made it into a road trip, so our first day was spent driving through the pretty mountains of Virginia and West Virginia (Did you know WV is the only state that is completely inside the Appalachian Mountain region?) and the bluegrass of Kentucky. We made a few stops along the way, visiting the Lost River Trading Post and tasting some wines at Equus Run Vineyards. The drive took us all day, but it was sunny out and the nature was beautiful to see (and fun to see lots of cows and horses, too!). 

I loved this painted horse on the Equus Run Vineyards property!

The next day was Derby Day! We weren't sure about traffic or parking, so we got an early start and arrived just about when the first race of the day started. We immediately got mint julips and found a picnic table with another couple who we befriended for the day. There was certainly lots of people watching (the hats!), and through the TwinSpires app I could easily place bets on the races. Since we got there so early, it ended up being a long day, and we actually left before the official Kentucky Derby race started. But we certainly can say we experienced the Derby!

Bigfoot was at the Derby photo-bombing everyone!

But I have to say... The Derby experience was not everything I had hoped it would be. I was going to do a pros and cons list, but most of the day was cons, so we'll just go with those (in no particular order):

The worst of many blisters I had on my feet from walking to Churchill Downs. It now looks like a black bruise.

1. Even though more than 150,000 people attend this event, the whole place has only TWO entrances, and everyone has to funnel in from the same starting point. Most sporting venues are just a fraction of that attendance, and they have many more entrances for everyone to spread out. So not only is it crowded, but you end up walking a lot to get to where you want to go. And getting out is even worse: you seriously have to walk MILES in the wrong direction because the road is completely blocked off and you can only cross it at ONE spot. This set-up was not only annoying, but it's completely inefficient; there were cops everywhere, so couldn't they have been stationed at a couple of crosswalks instead of just a single one?

2. There are not enough food or drink vendors. We were lucky that we arrived early and could easily get our mint juleps right off the bat. But for all of the people who arrived mid-day, good luck: the lines for ALL the food and drink vendors were over an hour long wait. The only food we purchased all day was ice cream because it was the only vendor with no line. I wouldn't be surprised if people waited over an hour in line only to get to the front and learn that the food had run out. That's especially dangerous when it's warm out and people are drinking a lot of alcohol; how can they properly hydrate? I actually saw a girl passed out with paramedics surrounding her. Thank goodness you can bring your own snacks; that was a lifesaver for us.

3. Beware of the betting fees. I didn't realize the app would charge a $5 credit card fee with every deposit, so I should have done the math and made one deposit in the beginning; I ended up spending $15 in fees. Luckily I won $16 over the day of bets, so my winnings covered the fees. I just wish that information were more accessible from the get-go. 

4. You couldn't go to the Kentucky Derby Museum. I would have liked to visit the museum to learn more about the race, and to honestly break up the day a little bit. But the main entrance was closed when you first entered the grounds, and after that I never saw another way to enter the museum. Perhaps it was only open to those who had purchased tickets to sit in the Grandstand. It would have been nice if they had offered shifts to visitors, even just to spend 30 minutes in the museum.

5. The whole scene feels like a frat party. I was thinking that the Kentucky Derby was a classy affair, but honestly it's just a bunch of drunk people (especially college kids) dressed up as if they are classy. I couldn't believe the number of under-aged people there; did they pay full price, or is there a cheaper ticket option available for students or for those who only want to attend for the last few hours? 

Bottom line: if you're over the age of 30, pony (no pun intended) up the dough for seats in the Grandstand.