Kentucky Derby

[thebruce44]

Anyone ever been?

I just scored a free ride down there and free hotel for 2 nights. All I have to pay for is an infield ticket which is $45 I think. I know its supposed to rain pretty badly during the day, but I am sure it will still be a lot of fun.

What is appropriate attire for the infield? I am sure it isn't as dressy as the main areas, but I was still thinking about wearing some old seersucker pants and a linen button down. Maybe now a rain jacket.

[Baldkin]

The infield is crazy.

 

Just do a google search on it (when you're not at work... trust me). It's like a giant tailgate full of people who don't know how to hold their liquor.

[thebruce44]

Sounds right up my alley. Should be a good time.

[brewerjamie15]

I like #10 Paddy O'Prado. I put twenny bones on him.

[craigharmann]

Don't bet against Calvin Burrell......he's unbelievable. 3 of the last 4 Derbies, he's been the jockey on the winning horse.

[Patrick425]

Went to Potawatomi with my Dad today to bet on the ponies. We do this every year, but usually we go to the dog track. Unfortunatly the dog tracks are now all closed. Potawatomi has been advertising the Derby in the paper and on the radio for weeks. The had it on a big screen in the Northern Lights theater. It was a nightmare. They failed miserably. They had 4 betting machines set up, no tellers. The wait to make a bet was over an hour. So, you basically had to get in line 2 races before in order to ensure you got your bet in.

 

The only thing that made this tolerable, was that I was up most of the day and capped it off with a nice win by betting $10 across on Super Saver. Very unusual since I usually do not have very good luck at the track.

[burniebrewer]

Does Potawatomi offer OTB all the time or just for special events? I would think they'd be better prepared if this is something they offer on a regular basis.

 

Dairyland was great for OTB with the entire second level devoted to the ponies.

[thebruce44]

Wow, that was a lot of fun. I would recommend a trip down there for everyone. The infield was a mess, especially the rowdy turn 3. I feel like I saw and did it all but if I go back it would be nice to have access to some indoor seats even if they are more expensive. We met up with some people who had a tarp setup so we could get out of the rain for a couple of hours, but without that it would have been pretty miserable.

[heresrobin]

Bruce, my group was in Turn 3 as well. And thank goodness we brought a canopy. If we didn't have one, I doubt we would have stayed for the entire day. My group has been going for about 5 years now, and I agree that it would be nice to sit up in the grandstands at some point.

 

Good times. Just remember to keep your head on a swivel if you are using the Turn 3/4 Port-o-potties.

[Patrick425]

burniebrewer[/b]]Does Potawatomi offer OTB all the time or just for special events? I would think they'd be better prepared if this is something they offer on a regular basis.

 

Dairyland was great for OTB with the entire second level devoted to the ponies.

Potawatomi has an OTB room, but it is very small. The OTB room could never accomidate the Derby or Breeders Cup crowd and that is why they had accomidations in the Northern Lights Theater. However, they only offered 4 machines there, when they needed about 3 or 4 times as many. Apparently they are remodeling the OTB room and making it bigger, but I understand that it will not be that much bigger.

 

Clearly with the closing of Dairyland the crowd at Potawatomi promised to be larger than normal for this event. However, they somehow failed to foresee this and were very ill prepared for the event.

 

[thebruce44]

Bruce, my group was in Turn 3 as well. And thank goodness we brought a canopy. If we didn't have one, I doubt we would have stayed for the entire day. My group has been going for about 5 years now, and I agree that it would be nice to sit up in the grandstands at some point.

 

Good times. Just remember to keep your head on a swivel if you are using the Turn 3/4 Port-o-potties.

Haha...the port-o-pottie running thing was probably the highlight of the day for me until it got a little too rough. When the chairs started flying I decided to get out of there. About 5 minutes later a guy had his forhead split open by a whiskey bottle.

 

 

[homer]

The crowd at Dairyland seemed to dwindle quite a bit the last three or four years for the big races. I bet most of them go to Waukegan now - or Arlington. It'd be great if the OTB at Poto was expanded.

 

My friends and I hit the exacta on the Derby. We picked 7 horses and thought we bet a boxed trifecta so we got all excited when three of our seven came in. Then we realized that had we really bet a boxed trifect with seven horses the money we put down would have been much much greater. Still made like 3 to 1 on it I think.

[thebruce44]

Hey heresrobin or anyone else who has been there,

 

Where do you guys typically stay. I really lucked out with a free ride and hotel, but if I want to go again next year I will actually have to pay. I am hearing hotels in Louisville that weekend go for around $1000 a night. Across the river you are looking at $400-300 (which is where we stayed this year and it worked out pretty well). Still, there has to be some better options if you plan far enough in advance.

[heresrobin]

Bruce, I wish I was a better resource for that question. I actually have a pretty sweet situation where I stay with some high school friends who live about 10-15 miles from Churchill Downs. My friend's brother is our designated driver and he comes and picks us up from the Derby every year. So I've actually never stayed at a hotel for it. And I'm not sure about the public transportation either. But it looks like a madhouse afterwards, and it sure doesn't seem like there is any cheap and easy way to do it. I would bet that a cab ride across the river would be around $20-$25 though.

 

FYI, our tradition to is to go to 4th Street Live on Thursday night. Pretty cool place if you are into the bar scene at all. I've never been there on Friday or Saturday night but I bet it's quite a place to be.

[thebruce44]

We went to 4th Street on Friday and it was pretty cool. Its like Water St. if they put a glass roof on it.

 

Staying across the river worked out really well, so I guess I can't complain too much if I have to actually pay for it next year. It sounds a lot better than $1000 for a night in the city and the cab rides really are not bad at all.