| Derby, or pay
inflated supplemental costs to enter their horse in the race. Each year
hundreds of foals are nominated for the race, but only about 20 ever get
into the starting gate. Once nominated the hard work really begins.
A trainer, and staff work to get the horses ready for their two year old
year, when they are first eligible to run in races. They may run at any
number of tracks, there are over 100 in the country. A horse good enough
to be nominated for the Kentucky Derby will run at a major track,
usually in Kentucky, California, New York, Florida, Louisiana or
Arkansas.
The horses continue criss-crossing the country
and facing other very good horses in Derby Prep Races. To get a horse
through to May is an amazing accomplishment, and most do not make it.
They find they are not as good as they thought they were, or get injured
along the way. For the ones that do hear My Old Kentucy Home on that
first Saturday in May, only one of them gets to take home the roses.
After the Derby the work begins again, preparing
for the Preakness and Belmont Stakes. With this grueling schedule it is
not surprise that there are so few triple crown winners. Those who do
score the triple are revered as one of the best horses ever to put on a
pair of shoes.
Handicapping the race for betting purposes is a
little dicey for the same reasons. Horses that run on different tracks
on different days, at different distances, in different weather
conditions and a few hundred more issues make betting on the Derby the
most challenging race of the year to bet. Comparing one horse to another
under these conditions is like comparing apples and bowling balls. The
same thing that makes The Kentucky Derby a difficult race to handicap,
makes it a wonderful betting opportunity for an astute handicapper.
Originally, the race was designed after the
English Derby and was originally a 1˝ mile race. The current format was
first used in 1895.
The Kentucky Derby draws 140,000 to 150,000
spectators most years annually. Many of the spectators have little or no
interest in the out come of the race, but The Derby is also a place to
see and be seen. Lavish parties are thrown at mansions in the Kentucky
horse country prior to the race, and celebrities make a long weekend of
it.
The Kentucky Oaks runs the day prior to the
Derby, and is the premier race for three year old fillies. The Kentucky
Oaks also draws around 100,000 fans to the track and millions are bet
each year on Oaks/Derby Daily Double by selecting the winner of both
races.
The electricity that fill the air at Churchill
Downs on Derby Day is unbelievable, and when the horses come out for the
post parade to “My Old Kentucky Home” it gives you a shiver up your
spine. Calling The Kentucky Derby the most exciting two minutes in
sports is really under selling it. It may be the most exciting two
minutes any where.
Author Ron Stemple
Copyright 2006, Ron Dowell |
