Attending the 150th Kentucky Derby
At 150-years old, the Kentucky Derby is the oldest continuously held major sporting event in the United States.
I hope you saw my Instagram photos @MarthaStewart48. I attended "The Run for the Roses" last weekend with several friends and had a wonderful time. The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes horserace held annually on the first Saturday in May at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky.
The race, which is the first leg of the Triple Crown, is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of one-and-a-quarter-miles. It's been called "The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports." This year, I was the event's Grand Marshall and delivered the iconic “Riders' Up” announcement to ready the jockeys for this memorable race.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
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- Here I am at the 150th Kentucky Derby wearing my outfit by Peter Cohen and my hat made by Suzanne Couture Millinery.
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- The Kentucky Derby is held at Churchill Downs in Louisville and dates back to 1875, when the track was called the Louisville Jockey Club.
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- This year, more than 150-thousand spectators attended the event.
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- I attended this year’s Kentucky Derby with my friends, Douglas Friedman and Kevin Sharkey. Here we are stopping for a fun photo.
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- The racetrack occupies 175 acres, featuring a one-mile dirt, oval racetrack and a seven-furlong turf racecourse.
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- Here I am with Abby Melfi, founder of Sacred Spa + Wellness, and her husband, Anthony Melfi, owner and operator of GMP Farm, a 100-acre Equine Rehabilitation and Training facility in Schuylerville, New York. They also own one of the horses competing in the race – Society Man. Abby and Anthony invited us to their viewing box.
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- And here I am with some of our nation’s sailors.
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- The Kentucky Derby isn’t the only race on Derby Day at Churchill Downs — more than 10 other races are held through the day. The post-time for the 150th Kentucky Derby was set for 6:57 p.m. ET.
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- Seated with me are Susan Magrino, Jane Heller, Heather Kirkland, Helen Peparo, and Douglas. Kevin took the photo.
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- The day was warm, about 80-degrees Fahrenheit and mostly cloudy, but only a 30-percent chance of rain. It was a good day for the Kentucky Derby.
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- Helen’s ready to enjoy a mint julep. The Kentucky Derby’s traditional cocktail is an iced drink consisting of bourbon, mint, and sugar syrup.
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- Here I am with some of the young workers at the event.
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- And here I am as I announce Riders Up! “Riders Up!” is the traditional command for jockeys to mount their horses for the race!
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- And then one by one, each of the horses is brought out to the track and the designated starting gate. This horse is Forever Young.
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- Here comes Stronghold.
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- … Resilience.
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- And Society Man.
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- The field for the Kentucky Derby has been kept to a maximum of 20 horses since 1975.
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- Here I am after the race with jockeys Irad Ortiz, Jr. who rode Domestic Product and his brother José Ortiz who was on Catalytic.
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- This jockey is Ben Curtis who rode Honor Marie, a three-year old colt.
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- And did you see me with Josh Groban! He attended the race with his mother, Lindy Groban.
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- And a photo with Kid Rock. It was a great time and an exciting nose-to-nose race. And you all know how it finished. The winner was Mystik Dan, the handsome three-year old colt who who ran it in 2:03.34.
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