May 2 - So, for the second day in a row, we were off to Louisville! At the recommendation of Grandma, we parked at the fairgrounds and took the shuttle to Churchill Downs - A VERY GOOD RECOMMENDATION! It was a very cold, windy day so I did not wear a pretty dress and hat (I really wanted too) but instead I wore a turtle neck sweater, jeans and a down vest!! Kudos to the ladies that wore the itty bitty dresses and gorgeous hats! We went in through general admission which allowed us to view the paddock area and access to the infield. When we were driving to Louisville, I told Mike there were 3 things I wanted to do today: bet on every race, drink a Lily (official drink of the Kentucky Oaks) and drink a Mint Julep! And I did! I even won money!! We had a great time walking around people watching and horse watching. We watched them saddle up and rider up at the paddock. The hats were amazing and the races were great! I strongly recommend attending the Kentucky Oaks and don't be afraid of the infield! It's not too crazy! Oh and you have to see the men in their fancy suits and bow ties and fat cigars!! Enjoy the photos!
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| Freedom Hall at the Louisville Fairgrounds and Expo Center |
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| Shuttle buses lined up to take us to Churchill Downs |
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| The famous twin spires - and check out the hats! |
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| Arriving at Churchill Downs |
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| The paddock - everything was done in pink cause its for the fillies and it's also cancer awareness day |
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| First Lily of the day - Grey Goose vodka, cranberry juice and a secret ingredient |
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| Looking from the paddock |
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| My first bet of the day |
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| Our Amazing Rose |
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| Our Amazing Rose getting walked around the paddock |
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| Check out this hat! |
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| Riders up!!! Unfortunately, Our Amazing Rose did not win! |
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| Heading down the ramp to go under the track to head into the infield |
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| In the infield |
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| Kentucky Oaks flag |
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| Security on the roof |
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| Looking over at the high rollers in the grandstands! |
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| This end of the infield was pretty empty |
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| Horses on the turf track |
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| Showing my winning tickets! Time to collect my big bucks!!! |
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| Box seats |
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| Mike with a mint julep - they are so-so |
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| Mike with a Lily - they were delicious! And they came in a lovely, etched glass! |
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| New for the first year was this huge screen so everyone, everywhere could see the entire race. It was so big it could hold 3 basketball courts! |
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| There goes the Kentucky Oaks field! |
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| The blanket of lilies for the winner of the Kentucky Oaks |
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| There they go! |
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| After it was all over, we looked at the paddock without the thousands of other fans |
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| The paddock |
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| The University of Louisville football stadium was by the fairgrounds |
Our view of a horse race on the back stretch!
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