In the United States, the racing season hits its stride early in the summer. “The most exciting two minutes in sports” take place on the first Saturday in May: those two minutes are the Kentucky Derby, the premier event of American racing and the first of three races that make up the Triple Crown. Loud, fast, colorful and rich in history and tradition, the Kentucky Derby takes place under the twin spires of Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The first Kentucky Derby was run in 1875 and has been run every year since, making it the longest continuously running sporting event in US history. Since 1896, the course has been 1 ¼ mile, or ten furlongs, long and is usually run in just over two minutes (the fastest winning time on record belongs to Secretariat, who in 1973 ran the course in 1:59 2/5 and went on to win the Triple Crown). As in most derbies, the field is open to three year-old horses only, one of which will receive the blanket of over 500 deep red roses, the Derby’s official flower, in the winners circle.
Over the years, fans of the Derby have celebrated the traditions associated with it. Outside of the race itself, one of the most memorable Derby Day experiences follows the trumpet call signaling the ten-minute-to-post mark. At this time, the entire crowd joins in a rendition of the My Old Kentucky Home. If the sentimental song brings tears to the crowd’s eyes, it may be that the free flow of liquor has softened their emotions a bit; for a second famous symbol of the Derby is the sweet concoction known as the Mint Julep, a mixture of bourbon, sugar, water and fresh mint which is the Derby’s official cocktail. Since the mid 1940s, the colored tumblers and sterling silver cups in which mint juleps are served at the Churchill Downs clubhouse have become the most valuable and enduring souvenirs of the races. Finally, no one could forget a third Derby Day practice which belongs exclusively to the female fans: tradition holds that ladies attending the event don elaborately decorated hats. A wide-brimmed hat is practical measure in the Kentucky summer sun, but at the Derby women often leave the sensible behind, showing off their creative and competitive spirits in adorning their headwear with ribbons, flowers, feathers, bells, jewels--just about anything they can balance on their heads.