Spring Meet at Keenelands 2015

Our final activity in Lexington was enjoying a day at the races. We all got dolled up, took a ton of timed photos and were off. 

Suburban selfie.

We parked and headed into Keeneland. 

We really lucked out with the weather. 

And we had a connection to get tickets in the clubhouse. 

The track was intimate. Such a difference from Church Hill Downs and Pimlico. When I was in college on a semester program at American University I met the most fun girl from Louisville. Love you Parkdog! We fell in love at first sight and she invited me to the Derby. I went twice. Her daddy taught me how to bet and I was hooked. Not on gambling per se, but the whole experience. Being outdoors. Watching these majestic horses race their hearts out for a two minute race. The training that goes into it. The luck. The weather. The colors of the silks. The names of the horses. The whole experience is so unique. I just love it. Keenelands was "just right" to put it in Goldilocks terms.

We donned our Sunday best and hats.

Fantastic

We went to peep the horsey's before making our bets. Gotta see who is the most good looking, feisty or calm and then trust your gut. I always go with a combo of fun name and gorgeous silk. I also see where they stack up in the odds. I always want to hedge my bets with the odd man out but this time I just put a few dollars ($3.00) and did mostly trifecta boxes.

Gracie Goo looked like a winner.

Riders up. And then they parade to the track.

Maybe she was checking the odds.

Gracie Goo

I bet on Gracie to win, place or show.

Geared up for the trumpet sound.

Can you imagine asking this gentleman his profession; What do you do? "Oh, I'm the track bugler at Keenelands."

There were multiple races all afternoon. Sad we had to leave for the airport and then wait hours for delays.

Gracie!!!

Goo Go!!!

I think she actually came in second, or Placed. Either way the most fun is to put a few bucks on the races so you enjoy it. Win or loose it is exciting.

My winnings. Not a total loss when you come home with a little left in your pocket.

And in between races we howled with laughter and enjoyed the last moments of the afternoon.

We are all gearing up for Preakness in Baltimore this week and the Radnor Hunt in PA. The Black Eyed Susan day on Friday is actually my favorite. So many horsey choices. Wishing everyone the best of luck.