By Melissa Wermeister
School is almost out and the month of May is soon approaching. That means that the one time of the year when it is actually fun to be in Louisville is right around the corner. Yes, I am talking about the Kentucky Derby.
This will be the 128th Kentucky Derby, and according to www.derbypost.com, this year’s top 10 Derby contenders are: 1) Harlan’s Holiday, 2) Came Home, 3) Saarland, 4) Easy Grades, 5) Essence of Dubai, 6) Sunday Break, 7) Medaglia d’oro, 8) Buddha 9) Perfect Drift, 10) Johannesburg. Since there have been 127 Derby winners, I am only going to mention the horses who have won in the most recent years. The 2001 Derby winner for last year was Monarchos, and the jockey was Jorge Chavez.The 2000 winner was Fusaichi Pegusus, and the jockey was Kent Desormeaux, who also won with Real Quiet in 1998. Charismatic won the Derby in 1999, with Chris Antley as the jockey, who also won in 1991 with Strike the Gold. Pat Day’s horse, Lil E. Tee, won the Derby in 1992.
Picking a horse to win the Derby is not easy, and sometimes the color of the horse does matter. It is said that gray horses are lucky, and if a gray horse is competing in the Derby, bet on it. I am not sure how this theory has held true in the past, but it seems like in every Derby there is at least one gray horse competing.
There are many factors that go into determining what horse will win a race: pedigree, trainer, jockey, class, track, pace, and speed. The pedigree of a horse is basically the horse’s ancestral line, so if the horse’s ancestors have a legacy of winners, then that horse could be a winner, too. The trainer is the person who is responsible for the horse’s development and race preparation. The jockey, of course, is the person who rides the horse during the race. The track is where the race is being held; a horse can do really well on one track and struggle on another. The pace is basically how the horse likes to run races; some horses can take the lead and hold it, while others like to reserve all their energy and come up from behind to win the race. Speed; this is not a hard concept, just how fast the horse runs.
Once you have picked your lucky horse or horses, you need to know how to place proper bets. Win, place, and show are the most common types of betting. In a win bet, you win if the horse you bet on wins. On a place bet, you win if the horse you bet on wins or comes in second. In show, you win if the horse you bet on comes in first, second or third. An across the board bet is a bet on a horse to win, place, and show. An exacta is a wager in which the first two finishers in the exact order of finish must be picked. A quenelle means the first two finishers are picked, but it does not matter which horse comes in first or second. A trifecta is a wager that picks the first three finishers in exact order. So you do not get confused or if this is your first time placing a bet, here is an example of what to say when placing a bet. ” I would like to bet $2 to win on horse No. 2.”
