By Chris O’Grady & Paige Quiggins
The out-of-town Derby perspective
By: Chris O’Grady
Living outside the great Commonwealth of Kentucky for much of my life, the Kentucky Derby was about the only time Louisville crossed the radar of my attention span. For one Saturday in May, everyone from Miami to Las Vegas can offer a supremely confident reason as to why their horse will win. Even though 364 days of the year the sport of horse racing is utterly insignificant to most of America, those two minutes have continued to get even the most apathetic sports fans off the couch since 1875.
This leads to my problem: How can a sport where the athletes are more likely to be concerned with finding their next meal than winning the Triple Crown be so interesting? There are many mysteries of the secrets of Derby success. And I’m not just speaking of the haunting reported over the years at Churchill Downs. Perhaps those more fluent in horse-speak can help with the education of one who doesn’t get it.
Small men in oddly-colored jackets wearing pants too short for them and carrying whips are an odd opposite to the traditional American ideal of the athlete – bigger, stronger, faster. While it seems that sports teams from the NBA to college wrestling will look to change the uniform for whatever is cooler, lighter, faster or more attractive, jockeys still wear the attire of the first derby. The curly moustache may have gone out of fashion, but just ask Calvin Borel—last year’s winning jockey—the purple and yellow argyle jersey is definitely still in fashion. The Derby is known for attracting A-List celebrities to Millionaire Row, but surely fashion divas cringe at the sight of 100-pound men in off-color helmets and goggles.
Now the whip I understand. From my understanding, many animal rights activist groups have protested the jockey’s use of the whip during horse races. But moral reservations aside, it seems a practical way to get the horse to move. I am by no means an expert in horse psychology, but if anybody started whipping me I would want to get to the finish line as fast as I could in order to make it stop. That or get the jockey off my back.
This brings me to the ridiculousness of the winner’s circle celebration: Does the horse really need the world’s largest bouquet of roses draped from its side? And what about the horses that don’t win? Must they just look on with jealousy as the winner gets flowers? I can’t speak for certain here, I’m still waiting for the first ESPN Mr. Ed interview with the Derby winner, but I don’t think the horses give one neigh if they’re first or 12th. But still, who gets the trophy? The owner, the trainer, the guys who sit in their box seats in their best clothes pretending not to be nervous for the television cameras, then entering into a joyful embrace with anyone in the vicinity, which usually gets as much slow motion replay as a photo finish. If I were an owner, it would be just as advantageous to practice my shocked “I can’t believe my horse won” face as anything to do with winning the race.
But as an uneducated Derby viewer, I, like much of the country’s 300 million, will be picking my horse based on its name. Or whoever has the highest numbers in the “Odds” column of the newspaper that morning. Or is it the littler number? From Thunder Gulch to Fusaichi Pegasus, I’m convinced it takes a poetry major to craft the perfect horse name. What happened to Black Beauty? This year’s field could include horses named Aikenite and Caracordato. It may be as impressive a feat to pick the winner as to pronounce Eskendereya. As for my pick, that would be Ron the Greek. 20-1 are good odds, right?
Chris is a freshman history major. E-mail him at sports@louisvillecardinal.com
The hometown Derby perspective
By: Paige Quiggins
Derby is sort of in my blood. Growing up in the South end of Louisville, near Churchill Downs, I would frequently visit the Derby Museum for school field trips. It was always a treat to see behind the scenes of such a famous event—one that brings celebrities and royalty to our loveable city in the Bluegrass.
Every year that I can remember, I have watched it from a distance. At age five, I found myself $100 richer after drawing a name from a straw hat at a Derby party. Every year I would attend some sort of function to watch the horses compete to win the garland of roses. It was clear that I would one day have to watch this ceremonial tradition which takes place in my backyard. Where I live, I can wake up every day and be greeted by the Twin Spires.
I have never been to Derby before, but not because I didn’t want to. I haven’t gone because I I didn’t want to go without doing it the right way. And the right way would require getting the kind of seats that are virtually impossible to get your hands on. Also, it would mean buying a whole new ensemble, an outfit that would break my bank.
This year I am attending the Derby for the first time, while being able to check off all of my personal stipulations. I am biting my lip and clenching my fists in excitement for this year’s Run for the Roses. As a former intern and current Sunrise worker for WAVE-3 television, I will get to experience a lot while assisting reporters at Oaks and Derby.
A current-season, silk floral dress, which was originally $400 at retail value, found its way into my closet for $29.99. How did this happen? A one-inch tear in the seam in the back caused it to be deemed “damaged.” For this reason, I could afford to splurge on the accessory that I believe truly matters: the hat. Out of all the things, I had to be the most careful with this. This is the accessory that defines your creativity and excitement for the Derby. It is also functional and keeps the sunlight from your eyes. Dee’s Crafts supplied me with the accessories needed to make a one-of-a-kind, stunning headpiece.
Of all the things that had to match, my shoes would have to coordinate with this. I justified buying a full-price pair of department store, patent leather peep-toe pumps because I knew I would get use out of them for other occasions, such as weddings and my college graduation.
I will have credentials for Millionaire’s Row, the Twin Spires Club and all of the ritzy, first-class establishments within Churchill Downs. All of these places I have seen through the television set. This time I will get to be behind the scenes, right where I want to be, without the worry of the cost for the ticket.
Working during Derby is a privilege. Where else can you get an experience like this? I want to be in on all of the action, hearing the reactions from celebrities and experts as the noble steeds take their run. I want to experience the professional environment and have a new respect for the amount of work the media goes through to get the excitement to viewers like myself who have continued to stare from a distance for a long time. And this time everything fell into place, all thanks to hard work and a willingness to get in where I want to fit in. Derby on!
Paige is a senior communication major. E-mail her at opinion@louisvillecardinal.com
