The Supreme Two Minutes: WHAS11 spotlights the Kentucky Derby

every time a fo's born you you're thinking about what it might be and what it might become backside the horses that's why we're all here um that you know if if not for the horsemen and and the horses there wouldn't be a derby.

being able to see the like the grand stand from the racetrack point of view like but it's really outrageous here the comes anybody's RAC and swaps from California as the 1955 Kentucky Derby champion and his Secretariat that wins it by two and a half lengths it's a.

Different race and it has to be on your resume now get to go to The Winner Circle T Downs on Derby Day for a lot of Americans that is racing the the Kentucky Derby is racing on the first Saturday in May more than 170,000 people will fill these seats at Churchill Downs where they're going to witness history in the making.

Not just any history it's the 150th running of the Kentucky Derby and what a race it's going to be to see in person this year hello everybody and thank you for joining us for this wh1 News special presentation I'm Doug profit after the race the winner of the 150th Derby will come right here to the historic Winner Circle to get the Garland of roses where.

149 other Kentucky Derby winners have been since 1875 they are continuing the legacy of the fastest 2 minutes in sports it was May 17th 1875 when aristes won the first Kentucky Derby in front of a crowd of 10,000 people but it was another 20 years before the iconic spires of Churchill Downs first welcomed racing.

Fans over the next Century Traditions were created and swaps is only the second California bread CT to earn the Garland of roses here at Churchill Downs in Louisville Champions were crowned it's secretari drawing up turut just sitting on him and his Secretariat that wins it by two and a half lengths and history was made at the center of it all.

Of course is the historic track which first opened in this SP in South Louisville when the gates opened in 1875 it's a special place to so many people behind the scenes and our Shane mallister is talking to one man who for this place it's more than just a job it's a piece of him mcdonals has got the golden arches and Nike's got the the.

Swoosh we've got the Twin Spires walking across one of the many balconies at Church Hill Downs Greg bush is face to face with a flood of memories I look out across there you know and I see where I got married you know that's that's really cool exchanging vows in 1993 in The Winner Circle an Easy Choice he said where else would I get married with all.

The connections I had here you know the the love of this place uh she did shoot me down when I said we should come up on Horseback she wasn't going for that one though the tradition of the track ties back to almost every part of his life we've got two uh puppies uh Rosie and Oakley for roses and Oaks even the birth of his daughter another negotiation with.

His bride if you have this baby on Derby weekend it's like we're going to name her derby um and the middle name will be whoever the winning jocky is it's like it was a chuckle laugh laugh and she said well how about Darby and we like that I do dogs and a daughter all traced back here his home away from home as early as high school.

When I was in high school I thought that I wanted to be a jockey um and so I did work in in the stable area with the horses um but that was was shortlived genetics got me um and it just I decided that was not something I wanted to do for the rest of my life instead he built a career on the other side of the turf earning a degree he.

Could use behind a wagering window when I graduated from college I had offers from other businesses um to go to work for them and it's like no no I enjoy uh being around the races he found himself full-time at Church Hill Downs in 1991 when the track was a totally different place I'm want to describe it as a large Battleship um it was just a.

Big white building it had all the emergency staircases on the outside of it um and again it was an older looking building since then the racetrack has reinvented itself time and time again something that has come with challenges at times he remembers Derby 130 in 2004 this building did not exist we ran the Derby it was the demolition derby there.

Was no Clubhouse building here so all of these seats that were going to longterm be built and the seats that had been here before we tore it down got moved to the infield we built a 4 acre tent in the infield which you could tell it was a tent if you looked up it had hard walls all the amenities that you had in this building but it was out in the.

Infield um just that was the uh year that uh it we had a torrential downpour as the race ran uh I remember watching video that day and there were people swimming in the infield another race day that stands out 2007 when months of preparation led up to a visit from the Queen of England so from the time we were notified that she was coming we had.

I believe it was like 32 meetings with our secret service the United States Secret Service um and their counterparts over in England uh doing the planning on when is she coming how's she getting here what's her path from the time she enters the property pulls up to a gate uh I remember the first meeting we standing out in the parking lot where.

She was going to come in and they asked where that manhole cover went to they were afraid you know there some Ninja was going to come out and and do something dly Church Hill staff known for a focus on Hospitality went above and beyond to make Derby Day One the queen would never forget our chef at the time with ly uh he actually created a.

Special blend of tea cuz she she enjoyed her afternoon tea every day so she could have her own Derby tea while she was here he calls that year a high of course there have been lows 2020 was difficult the Derby was rescheduled for a Saturday in September something Greg says they would do differently if they could go back now when we were making the plans.

We felt as though we might come out of Co earlier than we did um and we'd be able to have a stance full of people um so that's why we moved it to September uh obviously we didn't get to do that we ended up with just the horsemen that were racing with us that day the only ones that were allowed to come out out so we probably would have run it in the.

Spring hindsight but that was a crystal ball we didn't have no Crystal Ball but he can give you a peek into the past Greg's co-workers consider his office a treasure Trove of sorts from the wacky wobblers all the bobbleheads up here to the more unusual artifacts Triple Crown Winning American Pharaoh poop he knows how to appreciate the best of horse.

Racing history a loyalty to the tradition and to the people who came before him including one in particular he's looking down and and smiling his dad had a 71-year career at Church Hill Downs everything Greg does today he says he does with his dad in mind he used to tell me how proud I made him um that you know when he would see me rising and and.

Getting to where I had an accomplishments um that he was very proud that pride resonates in the Church Hill Downs leader who looks forward to every Derby Day that's when he gets to see his passion for the races reflected on more than 100,000 faces it's the greatest place on Earth having a horse make it to the.

Kentucky Derby and then win is no easy job perhaps nobody knows that better than the trainers D Wayne Lucas has been at it for decades he's won four Kentucky Derby's and as our Sports director Ken Spencer found out he has no plans to hang up his saddle just yet it's another day of training under the Twin Spires at Church Hill Downs for D Wayne Lucas I.

Thrive on that I thrive on that competition of the big arena the tough race as it always does the alarm on this morning went off at 3:30 the 88-year-old Hall of Fame trainer is still going strong I just stay away from the sofa everybody I know that gets on that sofa their AG they start aging if you don't believe him just ask his wife Lori she.

Often joins him in his office if these walls could talk concrete covered by history and inspiration I can't I can't keep up with him we're 17 years apart and I can't keep up with him after switching over from Quarter Horses to thoroughbreds in 1968 the goal was simple as soon as I started switching over I I realized that.

The Derby was the one that you wanted on your resume Lucas attended his first Kentucky Derby in 1980 genuine risk captured the Garland of roses that day he still remembers his feelings from the stands you feel like you you're in the big leagues and you better step it up he was hooked he entered his first horse in the derby the very next year partez who.

Finished third to Pleasant Colony in 1988 an elusive Derby victory was finally his Lucas and Stevens It's a driving finish Winning Colors by a head when you win that first one you get all puffed up you come back to the barn and you say gosh I just won the Kentucky Derby and uh uh what a great thing and you really think it's you and.

You soak it up Lucas would capture three more durby wins thunder gch in 1995 grindstone in 1996 and charismatic in 1999 charismatic trained by Lucas on the outside it's the victory with grindstone that is the most special because he was able to get WT young in Overbrook Farm to the winner circle on the first Saturday in may we embraced and.

Exchanged some words and I think that moment was very special to him obviously and very special to me through the years Lucas has seen several of his assistant trainers go out on their own and accomplish great things in the sport it allowed you the opportunity to work with some really good horses it allowed you some responsibility you know on your own.

While still under sort of a coaching umbrella I didn't hire anybody that I didn't think would go out on his own eventually if they didn't have that drive and passion that I thought someday they'd walk in and say boss I'm going to try it on my own I didn't want them with all of his accomplishments the outside of his barn looks more like a record.

Book recently the Kentucky Derby Museum honored Lucas with their first ever Lifetime Achievement Award in total Lucas has saddled 49 Derby contenders he's always looking for the next one next year we have absolutely got the best yearling crop last year that we bought that are now 2-year-olds they're the best we've had absolutely no sign of.

Slowing down I'm only going to be 89 so I mean what the hell I I told my wife I'll only do this till I'm 95 and then I'll probably back off we'll believe it when we see it the journey to the Winter Circle right here actually begins 3 years before the horses ever enter a stting gate on farms across the United States in the heart of horse country.

Here in Kentucky sits the famed spendthrift Farm where for decades they've bred and raised Derby contenders Brook hash takes us to Lexington the Kentucky Derby it's really the central race in American Racing if you meet somebody from outside the industry there's one question that you're going to get have you won the.

Kentucky Derby toffee says there are two special moments for a horse owner on Derby Day the walk from the backstretch looking at this wall of of people 170,000 strong is really special really breathtaking and then there's the winner circle we were fortunate enough uh in 2020 to win the Kentucky Derby with authentic the year when Co kept fans at.

Home it it just was a very strange day it it felt nothing like a typical Kentucky Derby until the gates opened and and then you really became focused on on that field of horses and and rooting authentic home authentic has won the Kentucky Derby it's a long road to get to this track and for thoroughbreds like authentic their Journey starts here.

I'm Ned toffey I'm the general manager at Spen Thrift Farm nestled on 1200 acres in the heart of horse country in 2003 Wayne Hughes asked me to come run his farm he did didn't even have a farm at the time he just said I'm going to buy a farm and I'd love you to come run it for me um when I found out that he had bought Spen Thrift Farm it it was a.

Little bit like somebody in baseball saying well I I bought Fenway Park would you come would you come run it for me there's no shortage of Stories on this Farm I uh I got a tour here when I was about four years old in 1968 and then there's the royal visit from Queen Elizabeth back in the 80s Seattle slooh was the the the still to this day the.

Only undefeated Triple Crown winner and he was one of the horses that she came here to see so that's a really a great moment in Spen Thrift history years later the farm fell into disrepair but new ownership in the early 2000s helped restore it to its former glory I think my favorite spot on the farm is is the old original wooden stud Barn we.

Restored it when I look at it I feel like we got everything right um and and it really I think it it incompasses everything that Spen th's about breeding Champions is a full-time job it's Round the Clock trying to create the perfect match for the next generation of great athletes factoring in their speed endurance pedigree and temperament we.

Have 27 stalls we have the largest stallion roster in North America and we read over 3,400 Mayors last year most days these Farm roads are filled with trailers transporting one may after another into the breeding Barn breeding on a thir bread Farm is is a very highly choreographed where there's about five people uh in the breeding shed with the.

Mayor and the stallion making sure that everything goes as safely and efficiently as as it possibly can I didn't realize how big of an operation this is yeah most most people don't the majority of Mayors are brought in for the process so fewer than a hundred call spin Thrift home which means any given year the farm welcomes about 70 babies.

Newborn FES are I would say on average are about 125 lbs at Birth so it's aaby it's a big baby the farm holds a lot of promise and those sired byy into Mischief it's leading stallion he's a horse that we we raced and then retired to stud here he started at a fairly modest stud fee of about 12,500 um he now stands for.

$250,000 he is 5 years in a row now the leading general sire in North America and the last time that was done was in the 1960s by a horse named Bold Ruler who who sired Secretariat and prior to that the last time it was done was 1870 by a horse named Lexington at 19 years old into Mischief also happens to be the sire of authentic who's since retired.

From racing and joined his dad back in the Stables their stalls are right across from each other and into mief can look across the iway and be a proud papa this year there'll be no fewer than half a dozen horses with this family's pedigree running in the Oaks and Derby and we'll we'll be rooting them on and then it's back to business we're we're.

Always looking for the next horse we're always looking for the next big sire the next big brood mare that is really what sort of drives us every day according to the Jockey Club 17,200 Thoroughbred fos were registered in the United States last year but only 20 of them can make it to the starting gate on the first Saturday in May.

I always say I think part of my success as a female was the fact that I didn't really you know wasn't overcoming the obstacles it was that I just didn't really see them in an industry once dominated by men women are making names for themselves in horse racing the progress that's been made and the work still to be.

done on this track there's one division one field of competitors and one chance to win horse racing is one of the few of the major sports where men and women go head-to-head in the storyi history of the Kentucky Derby six women have made it to the field of 20 helmets on heads down the jockey raced ahead creating a.

Space where one didn't exist for decades here's Grace McKenna each May 23-year-old throw breeds race for Glory whether or not they Gallop into history when the race is over the Garland given they have lives left to to leave that is where rosi NE prick comes in and the horses are not really retired.

Then in a way you know they're just retired from racing yeah there's so much light like they live into their you know late late 20s 30s um so there's a lot of life left neik off trck Sports horses trains retired racehorses for new jobs like d show jumping barrel racing what inspires me so much is like when they come off the track and they know nothing.

But traffic life and then they're just so open to whatever it is you throw at them off track is essentially a second act for retired race horses it's actually a second act for Napravnik herself who my mama before retiring in 2014 she spent years on the front side of horses careers in turn winning a place in.

History Rosie NE pravnik is the only woman to have won the Kentucky Oaks and she did it twice there's only been six women who have ridden in the Kentucky Derby in the entire 150 years of the Kentucky Derby Derby museum curator Jessica Whitehead says women weren't in the spotlight in the early days of the Derby in fact it wasn't even legal for.

Them to become jockeys until 1968 when Kathy kusner successfully sued for the right to a license Kathy kzar said listen I can ride horses as well as any of these male jockeys at Breakneck speed Diane Crump raced for the record books two years later the first woman to ride in the most exciting two minutes in sports that was an incredible moment.

Because of the visibility of the Kentucky Derby in the decades after women built their careers racing at the highest levels including eight more Kentucky deres it's a special race but it takes a lot to get there nepro niik shot came when she was 23 it had been a dream for years spurred by childhood pony racing and a movie about Triple.

Crown winners I always wanted to be a jockey and I didn't see the difference between men and women when I was seven no one would have known there was a woman in the field when she rode her very first race under trainer Dicky small I wrote Under AR so that nobody would know that I was girl when I was first coming about neik won that race.

And then won again and again taking her all the way to the 2011 2013 and 2014 deres being able to see the like the grand stand from the racetrack point of view like there's only so many people that even get to see that view and it's really outrageous it's very cool in 2012 neik became the first woman to win the Kentucky Oaks streaking past jucky John.

Velasquez riding believe you can turning for home like nose and nose with Johnny on the favorite and knowing that I was going to beat him was like one of the best moments of my life NE pravnik feels she got a fair shot and earned her place as a rider gender notwithstanding some of her early predecessors though faced vocal.

Opposition there were Derby winning jockeys who were um in saying in National Publications um your spaghetti burning get back in the kitchen to these women but with the right to ride secure those early female jockeys charted a path for future Generations still there's been no woman to win the Kentucky Derby and a.

Lot of that has to do with opportunities these days women claim roles across the horse racing industry though expert Kon bradar says that wasn't always the case I look back to somebody like Julie cron and I say you know she was the only one and she inspired so many to give it a try radar is hopeful for the future of the sport in the hands of its promising.

Young jockeys in New York you have jockeys like Katie Davis and you have Maddie Oliver so now it's more common place to have women in the jocky room and the exceptions are the places that don't have any women Riders after all it's been 150 years since the first Kentucky Derby much fewer since the first female jockeys took the Reigns it.

Changed so quickly in my estimation even though I know a lot of people would think it changed very slowly in the grand scheme of things it's only a matter of time in a sport where each second counts I won five races on cantan neic knows the feeling of those seconds well we have old iron sides who I rode in 200 like 6 and 8 or 6 till 2008 she.

Credits her success to strategy determination and a refusal to see obstacles keeping your head down and doing your job and always trying to improve is I think you know what the journey is all about a journey shared by the women behind her and the women ahead who will one day ride to Victory on the first Saturday in May a witness to the.

History of the Decades Churchill Downs and the Twin Fires that over the 130 years they have taken on an iconic role recognizable around the world but they weren't always there for the deres the history behind the iconic structures and what may have inspired them you are looking at the true Landmark even the company trademark logo of Churchill.

Downs the freshly painted Twin Spires recognized around the world they say the Kentucky Derby and Louisville to those who see them they are well cared for here but there's one thing about the 15th Kentucky Derby those Twin Spires well they are not 150 years old in fact they came 20 years later after the first derby I happen to notice over the.

Decades around Louisville many other buildings in our city built by the designer of the spires so we wanted to know what inspired the spes we caught up with historian Tom Owen they've stood right here through America at War tornadoes snowstorms but they weren't made for tragedy they now take on Eternal Springtime they suggest.

Beauty and tradition and the blossoming of beginnings and New Beginnings the Twins fires at Churchill Downs Tower over Triumph and they're off the first Kentucky Derby was 1875 but didn't have Twin Spires in fact it didn't even have the grandstand where the grand stand was built in 1895 we asked Louisville's most famous historian.

84-year-old Tom Owen to unlock the mystery of who thought of those spires there were new owners of Churchill Down and there was a new day coming the spires were kind of an architectural afterthought I'm suggesting to you they were not a big deal in 1895 plus he takes us on a tour of Louisville DX Murphy The Firm that built the.

Grandstand and the spes in 1895 was actively building other remarkable structures across the city at the same time they surely must have been the busiest architectural firm in town like this public library at 17th in Jefferson so the spers were only 18 years old they were brand new nearly when they came down into this area and built this.

Library well I'm telling you this firm they did unbelievable number of projects yes the library 1913 and St Patrick's school at 15th in market so if the spes were an afterthought how do they become so world famous I believe this building could very very likely be the inspiration of Joseph.

Valdez's Twin Spires at church of down the Louisville trust building in Downtown Louisville at Fifth and Market the spark for the spes and who was Joseph Dominic baldez he's a Lille kid he lives with his family at 23 or 24 years of age at 20th and grand um in the California neighborhood baldez went to St X and was hired on not as an.

Architect but as a draftsman by DX Murphy we also believe that baldez learned just basic construction skills from his dad who was the carpenter back to this building the DX Murphy office was located right across the street from it during its construction it was finished two years before the spires were built literally under his nose.

Because all during construction and immediately after completion Joe baldez saw the Louisville trust building here are the original architect drawings of the spires preserved today by the Architecture Firm luckan and Farley DX Murphy is listed but Bal Dez is not mentioned anywhere on the plans take a look at the spires tall but thin Windows.

Under the curved archways there is the inspiration of the spires with the octagonal Windows around it and then look at all all of the rounded arches both on the top of the tower and the second level of the Tower and you see the same rounded arches embodied in both the grand stand and in the twin spired but I'm telling you the.

Graceful inspiration for Joseph Valdez likely according to me at least and some others was the Louisville trust building some other examples by DX Murphy before the sp's Presentation Academy the touret on top of the Frasier History Museum so when Joseph aldez said this grand stand needs something where do you think he started there had to be a reason for.

Them more than just an afterthought Owen believes it was this he suggested that they were um pleasantly attractive but that they were not architecturally significant ironically baldez would never ever visit Churchill on a biggest day he loved to go to the races but never never went on Derby day because he was always kind of fretful.

That the heavy loads of all of those fans in the grandstand might cause a railing to fall off and somebody get hurt and so he was fretful about that but he designed it he designed it but yes he designed it but he was 24 years old so as we celebrate 150 years of the Derby we actually honor 100 30 years of the Twin Spires and it would be none.

Other than Matt WN the president of Churchill Downs who made the Derby world famous who summed up the spires the best to their creator Matt win later said to Joe Joe when you die those Twin Spires will endure and will never be removed as a tribute to you and there you have it one more perfect description of them.

Enduring so why were the spes built 20 years after the first Kentucky Derby well this grand stand is not the original grand stand the first one built in 1875 when the track open was on the backside it was facing west into the hot afternoon Sun every day the race fans were so uncomfortable the owners of Churchill Downs decided to tear that one.

Down and they rebuilt the new one right here in this very Spot while the spires have remained unchanged over the years the same can't be said for the track surrounding them when the first grand stand was constructed in 1875 the track's Paddock was just a simple building standing beside it over the next 100 years other versions of the.

Padic would be built including a new tunnel that would take horses from the saddling area right to the track then in 1986 a new Paddock complete with state-of-the-art tote board was built it would remain until chel Downs announced a $200 million redesign of the space opening just in time for Derby 150 this is the most transformational project um.

That we've done here at Churchill Downs uh brings back into the focus the horses um right when you walk through the paddock gate you're going to see horses saddled uh beneath the Twin Spires I think the Twin Spires are back in focus and that's very important to us it's our version of the Nike SW or the McDonald's M or any logo that's familiar the twin.

Spire say Churchill Downs still to come and the history of the Kentucky Derby runs deep but for decades the faces and the names of the early jockeys who dominated the first Kentucky dery were ignored African-American jockeys were the early winners in the race going back to the very first derby now historians are working to ensure their.

Contributions aren't forgotten here's Eric King this historic track has seen its Fair share of thrilling and memorable moments and every year on the first Saturday in May there's a collective hope that this too will go down among the very best we share that history and those Traditions together we want to make an effort to ensure that.

We're sharing all of that history some of it might surprise you for decades African-American jockey played a pivotal role in shaping the sport of horse racing particularly here at the Kentucky Derby in fact 13 of the first 15 Kentucky Derby winners were guided to Victory by African-American Riders names like Oliver Lewis Alonzo Clayton and.

Isaac Murphy became legendary for their skill agility and unparalleled connection with their horses early years African-Americans are the ones really making the impact on the race 13 to 15 jockeys in that very first race in 1875 we look at the first 28 Runnings of the Kentucky Derby up until 1902 over half of those are won by African-American.

Jockeys Chris goodlet is a curator at the Kentucky Derby Museum highlights the contributions of African-Americans to third bread racing so we go back to the era before the Kentucky Derby going back to the 1820s it's a very Kentucky focused exhibit at that time racing was pretty much run by the enslaved uh southern economy.

Is a plantation economy and the enslaved are taking care of the horses which includes riding the horses segregation and Jim Crow laws were responsible for dwindling the numbers of African-Americans in the horse racing industry as a whole several reports show white jockeys began violently attacking their African-American counterparts by.

Boxing them out during races running them into rails and hitting them with riding crops these attacks prevented black jockeys from finishing in the money which led horse owners and trainers to stop employing African-American jockeys for some owners and trainers it could have been a matter of prejudice for others it was perhaps a.

Business decision but the history of their successes lives on even through people still working at Churchill Downs today last year we introduced you to Bill vest who's the backside security manager at the track he is now in his 49th year he told us one of his greatest privileges is Having learned from the best well I came here in.

1975 the Saturday morning after foolish pleas won the Derby week Saturday prior and uh I was young and uh uh I was in awe of this place and I thought wow I've made it to the big time this Churchill Down The Derby yeah and I was a groom then you know learning my trade uh back then and I was fortunate enough to uh be here when the the Old Guard I like to.

Call them the old African-American Grooms you talking about the best Horsemen in the world they were here I got to walk with them the dedication and expertise of African-Americans are woven into the fabric of the Kentucky Derby reminding us that it's more than just a race it's a diverse celebration of tradition and resilience it's that.

History the Kentucky Derby Museum wants to honor and celebrate black jockeys in the Kentucky Derby disappeared in 1921 it would be another 79 years before another African-American jockey would take the Reigns that was in the year 2000 still to come here on the greatest 2 minutes there as big as the history of this big Derby the rose Garland and the.

Mint julip there are only few places in American culture where you can wear a derby hat an evolution of Derby hats and fashion over the last 100 years for decades the real stars of the Derby haven't been found in the paddock or on the red carpet instead they're the style icons who managed to craft the most stunning extravagant or outlandish race.

Day looks with 150 years of practice under their belts Derby goers show their passion for fashion with a long line of trend setters going back to the earliest days of the race here's Grace McKenna it's bright it's bold it's a sure bet Fashion on the first Saturday in May is as ever changing as the field of competitors and the Kentucky.

Weather but even 150 years ago before The Pastels and the patterns the aim was the same horse racing was a social sport you were coming um to see and be seen um at this place that was um pretty much the Apex of uh Society the clothes from those early years tell the stories of their time stories now preserved by Kentucky Derby museum curator Jessica.

Whitehead there was a really significant transition in the way men and women were dressing in American culture in uh the transition from the 1900s 1910s into the 1920s and 1930s and uh that was the inovation of sports wear though modern fabrics and colors widened the spectrum of possibility Decades of Derby goers past.

Still found ways to stand out they call it shrimp pink in 2024 though even more iconic than an electric Ensemble is what tops it off this whole idea of the derby hat uh that was a major change in uh Derby fashion history that came around you know right at this big transitional time in American culture Whitehead says during the 50s and 60s as hats became.

Common in daily life they found a new purpose as a derby staple and from the very beginning people took risks with Whimsy there's always been a tension between really traditional fashion and really traditional ensembles and um sort of outlandish I just love how clever it is to make a VI make Viking horns into the Twin spers it's just inspired a wide.

Brimmed hat was long the standard look the Whitehead says in more recent years a European transplant the fascinator wedged way to the front of the pack from the infield to the Suites Derby headwear can feel like a clash of cultures handcrafted masterpieces keep a firm grip on some I made the Hat in 1981 and it's uh people just really.

Enjoy it while others turn to master Millers as the Arbiters of taste and it looks chaotic but I actually know where everything is Alana kogan AKA The Hat doctor started making hats while in Kentucky for med school to pay off student debt I thought that I was a fashion expert coming from New York and I've seen at all but then when I saw the.

Fashion of the Kentucky Derby I was just mesmerized necessity ever the mother of invention became a passion now the full-time radiologist is also one of the Kentucky Derby Museum's featured Millers and chief Trend Setters people really want to show what they have this year they want to show their personal style they want to put their best foot forward.

And have a gorgeous outfit head to toe for Derby 15 she says Reds and greens are having a moment as well as shapes that nod to the past and call back tradition especially for Derby 150 I think people kind of want to have that classic look of a wide brim hat tradition is whiteheads bread and butter this summer she has the tall task of.

Documenting the decades in a new exhibit a collection of past Derby ensembles sourced from people's own closets and wardrobes we're so excited to be celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Kentucky Derby the goal is to tell the story of fashion from 1875 to 2024 and every year in between this is a great example of the way fashion um had to.

Sort of adapt to the times um and how Derby fashion um can help us tell the story of the Kentucky Derby after all if the clothes make the man then fashion history is really about our shared story you're sending a message about your individuality about your selfhood about um where we are at this particular time in history and that is a story worth.

Remembering wearing their hats and colorful suits you'll often see race fans with a mint julip in their hands well that's a tradition that's a century old it dates back to 1939 when the mint julip became the official drink of the Kentucky Derby that's the same year Churchill Downs created the official souvenir glass after noticing people.

Took home glasses the year before but the history of the mint julip in Kentucky goes back much further back to the 19th century the iconic silver cups were often given away as prizes for horse races in the early 1800s and historians say they have every reason to believe it was at that very first derby in.

1875 on the first Saturday in May the crowds filling Churchill Downs will pause and join together to sing My Old Kentucky Home the horses will walk from The Paddock out on the historic track past the cheering crowd right to the Starting Gate the University of Louisville marching band will be performing the song they've done for.

Almost every year since 1936 it's just one tradition during an event that is so rich with traditions in history from the Garland of roses to the pageantry of the fashion to the love of the horses themselves the Kentucky Derby is unlike any other race it has survived through world wars a Great Depression the great flood of.

1937 tornadoes and of course two Global pandemics 1918 and 2020 and now just before 7 p.m. on the first Saturday in may we will do it all over again but this year the grand race enters rare territory for any sporting event in the world that's because we will be wondering on the edge of our seats who will take home the Garland of roses in.

The 150th running of the Kentucky Derby it truly is the greatest two minutes

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