Kentucky Derby - What a Trip!

Our trip to the Kentucky Derby this past Saturday was quite the experience! This was the first Kentucky Derby event that I had been to. When I thought about this prestigious horse race, I dreamed of big hats, cute dresses, mint juleps, horse racing and winning big! That is not exactly how the day ended up, but fun was still had by all!

We rented a 16 passenger bus to shuttle us to Churchill Downs ... the day started out great!

We knew the day of the race that rain was in the forecast. So right away my dream of the big hat and cute dress was immediately altered. A warmer, more rain-friendly attire was in order but that wasn't going to stop us!

The bus ride down was perfect - two hours of friends, fun, card games, food and drinks! As we got closer to Louisville the rain began, but, again, that wasn't going to stop us!

Once we got to the race track, we removed our cute hats and layered on the rain coats and ponchos ... it was pouring rain! Out tickets were for the infield where there is little to no shelter - no umbrellas were allowed in, so being soaking wet was inevitable - we just had to embrace it!

I decided that I was just going to make the best of the weather, so I joined a drumline (we played We Will Rock You).

Then, it happened ... I somehow decided it was a good idea to join others in doing a mudslide ... no, not drinking a mudslide ... but sliding on my belly through the mud and puddles. When in Rome, right?

Well, after a few hours in the cold and rain, we FINALLY couldn't take the weather anymore. It became a bit unbearable, and we were freezing! We ended up traveling back to our bus before the race even started!

It was disappointing that we were at the Kentucky Derby and didn't even see the horse race in person, but we did listen to it on the bus! If I go back, I would definitely pay for a seat where shelter from the elements is an option and where I could wear my cute dress and hat making for a more refined experience. I think this option would be a safer bet, a bit more about the race, less about the party. The infield, rain or shine, definitely catered to the party crowd. I do think that it was worth having the experience in the infield and can see how paying for a better seat might be worth it for a future experience!

So ... my dream of big hats, cute dresses, mint juleps, horse racing and winning big turned into rain, a drumline, rain, a mudslide, rain, no mint julep, rain, no horse race and no winning big! BUT, I had a blast!

What is that phrase people use, When life gives you lemons, do a mudslide! Done and done!