have a gre..
The 152nd Run for the Roses is tomorrow at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky.
The two weeks leading up to the historic race are filled with glitz, glamour, challenges and fun. One of the largest fireworks and air shows in America has finished for another year. So has the mini-marathon, boat race on the Ohio River, parade and balloon race and a dozen other events.
All of the events leading up to the big day are almost sacred traditions.
In addition to things to do, there is a common phrase heard throughout the city during this time that is just as important as any other tradition...Have a Good (or Great) Derby.
HUH? What's up with that?
Those three words plus a vowel are meant as a statement of commiseration and common celebration. Since my indoctrination into Derby life 48 years ago, I look forward each year to hearing the phrase as well as expressing it to others. It is probably accurate to say Have a Good Derby means different things to each person hearing the words. Race horse owner, Kelly Russell, sums it up for a lot of fans.
Have a good Derby means to have fun, fun, fun, he exclaimed. Usually, one can have fun on Derby Day at a party, the track infield, or, Millionaire's Row, all by participating with family and friends.
As an owner, you attend a lot of races don't you. How many Derby's have you witnessed?
I've been to 50 Derby's and this one will be my 51st, he replied. The only one I've missed in that time was the Covid year.
Tell me about what you do for a living.
I am the owner and operator for the past 25 years of a company called Precise Air Filters, he said.
Do you have a significant other?
Yes, my wife Debbie and I have been married 29 years and we have a special needs daughter, Andrea, who is 26.
How did you become such a huge horse racing fan?
I started as a child, he told me. My grandmother would make her picks every day and I would watch her. Back then, the daily feature race at Churchill Downs was broadcast on the radio. She would stop what she was doing and listen to the call of the race. I picked up on it from her. When I got older, I realized the track was a great place to take a date. We were chasing some pretty ladies back then.
You went from a fan to an owner.
I did, he smiled. I am involved with two stables now. One is family and friends. There are seven cousins and a few friends. The other one is different. We buy low and sell high and hope to win a few races in between. And, we only buy fillies.
And the reason for that is...
Well, if there is a problem with a filly we buy, we can always breed her, he reasoned. Not so with a colt.
Have you had success?
Last year we only had one horse, but, it was the best horse we've had, he offered.. She broke her maiden down in Louisiana and went on to win 450,000 dollars, so, that's pretty good for us. Her name is, Margie's Intention, named after an aunt of mine. Our partners sold her last November for 1 point 3 million dollars. She's at Churchill Downs right now with its new owners.
Did you have a chance to watch her race?
I sure did. I saw her run in Baltimore, Delaware, New Orleans, Saratoga, Philly, and , a Grade I in Alabama.
If I owned a horse and it lost all the time, I would probably cry
It's a fun game to be involved with, Kelly surmised. A lot of emotions come out. You are proud, happy, sad, a lot of turmoil. These horses are fragile, but, they are beautiful. We have one horse now, Plaza Athenee. She finished sixth the last time out, but, she had been recovering from an injury. She needed to race and we expect better next time.
That's a unique name.
She was named after a hotel in Paris, he said.
What physical attributes do you look for when you are choosing a race horse?
That's a million dollar question, he laughed. I said no to Margie's Intention and the trainer said yes. You have to trust the experts, but, everybody looks for something different. There is no such thing as a perfect horse. My people look for one they think is going to be an athlete. We go to yearling sales where they are still young. Some trainers say if a horse's legs are bowed out, they can live with it, but, not if they are bowed in. All kinds of things.
How is the price of a yearling determined.
Mainly, how they are bred and who their parents are will dictate price.
When you look back over the years you have owned horses, do you have one you would call your favorite?
We had one named Smart Code and that was probably my favorite, he ruminated. Then, Margie's Intention.
Kelly, the Kentucky Derby is one day away. Would you like to have a Derby horse some day?
Absolutely, he grinned. Everybody in horse racing wants to be in the Kentucky Derby and if they say differently, they aren't telling the truth. That is considered the ultimate prize.
Coming up: another oddities, observations, & ?'s, and; a what's the story.
And, finally. My first Kentucky Derby was 1977, the year I relocated here to work for WHAS Radio. We covered Derby Day from start to finish and my assignment was to seek out interviews from fans in the infield.
All throughout the day, people were talking about eventual Triple Crown Winner, Seattle Slew. I soaked it up. This was my first horse race, so, I listened to the fans. I walked up to the betting window to gamble my two dollars on the favorite when I turned around for one last look at the tote board. That was where I went wrong.
Listed at long odds was a horse named, Steve's Friend. It finished fifth.
HUH? What's up with that?
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