Kentucky Derby Day

When you are married to a man from Louisville, Kentucky, the first Saturday in May is a holiday no matter where you live. Such is the case in my house. Today was Kentucky Derby Day and if you think it is just a horse race, you are quite uninformed! It is the biggest party in the United States short of the ball dropping on New Year's Eve in New York City or Mardi Gras in New Orleans.

Louisville celebrates the horse race by starting a festival that lasts for up to 3 weeks prior to the big race. (They really know how to party!) They kick everything off with Thunder over Louisville, which is a plane show that lasts for hours with hundreds of planes doing various acrobatic stunts and other impressive maneuvers. All that is followed by "the world's largest fireworks display." A half million people turn out to sit on the banks of the Ohio River to watch this fantastic, day-long show.

Over the next 3 weeks there are over 100 events that include bed racing, golf tournaments, fashion shows, luncheons, dinners, balls, parades, poker, bingo, marathons, walks, a balloon festival, other horse races, obstacle course races for food service employees, and other such nonsense! All this is aided by lots of good Kentucky bourbon and tons of mint.

We don't live in Louisville and don't have the time or luxury to party for 3 weeks, but we started having our own derby parties back around 1998. Mainly it consisted of getting up late on the day of the race, perfecting our mint juleps early in the day, wearing ridiculous hats, betting quarters on the horses and watching the race on TV. The rest of the weekend was spent sleeping off the hangover before going back to work on Monday morning. We would frequently invite friends to join us, but not being from Louisville, they simply didn't understand the fuss.

When we moved into our current home, our neighbors, who were also from Louisville, showed us their hometown spirit by throwing a big party with burgoo, Benedictine finger sandwiches, derby pie, chocolate walnut pie, shrimp, grits, and gallons of bourbon. They invited everyone from their church so it was a large crowd. (I don't think they understood either, but were happy just to be fed.) There was a contest, so the hats became even more outrageous. The betting was much more intense and I think a mathematician quoted the odds for the group! They also had a BIG screen TV, so it was like having horses running through the living room.

They didn't have their party this year, so we went back to our own routine. My husband had his mint juleps. He put on his dad's 1950s hat with a red, silk rose in the band, tied a string tie around his neck like Colonel Sanders (another Louisville native), choked up singing My Old Kentucky Home, and ate cheese and crackers. But, I no longer eat meat, cheese or sugar, drink alcohol, or cook anything. So what I had was a bowlful of kale chips and my own version of a minty drink.

The kale chips were incredibly easy: Mix a little garlic powder, cayenne pepper, basil and salt into 2 tablespoonfuls of olive oil. Tear the kale into small pieces and massage the mixture into it. Dehydrate for 4-6 hours and voila!...a healthy, raw treat.

My drink was a decaffienated green and mint tea that was brewed and cooled. I smashed a half a lemon and about 8 mint leaves in the bottom of my glass with a little stevia, filled the glass with crushed ice and poured in the tea. I was pleased with my results.

We watched the race and prayed that no human or horse would be injured on the muddy track. It was a beautiful, come-from-behind, 50-1 odds horse named Mine That Bird that won. The jockey was ecstatic with his 2nd derby win and made it worth our time to watch. Otherwise it was a quiet day on the Scioto and Olentangy Rivers.

Today I had:

Breakfast: Green smoothie with banana, apple, strawberries, flax seeds, goji berries and kale.

Lunch: Lettuce wraps with romaine, avocado, tomatoes, red bell pepper, green onion, dulse, lime juice and sea salt.
Supper: Spinach salad with cucumber, celery, tomato, red bell pepper and lemon juice, sea salt and olive oil as a dressing.
Snack: Kale chips and my minty tea.


Here is the video of the race if you missed it. Even if you watch the inside rail for Mine That Bird, #8, you still won't see him sneek ahead.

Breaking sports news video. MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL highlights and more.

Top photo: A limited edition print found in my in-laws attic of a charcoal drawing of the original Churchill Downs Clubhouse. It is by James L. Puckett, a Louisville native.
Top left: My kale chips.
Bottom right: My "Derby Tea Smash."