On the first Saturday in May, a who's who of upper-crust America puts on their seersucker suits and most flamboyant hats and descends for the 'greatest two minutes in sports': the Kentucky Derby, the longest-running consecutive sporting event in North America.
After the race, the crowd sings 'My Old Kentucky Home' and watches as the winning horse is covered in a blanket of roses. Then they party. Actually, they've been partying for a while. The Kentucky Derby Festival , which includes a balloon race, a marathon, and the largest fireworks display in North America, starts two weeks before the big event. Most seats at the derby are by invitation only or have been reserved years in advance. On Derby Day, $60 gets you into the infield, which is a debaucherous rave with no seats, as well as the classier Paddock Area, where you can see the horses getting ready for each race. It's crowded and it was previously hard to see races, but the newly-installed 4K video board (the world's largest) has alleviated that minor detail. If you are a connoisseur of the thoroughbreds, warm-ups and other races take place from April to June and again in September and November, where it's possible to snag $3 seats.
