5 ms·

>Most of them manage to avoid vomitting on their own clothes, but they never miss their shoes." Classic, a very good read. I would never have thought the Kent

by jmclnx 3y ago

>Most of them manage to avoid vomitting on their own clothes, but they never miss their shoes." Classic, a very good read. I would never have thought the Kentucky Derby was such a crazy time. I thought it was people sipping Mint Julups watching the race. Seems the race is just a minor distraction to the real action.

cguess 3y ago
Overall the description of the atmosphere holds up to this day too.
op00to 3y ago
The Preakness is also a total shit show. More so than the Kentucky Derby.
- QuarterReptile 3y ago
  That was certainly true of the infield party 10 years ago, the last time I was there. The corporate tents in the infield were a boozy time, but not out of control that I ever saw. I can't speak to the stands outside the track. The musical acts they got were what you would expect, but it's the only time I ever got to watch a concert from backstage.
  - op00to 3y ago
    I am not fancy enough for the corporate tents. :D
- ojbyrne 3y ago
  I also found the Preakness kind of crazy. Perhaps the most crazy part of it was that it's in a really sketch part of Baltimore (Pimlico), and there's a whole cordon of police from the light rail station to the track making sure that nobody drunkenly gets lost or worse on the way to and from.
- acomjean 3y ago
  I went to the Preakness once while passing through Baltimore many years ago. That race also has the center of the track full of people. There was talk you could just haul your own cooler to the infield. (And the famous video of people running across port-a-pottys). I was general admission on the grandstand side. Its an fun mix of people. Its sometimes kind of remarkable with a general admission ticket it can be hard to find a vantage point to watch the race.
cjrp 3y ago
I mean mint juleps are basically just bourbon, sugar and a little water; I can imagine it doesn't take many of those to get hammered.
- ojbyrne 3y ago
  No mint?
- jackfoxy 3y ago
  A real mint julep, which I had the pleasure of drinking in New Orleans, is bruised fresh peppermint on the bottom, crushed ice, filled up with premium bourbon, and a dash of peach liqueur. No water and no sugar. It's a great drink.
  - JoeAltmaier 3y ago
    Another Southerner has a different view: https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/mint-julep-recipe-1945324 https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/mint-julep-r...
    - mattkrause 3y ago
      No discussion of juleps is complete without Buckner’s classic letter describing the…rite of making one: http://www.thebucknerhome.com/julep/recipe.html http://www.thebucknerhome.com/julep/recipe.html (No peaches here either)
      - at_a_remove 3y ago
        I have, after reading various historical recipes for the mint julep, this fine letter, reviewing the poem recited by higher-end bartenders upon the making of a drink, and so on, settled on my own recipe. I can drink but rarely, so when I do, I try to make an occasion out of it. The "ice" as fine as snow is particularly difficult. You'll want a triple-stitched bag, one that can take heavy pounding. You will also want dry ice. First, because it makes the water ice more brittle, and the second because it keeps your snow crisp, rather than dissolving into a slush. I suspect that there is a machine better suited to the task but I've not gone that far. The mint is more subtle than suspected. Many "muddle" the mint, which is to say crush it with a muddler. This does release the mint oils, but it also releases the more vegetable tastes, particularly the chlorophyll, which alters the flavor profile. No, what is better is to slap the mint across the palm of your hand. This, apparently opens the pores of the mint leaves and allows the oils out while keeping the rest in. I also "round" the mint flavor by adding both spearmint and wintergreen. My other changes are perhaps a little archaic, personal, even radical, but the first two ought ought to improve any julep.
caboteria 3y ago
The more WASP-y an event is, the more likely it's an excuse to get smashed. For example: Princeton reunions, the Head of the Charles Regatta, country club member/guest tournaments, any polo match ever.
- _yb2s 3y ago
  yacht clubs....
  - natebc 3y ago
    or really just a round of golf.
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
taude 3y ago
Also, there's the whole "infield" party, that's different than the people in the stands.... and I had to just look it up, but 80K people can get in. [1] [1] https://www.kentuckyderby.com/blog/style/the-kentucky-derby-infield-experience https://www.kentuckyderby.com/blog/style/the-kentucky-derby-...
- LouisvilleGeek 3y ago
  Thompson would have been found in the infield. The rest is schmooze and corporate these days.
gmiller123456 3y ago
>I thought it was people sipping Mint Julups watching the race. Seems the race is just a minor distraction to the real action. It's an 8 hour day with about 10 minutes of racing. Lots of different experiences to be had. The big party is in the infield. The people in the stands might sit and drink mint julips, but theres still lots going on, the biggest is usually watching the horses get ready at the paddock. It used to be getting in the gate would get you access to the entire grounds, except the private suites. So you could pay for the infield and go sit in seats in the stands no one was using, and people with paid seats could still join the fun in the infield (there's tunnels under the track). This was the first year they blocked access between the stands and the infield (access was limited to those with seats in a corporate tent). I didn't go this year, but I imagine it changed the atmosphere quite a bit. It's also getting more expensive, just for the infield, drawing a different crowd. Things really changed after 9/11 when Chirchill Downs experimented with how much they could limit people bringing in. That didn't really have an effect on what alcohol got past security, but made it a lot harder to bring in snacks, etc. So you had to buy their food, making it for a more expensive day and discuraging some people from coming. And they've been slowly making it more and more expensive every year. Today, you can't even bring a good camera in without a special permit. It's really changed the environment from a cheap, fun day to someplace you go to spend a lot of money.
- vgeek 3y ago
  CDI is a slots company who happens to own some race tracks anymore. In around 2018 once they started with the "historical racing terminals" (slots), they shifted from caring about racing to the fat margins of slots-- an $8k slot machine with 10yr lifespan is more favorable to ongoing purses and horse industry expenses. Handle has been decreasing everywhere for years, so of course they will focus on gaming, instead. They list "Live and historical wagering" as a line item-- comingling revenue to hide that parimutuel wagering continues to tank/shift towards their preferred/higher margin gaming business. Appendix of their 10-K shows $66MM revenue for all live/simulcast racing in 2022, vs $375MM for historical racing and $755MM for gaming. If they don't get slot approval from the state legislatures, they just sell the property to be redeveloped, like Hollywood/Arlington/Calder.

by jmclnx 3y ago

cguess 3y ago

Overall the description of the atmosphere holds up to this day too.

op00to 3y ago

The Preakness is also a total shit show. More so than the Kentucky Derby.

QuarterReptile 3y ago
That was certainly true of the infield party 10 years ago, the last time I was there. The corporate tents in the infield were a boozy time, but not out of control that I ever saw. I can't speak to the stands outside the track. The musical acts they got were what you would expect, but it's the only time I ever got to watch a concert from backstage.
- op00to 3y ago
  I am not fancy enough for the corporate tents. :D
ojbyrne 3y ago
I also found the Preakness kind of crazy. Perhaps the most crazy part of it was that it's in a really sketch part of Baltimore (Pimlico), and there's a whole cordon of police from the light rail station to the track making sure that nobody drunkenly gets lost or worse on the way to and from.
acomjean 3y ago
I went to the Preakness once while passing through Baltimore many years ago. That race also has the center of the track full of people. There was talk you could just haul your own cooler to the infield. (And the famous video of people running across port-a-pottys). I was general admission on the grandstand side. Its an fun mix of people. Its sometimes kind of remarkable with a general admission ticket it can be hard to find a vantage point to watch the race.

cjrp 3y ago

I mean mint juleps are basically just bourbon, sugar and a little water; I can imagine it doesn't take many of those to get hammered.

ojbyrne 3y ago
No mint?
jackfoxy 3y ago
A real mint julep, which I had the pleasure of drinking in New Orleans, is bruised fresh peppermint on the bottom, crushed ice, filled up with premium bourbon, and a dash of peach liqueur. No water and no sugar. It's a great drink.
- JoeAltmaier 3y ago
  Another Southerner has a different view: https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/mint-julep-recipe-1945324 https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/mint-julep-r...
  - mattkrause 3y ago
    No discussion of juleps is complete without Buckner’s classic letter describing the…rite of making one: http://www.thebucknerhome.com/julep/recipe.html http://www.thebucknerhome.com/julep/recipe.html (No peaches here either)
    - at_a_remove 3y ago
      I have, after reading various historical recipes for the mint julep, this fine letter, reviewing the poem recited by higher-end bartenders upon the making of a drink, and so on, settled on my own recipe. I can drink but rarely, so when I do, I try to make an occasion out of it. The "ice" as fine as snow is particularly difficult. You'll want a triple-stitched bag, one that can take heavy pounding. You will also want dry ice. First, because it makes the water ice more brittle, and the second because it keeps your snow crisp, rather than dissolving into a slush. I suspect that there is a machine better suited to the task but I've not gone that far. The mint is more subtle than suspected. Many "muddle" the mint, which is to say crush it with a muddler. This does release the mint oils, but it also releases the more vegetable tastes, particularly the chlorophyll, which alters the flavor profile. No, what is better is to slap the mint across the palm of your hand. This, apparently opens the pores of the mint leaves and allows the oils out while keeping the rest in. I also "round" the mint flavor by adding both spearmint and wintergreen. My other changes are perhaps a little archaic, personal, even radical, but the first two ought ought to improve any julep.

caboteria 3y ago

The more WASP-y an event is, the more likely it's an excuse to get smashed. For example: Princeton reunions, the Head of the Charles Regatta, country club member/guest tournaments, any polo match ever.

_yb2s 3y ago
yacht clubs....
- natebc 3y ago
  or really just a round of golf.
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]

taude 3y ago

Also, there's the whole "infield" party, that's different than the people in the stands.... and I had to just look it up, but 80K people can get in. [1] [1] https://www.kentuckyderby.com/blog/style/the-kentucky-derby-infield-experience https://www.kentuckyderby.com/blog/style/the-kentucky-derby-...

LouisvilleGeek 3y ago
Thompson would have been found in the infield. The rest is schmooze and corporate these days.

gmiller123456 3y ago

>I thought it was people sipping Mint Julups watching the race. Seems the race is just a minor distraction to the real action. It's an 8 hour day with about 10 minutes of racing. Lots of different experiences to be had. The big party is in the infield. The people in the stands might sit and drink mint julips, but theres still lots going on, the biggest is usually watching the horses get ready at the paddock. It used to be getting in the gate would get you access to the entire grounds, except the private suites. So you could pay for the infield and go sit in seats in the stands no one was using, and people with paid seats could still join the fun in the infield (there's tunnels under the track). This was the first year they blocked access between the stands and the infield (access was limited to those with seats in a corporate tent). I didn't go this year, but I imagine it changed the atmosphere quite a bit. It's also getting more expensive, just for the infield, drawing a different crowd. Things really changed after 9/11 when Chirchill Downs experimented with how much they could limit people bringing in. That didn't really have an effect on what alcohol got past security, but made it a lot harder to bring in snacks, etc. So you had to buy their food, making it for a more expensive day and discuraging some people from coming. And they've been slowly making it more and more expensive every year. Today, you can't even bring a good camera in without a special permit. It's really changed the environment from a cheap, fun day to someplace you go to spend a lot of money.

vgeek 3y ago
CDI is a slots company who happens to own some race tracks anymore. In around 2018 once they started with the "historical racing terminals" (slots), they shifted from caring about racing to the fat margins of slots-- an $8k slot machine with 10yr lifespan is more favorable to ongoing purses and horse industry expenses. Handle has been decreasing everywhere for years, so of course they will focus on gaming, instead. They list "Live and historical wagering" as a line item-- comingling revenue to hide that parimutuel wagering continues to tank/shift towards their preferred/higher margin gaming business. Appendix of their 10-K shows $66MM revenue for all live/simulcast racing in 2022, vs $375MM for historical racing and $755MM for gaming. If they don't get slot approval from the state legislatures, they just sell the property to be redeveloped, like Hollywood/Arlington/Calder.