The Rerouted Skytress

When I win the Power Ball I know the 1st- two things I am going to buy. I am going to buy a 1950’s Woody Wagon with the surfboard on top. I am mainly going to drive it to the grocery store to make myself and the other shoppers smile. The other thing I am going to buy are two Clydesdale horses. Just to take pictures of them…and with them. They are one of my favorite types of horses. The other being Kentucky Derby Thoroughbreds. Although I knew a little about Clydesdales, I learned a wee bit more about them at their Warm Springs Ranch in Booneville, Missouri. That is where the Clydesdales are born and bred for Anheuser-Busch. It’s a very impressive facility. The handlers explained a lot about the horses and the operation. However, the one thing the didn’t have to teach us, that I’ve known for years,……Clydesdales can pull a beer wagon!

I worked for the Cardinals in high school and in college. The Clydesdales made appearances at the ball park all the time. They were mesmerizing to watch as they came through the wagon gates pulling the red beer wagon. They stole my heart every time I saw them. They not only made me happy, they made everyone happy. I started to think then about putting Clydesdales on my “when I win the lottery” list. I’ve also seen the Clydesdales at Grant’s Farm and at the Brewery. The handlers always bring the horses out for everyone to see and to take pictures with. There is nothing better than getting a picture with a Clydesdale. Okay, I lied. There is one thing better. That’s seeing the Clydesdales in the green pastures at Warm Springs Ranch. A perfect setting for majestic horses. That’s when I knew, without a doubt, I’ll be spending some of my Power Ball winnings on Clydesdales. Watching the Clydesdales in their pastures was breathtaking. My favorite thing was seeing the horses come to the fences to eat their grass and check things out. I swear they knew people wanted to take their pictures. So, of course, I did.

As I mentioned, my other favorite horses are Kentucky Derby Thoroughbreds . Not all Thoroughbreds….just Kentucky Derby Thoroughbreds . I really don’t bother with any other Thoroughbreds the rest of the year. Kentucky Derby Thoroughbred horses have spunky attitudes. They know they are blazing fast. They also know they have the best names when it comes to horses. Names like, Spend a Buck, Go For Gin, and even Jet Pilot. Of course, I’m partial to Jet Pilot. This past weekend would have been the traditional date for the Kentucky Derby. Interestingly, my family are Kentucky Derby people. My family threw big Derby parties for years. However, I’m not sure we would have been Kentucky Derby people if it wasn’t for our neighbors in Cincinnati.

When I was young, our neighbors, the Sea’s, lived across the street from us in Cincinnati. They were great neighbors. To this day, whenever I smell cocoa butter, I think of Mrs. Sea. Mrs. Sea always lathered on cocoa butter to get the perfect summer tan. Mrs. Sea also had a gentle, southern Kentucky accent that went beautifully with her tan. She was from Louisville. This might comes as a shock, but, she grew up with Derby parties. I believe it doesn’t matter where you are currently living…. if you grew up in Louisville, …..you are obligated to have a Derby party. And the Sea’s didn’t disappoint their fellow Kentuckians.

I remember one day at the end of April, the Sea’s had bales of hay stacked on their driveway. It was an abundance of hay. When they opened their garage there was more hay inside. They had turned their garage into Churchill Downs! They even had booths to place your bets. I was young, so I wasn’t sure what a Derby party was all about. But, I knew it was going to be spectacular. Thankfully, my parents were invited to the party.

We must have asked our parents a lot of questions about the party and horse racing. So one summer day, our parents took us to the Keenland Race Track in Lexington. We were going to go see what Thoroughbred horse racing and horse betting was all about. I’m sure my parents thought it was going to be fun AND educational. Basically, a two-fer. My Dad gave us kids each money for the day to bet with. He taught us about betting odds. Ah,…math. He had us figure out how much money we wanted to bet on a horse or horses. Ah,….finances. My Dad would place the bet for us. Ah,….legalities. Unfortunately, I was too young to really understand odds. My system was to bet on the horse who’s name spoke to me. If I liked the color of the Jockey’s silks, that too, could come into play. Ah,….the unproven theory. I still use this betting system. A week out from the Derby I pick my winning horse based solely on it’s name. Never on it’s odds of winning.

This past weekend I watched the Arkansas Derby instead of the Kentucky Derby. Yes, the horses were Thoroughbreds . However, they weren’t Kentucky Derby Thoroughbreds. I hardly paid attention to the Arkansas Thoroughbreds. Instead, I caught myself thinking about all the Kentucky Derby parties my parents had throughout the years. Yes, they eventually took over the…reigns….of hosting Derby parties. My parents didn’t have bales of hay, but, they had plenty of mint juleps and Kentucky bourbon. I, also, thought about my horse picking system and how I taught it to Ron. He would pick a horse whose name spoke to him. And a horse with good odds. He suspected my betting system was flawed. This was based on the fact the last time my horse won was in 1978. But, it was a Triple Crown Winner! My mind eventually wondered to this September. The Kentucky Derby will be on the 5th. That Saturday I’ll watch my second favorite horses, the Kentucky Derby Thoroughbreds. Afterwards, I’m sure I’ll take a ride in my 1950’s Woody Wagon with the surfboard on top. I’ll head out to see my two Clydesdale horses. I’ll tell them how the Kentucky Derby Thoroughbred I picked …based on the name that spoke to me….won the Kentucky Derby.