LEXINGTON, KY (March 30, 2010) – Keeneland opens its spring meeting on Friday, April 2, and will present 15 days of world-class Thoroughbred racing featuring some of the nation’s richest purses, leading trainers and jockeys, and an exciting schedule of special events.
Highlighting Keeneland’s 2010 spring season is the 86th running of the Toyota Blue Grass (G1) on Saturday, April 10. NBC will present live coverage of the $750,000 race, one of the most prestigious races leading to the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1), on its new “Road to the Kentucky Derby” series hosted by Lexington native Tom Hammond.
Major racing
The Toyota Blue Grass, first run in 1911 at the old Kentucky Association track near downtown Lexington, is a 1 1/8-mile race for three-year-olds that has been the springboard for 23 Kentucky Derby-winning horses.
The Toyota Blue Grass also is the richest race of the year at Keeneland, which will offer $3.65 million in purses for 16 stakes races during the spring.
Post time for the first race each day is 1:05 p.m. (ET). Keeneland will be closed on Mondays and Tuesdays and on Easter Sunday, April 4.
The first half of the Keeneland meeting includes three other Grade 1 stakes in addition to the Toyota Blue Grass:
* The $400,000 Central Bank Ashland for 3-year-old fillies at 1 1/16 miles on April 3; * The $300,000 Vinery Madison for fillies and mares, 4-year-olds and up, at seven furlongs on April 8; * And the $300,000 Maker’s Mark Mile for 4-year-olds and up at one mile on turf on April 9.
The Central Bank Ashland, the filly counterpart to the Toyota Blue Grass, is being sponsored by Central Bank for the first year. The race is a major steppingstone to the Kentucky Oaks (G1), run at Churchill Downs the day before the Kentucky Derby.
Three-year-olds with Triple Crown aspirations also will compete in the Coolmore Lexington (G2) on April 17. The 1 1/16-mile race is worth $300,000.
The Coolmore Lexington often falls in the midst of perfect spring weather, attracting enthusiastic crowds to Keeneland. Last year 33,680 fans, the second-largest single-day attendance in track history, enjoyed Coolmore Day.
National television coverage
NBC’s new “Road to the Kentucky Derby” will provide live coverage of the Toyota Blue Grass and five other Derby prep races that will help determine the horses that will race in the Derby. The series will give viewers a sense of the spectacle surrounding a day at the races, including snapshots of the fashion, food, famous faces and racing’s real “characters” – the fans – to draw viewers into the social scene that makes racetracks the ultimate source for entertainment.
The April 10 show with the Toyota Blue Grass will air from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. and include the Arkansas Derby (G1) from Oaklawn Park.
Meanwhile, TVG will feature Keeneland racing each day beginning at 11 a.m. TVG also will broadcast the post position draw for the Toyota Blue Grass on April 7 from 11:30 a.m. to noon, and the Coolmore Lexington on April 17 from 4:30 p.m. to5:30 p.m.
As always, fans can watch Keeneland’s races live on the track’s website, Keeneland.com, at no charge.
Wagering opportunities
This spring, horseplayers will continue to find plenty of action at Keeneland. New is a 50-cent Pick Three wager in which a player must select the winner of three consecutive races. Other budget-conscious wagers include a 50-cent Pick Four and Trifecta wager as well as a 10-cent Superfecta.
The Keeneland Handicapping Contest will be offered each Wednesday of the season. Entrants will receive a free Daily Racing Form and will play for a guaranteed $2,500 pool.
On April 9, the track will offer the Maker’s Mark Mile-Toyota Blue Grass Double, requiring players to pick the winners of both Grade 1 races, and a Friday Pick 4, presented by TVG, with a guaranteed $200,000 pool.
On April 10, Keeneland will offer a $300,000-guaranteed All-Stakes Pick 4, presented by TVG. The wager covers the Toyota Blue Grass, Commonwealth (G2), Jenny Wiley (G2) and Shakertown (G3).
Keeneland, a leader in employing innovative technology to enhance the fan experience, offers Trakus race video and a PolyCapping database at Keeneland.com. Through Trakus, race replays are shown in various animated formats using a patented, real-time technology.
PolyCapping provides handicappers with detailed information on every horse that has won a race at Keeneland since October 2006.
Special events
Highlighting the special events scheduled by Keeneland this spring are:
* College Scholarship Day, which draws thousands of students from colleges and universities in Kentucky and in neighboring states, on Friday, April 2. Admission is free for full-time students, who can register in the College Zone in the North Terrace to win one of ten $1,000 scholarships and other grand prizes awarded after each race. The first 1,000 students to register will receive a free T-shirt courtesy of Hands On Originals.
* Breakfast With the Works, featuring Southern-style breakfast and children’s activities, at 7 a.m. on Saturdays during the racing season. The program includes trackside commentary on Thoroughbreds as they train and equine-related demonstrations by members of the horse industry. Breakfast, which is served in the trackside Equestrian Room, is $7.50; kids age three and under eat free.
* Lexington Cancer Foundation’s third annual Hats & Handbags for Life at 5 p.m. on Thursday, April 8, at the Keeneland Entertainment Center. Keeneland is a partner in the event, which includes a silent auction of new and gently worn hats and handbags from national and local designers. The auction will benefit the Horses and Hope initiative of Kentucky First Lady Jane Beshear to provide breast cancer screening services to underinsured members of the horse industry. Tickets are available at LexingtonFoundation.org.
* Maker’s Mark bottle signing with University of Kentucky men’s basketball coach John Calipari on Friday, April 9. Coach Calipari will sign a limited number of commemorative Maker’s Mark bottles to benefit the University of Kentucky School of Music’s outreach program in Kentucky. Visit Keeneland.com for the latest details.
* Jockey autograph signing and Riders Up! karaoke-style competition to benefit the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund on Friday, April 16. From 11 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. adjacent to the paddock, current Keeneland jockeys and retired riding legends will sign $10 commemorative posters. That evening, jockeys will participate in Riders Up! at the Keeneland Entertainment Center. The casual event includes a buffet and cash bar. Tickets are $50 and available at pdjf.org.
* Military Day at the Races, presented by Windstream, on Sunday, April 18. All active and inactive members of the military and their families will receive free general admission with a military ID at any pass gate. Fans are encouraged to be at the track early to help welcome 1,000 troops from Fort Knox. Throughout the afternoon, soldiers will have access to a phone bank, courtesy of Windstream, to call their loved ones.
Keeneland Spring Meeting At a Glance
Post time: 1:05 p.m. (ET) Gates open at 11 a.m. No racing on Mondays, Tuesdays and Easter Sunday, April 4.
Admission: $5. Children 12 and under free. ($50 annual pass for spring and fall seasons on sale.)
Parking: Free (shuttles available from many lots); Preferred Parking ($5 on Wednesdays and Thursdays, $10 on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays).
Tailgating: Available at the Gatehouse lot, which has a separate entrance off Versailles Road before Gate 2. Additional amenities each Friday and Saturday, weather permitting, include a wagering tent with flat-panel televisions and upscale restroom trailers.
Simulcast: Major Thoroughbred tracks in the United States and selected international tracks.
