Kentucky Derby Virtual Race - May 2 - "Triple Crown Showdown"

I just learned some exciting news and am sad that I could not pass it along sooner!  As you know, the annual Kentucky Derby, which is generally held the first Saturday in May, has been postponed till September 5.  With all of us being out of school, we did not get to hold our annual early childhood Kentucky Derby, which has been a long standing tradition at our school.  Saturday, May 2, Churchill Downs is holding a virtual Kentucky Derby with all 13 previous Triple Crown winners as the contestants.  The virtual race is a fund raiser for COVID-19 Relief and will be a featured part of a Kentucky Derby program on Saturday afternoon from 2-5 (Central Time) on NBC.  Below is part of the story from the Kentucky Derby web site:

LOUISVILLE, KY (Thursday, April 23, 2020) – Churchill Downs announced today plans to celebrate the first Saturday in May, the traditional date of the annual Kentucky Derby, by hosting a day-long at-home Kentucky Derby party to raise $2 million for COVID-19 emergency relief efforts. Though the 146th Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve was postponed until Sept. 5 this year due to public health concerns related to the spread of COVID-19, Churchill Downs invites fans to honor the annual tradition while staying “Healthy at Home.”

Fans can tune in to a special broadcast on NBC on May 2, from 3 to 6 p.m. EDT, which will feature the 2015 Kentucky Derby that began the legendary American Pharoah’s historic Triple Crown run (full NBC Sports show details to be announced next week). In addition, the NBC broadcast will highlight Churchill Downs’ first ever virtual horse race—The Kentucky Derby: Triple Crown Showdown, a computer-simulated version of a race under the historic Twin Spires of Churchill Downs. The virtual race, created by Inspired Entertainment, will feature the 13 past Triple Crown winners and use data algorithms including historical handicapping information about each horse, which helps to determine the probability of their potential finishing positions.

Click here for the entire story.

How fun that we can still celebrate the Kentucky Derby in some way.  This has always been one of my favorite events at school each year and I'm sorry we had to miss it.  It was fun learning about the event, wearing fancy hats, racing on stick horses, watching the races with homemade binoculars, singing "My Old Kentucky Home", and drinking lemonade mint juleps.  I hope you can tune in to the race on NBC this Saturday afternoon.  I might even wear my Kentucky Derby hat while I watch the race!

A poster from a preschool class after last year's Kentucky Derby.

Mrs. Gray's class participated in last year's Run for the Roses.

Post positions have been drawn for the 13 past triple crown winners who will run in the virtual race May 2 and are listed below.  Who's your favorite?