3 Kentucky Derby Winners that made me fall in love with Horse Racing

For many casual sports fans, horse racing is a once-a-year watch. Folks will tune into the Kentucky Derby, make a wager and maybe even attend a Derby party. Once one of the three most popular sports in America, horse racing rarely gets the brightest spotlight. It’s an acquired taste.

As a kid who grew up just a few miles from Churchill Downs, even I did not understand the allure of horse racing. All of the races my Dad watched on TVG looked the same. Sure, it was fun to get a chance to pet one of the ponies ridden by an outrider, but outside of that, it didn’t make a whole lot of sense. Over the years, it’s become one of my favorite passions, thanks to three Kentucky Derby winners.

1997: Silver Charm

The Kentucky Derby was always a major event at the Roush house. Family friends made the annual pilgrimage, temporarily turning our playroom in the basement into a guest room. Even though we were too young to attend, in the lead up to the Derby we always got to show up to school late one day to enjoy a couple donuts and watch the horses gallop at Dawn at the Downs.

The 1997 Kentucky Derby was the first I can remember, thanks to a beautiful gray horse, Silver Charm. He won in dramatic fashion by a neck at the finish line, but I was just as enamored by his trainer, a young upstart whose hair matched his horse’s. In addition to the crazy silver hair, Bob Baffert also wore blue and purple tinted sunglasses, which this 6-year-old thought was really cool.

Even though he just missed out on the Triple Crown, Silver Charm was immediately my favorite horse. The oldest of four siblings, while the others stayed at home, I got some alone time with my Dad, riding my bicycle next to him while he jogged a mile or two around the neighborhood. Each jog ended with a race “down the homestretch” into our cul de sac. My father provided intense play-by-play throughout this sprint and I got to be Silver Charm. Of course, Silver Charm always won.

2012: I’ll Have Another

The Kentucky Derby was a big deal, albeit one I always watched from afar with my Nana as my parents took in the action beneath the Twin Spires. Finally, I got my first real Kentucky Derby experience in college.

The Roush outpost consisted of two benches in the paddock. Parents and friends packed food and snuck in booze and we had ourselves a day. Finally, I got the full Kentucky Derby experience.

It reached a crescendo just before the big race. Shortly after Steve Buttleman made the Call to the Post, the horses paraded to the track. “Let’s go Mario!” I shouted with my next door neighbor. Jockey Mario Guittierez waved at us. Our only regret was not going to the ticket window and doubling our bet. I’ll Have Another raced to first and my $5 WPS bet paid almost a hundred dollars. Hook. Line. Sinker.

2015: American Pharoah

Three years later I was all-in on horse racing. I could finally understand everything in the program and see how horses made their winning moves in races. I was not alone among my passionate friends.

Prior to Derby dozens and dozens of former delinquents gather at a house about a mile from the track to prepare for the weekend. Debauchery is never too hard to find. This year was the first time I had to somewhat keep it together, accompanied by a relatively new girlfriend who had just seen me at my worst following the Final Four loss to Wisconsin.

I could’ve easily blown it by overdoing the brown water. Instead, we had the time of our lives as American Pharoah triumphed in dramatic fashion. He was a bonafide superstar. As he won, so did I. Two years later we bought a house near the track, the following year we were married. Now every year we make that one mile walk to the track for the Kentucky Derby. What was once my “parents’ thing” is now ours, largely thanks to a horse of a lifetime.

Horse Racing is Much More than a Race

There are many different reasons why someone spends an afternoon at the racetrack. Many make the trek to Keeneland for the party on the hill. Others use it to scratch that gambling itch. Those are not the reasons that keep people going back to the Kentucky Derby year after year after year. There is an indescribable emotional bond that horse racing fans share with the horses, and in turn, the loved ones they experience those moments with at the racetrack. You may not have yet created that bond with the sport, but stick around long enough and you will fall in love with the Fastest Two Minutes in Sports.