Taking Our Chances at Churchill Downs

I never really understood horse racing.

Woo. You sit in a seat and watch tiny people on horses go in circles.

Granted, I’ve never been much of a gambler.

I just don’t get the big adrenaline rush. I guess my vice is cold, delicious, heavenly beer. Beer that the cocktail waitresses at Treasure Island in Vegas were avoiding giving to me as I sat lazily at the penny slot machines – eyeing other people’s drinks… but I guess that is another story for another time.

While I like to stick with what I know, I do like to try new adventures so Diana and I made our way into pearly white gates of Churchill Downs.

I thought we were going underdressed. Unless you go on a derby day, expect to see people in jeans and flip flops. I did have to give major props to a girl in a bright pink fascinator though. She was workin’ it.

We clumsily made it through the betting process (OH GOD THERE ARE SO MANY NUMBERS) and bet on four different horses. I personally like to go with the most absurd names. How can you avoid betting on horses with names like American Kitty, Caldo Cat, Toxis or Cheery?

And on our first race, the odds betrayed us and 1 of the 2 horses we didn’t bet on won.

Should we have brought lucky rabbits feet? Some lucky charm? The little Buddha we keep in our car for good luck? Did we do it wrong? We were a little concerned about how the rest of our day was going.

But you know what makes the day get better? When Diana contacted her Vegas odds maker friend to help us along.

*Cha-ching!*

We were taking our fate luck to the next level – and by luck, our smart gambling. Within the next few races… we started… winning.

You should have seen us jumping out of our seats and shouting at the horses while waving our hands frantically in the air. *JAZZ HANDS!!!!!!!*

“GO GO GO GO GOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”

Squeals of victory and little happy dances after the wins got giggles from the old ladies behind us. I’m sure Diana and I made quite the scene.

I may not be the most cultured girl in the world, but I can see how people got into this.

It. Was. Exhilarating.

We ended the day down a couple of bucks and called it a success. Granted, we were only wagering $2 here and there but for someone like me who is saving for the upcoming trip, it was a big deal!

So if you haven’t done it already, I highly suggest it. Sure, we were surrounded by blue hairs and WASPs (I certainly stood out), the absurdity of the whole situation makes it one of my favorite experiences on our #winosontheroad trip.

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This is part of the #WinosOnTheRoad trip series with Diana of D Travels ‘Round as we drive across country to start her new chapter in life.