Dapper Derby Event Update 2

Another weekend of Louisville festivities is underway! The Kentucky Derby is a mixed celebration of Kentucky pride and wide-world achievement in a master-class sport. For 34 years, The Kentucky Derby has started with a bang as Thunder Over Louisville ignites the countdown to the first Saturday in May. According to the history page at thunderoverlouisville.org, Thunder Over Louisville "is the nation's largest annual fireworks event. It also is one of the top five air shows in the country."-thunderoverlouisville.org. Thunder occurs on Saturday, April 23, at the Waterfront Park.

Although the air show starts at 3:00 pm, there's going to be entertainment on the ground starting at "11:00 pm on the Big 4 Lawn! Even earlier at the North Great Lawn: 9:00 am, Chow Wagon: 11 am, Meijer Family Fun Zone: 11:00 am. Each location offers FREE admission with a 2022 Pegasus Pin, a Beer Garden, Thunder Sound, and Food Vendors. More than 115 vendors will be available at the Chow Wagon, Great Lawn, Big 4 Lawn, West Belvedere, and along Witherspoon St."-thunderoverlouisville.org.

Returning for its 16th festival is Kroger's Fest-a-Ville on the Waterfront! This 8-day event is a celebration that leads right into the races! "Sponsored by Kroger, the party starts on the Great Lawn and runs through Derby Eve. It promises to have something for everyone- and admission is free with a 2022 Pegasus Pin (click here for locations to buy a Pegasus Pin). 

The 900,000- square-foot venue will host several Festival events, including the Great Balloon Glow, Chow Wagon, Ohio Valley Wrestling Run for the Ropes, HappyTail Hour, Ken-Ducky Derby, Neigh-Maste on the Waterfront, and more. 

Fest-a-Ville also offers a wide variety of activities for children, featuring a midway area and attractions at Pegasus Play-Ville, including a merry-go-round, ships ahoy, a giant slide, and much more. Helicopter rides return this year for $40."-Fest-a-Ville. Fest-a-Ville begins April 28 at 11:00 am and goes on till 11:00 pm. This schedule is the same for each day except for Sunday. Sunday hours are from Noon to 10:00 pm. THE FESTIVAL WILL BE CLOSED ON MAY 2.

Another visual event to attend is the Great Balloon Race! The Great Balloon Race started in 1973 with only 7 balloons flying off at Bowman Field. "The Great Balloon Race is a Hare & Hound Race. This type of race is when all the balloons launch from the same site (Bowman Field). One balloon takes off first and is the Hare balloon. The other balloons are called the Hounds, and they will launch at a predetermined time after the Hare (usually 5 to 10 minutes after).

The Hare lands at a suitable site and lays out a large fabric X, usually about 50 feet in diameter. The Hound balloons attempt to drop their markers as close to the center of the X as possible. The closest marker achieves the highest score."- https://discover.kdf.org/great-balloon-race/. The race occurs at the Bowman Airfield on Saturday, April 30, and the launch is at 7:00 am.

There's so much to do in Louisville right now it would be impossible to try and cover all the upcoming festivities. The three mentioned above are long-standing, notable events that are most likely to continue for a long time coming. Check them out and stay tuned for more fun things to do leading up to the Derby.

CITATIONS

Google. (n.d.). Great balloon Race Kentucky. Google search. Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://www.google.com/search?q=Great%2BBalloon%2Brace%2Bkentucky&tbm=isch&ved=2ahUKEwj7tdHE9KX3AhULU80KHfoaDuAQ2-cCegQIABAA&oq=Great%2BBalloon%2Brace%2Bkentucky&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQAzoECAAQQzoFCAAQgAQ6BggAEAcQHjoGCAAQCBAeOgQIABAeOgYIABAFEB5Q1QdYvBFg2xRoAHAAeACAAX-IAZgIkgEDNS41mAEAoAEBqgELZ3dzLXdpei1pbWfAAQE&sclient=img&ei=MrNhYvvUGoumtQb6tbiADg&bih=915&biw=958&rlz=1C1GEWG_enUS987US987#imgrc=eeh5DG644EKPHM

Graham, C. (2021, July 16). 5 steps to the Perfect Mint Julep. The Spruce Eats. Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://www.thespruceeats.com/classic-mint-julep-recipe-759323

Hartbeck, J. (2021). Perfect Mint Julep. Pinterest. photograph, Pinterest. Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://www.thespruceeats.com/classic-mint-julep-recipe-759323

Kentucky Balloon Race. (n.d.). Pinterest. photograph, Louisville. Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://www.pinterest.com/pin/216946907020288526/

Kentucky derby festival. KDF Discover. (2022, April 20). Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://discover.kdf.org/krogers-fest-a-ville/  

Kentucky derby festival. KDF Discover. (2022, March 7). Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://discover.kdf.org/great-balloon-race/

Kentucky derby festival. Pegasus Pins. (2022, March 11). Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://pegasuspins.com/purchase-your-pin/

Kentucky derby festival. Thunder Over Louisville. (2022, April 20). Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://thunderoverlouisville.org/thunder-day-information/

Kentucky derby festival. Thunder Over Louisville. (2022, February 12). Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://thunderoverlouisville.org/history-of-thunder/

Kentucky derby festival. Thunder Over Louisville. (2022, February 12). Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://thunderoverlouisville.org/thunder-on-the-ground-2/?&utm_source=internal&utm_medium=desktop&utm_content=main_menu&utm_campaign=launch_click_trends

Kentucky derby festival. Kentucky Derby Festival. (2022, April 1). Retrieved April 15, 2022, from https://kdf.org/

Kentucky derby festival. Kentucky Derby Festival. (2022, April 1). Retrieved April 15, 2022, from https://kdf.org/

Kroger's fest-A-ville on the waterfront – waterfront park kroger's fest-A-ville on the Waterfrontwaterfront Park. Waterfront Park – The waterfront for everyone. (2022, March 30). Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://ourwaterfront.org/event/krogers-fest-a-ville-on-the-waterfront-4-28/

Kroger's fest-a-ville. Facebook. (n.d.). Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://www.facebook.com/events/2101204606637336/2101204633304000/   

Reed, G. (2022, April 18). 7 things you can't bring to thunder over Louisville 2022 at Waterfront Park. Journal. Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://www.courier-journal.com/story/entertainment/events/kentucky-derby/festival/2022/04/18/thunder-over-louisville-2022-guide-what-you-can-cant-bring-waterfront-park/9457250002/  

Thunder over Louisville – Waterfront Park Thunder over Louisvillewaterfront Park. Waterfront Park – The waterfront for everyone. (2022, March 30). Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://ourwaterfront.org/event/thunder-over-louisville/

Thunder over Louisville. GoToLouisville.com Official Travel Source. (n.d.). Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://www.gotolouisville.com/events-calendar/annual-events/thunder-over-louisville/

Waterfront Park. (n.d.). Google. photograph, Louisville. Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Flouisvilledowntown.org%2Fevent%2Fkroger%25C2%2592s-fest-a-ville-on-the-waterfront-8%2F&psig=AOvVaw2U6N7jWbgcf5f9nDO37-sh&ust=1650730317343000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAwQjRxqFwoTCPDkpOWHqPcCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD.

Waterfront Park. (n.d.). Our Water Front. photograph, Louisville. Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://ourwaterfront.org/venues/