(The following post ran on the eve of the 136th Kentucky Derby and has been remixed for this year’s Derby)
The Twin Spires are abuzz as the 137th Kentucky Derby will be run at 6:24 p.m. EDT tomorrow. Of course, you’ve probably heard of the Derby before, so no need to explain anything about its significance or history…partially because I don’t care about any of that.
Instead, there are three things you really need to know about in order to adequately partake in Derby entertainment: 1) betting the horses, 2) drinking Mint Juleps, and 3) wearing an outlandish hat. Lucky for you, The Victory Formation has a guide to all three necessities.
1) Betting the Horses:
I’m not pretending to be BigD (the TVF gambling guru). The advantage I have over BigD is that he knows way more about betting and gambling than me…an advantage because I can explain it in layman’s terms. You see, some “perceived genius” is picking numbers out of the air to set the odds on the horses. These change throughout the week to reflect the patterns of the betters. Because of this, I would argue that this “perceived genius” is actually some dude in his mom’s basement breathing through his mouth. Either way, there are odds on each horse at the time you would place your bet(s).
Now, how do you interpret your potential winnings? Easy. The odds are often in the format of “X/Y.” If your horse wins, you’re obviously going to win your money back along with some additional winnings. Those additional winnings are determined by that specific “X/Y”. For example, let’s say you wanted to bet $2.00 (the minimum bet) on a horse with 3/5 odds. Here’s the formula for determining the money in your hands if your horse wins:
B = Initial (Minimum) Bet = $2.00
X = 3
Y = 5
W = Winnings
W = B + (B*X/Y)
W = $2.00 + ($2.00*3/5) = $3.20
Let’s see what this morning’s odds were for the 20 19 horses in tomorrow’s Derby and what the payout would be for a $2.00 bet:
There you have it. If you want to bet on a single horse to win, take the amount of money you want to throw away bet and apply it to the formula above to get your winnings, provided your steed wins of course.
Some other betting terminology you may need to know:
WIN: If your horse wins, so do you!
PLACE: If your horse wins or comes second, you win, but keep in mind the payout may be lower because the payout is split two ways.
SHOW: If your horse comes in first, second, or third, you win. A show payout is split three ways, and therefore your winnings will be may be even lower.
EXACTA: If your choice for the winner and the runner-up finish exactly in that order – first and second – then you win.
TRIFECTA: Predict the correct order of finish for the top three horses. If your choices finish first, second, and third in that exact order, you win.
SUPERFECTA: A Superfecta bet requires that you predict the correct order of finish for the top four horses…like the Trifecta with an added 4th place prediction.
DAILY DOUBLE: Select the first place finishers of two consecutive races. If you bet a “3-9” daily double, No. 3 must win the first race and No. 9 must win the second race.
PICK THREE: You win by selecting the winners of three consecutive races. You can select more than one horse in each race, but the cost of your wager will increase proportionally.
2) Drinking Mint Juleps:
Easy…make it, pour it into your mouth, and swallow. Oh, and enjoy too. Here’s the recipe:
Ingredients:
3 oz. burbon
3-4 sprigs of mint (six to eight mature-sized leaves)
1.5 teaspoons brown sugar (regular granulated cane sugar works too)
0.5 cup crushed ice
Procedure:
In a traditional julep cup or double old fashioned glass, muddle* two sprigs** of mint with the brown sugar and one ounce of bourbon for a few minutes, crushing the mint leaves with a muddler. Add the crushed ice, the remaining bourbon, and garnish with sprig** of mint.
*For those of us that are a little too scientific in our measurements and procedures when in the kitchen, muddle is a term used to describe crushing/grinding ingredients together against the bottom of a glass with a muddler (often a wooden tool shaped like a really short and stubby baseball bat, i.e. a pestle). Basically, place the two sprigs** of mint and 1.5 tsp of brown sugar in the bottom of your glass of choice and add some bourbon before grinding it all together a little bit with the muddler.
**A sprig of mint is usually described as a stem with at least three mint leaves growing on it.
3) Wearing an Outlandish Hat:
The hat tradition is an odd one…I get the betting and drinking, just not really the large, goofy hats. So, the best I can give you is a style of hat and what kind of look you may be aiming for while wearing it.
Here’s the “I’m old, rich, crazy, and don’t give a crap what’s on my head.”
Here’s the “I’m younger, rich, crazy, and don’t give a crap what’s on my head.”
Here’s the “I’ve had too many Mint Juleps to know what’s on my head.”
Here’s the “I’m hot, and we both know it.”
For emphasis, again here’s the “I’m hot, and we both know it.”
Hopefully, that fulfills all you need to know about the Derby. The nicest thing about the Derby is you can check in at approximately 6:15 tomorrow night and catch all the pre-race you will need in about 9 minutes, watch the race in about 2 minutes, and be moving on with your business by 6:30.
If only baseball could be so time efficient…
Original Story:
