Horse racing

Down Under horse racing season gets into full swing at the upcoming Melbourne Cup. The Melbourne Cup Carnival 2009 runs from October 31 – November 7 in Victoria, Australia. The event takes over the city as as Melbournians and visitors get in on the festivities attending parties, watching the races, putting on big race day hats and sipping Chambord Kir Royales. The events includes the AAMI Victoria Derby Day, Emirates Melbourne Cup Day, Crown Oaks Day and Emirates Stakes Day. Various ticket packages are available for individual events or several race days.

Springboard Vacations is offering a Melbourne Deluxe: Food, Wine & Spa package that starts at $1,046 per person based on double occupancy which includes three nights at the Crown Towers, a tour of the city sights, dinner onboard the Colonial Tramcar Restaurant and two 30-minute massage treatments at the Crown Spa.

Since it was founded by Queen Anne in 1711, the annual Royal Ascot races have become the highlight of the English social season. Ostensibly a five-day sporting event, it's also evolved into something of an immense fashion show, marked by the arrival of the Royal Family in ceremonial horse-drawn carriages every day. It has become the style for ladies to sport increasingly outrageous hats, and lately the traditional rules about "formal day dress" in the coveted Royal Enclosure have been rather loosely interpreted, much to the Queen's dismay.

This year officials have cracked down, declaring that "Off the shoulder, halter neck, spaghetti straps and dresses with a strap of less than one inch and/or miniskirts are considered unsuitable," while "Midriffs must be covered and trouser suits must be full length and of matching material and color." Those not in compliance will be asked to leave the Royal Enclosure. Gentlemen have always been required to wear full morning dress with top hats. Lest all the pageantry detract from the business at hand, it's worth noting that prize money at this year's event, which runs through Saturday, has reached an unprecedented $7.8 million.

I know, we are not even through with Christmas yet, so the Kentucky Derby and the month of May seems like a whole world away but Churchill Downs recently announced a limited number of 2007 Kentucky Derby experience packages. There are 22 packages which cost from $4,000 to $25,000. There are three experience levels: Win, Place and Show. The "Win" package is the priciest and includes two tickets to a table on Millionaires' Row for the Derby and Oaks, hotel accommodations, limo service, tickets to the Barnstable Brown Party, tickets to the Kentucky Derby Winners' Party, tickets to the press party and a tour of the stable area during workouts on Kentucky Oaks morning. There are only 4 win packages available at $25,000 each. The Place package which includes two tickets to a third-floor clubhouse box for Derby and Oaks, hotel accommodation tickets to the Kentucky Derby Winners' Party and two tickets to the press party sells for $15,000 and there are six packages available. The Show package includes two tickets to a first-floor clubhouse box for the Derby and Oaks, tickets to the Derby post position draw and tickets to the Press Party. There are 12 packages which sell for $4,000 each.

The Kentucky Derby Gold Cup is the only solid gold trophy still awarded in American sports and has been an annual tradition since the running of the 1924 Derby, when the standard design of the cup was first commissioned.

The Gold Cup is made of 14-karat gold, with an 18-karat gold horseshoe adorning the side and a 14-karat gold horse and jockey topping it. The total weight of the 22-inch high cup is almost 60-ounces, not including the heavy jade base on which it rests. With the exception of the horse and rider that top it, which were cast using a lost wax process, this year's trophy was entirely handmade by New England Sterling of Attleboro, Massachusetts. New England Sterling has been producing the trophies since 1975, maintaining the high standard of quality that has been required for the more than 80 years of the presentation of the trophy. The trophies always remain blank until after the race has been run, when they are engraved with details such as the date and the name of the winning horse.

The current value of the 2004 trophy is listed at $90,000, though the significance of the one-of-a kind trophy makes it priceless.

 

How much does it cost to buy a horse who can "run for the roses" in the Kentucky Derby? The short answer is quite a bit because the training and board, along with travel, vet, equipment and entry fees can be extremely expensive, especially if you want to put your horse with a top trainer. All that aside, there is still the initial cost of the horse.

There are three types of horses running, those sold privately, those sold at auction and homebreds, raised and raced by the same owners. Both private sales and home-raised horses can be difficult to assign a value to, but the results of auctions are made public, which can give us a general idea of what it takes to race.

Sleek, stylish and incredibly appropriate for the start of the Triple Crown racing season, which kicks off next weekend with the 132nd annual Kentucky Derby, the Luella Boston Satchel might be the perfect bag to take to the races. Actually, its textured navy leather would be difficult to match to the appropriate hat if you are actually going to be at the Derby, so perhaps the bag is best used for everyday wear. It is quite roomy at  9 x 14 x 7-inches and has a suede lining with two interior pockets. The thoroughbred design on the front of the bag is applique and all the detailing is done in gold. Price: $975.