The Kentucky Derby happens once a year and I look forward to it every year.  They say it’s the most exciting 2 minutes in sports and they aren’t lying.

I have been going to horse races ever since I was a kid, my dad used to take me.  Now that I am older I don’t need my dad to take me but I kept the tradition going by taking my daughter this weekend to watch the Kentucky Derby at Oak Grove Racing, Gaming and Hotel.

Saturday evening I was on dad duty as my fiance had to work.  So, I loaded up my daughter (Harlynn) in the car and we headed to Oak Grove.  Now, my daughter is 2, so she wasn’t allowed on the gaming floor but I was allowed to take her to place some bets on the Kentucky Derby.  Once we entered the casino, Harlynn was waving and smiling at everyone like it was her job.

I bought a program to see which horses were in the race.  I picked a few horses and I let Harlynn pick one as well (hers didn’t win).  We got our tickets and went home to watch the race.  When it comes to betting on horses, there is no real rhyme or reason.  Yes, you can play the odds but as we saw Saturday night, the odds don’t matter.

Harlynn and I went left, got something to eat and went home. We ate, took a bath and got ready for the big race.  Harlynn was getting mad because I didn’t have Paw Patrol on the tv so I had to put it on the Ipad for her.  Once the race got underway she wasn’t watching Paw Patrol any longer, she was cheering with dad as we watched the race.  The horses I bet were in the top 3 the entire race until the stretch.  Epicenter and Zandon were the two horses leading the pack and it looked like one of them was going to win until the biggest long shot in the race came from behind and stole the show, Rich Strike.

I was screaming and jumping for joy in our house because I won, I bet $10 on Rich Strike to win.  I couldn’t believe it, I was calling everyone I knew to let them know what happened.  Harlynn was in her pajamas but I was so excited and wanted to cash my ticket, I loaded her up in the car and we cashed the winning ticket, $818.00.

As of Friday morning, Rich Strike wasn’t even supposed to be in the race.  Out of the 148 years the Kentucky Derby has been running, this was the second biggest long shot to ever win.  Also, the jockey was from Ohio, so him and I had a home state connection.

If you didn’t get a chance to watch it, here it is…