California Chrome will make his Triple Crown bid when he breaks from post position two in Saturday’s Belmont Stakes (G1) at Belmont Park. Over 100,000 race fans are expected to pack the stands at the Elmont, NY racetrack to see history be made or dreams dashed. For those race fans that can’t make it to the New York track, two tracks in Kentucky are holding special Belmont Stakes events on Saturday—Keeneland Race Course in Lexington and Churchill Downs in Louisville.
In addition to 10 live races that include the featured Early Times Mint Julep (G3), Churchill Downs will air the stakes-filled Belmont card on its 15,224 square-foot Big Board. Guest track announcer Bill Downes, who calls the races at Indiana Downs, will call Churchill’s live races while regular announcer Larry Collmus is in New York to call the Belmont Stakes for NBC’s live coverage.
Churchill Downs will have special Belmont Stakes and Triple Crown themed drinks available: the Belmont Jewel, the official drink of the Belmont Stakes, combines Woodford Reserve bourbon with lemonade and pomegranate juice and is served in a collectible Belmont Stakes glass; the Chrome in the Big Apple mixes Grey Goose Citron vodka, raspberry liqueur and sparkling apple juice; orange lovers will like the Triple Crown Cocktail, a blend of Grey Goose vodka, orange liqueur and blood orange juice. For a little food with your adult beverage, $3.00 Triple Crown hotdogs will be available throughout the track.
And if all that isn’t enough to get you out to Churchill Downs on Saturday, the first 1,000 fans will receive a free California Chrome t-shirt. Pick up your voucher when you enter the gates and redeem it at the time and place listed on the voucher. Gates open at 11:30 a.m. and general admission is $3.
