The Kentucky Derby is marketed as a glamorous event, but those who have been there know otherwise – it’s really just a rip-rollicking, drunkified good time. And the “most exciting two minutes in sports,” as a recent documentary would have us know, would not be so without years of dirt, sweat, and hard work. Now, the Kentucky Derby is associated with a different kind of dirty business, after the highly publicized death of one of......

Try to make it over to the Landmark if you have some free time today; today is your last chance to catch the Hennegan brothers’ new documentary about the Kentucky Derby. The First Saturday in May follows five horses on the path to the 2006 Kentucky Derby, the year _______ won.* Much like Spellbound did in 2002, the documentary serves to show the training and utter devotion that goes into preparing for the culminating moment......

Chicagoist isn't usually one to play the ponies, but then it's not every day that the horse racing world is focused on Chicago. On Saturday, Arlington Park will host the 25th Arlington Million, the largest annual stakes race in Illinois. Among the field is last year's winner, Tin Man, with 3-1 odds. The nine-year-old is looking to defend his title against this year's favorite, After Market. The favorite at 2-1 odds, After Market is trained......

Each year Chicagoist reaches into our deep war chest and pulls out a wrinkly Thomas Jefferson two dollar bill and head to MudBug Off Track Betting on Weed St. for the Kentucky Derby. We admit that we probably have no place in a betting parlor with such a minimal understanding of the sport. The page in the newspaper dedicated to horse racing is Greek to us. What the heck is a quiniela anyway, and what......

Chicagoist has been waiting for the right moment to write a primer on bourbon. With the Kentucky Derby nine days away, and with the recently reported news of Churchill Downs serving a one-thousand-dollar mint julep on Derby Day, we figured the time is nigh. Chicagoist loves bourbon. It brings to mind images of Tom Wolfe, Hunter S. Thompson, Colonel Harland Sanders, and the blue Fugates of Troublesome Creek. Spend an extended amount of time......