If horse racing is the sport of choice to get your juices flowing, then the 134th running of the famous Kentucky Derby is for you.
The only question is where can someone in Sedona go to participate in the festivities without having to pay air fare to Louisville or drudge through hotel reservations or traffic.
Well, the answer is closer than you might think. Stakes & Sticks Sports Bar and Celebrity Grill will be taken over on Saturday, May 3, by horse racing fans galore looking to make a quick buck, get a huge rush or maybe just to take in all the excitement and sit down to have a nice lunch.
By Brian Bergner Jr.
Larson Newspapers
If horse racing is the sport of choice to get your juices flowing, then the 134th running of the famous Kentucky Derby is for you.
The only question is where can someone in Sedona go to participate in the festivities without having to pay air fare to Louisville or drudge through hotel reservations or traffic.
Well, the answer is closer than you might think. Stakes & Sticks Sports Bar and Celebrity Grill will be taken over on Saturday, May 3, by horse racing fans galore looking to make a quick buck, get a huge rush or maybe just to take in all the excitement and sit down to have a nice lunch.
The Kentucky Derby is, however, the most exciting two minutes in sports.
What may be even more enjoyable to those that want to make a quick buck is the off track betting Stakes & Sticks provides to its costumers.
“We are the premiere sports bar in Northern Arizona. Nobody has the ability to show 20 different events on 20 different high definition televisions. And with our off-track betting and live feeds, you can’t beat this place,” Stakes & Sticks manager “Brooklyn” Paulie Lo Duca said.
There will be a $10 cover charge to get into the sporting event which includes a drink held by a commemorative glass for those collectors out there.
Stakes & Sticks will serve the regular lunch menu and will open at 11 a.m. for all to enjoy.
“Having off track betting here at Stakes & Sticks is just another added amenity that we provide,” Lo Duca said.
Lo Duca said he has two passions in life, baseball and horse racing. It’s nothing more than a form of entertainment for him.
Many sporting venues, newspapers, columnists and horse racing fans always have their favorite picks for the Kentucky Derby on Saturday at Churchill Downs, and Lo Duca is no different.
“The three horses I like are Big Brown, Behind the Bar and Pyro,” Lo Duca said.
His picks are subject to change daily he said with a smile.
A little history
The Kentucky Derby has been running for 134 years and it all started when race horse Aristides ran a 2:37 3/4 time to win the first Derby back in 1875.
The “Sport of Kings” is considered one of the more grueling events in sports history and at times can become expensive but the pay off is well
worth it.
Once a winner is crowned at the Kentucky Derby, it would be the only horse that has a chance at the Triple Crown.
Winning the Triple Crown requires winning three of the biggest stakes races in the world, the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes in a five week period.
This feat is so rare that only 11 horses in history have been able to do it, the last being Affirmed in 1978.
2008 favorites
There are a few favorites that many people will be winning or losing money over on Saturday but this list may help the new Kentucky Derby
fan get through the day smiling, or maybe not.
Colonel John has been a star on the new-age synthetic dirt surfaces but now must navigate the dirt surface at Churchill Downs.
Big Brown is another favorite to win and if he runs anything like the eye opening 2008 debut at the Florida Derby on March 29 where he won by more than 12 lengths, he may be a good one.
Other favorites are Gayego with jockey Mike Smith and trainer Paulo Lobo, Tale of Ekati with jockey Edgar Prado and Pyro who has earned over $1 million in graded earnings with a 7-3-2-1 record.
Brian Bergner Jr. can be reached at
282-7795, Ext. 131, or e-mail to bbergner@larsonnewspapers.com
