When Is The Kentucky Derby 2014?

For those who live for Kentucky Derby Day, every second counts. The mint juleps, the garland of roses, the ostentatious hats, all of it is for naught if you have no idea when it actually begins. This year the Kentucky Derby falls on Saturday, May 3, 2014, and the race schedule is as follows:

●       Gates open early at 8 a.m. (ET) with post time for the first race at 10:30 a.m. (ET). Post time for the Kentucky Oaks is approximately 5:45 p.m. (ET). Post time for the Kentucky Derby is approximately 6:24 p.m. (ET).

Racing on Market Street in downtown Louisville reportedly began as early as 1783. The famed Churchill Downs was conceived when 26-year-old Col. M. Lewis Clark thought up the Louisville Jockey Club while traveling through England and France in 1872.

After much work, the track officially opened on May 17, 1875 with three major stakes races: the Kentucky Derby, Kentucky Oaks, and Clark Handicap, all of which have each been held continuously at Churchill since that first inaugural event.

Since then, the Kentucky Derby has evolved into a sports spectacle draped in high fashion and doused in tradition. While not everyone can get down to Kentucky to witness the event in person, there is no reason you can't bring this little piece of American sports history into your own home for everyone to enjoy.