LOUISVILLE, Ky. — As the dial draws closer to the 150th Run for the Roses, anticipation mounted at Churchill Downs' Opening Night Saturday, underneath the Twin Spires.
"It's easier to navigate. You get to explore, get to watch horse races. Hopefully not lose as much money as Derby," Lauren Protzer, an Opening Night attendee, said.
"Before, you know 200,000 people show up," Tim Corrigan, another attendee, said. "There's not another city that has this, the longest annual sporting event in world history."
And, pretty much anywhere you looked, crowds were dressed to the nines.
"People get dressed up kind of get you in this spirit for Derby," Courtney Protzer said, looking at her husband Tim. "I picked my outfit and (Tim) takes every color that he owns in the same wheelhouse and puts it on."
From the vets, to first-timers like PJ Pesenti from Winston-Salem, everyone was amped.
"You see all the people dressed up, obviously I'm not," Pesenti said.
Taking a trip down the Bourbon Trail, Pesenti and his friends stumbled upon Opening Night on a whim.
"Yes, on a whim," he said. "Our trip is all about Kentucky bourbon, it's something you always want to go and visit and see. So that's why we're here."
Opening Night also marks the debut of the new Paddock, which drew quite the crowd.
"It's amazing. I was amazed how big it is," Karen Bunnell, an attendee, said. "I didn't realize it was gonna' be this huge, but it's definitely impressive."
"And we literally turned the corner and kind of went 'Wow,'" Kelly Reynolds, Bunnell's friend, said. "But it really is more than the vision was what we saw on the news and the renderings and all that."
The 12,000 square foot space features several swanky clubhouses and an uninterrupted view of the awe-inspiring twin spires.
The multi-year redesign cost Churchill Downs some $200 million.
The spires now sit directly above where the horses will be saddled for the race. Though construction is finished, the never-ending task of touching up green and white paint still underway.
Step out near the track and you'll find thousands of enthused fans, some whom were looking to turn big bets into Opening Night payouts.
"Oh my goodness. It's awesome that festivities I mean, this is the kickoff night for Churchill Downs and we love it. We're here every year," Michelle Metzler, who's been attending Derby since she was a kid, said. "I think my earliest memories of Derby were probably family parties. But also the chow wagon back in the day."
"I think that it really does set Louisville as a milestone around the world," Reynolds said.
With the pageantry palpable, Louisville is set to mark its own major milestone, with the 150th Kentucky Derby just days away.
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