With plump red roses lining the walkway, elegant ladies stepping alongside shielding gigantic hat boxes and a tarmac lined with PJs; there was little doubt that we were in Louisville and that this was Derby weekend – the 137th staging of the Kentucky Derby. SO was invited to join Energy & Mining Minister James Robertson and his wife Charlene; former American basketball player Avery Johnson – now current head coach of the New Jersey Nets and his wife Cassandra; talent scout Reed Bergman and Jonathan Goldsmith aka “The Most Interesting Man in the World”, and real estate tycoon Judah Hertz and his wife Astrid as guests of Jonathan and Tracy Blue. Jonathan (see My Kingston) is the Chairman and Managing Director of Blue Equity, which owns the Voice-Tribune. An abundance of roses would follow us for the entire weekend as well as hats that could pass muster at the recent Royal wedding, wonderful Southern hospitality and copious shots of Woodford Reserve Distiller’s Select barely disguised as Mint Juleps.

SO arrived at the Louisville Downtown Marriott hotel at the same time as the NBC crew and foodie Al Roker and Food Network celeb chef Guy Fieri. Our host Jonathan Blue wanted us all to experience the Derby first-hand in a way that most locals do, which meant “a lot of hometown flavour”. There wasn’t a disappointing ‘hometown’ moment, from the critically handpicked guests to the charming greeters at the hotel to the excitement of choosing the right hat. The hotel’s second floor with an impressive array of hats – Attitudes by Angie – provided us with more than enough eye candy and aha moments.

With dinner at Jack Fry’s at 8:00pm with our hosts and New Jersey Nets head coach Avery Johnson and his fab wife Cassandra, it was evident that this was going to be a super-busy long weekend. Jack Fry’s restaurant reminded us of Balthazar in New York. A packed, cosy restaurant where residents of Louisville Kentucky press flesh and eat well. Established in 1933 by Jack Fry and his wife Flossie, the restaurant now belongs to Stephanie J Meeks who has been with Jack Fry’s since 1996. The food was deliciously unpretentious: SO had bacon-wrapped Medjool dates stuffed with Chorizo sausage and Capriole Farm Goat Cheese with a smoky tomato sauce, the duck prepared over Bourbon and bacon-braised collard greens, roasted fingerling and finished with an orange gastrique and pan-seared foie gras. The pan-seared salmon served on sautéed spinach with a tomato, pearl onion and chive beurre blanc gave a whole new appreciation of clean cuisine.

We ended our evening at 21C Museum hotel with the ESPN crew.

Friday commenced with brunch at Nancy and Paul Burke’s well-appointed Waterleaf Way home. There was, too, a brief stop chez Tracy and Jonathan Blue and the opportunity to enjoy their impressive collection of Spanish art ahead of departing for Churchill Downs and the Kentucky Oaks.

The Kentucky Oaks is partnered with Susan G Komen for the Cure, the global leader of the breast cancer movement. In honour of the Kentucky Oaks official flower, the stargazer lily and the official colour of breast cancer awareness, guests at the Kentucky Oaks are encouraged to wear pink on this day. The Oaks, like Day 1 of New York Fashion Week, gave many the opportunity to test the waters and the staff to prepare for Saturday’s large crowd.

Welcome to the Turf Club For Oaks where non-stop eating, drinking and betting are the norm.

The Menu:

Hors D’oeuvres

Entrées

World Champion Bourbon Q Marinated Hickory

Grilled Beef Tenderloin Filet (grilled on site) and served with peppercorn sauce and Kentucky Henry Baines

Kentucky Hot Brown Chicken stuffed with Maplewood Bacon, Grilled tomato and Creamy Mornay Sauce

Caribbean Smoked Pork Tenderloin

Bowtie Pasta with Grilled Jumbo Shrimp with artichoke hearts, Baby Spinach and Sun-Dried tomatoes tossed in roasted garlic olive oil and imported Parmesan and Romano Cheeses.

SALAD

Spring Mix with Kentucky

Woodford Reserve Poached Pears

Bleu Cheese, Caramelised walnuts and fresh mint Julep Vinaigrette

VEGETABLES

Grilled Asparagus medley

Kentucky Corn Pudding

Whipped Chive Potatoes

Cheddar Cheese Garlic Weisenberger Grits

— LadyFingers Catering

DESSERT

Milk Chocolate and White Chocolate Fountains by Louisville

Chocolate Fountain

Espresso and Cappuccino by JAVA Brewing Company

The Barnstable Brown Party benefits the Barnstable Brown Kentucky Diabetes & Obesity Centre.

The Red Carpet of the Maxim Party was our final stop for the night, or perhaps that should be morning. Thankfully our departure for the Kentucky Derby was slated for 11:00 am.

Partying For A Cause

Friday night was ‘Black-Tie’ glam in Louisville Kentucky – with the Barnstable-Brown Party aptly dubbed “Dancing on Derby Eve”. Guests stepped onto the red carpet as their names were called and into the glare of flashing lights and screams. Fans kept at bay by members of the police force welcomed:

Aaron Rodgers, Super Bowl MVP, Green Bay Packers. Boyz II Men, Chris Redmon, Freddie Jackson, Guy Fieri, Kate Gosselin, Larry Birkhead, Lee Ann Womack, Mary Wilson of the Supremes, Nick Lachey and his fiancée Vanessa Minnillo, Supermodel Niki Taylor, Tom Brady and Wynonna Judd, to sprinkle a few names. There was non-stop dancing, performances by Mary Wilson and Freddie Jackson.

The Kentucky Derby

120 Seconds of Excitement.

The record crowd of 164,858 at Churchill Downs, the ‘red carpet steppers’ headed for the hottest seats – expensive box seats known as Millionaires Row, The Turf Club, Interior Premium boxes, Jockey Club Suites, Finish Line Suites and anywhere else on the fourth, fifth or sixth floors. Hats and celebrities were everywhere. Hark back to the Mound at Sabina Park and you’ll get the gist of the Infield – Kentucky Derby party central where patrons are dressed just as fab as those upstairs. It’s the footwear, however, that gives it away. No six-inch Manolos here or waiter service; think Old Navy flip-flops or sensible walking shoes, brown lunch bags, copious bottles of drink, non-stop jostling and loud cheers for their favourite celebs.

Time For The Big Race

SO saw big men cry when the beautiful horses stepped onto the track for the Kentucky Derby post parade and the band struck up

My Old Kentucky Home.

The sun shines bright in the old Kentucky home,

Tis summer, the people are gay;

The corn-top’s ripe and the meadow’s in the bloom

While the birds make music all the day.

The young folks roll on the little cabin floor

All merry, all happy and bright;

By’n by hard times come a-knocking at the door

Then my old Kentucky home,

Goodnight!

Weep no more my lady. Oh! Weep no more today!

We will sing one song for my old Kentucky home

For the old Kentucky home, far away.

Post-Race

Huge smiles from big winners like Avery Johnson and Reed Bergman

Hugs and kisses

Relief – organisers have another year to make it even better.

Champagne toasts

Time to slip off the Louboutins and replace them with Tory Burch (Tracy Blue thinks of everything)

And the winner is…

Animal Kingdom ridden by John Velazquez and trained by Graham Motion who beat race favourite Nehro by 23/4 lengths.

Roses & High Fives

Derby 2011 celebrations continued at Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse with non-stop clinking of glasses, the cracking of Alaskan King Crab legs, platters of sushi, bone-in filet, and comforting Mac & Cheese. Several toasts were raised to our gracious hosts Tracy and Jonathan Blue – for between tooling around in a Maserati, let’s not forget the police escort, entry to the hottest events and witnessing the Kentucky Derby from the Queen’s Balcony. What to do for an encore is anybody’s guess.