The Kentucky Derby Festival

A Derby Tradition

The Kentucky Derby festival in Louisville Kentucky got its start back in 1935 with a week long celebration that included: a parade, a riverfront regatta, and also an orchestral concert. The first director of this festival was Olympic gold medalist Arnold Jackson.

Then came the flood of 1937 and the festival was discontinued until 1956 when the modern day Derby Festival was rekindled. Now, the Kentucky Derby Festival has grown to over seventy events which precede one of the oldest organized horse races in the nation: the Kentucky Derby.

The Derby Festival begins

Thunder over Louisville kicks off the Derby festival on April 18th with the nation's largest annual firework celebration on the banks of the Ohio River. A top rated air show begins at 3pm the day of thunder. Thousands of fans line the banks of downtown Louisville to get a look at some of the military's latest aircraft. Skydiving and aerobatics fill the day as aircraft entertain the crowd waiting for the big firework show.

But when night falls in Louisville, and the big firework celebration begins, all eyes are glued to the nighttime sky. Eight three hundred foot barges line up on each side of the Second Street Bridge as Thunder rocks the downtown area. For nearly thirty minutes spectators are rewarded with a firework show without rival. Music booms in synchronization as the fireworks explode into the night time sky casting beautiful reflections on the Ohio River. Since 1991 the fireworks have been designed by Zambelli Fireworks International, which is regarded as the "first family of fireworks."

More festival events

The mighty steamboat race is another big event of the Kentucky Derby Festival. This time honored race is "usually" between the Belle of Louisville and The Delta Queen of Cincinnati Ohio. This race first got its start back in 1963, and is another event which thrills the spectators, both young and old alike. But, this type of race is not handicapped by anyone, because steamboat racing has no rules. So anything is quite possible, which adds to the excitement even more.