In addition to Churchill Downs, Keeneland is a prestigious horse racing track in Lexington, Ky. Every year horse racing fans anticipate their spring and fall meets.
People crowd the track in their nicest outfits and set up tailgates on the grounds. There was much disappointment when the Spring Meet got canceled because of the coronavirus.
They have created a make-shift summer meet due to not being able to hold a meet in the spring. However, just as horse racetracks are doing across the country, fans won’t be able to attend.
Summer Meet Details
The meet began on Wednesday and will end on Sunday. Staff members of Keeneland have been busy preparing for the meet to ensure they abide by the new safety rules.
Only essential personnel will be able to attend the races. This includes jockeys, trainers, horse owners, and the staff. Even though that doesn’t seem like much, it will still be around 800 people. Keeneland officials still say they will have plenty of space for social distancing.
Even though fans can’t go to the event, they can still tune in online. Horse racing betting has been very popular with the absence of major sports. Fans will be able to live stream the races from Keeneland’s YouTube and Facebook pages.
“You can get free racing programs. You can download those, so you can understand who’s racing and handicap those races. With your phone, you can get an app, the Keeneland Select app. You can sign up and make wagers from there,” said Bob Elliston, vice-president of racing and sales at Keeneland.
There have even been rumors that some restaurants in Kentucky will host watch parties for this meet. It is evident that horse racing fans have missed the action from the prestigious track in Lexington.
Some of the top trainers and jockeys in the world are regulars at Keeneland. They will experience a new feel without fans but will be happy to be back.
“We’re expecting a very good, strong summer meet,” Keeneland racing secretary Ben Huffman said. “We have some good horses coming here, top trainers, and jockeys. I think it is going to be interesting and exciting.”
Fall Meet
Other horse racing tracks, such as Churchill Downs, have already continued to hold spectator-less racing. But Wednesday was the first attempt made by Keeneland after the coronavirus hit.
One of the questions that fans will soon start to ask is whether or not they can attend the scheduled meet in the fall.
“I think that’s why we’re going about our business in a conservative fashion now, so we can build upon it and not have to take steps backward,” Elliston said. “If we get further along and we understand how this meet hopefully goes very successfully, and we don’t have any significant exposure to the virus, then we can add some more to that.”
Horse racing fans will hope for a continued decline of the virus so they can get back to attending these meets.
