KY Downs: To the Victors Go the Guitars, Bourbon
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Photo: Mike Kane/Kentucky Downs
Guitars and bourbon to serve as trophies for winners of certain races at Kentucky Downs
The FanDuel Meet at Kentucky Downs is celebrating the region's heritage on both sides of the border with distinctive trophies for the owners of its major races.
The winning owners of Kentucky Downs' six graded stakes, including five Sept. 11, and the Sept, 12, closing day Nelson's Green Brier Whiskey Music City Stakes will receive a unique trophy that reflects the one-of-a-kind racetrack and its proximity to Nashville: A guitar signed by country-music legend and entertainment mogul Reba McEntire.
As she has throughout her Country Music Hall of Fame career, the guitars are signed "Love, Reba." A plaque with the winning horse's name and ownership will be mounted on the guitar.
Saluting Kentucky's bourbon industry, the owners of stakes and allowance races will receive a commemorative bottle of the bourbon or Tennessee whiskey of the day, personalized as being from Kentucky Downs.
The trophies will be earned a month in advance of the Oct. 8 release of McEntire's three-part box set REVISED REMIXED REVISITED, a reimagined collection of some of McEntire most iconic songs and must-have for music enthusiasts of all genres. (Pre-orders available now.)
Having a guitar trophy autographed by a music icon began last year with LNJ Foxwoods receiving one signed by George Strait after Lighthouse captured the first running of the Music City Stakes.
"Being right on the state line, we wanted to highlight the heritage of the region," said Ted Nicholson, Kentucky Downs vice president for racing. "The richest meet in America celebrates Kentucky's rich tradition of horses and bourbon while also acknowledging industry Nashville's renowned artists and music. Reba McEntire as our 2021 trophy honoree follows George Strait as a country-music superstar performer who also has ties to horse racing. We're honored and thankful for Reba's participation this year. We look forward to our guitars becoming the most coveted trophies in racing."
Today's graded stakes are the $1 million Calumet Turf Cup (G2T), $1 million FanDuel Turf Sprint (G3T), $750,000 Calumet Bourbon Ladies Turf (G3T), $600,000 Irish Thoroughbred Marketing Franklin-Simpson for 3-year-old sprinters and the $600,000 Keeneland Mint Ladies Sprint (G3T). International powerhouse Godolphin also will receive a McEntire-signed guitar with a personalized plate for Pixelate 's victory in the $1 million WinStar Mint Million on Labor Day.
Trainer Joe Orseno is hoping that owners Breeze Easy come away with a McEntire trophy after defending champion Imprimis runs in today's FanDuel Turf Sprint.
"Hey, that's great," Orseno said. "If it gets people enthused about it, that's fantastic. I actually trained a couple of horses for Reba years ago."
The meet's signature bourbons/whiskey of the day: Jefferson's Ocean (Sept. 5), Angel's Envy (Sept. 6), Heaven Hill (Sept. 8), Elijah Craig (Sept. 9), Calumet Bourbon (Sept. 11), and Nelson's Green Brier Whiskey (Sept. 12).