Churchill Downs was just a short drive away and morning traffic was a breeze. If you ever want to know about the working day of Jockeys, Trainers, Grooms, and all the other people that make horse racing possible, the tours offered at Churchill Downs is a good place to start.
We took the Backside tour that covers the stables area. We are not horse racing fans but found the information about trainers’ colors, and ponies interesting. We spent 10-minutes at the backside rail watching horses during their workout. The horses only workout in the morning so make sure you get on an early morning tour. I couldn't resist taking a picture almost every time a horse went past us.
Our second Churchill Downs tour was the Insiders tour. This tour took us thru the press area, track announcer booth, Millionaires Row, Turf Club Lounge, and the other areas in the expensive areas of the track.
(Mary in the track announcer's booth)
The lunch tip we received from our first tour guide, Travis, brought us to the Wagner’s Café across the street from the backside of Churchill Down. This place was filled with the people who work at the track. We split a chicken salad sandwich and each had a chocolate malt. The food was good, but what food isn’t good when served with a chocolate malt?
We drove to Indianapolis, IN and camped at the Indiana State Fair Grounds. This has to be the worst campgrounds we’ve stayed at. The cost of $16 per night dry, $25 with full hookup, and they want $15 for one day of WiFi. There are no shade trees but the weeds are kept mowed. We both commented that we’ve stayed at better Wal-mark parking lots.
