Kentucky: horse race, Louisville slugger and Abraham Lincoln

Now only five states left.   Hitting Kentucky felt really good.   While we didn’t quite make it to the first race we did manage to get to Keeneland for four races. Made some good bets.  Lost them all but one but it was fun to see. Weather was warm but super windy so there were lots of scratches. Amazing the winners of each race win 81k

Being at the track, everyone was dressed up.  Some good derby hats.  (Stopping in the shop there were hats priced at 875 dollars.  They were beautiful but a bit extreme. It was great being at the track.  Kate was very sympathetic to the horses being whipped and took the stance that it’s cruel to them.  But she did enjoy betting on them.  

We grabbed dinner at Olive Garden. Kids choice for dinner. Then to bed. I think I fell asleep at 8. 

Up in the morning-we stayed at the Hyatt downtown and the kids were psyched to have Starbucks in the morning.  We then drove to Louisville to the Louisville slugger factory which we learned does not make softball or aluminum bats they only do the wooden bats that the professionals use. We saw the different grades of wood and the other processes involves in making a baseball bat (40% of professional players use bats from this factory and each player uses about 120 bats each year.)

Patrick insisted on a trip over the bridge into Indiana since we were so close.  So we filled up the gas tank in Indy and headed south to Abraham Lincolns birthplace and childhood home.   The lands were beautiful and we saw the brook that honest Abe played in as a child. Kate was chased by a wasp (there were many) and we were alll careful due to signs that copperhead snakes were all over in addition to the terror of wasps and ticks.  

We arrived at the birthplace at 430-they close at five.  The park ranger instructs us to go straight to the house.   Which is inside a big monument.   The information inside showed that the house was circa 1840 and was not actually the childhood home of Lincoln but it resembled it.  It was so small and the ranger said up to 13 people could be found living in one.  This is nearly impossible to imagine.

Ended the day with a bbq place Patrick found. J arenders.   Good choices.
Kate and I had friend chicken. Yes in Kentucky.  Good meal. Good service and live music.  Four guys jamming Kentucky style.