Thursday, May 16, 2013

May 16-17, 2013 - Louisville, KY


We toured Churchill Downs, the home of the Kentucky Derby.  It is the longest running, continuous sporting event in the US.  Meriwether Lewis Clark II organized the race in 1875 based upon British racing.  The Derby attracts crowds of 150,000 people who bet between 10 and 12 million dollars in cash on one race!





Museum Row, in downtown Louisville, is the home of the Louisville Slugger Factory.  Beginning in 1884, bats were made by hand on a lathe from maple and ash.  Today with computer- controlled machines and metal patterns, bats can be made in 30 seconds. 




The Falls of the Ohio River is the only major impediment to river travel for 981 miles.  A dam and locks resolved the 26-foot drop and makes transportation possible from southwest Pennsylvania to the Mississippi River.  Clarksville, at the brink of the falls, was the home of William Clark who recruited and trained men for the Corps of Discovery exploration.  They left on October 26, 1803 to join Meriwether Lewis in St. Louis to begin their trek West.














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