The Derby festival which is traditionally held over the first weekend in June at the Epsom Downs Race course located in Surrey, England is one of the most important events on the annual racing calendar. The Derby stakes (pronounced as “dar-bee”) or the Epsom Derby is a prestigious flat race for thoroughbred horses and ranks up there with other similar races like the Kentucky Derby, the Breeders Cup, the Dubai World Cup and the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe amongst others.
This event which is held at Epsom Downs race course is a two day affair which not only features exciting horse racing but much fun and great fashion. This year, the Derby festival is to be held on Friday, 5th June and Saturday, 6th of June. The festival kicks off with the Derby Ball which is held at the Royal Automobile Club in Woodcote Park (Epsom) on the night before the race days. This year, the ball is to be held on Thursday, 4th June. The first day of the festival is always ‘Ladies Day’ and it features the Epsom Oaks race,while the second day of the festival is Derby Day. During the Derby festival, a festive atmosphere prevails at Epsom Downs as nearly 100,000 people gather at the various enclosures to take in the racing as well as the various picnics and barbecues which are held during the event.
The Epsom Derby
The derby race itself is the second leg of the English Triple Crown which is a set of three races that are conducted for three year old thoroughbreds. If a horse wins the Triple Crown, it is generally considered to be a remarkable event. The English Triple Crown is made up of the 2000 Guineas, the Epsom Derby and the St Leger Races. However, the Epsom Derby is a unique event which is run over an extremely challenging course that tests the skills of both the horse and the rider. Famous British jockeys like Lester Piggott and Willie Carson have had remarkable success at the Epsom Derby, the winner of which usually goes on to compete in the other big international races.
History
The town of Epsom since the early seventeenth century has been famous for its natural mineral waters . These waters which were believed to have medicinal properties were the biggest attraction in Epsom until the summer of 1780, when the Epsom Derby was established. Horse races had been held on the Epsom Downs race track since 1661 but in 1780, the Earl of Derby, Edward Stanely Smith organized a race for three year old fillies which he called the Oaks after his estate. The race was an immediate success and the next year the Earl added another race for both fillies and colts.
The name of this race was decided after the Earl and his friend and fellow racing enthusiast, Sir Charles Bunbury flipped a coin to pick the name. Incidentally the first ‘Derby’ was won by Sir Charles Bunbury’s horse. From then onwards the Derby went on to become an annual affair which gained much popularity among the horse loving British public.
The popularity of the race received a further boost when in 1913, Emily Davidson, who was a keen suffragette and an ardent champion of women’s rights, to gain publicity, tried to grab the bridle of Anmer, King George V’s horse as it thundered past her. She was trampled by the horse and died shortly after . Her bravery inspired her fellow suffragettes who carried on their struggle and achieved much success while the Epsom Derby gained a lot of publicity from this event and went on to became firmly established as a leading race in the British racing calendar
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Race Day and Enclosures at Epsom Downs
Thousands of people flock to the verdant Epsom Downs for the Derby Festival, which also includes a giant fun fair event. Some folk even charter open top double decker buses for a better view of the races. These buses usually line up from Tattenham Corner to the winning post. The Epsom Derby is associated with big prize money amounts and it is estimated that the owners of the 2007 winner pocketed well over £700,000 for their win.
There are various enclosures at Epsom Downs like the Queens Stand which is the most exclusive area at the Downs. This stand is located opposite the winning post and is peppered with champagne bars and private boxes. Race-goers who are seated in the Queens Stand have to follow a strictly enforced dress code wherein gentlemen are expected to wear black or grey Morning Dress with a top hat, service dress or full national costume on Derby Day. While the ladies, are required to wear a formal day dress, or a trouser suit, with a hat. Jeans and sneakers are not allowed under any circumstance. Prizes are awarded for the best dressed lady during the highly popular ‘Style on The Downs’ fashion competition which is conducted as part of the Derby festivities.
Other enclosures include the Grandstand, the Tattenham Straight (which is a pedestrian area that features many bars and a big screen on which the races are broadcast), Tattenham Picnic area, Upper Tattenham, Londsdale Enclosure, Walton and the Hill. The Hill is the party central of the festival as it hosts the market and the fun fair. Tickets for the various enclosures can be purchased online at the official website of the Epsom Derby.
Getting to Epsom and Accommodation
Epsom is easily accessible by train from London’s main stations like Victoria and Waterloo. Moreover, Epsom is also located in close proximity of London’s Heathrow and Gatwick airports, if you are planning in to fly in for the race from other cities in Europe or elsewhere.
London has a wide variety of hotels which cater to every preference and budget like the five star rated 41Hotel which is located in the vicinity of Victoria Station 0r the two star rated Airways Hotel, which is a bed and breakfast hotel also located near Victoria station. If you’d rather stay near the airports, then you also have a number of options like the Novotel London Heathrow Airport Hotel or the Copthorne Hotel Effingham at Gatwick.
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This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 6th, 2009 at 9:29 am and is filed under Europe, Festival. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
May 6th, 2009 at 1:42 pm
Thank you for sharing derby festival information.
May 8th, 2009 at 10:24 pm
It is nice.Thanks for sharing.
May 12th, 2009 at 2:02 pm
Is it ok to have just one comment regarding this topic? Ive been reading your blog. Keep it up for us to be updated!! Can you post more often?
May 12th, 2009 at 4:19 pm
I guess it’s just as fantastic as the Triple Crown in the US. No?
I wonder if any horse would pull a “mine that bird” at the Epsom dar-bee.
-Terry
P.S.
I guess there’s something wrong with the KeywordLuv plug-in.
May 13th, 2009 at 5:19 am
Thank you
May 14th, 2009 at 3:32 am
We will just have to wait for the Epsom Derby to see if it produces a similar’ dark horse’ winner, glad you enjoyed the post. Keep checking back for more.
May 27th, 2009 at 11:53 am
Thanks for the pronunciation — I have been pronouncing this race wrong for 30 years!
The Derby stakes (pronounced as “dar-bee”) –
These huge races are full of pomp & ceremony — one day I may have the pleasure of attending. In the meantime there is always DirectTV.
Excellent post.
May 29th, 2009 at 9:58 am
Not sure that this is working.
I tried posting this:
I was intrigued by the summary of this post. I was hoping that it was fast women and, by the way, there are some horses as well.