WAMU 88.5 : News

Filed Under:

This Year's Preakness Is Drawing In Record Crowds

By: Patrick Madden // May 21, 2011
Play associated audio
comments
The Maryland Jockey Club is expecting about 105,000 to attend this year's Preakness. That’s about 10,000 more than last year.
Maryland Jockey Club
The Maryland Jockey Club is expecting about 105,000 to attend this year's Preakness. That’s about 10,000 more than last year.

Tom Chuckas, president of the Maryland Jockey Club, says the crowds so far has exceeded expectations. He’s expecting about 105,000 people when all is said and done. That’s about 10,000 more than last year.

Chuckas says organizers have marketed this year’s Preakness to a younger demographic, people in their 20’s and 30’s, who aren’t your typical race horse fan. Nothing exemplifies that more than Kegasus, the mascot of this year’s Preakness, which is a half-man, half-thoroughbred partying animal.

The in-field was already packed by 2 p.m., so it appears the marketing campaign has paid off.

The three morning-line favorites will start side by side by side for the 1 3/16-mile race.

Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom, an early 2-to-1 Preakness favorite, drew the No. 11 post position.

Derby favorite Dialed In, which finished a disappointing eighth, but was 9-to-2 in early odds, will start one gate to the inside. And one spot inside of him is Mucho Macho Man at 6-to-1.

Arts & Culture

NPR

NFL Sideline Reporter Michele Tafoya Plays Not My Job

As one of the first female reporters to be allowed inside the NFL locker room, Tafoya has been a pioneer in her field. But there are still places out there where they believe in cooties, so Tafoya will answer three questions about men's-only clubs.

Food

NPR

The Great Charcoal Debate: Briquettes Or Lumps?

Does the kind of charcoal you use really make a difference when it comes to grilling up a tasty steak or other food on the grill? Yes — but deciding which one to use depends on what you're after. Both briquettes and lump charcoal — aka "natural" hardwood charcoal — have their advantages and disadvantages.

Politics

NPR

Obama's Terrorism Fight Is Colored Gray, Not Black And White

If President Obama's newly recalibrated counterterrorism strategy demonstrates anything, it is his penchant for nuance.

Technology

NPR

Google Reportedly Faces FTC Antitrust Probe Over Display Ads

The Federal Trade Commission is in the early stages of opening an antitrust probe into how Google runs its online display advertising business, according to a report by Bloomberg News, citing sources who want to remain anonymous because the FTC has not announced the probe.

Leave a Comment

Help keep the conversation civil. Please refer to our Terms of Use and Code of Conduct before posting your comments.