Local Activities | May 14, 2015
The eyes of the horse racing world are on the Baltimore area this week for the 140th running of the Preakness Stakes . The thoroughbred racing event takes place on Saturday, May 16th at the Pimlico Race Track. During Preakness Week, the public can attend many events from tours of the race track to concerts to a balloon festival.
One of the highlights of Preakness Week (other than the Preakness Stakes race) is the balloon festival at Turf Valley Resort in Ellicott City, Maryland. The Preakness Celebration Balloon Festival runs Thursday, May 14th to Saturday, May 16th. The free festival will have tethered hot air balloon rides (for an additional fee), crafts, family activities and entertainment. In the evening, the balloons are lit with special lights as they launch into the sky.
A great daily event (Tuesday through Friday) during Preakness Week is Sunrise at Old Hilltop . Visitors can watch the sunrise over the grandstand at Pimlico race track while watching the horses and jockeys go through their morning routines. Afterwards, visitors can take a free tour of the stable area and get insights in the racing world.
Black-Eyed Susan Day is Friday, May 15th. The Black-Eyed Susan stakes was first run in 1919 as the Pimlico Oaks, but was changed in 1952 to its current name to commemorate Maryland’s state flower, the black-eyed susan. This race is a 1 1/8th mile for 3 year old fillies. A portion of proceeds for the event and race will be shared with the Maryland affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure and Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance. To top off the racing day, there will be concerts in the infield by Gin Blossoms, Fuel and Vertical Horizon.
The Preakness Stakes is the “middle jewel” in thoroughbred racing’s Triple Crown: Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes. The race is traditionally held on the third Saturday in May at Pimlico Race Track, the second oldest race track in the United States. American Pharaoh, the winner of the 2015 Kentucky Derby is the favorite in the field of eight 3 year old colts, geldings and/or fillies. The winner of the race wins a million dollar purse.
Infield Fest is a multi-entertainment festival on the infield of Pimlico Race Track that takes place throughout race day. The festival includes food and other vendors, music, entertainment and much more! The headliners for this year’s Infield Fest are Grammy nominated DJ Armin Van Burren and Childish Gamino. There are also performances by other regional and national performers throughout the day including Easton Corbin, Trampled by Turtles, and A Thousand Horses.
Preakness Week always brings excitement to the Baltimore area with all of the great activities from the Preakness Stakes to the Preakness Celebration. ezStorage has 39 Maryland storage locations that can serve all of your storage needs from business to household.
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