Why the Kentucky Derby Works

Yesterday, one of the great events in sports took place. The Kentucky Derby itself took only about two minutes to run, but the event itself is encapsulated in a near-perfectly conceived three-hour telecast.

For a sport that is niche — and I don’t think anyone who watches horse racing thinks it’s anything but niche — the telecast is great. On a Saturday afternoon in May, when many “casual” fans who watch might be working around the house or Spring cleaning, the three-hour event that is the Derby is something a person can put on TV and leave on in the background while doing other things. For me, this is the ideal weekend sporting event.

Yesterday, I got a bunch of things done with the Derby on in the background. I mowed the lawn, organized the garage, and worked on my bicycle, all while keeping an eye on the races throughout the afternoon. Isn’t that what NBC, who aired the Derby really cares about?

When it was time for the main race of the day – the actual Kentucky Derby – I stopped what I was doing and watched it. I was productive and entertained simultaneously throughout my day. It was a nice afternoon.

The Indianapolis 500, Olympics, the Daytona 500, some random events like curling when it’s on TV, and the final round of Majors in golf and tennis are usually like this as well (though tennis has really dropped off since there are fewer and fewer American stars).

All of the above allow me to enjoy a day and provide me with something to put on in the “background” while I get weekend chores done.

The NFL Draft used to be like that. I cared about it at the beginning and left it on for the rest of the day. In recent years, I haven’t watched ANY of it because it’s not on a weekend. By the time the later rounds roll around on the weekend, the fun is over and there are other things to entertain me.

The same is becoming true with the NCAA Tournament’s first week. If there were already tournament games on for four of the previous five days, I’m somewhat on overload by the time the weekend arrives. I don’t have as much excitement in general about the round of 32 because there has already been so much tournament. The additional weekday games cause me less and less to plan my weekend around a sporting event like the NCAA Tournament. Additional NFL games during the week have watered down the excitement of a full Sunday in similar ways.

As Animal Kingdom made a late break and glided to the finish, I couldn’t help but feel great. The most exciting two minutes in sports was over. I’d watched the telecast for three hours. And I’d been really productive. An altogether positive way to spend my Saturday. I wonder what tomorrow or next weekend’s lineup will offer…