By Brenna Angel
LEXINGTON, Ky. -- – The 71st spring racing meet at Keeneland opens this Friday in Lexington.
Keeneland Director of Racing Rogers Beasley says fans can see some of the best horses, trainers, and jockeys in the world.
"It's one of those race meets that's very rare because it's a confluence of people coming from everywhere; you have the people from Florida, the people from Fair Grounds [Louisiana], and you got people from California getting ready for the [Kentucky] Derby."
Keeneland President Nick Nicholson describes the spring meet as a festival atmosphere.
"There's a horse part of it, there's a people part of it, but there's also the fan part of it. We want this to be fun. So our team has created a number of events that will take place over the next few weeks."
The non-racing events include College Scholarship Day on April 2, the Maker's Mark bottle signing with John Calipari on April 9, and the Riders Up event to benefit the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund on April 16.
The Keeneland spring meet is highlighted by the 86th running of the Toyota Bluegrass Stakes. The $750,000 race is set for Saturday April 10th.