Tampa, Florida 2002 - Derby Lane

Can't explain what happened with Derby Lane and Laurie and I. I saw the brochure and always wanted to go to a dog track. So, we went. I think it was a dollar to get in and you got a program (with the coupon in the brochure). Laurie wasn't too sure about going. We decided to get dinner there at the Plaza Sports Bar. Our waitress was super nice, although service was your typical Southern slow style. We missed the first couple of races because we were waiting for our food. But we used that time to read the program to figure out how to bet. I've been to a horse track once or twice, but forgot how to place a bet. The people at the track were very friendly and they put up with our newness. We loved everything about the track...the way the dogs were showcased before the race, the action of the race, the 'rabbit' that the dogs chased around the rack...just great fun. I think what sucked us in was we both won on our very first race! We joked that if we kept it up, we would pay for our vacation. We had fun reading the names of the dogs and trying to pick the winners. Most of the time, we didn't look at the odds...just went with the dog's name. Laurie changed her mind about going to dog tracks as we had a great time.

The first time we went, it was at night. You're not allowed to take pictures of the track at night...I guess it spooks the dogs. So we went back later in the week during the day. It was cool getting so close to the dogs and taking pictures. We were so hooked, we went back a third time!! Again at night. Overall, we probably lost money. But not much since the bets are only $2 each. And we had a blast.

A little trivia...we were watching Ocean's 11 (the remake with George Clooney) and there was a scene from a dog track. It looked familiar and as they panned around we noticed it was Derby Lane!! We were excited because we were there!! It was neat. We need to get lives. Below are the pictures...click on the thumbnail to see the larger picture.

The big neon sign

An overview

Who looks like a winner?

My pick

Chase the rabbit!

Who's winning?

Who won?

Celebrities off the track