Preakness Day A Chance to Gamble, Remember and Help

Preakness day is a Baltimore tradition, but it means different things to those who attend the race. 

Jeff Burdick grew up in Saratoga, NY, and now calls Baltimore home, so he’s no stranger to the track.

"It’s kind of in my blood," Burdick said.

Burdick, adorned in a black hat with horses attached to the brim, reviewed his choices in the upcoming races in relative peace in the infield—something that used to be a rare commodity on Preakness day.

"It’s a lot different since they banned coolers," Burdick said.

While those around him may have been there more for the concerts than horse racing, Burdick was focused on the time-honored tradition of gambling, and was still considering whether or not he would even bet on the Preakness Stakes.  

Orb’s odds were 4-5 just before race time, and Burdick said he thought the horse was such a shoe-in to win that it may not be worth the trouble to gamble on, besides he was already up $150. 

"I bet him in the [Kentucky] Derby this year. If he wins again we’ll head to Belmont [Stakes],” Burdick said.  

Rachael Rossmeissl-Stone, of Reston, VA stopped in the grandstand to grab a Natty Boh, and explained this was the second time she has attended Preakness.

"I just couldn’t make it last year because of a wedding," Rossmeissl-Stone said.

But this year had a little more significance because of the hat she was wearing.  The hat, covered with green feathers and yellow and green paper ribbons, had belonged to her friend Tom Cluck who died last August.

She promised Cluck’s mother that she would wear the hat, and after personalizing it with a few touches, Rossmeissl-Stone fulfilled that promise.  

But others attended the race to raise awareness for a cause.

Disabled American Veterans Flight Team had a bus parked in the infield, and they were asking veterans and active service members to sign a poster of a B-25 Mitchell bomber. 

The group’s goal is to spread the word about assistance available to veterans, and was using the event, and a flyover by a World War II era bomber to accomplish that mission.

"Our mission is to reach out to veterans and patriotic Americans, and our job is to get in front them, and what better way than a B-25 flyover," said Lynn May, the group’s events coordinator.

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