They say the Kentucky Derby drew more bets this year than any other in its 138-year history. That's $133.1 million in handle, with $12.3 million of that from the also-record crowd of 165,000 people at the track. It's hard not to get jazzed about the Derby, whether or not you like hats or juleps or bugles (clearly the first Saturday in May is some kind of fetishist's dream come true). Horses are majestic and elegant at the same time, a feat that can be achieved only by a large animal carrying a small man and running with all four feet off the ground. It is truly a shame that the sport is dying, that the horses are dying, that the premium cable network show about horses has died, all seemingly for the same reason: neglect, in some form or another.

This was a strange year for the Derby to reach a new peak, given the dim and dire recent front-page news about the state of the industry and its main engines. But it happened to be a perfect storm for fans: a morning line favorite, Bodemeister, who hadn't raced much and carried a lot of questions; a full field, which makes bettors feel confident anything can happen; and a handful of relative long shots who most people perceived as being just a horseshoe's width worse than Bode. "Plus a big fight in Las Vegas, too," says Wynn bookmaker John Avello. "That makes for lots of betting. We had chandelier-room only, meaning anyone who wanted in had to hang from the lights."