Okay, class. Word up. You’re probably thinking you know your ABCs, but here’s the alphabet that sports writers who are covering the Kentucky Derby will be using when they write their stories this year. Read on, and learn about the real cast of characters that makes “The Run for The Roses” America’s greatest horse race.

A is for Aristides. His nameplate is the first in a long stream of gold on white wall plaques at Churchill Downs that commemorate all 131 Kentucky Derby winners. The 1875 winner, Aristides, was a tall, black horse owned by H.P. McGrath.

B is for Bandini. The winner of the Blue Grass Stakes is one of 34 horses that trainer Todd Pletcher nominated to the Triple Crown and one of three Pletcher trainees to start the Kentucky Derby. Pletcher, the 2004 Eclipse Award winner as the trainer of the year, is 0-for-9 with Kentucky Derby runners so far, and this year was no different. Bandini finished 19th.

C is for Celebrities. Paparazzi scour the skyboxes like moths in search of bright lights. Last year, Kid Rock, Pamela Anderson, Dennis Hopper, Travis Tritt, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Lynn Redgrave, George Strait, LaToya Jackson, Anna Nicole Smith and Boyz II Men were there to preen for the cameras.

D is for Derby. The Kentucky Derby derives its name from the 12^th Earl of Derby (pronounced dar-bee), who was first to offer “sweeps stakes” in 17^th century England. By definition a “derby” is a race restricted to 3-year-old horses. No track holds more than one derby in a given year.

E is for Elvis. The Tampa Bay Derby winner Sun King is nicknamed “Elvis.” The original “Sun King” was Sun Records’ founder Sam Phillips, who in 1954 discovered and signed Elvis Presley to his record label. Sun King disappointed in the Blue Grass Stakes, and Elvis left the building 15th at the Derby. 

F is for Frankel. The Kentucky Derby remains a prize that eludes the 63-year-old Hall of Fame trainer. High Limit, Bobby Frankel’s Louisiana Derby winner, failed in his attempt to become the first horse since Exterminator in 1918 to win the Derby having started just four times.

G is for Greeley’s Galaxy. Owner B. Wayne Hughes made the mistake of failing to nominate this impressive Illinois Derby winner to the Triple Crown but sneaked into the Run for the Roses. Warren Stute, at age 83, the trainer of Greeley’s Galaxy, missed on becoming the oldest trainer of a Kentucky Derby champion.  The late Charlie Whittingham, who was 76 when he sent out Sunday Silence in 1989, still holds that distinction.

H is for hats. The tradition of women wearing frilly millinery to horse races began at Royal Ascot. No less a fashion authority than the legendary Beau Brummel decreed in 1807 that hats would be worn. The Kentucky Derby follows suit.

KENTUCKY DERBY NBC will televise the race from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. ET on Saturday.

I is for infield. You can’t see a horse from here, but over 60,000 people will cram the Churchill Downs infield at $40 a pop. Families spread picnic blankets, college kids frolic on trampolines, country and rock music blares and hot air balloons rise from the earth to hover overhead.

J is for Juvenile winner. Wilko is the latest Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winner to come up short: None of the 22 winners has won the Kentucky Derby.  

K is for Kinsman Stud Farm. Yankees boss George Steinbrenner, 0-for-6 in Derby starts, is the owner of this 850-acre farm in Ocala, Fla., for which the favorite Bellamy Road raced. Bellamy Road finished seventh.

L is for Lukas. D. Wayne Lukas, the Hall of Fame trainer who has saddled four previous Derby winners, returned to Louisville with two contenders: Going Wild and Consolidator. Neither hit the board.

M is for mint julep. The official drink of the Derby is a concoction of bourbon and simple syrup poured over crushed ice and garnished with a sprig of mint. It is said that the straw was invented to draw the last few drops of the drink from the bottom of a silver cup.

N is for Noble Causeway. Is the $1.15 million yearling this year’s Kentucky Derby champion? Nope. Two previous second-place finishers in the Florida Derby that were trained by Nick Zito have won the Kentucky Derby, but it had been five weeks since Noble Causeway ran, and no horse in 49 years has won the Kentucky Derby with a layoff of more than four weeks.

O is for Oaks. Held the Friday before the Derby, the Kentucky Oaks is one of the four original races established by Churchill Downs founder Col. Meriwether Lewis Clark. This Kentucky Derby equivalent for fillies attracted over 100,000 fans.

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