Hold onto your hats, ladies, a storm is blowing in. 
After a picture- perfect morning, the clouds started moving in about 1:15 p.m. It got darker, and windier, and darker still. Then a big rain hit Churchill Downs at 1:50 p.m. The weather radar shows more on the way. Post time for the Oaks is 5:45.
Well-dressed ladies with one hand holding a drink suddenly needed the other to keep their hat from going airborne. And when rain started falling, those with the expensive seats huddled with the masses underneath the grandstand for shelter.
But the rain didn’t seem to dampen spirits. “I haven’t won anything yet, but that’s OK,” said Wanda Gilliam of Greensboro, N.C., who was at her first Oaks. “It’s awesome. It’s overwhelming. I just can’t put it into words.”
Running for shelter. Photo/Tom Eblen
