Preakness & Black Eyed Susan Day

139TH PREAKNESS, BLACK EYED SUSAN DAY & INFIELDFEST – MAY 17TH

Wednesday night, I attended the Pre-Preakness Party at Mount Washington Tavern to get a little taste of what Preakness would be like. Boat shoes & blazers everywhere! The karaoke was intense and the room was PACKED. 

Preakness is an odd Baltimore tradition. High brow & frat bro join together in a chaotic worldwind of horses and beer. It seemed like last year’s InfieldFest with Pitbull and Macklemore was just screaming for binge drinking and other shenanigans but this year they’ve toned it down a bit. Critical darling, Lorde headlines with Nas directly before her.

Here’s a few tips for this weekend…

BLACK EYED SUSAN DAY

This is the fancy hat & clothing day! The Counting Crowes & The Fray are playing. There’s also a fashion show, luncheon, and yes, horses actually race! Some of the proceeds go towards Breast Cancer research and it’s a great event to bring the girls or your mom. 

INFIELDFEST

Sorry to say that Mug Club (all you can drink) is sold out but you shouldn’t be doing that if you’re trying to be presentable to your preferred sex, anyway.

There’s about 1 million different ticket types/combos/etc. for Preakness. InfieldFest will run you about $60 and if you actually want to see some horse races, you gotta toss in another $25. Think of InfieldFest as being at Merriweather all day. Grab a blanket, hang out with friends, listen to some music, drink overpriced beer, etc. It’s a good excuse to be outside & day drink!

Bring A Date?
Tickets are a bit pricey to grab someone a ticket only a few dates in, but it’s definitely, a great way to test something new-ish. Seeing how someone handles traffic, crowds, day drinking, public transportation (do yourself a favor & just take the light rail) will give you insight into their personality. Long, messy days are what makes (and breaks) relationships. If you’re the inviter, make sure you bring along the essentials: beach blankets, sunscreen, poncho (no umbrellas allowed) etc. Coolers are allowed but they must be plastic & see through with food ONLY. So plan accordingly.

Find A Date?
Pack the essentials & share! Someone you find attractive is bound to run out of sunscreen sooner or later & you’ll be there to the rescue. Don’t pack the entire house, because no backpacks are allowed but I trust you can make something work. Last year, the Preakness crowd flooded into Federal Hill afterwards but I imagine it won’t be nearly as sloppy as the Pitbull crowd. An added bonus is the range of musical talent this year so if you can find a mate based on genre!

TL;DR
Merriweather with horses. (Also, the Baltimore Sun has a pretty good guide)

P.S. – If you’re feeling lucky, bet on the horses (here’s a great little cheat sheet) then take your guy or gal to the fancy dining options!