International Bluegrass Music Center , will be moving into its brand-new $15 million digs with a concert hall and rooftop restaurant overlooking the Ohio River. Of course, Bill Monroe’s stomping ground near Owensboro is also the Barbecue Capital of the World – and there’s no better pairing than bluegrass music and barbecue, especially when shared with family and friends. From May through September, mutton and sop are on the menu as 22 churches host parish barbecue picnics. You can also get your fi ll of good barbecue during ROMP , a four-day music festival, or the International Bar-B-Q Festival – both off ering a nice side of bluegrass. watched while sipping a traditional mint julep to calm your nerves or munching on a piece of oh-so-sweet Derby Pie ® . Lexington’s Kentucky Horse Park is fully loaded with four horse-related museums, the thoroughbred horse legends of the Hall of Champions and equine performers, which you can pet during the Parade of Breeds Show. Visit the Horse Capital of the World in Lexington, whose Thoroughbred Park , with life-size bronze racehorses galloping toward the fi nish line, backs its claim to fame. Continue your pilgrimage at the Saddlebred Capital of the World in Shelbyville, home to 90 horse farms plus breeding and training facilities. From the new Appalachian Horse Center in eastern Kentucky’s Breathitt County, where you can travel into the mountains to visit free-roaming horses to the Old Friends equine retirement facility at Dream Chase Farm in Georgetown, horses hold the reins to many of Kentucky’s most fascinating, fast-paced and forward-thinking attractions. Tidbits ‘Big Three’ Best Bets There are countless places to enjoy Kentucky’s horses, bourbon and bluegrass music. Here are just a few: • Located at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, the American Saddlebred Museum is the “Showplace for Saddlebreds,” with the world’s largest collection of Saddlebred artifacts: photographs, house trophies, tack and artwork, plus a vast bloodline and genealogical research library. asbmuseum.org Horse Capital of the World But banjoes and fi ddles aren’t the only things that make beautiful music. Herds of horses cantering and whinnying in a Kentucky paddock is a sound – and sight – to behold. Horses are to Kentucky as bits are to the bridle – inseparable. Louisville’s Kentucky Derby is heart-pounding excitement, best Image courtesy of: ROMP • If you’ve never seen a bourbon barrel fi red to charred-oak exquisiteness, it’s time to tour Lebanon’s Kentucky Cooperage and witness the magic. independentstavecompany.com • Bluegrass music fans tread the hallowed turf where Bill Monroe once walked, fi nding their way to the Rosine Barn Jamboree where live bluegrass music and dancing take place on Friday nights, April through December. visitohiocountyky.com For more information on Kentucky’s signature bourbon, horse and bluegrass attractions, visit: kentuckytourism.com kentuckytourism.com 27
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