Kentucky Derby Museum is thrilled to reopen its Stable and announce the name of its new miniature horse on Friday.
The Stable has been a part of the Museum experience since the Museum opened in 1985, but the live exhibit remained closed the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Museum has had its sights set on reopening the Stable, spending the last six months searching for the perfect miniature horse to adopt, creating a partnership with the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation, and sprucing up the stable. The Museum requested names from the public, with more than 1,400 names submitted.
The two-year-old, 30-inch tall, roan colored miniature horse will be called, “Mighty Aristides.”
“We are so excited to welcome guests back to visit our beautiful Stable,” said Patrick Armstrong, President & CEO of the Kentucky Derby Museum. “We've gotten to know this little guy since his arrival on Monday, and he is loaded with personality. He's kind, playful, and is very curious! There were hundreds of wonderful names submitted, and Mighty Aristides was a combination of a few different entries. We love that the “Mighty” part of his name reflects his playful personality, and “Aristides” pays homage to the first-ever winner of the Kentucky Derby in 1875. It is our hope that the public will embrace Mighty Aristides and come visit him and our Resident Thoroughbred often.”
Visitors do not need an admission ticket to visit the Museum Stable, visiting the Resident Thoroughbred and miniature horse is free every day during normal Museum hours.
Mighty Aristides was rescued by Meaningful Menagerie Animal Therapy in Louisville when he was five months old. Meaningful Menagerie felt the Kentucky Derby Museum would make a wonderful permanent home for him.
Stable Staff are calling Mighty Aristides “Ari” (pronounced ARE-ee) for short. Currently, Rita's Partner, a retired Thoroughbred Racehorse, is stabled with Ari. The two settled in nicely at the Museum this week, enjoying frozen watermelon as a treat to combat the heat wave and they enjoy twice-a-day strolls on the grounds of Churchill Downs to graze patches of fresh, uncut and untreated grass.
While Ari is here to stay, the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation will switch out the Resident Thoroughbred every few months with a new Thoroughbred visitor for guests to encounter.
Throughout the years, the miniature horse and Thoroughbred have been a special part of romantic engagement proposals, breathtaking wedding photos, thousands of field trips, and each guest's visit to the Museum.
Many people may remember Winston, the Museum's beloved miniature horse, who was an ambassador for 22 years. He was known for appearances around town to help raise money for charities, for honorarily throwing out the first pitch at Louisville Slugger Baseball games, and meeting and greeting people, including sitting Kentucky Governors, on Millionaire's Row. Winston retired from the Museum in 2018, and passed away a few months later. His final resting place is marked by a memorial in the Museum's Oaks Terrace Garden.
It is the hope of Kentucky Derby Museum leaders that Mighty Aristides and the Resident Thoroughbred will help the Museum continue to fulfill its mission to engage, educate and excite everyone about the extraordinary experience that is the Kentucky Derby!
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