Gleði is an Icelandic word that means joy or happiness. Gleði Farm is the name of Dana Fletcher’s small farm in Edgefield County, S.C., where two Thoroughbreds now known as Nash and Reggie call home.
The Churchill Downs backside comes to life a few weeks before the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve. While horses are stabled there nine months out of the year, some extra special ones call the backside their home in the weeks leading up to the Derby.
In 1984, 17-year-old jockey Mike Smith was given a leg up on Loblolly Stable’s 3-year-old colt Pine Circle by future Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey.
The Kentucky Derby is an event for the stars – both equine and human. Making it to the race is a dream of horse owners from all walks of life. For example, former Major League Baseball World Series champion Jayson Werth had a Kentucky Derby starter two years in a row in 2024-'25.
The Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve is the longest continuously held sporting event in America, with this year marking its 152nd edition. Often referred to as the “most exciting two minutes in sports,” the iconic race first occurred May 17, 1875, at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., and has been run there every year since.
