Don’t expect a muddy race like the mess that was the Kentucky Derby. There is a chance of rain Friday evening, but the track at Pimlico should have plenty of time to dry by Saturday afternoon.
The weather plays a big part of Preakness tradition every year, rain or shine. In 1909 a new members’ clubhouse was built with a weather vane in the shape of a horse and jockey to replace the old one, an arrow-shaped vane that is now displayed in the museum at Pimlico.
Since then, the tradition at Pimlico is to paint the jockey’s jersey in the colors of the winning stable.
In 1966 the members’ clubhouse burned to the ground, and a replica of the building’s cupola, complete with the horse-and-jockey weather vane, was constructed and moved to the infield. A handyman is sent to the top of a ladder to paint the jockey as soon as the race becomes official.
Other Preakness day weather notes: The warmest Preakness Day ever recorded was 87 degrees; the coolest was 52 degrees. There will be no extremes this year—it will be sunny and pleasant with temperatures in the 70s. The Preakness has never been rained out.
Ed Hoffman is the publisher of The Baltimore Guide and an amateur meterologist.
