Who needs the Kentucky Derby?

The 33rd Annual Donald E. Erickson Memorial Chariot Races will be held in Saratoga Feb. 15, 16 and 17. The first races will begin on Saturday at 1 p.m. at the Buck Springs Arena northeast of Saratoga. Sunday’s post time is 11 a.m. An award ceremony, based on combined times will follow the Sunday races. The races feature chariot teams from all over Wyoming as well as surrounding states. The two-horse teams pull a single driver in drag racing fashion, three teams at a time.

Calcutta betting will be held 8 p.m. Friday at the Hotel Wolf.

Each chariot team will be auctioned to the highest bidder, and trackside Calcuttas will also be held prior to each race.

Saturday evening there will be a prime rib banquet at the Platte Valley Community Center beginning with “happy hour” at 6 p.m. The banquet is open to the racers as well as the general public and is catered by the Hotel Wolf. There will be another Calcutta for Sunday’s races following the banquet. Tickets are $20 per person and can be purchased at the door.

Awards are given for each of the races, as well as for the overall fastest time. Racers wishing to enter the competition should call Nora Jewell at 307-326-8357. Members of the Interstate Racing Association are eligible to qualify for the “Dave Pennock Good Times Trophy” and the Interstate Racing Association Traveling Trophy. On Saturday, a race will be chosen at random to be the “Norm Epler Memorial Race” with the winner receiving a hand-blown glass chariot team. To become a member of the association, send $25 for a club membership or $20 for an individual membership to Nora Jewell, PO Box 423, Saratoga, WY 82331.

Food concessions will be available at the track and provided by the local Boy Scout troop. Please make your motel reservations as soon as possible for this wildly popular event!

For more information and a list of restaurants and lodging facilities, please visit the Saratoga/Platte Valley Chamber of Commerce website at http://www.saratogachamber.info or call 307-326-8855.