randi. stephanie elam, thank you very much. stay safe out there as well. today is the kentucky derby, we want to show you some live aerials of churchill downs from our affiliate wave, we re expecting big crowds and lots of media coverage and in the wake of the boston bombings we re also seeing extra security, plenty of it. pamela brown takes a closer look at the precautions. reporter: kentucky derby weekend is usually ball the big hats and the mint juleps. and of course the horse races. but nearly three weeks after this sporting event ended in tragedy, folks here are thinking about more than just waging their bets. is what happened in boston on your mind today? yes. definitely is on my mind, more of the fact it s such a large crowd and you never know how people s intentions are. absolutely, me and my buddy
louisville today. we are taking a closer look at the extra precautions. reporter: kentucky derby weekend is usually about the big hats and mint juleps, and of course the horse races, but nearly three weeks after this sporting event ended in tragedy, things here are thinking about more than waging your bet. is what happened in boston on your mind today? yes, you never know what peoples intentions are. we were coming from chicago and we were talking about are you scared at all about it? and it s on the forefront of his mind and my mind coming in today. reporter: security has been tight at the derby since 9/11,
largest crowd ever at the kentucky oaks race. while people did have concern about something happening, that fear did not hold them back. kentucky derby weekend is about the big hats and mint juleps and, of course, the horse races. and people are thinking about more than just waging their bet. is what happened in boston on your mind today? yes, it was on my mind for the fact that it s such a large crowd and you never know what peoples intentions are. me and my buddy we were coming up from chicago and we were both talking today about how are you scared at all about it, and it was on the forefront of his mind and my mind coming in today. reporter: security has been tight at the derby since nine
and the estimated 160,000 people going through the gates can expect to have more thorough bag inspections, and magnetic wand searches. we hope not a single person that gets to the gate is surprised and trying to bring in something not allowed. 1200 federal, state and local officers were also be out in force, an increase of about 100 since the bombing. basically just areas of command. reporter: but major kelly jones says they re relying on alert spectators to report anything suspicious. we get used to things sometimes, and so what we ve learned is, folks have got to be vigilant. we ve got to be vigilant. people have to be the eyes and ears of this community. reporter: that message seems to be getting through. i know if i see something i m going to say something. probably more so now than ever before. reporter: for others it s still all about the derby. this is an event that everybody wants to experience, that they look forward to every year, and just to come out and ha
command. reporter: but major kelly jones says they re relying on alert spectators to report anything suspicious. we get used to things sometimes, and so what we ve learned is, folks have got to be vigilant. we ve got to be vigilant. people have to be the eyes and ears of this community. reporter: that message seems to be getting through. i know if i see something i m going to say something. probably more so now than ever before. reporter: for others it s still all about the derby. this is an event that everybody wants to experience, that they look forward to every year, and just to come out and have a good time, the mint juleps. i don t think it s going to be a concern at all. and those new security measures will be put into place today with the big race the oaks, which is something that happens the day before the derby. so this is sort of a trial run before the big race tomorrow. officials tell us, though, because it s controlled access, because you have to go through ga