Join us to celebrate the winning poems in this year’s Second Annual Poetry Derby on Sept. 9, 6-8 p.m., for a virtual reading hosted by the Kentucky Derby Museum. This year’s theme was “The Starting Line,” and we asked writers in Louisville and beyond to compose poems engaging lines from the work of Kentucky poets Frank X Walker, Nickole Brown, Maurice Manning, Rebecca Gayle Howell, Cynthia Arrieu-King, Wendell Berry, and Kentucky transplant Ada Limón. Twelve poems were selected as winners and ranked in the Adult Race, and nine poems were selected as winners and ranked in the Youth Race.

Thanks to the following Kentucky poets who facilitated writing sessions and helped with judging: Kristina Erny, Ashley Taylor, and Ken Walker.

Honorable mention:

Rowan Little’s “Passerby II”

Finalists (in alphabetical order):

Ana-Sophia Beardsley’s “My Blood Type is Perfluorooctanoic Acid”

Josh Christian’s “After so many years”

Brittany McCarthy’s “Dad Was Born on Derby Day”

Cathy Pendleton’s “The Garden”

Brigit Truex’s “Lascaux”

Finalists (in alphabetical order)

Chloee Adams' "Allergies"

Sam Baker's "Under the Porch Light"

David Deckel's "View"

Patrick Harper's "I wrote this yesterday when I thought of you"

Isabel Mosley's "(Made) To Run and Carry"

Cassidy Witt's "May I Be Worthy"