Beyond the Finish Line: How Churchill Downs Racetrack Harnesses Advanced Network Solutions for Seamless Kentucky Derby® Operations

From dawn to Derby: The magic of Churchill Downs^®

Mike Wood, Senior IT Director for Churchill Downs Racetrack, is revolutionizing the historic venue by ushering it into the digital age. With a passion for innovation, Mike shares his journey, stating, “This is my sixteenth Kentucky Derby. Here at Churchill Downs, we tend to measure everything by how many derbies we do.” His dedication and vision are driving the transformation of this iconic racetrack, ensuring it remains at the forefront of horse racing.

As Derby Week approaches, Mike’s role becomes even more critical. The amount of visitors skyrockets from approximately 4,000 to a staggering 385,000 throughout Derby Week. Reflecting on the magnitude of the event, Mike says, “When you look at the amount of guest services and people coming in on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, it’s equivalent to about six Super Bowls back-to-back. With this substantial influx, Churchill Downs must accommodate the rapidly surging bandwidth demands. From a network perspective, we usually average about 2 to 3 Gb of traffic within a day. During Derby Week, we average around 200 Gb of data daily.”

Managing temporary circuits for media and vendors was costly and time consuming. In the weeks leading up to the Kentucky Derby, Churchill Downs sets up over 50 media outlets from around the world to accommodate over 24 million viewers. “Historically, these agencies had to contract their own services, which became very expensive. There was a lot of overhead from our perspective to get these circuits landed and provide services wherever they’re needed,” says Mike. This extensive media and vendor management is a crucial step in delivering a seamless experience to a global audience. It consumed a lot of time and effort, making it ultimately not cost effective.

Additionally, with horse racing comes mutuel operations, and latency is a critical factor. “The way betting happens across our facility and our enterprise, latency is huge. You have to be able to answer those requests for mutuel operations very, very quickly,” Mike emphasizes. “With us, milliseconds matter.”

Spurring efficiency with innovative network solutions

In response to the mounting challenges, Churchill Downs partnered with Lumen to implement Network-as-a-Service (NaaS). This solution brings advanced capabilities to their IT operations, allowing them to dynamically manage their network capacity. With NaaS, Churchill Downs can swiftly and securely provide media and vendors with their own circuits and bandwidth, streamlining the process and cutting costs. One of the standout benefits of NaaS is offering sponsors a more affordable opportunity while boosting profits.

This newfound efficiency extends to the post-event cleanup, making it a breeze. The team no longer has to manually clean up circuits, turn down firewall changes or make other technological adjustments. Instead, they can dynamically adjust the bandwidth as needed, simplifying the entire process.

Lumen NaaS also enhances the delivery of services to partners. “The efficiencies that we’re going to see from NaaS are going to be large,” Mike shares. “The ability to quickly and securely turn these circuits on and off with very little effort allows us to get services to our partners’ hands much faster. By embracing innovative solutions, Churchill Downs positions itself as a leader in the industry, showcasing their commitment to growth, efficiency and customer satisfaction.”

Taming circuit chaos and generating seamless connectivity

Lumen NaaS is set to revolutionize the 151st running of the Kentucky Derby, making the process more cost effective and efficient. “The enhanced bandwidth, reduced latency and seamless connectivity deliver a more reliable network, enhancing the guest experience at Churchill Downs,” Mike shares. After the successful implementation of a 10 Gb circuit at one of their gaming locations, Mike is enthusiastic about the promise of NaaS. “It’s going to be great. I’m very excited to see how this is going to work.”

Here are the standout benefits:

1. Enhanced network capabilities: Advanced network management provides quick, secure provisioning of circuits and scalable bandwidth, improving overall efficiency.
2. Increased security: Advanced security measures protect millions of dollars in assets, helping safeguard transactions and data.
3. Cost-effectiveness: Streamlined processes minimize costs, providing sponsors with more opportunities to maximize profits.
4. Faster service delivery: Quick, secure circuit management enhances service delivery to partners and patrons.
5. Enhanced guest experience: Reliable network with increased bandwidth and reduced latency boosts customer satisfaction.

Generating momentum through operational excellence

The Kentucky Derby is more than just a race; it’s a cherished tradition celebrated by fans around the world. At Churchill Downs Racetrack, the excitement continues long after the race is over. The racetrack relies on robust networking capabilities year round. The company remains in perpetual motion, constantly preparing for the next event.

In this fast-paced world of horse racing, where every millisecond counts, the importance of experience cannot be overstated. “Experience is key,” says Mike. “We sell an experience, and we strive to bring the best services possible. These services require internet connectivity, which we now can offer more quickly and easily.”

This relentless pursuit of excellence empowers Churchill Downs Racetrack to consistently surpass the expectations of horse racing enthusiasts, solidifying its legacy as an iconic institution in the sport.

To learn more about Churchill Downs’ transformation, read the full customer success story.

See our other customer success stories to learn how organizations in virtually every industry are achieving their business objectives.

^{Current Lumen customer compensated for their endorsement.}

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