Men's attire ranges from very casual to black tie. One man showed up at a local Derby party in jodhpurs and riding gear with a crop, Mohlke recalled. The simplest way with a smaller-size party is to have each guest pick a horse's name from a hat and root for that horse. Or guests could purchase tickets and select their own horses. Another way is to give each guest a horse's post position in the order he or she arrives at the party.
People own the horses and it is pretty exciting.
By the end of it they are shouting and yelling. Mohlke advises making sure everyone understands the concept before they arrive. A fun invitation can give the guest a feeling of being at the Derby without actually being at one, Mohlke said. Though Derby parties are often elaborate affairs, they can be equally fun with a group of friends in a living room or back yard. Theme parties can be an awful lot of fun.