<P> The Derby is frequently referred to as `` The Run for the Roses , '' because a lush blanket of 554 red roses is awarded to the Kentucky Derby winner each year . The tradition originated in 1883 when New York socialite E. Berry Wall presented roses to ladies at a post-Derby party that was attended by Churchill Downs founder and president , Col. M. Lewis Clark . This gesture is believed to have led Clark to the idea of making the rose the race 's official flower . However , it was not until 1896 that any recorded account referred to roses being draped on the Derby winner . The Governor of Kentucky awards the garland and the Kentucky Derby Trophy . Pop vocalist Dan Fogelberg composed the song `` Run for the Roses '' which was released in time for the 1980 running of the race . </P>
<P> The Derby is frequently referred to as `` The Run for the Roses , '' because a lush blanket of 554 red roses is awarded to the Kentucky Derby winner each year . The tradition originated in 1883 when New York socialite E. Berry Wall presented roses to ladies at a post-Derby party that was attended by Churchill Downs founder and president , Col. M. Lewis Clark . This gesture is believed to have led Clark to the idea of making the rose the race 's official flower . However , it was not until 1896 that any recorded account referred to roses being draped on the Derby winner . The Governor of Kentucky awards the garland and the Kentucky Derby Trophy . Pop vocalist Dan Fogelberg composed the song `` Run for the Roses '' which was released in time for the 1980 running of the race . </P>
how many roses are in the kentucky derby blanket
how many roses are in the kentucky derby blanket
554
554