It was early April 1982 when then-assistant sports editor Rex Nelson suggested we go to the Kentucky Derby.

As someone who loves tradition, thoroughbred racing and pageantry, and as the guests of his aunt and uncle, it seemed like a win-win.

Forget the rear-end collision in Nashville — yes, Rex, there was whiplash — and the dumb decision to see the track at night on the eve of the Derby, which was one huge street party and took three hours to get free.

Honestly, we were like kids in a candy store. Country went to the city.

We stole cardboard signs that said no parking on Derby day, stored our programs like they would someday be invaluable and bought souvenir glasses by the arm load.

All of that has long been lost.

Yet, walking over the cobblestones and through the old wooden grandstand almost brought tears to our eyes.

We stood wide-eyed in the barn area and stared at great jockeys like Laffit Pincay, Angel Cordero, Willie Shoemaker and Eddie Delahoussaye, who would win the 108 th Run for the Roses.

We were like bumpkins at their first county fair.

Long-shot Gato Del Sol won the race, and my pick, El Baba, was up the track in 11 th place.

Back the next year, we saw Arkansas Derby and Rebel Stakes winner Sunny’s Halo, also ridden by Delahoussaye, win by 2 lengths.

Somewhere along the path, Rex took a right turn into politics, moved to Washington D. C., met his wife and is now a big shot with some government outfit dealing with Southern problems, including Hurricane Katrina.

A couple of years were spent crashing in Randy Moss’ room, and then on to my own.

Kane Webb, perhaps the mostgifted writer in the country now, started in sports and we did a couple of Derbies together. One year his dad, Spider, who wrote a book about horse racing, shared the adventure with us.

Once I got a call from an old friend; he was there on his honeymoon. Now Jeff Krupsaw is the deputy sports editor at the Democrat-Gazette.

A few weeks ago, my bosses informed me the Derby had to be eliminated from the budget, and that’s totally understandable in today’s economic situation.

The truth is, I was blessed to cover 26 Kentucky Derbies and have more than enough memories to last a lifetime if the race remains out of the budget.

I was there in 1985 when Cordero stole the race by roaring to a 6-length lead, then slowing the pace to almost a crawl (the other 12 jockeys fell into the trap ) as he won easily.

A sidebar to Cordero: Once at the Breeders’ Cup, the late Kim Brazzel saw Cordero leaving the track and yelled for him to stop. Brazzel, as only Brazzel could, offered his gift six-pack of beer to Cordero for a horse the jockey really liked the next day.

Cordero took the beer and gave us a horse he was on. It won, but it paid the grand sum of $ 2. 80 to win.

My financially favorite race was 1987. A small wager was made on Demons Begone, the heavy favorite. But when the horses came on the field the Arkansas Derby winner’s stride was strange. So the bet was changed with Alysheba (the late Ray Lincoln gave that one to me ) on top of Bet Twice, and that was my first winning exacta.

The next year filly Winning Colors won, and soon after the Derby began to change.

It became very corporateminded. Cars were placed in the infield, prices increased, parking decreased and yet the Derby thrived so much that the Kentucky Oaks became almost as popular as the Derby.

Wednesday, three couples, personal friends, left for the Derby.

For two of them, it is their maiden voyage, and all I can say is get ready for a great time.

I have no regrets about not being in Louisville because I can drive 60 miles to Oaklawn Park and share in the annual Smarty Party, which began four years ago when my all-time favorite horse, Smarty Jones, winner of the Count Fleet, Rebel and Arkansas Derby, won the biggest race in the world by more than 2 lengths.

I am glad I was there for that one, but times change.