LOUSIVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- It was a beautiful "Thurby" Thursday morning at Churchill Downs, and photographer Kurtis Coady was at the track with his wife, Megan, and baby girl, Lily.

"We are loving every second of it," Coady said. "The craziness just feeds us. We love it."

The Coady family has a long-lasting connection to the Churchill Downs. You might say it's what brought them together.

"Curtis and I met at the racetrack," Megan Coady said. "We both work in racing as well, him as a photographer, me as an analyst. And I work with NBC Sports doing video stuff as well for the broadcast."

She said they met at a horseracing event, got engaged at the Kentucky Derby, told their families they were expecting a baby at last year's Derby, and, now, Lily Rose Coady is there for her first Derby.

"Lily for the Oaks and Rose for the Derby," Megan Coady added, explaining the name.

You can probably imagine that the Kentucky Derby is about more than just horseracing for the Coadys. It's about family.

"It definitely is," Kurtis Coady said, adding that he owns Coady Photography with his brothers. "Family brings the life to this. It's a big deal for us."

"He's third-generation for the company," Megan Coady said. "His grandfather started it, so Lily will be fourth."

"I can't wait 'till she starts shooting," Kurtis Coady added.

But even amid all the fun of the Kentucky Derby, Kurtis Coady admits there's a lot of pressure to get the perfect photo at the finish line.

"It is quick, and there is a lot of pressure with the shadows coming over the grandstand and the light changing constantly, because it's the time of day for that," he said. "But I can never argue with the fact that I have the best seat in the house. You can't buy it."

"No one is closer to the horses besides the jockey, and then Curtis," Megan Coady said with a laugh. 

WDRB asked baby Lily what her Derby picks were, but she seemed more interested in playing with the microphone.

It's OK. She'll get back to us when she's done handicapping -- and is maybe a few years older.

Copyright 2023 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.