LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Churchill Downs is preparing to serve up a Thanksgiving meal to thousands of guests in Louisville on Thursday.

The annual Thanksgiving meal at the horse racing track is a tradition for many families.

"I would describe it as a Thanksgiving meal not for 24 people people or 30 people but for about 12,000 people," said Churchill Downs executive chef Robert Lopez.

Lopez and Churchill Downs' culinary team was busy preparing on Wednesday. For more than 50 yeas the track has hosted horse racing on Thanksgiving during the fall meet, along with the popular Thanksgiving meal.

"We're bringing in about 9,000 pounds of turkey, 9,000 pounds of ham, over 1,000 pounds of stuffing and green beans," Lopez said.

There are more than 70 cooks and prep-cooks, along with seven chefs to host the patrons.

As the horses take to the track, guests get to watch 12 races happen throughout the day.

"It is convenient for families," said Darren Rogers, Churchill Downs spokesperson. "They get to enjoy the races, they don't have to cook all day. Most importantly, you don't have to clean up either."

While the menu changes constantly on Thanksgiving at the track, the company doesn't.

"A lot of these families do have a long-standing tradition where their fathers and grandfathers or mothers and grandmothers come for years on end sometimes, 20 or 30 years in a row and they look to continue that tradition," Lopez said.

Call time for the chefs and cooks is 1 a.m. so they can prep, cut and prepare the food. 

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Constructions crews continue to work on a $200 million project to transform the paddock area at the track while horses trudged through the track on the opposing side of the grandstand. The goal is to finish the project a week before Kentucky Derby 150.

Tickets are on sale now for Kentucky Oaks and Derby. Click here to see pricing.

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