Danville, KY Outdoor Activities

When the Legends first stepped onto the field at Whitaker Bank Ballpark in 2001, they broke a nearly half-century dry spell of pro baseball in the city of Lexington. That first season, they made their presence known by winning the South Atlantic League championship and trying to rename City Hall after themselves. Since their inauguration in '01, the Legends have sent more than three-dozen players to the majors, fulfilling the promise of their name and creating their own legacy.

Along 1,000 feet of an indoor raceway, up to eight Sodi competition karts snake around bends and blaze through straightaways at speeds of up to 40 miles per hour. Instead of creating a typical tiny, circular path, the designers of Bluegrass Indoor Karting are proud to present a track that celebrates speed and skill. Their karts protect drivers from bumps and rolls with a three-point safety harness, bumper system, and no diving policy. They also design karts specifically for kids, which share the same specs as the adult karts but only max out at a speed of 25 miles per hour. From the 2,000-square-foot viewing area, guests can watch their friends chase down checkered flags, and the facility's 5,000 square feet of conference rooms accommodate youth birthdays and corporate events.

A solitary moan drifts across a 15,000-square-foot warehouse. Lights flicker, and performers with horns, tattered clothes, and fake wounds surge through The Devil’s Attic. Guests scatter in terror across cinema-quality sets populated by professional actors in makeup that lends to an environment reminiscent of a childhood nightmare or the time you got lost in the clown-art section of a museum. The scarred, bloody ghouls and sinister monsters offer scares suitable for humans aged 12 and older.

Baseball in Louisville dates back to 1876 when the Louisville Grays began playing as part of the National League. Soon after the turn of the 20th century, minor league baseball arrived in Derby City and for 70 years, the Louisville Colonels commanded it. Their departure in 1972, however, led to a period of inactivity, as well as a period of unemployed umpires roaming the city shouting "SAFE!" at landing birds. Ten years later, baseball returned with the arrival of the Louisville Redbirds, who eventually became the RiverBats in 1998, and simply the Bats in 2002. Over the years this franchise has spent time as the affiliate of three big league teams: the St. Louis Cardinals, the Milwaukee Brewers, and its current affiliate, the Cincinnati Reds.

Despite the changing seasons, Lexington Ice Center holds strong as an unflappable polestar for family-friendly recreation. In the summer, each of three 18-hole mini-golf courses features a different Biblical theme, placing obstacles such as Noah's ark amid a landscape of streams and waterfalls. An indoor ice rink helps skaters escape the blizzards of candy canes and stinging tinsel that plague the winter months; coaches lead beginner lessons, and crowds hit the ice for public skating sessions. After detaching the skate blades from their tennis shoes, visitors can head to the center's three full indoor courts to practice basketball or soccer, or simply sit and ponder the flavors of Gatorade that have once graced their hallowed floors.

Classic Biplane Tours' certified pilots helm modern versions of the 1935 Waco YMF, as they trace premapped and custom routes through the sky. Each pilot possesses years of professional flight experience, whether working as a missionary pilot, corporate pilot, or commercial pilot, and cheerfully shares savvy knowledge of the skyways throughout each flight via voice-activated headphones and microphones. Once safely returned to earth, passengers are bestowed certificates that designate them as qualified barnstormers, which budding aviators can then proudly display at home or use to legally commandeer an eagle.