It's been a whirlwind for Amanda Lam since winning the title of first Miss Canadian Derby last week. Lam squeaked out a narrow victory over Taylor B. at the inaugural Miss Canadian Derby pageant at River Cree Resort and Casino last Thursday.

In addition to several photo shoots for the Derby Girls 2009-2010 calendar, Lam and the Canadian Derby Girls were out in full-force for Derby Week. Racegoers may have heard Lam promoting the pageant, the Derby Girls calendars, and the Derby itself on 630 CHED radio with Dan Tencer on Thursday night, minutes after winning the title. She also did interview hits with several local TV stations. The Girls also made appearances at the Canadian Derby Golf Tournament last Monday and at last Wednesday's Derby Draw. A few of the lovely ladies crashed the Derby Gala on Friday night too.

Lam spent much of her time on Saturday glossing and glittering little princesses at the Derby Princess Party in the Derby Family Fun Zone.

"The kids were so excited, they weren't even looking me in the face, their little eyes were glued to my tiara," says Lam. "It was so much fun to glam them up. They had so much patience waiting for their turn in line. It was so special to spend some time with each of them making them feel like princesses. It really touched me to see them so thrilled."

Lam may look vaguely familiar to Edmontonians from television promos on Access TV and on local Christmas commercials for the Festival of Trees. "I started modeling for Mary Chan (Chan International) when I was 14," says Lam, who works full-time for a medical supply company in the city's west end. "I got lost in school, but came back this spring, and that's when the opportunity came for the Derby audition."

And luck was on Lam's side. As the winner of the Miss Canadian Derby Pageant, Lam has the opportunity to go to Faces West and meet over 20 international model and acting scouts. With a fee of $3,000, Lam is hoping she'll get a chance to discover if she's got a shot of making it in modeling and acting business.

Miss Canadian Derby Amanda Lam looks fantastic in a hat from the "Run for the Daisies" series by New York hatmaker Christine A. Moore.

"Amanda is the perfect person with the best personality to be our ambassador for a year," says Northlands racing marketing manager Jonathan Huntington. "I hope she will bring a younger generation to the track to the try the sport and hopefully like it as much as she does." 

"There is something for everyone at Northlands Park," says Lam, echoing Huntington's statement. "This isn't a sport that's just for the older generation. Our job (the Derby Girls) was to bring in more people from our age group, and after seeing the crowd (on Derby day), I'd say it was our kind of crowd."

While the Canadian Derby Girls hit their mark on Derby Day, racegoers can expect to see more of Lam throughout the year.

"I never thought I would have this much fun," says Lam, who was rooting for local favorite Cool Diablo in the Canadian Derby last weekend. "I never would have thought I would be someone who would go to the races, but once I took the time to go and figure out what it's about, I discovered it's fascinating and unbelievably exciting."

And what surprises Lam most about her experiences so far at Northlands Park?

"How much I actually love to bet! It's a total rush," laughs Lam. "I hope it doesn't turn out to be too much of a problem this year!" 

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