" But no, hell, no, the strip-mining of this place's dignity goes on and on, like the garish droning of the cars that stumbled round and round again on Sunday, in the 18th running of motor racing's answer to a herd of buffalo stampeding down the hardwood hallways of a palace, slipping and sliding. "
In reading that, did anyone else notice the jab conpairing the eroding the greatness of the Indy motor speedway to a local Dirt Track?
The speedway lost its luster a long time ago, but it sure wasnt NASCARs fault. To blame the problems the speedway is having in the past number of years on NASCAR is completely assanine. Racetracks are for racing Posted via Mobile Device
Last time I was at the Speedway, Bettenhausen was hanging by the fence chatting with people, Signing autographs ect when he wasn't in the car. Everyone else was standing next to the car, Stiff as a board with their back to the fans, That or at the hospitality trailer expecially for them and their sponsors.
Indy car needed no help degrading itself. They did a good enough job on their own ignoring the fans and their heritage. They need a dozen BC's who at least can recognize a thousand people who live in Indiana!.
I don't believe The Speedway has lost any of it's luster. It's the same classy lady she's been for a very long time. What has lost it's luster is many of the people and entities that govern, control and participate there. And that's aside from NASCAR racing there. At the time NASCAR came to IMS they needed Indy more than Indy needed them. 7 or 8 years later that role had reversed. What's going on with NASCAR being at Indy now is an embarrassment to both but to abandon the NASCAR weekend completely would be an even bigger embarrassment to both. I believe the crowds will continue to dwindle, too.
I too found the dirt track reference a bit of a cheap shot..............to dirt tracks.
Silver Crown Championship Dirt Cars properly driven on a one mile dirt track are classic poetry in motion. Using that analogy, Jack Hewitt is one of the greatest poets of all time.
"In degrading this once-hallowed place down to dirt-track level" WTH? Felt like not only a potshot at dirt tracks, but also the dirt track drivers who work so hard to make it to Indy.
