The Boston Blues Hang Over IndyCar 2016 Labor Day

Boston: the home of the bean and the cod.
Where the Lowells talk only to Cabots,
And the Cabots talk only to God.

I am speaking now from my personal experience and perspective: is there anyplace on earth that is more full of itself than Boston?

I mean, is there any town out there that is less in worldly import and thinks more of itself without justification than freaking Boston?

(Shaking my head)

Now comes Boston, in the person of one “Seaport Area Lofts Condominium Association” that doesn’t want to host the IndyCar Grand Prix of Boston race scheduled for next year’s Labor Day weekend.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen of the Commonwealth, it is an 11-Turn, 2.25 mile street circuit that will wind around your precious homes and neighborhoods in downtown Boston, even in the glorious but slightly seedy tourist trap of the Back Bay, and just might (possibly, maybe, sort of) interrupt your staid, conservative lives for (at most) a couple of hours.

“(The) Seaport Lofts Condominium Association is extremely concerned about the impacts and legality of the proposed Boston Grand Prix IndyCar Street Race,” the association wrote, blasting the event’s “complete lack of public process” and potential for causing “tremendous noise” and traffic problems in the area.

That, of course, was written by their lawyer: all 47 of the home-owners in the near area of the course, constituting perhaps (What? Maybe 200 men, women and children at most?) the most backwards, retrograde, parochial posturing since the Indiana governor went “no homo” and was forced into reversal.

“We’ve met with the residents of the Seaport Lofts multiple times and have provided extensive information including the track layouts, details of related events beyond the race itself, the associated process with the city and state and a broad range of other information,” say the Boston race organizers.

Apparently, the good residents of the lofts think this is a low-brow, fly-by-the-seat-of-the-pants organization coming to town to put on a smelly elephant-powered circus. Maybe even kidnap some of the children and force them into their vagabond lifestyle full of drugs and booze and…..

Despite numerous pro-active efforts by the organizers (and by IndyCar itself to make the noise of the cars manageable—people in Speedway have ears too, Boston) the good people of the Seaport want to throw a monkey wrench into a public sporting event that might, just might, give the populace some relief from the never-ending drama known as the Sox and the Patriots.

(Again, shaking my head)

My heavens people, we are talking about people like Roger Penske (a man who is congenitally buttoned-down and whose team follows suit) and Sam Schmidt (a man who is damned inspirational in his courage and his spirit) and the whole freaking Andretti clan (America’s royal family of motor racing and rightfully unapologetic about it).

When all else fails you can always tar and feather a sporting concern by claiming they are taking “public money” to hold their event. That, unfortunately is another claim by the Loft lawyer—a last resort, ditch the plane and live-on-the-beach desperation move to upset the 700 horsepower applecart.

In rebuttal the race organizers are adamant that, “We are not requesting money from MassPort (the pertinent government entity with jurisdiction).”

Boston, staid Boston…what in the world are you thinking?