Grand Prix on Belle Isle?

[djtomt]

[QUOTE=Richard;552594]A lot of people overseas take those races as seriously as they do here with football./QUOTE]

LITERALLY NOT ONE overseas human, and a SUPER LOW percentage of Americans gives one iota of a rats ass about Indy Car. Formula 1 is the most popular racing worldwide by FAR, USA included. Indy Car ranks below NASCAR, and possibly Monster Truck in the hierarchy of Motor Sports. Something to consider when all the touts are talking about "positive Detroit image". How can it be positive when literally NOBODY watches?

In the grand scheme of racing, NOBODY watches Indy Car, it's a DYING circuit. All the "rah rah Detroit, we look good on TV" rhetoric behind this proposal is nonsense. NOBODY watches Indy Car.

Even the most ardent race supporters have to see that the race has outgrown Belle Isle. Perhaps a F1 race on a street track through downtown Detroit can take its place? It was the predecessor of the Indy Car Grand Prix. The race was a F1 street track for a large part of the 80's. Guaranteed a better return than the garbage racing and ridiculous inconvenices we are experiencing now.

[Richard]

[QUOTE=djtomt;552616]

A lot of people overseas take those races as seriously as they do here with football./QUOTE]

LITERALLY NOT ONE overseas human, and a SUPER LOW percentage of Americans gives one iota of a rats ass about Indy Car. Formula 1 is the most popular racing worldwide by FAR, USA included. Indy Car ranks below NASCAR, and possibly Monster Truck in the hierarchy of Motor Sports. Something to consider when all the touts are talking about "positive Detroit image". How can it be positive when literally NOBODY watches?

In the grand scheme of racing, NOBODY watches Indy Car, it's a DYING circuit. All the "rah rah Detroit, we look good on TV" rhetoric behind this proposal is nonsense. NOBODY watches Indy Car.

Even the most ardent race supporters have to see that the race has outgrown Belle Isle. Perhaps a F1 race on a street track through downtown Detroit can take its place? It was the predecessor of the Indy Car Grand Prix. The race was a F1 street track for a large part of the 80's. Guaranteed a better return than the garbage racing and ridiculous inconvenices we are experiencing now.

Seriously?

Indy car racing has developed a global audience. The 2011 IZOD IndyCar Series, which concludes Oct. 16, includes 17 events in the United States, Canada, Brazil, and Japan, reaching an estimated television audience of 191 million people in 200 countries.

The Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix was last held in 2007 and 2008. Based on estimates from the Detroit Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau, those two events combined attracted more than 200,000 visitors, and brought more than $100 million to the Detroit Metro economy.

https://www.speedwaydigest.com/index...rns-to-detroit

I guess sense not one human overseas gives a rats ass about Indy there will be empty tracks.

I do not give a rats ass about football and base ball but yet I am tasked for giving tax money to pay for stadiums and have to deal with the traffic that they create and listen to soap box rants of the over payed players,but hey if I was the only person in the country then I would be concerned,but there are others that enjoy it so I put on my big boy pants and deal with it.

It is not useing taxpayer funds and the track was not paid for with taxpayer dollars unlike the 600 million stadium that was taxpayer funded,no problem with that one.

I wish I could eliminate everything that inconvenienced me,life would be simple.

[southen]

Putting big boy pants on in Florida, just to clarify. It is not like this race has any impact on you and how often you try to utilize the island.

Does it tell you anything that the only hard numbers you could find to justify the race comes from a 2011 article referencing the "estimated" impact from the combination of two years from well over a decade ago?

[Richard]

Putting big boy pants on in Florida, just to clarify. It is not like this race has any impact on you and how often you try to utilize the island.

Does it tell you anything that the only hard numbers you could find to justify the race comes from a 2011 article referencing the "estimated" impact from the combination of two years from well over a decade ago?

Ever been to St Petersburg? They use the city streets for the track directly impacting 244,000 plus residents going about thier daily business.But yet everybody seems to have a good time in spite of it all.

https://www.visitstpeteclearwater.co...wntown-st-pete

Does Belle island receive 244,000 visitors in the same time frame and are the entire city residents effected by it? Looks like it would be easy enough to avoid if that was something one was not interested in.

I may be in Florida,but the zipper goes in the front,I believe it is the same way up there?

Myself in Fl and others were called trolls etc and saying it was going to come back and bite you back when everybody was supporting giving up the island.

Now you have to bring your displeasure in front of the entire state,you lost control of it and it is kinda hard to tell them to fund it but twerk it for your benefit,the city is littered with parking lots that are a constant reminder of when you give it up it is gone.

Maybe a good time to check out the other state parks and explore.

[black gold man]

All you race fans come out to waterford hills this weekend for vintage racing. Support your local track. 5 bucks to get in and free camping.
I went face to face with Mario a few years ago at DGP. My childhood hero.

[O3H]

When it's 95 and sunny for 2 weeks straight - you damn skippy there is 500,000+ going to the Detroit island to splash about, BBQ, go cycling, kayaking, or just plain chilling under the shade of a tree.

If you randomly took a poll among 100 of those on the island Sat/Sun
- who won Detroit Grand Prix 2017 ?, you might get 2 correct answers

I'll admit , I had to look it up :
https://www.freep.com/story/sports/m...day/369291001/

[ABetterDetroit]

Today they had to close the island for a while it was so packed with people and their cars. It is heavily used these days for its intended purpose.

https://www.freep.com/story/news/loc...ing/786825002/

[O3H]

Actual capacity on Belle Isle involves the 3,500 legal parking spots.
The park logged 4.2 million visitors for 2017

[djtomt]

Ok. If Indy Car is such a draw, name the last 5 winners of the last 5 races...without Googling it...guaranteed 99% of you can't. Also, name what channel Indy Car races are on? Guessing the bulk of people don't know either. Point is, Indy Car is DYING. Period.

[O3H]

Best way to watch , perhaps is via the tech intense Television.
How much could you possibly see in person with very high speeds [[100mph+)
as a DOT whizzes past you, almost an un-identifiable blur ?

Great views of the island via drones/helicoptors and the race cars

https://youtu.be/JdyUXo-92Rw

[southen]

Belle Isle was shut down last night due to too many people. Perhaps we can calculate the fees of cars entering the island for 4.2 million visitors vs. the $200k the state has been receiving for the island.

[EGrant]

Best way to watch , perhaps is via the tech intense Television.
How much could you possibly see in person with very high speeds [[100mph+)
as a DOT whizzes past you, almost an un-identifiable blur ?

And with the Grand Prix, you only see about 10% of the race from any given grandstand due to the course set up.

[Richard]

Belle Isle was shut down last night due to too many people. Perhaps we can calculate the fees of cars entering the island for 4.2 million visitors vs. the $200k the state has been receiving for the island.

So the island was restricted to auto arrivals because of to many people.

You could not drive there if you wanted,the only difference between that and the race days is you can pinpoint blame on the races,in last nights case you cannot really say that you were restricted access because of to many people,so do not allow people.

You could not have driven there if you wanted to,correct?

In both cases the island is restricted by people enjoying the use of the park,so are you saying the only restrictions allowed are the ones that you agree with?

Who determines who is restricted and who is not.

[Richard]

And with the Grand Prix, you only see about 10% of the race from any given grandstand due to the course set up.

I went to a football game back in the 70s and the only thing I saw was the cheerleaders butts and what happened on the 50 yard line,why do they call stadium seats nosebleed,how much can you really see?

The whole technology thing is a non reply,why spend 800 million on a stadium when you can just use a high school football field and a blimp?

Why expect others to pocket support the sports that you like but your response is to ban the sports that you do not support? Because you do not like them or maybe inconvenienced by them for 30 days out of a lifetime,how much of the track restriction encompasses the whole 900 acres?

You guys do not like the gran prix so it has no value to you,but once again it costs you nothing,I do not like football,it has no value to me but I have to pay for the stadiums and support billionaire owners.

[EastsideAl]

Ok. If Indy Car is such a draw, name the last 5 winners of the last 5 races...without Googling it...guaranteed 99% of you can't. Also, name what channel Indy Car races are on? Guessing the bulk of people don't know either. Point is, Indy Car is DYING. Period.

Indy Car was dying several years ago, in part due to the organizational schism in the sport. However, the sport has been reunited for a number of years and has been doing far better. It is now perhaps the most competitive major circuit out there. There have been 7 different winners this year, from 5 different teams [[and 3 American race winners), which is a whole lot more than F1 can claim. And Indy Car races actually feature passing and competitive racing throughout the field too, unlike the current state of F1.

Having said all that, I am still dubious about the actual benefits of holding races, of any sort, on Belle Isle. Or taking up a large part of a public park for a private event for what amounts to almost 2 months [[to say nothing of the giant ugly concrete field that sits there permanently through the entire year). If the purpose is to show off the city, then I think the racing would be better off downtown again. If the purpose is to have a good race and engaging sporting event then I think it would be far better on an actual purpose-built road course.

[Richard]

^ it works well on the streets in St Petersburg and restaurants bars etc are packed for the duration,it maybe a more direct financial impact on the city to have it there.

At the very minimum they would have to fix the potholes.

So back then was the decision to locate on the island because it impacted or disrupted to fewest amount of people?

[Richard]

Team Penske has had 15 Indy car championships and won 4 out of the last 5.

Where are they based?

Weather you agree with it or not there is a lot of positive history in Detroit and Michigan when it comes to speed on land and water,that is recognized around the world,there should be some pride associated with that.

At least you have one team winning at something.

[O3H]

It all depends on the weather - Hard prolonged rain and Indy don't mix !

[Richard]

^ just sprinkle a little oil in the track and change it to Drifting nationals.

[Towne Cluber]

This fake issue reminds me of a couple of other fake controversies, the PAL Stadium site redevelopment and the Cobo Hall regionalization. This is another instance of a few detractors with their own agendas making a lot of dubious claims, which seems to be the new thing.

[O3H]

What is fake about going to Belle Isle [[perhaps with elderly parents) to spend time outdoors , near the river, only to find out certain streets are closed, detoured, etc. making it an inconvenience to enjoy the island.
In years past the Grand Prix took up 14 weeks - out of the spring/summer.

[Towne Cluber]

What is fake about going to Belle Isle [[perhaps with elderly parents) to spend time outdoors , near the river, only to find out certain streets are closed, detoured, etc. making it an inconvenience to enjoy the island.
In years past the Grand Prix took up 14 weeks - out of the spring/summer.

Perhaps you've proved my point!

[O3H]

Explain it to me Towne Cluber - Belle Isle State Park -

Memorial Day 2018 , was Monday May 28
Grand Prix 2018 was June 1, 2, 3

The entire month of May and June [[about 8 weeks) the public LOOSES 1/3 of the park
for a race almost nobody knows who won, and most in Detroit definitely cannot remember last years winner.

That's about as god damn real, factual and truthful as it gets Town Cluber.

[Towne Cluber]

Explain it to me Towne Cluber - Belle Isle State Park -

Memorial Day 2018 , was Monday May 28
Grand Prix 2018 was June 1, 2, 3

The entire month of May and June [[about 8 weeks) the public LOOSES 1/3 of the park
for a race almost nobody knows who won, and most in Detroit definitely cannot remember last years winner.

That's about as god damn real, factual and truthful as it gets Town Cluber.

So are you saying that your story of getting detoured and stopped on closed Belle Isle streets with your elderly parents isn't god damn real, factual, and truthful?

[southen]

So the island was restricted to auto arrivals because of to many people.

You could not drive there if you wanted,the only difference between that and the race days is you can pinpoint blame on the races,in last nights case you cannot really say that you were restricted access because of to many people,so do not allow people.

You could not have driven there if you wanted to,correct?

In both cases the island is restricted by people enjoying the use of the park,so are you saying the only restrictions allowed are the ones that you agree with?

Who determines who is restricted and who is not.

I could have walked or biked there if I wanted. I think you miss the point though, the point is that the park is so popular for people using it, get this, AS A PARK, that they had to shut down access. You are still trying to justify limiting access to the most popular parts of the park for over two months for a three day race as if the park is desperate for the attention. It is not.