  7even Member Username: 7even Post Number: 15 Registered: 03-2006 Posted From: 71.13.53.66 |
Do you ever think the race will come back to Detroit? | ||
Border5150 Member Username: Border5150 Post Number: 158 Registered: 03-2004 Posted From: 71.226.167.9 |
No. Unless Roger Penske gets involved. | ||
Thursdaynext Member Username: Thursdaynext Post Number: 34 Registered: 04-2006 Posted From: 69.212.45.121 |
One of the earliest jobs I ever had was working in a picture frame shop. This would have been when the Grand Prix was still taking place in Detroit. Every year we couldn't wait for the unveiling of the official Detroit Grand Prix poster. Some were blah, others were very cool. There were plenty of folks out there who were really into cars, racing and in particular this event; they became collectors of these prints. We'd order as much stock as we could and it would just fly off the walls and out of the stock bins. I miss the Grand Prix, I wish it would come back to Detroit. | ||
Islandman Member Username: Islandman Post Number: 190 Registered: 08-2004 Posted From: 68.42.171.59 |
Ditto. It was always cool after the race the race to have some nicely paved streets downtown. My fondest memory was watching the races from the rotating restaurant on top of the Westin (as it was called back then). /.formula.\ | ||
Smogboy Member Username: Smogboy Post Number: 2886 Registered: 11-2004 Posted From: 69.47.100.44 |
I liked it better when it was ran ON the streets of Detroit. What a wonderful backdrop to see these cars buzzing around OUR city. When they moved it to Belle Isle, it lost its appeal with me. | ||
Ramcharger Member Username: Ramcharger Post Number: 11 Registered: 05-2006 Posted From: 68.42.78.175 |
Back in 1985 Coleman Young passed on the chance to make downtown Detroit the permanent home of the US Grand Prix by refusing to sign a 20 year contract with Formula One officials. He didn’t want the land east of the RenCen, where the pits and the grandstands were set up, to not be available for development. Now, more than 20 years later, all that’s been built on that land is a couple of lousy parking structures. What a missed opportunity! | ||
7milekid Member Username: 7milekid Post Number: 72 Registered: 01-2006 Posted From: 68.41.222.28 |
My dad used to take me to the race when I was a kid. When they stopepd running and I asked him why he said it was because the course was so dilapidated that it was dangerous for the drivers, is this really the case? | ||
Ramcharger Member Username: Ramcharger Post Number: 12 Registered: 05-2006 Posted From: 68.42.78.175 |
When the race was run on downtown streets the drivers would complain loudly about the bumps and manhole covers. They would weld metal plates to the underside of the cars to prevent them from being torn up. But, I don’t think safety was ever an issue. | ||
7milekid Member Username: 7milekid Post Number: 74 Registered: 01-2006 Posted From: 68.41.222.28 |
how sweet would it be if we ran a rally car circuit through the streets of downtown?! | ||
Pjazz Member Username: Pjazz Post Number: 39 Registered: 04-2005 Posted From: 70.236.145.162 |
Man you must of paid a pretty penny to see the race from atop the ren cin. | ||
Royce Member Username: Royce Post Number: 1627 Registered: 07-2004 Posted From: 69.220.34.39 |
I think the Grand Prix could have really worked out if they could have used the entire island. Imagine the speeds they could have gotten up to if they could have used the majority of straight-aways on the island. Too bad folks could not agree to having Belle Isle closed one weekend of the year. | ||
Paulmcall Member Username: Paulmcall Post Number: 712 Registered: 05-2004 Posted From: 68.40.119.216 |
Workers downtown didn't appreciate inconvenience of closed off streets and barriers all over. I'm surprised they didn't utilize any of the freeways. We have a Grand Prix every day out there. | ||
Islandman Member Username: Islandman Post Number: 192 Registered: 08-2004 Posted From: 68.42.171.59 |
Pjazz, I didn't, but my grandmother did.  I also agree it was way better when it was downtown. There were bridges for workers to get to their jobs, but parking would have been a pain. Plus, wasn't it 3-4 days with most of it falling on the weekend? | ||
The_rock Member Username: The_rock Post Number: 1311 Registered: 11-2003 Posted From: 68.42.251.225 |
As I recall, Friday was a "free day", and all were invited to "come in" and watch fre of charge. But you paid for the Sat Time Trials and the and Sunday(final) events. We used to take clients and have a neat party from the roof and even from thet front door of the Detroit Raquet Club on Woodbridge St. which is still located by the Ren Cen. What a view. You needed ear muffs (plugs) if you stood at the front door of the Club and watched the cars zoom by as you could practically touch them. | ||
The_rock Member Username: The_rock Post Number: 1312 Registered: 11-2003 Posted From: 68.42.251.225 |
As I recall, Friday was a "free day", and all were invited to "come in" and watch free of charge. But you paid for the Sat Time Trials and Sunday's (final)events. We used to take clients and have a neat party from both the roof and even from the front door of the Detroit Racquet Club on Woodbridge St.located by Ren Cen. What a view. You needed ear muffs (plugs) if you stood at the front door of the Club and watched the cars zoom by as you could practically touch them. The noise was deafeaning. Although Belle Isle was an interesting venue for the races, I understand that many complained that the street( track) was not wide enough to allow passing of one car by another, which took away a lot of the competitiveness of the event. | ||
Gistok Member Username: Gistok Post Number: 2292 Registered: 08-2004 Posted From: 4.229.90.191 |
I think the coolest of all the Grand Prix posters was the 1989 Grand Prix VIII poster with the pitstop scene using a modified DIA Diego Rivera mural scene. It hangs proudly in the vestibule of my house.... | ||
Rjk Member Username: Rjk Post Number: 335 Registered: 11-2003 Posted From: 68.41.145.5 |
I attended the free Prix day 3X, once downtown and twice at the island. I remember being near St Andrews Hall and seeing the cars make a turn and come straight at me as I was able to look over the fence. Being tall came in very handy on that day. Seeing that for the first time was quite impressive. The other thing that stands out in my mind about the downtown race is what seemed to be an endless amount of attractive woman. I don't think they let woman in unless they were young, attractive, and wearing bikini tops with cut off shorts. Even in the following days newspaper there was an article that dealt exclusively with the bikini top clad woman. Even if you weren't a race fan it was people watching at it's best. I don't have much good to say about the race when it was at the island. I think it lost all the excitement and the party atmosphere that was present when it was downtown. On BI you felt like you were watching the race out in the middle of a large field of grass. You almost forgot that you were even surrounded by water. | ||
J32885 Member Username: J32885 Post Number: 35 Registered: 11-2005 Posted From: 68.41.108.161 |
I also mis watching and going to the Detroit Grand Prix. The DGP and the Indy 500 were the only F1 races that I only cared for. Oh well, maybe with Roger Penske's involvement with the City of Detroit, maybe he can bring back the race, and find a suitiable location for it to be held. Troubles began for the DGP when they wanted to move the event to the State Fair Grounds, as well all know that didn't work out at all. | ||
Susanarosa Member Username: Susanarosa Post Number: 920 Registered: 11-2003 Posted From: 208.39.170.90 |
The Indy 500 isn't F1. | ||
Detroitstar Member Username: Detroitstar Post Number: 58 Registered: 01-2006 Posted From: 35.8.144.6 |
I went to a couple of the races as a kid. Does anyone know the course, or have a map that lays out the course? I would be curious to know where exactly the course was. | ||
Fjw718 Member Username: Fjw718 Post Number: 21 Registered: 11-2005 Posted From: 38.117.242.163 |
The drivers HATED the detroit circut. It was narrow bumpy and dangerous, it is amazing they kept coming back. CART then used the street course for two more years after f1 left before moving to belle isle. I was lucky enough to see both an f1 and cart race on the street course, loved it! Here is a video of one lap around the streetcourse in 1988 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v =fgzwm_k2mEM&search=detroit%20 grand%20prix And here is a map of the streetcourse: [img]http://www.na-motorsports.com/ Tracks/MI/images/detroit/detro it.gif[/img] | ||
Susanarosa Member Username: Susanarosa Post Number: 922 Registered: 11-2003 Posted From: 208.39.170.90 |
The best example of how dangerous the Detroit Grand Prix tracks were is also probably the funniest... I could have it backwards but there's a tow truck out on the course to clean up some other poor driver who hit the wall when Michael comes around and hits the tow truck and then Mario comes around and hits Michael. Classic Andretti luck. | ||
Southwestmap Member Username: Southwestmap Post Number: 501 Registered: 01-2005 Posted From: 70.229.231.102 |
Funny, I was just thinking about the Gran Prix and the excitement - you could just feel it growing as the streets were closed off and readied. The last week many downtown workers took buses instead of driving because there was such limited parking. That was, for me, such an urban feeling. My mother and father (suburbanites then)and no fans of cars or racing came downtown just to walk around and take in the glad sight of their city in all its joy and finery. Those were really great days. | ||
Danny Member Username: Danny Post Number: 4351 Registered: 02-2004 Posted From: 141.217.174.223 |
For far as I can see it, the DETROIT GRAND PRIX is dead!!! | ||
Swgz31 Member Username: Swgz31 Post Number: 1 Registered: 06-2006 Posted From: 68.43.3.234 |
Hey all I'm new to the forum. I remember faintly going to the CART races at Belle Isle growing up, wasn't all too exciting. It would've been awesome to see F1 race downtown. Does anyone know what streets were used while racing downtown? | ||
Ramcharger Member Username: Ramcharger Post Number: 16 Registered: 05-2006 Posted From: 68.42.78.175 |
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