Baltimore Grand Prix

The Baltimore Racing Development group proposing an Indy Racing League event said yesterday that if all goes according to plan, the city would have its own Grand Prix IndyCar event running on a street course through the Inner Harbor on Labor Day weekend 2011. "Given what our communications have been with the IRL, I would say [whether or not the race comes here] is on our end," said Jay Davidson, BRD's chief operating officer, during a news conference at the Sports Legends Museum at Camden Yards.

Former Secretary of State Colin L. Powell will be the honorary grand marshal for the inaugural Baltimore Grand Prix on Sept. 4, race organizers announced late Tuesday night. Powell will give the command to "start your engines" to the field of IndyCar drivers at the start of the 80-lap event. He also will be given the opportunity to take a 180-mph tour of the 2.0-mile temporary street circuit in downtown Baltimore from the passenger seat of an IndyCar two-seater. "The opportunity to be grand marshal for the inaugural Grand Prix is an honor, as it will showcase the city of Baltimore and the beautiful Inner Harbor to a worldwide audience, and I'm very happy to be a part of that," he said.

The Baltimore Grand Prix will return to the Inner Harbor on Sept. 2, according to the 2012 IZOD IndyCar Series schedule released today. Despite financial woes, it appears IndyCar remains committed to Baltimore, one of the few East Coast races on the schedule. Terry Angstadt, president of IndyCar's commercial division, told The Sun two weeks ago that his organization remains supportive of the event, even amid revelations that Baltimore Racing Development faces more than $12 million in debts.

Gov. Martin O'Malley and Mayor Stephanie C. Rawlings-Blake announced Wednesday the long-anticipated deal to transform downtown Baltimore into a high-speed raceway for Indy-style cars. Flanked by racing stars Al Unser Jr. and Graham Rahal, officials proclaimed the Baltimore Grand Prix a "game-changer" that they said would inject millions of dollars into the city's economy. "It will bring eyes from all around the world to Baltimore and to Maryland," said O'Malley, who compared the race's impact to the Preakness.

Just four months before high-speed cars are scheduled to race through downtown streets, the IndyCar Series is seeking a new team to take over the Baltimore Grand Prix. IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard said Monday that leaders of the racing series "are currently visiting with some potential partners or promoters" who could put on the Labor Day weekend racing event. If necesssary, IndyCar would take over the management of the race directly, he said. "The city and IndyCar continue to work together to ensure this event takes place," Bernard said in an email.

City officials and organizers have moved Baltimore's inaugural Grand Prix to the long Labor Day weekend next year, which they say will draw larger crowds and cause fewer hassles than the August date for which the event was originally planned. "We really want people to be able to come to this for the full three days, and not just for the Sunday race," said Baltimore Racing Development president Jay Davidson, who announced the date change Monday. "This makes it marketable as an entire weekend in Baltimore City.

Some pressed against chain-link fences, straining for a better view of the hurtling cars. Others mingled in white tents, struggling to be heard over thundering engines. And an elderly woman perched on the edge of her car, craning for a better view of the unfamiliar spectacle. After years of planning, months of street-clogging roadwork and days of elaborate construction, the inaugural Baltimore Grand Prix roared into reality Friday. Gleaming low-slung cars ripped around the two-mile track near the Inner Harbor, while racing celebrities scrawled autographs and posed for photos with fans in the Baltimore Convention Center, which was transformed into a paddock area.

August 13, 2011 Steven Wehner had overcome dyslexia, a stint in jail on drug charges and the loss of his repair shop on Martha's Vineyard. Living in the basement of his mother's Rodgers Forge home, he set his sights on his biggest challenge yet: Bringing an IndyCar race to downtown Baltimore. With the drop of the green flag in three weeks, Wehner's dream will roar to life. Glossy race cars are set to dart down newly paved roads alongside the Inner Harbor, bearing on their sleek frames the aspirations of city and state officials who are betting on the inaugural Baltimore Grand Prix to draw tens of thousands of race fans, pump tens of millions of dollars into the local economy and burnish the image of the city.

What gets lost in all of the back and forth about the Baltimore Grand Prix is that it was it was fun and cool. I had a blast. My friends came from Columbia and Annapolis and spent the day in downtown Baltimore and had a great time. Seeing the pit crews inside the convention center was awesome. Of course, I understand that it has to make financial sense as well, but I just want to encourage everyone to work it out because it was a pretty great event and I am very much looking forward to next year.