Jay Davidson

You'd think three days of IndyCar racing would be enough for the inaugural Baltimore Grand Prix to offer. But organizers are taking no chances. With an schedule of events that includes concerts, volleyball games, kid-friendly activities and a seemingly endless stream of parties, the folks who put together the Grand Prix clearly want to ensure that no spectator gets bored — not even for a moment. "Racing is not the only thing that's happening here," said Grand Prix president Jay Davidson.

A plan to bring high-speed automotive racing to the streets of downtown Baltimore is on the mark, city officials say, and will soon be set to go. A loop of streets surrounding the Inner Harbor would be transformed into a race course in August 2011 for a three-day event that organizers say could lure visitors from around the world and rival the Preakness in economic impact. Wednesday morning, the city's spending board is set to vote on a five-year contract with the Baltimore Racing Development Corp.

Organizers of the Baltimore Grand Prix say that they are no longer focused on landing a title sponsor for the three-day racing festival and would be content with a number of smaller backers. "We have a bucket we need to fill, and it doesn't matter how we fill that bucket," Jay Davidson, president of Baltimore Racing Development, said Friday. Race organizers had said last summer that they were looking for a title sponsor to pledge $1 million to $2 million. Davidson said the group has declined "low-ball offers" but remains in talks with businesses about the possibility of a title sponsorship.

The founder of the Baltimore Grand Prix asked a judge Wednesday to prevent organizers of the race from using ticket sales as collateral on future loans because, he alleges, they have failed to make tens of thousands of dollars of payments to him. In separate lawsuits filed in Baltimore City Circuit Court, race founder Steven Wehner and early investor Sean Conley allege that current race organizers have defaulted on payments to them. Wehner and Conley write that the amount that race organizers have borrowed indicates "the real possibility that little, if any, unencumbered monies would be available to satisfy [their]

The only time Simona de Silvestro gave her parents any peace when she was a child was when they turned on a Formula 1 auto race. Even then, it seems, she loved the sound of the racing engine. De Silvestro smiles at the memory from long ago. "My mom and dad said it was the only time I was quiet," she said. "And when I was about 4, my dad, who worked for a dealership that imported Porsche and Audi, had a go-kart demonstration at his dealership. I wanted to drive one so bad, but my feet wouldn't reach the pedals.

Two months before the start of the Baltimore Grand Prix, the race's organizers, desperate for cash, entered into a $1.1 million loan they believed was necessary to save the event. But the two-month loan - which allowed the lender to collect more than $500,000 in interest and other charges - ended up draining funds needed to pay city taxes, the former CEO of Baltimore Racing Development says. Now, with Baltimore Racing Development facing large debts, some are complaining about the loan's terms and asking why the lender was paid while taxes - including more than $450,000 in city amusement and admissions taxes - and other debts were owed.

Pratt Street has a rich history in Baltimore lore. It's old enough that the street has been identified on city maps dating back as far as 1801. But in August of 2011, it will experience something it hasn't seen in its previous 200 years: Cars driving 185 mph. That's the speed that IZOD IndyCar Series officials estimate competitors will be able to reach on the Pratt Street straightaway in the Baltimore Grand Prix, which will make its debut...

The organizers of the Baltimore Grand Prix race failed to make an $800,000 bond payment this month for a $1.9 million project to convert Camden Yards parking lots into a pit lane for race cars because, in part, of the group's limited cash flow. The Maryland Stadium Authority has agreed to a new payment plan under which the racing group will pay $150,000 next week, with an additional $750,000 coming in two installments before the end of the year. Mike Frenz, the authority's executive director, said the racing group asked for more time because it has "a variety of cash-flow needs.

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.

Let me start by saying I'm rooting hard for the Baltimore Grand Prix. I hope this weekend's big IndyCar race through the downtown streets is a huge success that drowns out all the whiners. I hope the city makes money and the bars and restaurants make money and we don't see any cars crash and go spinning into the Inner Harbor, which tends to upset the tourists climbing onto their water taxis. I hope race organizers get the 120,000 or so spectators they're hoping for and Baltimore becomes known for throwing a great road race, instead of for how many bodies they find on our streets.