Does Indianapolis Love MotoGP?

MotoGP is coming to Indianapolis!  

The return of motorcycle racing to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway was met with acclaim across all of America. The Big weekend is here and the fans and neighbors are talking.  However, not everyone is happy. And we're not talking about riders worrying about problems with grip or the final turn back onto the front straight.  

Locals of Speedway, Indiana - the town in which the track resides - are afraid that the arrival of thousands of MotoGP fans on their noisy motorcycles could keep the people of Speedway awake at night.

Perhaps fearing scenes from The Wild One, the Town Council is attempting to pass a special ordinance banning "unnecessary noises made by certain motor vehicles". The ordinance is specifically aimed at motorcycles revving their engines noisily, and will give police the power to impose fines on anyone they determine to be causing a nuisance by exhibiting excessive noise with thier bikes.

Although the citizens' and politicians' concerns are quite evident (even the most perfunctory browse through Youtube will turn up aural assaults from many European MotoGP rounds ) the wording of the ordinance seems contradictory to the spirit of the event.   Bouncing your sports bike off the rev limiter or doing long and noisy burnouts are an integral part of the weekend's entertainment, and an important factor in keeping the atmosphere going at a MotoGP weekend. "Unnecessary" noises, like so many other adjectives, is very much in the eye, or the ear, of the beholder.

Watch the WISH TV news report on the Town Of Speedway's civil ordinance banning excessive motorcycle noise.Indianapolis, USA