Rains hold off until after race but outcome is the same as Shane van Gisbergen wins again

Chicago Tribune

2 days ago

This year the downpour waited until after the NASCAR Grant Park 165 was finished. After previous years were interrupted by storms, fans came ready for the weather Sunday.
Aaron Moy, 52, from Morton Grove, crafted an 'Anti-Rain Vortex' hat to wear to today's race: a strip of laminated printer paper spiraled around a plastic shaft on top of a red Valvoline hat. The shaft is connected to a small motor in the hat, so Moy can turn it on during the race.
'The last two years, the rain's messed up the race here. So I'm thinking, well, maybe I could do something to get the rain away,' Moy said, joking. He based it on the NASCAR 'vortex theory,' an inside joke among fans that the cars racing around the circular track can create a 'vortex' that pushes storms away.
Many fans brought disposable ponchos or had a game plan for if the skies opened up.
Taylor Little from South Bend and Alex Rupprecht from Glendale watched the race from atop a 6-foot electrical service box near the turn at Balbo and DuSable Lake Shore drives. It was the two 20-year-olds' first time attending NASCAR in Chicago.
'We're kind of excited for the rain,' Little said. 'It's maybe not as safe, but a fun race to see.'
On Sunday, racers zoomed around the streets of the Loop under cloudy skies. A brief shower passed through the area shortly after the race concluded. The weather may have been different for this race but not the outcome.
Shane van Gisbergen of New Zealand swept the Chicago Street Race weekend, winning his fifth of the six races in the Loop.
But that didn't take away from the excitement for fans.
Adelaide Van Pelt, 30, sported a purse decorated with tiny toy cars that she bought for the occasion. She attended the race Saturday for her job with Jack Link's, NASCAR's official snack, but returned for the second day just for fun.
'It's been really interesting to see races like this, because when I was a kid, I only ever went to Michigan track. So the street race is very different and a lot more exciting in many cases,' she said. 'It's a nice way for people to access NASCAR that aren't able to experience it because it is such a rural niche.'
Van Pelt also thinks that street races are more fun for those unfamiliar with racing. 'A lot of stock cars aren't made to slow down as quickly as they have to on this track, so there's more crashes, which people tend to think is more interesting when it comes to NASCAR,' she said.
Despite previous bad weather, racers like Chase Eliot said they have enjoyed their time in Chicago over the past three years. Elliot started in the rear end of the field after a qualifying spinout.
'Coming up here has been really cool for us, it's such a different vibe for us,' Elliot said in a prerace interview in front of a crowd of fans. 'I have friends at home that want to come to this one because we can go and eat dinner and walk to the racetrack. The first year was so weird … it's become a little more normal (in) year three.'
Chicago Street Race President Julie Giese presented the event's grand marshal Derrick Rose with a tracksuit before the race. The 2011 NBA MVP spoke about taking part in his first NASCAR event.
'When they put it on the table, it was a no-brainer that I wanted to be a part of it,' Rose said. 'We've been (planning) this for a long time, so to actually be here to see everything unfold, it's (everything that) we thought it would be.'
Illinois fans also spoke about the experience of having the race in their backyard.
'It is very different to have a road pole in a city where I've grown up,' said Danielle Colomer, 34, a Crystal Lake native wearing Elliot gear. 'I'm familiar with these roads, and I went to school on Michigan Ave.'
Shane Van Gisbergen won Saturday's race — his fourth of six eligible races — while Mitch McDowell led for a chunk of the Grant Park 165. Driving the Demonmobile in a partnership with DePaul University may have given him some Chicago grace in the race.
Wherever the 2026 street race lands, the racers will go without hesitation. Chicago has been special for some, though.
'I don't know what the plan is moving forward whether we come back here or not, (but) I'm happy to go to wherever they send us,' Elliot said. 'My experience has been really good here, so thanks for having us.'