May 19th, 2014 by Stinkhead
The running of the 139th Preakness was this weekend in Baltimore. I was on hand to cover the InFieldFest concerts, consisting of Lorde, Nas, and Switchfoot. In addition, I got to shoot some of the races, including the Preakness run, in which California Chrome (pictured above) won. Click below for more coverage.
Everyone was there for headliner, Lorde. She had the crowd packed in as tightly as they could get. She came out, and after just a few reserved notes, starting belting out songs from her debut album, and rocking out with that mane of hers.
Nas took the audience on a chronological journey of his entire catalog, performing songs from albums in the order they were released. The crowd was good and ready, and loved being there for the tour. A tip to parents, between the alcohol and language, I do not recommend the InFieldFest for small children. They won’t have fun, and you’l be worried about them the whole time. I saw plenty of well behaved children up in the grandstand, but the in field is just an orgy of debauchery and poor decisions. I had a blast.
John Foreman of Switchfoot spent most of the second song propped up on the barricade, connecting with fans. Though they were on the slightly smaller Jagermeister stage, they still brought the festival boom, and the crowd overjoyed.
Shooting the horse races was exhilarating. With a quick snap, they’re off, thundering down the track. There were fifteen races Saturday, starting at around 10:45 that morning. The main event, the running of the Preakness Stakes, was second to last around 6:18. This particular photo is from the running of the Sir Barton Stakes.
I love how the crowd gets all up in the spirit and traditions and dresses in their finest, drink “Black Eyed Susans” and makes a day of it. A lot of the traditions are long standing, like top hats and sundresses, a mixture of high society and drunken, un-washed masses, coming together, for the pride of Baltimore.
Click below for more pics of the bands, the horses, and of course all the pretty party people I met in the pit.
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Posted in 8&up, event, sports | Comments Off on Preakness 2014
