# What could be better than racing through Washington DC at up to 185 miles per hour? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** racing-auto-boat\ **Created:** [August 23, 2026, 8:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-could-be-better-than-racing-through-washington-dc-at-up-to-185-miles-per-hour/1032499 "2026-08-23T08:58:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2026, 8:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-could-be-better-than-racing-through-washington-dc-at-up-to-185-miles-per-hour/1032499/1 "2026-08-23T08:58:04Z")
How about welding all the manhole covers shut to make it safer? [DC Grand Prix: 200+ Manholes Welded for High-Speed Race Safety | DMV News](https://dmv.news/article/dc-manholes-welded-grand-prix-freedom-250) More on the race here [Start your engines: Here is your crash course on the IndyCar Freedom 250 Grand Prix weekend | OutKick](https://www.foxnews.com/outkick-sports/start-your-engines-crash-course-indycar-freedom-250-grand-prix-weekend?msockid=136ae40caf256da331f8f197ae086c47) (gotta love that title, btw) ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2026, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-could-be-better-than-racing-through-washington-dc-at-up-to-185-miles-per-hour/1032499/2 "2026-08-23T17:17:39Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > How about welding all the manhole covers shut to make it safer? There have been several instances of the F1 cars downforce pulling manhole and water main covers up and causing damage to the cars. Bolting and welding them down is a common practice. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2026, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-could-be-better-than-racing-through-washington-dc-at-up-to-185-miles-per-hour/1032499/3 "2026-08-23T17:32:22Z")
After watching 10 laps of this bumpy track, I’m wondering how many finishers there will be. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2026, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-could-be-better-than-racing-through-washington-dc-at-up-to-185-miles-per-hour/1032499/4 "2026-08-23T17:51:20Z")
Aaaaannnnd… I’m out. ---
**Author:** ![Dag\_Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@Dag\_Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dag_Otto)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2026, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-could-be-better-than-racing-through-washington-dc-at-up-to-185-miles-per-hour/1032499/5 "2026-08-23T22:32:56Z")
Hope you had a good nap. What a snoozefest. I fast forwarded the entire race until the last twenty laps, and was not rewarded. The silver lining was that the audio was so fucked up that you couldn’t hear Will Buxton spouting his nonsense. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2026, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-could-be-better-than-racing-through-washington-dc-at-up-to-185-miles-per-hour/1032499/6 "2026-08-23T22:35:55Z")
Oh, I Muted it right when… non-racing activity… became unbearable to listen to. Yeah, it was pretty lame, but better than I expected. It weren’t no Zandvordt! ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2026, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-could-be-better-than-racing-through-washington-dc-at-up-to-185-miles-per-hour/1032499/7 "2026-08-24T00:26:58Z")
“What could be better than racing through Washington DC at up to 185 miles per hour?” Um, maybe just **not** having an auto race in the middle of DC? The Mall is not some private fiefdom belonging to whoever is in the White House. It has always been an area where visitors can come and go as they please. But this is the second time this summer that large parts of it have had restricted access or been off limits altogether. It may be one of Trump’s comparatively minor offenses, but as a DC resident who is used to being able to wander the Mall and its monuments at my leisure, this galls me.