New Yorker - Imported

The Motor City

"It's when you know you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do." - Atticus Finch, To Kill A Mockingbird

I will be the first to admit that there are a few things in life that I seem to overplay (Skyline Chili anyone?). I get into something and I talk it up to any and everyone. It may be overkill, but I go with it anyway. And with how much I love The City of Detroit, some may think I overdo it. Especially considering that my hometown of Bath is a two hour drive away, yet I quote an Eminem movie on the bottom of my LBPjams page. While I may aggrandize some things a little for show, I truly do love Detroit.

They've been around for a while now, all the "Woe is Detroit" pieces in newspapers, radio, and TV spots. Time Inc. even had "Assignment Detroit", where the company bought a house in the city limits, and reported on the city because they believed it was a true "American story." There were no jobs, people were leaving, the politics were rough, and, as Time predicted, some great stories came out of it.

Being a sports fan, I stuck to the Detroit stories related to the Pistons, Tigers, Lions and Wings.

In 2009 when General Motors couldn't afford to pay for a sign over the fountain in centerfield at the Tiger's Stadium, instead of taking the sign down Mike Ilitch (owner of the Tigers and Wings at the time) left it up and put up signs for Chrysler and Ford as well with a sign reading: "THE DETROIT TIGERS SUPPORT OUR AUTOMAKERS." (Article Here)

Then, after the Lions finished 0-16 for the worst season ever, Mitch Albom stood up for Detroit. He pointed out that things weren't great, but the city was going to fix them. In "The Courage of Detroit" he wrote: "We don't talk about whether Detroit will be fixed but when Detroit will be fixed."

My memories of the city stem from street sports in the suburb of Royal Oak. We would drive down Woodward to get downtown and then over to Corktown and my Aunt Sue's house. Then we'd walk the three blocks from there to Tiger Stadium. It was only a buck fifty to get into the game, even on Kazoo night with my Aunt and all her crazy friends. Then maybe my uncle would take us to Lafayette Coney Island for a chili dog. Or we'd visit Granny in Clinton Township when she'd get back from yet another shift at the Sears she worked at for more than 50 years. Sometimes we'd meet all my Dad's high school buddies and play basketball long into the night.

Now when I go, I see Detroit more. I see the old Train Station, dilapidated but still amazing. I see the empty houses from the freeway as we get to my aunt's house. Tiger Stadium is no more, just a field. My mom drives me by the car factories. She tells me that both my grandfathers worked there. My Dad even put in time on the line. The parking lots aren't full.

But here's the thing about Detroit: the people are not giving up. The city may be downtrodden, but they are going to do something about it. It may be an uphill battle, but Detroit plans on winning it.

Then there was the Superbowl Commercial. As soon as I saw the I-75 Detroit sign I was in a trance. I shushed everyone. "It's the hottest fires that make the hardest steel." Hell yeah, I murmured. "Add hard work and conviction and a know how that runs generations deep in every last one of us." Eminem started playing and my jaw dropped. "This isn't New York City." I gotta get outta New York, I thought. "This is the Motor City, and this is what we do." Holy sh*t.

I'm not from Detroit. When people ask me where I'm from I say Bath. They then ask where that is and I say just north of East Lansing and MSU. My Mom told me, along with my entire graduating high school class, to do that. Take pride in where you're from, she said. And I do. That's what people from Detroit do.

I like that pride, and I'm going to try to help. It's not much, but it's better than nothing: every time I win prize money in a race, I am going to make a small donation to the Think Detroit PAL. I won some prize money in my New Balance 1500, and got money to rabbit at Millrose, so two donations are heading to help Detroit's youth through athletic, academic, and leadership programs. A car commercial can do wonders for a city.

My first car was a Chrysler. A New Yorker. Funny how the names worked out like that. It was imported from Detroit. And it was the greatest car in the world.