Stories about the infield party at the Preakness Stakes in Baltimore are legendary: the coolers of beer, the portable toilet races, the bikini contests, the couches brought in from the streets.
Through the years there have been more and more restrictions put in place to curb extra rowdy — by infield standards — behavior, and this year’s event may be the tamest of them all. Because of the pandemic, attendance was capped at 10,000 people, including in the infield.
The infield concert did go on, however, and 400 pods, which seat between four and eight people, were arranged on the grass separated by metal fencing, resembling tiny jail cells with folding chairs.