We’ve got to hand it to you
No glass on the grass
Published On: May 26, 2010
That’s the rule at the Steeplechase grounds. No glass on the grass. Typically, adherence to this rule manifests itself in cans for beer, boxes for wine and paper or plastic for cups. But just as there are those Iroquois fans who notch it up from khaki cotton to rainbows of linen, there are the revelers who know a thematic opportunity when they see one.
Some box hosts concoct signature cocktails for the day. Other box holders have custom or race-appropriate beverage ware for the event. If you have to go in plastic, there’s no reason not to do it in style. Some boxes, like the Hardcastles’, have sets of race tumblers that come out only once a year at the Iroquois. These feature racing horses and were a gift in the 1980s from frequent Iroquois guest (and now box holder himself) Joseph Calvin of Birmingham. Asking other racers for the stories behind their drinkware, I got the feeling they might as well be stored with the seersucker suits as they make the same single annual outing.
With a variety of custom embroiderers and printers around town, the event-specific foam cup has become increasingly popular, and if you are ever seeking a clever gift idea, you can’t go wrong with ordering snarky cups for your favorite Steeplechase fan. Of course, being a fan of the Iroquois Steeplechase event doesn’t mean one is a fan of the actual racing. This year’s custom disposables focused on the party aspect of race day, with slogans along the lines of “Races? What races?” and “I went to the Steeplechase and I didn’t even SEE a horse!”
Some men brought industrial go-cups for their suds which were little more than handheld coolers with spouts, while others chose to sip their bubbles from champagne “plastics” and polymer flutes. Some forwent the beverage container all together, porting alcoholic juice boxes and prepackaged cocktails-in-a-pouch, such as the “Mar-GO-rita.”
This is the Iroquois, and it’s a chance to step things up from the typical picnic. Sporting men sport colorful clothes, and the enthusiastic box-goer and tailgater alike can dress up their beverages too. If you’re drinking out of a Solo cup, you’re more amateur than the races.
For many, the Iroquois Steeplechase is not so much a sporting event as it is a great big cocktail party in the park. But this party is broken down into more than a hundred little hosts and hostesses with their own style. Traditionalists brought their juleps and the frivolous brought their own interpretations to the theme. The award for custom cup this year may have to go to Barry Caldwell, whose printed plastic traveling beverage simply stated: Roadie.
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