Matt’s Lil 500 Interviews
Informant: Alyson. Age 19. IU freshmen.
Date: April 11th, 2008.
What did you know of Little 500 before coming to IU?
–I just knew it was a big party weekend. Both my older sister and brother went to school here so I heard a lot of stories from them. I have been looking forward to it all year.
How many days a week do you usually party the week before the race?
–Well this is my first little five, but so far I have partied Tuesday, Thursday, and now Friday night.
Do you go to the race?
–I don’t think I will go. I have three more years to make one.
What sort of festivities do you take place in the day of the race?
–Tomorrow I am supposed to be going to a kegs and eggs party. Basically we go really early, cook breakfast, drink mimosas, and then have a kegger. Should be pretty fun.
Do you skip classes the week of Little 500?
–I skipped a few today and a few yesterday, but that is it.
Do you worry about police during the week?
–Definitely. The party we went to last night the cops came and we hid in a bathroom, but they never actually came inside. I have been told all week to watch my back and be careful, but it has not been too scary yet.
The texture of this work is an interview of a Freshman accounting her first Little 500 experience. Alyson, the Freshman in question, had some knowledge of Little 500 week because her older siblings also went to IU, but this is still her first time personally partaking in the week. What I find interesting is that she, like many others, did not actually attend the race and instead used it as an excuse to party. Even though this is her first time, she already understands that Little 500 is not about the race in the slightest. She also uses the term “we” when talking about hiding from the cops so it stands to reason that she was partying along with other Freshmen or underaged students which shows the fast immersion into the Little 500 culture. The Little 500 reputation is far reaching, freshmen get to Bloomington and are already a week of crazy parties to go along with a bike race.
The context of this work is that it is an interview conducted by a folklore student. It would most likely appear in a folklore study of Little 500. This is a very formal setting where there are set questions that the interviewer is asking and will not deviate the interview based on any answers given by the interviewee. This is no recording of a casual conversation, the expressed reason for this work is documentation and study.
The best trait I can assign this work is identity. This line from the handout fits in perfectly with Little 500, it says “these claims tend to feature traditional forms of expressive culture, especially festive forms”. Party culture is very expressive and Little 500 is most certainly a festive form. Most see Little 500 as an intrinsic part of IU’s and IU student’s identity as it is so ingrained in the culture.