Apparently We’re All Still in Fifth Grade-Indy Sports Corp Corporate Challenge

Greetings from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where I spent two days parked in the Family Zone for the Indianapolis Sports Corp Corporate Challenge. I had a front-row seat to the Pagoda, a DJ who clearly believed volume equals motivation, and hundreds of adults enthusiastically proving that competitive spirit does not fade with age.

The weather couldn’t quite make up its mind. It was cool, there was a little rain here and there, and honestly…it was perfect. Great weather for running, biking, tug-of-war, basketball, baseball, dodgeball, volleyball, yoga, cornhole, Zumba, and whatever other event had coworkers suddenly treating Brenda from Accounting like their biggest athletic rival.

Families lined the course cheering on their favorite competitors, then wandered over to visit me while everyone caught their breath. Our Book Fairy Family Boards quickly became a crowd favorite. Kids and their adults grabbed markers to draw faces, family members, self-portraits, dogs, siblings, and—my personal favorite—a few artistic interpretations of their bosses. I’ll let HR decide whether those were flattering.

Between drawings, families stocked up on summer reading, kids excitedly debated which books were coming home with them, and I got to meet so many new friends. But my favorite moment happened completely out of the blue.

A woman overheard a few kids making one final, passionate argument to their mom about why they simply couldn’t leave without books. Mom held her ground. Today just wasn’t the day. Before they walked away, she quietly stepped in and bought books for the children. Complete strangers. No fanfare. No social media moment. She simply smiled and said she wasn’t going to let them leave empty-handed.

Now that’s my kind of competition, and exactly what we are trying to build with our Membership and Subscription Program! 

By the end of two days, we’d shared plenty of laughs, sent countless kids home with fresh summer reads, admired some truly one-of-a-kind artwork, and watched grown adults relive the glory days of fifth-grade field day with surprising intensity.

Hit my wrangler up for your next event-casey@thebookfairyindy.com

Keep turning pages—and rooting for one another,

XO-Sylvia