I appreciate this might be bigging it a little, but I think writing like this can be both: gonzo journalism. It feels like a smaller scale take on the idea, a la Hunter S Thompson's reportage on the Kentucky Derby.
It doesn't at all. As I read it I thought this article was the anthesis of Fear and Loathing (before reading your comment). Fear and Loathing being about fully embracing and being in the event (or the meta of the event). This reporting sounds like an aloof person throwing stones from outside.