Start Your Engines (Indy 500)

I can now say I have been to the Indianapolis 500, "The Greatest Spectacle In Racing", and I have to say it sure does kick the little 5 bike race's backside. I actually had a very good time, and that coming from a guy who hates being in large crowds (~300,000) and excessive noise. The weather was beautiful and we (Kristoffer and I) had amazing seats for the race. I had to bring the camera to mark this day because it was the 100 year anniversary after all.

Prior to the race they had set up a giant full sized hot wheels ramp with an actual driver performing the jump. I guess he set a new world record in jump distance, but that was just the opening act.

At the start of the race they are going 3 wide and gradually build speed until the green flag. I thought it was kind of cool, but it is more exciting on restarts when they are 2 wide and are fighting for position.

Early in the race the "sparks were flying", something I never knew that actually happened. And the noise of the track was amazing, loud enough to make you feel the action.

The Target Duo lead most of the day and were my fan favorite from the start, just because I recognized both of the drivers names. They by far had the fastest cars of the day, but could not pull out the win this year.

The "Venom" car was my favorite looking and was driven by an Andretti, so I respected the car and mildly cheered for him to do well.

From our seats we could see both turns 3 and 4. Turn 3 I was told is generally the spot of most crashes because of the tight turn, but it turned out that turn 4 and the straight away got most drivers.

I really did enjoy the race. I am not going to call myself a racing fan by any means, but I do have a bit more respect for what these men and women do out there. I know I would love to drive 230 mph, but not in a circle. The day as a whole had its ups and downs, but all around it was a good day at the race track.

Here is a bonus question for you... Can you tell me what is wrong with this picture?

The answer is...he is missing a rear tire. He lost the tire coming out of pit road because it was never secured down. Yes, I think that guy will be fired by the time you read this post. The driver of the car was named "Will Power" (best name in racing) and he started the race is the second row, but this one mistake took him entirely out of contention.