Indianapolis 500

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For years Ed has followed the Indy Car races. As a special Christmas gift I got Ed tickets to the Indianapolis 500 race. We had to race from the Overland Expo to make it in time. As part of the race package, we camped across from the race track. This was an event in itself. The fields are carved into individual camp spots. It was like a giant ant farm. Everyone moved in and set up their camp spots. There was furniture, couches and chairs, loud sound systems, bars and lots (I mean LOTS) of beer.

We walked over to the Race track to watch the Historic Races. It is really hot! This will turn out to be the hottest Indy 500 on record. We toured all of the historic cars on display. It is an incredible feeling to be in Indianapolis and seeing all of the beautiful cars.

Race day starts early. There is so much excitement in the air. The pageantry begins with the band marching in. The teams parade in with the cars. Everyone takes their places. The roar of the engines! We had special earphones so we could hear the commentators. The cars roar around the racetrack. In person, the cars go by so fast, it is just a blur. It takes a while to get in the rhythm of watching the cars fly by! The roar of the engines, the smell of the burning oil and the excitement in the air. What a thrill! There were 34 lead changes and a crash on the final lap before Dario Franchetti wins the race. Then it is over.

As orderly as the campground filled, everyone leaves. Throughout the weekend we were appalled that everyone just threw their empty beer cans on the ground. Now we know why. As soon as the race was over, people came around asking if they could take the cans away. Soon the individuals were replaced with teams, boy scouts, school groups, etc.. Everything was immaculate in no time.

The day after the race we toured the Indy car museum. There were so many beautiful cars. They even loaded us on tour busses and drove us out to the track. This was a great history of the Indy races.

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