Entrance to the tunnel access to the IMS infield. That is Helio Castroneves celebrating last year’s win with the traditional bottle of milk.
During the month of May in Indianapolis (and most of central Indiana for that matter) pretty much everything turns into a black and white checkered flag. The ads on local TV and in print find every conceivable way to cash in on race jargon: “Race in today for savings” or “You’ll always win with our product” or some such. It’s a Hoosier thing.
That’s the back of the grandstand at turn 1 of the track.
There’s that checkered flag! IMS is just ahead
The race this year will be the 106th running of this historic event. The pandemic forced the IMS (Indianapolis Motor Speedway) to ban fans in 2020 for the delayed August race. In 2021 a mere 135,000 we allowed into the grounds. This year, however, there will be no restrictions on numbers. At least 325,000 are expected. The IMS never reveals actual attendance. Never has.
Official souvenir stand: look for the winged tire logo
A fun background for a photo memory!
The race will run tomorrow, May 29th with the green flag waved at 12:45 PM. The gates will open at 6AM and thousands of fans will be lined up waiting to get in. Always happens. Weather should be great with no rain in sight.
Roadtirement 
I love when they use all the jargon for advertising. Makes me roll my eyes, but I secretly enjoy the creativity of it all. Will you and Sher be racin’ on in to join them?
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LOL…Oh and the checkered flags everywhere. We saw a guy today with shorts made out of checkered flag material.
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Americans love cars!
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The start is truly awesome! I sold cokes there many years ago as a kid.
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There is so much tradition! We still miss Jim Nabors singing “Back Home Again in Indiana”.
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You know Al Unser from Albuquerque was one of the four 4 times winners? I think he might have been one of the youngest winners back in the day. The Indy 500 is a big deal out here. Have you attended an Indy 500?
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Al Unser remains one of my favorite drivers. I actually saw Al win the race in 1970. Had a wild and wonderful time in the Turn 1 infield Snake Pit. It was sad when he passed last year at 82.
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It was sad to lose him. That is really cool you got to see him win in 1970. My dad was a big race fan. My sister and her husband still are. I used to love going to the local sprint car, stock car and flat track motorcycle races. I did my share of flat track and motocross racing in the 70s. It’s surprising I survived my wild motorcycle years.
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The Unser family has done more for the Indy 500 and the sport than most other people.
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I hand’t really thought about it like that.
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Yeah. This one is special!
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It is very special, JC. I remember as a kid how long the race took like what seemed to be all day.
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On our bucket list! Thank you for posting.
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