Indy 500

After living in Indianapolis for 4 years, I had the chance to go to the infamous Indy 500 with my roommate, Liz, and her dad. I won't lie to you-I'm not a huge racing fan and my knowledge before yesterday was extremely limited and consisted more or less of the fact that Danica Patrick is a girl, Sarah Fischer went to Butler, and the Indy 500 takes place in Indianapolis. Thankfully, Liz's dad provided us each with radios and I learned a ton while experiencing an amazing sporting event! I had no idea there was the equivalent of a small city in the middle of the track and that you can't see one side from the other while you were in the middle. There is a museum, shops, all of the garages, a gas station, RV parking, regular parking, and more in the middle. I was amazed and just how big the facility was and would highly encourage you to go check it out if you ever get the chance! We saw 8 caution flags, a couple of cars catch on fire (but no injuries), a car literally ride along the wall as if that were the track for about 400 yards, and Danica Patrick finish in the top 3 for the first time at the Indy 500. Here are some of my pictures from the day:

They released balloons during the opening-it took forever for them to all disappear!

The view from our seat towards Turn 4.

The view in front of our seats-it was amazing! We were right by the start/finish line and we had a great view of all of the introductory activity including Florence Henderson singing God Bless America :)

The drivers picture before the race

Danica Patrick's pit stop was right across from us

Another picture of Danica's pit stop...

This is the moment when Castroneves crossed the finish line-please notice the checkered flag waving as he's right on the finish line...how's that for photography?! (minus all of the people in front of me, of course)

The Helio Castroneves team climbing the fence after their 3rd win at the Indy 500

Mr. Castroneves himself cheering right in front of us :)

Kissing the bricks from the original track at the finish line

Here is a video of just how fast the cars go and how loud it is! The average speed was over 200 mph with the top speeds of the day around 220 mph.

In light of my recent involvement with environmental issues, I thought it would be interesting to learn about the environmental impact of an event such as the Indy 500. I noticed the garbage cans spilling over with beer cans, pop cans, and other items that could very easily be recycled. I also noticed the few houses on the walks back to the car that had trash cans marked as recycling sitting in their front yards. I googled it and immediately came upon the following article: http://green.indy.com/posts/speedway-s-environmentally-friendly-efforts

So, that is my Indy 500 experience. I am happy that I was able to experience it and hope to be able to go again someday! It was an awesome atmosphere and made me appreciate a sport that I didn't appreciate very much a whole lot more. After spending the day with over 300,000 people yesterday I am looking forward to a stormy afternoon on the couch reading :)

Happy Memorial Day!