Do you know what today is?
Do Ya?
Yeah, yeah it is Sunday. It is the day before Memorial Day. It is….
THE INDIANAPOLIS 500 DAY!!!!!
Oh yes it is.
I can’t seem to get over my love. We have been together for so long, since I was 9 years old. We have walked many miles together. We have seen many things….
Mario Andretti’s first and only win at Indy. And my first time to attend the race.
Rick Mear’s first of four wins.
We have seen crashes together, a fire filled one right in front of us that I think Pilot Man has on film somewhere. We have seen drunken bacchanalias, bathrooms full of people and other things, more cars and campers and people in one place then you could possibly imagine.
We have heard the roar of the crowd and the unimaginable loudness of the engines as the cars scream by.
We have thrilled with sitting just at the entrance to the pits, an awesome place to be when the Pace Car pulls off and the racers go for the gusto.
We have heard Jim Neighbors sing “Back Home in Indiana”. Not my favorite song, not my favorite singer but you have to go with tradition.
I have taken a tour of the speedway and taken a turn around the track. Now that was COOL. And lest you worry, no I wasn’t behind the wheel although my children and HHBL sometimes wonder if perhaps I am training for Indy with my car speed.
Indy and I we are old and fast friends. We cannot be parted.
These days I sit in my family room and watch in comfort. I have to tell you that I enjoy that. My bathroom is right close by. I can get up and get something to eat or drink and I don’t have to deal with crowds.
HHBL can tell you that I REALLY don’t like huge crowds of people. They make me antsy and I just want them to all go home. And there are LOTS of people who will be at Indy Speedway today. The Speedway doesn’t ever publish exactly how many people attend the race but it is close to half a million….yes I said half a MILLION people between the infield and the permanent stands. That is a lot of people.
Maybe by next years race I will have found some pictures from our various trips to Indy. There are some lovely ones somewhere at the parental units house.
On a personal level I will be rooting for Helio Castroneves. If he can win today he will enter an elite group, those Indy Car drivers who have won four races: A.J. Foyt, Al Unser and Rick Mears.
So Ladies and Gentlemen……..
Start Your Engines!!
Edit: I realize that I spelled Jim Nabors name incorrectly. So sorry.
Remember, Deb, that we also regularly went to the Indy Time Trials during 1968 - 1969. The entire month of May in Indianapolis is black and white checkered, and devoted to racing.
ReplyDeleteThe cars at that time now seem so primitive - All the 2010 Indy cars were apparently powered by Honda engines, and Honda cars weren't even sold in the USA back then.
I'll take a look at home for some pix of former races. I do remember that several requisites for a successful race were (a) lots of suntan lotion, and (b) gargantuan bladder.