Oilpressure

Good morning from a calm and still dark Indianapolis Motor Speedway. We arrived at the Media Center at 5:48, just in time to get set up and go out on the balcony to catch the Opening Bomb.

One thing that Roger Penske has done since he bought the place is to add a small fireworks show after the bomb goes off. I decided to be a tourist and get it on video this year.

Now that the bomb has gone off, the gates are officially open, meaning people are already finding their ways to their seats. I remember growing up, we were always among the first ones to our seats. The thing is, we never moved. Nowadays, fans are encouraged to mingle about the Pagoda Plaza before the race, no matter where they are sitting.

Of course, the question on everyone’s mind is the weather. Make no mistake, it’s coming and it may be severe. The question is, when?

I’ve seen a lot of people say they would prefer to not even run it today and wait until tomorrow. As convenient as that sounds, it’s not that easy with an event of this magnitude. IMS President Doug Boles addressed the media this morning. H said that if lightning is involved, they will be evacuating the stands before the storm gets here.

Getting whatever they can get in today is the priority. Everyone is here, and you proceed as usual until you can’t. If it goes 101 laps and becomes an official race and we can’t race anymore – so be it. If it goes 185 laps, that’s fine. The only reason we come back Monday is if fewer than 101 laps, and we can’t race anymore today.

But for now, the skies are friendly. We are going to go mingle and get breakfast. Hopefully, we get it all in. We probably won’t be back here until either after the race, or if there is a rain delay. But for now, we are going to go out and enjoy Race Morning. Please check back later.

George Phillips

This entry was posted on May 26, 2024 at 5:37 am and is filed under Indianapolis 500. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.