We were fortunate enough to get to go to Indy a few years back, if you're a car guy and have never been it;s worth the trip. Yeah, maybe it's not what it used to be (whatever that means) but it's still neat to be around 300,000 like minded individuals.
How did AJ ever survive that neck snapping 147 mph speed? Amazing, next thing ya know they'll be putting a man on the moon!
Story--- In 1977 my parents went to Indy. Around lap 5 mom went to get some cold drinks. The way Dad tells it, mom returned ijust in time to see AJ Foyt go by on the last lap to win his 4th Indy. In her hands were two orange pops with no ice... classic.
I bought a 62 comet s-22 that had a "gasoline alley" pit pass thing you hang from your rear view mirror. Still got it. It doesnt have a date on it though so I have no idea how old it is.
When Jim Clark and Bobby Marshman showed up with those funny little rear engine bugs I lost interest. Man, that was a long time ago.
I remember setting in front of the old tall zenith radio listening to the race as a kid from the mid fifties. Went to the first day of qualifing with my father and little brother for years. It was kind of like the rite of spring for us way back then. Seemed like we either came home wet from the rain or sun burned, there wasn't an inbetween as I remember. Saw a lot of firsts for me over there; cars that went over 150 mph, rear engine cars, turbine cars, four wheel drive cars, crowds of over a quarter of a million people just for pole day, and some of the first girls that went wild in the infield. Went there on pole day with my brother when he was on his honeymoon and sat up in grandstand "B". Saw a lot of tragedy over the years. As it turned out some racers aren't the only ones that lost their lives there. The race did too (at least in my eyes). A few years ago I took my daughter over for pole day. On the way there I was telling her of the crowds and traffic. When we arrived we drove in without stopping. I thought for sure I had made a mistake on the date but the fact was that there was almost no one there. They didn't even have the Purdue Band, the Golden Girl or the Scotti Dogs in the parade. I have been to the race probably a dozen times and pole day probably about 40 times. I still listened to it on the radio when ABC started covering it on TV because I had grown up with the likes of Sid Collins and Howdy Bell and to me they were all part of the race. I know that things change over time. We all change over the years but what has happened to the 500 is truely a sad deal, at least to me. I don't thing even AJ could bring it back.................
That, IMO, was the last year before the long, downhill slide began. I was there for the first day of qualifying in '68 and it took five hours to drive from downtown Indy to the tunnel....the place was packed !! Today you can make the same trip in 10 minutes, buy a ticket, and choose from 250,000 empty seats.
Indy is different for everyone. As for some one who grew up here, if you are not at the race the only way to really enjoy it is to be in a back yard full of family and friends listening to it on a radio. I agree that it has changed, and that the cars of today are not as cool as a vintage roadster. The race is not as big of a party anymore, and the drivers are no longer local sprint and midget drivers. I would love it if these things were still as they were but they are not. Things change. Technology changes. Race drivers get old. New drivers come along. From my office I can see the south shoot between 1 and 2. During the days this month it is a constant sound of listening to the cars turn laps, at times making it hard to concentrate. I was at the track gift shop last week, inside the track. Leaving there as I always do I stopped and looked around at the track surface, the stands, and just took it all in. It is truly an awsome sight. It makes you think of the history, the speed, and the sounds. Driving out of the track as I started down the hill that goes under the tunnel under the short shoot between 1 and 2, I couldn't help but make a race car sound just as I looked up at the track surface before going below. Say what you want, the place, the race, the history, and its future is an awsome thing.
anyone notice that they made us wait itll the fucking womens golf was over yesterday then they gave us the last minutes of indy? like one last attempt. Assholes.. I still like indy and my main reason is they are fast and dont have fenders. Fenders make me itch. I was thinking of even going to the race this year as ill be 30 miles north in anderson indiana on saturday evening for the little 500 ... 33 sprint cars... start em 3 wide just like indy and run 500 laps on a 1/4 mile... Can you say NUTS........... Oh ya they sell beer there too Dave
I helped with a car for the little 5 one year. If you think it is nuts from the stands you should see what it looks like from the in field when they pit.
Ive never done that but I have wrenched a sprinter so I do know what has to happen during the 2 mandatory pit stops and I can assure you its safer being in the stands for that one. Its one hell of a race and if your a big fan like me your attention never leaves the track.. One blink of an eye and you can miss a lot. I cant wait to get there this year and if the weather is like last year ill be going down on the Harley.. Dave
I've been a Indy fan my entire life.My father was a USAC saftey inspector for 25+ years...he would roll over in his grave if he saw what's happening now.Our whole family lived for the month of May.Now with the$$ shitheads running the show they said fuck the fans just like all the other sports.The only ones that can afford the prices they charge are the corporate jerks.Just my rant but i hate what's happening.
Yes they made the show if it was not for him going I would not be here today It was because the INDY 500 that My Mom and Dad ( Bob Lil Axle Stewart) met I think it was in the mid 50s
All I know is that Johnny Parsons won the Indy the year I was borne .... can any of you old farts guess what year that was without lighting off your search engines???LOL Seriously, as a kid seemed like every year during Indy I found myself at the city dump in the seat of my dad's AD pickup listening to the race while he unloaded the yard waste. Its funny the things we remember.
Nice to see this thread return after 5 years in the HAMB basement. With Danica going to NASCAR who will become an INDY 500 household name now?
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