Indy Motor Speedway

In November 2022 I met Andrew and Jamie Bowman from Goshen, IN while at a Boondockers Welcome site in New Boston, TX (just west of Texarkana).  As I went to high school and college in Indiana, our conversation centered on Indiana topics until the Indianapolis 500 and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway came up.  It turns out that Jamie runs the employee campground at the Speedway and Andy is the supervisor in charge of the intersection of Gasoline Alley and Pit Lane.  They invited me to wowrk at the Speedway in May of 2023, so Here I Am!

View of downtown Indianapolis from the Speedway parking.

This tribute to the Borg Warner Trophy is on 
display in downtown Speedway, Indiana.

Fireworks at the track as
seen from my campsite, 
just north of the track.

At my "office" working for the IMS.
My post is on Gasoline Alley at Pit Lane.

Pit Lane, looking north

Pit Lane, looking south

Preparation for the GMR Grand Prix at IMS

On the Pagoda Plaza
The team I work with are known as "Yellowshirts"
for obvious reasons.

That's the same "Yard of Bricks" that forms
the Start/Finish Line on the main track. 
It runs under the Pagoda onto the track.

While living at the Employee Campground just north of the track Murph biked and hiked several trails and streets in the area.  For details on those treks, Click Here.

Murph at "work."

Murph and "Super Fan"
Michael is "Super Fan", we met at 
the GMR Grand Prix.

The start of the GMR Grand Prix.  

The white Corvette pace car roars by on Pit Lane, 

quickly followed by the Indy cars racing on the main road track.

My boss at the IMS, Andrew Bowman, was
honored with the addition of his name on
the Crown Royal Veterans' Wall near the IMS Museum. 
He served a full career in the US Army.

That's Andy working the intersection of Gasoline Alley and Pit Lane.
Andy and I are both members of the American Legion, so
this pic showing Alex Palou driving the Legion car
is meaningful to both of us.
Palou won the GMR Grand Prix!

Palou won the GMR Grand Prix!

The Yellowshirts start Race Day well before dawn.

This marker is located on the base of the Pylon,
which is a memorable sight on the track.

The Yellowshirt team moved the
Borg Warner Trophy to the 
Winners Circle this morning. 

The Official Photo of the Yellowshirt Team responsible for moving the trophy.

This old race car from decades ago
was in the parade before the race.

My duties included clearing the track of 
the visitors from the public.

The Yellowshirts joined other officials on Pit Lane for the
National Anthem and jet flyover during the 
Opening Ceremonies.

Just before the National Anthem.

I felt like a celebrity when this pretty young lady
asked me for a photo together.  Of course,
we know each other as she is
the daughter of a good friend of mine.

My view of the Indy 500.

I caught this video of Pato O'Ward in a pit stop during the Indy 500.

Josef Newgarden wins the 2023 Indy 500

The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is big .  .  .  .

This aerial view gives some idea of the size.  The
straightaways are one mile long, each, with
a quarter-mile between turns 1 and 2 & turns 3 and 4, each,
for a total track length of 2.5 miles.

This comparison using Satellite photos really puts the
size into perspective!

Model Ts, Wallace Garage

Bill, Randy and I enjoyed our breakfast at the Wallace, Indiana Highway 341 Cafe', better known as the "Wallace Opry!"  Afterwards, we noticed that someone had opened the Wallace Garage, a spot depicted in photos on the wall at the "Opry," and a spot where Randy hung out with his Dad over 60 years ago.  We discovered that the current owner is a collector and rebuilder of Model T Ford motorcars.  The Wallace Garage is now full of old Model T's in various states of repair and finished examples.

Bill & Randy

The owner, facing the camera, explains his
fondness for Model T's to Randy & Bill.

College Buddies

Brad, Randy, Murph, Craig, Steve

Several college buddies convened in Crawfordsville to catch up with each other as well as plan last minute details for the "Big Bash" our annual college reunion weekend which takes place next month.

Murph & Randy meet the night before to
enjoy the brewery at Backstep.
Smithwick's & Guinness

Dinner was at Greek's.  They are
big supporters of the local teams
including Wabash .  .  . 

.  .  . & Randy's high school: C'ville Athenians.

We even joined in the singing for a 

local birthday boy and new friend!