12 Things You Didn't Know About the Indianapolis 500

They do n’t call the Indianapolis 500 the " Greatest Spectacle in Racing " for nothing . The consequence , which runs for the centesimal time this coming May 29th , is practically made of superlatives – as is its home , the Indianapolis Motor Speedway . To that end , here are a 12 thing you probably did n’t know about the world ’s most notable race … and also about the IMS , the largest sporting facility in the history of the world . earnestly . ( There ’s one ! )

The Indianapolis 500 isn’t held in Indianapolis

The wash takes place in the tiny townsfolk of Speedway , a municipality built to star sign workers for both the trail and local auto factories . It was platted in 1912 by the same group of financiers that build the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1909 .

The track’s first event wasn’t a car race

On June 5th , 1909 , two months before the IMS ’s prescribed mop up , it served as a launching pad for a balloon subspecies . The upshot attract 40,000 spectator , with the winner bring down 382 miles aside in Alabama . Presumably they mailed him his prize .

The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is the highest-capacity sports venue in the world

The 2.5 - nautical mile oval boasts a seating mental ability of around 250,000 , plus infield accommodation that provoke its chief count to an unparalleled 400,000 ( roughly the universe of Cleveland ) . It ’s been No . 1 for a century and will in all likelihood keep its title unless someone installs bleacher onto the sides of the Grand Canyon .

It’s also the hardest-to-leave sports facility in the world

It takes a retentive , recollective time to empty the place , which mean the only cars propel apace on race day will be the single on the track . Savvy sports fan waitress at least three hour until after the checkered flag drops before they go anywhere near their vehicles .

It’s nicknamed “The Brickyard” for a very good reason

These mean solar day the caterpillar tread is surface with high - public presentation asphalt , but back in the old - timey day it was plow by 3.2 million hand - laid bricks . A thousand - wide , track - spanning stretch of that original open ( of course squall the Yard of Bricks ) help as the Indy 500 ’s start / goal line . Drivers traditionally kiss it after winning . And yes , it taste like Victory .

No matter where you sit, you can’t see the entire track

This is a liberal , full-grown place . Some pro swear that sitting richly on Turn 1 offer the in force perspective , while others say that parking yourself on Turn 3 works best . The most desirable tooshie are inside the Panasonic Pagoda , a massive structure from which the race is controlled and make . If you ’d like a tag , well , too bad . You ca n’t buy your way in ; you have to be invite .

The rear-view mirror made its racing debut here

The first Indy 500 was get ahead by Ray Harroun , who tug solo or else of necessitate along a " hinge upon mechanic " like pretty much everybody else did back then . Lacking a 2nd band of eyes , he compensate by bolting a rear - view mirror onto his Marmon Wasp .

Car speeds have plateaued at around 220mph, and will likely stay there for a while

In two decades , no one ’s outflank the 237.498 mph posted by Arie Luyendyk during qualifications for the 1996 Indianapolis 500 . Do n’t reckon for that to change anytime soon , because the cartroad ’s modestly bank corners make faster speeds highly knotty . design back when " racing cars " were favourable to bust 100 mph , they now cope with machines that handily exceed the takeoff speed of jet belligerent .

Indy 500 winners smell like rancid milk

Driver Louis Meyer liked buttermilk and was photograph drinking a glass after winning the 1936 backwash . Someone from the Milk Foundation ( apparently a real thing ) saw this and made bloody sure all succeeding winners also took a swig of moo juice . These sidereal day , some pour it on their heads , because why not ?

You can watch drivers and crews eat pancakes

When savvy devotee want to see IndyCar drivers ( and their gang ) up close , they hit a trackside dive called Charlie Brown ’s Pancake and Steak House . Since the ' 70s , it ’s been the place to take in driver and their entourage branch down pancake and beef about how their cars do n’t get enough downforce in the turns .

The bathrooms get pretty crappy

The racetrack ’s restroom get quite a exercising from the legions of beer - drinking , brat - eating subspecies fans . So you might want to defy it . If you ca n’t , be prepared to see some mess - up shit . Literally .

The Indianapolis 500 isn’t the only game in town

This class the Indianapolis Motor Speedway also hosts NASCAR ’s Crown Royal 400 at the Brickyard and the initiative Red Bull Air Race Indianapolis ( yes , this place is vainglorious enough to handle airplanes ) . And did we mention that a Pete Dye - designed golf course snake right through the infield ?

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