Sunday was the BIG day of the BIG Indy 500 race. Waking up early to get on a bus to shuttle us to the Indy 500 may not seem like much fun, but excitement was thick in the air! On the ride to the race track we drove through a neighborhood that showed us just how big the Indy 500 really is. Hundreds, possibly thousands, of people crowded around tents and RVs they paid to set up in front of people’s houses. Others were paying to park in the front yards of others’ homes and created what I would describe as a metropolis within a suburb. It was a sight! Once we got to the race track there were people everywhere! People buying and selling tickets, people shuttling their kids towards the stands, people photographing this magnificent event, and mostly people expressing their joy as they made their way to buy Indy 500 memorabilia and get to their seats. We made our way to the suite to drop off a few things and then we found our way towards the garages. After showing our passes to the various men in bright yellow raincoats, we were watching the pit crews prepare the cars for the race, making last minute fixes and tweaks in order to win. Some of the Indy 500 drivers were even standing in the garages signing autographs, posing for photographs, giving interviews and just saying hey to passers-by. Engines were being revved, pictures were taken, and smiles were on everyone’s faces—especially mine.

Once it began to become slightly on the overcrowded side, we decided to make our way back to our sweet suite seats. They passed out scanners, which are walkie-talkies without the actual talkie part. They let you listen to what all the pit crews and Indy 500 drivers are saying back and forth on the specified driver’s channel. It allows you a more personal connection to the drivers and the race.

With our scanners, sun block, sunglasses, and bottles of water, we made our way up to the stands. Florence Henderson (Mrs. Brady) sang ”God Bless America,” and Julianne Hough from that “famous- people- dance- show- thing” sang the National Anthem. Then, with perfect timing, as she was finishing the last note, there was a loud flyover by fighter jets. Then, the time came for the pit area to get cleared out. They called all persons off the race track that were neither driver nor pit crew.

Now, as if it wasn’t already exciting enough, and the race hadn’t even started!! The announcer declared, “Start Your ENGINNNEEESSSS!!!!” and boy did they start those engines. The crowd went WILD!! So wild in fact they definitely were competing with the race car drivers in a “Which is Loudest Competition.” Good thing we had on ear protection. The pacer car came out and got in the front. The drivers were all lined up three across and twelve rows down. The Start/Finish Line was about 200 yards down from where we were sitting and it almost seemed as if they were all lined up in front of us. Hearts pounded as you heard all of the engines begging to be let loose. The pace car took off. Lap one — warming up the tires. Lap two–still warming up the tires. Then, lap three, Olympian Kristi Yamaguchi waved the Green Flag to start the Indy 500!! The race cars took off, engines churning as fast as they could.

During the race there were some spin-outs that caused the yellow flag to be waved (it means all the drivers have to slow down until the race officials decide its safe for the race cars to start going again) and a few minor crashes that unfortunately pulled out some of the drivers during the first hundred laps. Then lap 122 comes around and Marco Andretti took the lead. He maintained this lead for quite a few laps until the yellow flag was waved again and he went in for a pit stop. He had to have a repair done that took a fraction of a second longer than Scott Dixon who raced out of there and stole the lead.

While the race was going on, I did get a chance to chat with two of the guys from Hemophilia of Indiana, as well as catch up with Chad. We chatted about the race, each sharing facts we’d heard and sites we’d noticed and various statements made on certain driver’s channels. However, we mostly discussed our bleeding disorders. We chatted about various treatments and various things we can and can’t do with our bleeding disorders, such as become a sword swallower or a knife/chainsaw juggler. Al Puglassi and Justin Ford from Bayer were also there and taught me many interesting facts about the Indy 500 as well as the rules. Getting to talk to everyone I met at the race track in such a laid-back environment was much more fulfilling and personal.

Then, Ryan Briscoe knocked Danica Patrick’s car off the race track coming out of the pit. This was quite the event! She got out of her car and began marching down towards Briscoe’s pit area once her team had pushed her car back into her pit area. Those few minutes added a completely different level to this new IndyCar Racing world I was getting pulled into. Scott Dixon did go on though to win the race after several laps and attempts by Meira and Marco Andretti to pass him. Marco Andretti did come in third and I found a sport I quite enjoy. All in all, it was a great day for bonding, and a great day for racing!

Once the race was over we picked up some last minute memorabilia and headed for the bus. We took the bus back to the hotel where everyone freshened up and then went out for a victory dinner at a quite nice restaurant called The Oceanaire. (Thank you, Justin, for that.) The meal was a nice conclusion to such an exciting and rewarding journey. Many of the dishes were shared amongst the table, and everyone from end to end was chatting in groups that constantly changed participants, as everyone seemed eager to chat to everyone. It was quite the summation to such a week. =]

On a completely separate but not so separate note, I’d like to thank everyone at Bayer for making this possible. This journey has not only allowed us to bond with others with the same bleeding disorders as we, but also to share our experiences and understandings. I’d also like to thank Chris Hovan for being a voice on behalf of the hemophilia and bleeding disorders community. I’d like to thank Marco Andretti for being involved in such a cool sport and having the heart to also give to our community. You have all helped to make this possible and from all of my heart, I’d like to thank all of you. Thanks!! =]

And now for the sad part- Goodbye to you our wonderful dedicated readers. Hopefully this isn’t really a goodbye but an “I’ll catch you later!” for there are many more legs for you to read about! Next up are our good friends Lilly, Barlen, Alex Ell and Brad Allain. Stay tuned to see what these kids have up their sleeves. You’ve been great and I thank you as well for reading all of our doings! Have a nice rest of the day, week, weekend, summer, or whatever time frame you’d like to apply to this statement. =] Take care!

This entry was posted on Saturday, May 31st, 2008 at 10:04 pm and is filed under 05/25 - 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.