Indy 500 Recommendations
Discussion
Afternoon chaps,
Thinking of going to the Indy500 next year, has anyone been and have any recommendations to make it a great weekend away? Plan is to fly Friday, and return Monday. Prices for hotels etc already seem to be pretty insane, so keen to get cracking if it's a goer.
Thank you!
Thinking of going to the Indy500 next year, has anyone been and have any recommendations to make it a great weekend away? Plan is to fly Friday, and return Monday. Prices for hotels etc already seem to be pretty insane, so keen to get cracking if it's a goer.
Thank you!
I have been to the 500 about 15 times, both from UK and from southern US, where I now live.
My first was in 1987 and latest was 2019. The event has changed quite a lot over those years. Some observations to consider:
I don't think you can get a direct flight from UK to IND, so logically you'd need to connect - or fly to Chicago and rent a car from there.
Indianapolis Motor Speedway is located in the Indy suburb of Speedway, which is not a particularly nice part of town. I wouldn't recommend staying anywhere in that vicinity other than in the campgrounds adjacent to the speedway on the west side of Georgetown Road (often referred to as "The Coke Lot").
There is a LOT going on in and around the speedway and downtown during the week before the race.
Weather can be a little unpredictable at the end of May - and they don't race in the rain, so it might be prudent to factor in another day or two (Monday after Memorial Day Sunday) in case it gets rained-off.
Buy Speedway tix now. In my experience the best value seats are high up, on the outside of Turn 1 or in the middle of the short chute between 3 and 4
Start/finish straight is great for the start and finish, but not a whole lot else unless very high up (pit wall obscures the pit action from lower tiers) and anything on the straightaway is expensive.
The Speedway Museum is fantastic.
You can only take a small cooler into the facility and they are VERY strict on this. IMS concessions are OK but bloody expensive.
I have family in Noblesville IN, so hotel accommodation has never been an issue for me, but if you have a rental car you are not restricted to the immediate area. A budget hotel in, say, Fishers or Pendleton will be half the price of one in town or on the west side.
IMS is one of those facilities that kind of takes your breath away, the first time you experience it. It is enormous and steeped in history. The atmosphere on Raceday is palpable.
If seated on the outside of the track, the higher up you are, the more you will see of the race. Counterintuitive, but the closer you are to the track, the less of a view you have - unless you are prepared to spend a gigantic amount on a seat.
It is a remarkable experience and really should be on every racing enthusiasts bucket-list (along with Le Mans, MonacoGP (?), Isle of Man TT, Bathurst and NHRA US Nationals - also in Indianapolis).
My first was in 1987 and latest was 2019. The event has changed quite a lot over those years. Some observations to consider:
I don't think you can get a direct flight from UK to IND, so logically you'd need to connect - or fly to Chicago and rent a car from there.
Indianapolis Motor Speedway is located in the Indy suburb of Speedway, which is not a particularly nice part of town. I wouldn't recommend staying anywhere in that vicinity other than in the campgrounds adjacent to the speedway on the west side of Georgetown Road (often referred to as "The Coke Lot").
There is a LOT going on in and around the speedway and downtown during the week before the race.
Weather can be a little unpredictable at the end of May - and they don't race in the rain, so it might be prudent to factor in another day or two (Monday after Memorial Day Sunday) in case it gets rained-off.
Buy Speedway tix now. In my experience the best value seats are high up, on the outside of Turn 1 or in the middle of the short chute between 3 and 4
Start/finish straight is great for the start and finish, but not a whole lot else unless very high up (pit wall obscures the pit action from lower tiers) and anything on the straightaway is expensive.
The Speedway Museum is fantastic.
You can only take a small cooler into the facility and they are VERY strict on this. IMS concessions are OK but bloody expensive.
I have family in Noblesville IN, so hotel accommodation has never been an issue for me, but if you have a rental car you are not restricted to the immediate area. A budget hotel in, say, Fishers or Pendleton will be half the price of one in town or on the west side.
IMS is one of those facilities that kind of takes your breath away, the first time you experience it. It is enormous and steeped in history. The atmosphere on Raceday is palpable.
If seated on the outside of the track, the higher up you are, the more you will see of the race. Counterintuitive, but the closer you are to the track, the less of a view you have - unless you are prepared to spend a gigantic amount on a seat.
It is a remarkable experience and really should be on every racing enthusiasts bucket-list (along with Le Mans, MonacoGP (?), Isle of Man TT, Bathurst and NHRA US Nationals - also in Indianapolis).
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