HAPPY BIRTHDAY to the “Greatest Race Course in the World!”
Aug. 14 is officially the most storied day of any race course. Can you believe that over the past 100 years that a single facility would stage a events like the Indianapolis 500, Brickyard 400, United States Grand Prix, Red Bull Indianapolis GP and various other events like the Pan American Games, World Police and Fire Games, the running of the Olympic Torch, several rounds of the PGA and Senior PGA events, countless charity events and 500 Festival Mini-Marathons?
Over the next several weeks, locals and motorcycle enthusiasts are arranging their ride routes and getting ready to the events that surround the Red Bull Indianapolis GP MotoGP event Aug. 28-30 at IMS. Motorcycles on Meridian, stunt bikes in Broad Ripple and Flat Track racing at the Fairgrounds are the many events that take place during the MotoGP weekend here in Indianapolis. For anyone with the two-wheeled bug, it’s sensory overload at its best!
If you read by blog last year, this part of the year was awfully hectic, as I was getting married. Much like last year, I’m struggling to find time to soak in MotoGP. I’m moving, preparing for baby No. 2, and I’ll be working the Chicago IndyCar event the night before the Red Bull Indianapolis GP. Thankfully, Chicago is only a swift three-hour drive, but un-thankfully the IndyCar race concludes around midnight (CT), which is 1 a.m. (ET)!!!. That’s without a rain delay!!! (fingers crossed)
So be sure to take a visit Friday, Aug. 14 down to 16th and Georgetown for your slice of cake and a picture with the 1909 Indian motorcycle once you purchase your Red Bull Indianapolis GP tickets.
Ride safe,
Jarrod
Well, after weeks of perfect weather, Hurricane Ike put a big twist on my wedding weekend and others’ MotoGP weekend.
Rain, sun, rain, sun … It was a constant game of “What should we do?”
To keep the wedding short, we had a great time. The band was excellent, and the party ended at 3 a.m. at the Terminal in downtown Terre Haute.
I guess technically you can say that we honeymooned in Indianapolis. After our wedding on Friday, we woke up, headed back home, hopped on the Scrambler and went to the track. By the time we got there, we missed most of the GP practices but were lucky enough to catch the Red Bull Rookies Cup. It was pretty amazing watching the kids tear it up out there and put everything on the line. I understand that it was the biggest race of all of their lives, and they showed it.
Megan and I were watching from the “Ducati Island” and saw several wipeouts, including a big high side coming out of Turn 4. Those kids were tough!
Once most of the track activity had wound down, Megan and I chilled out before our evening plans downtown. We laid low, went to the Capitol Grill at the Conrad and had our first dinner as a married couple. It was fun and low-key, which we followed up with an early night in. We were still exhausted from the night before. I was pretty impressed with the crowd downtown. There was an awful lot of buzz in the air, which made if feel like the Indy 500 weekend.
On Sunday, we woke up early and caught some of the morning practices before it started to rain. While the rain was coming down, I met with an IndyCar partner who is helping with a few new media initiatives that everyone should check out. Visit www.indycarmessenger.com to find out more.
Our meeting was at the Alpinestars hospitality area. I took Megan along. While we were there, Andrew Whitney, the gentlemen that we were meeting, introduced Megan and I to John Canton, the director of communications for Ducati. For a minute, we talked about the event and how great it was, as well as my past lust for the Hypermotard!
Before the race, Megan and I went down to the grid to check out the bikes up close. We took a few pictures on the grid. The coolest time of the day was the launch to start the race. It was just phenomenal to see them accelerate that fast in the wet! What was even more amazing was when the weather got really, really bad, the good guys didn’t appear to slow down. They were like missiles going down the front stretch. Amazing!
Moto GP was awesome, and I can’t wait until next year.
Jarrod
On the road at last!
This past week was AWESOME! I picked up my bike on Tuesday and spent Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday on my bike. Just as I imagined, it was a blast, although the roads are like Swiss cheese in Indianapolis, and it definitely poses a few other obstacles. As if dodging dogs, cats, cars and other motorcyclists wasn’t enough!
Short blog this week because things are hectic at work. There are a lot of exciting things going on in the IndyCar world, and I am glad to be a part of it.
This year, be prepared for more interactivity and more ways to burn hours on the Web. Indycar.com is getting a facelift, and there will be more ways to enjoy traditional TV with the new IndyCar Race Control product. Like I said, it’s busy, but everyone is excited for the start of the season.
Jarrod
As I mentioned last week, I planned my wedding the same weekend as the Red Bull Indianapolis GP, or as I like to say it, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway planned the Inaugural GP on my wedding weekend …
Wedding Tip Number One: Check with your place of work before you set a wedding date.
My fiancée and I had been struggling with a date on which we were going to commit our lives to each other. There were a few factors that we needed to consider before we actually set the date.