QI Special: Indianapolis 500 Edition
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by user Alex Holowczak
The 2007 Indianapolis 500 is just 1 week away, so in honour of that, here's a special edition of sporting QI for you all, about the big race itself.
The Race Day
The race used to always be on Memorial Day, but now it has been moved to Memorial Day weekend, the last Sunday in May.
Whenever it's held, there is a very set ritual to the day of the Indianapolis 500.
At 6am there is a gun fired to signal the opening of the gates. There follows a series of patriotic songs, played by the Purdue University Marching Brass Band. Jim Nabors sings "Back Home in Indiana" too.
The cry of "Gentlemen, start your engines" was coined at Indianapolis by track chairman Wilbur Shaw. It has had to change in recent years though, as Danica Patrick, a woman, has entered the race. It has been modified to "Ladies and Gentlemen..." They then set off on a lap behind the safety car, and at the end of the lap it pulls in to the pits, and under a rolling start, the race is under way.
It is traditional for the winner of the 500 to drink a bottle of milk. Louis Meyer started the tradition in 1936, because his mother advised him to on hot days. The American Dairy Association currently pays $10,000 for the right to have the winner drink their milk after the victory. The only exception came in 1993. After Emerson Fittipaldi won, he drank orange juice, because he is an orange farmer in Brazil, and wished to promote his industry.
The winner at Indianapolis also recieves the safety car as his prize. There is also a bass of the head of the driver inscribed in the Borg-Warner Trophy.
More quite interesting facts about the Indianapolis Motor Speedway...
It was once entirely brick. It was tarmaced later, and is known as "The Brickyard" for that reason, and also the fact that there is a yard of bricks on the start/finish line.
The Formula One track within the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is run backwards to the 500. The Indy500 goes anti-clockwise, whereas the infield track goes clockwise.
It has a golf course in the middle.
The Indianapolis 500 has the longest qualifying session of any formula in the world. It takes almost four weeks to organise the 33 grid slots to be used in the race. By contrast, most other formulae take around an hour.
The Indianapolis is the second oldest race in the world still running annually dating back to 1909. The leader is the French Grand Prix, which dates to 1906. The French Grand Prix however, may cease to exist from 2008, leaving Indy in the lead in that category.
Indy is also the fastest track on the world, where speeds can reach in excess of 225mph. Formula One cars are not allowed to reach those speeds, due to driver safety concerns firstly, secondly the requirement to have something to stop the car with when you get to a proper corner, and thirdly, there isn't a straight long enough to build up the speed, and fourthly, there is no banking to provide increased momentum.
We couldn't end our tour of all things Indy without a trip into the realms of General Ignorance.
General Ignorance
What is the most dangerous motor racing circuit in the world?
Forfeit: Nurburgring, Spa Francorchamps, Monza, Monte Carlo (Monaco Grand Prix)
Answer:Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Many Europeans know of the Nurburgring, and will know about its long 14 mile configuration, the Nordschliefe, that goes up into the Eifel Mountains and back down again. The 'ring hosted the Eifelrennen and then the German Grand Prix until 1976.
However, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway hosts the Indianapolis 500. 66 people have been killed there since the first race at Indianapolis in 1909, the race that went on to become the Indy500 itself. Included in that number are 40 drivers, 14 in-car mechanics, a marshall, a pit crew member, 9 spectators and a bystander outside of the circuit who was hit by a tyre. The last of these was Tony Renna in 2003, crashing into safety netting at 218mph. He died of physical trauma, not due to his crash.
Nurburgring has probably seen more fatalities, but considering it hosts more races than just the Indy500, probablility is on your side at Nurburgring.
Monza and Spa have been pretty bad over the years, and have been heavily modified, along with the Nurburgring, in order to assist driver safety. So fatalities are all but extinct now.
The Indy500 is the worlds most deadly race.
Where is Indianapolis Motor Speedway?
Forfeit: Indianapolis
Answer: Speedway
Indianapolis Motor Speedway is actually in a town called Speedway in Indiana. It is completely entombed by Indianapolis, in the same way Lesotho is entombed by South Africa. It is not part of Indianapolis at all.
Who has won the most races at Indianapolis?
Forfeits: Any IRL/NASCAR/ChampCar driver
Answer: Michael Schumacher
Michael Schumacher has five wins at Indianapolis, having won there in the United States Grand Prix since the race was reinstated at the track in 2000. The most wins by any other driver is 4.
Conclusion
And with that, we reach the end of our trip through everything you need to know about the Indianapolis 500, the race, and the day itself. All that remains to be said is, enjoy the race!
