2009 Indianapolis 500: Centennial Year

Practice for the Indy 500 began this week and traditional Pole Day qualifying takes place on Saturday, May 9. This is the second year after the Champ Car series was absorbed into the Indy Racing League, so the sharp end of the field is surprisingly strong considering the economic climate.

After persistent rain this week, Marco Andretti has been quick in the Andretti Green Racing version of the IRL standard-issue Dallara-Honda , perhaps because he is as wild and aggressive as both his father and grandfather were at the same age..”It'. definitely . good start,” said Andretti, who has finished second and third in three 500 Mile Race starts..”It definitely shows that we have the speed. On our own we're still not quite sure. We got . lot of tows today, which is . good thing, but . lot of times we don'. know where we truly stack up.”

Meanwhile Helio Castroneves has been fast in his Penske Racing entry, and has something to prove in the wake of his acquittal on federal tax evasion charges. Tony Kanaan, Castroneves' former roommate when they were newly arrived in America as young drivers from Brazil, also has . little something to prove, as he is letting his hair grow out until he wins another IRL race,.. consequence of . bet he made with 2008 Indy 500 winner Dario Franchitti before the Long Beach IRL event.

So far, the competition looks promising for the 93th running of the Indianapolis 500, which takes place on Sunday, May 24th. As of Thursday, six different teams have been represented in the top ten, notably Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing, Panther Racing and Target Chip Ganassi Racing. So far some 32 combinations of car and driver have seen on the track and speeds of 225 mph have been recorded. It seems like another typical Indy, with ..J.Foyt, Jr. running his car for ..J. Foyt IV and promotions like the ”Body by Milk” marketing campaign featuring Danica Patrick.

This is the centennial year of the track's construction. It was completed in 1909 by a group of local businessmen: Carl G. Fisher, James A. Allison, Arthur C. Newby and Frank H. Wheeler. They saw the facility as a test track (modeled after Brooklands in Britain, as a matter of fact) that would help reinforce Indianapolis' leadership in the manufacture of cars and automotive parts.

The first automobile race was staged in August 1909, but the racing surface of crushed limestone and tar broke up under the pounding of the cars and there were several fatalities. The track was repaved with bricks and several short races were staged in 1910. The first annual 500-mile race took place on Memorial Day in 1911, a date chosen to attract local farmers who had just finished spring planting. Ray Harroun drove his Marmon to victory on May 30, 1911, at an average speed of 74.602 mph.