Indy 500 stories begin to rev up
Stefan Wilson to race in honor of late brother
Here are story lines to follow as the Indianapolis 500 nears at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The 100th running is May 29:
Field: Drivers who will attempt to make the 33-car grid have been announced over the past several weeks. The most recent to be confirmed will be a sentimental favorite. Stefan Wilson, 26, will honor older brother Justin when he drives the No. 25 for KV Racing Technology. Justin Wilson died a day after suffering a head injury during a race at Pocono Raceway in August. His organ donations assisted five people. Stefan is driving the same car number Justin did at Indy in 2015, in partnership with the Indiana Donor Network in its Driven2SaveLives campaign. It will be the second IndyCar start for Stefan, who finished 16th in the 2013 Grand Prix of Baltimore.
Milk toast: Ever heard of a champagne toast? Of course you have. But what about milk? IMS will provide milk for 100,000 fans seated in the frontstretch grandstands who want to join in toasting the winner. Fans also can purchase the milk ahead of time in 16 oz. servings. It has been customary for the winner to quaff milk in victory lane since Louis Meyer began the trend with buttermilk after his win in 1936.
Pace car: None other than Roger Penske will have the honors of leading the field to green. Penske is celebrating his 50th year in motor sports as a driver and team owner. He turned down
a rookie test at IMS in 1964 (Mario Andretti took his seat instead). He leads all owners with 16 Indy 500 victories. No other team owner has more than five. Penske, 79, will drive a Chevrolet Camaro SS. Going for four: Helio Castroneves continues his quest to win a fourth Indy 500, which would put him in rare company. Three other drivers have accomplished the feat: A.J. Foyt, Al Unser Sr. and Rick Mears. (Back Home Again in) Indi
ana: Josh Kaufman, a resident of Indianapolis and winner of The
Voice, will sing the standard with backup by the Indianapolis Children’s Choir. Kaufman takes over from Straight No Chaser, which sang it in 2015. Jim Nabors became part of the fabric of prerace festivities and popularized the song with his rendition, sung live 35 times from 1972 to 2014.
Anthem: Darius Rucker — of Hootie & the Blowfish fame and a three-time Grammy winner — was chosen because he “has a unique set of skills as a musical artist and connects on a personal level with fans across the globe,” IMS President Doug Boles said.
Poet: Bloomington, Ind., native Adam Henze was tapped as the first official poet since the early 1900s. Henze, a doctoral candidate at Indiana University, will read his piece For Those Who
Love Fast, Loud Things during qualification weekend, and it will appear in the race program.
Crowd: Tickets are going quickly and estimates on attendance have soared to the 450,000 mark, which includes folks who will be camping in the 2.5-mile track’s infield.