Race Day morning for the Indianapolis 500 is one of my favourite times of year. The quiet stillness and the building tension are like nothing else. In the predawn light, there are some unique opportunities to make some photos that you just can create at any other time. Watching the Speedway come to life, the Pagoda Plaza fill with fans, and the buzz of activity steadily grow in the garages fills one with anticipation and excitement of the on-track fury that is to come. Any other race that I work as a photographer I will be working and creating images all the way through the checkered flag and in victory lane, but for the Indianapolis 500, at 11:00am, an hour and a half before the green flag, I revert to a race fan and share the race experience with my friends and family in Stand J outside of Turn 4. So, here is my set of photos from Race Day morning, and a few select images from Stand J during the race.
It was an amazing week with all the drama that makes motor car racing such an exiting and engaging sport. I am always thankful for the opportunity to work such a major event as the Indianapolis 500. This was my seventh year working as a photographer for the Greatest Spectacle is Racing, and I still feel like a rookie when talking with others such as Jay Alley who has been masterfully creating images of the 500 since the 1980s. Each year, I learn a little more and I can’t wait to return for the 102nd Running next year.
Photos from Race Day Morning and Stand J
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