2008 Indy 500 Media Tour
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
BOB JENKINS: It seems like that often when you're talking to someone who has been around here for years, the topic always comes up, well, how many races will this be for you? This will be the 92nd running of the Indianapolis 500, of course we're entering a period in which many celebrations will occur for the building of the track and the first "500." So to give us sort of a preview of the 92nd running of the Indianapolis 500, we have the president and COO of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Mr. Joie Chitwood with us.
Joie, it's not going to be long 'till we open the doors once again. How are preparations going for the month of May this year?
JOIE CHITWOOD: They're going pretty well. You know, it's always a challenge bringing the facility back to life after being dormant for so long. It's nice to see things green up and get everything cleaned up. For most of you when you came in this morning, you saw some of the improvements we've made that will actually affect our motorcycle or the F1 track for motorcycle racing. There's some challenges with that. That affects a lot of parking that we have for the infield. So we're struggling through those plans to accommodate our customers and our fans. There's so many things that are exciting to talk about the "500." I actually had to write a couple down because it's so amazing when you think about what we do, how we do it, the "500" has been around for so long but there's still opportunities to improve and make some changes.
One of the things that we did here after unification was work with Roger Penske and Paul Newman to send a letter out to our customers. We reach back into our database for 10 years. Every customer who no longer purchases a ticket to the "500," they receive a letter from Paul Newman and Roger Penske inviting them back. I actually had a customer call me and tell me if I had gotten either one of them to call them, he would have bought a suite, as well. (Laughter)
It seemed like it hit the right note. When you look at those individuals and the credentials behind them, what a great way to invite a customer back to the Indy 500, Roger Penske and his history here and Paul Newman being such a great strong representative for CART. So we're really pleased with that.
We've got a couple other things we're focused on this year. For those of you who have been around when Miller Lite Carb Day was on Thursday versus Friday, that change we made a couple years, we're excited about that. We have a lot more folks come out on Friday and enjoy the kickoff to the weekend. We announced a couple weeks back Stone Temple Pilots will be the band. They're really setting up a reunion tour. We think that might be our strongest talent to date so far. We had Kid Rock last year, Black Crowes a couple years ago, so those things are great. One of the things I wanted to make sure to share today is Jim Nabors will be here and will be singing "Back Home Again in Indiana." A lot of discussion about Jim and why he wasn't here last year. Jim had gone to the doctor and had a heart ailment, nothing serious, but living in Hawaii the doctor did not want him to be on a plane for 12 hours where no one could get to him.
I don't know if you know this, but Jim's listed occupation now is a macadamia nut farmer in Hawaii. So imagine leaving Hawaii every year to come to Indiana. But we've spoken to him, he is planning to be here. So there were no serious health issues that will preclude him and, goodness, with our Centennial approaching, there is only one person I would want to be up there singing "Back Home Again in Indiana."
A couple other things I had written down that I wanted to make sure I share with everybody was the beautiful Pace Cars over there. We will have the ethanol Pace Car here tomorrow. But what you see over there is the rendition 30 years later from '78 to 2008 of the Indy 500 Pace Car. I remember that '78 as clear as a bell. My dad had one. I can remember the silver seats and the interior and the fact that 30 years later we can do that replica of the 2008 Indy 500 Pace Car and that a customer can actually buy, there will be 500 limited edition Corvettes that you can buy as a normal person. There are so many Corvette aficionados out there, and the chance to buy that replica is pretty special. Maybe I need to talk to Tony, maybe I can work on a salary deal, maybe I can get one, too. And I think Brian and Terry would probably want one, as well.
When you think about things that resonate with our customers, bringing a vehicle from 30 years ago and make it relevant today.
A couple things I wanted to share, qualifying in general. Brian talked about it, and we had weather the last couple years affecting Pole Day, and last year it worked. It worked how we wanted it to work. We got to see a great shootout for those top 11 positions. I think, more importantly, when you look at what we're going into this year with the competitive nature of the IndyCar Series and the car count, I think day two will be as exciting as day one. Day two will be positions 12 through 22; I think there will be as much competition for that 22nd spot on Sunday as there will be for the 11th spot on Saturday or even the pole. Same thing I think with second weekend of qualifications. I know that we have a partner who jumped in with Peak Motor Oil for not only the Pole Award this year but our front row. I think qualifying, in general, will continue to be very competitive and, knock on wood, with weather being good we'll have another great show. I think we're starting to see that. That's what we want, we want fans to be entertained and have a good time.
Usually when I get up and talk about this, I want to take the first question away from everybody as it relates to asking about the Indy 500. I go and speak a lot about it, and no, Helio is not dating Julianne. That's all anybody wants to ask me about the Indy 500. But I do want to share that Julianne will be here for the Indy 500, and she will be singing the national anthem for the 92nd running of the Indy 500. I think Helio wanted to join her up there, but he will be getting strapped into the car, so it will be solo for her and she will be singing the anthem this year. So we're pretty excited about that. Overall this is a great time of year, start thinking about May and the race, and there are so many wonderful things. I guess that was a long-winded answer to things that are going on and what we're preparing for this month of May.
JENKINS: Two great pieces of news, Julianne and Jim Nabors, you can't get much better than that. (Laughter)
You talked about Centennial celebrations, coming up 2009 will be the 100th anniversary of the building of the track and then 2011, the first "500." What are you planning? Can you give us a thumbnail sketch of what is going to be happening?
CHITWOOD: I will try and give you a little taste of it. We're going to have a fairly significant event in May to really unveil all sorts of things, logos, activities and do some serious things about it. When you think about 2009 representing the 100th anniversary of the property itself, it's pretty special. I was so worried in planning for adding a motorcycle race and our Centennial that when Tony unified the series, it just added something else to that mix and created a lot more stress, very good stress, but a lot of things on our plate. One of the things I wanted to do was add a couple props to my talks. So I asked them to bring over two vehicles as it related to the Centennial and whether they really relate to the track or not, it's up for you to decide. But one of the things I think is special about the Centennial, it's not just about the Speedway, it's about the fans that have such a reaction to the property. I was at a dinner with Andy Granatelli about 12 years ago, and Andy, for those of you who know Andy, Mr. Indy 500, Mr. STP, very gregarious, outgoing individual, he went around the table that night at dinner and asked us in 10 words or less, "Why is the Speedway special to you?" We're all fumbling for an answer, no one can do it. Tony (George) was there, and Tony said, I'll never forget this, "Its spirit touches all who enter." I think when you drive through those gates, whether you remember the first time you came to the property with your family, maybe you remember when A.J. Foyt won the race in '61 -- you were there, Rich? Were you in college then? (Laughter)
But it does create an emotional response. We are the only sports property, I think, that's elevated the name of its community to international recognition. This Centennial celebration is about the fans who have so much passion about what we do.
We all have a personal story, so I wanted to talk about this 1941 winner, the Noc-Out Hose Clamp special. Yes, it won the race in '41, but does anybody know who drove it in '46? Trick question. My grandfather. My grandfather drove this car in 1946 and finished fifth place. He finished fifth three times in his career here at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Back in the early 2000s, I was invited down from Chicago and given the opportunity to drive this car around the track in pre-race for the Indianapolis 500. Here I am driving my grandfather's race car 50 years later around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Do you think I have a story to tell? Absolutely. This place means so much to me. As it relates to the Centennial, I've got a story, but I bet if I asked any one of you, you could tell me your story, and you remember it as crystal clear as the day when you showed up and experienced it.
So just wanted to share with you my own personal story, just a little bit about why the '41 winner is more special to me in '46 than '41. Anybody know what that car is? It's from the basement. You know, the basement where nobody is allowed to go in to see the cars where that we have. Right, the basement doesn't exist. Anyone want to take a guess at what year this is? 1905 and it's the 1905 Sears and Roebuck car. You know what was interesting about the 1905 Sears and Roebuck car? You ordered it through the mail. It showed up in a box. (Laughter) You put it together yourself. OK? So this is a mail-order car.
Now, the reason why I like this, because I think it tells a little bit of the story about the dawn of the automobile in America and how the Speedway played a role in that. Think about if you're selling automobiles back then. Sears and Roebuck sold it through a mail-order catalog, but Joie Chitwood might have been selling three cars out of his garage. What did you do to sell a car back then? Did you buy Internet, buy some TV? No, what you needed to do was show them it could actually run, that it actually had -- whether it was 10 miles per hour it could drive or whatever. So the Speedway being built in 1909 wasn't about racing at all. It was about differentiating Indianapolis from Detroit as to the dawn of the automobile. And I think this car, this mail-order car in our basement, just tells a little bit of that story what that era was like and why the Speedway was built overall. Luckily, in 1911 they decided to host the Indy 500, and that's why we stand here today. But to think about why it was built in the first place, what automobile technology was like back then, I think this is an interesting component and something people don't think about. I mean, did anybody ever know that, that you could order a car via mail order and you had to put it together yourself? Who would ever think something like that because we're so used to technology and how cars are built today? So that's my gimmicks for today, Bob, in terms of my props.
JENKINS: Good stuff. OK, let's open it up for questions now for Joie.
Q: I have a personal question to you. You mentioned that your grandfather drove this car. Have you ever raced yourself?
CHITWOOD: No, I never did race myself. My family is known for having an automobile stunt show and so from 1943 to 1998, we had the Joie Chitwood Thrill Show that traveled around the United States. So I spent 20 years as a stuntman. As it relates to this car, I do want to share something funny. For those of you who haven't had a chance to look closely at it, I recommend you do. So in that car you have a clutch and a gas pedal, and the gear shift is between your legs and then the steering wheel. What's missing? The brake, which is outside and which is the lever. So there's nothing more exciting than getting to drive this car around the track pre-race at the Indy 500 or nerve racking in the fact you don't want to do anything wrong with it and be blamed for something. As we're going around the track taking a lap, I get to pit lane and there are people everywhere, they're all over the place. So what do you do, you want to slow down. You go to hit the brake. Oh, that's right, reach out but I've got to downshift. OK, so downshift, brake, steering wheel, don't have three hands. So I think I ended up stalling it right there in pit lane. I'd much rather do that than having anything bad happen to it. So my connection is really through that way. He raced in the '40s and then created the stunt show back then.
Q: Joie, with the plans of the Centennial, we've seen a lot of the redevelopment plans, which will dramatically change the south end of the track. Can you give us an update on it and how it's coming along?
CHITWOOD: Absolutely. The town of Speedway is embarking on an absolute necessity for their community moving forward. That's the opportunity to really remake what their Main Street looks like and the property around it. They're a landlocked community, and when you think about investment in their community, they haven't had much. We bring so many people to town to showcase the Speedway, I think there's a great opportunity for them to showcase their community, as well. We've talked about moving of roads, closing of Georgetown, creating a linear park. Really, the key is making sure that their Main Street is up to snuff so that it can be a part of all the festivities and activities we have. We are fully behind them supporting them. In fact, I probably meet with them as much as meeting with my Centennial Committee or my Indy 500 Committee. But I think what you'll see is hopefully the chance for them to remake their community for the next 100 years and give them a chance to capitalize all of the fans and tourists that visit us.
JENKINS: Inside the track at the south end, what changes have been made in the past year?
CHITWOOD: Well, inside the track when you drove in you can see the new four-turn chicane for the motorcycle event. That was all parking that we called The Beach. We used to have some temporary grandstands and some berms there. So really that is no longer available. We'll be, you know, guardrail, fencing that off. That was a significant parking area for us. So it will put a little more pressure on the use of the Museum parking lots and also as we park some Gasoline Alley customers.
We also did tweak the road course turns behind the museum. Those were slow S's. There used to be a tree there. We took the tree out, now it's fast S's. That will also be for the location for the Miller Lite Carb Day concert, so all the media here will park in this lot over here and you'll get to park there for Carb Day. We're not going to displace you for the concert. I should get applause for that, shouldn't I? Yeah, come on. I know how to play to the crowd. (Applause)
The great thing is, even though we're around for the 92nd running, we have a chance every year to improve what we do and try and tweak here and there.
One of the things I love to share, what have we done different in "Taps" the last couple years? I love to ask this question. I ask it all the time. You know, we've changed that significantly from three years ago to two years ago. The Purdue Band always played "Taps." The last couple years we've had a lone trumpet player play "Taps." It's been extremely moving. You could hear a pin drop. And you have the guard behind him with the flags and the trumpet. So we've tweaked pre-race but done it in a way that I think our fans appreciate, and it's even more impactful. For us, it's taking our heritage and our tradition and tweaking a little bit and making sure we provide the experience that our fans have come to expect.
Q: Joie, the addition of the motorcycle event in place of the F1, does it make the task of converting the facility from counter-clockwise to probably going the other way? And is it easier than it was with the F1?
CHITWOOD: One thing I want to make sure is clear, motorcycles didn't replace F1. If you look at the way we scheduled our calendar, we had hoped that F1 would come back and it would have maintained that June date after the Montreal event, and that's why you saw the motorcycle event in September. Now, if we had that four-race schedule, we would have been hard after it. We would have been oval, road course, oval, road course. So right now we've got two oval events and the road course. So the timing is a little bit better, there's not as much pressure and stress.
One of the things that we did do with the design of this motorcycle course, which they will run the same direction as the oval, is that every change we made was also inspected and approved by the FIA so that should F1 come back, they can run this course, they can run it their same direction, they can run it the other direction, they can run the four-turn chicane in Turn One or not. We did not want to make any changes that would preclude us in the future from hosting F1. I know that Tony has said it, I've said it: The door is open. We think that's a phenomenal racing series; we think it should be back in America. So the door is open. Maybe it can come back some day.
Q: Joie, all that said, any plans at all in the future to maybe bring a sports car race to Indianapolis?
CHITWOOD: We've had a lot of discussion about what other events we can host. I think the big challenge for us is what's it take to turn the lights on here. We have such a big property, the amount of personnel to staff it. So any event that we host, we need to have a considerable fan component to make it work. So as it relates to sports car racing, we've had discussions. I think they would like to run here very much so. But right now with adding the motorcycle event, and we might have a couple other things to talk about in May with additional events that I think fit our personality. But right now I'm not sure about sports car racing just in terms of what it takes to host that event.
Q: I've got a question about musical acts at the Speedway in May. When are some more of those going to be announced? I'm also curious about the process of selecting those acts. Is that done by somebody here at the Speedway or do you kind of outsource that or how do you go about that?
CHITWOOD: It's always interesting how musical acts either come to us or if we go out and prospect. We work very closely with Miller Lite. They are really front and center in attracting talent. We talk with them about what makes sense. Julianne, in terms of that opportunity, I don't think anyone really knew that she was a singer. But when you look at her history, she came back from England to really embark on her singing career more so than dancing and then the "Dancing with the Stars" component came out.
I think that we want to do is Carb Day is about having fun. There's a party element to it, and I think that's important for the fans of the Snake Pit back in the day. There's that element of people watching and enjoying yourself. So I think the Carb Day talent takes on a more current or little more fun approach. We're very respectful of Race Day, and so we've done a couple different things lately and we usually work in concert with our partner, ABC/ESPN, as well, on what can be televised or what makes sense for them. So it's a compilation of everyone, the Speedway, our TV partner, our sponsors. We're trying to make sure it fits the Race Day and flows nicely.
JENKINS: You do remember the snake pit don't you, Rich? (Laughter) Go ahead.
Q: Joie, so many other tracks have race weekends that involve multiple series, you know, multiple races. You don't have that advantage perhaps. What do you think about in the month of May trying to supplement the everyday activity of cars on the track or the weekend activity of qualifying to make the track or the experience more active?
CHITWOOD: Well, you know, when you look at the track schedule and look at the unification, I think that our rookie days are going to be as busy as any day we have during May. There's going to be a lot of folks out there running hard. You look at qualifying, I think it shows given the right weather, it can be active, compelling, fun to watch. But if you think about what we put on track race weekend; Carburetion Day, we've got the final IndyCar Series practice, we have an Infiniti Pro Series -- I'm sorry, a Firestone Indy Lights race, we have a pit stop competition, and we have a concert. I'm not sure we could fit any more activity that day. Saturday then is our traditional day, which is our drivers' meeting and the parade downtown. So for us that's important that the community get to enjoy it. There might be fans who don't attend the race who enjoy the parade. And then Sunday our race.
So, Rich, if you said find some time to add something more, I don't know if I could really find the time. I think one of the things about the Indy 500 the last four or five years, it's been such a great race, and I think it's because the teams have such a great opportunity to dial in their chassis and get ready for the race so it is very competitive. So I think that time they need during the month pays off on Race Day because you don't really know who's going to win on Race Day because they all have the right setup, the experience, they're ready for the race.
Q: Joie, as this race, next year's race comes up and then the 2011, the 100th anniversary, are you going to search for some of the distant relatives of those like great-, great-grandchildren, like Louis Schwitzer, the first winner, his grandson, I think, is still alive and bring him back?
CHITWOOD: That's a good question. I'm not really going to answer your question because we have a lot of things planned, and we have our friends at IMS Productions who have been out there talking to people who have great history here. So you're going to see some of that in May once we roll it out officially. So we're uncovering everyone that has a story to tell and we have part of that.
One of the things we've got such -- I make a joke of it, but it's going to be difficult, you know. Disney World can celebrate one birthday over like four or five years. We're going to try and fit 100 in over three. I don't know if we're going to have enough time to do that. There's so many great stories and history and tradition; it's going to be tough to tell them all and make sure that they're meaningful. So we're trying to do it the right way. And yes, we're out there talking to ancestors and living, oldest living mechanics and things like that to get their story on tape so that we can make sure we share it with our fans.
JENKINS: Last question if there is one. If not, Joie, thank you. One-on-ones available.
Related Stories
- Matos To Take Luczo Dragon Wheel At Indy In Full-Time 2009 Drive
- '500' Veterans Help Firestone Racing Develop Tires At Indy
- Indy 500 Champions De Ferran, Dixon Teaming Up At Petit Le Mans
- Four-Time Indy 500 Winner Foyt Picks Meira For 2009 Drive
- Indy Winner Wheldon Feels At Home Quickly In Return To Panther
| Indianapolis 500 Talkback | Post Comment |
|
|
|