It’s almost time to kiss the bricks and drink your milk, folks, as perhaps one of the most famous races in the world gets ready for its annual running. That’s right. The Indianapolis 500 is getting ready to drop the green flag on for the 100th time since it began.
Yes, it’s the official 100th anniversary of the Indianapolis 500, so expect the already-exciting event to have even more hype when the race starts. As is the case with most savvy business, the Indianapolis 500 has a strong web presence, including their own YouTube page, as well as Twitter and Facebook profiles. As an example of the Speedway’s social media engagement, their Facebook profile links to “The Greatest 33” contest, where fans and friends can pick the top racers to take part in Indy 500.
As for their YouTube page, content is about what you’d expect. Interviews with drivers and other racing dignitaries, and there’s also Practice Day footage:
While the Indianapolis Motor Speedway does indeed have a flourishing Twitter account, more fans are probably more interested in what the drivers have to tweet about. In some cases, it’s quite a bit, actually. In this day and age of athletes tweeting their hearts out, race car drivers using Twitter a lot is to be expected. Over at Naptown Buzz, there’s a list of all the Indy 500 racers and their Twitter accounts, which is reproduced below:
- Alex Lloyd @alex_lloyd
- Alex Tagliani @tagliani
- Ana Beatriz @Biaracing
- Bertrand Baguette @BerBaguette
- Charlie Kimball @charliekimball
- Dan Wheldon @danwheldon
- Danica Patrick @DanicaPatrick
- Dario Franchitti @dariofranchitti
- Davey Hamilton @DaveyHamilton
- E.J. Viso @EJVISO
- Ed Carpenter @67edcarpenter
- Graham Rahal @GrahamRahal
- Helio Castroneves @h3lio
- Ho-Pin Tung @hopintung
- James Hinchcliffe @Hinchtown
- James Jakes @JamesJakes
- Jay Howard @JayHoward88
- JR Hildebrand @JRHildebrand
- Justin Wilson @JustinWilson22
- Marco Andretti @Andretti26
- Mario Moraes @mariomoraesindy
- Mike Conway @Mikeconwayindy
- Oriol Servia @OriolServia
- Paul Tracy @paultracy3
- Pippa Mann @PippaMann
- Raphael Matos @Rafaindy
- Ryan Briscoe @RyanBriscoe6
- Ryan Hunter-Reay @RyanHunterReay
- Scott Dixon @scottdixon9
- Scott Speed @scottspeed
- Simona De Silvestro @simdesilvestro
- Takuma Sato @TakumaSatoRacer
- Tomas Scheckter @tomasscheckter
- Tony Kanaan @TonyKanaan
- Townsend Bell @TownsendBell99
- Vitor Meira @vitormeira18
- Will Power @12WillPower
There are, of course, mobile apps designed to let you keep track of the race. Verizon’s was introduced by Ryan Briscoe:
The drivers are also tech-savvy, just like the rest of us. Just ask Tony Kanaan and his iPad:
If, after all of the above, can’t find a way to connect to Indy 500 with today’s mobile/Internet devices, you probably aren’t trying hard enough. Make sure your set when the green flag drops later this afternoon.