Indy500
What a spectacular opportunity I had to recently visit Indianapolis, Indiana and partake the Indy500 event which is considered one of the oldest automobile races on the planet; it is a “500-mile race held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, and is one of the most-attended single-day sporting events in the world”; it’s not known as —
The Greatest Spectacle in Racing
— for nothing. All this was possible thanks to Garage XYZ, a NFT collective that gives access to motorsport and car fans the opportunity to engage with racing teams and drivers whether it be online or IRL (In Real Life) events which otherwise would be impossible unless you have the right connections or lots of money. Additionally, Garage wants to support current and upcoming male and female drivers on their racing endeavors. In the long term, Garage will attempt to sponsor or own a racing team for which the ultimate goal is to own a F1 team.
I arrived at Indianapolis, Indiana on Friday, May 27, 2022 in the afternoon so I missed out all the early activities that Garage had planned, however, later that day Bgames, who I met at the airport and I met up with Philo and RadDave at the hotel lobby. We exchange pleasantries and then we all went straight to Spoke and Steel to meet up with the rest of the Garage crew and founders for dinner.
It was this first dinner where we finally got to meet face to face with Garage founders Peter Miller, Cameron Miller and Anthony Kline. Very kind and like minded people that were very happy to see us there. Also, we got to meet Petraglyph (dinner table sidekick), RadDave’s father (mellow and cool), Bryan (who’s this again?), and the outgoing and talented Courtney Hansen.
Dinner was wonderful and we wanted to continue to mingle so we all went to a cozy bar lounge for some drinks and great conversation. The atmosphere was so good, especially for me, that I almost closed the bar for that night, however, I stepped out several minutes earlier and took an Uber and went straight back to my hotel and called it a night.
After an enjoyable evening with the crew and getting to know each other, the next day which was a Saturday, we decided to head over to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum and see all the amazing race cars on display, dating back as far as from 1911 to the present day. We did spend almost half a day at the museum because there was so much to see and read and it was just awesome seeing these cool vintage race cars in person.
Beside the museum visit, we also visited the IMS area and walk around as much as we could before race day. It was nice that it was uncrowded and easy to get around without bumping to other people. Here is where I realized on how big this place really is and that I finally get to see the famous Pagoda. I love seeing the TAG Heuer logo on top of this building since I’m a fan of their watches — I own 2 watches from them where the latest one was recently acquired to remember this special event.
After our IMS trek and getting to familiarize with the place we headed back to our hotel for some down time. Not a few minute has past since we arrived at our hotel and Philo had a great idea and suggested we go and find some electric scooters to ride around the city. And that we did! I was timid at first since I have never ridden an electric scooter before and Philo gave me some pointers. I gave it a go and rode for a few minutes to get the feeling and acquire my balance. After that, I got a handle on it and away we went with no destination in mind.
We rode around the city for about 20 minutes until one of us, not sure if it was me, decided to stop at a local Speedway gas station mini market for some snacks. I grabbed my hamburger hotdog (btw, I love these and it took me right back to my college days) and went outside to have my meal and wait for Philo and Bgames to come out. We were having our snacks and just chillin at the gas station until this individual with mid-long dark blond hair and what appeared to be a cheetah print button shirt with black tight jeans and boots caught Philo’s attention and said to him, “nice shirt!” as he headed his way towards the mini market. The guy looked straight to Philo with his piercing green eyes and said "thanks”. When I immediately saw the guy’s eyes and even though he had a surgical mask on, I instantaneously recognized him as Robby Keene from Cobra Kai, a series on Netflix. Don’t ask me how, but something told me it was him. The guys, Philo and Bgames were having fun with me and suggested that I asked him who he was to see if I was right. The guy eventually came out and I went straight up to him and asked him if he was Robby from Cobra Kai where then he responded, “who is that?” and then he pulled down his mask, gave me a smile and said, yeah, that’s me. I then bursted into excitement and looked back at Philo and Bgames confirming that yup, it’s him. His real name is Tanner Buchanan, a young actor from Hollywood. Tanner was cool and he hanged out with us for about 10 minutes until we all parted our ways; for us, we kept on riding the scooters until late that afternoon.
The night fell thereafter and upon a brief respite from our scootering we freshened up and went to where the rest of the Garage team and founders were staying at and had a wonderful dinner with our new friends. It was here, that the name Ghostrider was given birth but that's another story for another day.
After dinner we called it in early and went straight to our hotel to rest and hit the sack because tomorrow was Race Day and we needed to get up early to meet up with Stefan Johansson, yeah, that F1 and 24 Le Mans legend for coffee.
May 29, 2022 — Rise and shine! So the gang woke up very early as advised by the Garage team to meet up and head over to JW Marriott where most of the race drivers and teams were staying to have coffee with Mr. Johansson. When we arrived at the hotel, the scene was hectic with local police officers directing traffic and basically a lot of people going out and about having breakfast and coffee; just preparing themselves for the upcoming Indy500 race. We met up with with the F1 legend but we did so outside of the hotel entrance since inside was packed with guests and little bit chaotic which is typical for a day like this.
Upon enjoying our lattes or what not and waiting for serval minutes inside our vehicles in front of the hotel, it was finally time to go to IMS and for me, to finally experience my first race! We headed out in a caravan behind Stefan Johansson car being escorted by police officers that were leading the pack. I was told that this year, it took real long to get to our destination in contrast to previous years, which only took several minutes to get to the race track. This drive took us about an hour because of heavy traffic and stops that we had to make for bomb dogs to sniff our vehicles; supposedly a recent request made by the race track owner for security reasons.
We finally made to IMS and little by little we could see fans arriving and filling the bleachers. We have yet to have breakfast so we went straight to Chip Ganassi Racing tent for some food. I couldn’t believe that we had the chance to have breakfast with the Ganassi team and their family and friends. After a hearty meal, we were off to what we’ve came for, the Indy500 and root for Scott Dixon and the team!
By the time we exited the Chip Ganassi tent, the whole place was jammed packed with fans everywhere walking about, looking for their seats or scoping out the sprawling area to get a glimpse of their favorite race cars, drivers and obviously the huge oval track. It was truly amazing seeing all these people conglomerate in one place. It was later reported that approximately “325,000 fans attended the event, the IndyCar race's second-best attendance in the last 20 years.”
After walking for several minutes and zig-zagging and dodging people along the way, we finally arrived at the Chip Ganassi Racing Team suite 510; another cool thing I experience which I can crossed off the bucket list. The Garage team and members dropped off their gear and we went back outside to start our journey for the ultimate access to the Indy500 racing experience.
I personally begin by visiting the pit lane with Peter where we could see up close, the different racing teams preparing and working on their cars for the Indy500 race. We kept walking the lane until we arrived at Scott Dixon’s pit stop and I finally got to see the Garage XYZ logo on the race car. It felt so awesome seeing our community brand/logo on an Indy500 car that it really blew my mind and made my day. Just this alone was worth the trip.
When I finally saw all that I could see in the pit lane we headed back to the suite to get ready for the start of the 106th Indy500 race. I was told that I should see and experience the beginning of the race right above in the bleachers to get the feel and listen to the roaring cars hitting their engines and the fans cheering and screaming as the race kicks off. And of course, that’s what I did. Right before the start, we heard top performers singing the “America The Beautiful”, “(Back Home Again In) Indiana” and “The National Anthem”. And to top it off, the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds flyover which is always cool see in these race events.
And we are off to the races! The 106th Indy500 was kicked-off by Scott Dixon leading the charge thanks to his recent win on pole position in previous days. My heart was pumping with excitement where you can actually hear me cheering on the next video as the cars scream past my way after the green flag was waved. Also, excuse my French if you heard that.
The race was spectacular and seeing this in person really took my breath away; the sound of the engines roaring past you by like growling beasts and when they loose you further down, the cars sounds like humming killer bees, it truly was a sense of elation that I had that day, especially for me being that this is my first IRL car race event.
Scott Dixon and his car that Garage was sponsoring was dominating and leading for most of the race and he actually set a record for laps led at the Indy 500 that day, beating Al Unser Sr.’s record of 644. However, Dixon committed a crucial error when he exceeded the pit lane speed limit by 1 mph on his final stop which cost him his chance to a second Indianapolis 500 Victory.
But such is the way of motorsport, in one instance a driver is doing all that right things and then, all of a sudden, one little mistake and he or she looses the advantage and end up not winning the race. This is what makes this sport so exciting to watch.
But nevertheless, Scott Dixon teammate Marcus Ericsson who also race for Chip Ganassi team won the 106th Indy500. With Garage unique access, I was able to join the celebration at the Winner Circle which in my honest opinion, is a priceless experience for which I will never forget.
All in all, the 106th Indy500 race and Garage XYZ first IRL event is a motorsport fan wildest dream come true. The race was entertaining and exciting to watch. You would not know who will win until the last lap as this race was unpredictable after Scott Dixon’s unfortunate mistake which put him back in the grid and loosing his leading position. As for Garage, the whole event was incredible and as RadDave simply put it on Discord:
incredible is an understatement
To sum it up, the Garage XYZ holders on this trip enjoyed coffee with Stefan Johansson, breakfast in Chip Ganassi’s tent, watched the race from the team’s suite , hung out with Dixon family and friends by their RV after the race, then in the evening that day, we were invited to a private VIP party with the Indy500 winner Marcus Ericsson and all the coolest drivers and stars from Indy such as Scott Dixon, Tony Kanaan and JR Hildebrand to name a few.
This amazing trip and all the incredible utilities and access were made possible by owning the Garage XYZ Genesis-500 NFT. On June 30th, 2022, just 3 days, Garage-1500 will be minting and welcoming new members to this modern-day car club. I can not recommend it enough and if your a motorsport fan or a car enthusiast, you should really check them out and DYOR (do your own research). This journal post is my testament to what Garage can offer and what they had provided for some of their holders. For additional information about Garage and what they are all about, head over to their official site and join the community at their Discord server.
I’m so happy that I discovered Garage XYZ early this year and that I’m a part of a rad like minded community of petrol heads and car enthusiasts. Garage continues to make headlines with a recent win in 24 Le Mans in France with the JOTA Sport racing team. You definitely should not sleep on this one. Please enjoy the following final clip and as the community like to say, Garage rides together! I’ll see you in the tracks.
*All pictures and videos on this post were provided by photographer and holder Bgames, videographer and holder Philo, Garage XYZ and myself. Disclaimer: I’m not a financial advisor and you should do your own research.