Indy 500 track size...for some perspective
- Thread starter THE_DEVIL
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It's big. Should be a great day for the race. Sunny and only a high about 70. Should be some great speeds.
Plenty of room for the UNI Dome, too, not to mention some more basketball arenas. Kinda silly this dude left those out.
Everyone must see a indy or f1 race in person. It's true fricking insanity. They earn their pay.
Indy is a special, special place. Sooo much history. So much achievement, glory, bitter defeat and tragedy.
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The 10 Most Lethal Racetracks in America
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www.thedrive.com
OP Mom’s gaping anus is an Iowa landmark but I see it was omitted as it is far bigger than IMS.
That being said, IMS will have 40-50 guys taking turns all over IMS this weekend and so will OP’s Mom.
That being said, IMS will have 40-50 guys taking turns all over IMS this weekend and so will OP’s Mom.
I confess that's significantly bigger than I imagined. Not a racing fan, but in my head I figured they would be comparable to a large football stadium.
Jack Trice Stadium is a landmark? Why not do an accurate representation of Iowa and show how many hog containment buildings or waste lagoons you could fit inside the race track?
While it's true that all of the landmarks featured would fit inside the track, the size of the landmarks inside the track in that image are too small. Each straight at Indy is 3,300 feet in length. That equates to just over 9 football fields from the backs of the end zone. If you measure in that image, it's significantly more than that on the straights. I know, nitpicking. Just sayin' though.
If I ever took time to think about it, I probably would have realized how big it would have to be. Just never did.
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. —The infield of the Daytona International Speedway track is so exceptionally massive that it features it’s own body of water: Lake Lloyd, a 29-acre man-made lake that has existed since the 2.5-mile track opened in 1959. It’s hosted everything from fishing tournaments to triathlons.
The lake was originally created and used as a retention pond during the track’s construction in the late ’50s, and the dug-up “muck, sand and limestone” then helped create the 31-degree banking in the track’s turns, said Herb Branham, the director of ISC Archives & Research Center. International Speedway Corporation owns the iconic Daytona track, along with several others on the NASCAR circuit.
“It’s a part of speedway lore as much as anything else from pretty functional and humble beginnings,” Branham said. “There’s a lot of things that are iconic around here, but in its own unique way, it is iconic.”
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When construction finished, NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. named it Lake Lloyd after his friend and Daytona local J. Saxton Lloyd, a car dealership owner who gave France his first job as a mechanic when he moved to to the area in the mid-1930s.
France also added a crucial but “bizarre touch” to the lake upon the track’s completion, Branham said.
“My favorite story is he literally brought the game commission in, and they stocked it with bass,” Branham said. “I thought that was wild. Talk about the attention to detail.”
Bill France Sr. (second from left) with the Florida’s commission of game and freshwater fish in 1958. (ISC Images & Archives/Getty Images)
“A few times people would spin out and end up in the lake,” Branham said.
A wrecker operator helps remove Tommy Irwins 1959 Ford Thunderbird from Lake Lloyd. Irwin was involved in a crash during the qualifier for the 1960 Daytona 500 NASCAR Cup race and spun off the backstretch into the lake, becoming the first race car ever to take the plunge. He managed to scramble out unhurt before the car became submerged in the water. (ISC Images & Archives/Getty Images)
While NASCAR teams nowadays try to shed even the tiniest amount of dead weight from their race cars, one driver added some extraneous equipment to his because of how close to the track Lake Lloyd was.
“Tiger” Tom Pistone was paranoid about driving into Lake Lloyd. His fear was so intense that when he’d race at Daytona back when the track was still in its infancy, he’d keep scuba gear in his car just in case, Branham said.
In February1964, Bay Darnell became the second driver to end up in Lake Lloyd after losing control of his Ford during a qualifying race for the first ARCA 250 to be held at the track. (ISC Archives & Research Center/Getty Images)
A fan wakeboards on Lake Lloyd while the cars of NASCAR drivers Dale Jarrett (88) and Michael Waltrip (15) practice for the 2005 Daytona 500. (AP Photo/Paul Kizzle)
Decades later, Lake Lloyd is smaller, but people are still fishing bass (and sometimes a catfish or two) out of it, especially in the days leading up to the Daytona 500, which is Sunday.
Fans camping out in the infield for the biggest NASCAR race of the season can fish off the boardwalk any time they want. Friday, and for the 16th time, there was a charity fishing tournament with NASCAR drivers and fans jumping in fishing boats and casting their lines out in the middle of the lake.
Lake Lloyd inside the Daytona International Speedway
Martin Truex Jr., last year’s winner Clint Bowyer (and his 4-year-old son Cash), Ryan Newman and Jeffrey Earnhardt were among the active drivers fishing in the tournament, while retired drivers and brothers Bobby and Donnie Allison joined in too.
“It’s cool to have a lake in a race track,” said Truex, the 2017 Cup Series champion who’s starting his first season in the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. He said he’d find a way to the water even if he wasn’t sponsored by Bass Pro Shops.
“Most tracks aren’t big enough to have a lake inside of them, but I think it’s neat. It’s a cool story, but also I just love to fish.”
Twelve teams of four ventured out onto the lake for about 90 minutes in search of the biggest fish possible. And because the lake is huge — for being enclosed by a race track — the teams’ boats had room to bounce around, looking for the biggest biters.
Always competitive, Newman jokingly flipped off Donnie Allison as he found a secret spot to drop his line.
Martin Truex Jr. won the charity fishing tournament at Daytona International Speedway during the weekend of the 2019 Daytona 500.
With a couple giant fish, Truex came out on top with the largest bass weighing in at 4.54 pounds. He barely edged out Bowyer, who’s largest catch was 4.53 pounds.
“That wasn’t luck; that was skill,” Truex said after being declared the winner. He also fishes when NASCAR returns to Daytona for the mid-summer race each year if it’s not too hot.
“It’s my day,” he said Friday about catching three fish totaling 10.42 pounds. “Too bad we don’t race today.”
ftw.usatoday.com
The lake was originally created and used as a retention pond during the track’s construction in the late ’50s, and the dug-up “muck, sand and limestone” then helped create the 31-degree banking in the track’s turns, said Herb Branham, the director of ISC Archives & Research Center. International Speedway Corporation owns the iconic Daytona track, along with several others on the NASCAR circuit.
“It’s a part of speedway lore as much as anything else from pretty functional and humble beginnings,” Branham said. “There’s a lot of things that are iconic around here, but in its own unique way, it is iconic.”
When construction finished, NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. named it Lake Lloyd after his friend and Daytona local J. Saxton Lloyd, a car dealership owner who gave France his first job as a mechanic when he moved to to the area in the mid-1930s.
France also added a crucial but “bizarre touch” to the lake upon the track’s completion, Branham said.
“My favorite story is he literally brought the game commission in, and they stocked it with bass,” Branham said. “I thought that was wild. Talk about the attention to detail.”
Bill France Sr. (second from left) with the Florida’s commission of game and freshwater fish in 1958. (ISC Images & Archives/Getty Images)
Going for an accidental swim
Lake Lloyd used to be larger. It was once 44 acres and stretched much closer to the edge of the race track in some parts compared with now.“A few times people would spin out and end up in the lake,” Branham said.
A wrecker operator helps remove Tommy Irwins 1959 Ford Thunderbird from Lake Lloyd. Irwin was involved in a crash during the qualifier for the 1960 Daytona 500 NASCAR Cup race and spun off the backstretch into the lake, becoming the first race car ever to take the plunge. He managed to scramble out unhurt before the car became submerged in the water. (ISC Images & Archives/Getty Images)
While NASCAR teams nowadays try to shed even the tiniest amount of dead weight from their race cars, one driver added some extraneous equipment to his because of how close to the track Lake Lloyd was.
“Tiger” Tom Pistone was paranoid about driving into Lake Lloyd. His fear was so intense that when he’d race at Daytona back when the track was still in its infancy, he’d keep scuba gear in his car just in case, Branham said.
In February1964, Bay Darnell became the second driver to end up in Lake Lloyd after losing control of his Ford during a qualifying race for the first ARCA 250 to be held at the track. (ISC Archives & Research Center/Getty Images)
Fishing to triathlons: What happens on Lake Lloyd?
The lake has been used for a variety of activities over the years, from boat races and water skiing to hosting the swimming leg of a triathlon in December.
A fan wakeboards on Lake Lloyd while the cars of NASCAR drivers Dale Jarrett (88) and Michael Waltrip (15) practice for the 2005 Daytona 500. (AP Photo/Paul Kizzle)
Decades later, Lake Lloyd is smaller, but people are still fishing bass (and sometimes a catfish or two) out of it, especially in the days leading up to the Daytona 500, which is Sunday.
Fans camping out in the infield for the biggest NASCAR race of the season can fish off the boardwalk any time they want. Friday, and for the 16th time, there was a charity fishing tournament with NASCAR drivers and fans jumping in fishing boats and casting their lines out in the middle of the lake.
Lake Lloyd inside the Daytona International Speedway
Martin Truex Jr., last year’s winner Clint Bowyer (and his 4-year-old son Cash), Ryan Newman and Jeffrey Earnhardt were among the active drivers fishing in the tournament, while retired drivers and brothers Bobby and Donnie Allison joined in too.
“It’s cool to have a lake in a race track,” said Truex, the 2017 Cup Series champion who’s starting his first season in the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. He said he’d find a way to the water even if he wasn’t sponsored by Bass Pro Shops.
“Most tracks aren’t big enough to have a lake inside of them, but I think it’s neat. It’s a cool story, but also I just love to fish.”
Twelve teams of four ventured out onto the lake for about 90 minutes in search of the biggest fish possible. And because the lake is huge — for being enclosed by a race track — the teams’ boats had room to bounce around, looking for the biggest biters.
Always competitive, Newman jokingly flipped off Donnie Allison as he found a secret spot to drop his line.
Martin Truex Jr. won the charity fishing tournament at Daytona International Speedway during the weekend of the 2019 Daytona 500.
With a couple giant fish, Truex came out on top with the largest bass weighing in at 4.54 pounds. He barely edged out Bowyer, who’s largest catch was 4.53 pounds.
“That wasn’t luck; that was skill,” Truex said after being declared the winner. He also fishes when NASCAR returns to Daytona for the mid-summer race each year if it’s not too hot.
“It’s my day,” he said Friday about catching three fish totaling 10.42 pounds. “Too bad we don’t race today.”
Why NASCAR's Daytona track has its own massive lake
How Lake Lloyd, the body of water inside Daytona International Speedway’s track, came to be.
ftw.usatoday.com
There was a period of 20 years from the mid 70's to the mid 90's that I only missed one race due to having to work that day. It is quite the spectacle, as they say. I haven't been to one since 1995 however. I saw lots of great races and some catastrophic crashes, although I don't believe there were any drivers killed. There was a spectator killed one year though. He was sitting on the top row in the stands in the short chute between turns 3 and 4 and a tire came off one of the cars. A trailing car hit it and lofted it over the protective fence and hit this guy. I guess when it's your time, it's your time.
I wasn't at the 1973 race but there were 2 girls from my high school who were burned very badly when they were sprayed with fuel after there was a terrible crash at the start of the race.
https://us.motorsport.com/indycar/v...ndianapolis 500,injured but nobody was killed.
Wow that's honestly crazy and amazing. I always pray for safe races. I got to be in the pits at a nascar event. On some level, that's frightening.
A buddy of mine went to a Nascar race in Atlanta a few years back. A mutual friend had moved there and rented an RV to use as home base for a weekend long blastoff in the infield. Quite insane how completely hammered drunk they got and were allowed as close to the action in the pits as they were. For the real cup race things got tighter, but for the most part any one of them could have passed out standing up over the pit wall.
One night they thought they were getting hassled by security at the campsite, but turned out homeboy was just bored and after offering him a beer they rode around the track on his golf cart with him at 3am.
Toured it many, many years ago. Got to ride in a van as it took a lap - it seemed to take for ever, but the guy was going 70 mph.
It's big. Anything with a golf course in the middle is big.
It's big. Anything with a golf course in the middle is big.
