Track Tips: Indianapolis Motor Speedway

I have been interested in NASCAR for about a year now, and I was able to attend my first NASCAR event this past weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS). To go to a track that has so much racing history...indescribable.

As a newbie to IMS, there were a few things that I noticed and want to suggest fans to watch out for if they plan to go to the Indiana 250 and/or the Brickyard 400 next year.

1. KNOW YOUR ZONE. I attended the race with my mom, and neither of us had been to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway before. This "Know Your Zone" program was helpful because we would have had no idea where we were going otherwise. If you need driving directions and maps of the seating areas, be sure to print this before you leave.
2. This may seem logical, but it's probably best to order your tickets more than two weeks ahead of time...unlike we did. After we ordered our tickets, we realized that IMS has a deadline of when you can purchase your tickets and actually get them sent to you. It makes sense, of course, because they want to make sure your tickets arrive in time. My mom and I didn't realize that. We were able to pick up our tickets at will call, and it wasn't a big deal. However, it is probably easier to have your tickets and parking passes ahead of time so you don't have to mess with it when you get there.
3. I strongly suggest getting general admission tickets for Saturday's Nationwide Series race. They had some sections roped off, but we could otherwise sit wherever we wanted. With our general admission tickets, we were able to sit right across from pit lane. You can buy reserved seats if you'd like, but I don't think it's necessary.
   
   A view from our seats at the NASCAR Nationwide Series race on Saturday (7/27).
4. Even if you don't have a "hot pass" (a pass that allows you to go in the garage/pit area), you can still get fairly close to the garage area. You can even watch the cars go through inspection. I thought this may only be allowed on Saturday because I figured it would be more restricted on Sunday. This is not the case! You can get near the garage area on Sunday, as well. Being near the garage is a great way to meet some of the NASCAR drivers...
     
   I met Brad Keselowski on Saturday! This shows how close you can get to the garage area before it is fenced off. (No, I did not have him caged!)
5. If you are new to the track, get there early! As I said, this was our first time at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and we got there are soon as the gates opened on both days. This gave us time to wander and figure out our way around.

If you have any questions on a topic I didn't cover, please leave a comment. I will do my best to answer!