Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Brickyard to Celebrate 100 Years of Racing

Motor Authority: To celebrate 100 years of racing on the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS), a centennial golden brick found placement on the historic "Yard of Bricks" in anticipation of Sunday's Indianapolis 500 Mile Race.

Mari Hulman George, IMS chairman of the board, A.J. Foyt, the first four-time winner of the May Classic and IMS CEO/president Jeff Belskus participated in the installation ceremony on May 24th.

The golden brick is set to remain in place, albeit with rubber marks upon it, through the race on May 29th.

On November 6, 1961, Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Tony Hulman and inaugural winner Ray Harroun placed a golden brick in the same Yard of Bricks to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Harroun's victory in 1911.

This year, Foyt is celebrating the 50th anniversary of his first Indy 500 victory; that was the last race at IMS in which the entire front straightaway was paved with bricks. All but the Yard of Bricks at the start/finish line (which is actually a three-foot strip) received asphalt paving in October of 1961.

"I'm just happy I lived long enough to be part of this special tradition," Foyt said. "I think Tony Hulman would be very proud of how Mari (his daughter) has taken care of the Speedway over the years, and I'm sure he's watching over her today."

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