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Indianapolis Star
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Indianapolis Star
'Energy in Indy is insane': Pacers & Racers attendees hope for thrilling 500, electric Game 3
INDIANAPOLIS -- Rob Rudicel accumulated a perfect wardrobe over the years for this particular Sunday. For the afternoon, a blue T-shirt adorned with a gold basketball with wings between the words 'Indiana Pacers.' For the evening, another blue tee, with two checkered flags crossed above the words 'Pacers & Racers' in white and gold. Rudicel planned to attend his third Pacers & Racers combination Sunday. He watched Alex Palou's victory from Stand J coming out of turn four. After an early evening family get-together at Portillo's in Fishers, he planned to head downtown to his seats in Section 13 of Gainbridge Fieldhouse for Eastern Conference Finals Game 3. When it came time to split up playoff tickets with his fellow seat owners, Rudicel quickly requested Sunday's game. Even for a Pacers & Racers veteran, the novelty had not worn off even a little. 'No hesitation,' Rudicel said. 'It's a super fun day. That's why when this was a possibility of maybe happening today, I was like, 'Ooh, I want those tickets.'' Sunday marked the fourth time an Indy 500 coincided with a Pacers home playoff game – all since 1999. Along with Cailtin Clark and the Indiana Fever playing a home game Saturday, basketball magnified Indianapolis' Memorial Day weekend identity as the center of the sports world. The Pacers & Racers experience is not only for locals. Actor Terrry Crews said in a pre-race interview he will pair the 500 with a now highly anticipated and potentially pivotal Game 3. At least a few fans attended Sunday's race in Knicks garb. If the Pacers win to go up 3-0 in the series, they'll end an 0-for-3 history when sharing a Sunday home playoff game with the Greatest Spectacle in Racing. From the early arrival necessary to beat the Indianapolis Motor Speedway traffic to the approximate three-and-a-half-hour gap between events to a 10:30 p.m. regulation ending for Game 3, attending both becomes its own endurance competition. 'Hopefully I can handle doing both,' said Thomas Evans, a Brownsburg resident attempting doing Pacers & Racers for the first time. 'I'm excited to do both for sure.' David Pierce, chair of Indiana University's department of tourism, event and sports management, said Indianapolis is almost 'spoiled' by the frequency with which it hosts major sports events. It's central to both the city's economy and its global identity. An economic impact analysis by the Indiana University Public Policy Institute – commissioned by IMS – determined the track's month of May activities brought $480 million to the community. A Visit Milwaukee study of the economic impact of the Bucks' 2021 NBA championship run measured a $13 million influx from the Eastern Conference finals alone. 'You have the media visibility and storytelling and image creation in kind of one bucket,' Pierce said. 'The other bucket is the actual visitors from out of town who inject new money into the community.' Those contributing to that economic impact eagerly traded it for an emotional one. Sean O'Reilley put on his throwback Reggie Miller jersey Thursday morning and headed to the airport. From his home in Ventura, California, the Cathedral grad boarded a flight out of Santa Barbara, spent a four-hour layover in Las Vegas and landed in Indianapolis early that evening. O'Reilley flies out every Memorial Day weekend. He even flew out in 2020 and watched from a friend's garage with race attendance restricted by COVID-19. His father, Steve, took him to his first Pacers & Racers combination in 2004. Tornado warnings hampered the race experience. A dreadful offensive night spoiled the basketball. Yet he did not hesitate to jump on a Ticketmaster presale to lock up Game 3 tickets. He's taking his father, to pay him back for that first double-up memory. Accustomed to blocking out four hours of travel time to see the Pacers play in Los Angeles – a mere 50 miles away – O'Reilley was not sweating Sunday's logistics. 'One of the pleasures of living in Indianapolis was how easy and accessible it was to do things like this,' O'Reilley said after disembarking his plane Thursday in Indianapolis. Despite the approximately 350,000 fans expected Sunday, those planning to be downtown for tipoff said they feared only weather delays or multiple cautions. The former hit prior to the race, pushing the scheduled 12:45 p.m. start back to 1:20. The latter triggered several yellow flags, contributing to a race time of 2:58. Even for Pacers and Racers attendees from central Indiana, the undertaking requires extra planning. When Zack Knopp won Pacers tickets from Fan Duel and had his choice of Game 3 of 4, he chose to make a long day of Sunday. He used a parking pass for the Virginia Street garage next to Gainbridge Fieldhouse. A friend picked him up there to head to the track. They planned to use a ride share service back to Gainbridge after the race. On Saturday night, Knopp was putting off thoughts of what that might cost. This will be Knopp's first Pacers & Racers experience. He knows there's no guarantee it will happen again soon. After seeing clips of the vibe inside Gainbridge for Friday's watch party, he knows he made the correct decision. 'The energy in Indy is insane right now,' Knopp said. 'All those people going from the track to the game -- it's probably going to be chaos in there. Now that the Pacers won (Friday) night, it's probably going to be even more crazy than if they had lost.' Mark Buckley spent part of his childhood in Speedway, where his father, Bruce, served as pastor of the United Methodist Church on 16th Street. Back then he walked to the track. Now the Carmel resident relies on the time-tested and closely guarded 'little ways to get around' the neighborhoods surrounding the track. This year, Buckey waited to find out whether his son, Brock, and his Indiana Wesleyan baseball teammates would advance to the NAIA World Series in Lewiston, Idaho. When the Wildcats fell one game short of advancement, Buckey scrambled for tickets on the secondary market. Buckley, his sons Brock and Corbin, and son-in-law Colin Riley will attend the race and head downtown together for the game. 'I don't care how tired I am. I don't care what the weather is,' Mark Buckley said. 'It's about cheering for the race and cheering for the Pacers. How often does this come around? It might be their best chance ever to actually win the NBA championship. I'm not going to miss it.' For his first Pacers & Racers, Evans knew he'd be in for a marathon, not a sprint. He planned to leave Brownsburg with wife Davina, daughters Eowyn and Sadie and son Dietrich by 5 a.m. to be at the track by 6:30. They watched from the infield – an economical choice for families since children 15 and under receive free infield admission. After the race they'll drive back towards the western suburbs and intercept his mother, Rita, a Pacers season ticket holder since 2009. She and Evans will split off and head to the game – hopefully with time for dinner before tipoff. 'I'm gonna drink a lot more water – and maybe a little extra caffeine,' Evans said. Indianapolis' fourth experience with the game day/race day combination should ease the logistical burden. A city which hosts Final Fours regularly and sprinkles in events ranging from NBA All-Star weekend to Super Bowl XLVI to the College Football Playoff national championship stays in practice for days of this magnitude. Pierce said Indianapolis built an international reputation on sharing resources and coordinating the necessary public infrastructure. 'It is very common when I go to conferences or other events, people are talking about the real challenge in other markets to get the owner of the track and the owner of the pro sports team to be pulling together in the same direction, whether with police, with hotels, other city services,' Pierce said. 'It is in the culture and the habit of Indy to get everyone working on the same page together. It's one competitive advantage we have when bidding for events and continuing to bring in events.' Evans assumes he and his mother will not be able to make their usual pre-Pacers pit stop at Big Woods restaurant in Speedway. Sunday, though, will be about making other memories. The chance to potentially help the Pacers to a 3-0 series lead feels very immediate. When a friend texted before the series he already hated the Knicks again, Evans shot back, 'I never stopped!' Yet the nostalgia of his first 500 experience since 2000 had begun to settle in by late last week. Back then he attended thanks to the generosity of Bob Wood, the father of one of his friends. Wood died in 2014. Evans was drawn back to the track by the chance to attend with 10-year-old Dietrich, a big racing fan. 'Every time I drive by the Speedway, I think of my friend's dad and how much he meant to me,' Evans said. 'He was like a second father. The emotion of all of that comes back to me.' The Buckleys have held Saturday night race parties for years. They held remote control car races and draw names for a driver's pool. The tradition continued after they started having children. It continued after their children started having children. The fanfare began to die down in recent years. Buckley and his wife Susan – a former 500 Princess – decided the tradition would end. Until a couple of weeks ago, that is, when the kids started calling to ask about the party. Buckley said one of his favorite photos is one of him and his sons and son-in-law from last year's conference finals against the Celtics. They'll carry Sunday with them long after any commemorative T-shirts wear out.
Indianapolis Star
25-05-2025
- Sport
- Indianapolis Star
'That will be good': Pacers and Racers for Indy 500 champ Alex Palou
INDIANAPOLIS — A racer is visiting the Pacers. Indianapolis 500 winner Alex Palou said he would attend Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Sunday night. The Indiana Pacers hold a 2-0 lead on the New York Knicks as they host the back end of the "Racers and Pacers" doubleheader at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Palou won the Indy 500 for the first time — his first oval-track victory — after a 45-minute rain delay at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. 'Energy in Indy is insane': Pacers & Racers attendees hope for thrilling 500, electric Game 3 He finished in plenty of time to kiss the bricks, drink the milk celebrate with fans and conduct countless interviews before heading downtown. "That will be good," he said of catching the game. Final Indy 500 results: Alex Palou wins, and here's the full list
NBC News
24-05-2025
- Automotive
- NBC News
Indianapolis celebrates an epic sports weekend with Pacers, Fever and the Indy 500
INDIANAPOLIS — Drive through the neighborhoods surrounding Indianapolis Motor Speedway and it looks like Christmas in May. Checkered flags and "Welcome race fans" signs on every block. Neatly trimmed lawns decorated with cutout Indy cars, a mock Borg-Warner Trophy, even an inflatable version of the track's familiar golden, winged logo. Yet the "Racing Capital of the World" is eagerly and happily sharing the Memorial Day weekend stage with the Indiana Pacers and the Indiana Fever, two teams straight from the Hoosier State's lifeblood of basketball. The Pacers flags and Caitlin Clark jerseys are easy to see all over town, including Gasoline Alley a few steps from the speedway's famous Brickyard. Pacers & Racers weekend is in high gear. "This is an epic weekend, an incredible opportunity to put Indianapolis on the minds of virtually every major sports fan on the planet," said Chris Gahl, executive vice president and chief marketing officer for Visit Indy. "Our initial research shows no other city in the U.S. has hosted this diverse level of major sporting events in such a short amount of time." It may be an anomaly nationally, but Indianapolis is built to thrive in this sort of spotlight. The city has hosted the Super Bowl, two NBA All-Star Games, multiple international and national championships and, of course, now the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500. And through every virtually twist — even an NCAA men's basketball tournament held entirely in and around Indy — the reviews have come back with races. The lineup On Saturday afternoon, Clark and the Fever host the defending WNBA champion New York Liberty in front of a sellout crowd early in a season with title hopes for a team boasting perhaps the biggest star in the league. An estimated 350,000 race fans are expected for Sunday's midday Indy 500 race, including the first sold-out grandstands since 2016. The weekend will be capped Sunday night when the Pacers host the New York Knicks for Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals. It's the fourth time an NBA game has converged with race day, and the Pacers lost each of the first three — to the Knicks in 1999, to the Pistons in 2004 and to the Heat in 2013. They went on to lose all three series, too. The off-court, off-track stories such as the Team Penske cheating scandal, the WNBA investigation into alleged racial comments directed at Angel Reese after a Fever game and the call for international peace from Israeli-born, Russian-raised pole winner Robert Schwarzman have played into the buildup. Even the Oscar Mayer Wienermobiles came to town Friday. In a state where the greatest athletic feats often have been defined by auto racing or basketball, this weekend seems like a fitting marriage even to locals. Just ask IndyCar team owner-driver Ed Carpenter, a longtime Pacers fan and the stepson of former speedway president and CEO Tony George. "I think it celebrates the city, the people that live here and the fans that make the pilgrimage to the race," he said. "(Having the other events) just makes it that much more special." Carpenter hopes to attend Sunday night's game — even if he wins the 500 — and now finds himself surrounded in Gasoline Alley by a growing legion of crossover fans Six-time IndyCar Series champion Scott Dixon and three-time 500 winner Dario Franchitti attended Game 3 of the Indiana-Cleveland series. Former IndyCar driver and broadcaster James Hinchcliffe was there for Game 2 and the triumvirate of Kyle Kirkwood, Colton Herta and Marcus Ericsson went to Game 2 of the Indiana-Milwaukee series. Scott McLaughlin, a Knicks fans, has a wager on the series with Carpenter and may attend Sunday's game if he's not drinking the milk in victory lane. "How'd that go?" fellow driver Alexander Rossi asked after the Pacers' thrilling Game 1 victory on Wednesday. "Real bad, we lost the unloseable," McLaughlin said. "We had a good wager. I have to buy the equivalent -- if the Pacers win in six games -- if they win in seven, the bet is off, or I win -- I have to buy the equivalent up to 2500 bucks of his (coffee/java)." Red carpet treatment The red carpet isn't just being rolled out for the Pacers and the racers. Film director Spike Lee is expected to be in his familiar spot inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse while his old foil, Reggie Miller, calls the game for TNT. It's unclear how many big wigs from the race will make the 15-minute drive (in good traffic) to the arena for the game. Two tickets to each event would cost you nearly $4,000. Kyle Larson, who is making his second attempt at a different kind of race day double — completing 500 miles at Indianapolis and 600 more in Charlotte's NASCAR nightcap — already has made that trip. He went to the Fever game Tuesday night. "Outside the car, it's been crazier this year logistics-wise," Larson said. "Going to New York and having a full day of media there and then flying back here. Going to the Fever game was fun." The interest and intrigue goes the other way, too. Three years ago, Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton made his IndyCar debut in a two-seater with Mario Andretti. Last weekend, Fever coach Stephanie White, an Indiana native, returned to the track while Fever center Aliyah Boston, the 2023 WNBA Rookie of the Year, got her first glimpse at the historic and vast 2.5-mile oval. "Being on the track and kind of seeing how fast all the cars go, and to meet Colton was pretty dope," Boston said. "The track is huge. Colton told us how many things could fit in the track and that's insane. You don't understand how big it is till you're there." Bottom line Gahl said hotels are virtually sold out in Central Indiana and everywhere from Lafayette to Bloomington, roughly one-hour drives from Indy; downtown, the average cost is about $550 per night with a three-night minimum and restaurant reservations are scarce. Local merchandisers are capitalizing, too, selling blue-and-gold shirts that read "Zoom Baby," a play off the late Bob "Slick" Leonard's radio calls of "Boom Baby" for Pacers' 3-pointers. In the midst of so much going on in a 36-hour window, the Pacers, racers and the Fever are all following the same playbook: Ignore the distractions and celebrate this incredible weekend. "You've got to enjoy the moment, let the excitement and pressure go, focus on the task at hand right in front of you," Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard said. "It should be exciting and fun."
San Francisco Chronicle
24-05-2025
- Automotive
- San Francisco Chronicle
Indianapolis celebrates an epic sports weekend with Pacers, Fever and the Indy 500
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Drive through the neighborhoods surrounding Indianapolis Motor Speedway and it looks like Christmas in May. Checkered flags and 'Welcome race fans' signs on every block. Neatly trimmed lawns decorated with cutout Indy cars, a mock Borg-Warner Trophy, even an inflatable version of the track's familiar golden, winged logo. Yet the 'Racing Capital of the World' is eagerly and happily sharing the Memorial Day weekend stage with the Indiana Pacers and the Indiana Fever, two teams straight from the Hoosier State's lifeblood of basketball. The Pacers flags and Caitlin Clark jerseys are easy to see all over town, including Gasoline Alley a few steps from the speedway's famous Brickyard. Pacers & Racers weekend is in high gear. 'This is an epic weekend, an incredible opportunity to put Indianapolis on the minds of virtually every major sports fan on the planet," said Chris Gahl, executive vice president and chief marketing officer for Visit Indy. 'Our initial research shows no other city in the U.S. has hosted this diverse level of major sporting events in such a short amount of time." It may be an anomaly nationally, but Indianapolis is built to thrive in this sort of spotlight. The city has hosted the Super Bowl, two NBA All-Star Games, multiple international and national championships and, of course, now the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500. And through every virtually twist — even an NCAA men's basketball tournament held entirely in and around Indy — the reviews have come back with races. The lineup On Saturday afternoon, Clark and the Fever host the defending WNBA champion New York Liberty in front of a sellout crowd early in a season with title hopes for a team boasting perhaps the biggest star in the league. An estimated 350,000 race fans are expected for Sunday's midday Indy 500 race, including the first sold-out grandstands since 2016. The weekend will be capped Sunday night when the Pacers host the New York Knicks for Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals. It's the fourth time an NBA game has converged with race day, and the Pacers lost each of the first three — to the Knicks in 1999, to the Pistons in 2004 and to the Heat in 2013. They went on to lose all three series, too. The off-court, off-track stories such as the Team Penske cheating scandal, the WNBA investigation into alleged racial comments directed at Angel Reese after a Fever game and the call for international peace from Israeli-born, Russian-raised pole winner Robert Schwarzman have played into the buildup. Even the Oscar Mayer Wienermobiles came to town Friday. In a state where the greatest athletic feats often have been defined by auto racing or basketball, this weekend seems like a fitting marriage even to locals. Just ask IndyCar team owner-driver Ed Carpenter, a longtime Pacers fan and the stepson of former speedway president and CEO Tony George. "I think it celebrates the city, the people that live here and the fans that make the pilgrimage to the race,' he said. '(Having the other events) just makes it that much more special.' Carpenter hopes to attend Sunday night's game — even if he wins the 500 — and now finds himself surrounded in Gasoline Alley by a growing legion of crossover fans Six-time IndyCar Series champion Scott Dixon and three-time 500 winner Dario Franchitti attended Game 3 of the Indiana-Cleveland series. Former IndyCar driver and broadcaster James Hinchcliffe was there for Game 2 and the triumvirate of Kyle Kirkwood, Colton Herta and Marcus Ericsson went to Game 2 of the Indiana-Milwaukee series. Scott McLaughlin, a Knicks fans, has a wager on the series with Carpenter and may attend Sunday's game if he's not drinking the milk in victory lane. 'How'd that go?' fellow driver Alexander Rossi asked after the Pacers' thrilling Game 1 victory on Wednesday. 'Real bad, we lost the unloseable,' McLaughlin said. 'We had a good wager. I have to buy the equivalent -- if the Pacers win in six games -- if they win in seven, the bet is off, or I win -- I have to buy the equivalent up to 2500 bucks of his (coffee/java).' Red carpet treatment The red carpet isn't just being rolled out for the Pacers and the racers. Film director Spike Lee is expected to be in his familiar spot inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse while his old foil, Reggie Miller, calls the game for TNT. It's unclear how many big wigs from the race will make the 15-minute drive (in good traffic) to the arena for the game. Two tickets to each event would cost you nearly $4,000. Kyle Larson, who is making his second attempt at a different kind of race day double — completing 500 miles at Indianapolis and 600 more in Charlotte's NASCAR nightcap — already has made that trip. He went to the Fever game Tuesday night. 'Outside the car, it's been crazier this year logistics-wise,' Larson said. 'Going to New York and having a full day of media there and then flying back here. Going to the Fever game was fun.' The interest and intrigue goes the other way, too. Three years ago, Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton made his IndyCar debut in a two-seater with Mario Andretti. Last weekend, Fever coach Stephanie White, an Indiana native, returned to the track while Fever center Aliyah Boston, the 2023 WNBA Rookie of the Year, got her first glimpse at the historic and vast 2.5-mile oval. 'Being on the track and kind of seeing how fast all the cars go, and to meet Colton was pretty dope,' Boston said. 'The track is huge. Colton told us how many things could fit in the track and that's insane. You don't understand how big it is till you're there.' Bottom line Gahl said hotels are virtually sold out in Central Indiana and everywhere from Lafayette to Bloomington, roughly one-hour drives from Indy; downtown, the average cost is about $550 per night with a three-night minimum and restaurant reservations are scarce. Local merchandisers are capitalizing, too, selling blue-and-gold shirts that read 'Zoom Baby," a play off the late Bob 'Slick' Leonard's radio calls of 'Boom Baby' for Pacers' 3-pointers. In the midst of so much going on in a 36-hour window, the Pacers, racers and the Fever are all following the same playbook: Ignore the distractions and celebrate this incredible weekend. 'You've got to enjoy the moment, let the excitement and pressure go, focus on the task at hand right in front of you,' Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard said. 'It should be exciting and fun.'
Hamilton Spectator
24-05-2025
- Automotive
- Hamilton Spectator
Indianapolis celebrates an epic sports weekend with Pacers, Fever and the Indy 500
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Drive through the neighborhoods surrounding Indianapolis Motor Speedway and it looks like Christmas in May. Checkered flags and 'Welcome race fans' signs on every block. Neatly trimmed lawns decorated with cutout Indy cars, a mock Borg-Warner Trophy, even an inflatable version of the track's familiar golden, winged logo. Yet the 'Racing Capital of the World' is eagerly and happily sharing the Memorial Day weekend stage with the Indiana Pacers and the Indiana Fever, two teams straight from the Hoosier State's lifeblood of basketball. The Pacers flags and Caitlin Clark jerseys are easy to see all over town, including Gasoline Alley a few steps from the speedway's famous Brickyard. Pacers & Racers weekend is in high gear. 'This is an epic weekend, an incredible opportunity to put Indianapolis on the minds of virtually every major sports fan on the planet,' said Chris Gahl, executive vice president and chief marketing officer for Visit Indy. 'Our initial research shows no other city in the U.S. has hosted this diverse level of major sporting events in such a short amount of time.' It may be an anomaly nationally, but Indianapolis is built to thrive in this sort of spotlight. The city has hosted the Super Bowl, two NBA All-Star Games, multiple international and national championships and, of course, now the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500. And through every virtually twist — even an NCAA men's basketball tournament held entirely in and around Indy — the reviews have come back with races. The lineup On Saturday afternoon, Clark and the Fever host the defending WNBA champion New York Liberty in front of a sellout crowd early in a season with title hopes for a team boasting perhaps the biggest star in the league. An estimated 350,000 race fans are expected for Sunday's midday Indy 500 race, including the first sold-out grandstands since 2016. The weekend will be capped Sunday night when the Pacers host the New York Knicks for Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals. It's the fourth time an NBA game has converged with race day, and the Pacers lost each of the first three — to the Knicks in 1999, to the Pistons in 2004 and to the Heat in 2013. They went on to lose all three series, too. The off-court, off-track stories such as the Team Penske cheating scandal, the WNBA investigation into alleged racial comments directed at Angel Reese after a Fever game and the call for international peace from Israeli-born, Russian-raised pole winner Robert Schwarzman have played into the buildup. Even the Oscar Mayer Wienermobiles came to town Friday. In a state where the greatest athletic feats often have been defined by auto racing or basketball, this weekend seems like a fitting marriage even to locals. Just ask IndyCar team owner-driver Ed Carpenter, a longtime Pacers fan and the stepson of former speedway president and CEO Tony George. 'I think it celebrates the city, the people that live here and the fans that make the pilgrimage to the race,' he said. '(Having the other events) just makes it that much more special.' Carpenter hopes to attend Sunday night's game — even if he wins the 500 — and now finds himself surrounded in Gasoline Alley by a growing legion of crossover fans Six-time IndyCar Series champion Scott Dixon and three-time 500 winner Dario Franchitti attended Game 3 of the Indiana-Cleveland series. Former IndyCar driver and broadcaster James Hinchcliffe was there for Game 2 and the triumvirate of Kyle Kirkwood, Colton Herta and Marcus Ericsson went to Game 2 of the Indiana-Milwaukee series. Scott McLaughlin, a Knicks fans, has a wager on the series with Carpenter and may attend Sunday's game if he's not drinking the milk in victory lane. 'How'd that go?' fellow driver Alexander Rossi asked after the Pacers' thrilling Game 1 victory on Wednesday. 'Real bad, we lost the unloseable,' McLaughlin said. 'We had a good wager. I have to buy the equivalent — if the Pacers win in six games — if they win in seven, the bet is off, or I win — I have to buy the equivalent up to 2500 bucks of his (coffee/java).' Red carpet treatment The red carpet isn't just being rolled out for the Pacers and the racers. Film director Spike Lee is expected to be in his familiar spot inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse while his old foil, Reggie Miller, calls the game for TNT. It's unclear how many big wigs from the race will make the 15-minute drive (in good traffic) to the arena for the game. Two tickets to each event would cost you nearly $4,000. Kyle Larson, who is making his second attempt at a different kind of race day double — completing 500 miles at Indianapolis and 600 more in Charlotte's NASCAR nightcap — already has made that trip. He went to the Fever game Tuesday night. 'Outside the car, it's been crazier this year logistics-wise,' Larson said. 'Going to New York and having a full day of media there and then flying back here. Going to the Fever game was fun.' The interest and intrigue goes the other way, too. Three years ago, Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton made his IndyCar debut in a two-seater with Mario Andretti. Last weekend, Fever coach Stephanie White, an Indiana native, returned to the track while Fever center Aliyah Boston, the 2023 WNBA Rookie of the Year, got her first glimpse at the historic and vast 2.5-mile oval. 'Being on the track and kind of seeing how fast all the cars go, and to meet Colton was pretty dope,' Boston said. 'The track is huge. Colton told us how many things could fit in the track and that's insane. You don't understand how big it is till you're there.' Bottom line Gahl said hotels are virtually sold out in Central Indiana and everywhere from Lafayette to Bloomington, roughly one-hour drives from Indy; downtown, the average cost is about $550 per night with a three-night minimum and restaurant reservations are scarce. Local merchandisers are capitalizing, too, selling blue-and-gold shirts that read 'Zoom Baby,' a play off the late Bob 'Slick' Leonard's radio calls of 'Boom Baby' for Pacers' 3-pointers. In the midst of so much going on in a 36-hour window, the Pacers, racers and the Fever are all following the same playbook: Ignore the distractions and celebrate this incredible weekend. 'You've got to enjoy the moment, let the excitement and pressure go, focus on the task at hand right in front of you,' Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard said. 'It should be exciting and fun.' ___ AP auto racing:
