May is upon us…and that means Indianapolis 500 Festival, kicked off by the Mini Marathon tomorrow morning at 7:30. The OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon is the nation’s largest half-marathon with 35,000 participants and has sold out for the past 11 years…really…35,000 people running and walking this race, I applaud the drive and stamina it takes to complete this feat, but it isn’t my cup of tea!
One of my favorite memories of working downtown for the once Bank One (now Chase) Corporation was when the Mini was held on Friday mornings. The race started at Meridian and Ohio streets and I worked in the Bank One Tower, getting to work was sometimes challenging, but the sight of the runners filling at least the northern half of the circle and funneling North on Meridian to the starting line at Ohio was beautiful…and when the race started, watching the mass of people move North on Meridian and slowly start spreading out…it was great! I am surprised however that the Bank One Tower didn’t fall over as nearly everyone on the 48 floors was on the West side of the building watching the spectacle! Bob and Tom would broadcast from the pool deck at the Hilton (now Radisson) on the corner…some great memories!
Now the course has changed, it begins near the intersection of Washington and West streets, heads west toward the Indianapolis Motor Speedway along Michigan Street and does a complete lap around the 2.5 mile track before heading back down New York Street to the finish line. Because of the horrific events at the Boston Marathon, there are more stringent security measures in place, click here to view the most up to date information.
There are so many things happening this month, what events will you participate in? Let us know!
Living in Indy 