How to make the most of May in Indianapolis
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Illustration: Maura Losch/Axios
Start your engines, Indy. The Month of May is here!
Why it matters: Over the next four weeks, Indianapolis will put on a series of events leading up to the Indianapolis 500, when as many as 350,000 people will descend on the city for the Greatest Spectacle in Racing.
Zoom in: The festivities are already underway! Here are more than a dozen ways to participate in the best month of the year.
🪑 Friday is the first Porch Party of the season, 6-9pm at the Harrison Center. The community-centric initiative encourages Hoosiers to decorate their homes for the 500 and connect with their neighbors by hosting racing-themed hangs.
- There are prizes for the three best-decorated porches, too.
👟 Saturday is the 500 Festival Mini Marathon and 5K. Half-marathon runners: Don't forget to kiss the bricks during your lap around the track!
- The races are sold out, but if you're signed up to run, good luck! If you're not running, go cheer for the thousands who are.
➰ See your favorite IndyCar drivers tackle another challenge — the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's road course — during the Sonsio Grand Prix on May 10.
🧒 May 10 is also the 500 Festival Kids' Day and Rookie Run on Monument Circle.
🟢 The roar of engines returns to IMS on May 13 for the opening day of Indy 500 practice and continues through May 16.
🇺🇲 IMS' fourth annual naturalization ceremony is also May 13, welcoming 33 of America's newest citizens.
💨 May 16 is Fast Friday, the final day of practice ahead of qualifying. Expect drivers to top 230 mph and get the best look at who might claim the coveted front row.
🥞 The annual Breakfast at the Brickyard — where you, yes, eat breakfast but also get to drive your own car around the track — is May 17.
👊 Bumping is back for the third year in a row, which brings an added level of drama to qualifying, on May 17 and 18. The starting grid has only 33 spots, so not everyone will make the cut.
- Positions 13-30 will be set on the first day of quals. The 12 fastest get a shot at the pole position on day 2, while the slowest will duke it out for the last row.
🏎️ With the field set, practice picks back up May 19.
🚲 Grab 10-15 of your co-workers for your own chance at racing glory on May 20 at the HandleBar Hot Lap, a series of single-elimination, one-on-one races on pedal pubs around Monument Circle.
😂 May 22 is the Last Row Party, in which the last three drivers to make the race get straight-up roasted — for a good cause.
🇺🇸 Memorial Day Weekend starts aptly with the American Legion 500 Festival Memorial Service at noon May 23 on the north steps of the Indiana War Memorial.
- The service is free to the public.
🎸 Bret Michaels is headlining the Carb Day concert on May 23 with the All-American Rejects, which follows a couple of hours of practice and the annual pit stop challenge.
🎈 The 500 Festival Parade through downtown gets race weekend going on May 24, with former NBA star Scot Pollard serving as Grand Marshal.
- You can try to snag a spot to stand along the route, but if you want a guaranteed seat, get a ticket for the bleachers along Pennsylvania and Meridian streets.
- The day before the race is also Legends Day at the track, where drivers past and present are available for autographs, and spectators can sit in on the public pre-race drivers' meeting.
🤠 The night before the race, country group Midland will headline the Legends Day Concert at the Everwise Amphitheater at White River State Park.
🏁 May 25 is race day, baby. Get your tickets now… we could see a sellout.