What you need to know before Brickyard 400 weekend
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Thousands of people are headed to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend for the Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard.
If you’re headed out for the big event this weekend, you may want to buy your tickets soon. Tickets cost $25 for Friday and Saturday, $35 for Sunday, and kids 15 and under get in free all weekend long.
Regardless of why you’re going to the track this weekend, you’ll want to get connected. Be sure to check social media for schedule changes, make a plan based on the current schedule, and buy your tickets ahead of time online.
IMS says tickets for Saturday’s Florida Georgia Line concert are going fast.
“I’m guessing we’re going to be north of 25 thousand people for that concert,” Indianapolis Motor Speedway President Doug Boles said. “It will be a huge concert.”
Boles says tickets are also flying for the Brickyard 400 with more than 50,000 people expected to attend. Those numbers are nothing compared to what the Indy 500 brings in, but IMS is happy with how sales are going.
“While we often times compare ourselves to the world’s largest single-day sporting event, which we are really proud to host here at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, it sometimes becomes a double edged sword,” Boles said. “Because people expect every time we open the gates here to have the world’s largest single-day sporting event and that’s just not possible.”
There aren’t any changes in security from the Indy 500, but keep in mind you can’t bring coolers to any dirt track events or the concert. A clear 1-liter bottle is allowed, and you can bring coolers to anything on the main course.
“Bring coolers Friday, Saturday and Sunday to the race track,” Boles said. “Our 18x14x14 cooler restrictions are the things folks need to remember when they come.”
The big change this year concerns the 400 events, with all of them happening on Sunday.
“In the past, we’ve done the qualifying on Saturday, so Sunday content has increased,” Boles said. “It’s also going to be a little bit of a strategic challenge for the teams. Because they’re going to have to decide what to focus on on Saturday and how to use those practice sessions to focus on qualifying or practice.”
If you’re going to the concert, IMS recommends you get there around 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, and on Sunday the green flag start is 2:25 p.m. Just make sure you give yourself plenty of time.