IMS 'Goes Big' To Celebrate Mailing Of Indianapolis 500 Tickets
March 02, 2010 | By Paul Kelly
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The Indianapolis 500 is the world's largest single-day spectator sporting event, and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is the world's largest spectator sporting facility.
So it's only fitting that IMS "went big" to show off the 2010 Indianapolis 500 ticket.
A banner of the 2010 Indianapolis 500 ticket, measuring 91½ feet wide and 19½ feet tall, was unveiled Tuesday, March 2 over Gate 2 (Main Gate) at IMS and will remain there through the month of May. Tickets for the 2010 Indianapolis 500, scheduled for Sunday, May 30, will be mailed to ticketholders starting Wednesday, March 3.
The 2010 ticket features popular IZOD IndyCar Series star Helio Castroneves, who earned an emotional third Indy 500 victory in May 2009 in a Team Penske entry. Castroneves will attempt this year to become just the fourth driver to win "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing" four times.
IMS Vice President of Marketing and Communications Chris Schwartz and IMS Creative Services Graphic Designer Ryan Long unveiled the ticket. Long designed the ticket and the 2010 Indianapolis 500 event logo.
"Since 2010 is the second year of the Centennial Era at IMS, we felt it again was important to give the '500' ticket a vintage feel," Long said. "Historic elements culled from tickets of the 1930s through the 1960s were incorporated into the design, and a horizontal layout - which hadn't been in use for quite some time prior to the Centennial Era - was again utilized as a nod to the history of the facility and the event.
"Honoring the defending winner is a longstanding tradition on '500' tickets, so the real challenge becomes finding the right photograph to represent the driver. This particular shot from IMS Photo really captures Helio's exuberance and the emotion that he displayed after winning his third race here at Indy."
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2010 Indy 500 tickets: Tickets for the 2010 Indianapolis 500, scheduled for Sunday, May 30, are on sale now. Race Day ticket prices start at just $20.
Fans can order tickets online at www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com, call the IMS ticket office at (317) 492-6700, or (800) 822-INDY outside the Indianapolis area or visit the ticket office at the IMS Administration Building at the corner of Georgetown Road and 16th Street. Online orders can be made at any time. Hours for phone orders and the ticket office are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. (ET) Monday-Friday.
Tickets for groups of 20 or more also are on sale. Contact the IMS Group Sales Department at (866) 221-8775 for more information.