Do I Know How To Pick 'Em Or . . .

. . .Do I know how to pick 'em??? Mr. Hornish Jr. won his first Indy 500 today with the second closest margin of victory in Indy history! He'd been a bit back in the pack the whole day after starting as the pole sitter, and I was a bit sad. But in the last moment, he came up past Michael Andretti (who, bless his heart, has tried and tried and never crossed the brickyard first), then pulled past rookie, Marco Andretti, as they were both crossing the finish line. Beautiful! 'Twas a great ending and I was cheering like mad.

The race itself would have been much better to watch if it hadn't been oppressively hot all day. Every time a yellow flag came out, I would run underneath the stands to cool off in the shade, leaning my back against the cold concrete until I heard the roar of the green and knew it was time to go back up and watch. My brother and mom were having major problems with the heat and kept walking up under the eave to escape the brutal sunshine. I downed six 20-ounce bottles of water and never once had to pee the entire 7 hours I was at the track. I can't imagine how the drivers were suffering.

That being said, it was a great race. Danica, as I had predicted, placed in the top ten but didn't push herself to the top of the pack - never getting higher than fifth. It was great to see her out there racing however. There were several silly crashes - one on a yellow flag, and Hornish actually sat out a penalty when he pulled away from the pit before the gas hose was removed and ran over one of his pit crew's foot, setting him on fire in the process. We had great seats this year - quite close to the tower and high enough that we could see both the first and fourth turn, so all of the action was in our line of sight.

I love the Indianapolis 500 - if you couldn't tell. It's my one annual moment of sporting event madness in between my seasons in dance and opera. I love races because they are such a push for personal best. I love the adrenalin of speed and the precise timing and spacial awareness that is so imperative in racing such fast machines. I also love the pomp and circumstance that precedes each race. The tradition of songs in a certain order, military planes flying over, Jim Nabors singing "Back Home Again in Indiana," and this year, the most beautiful playing of "Taps" to a completely silent crowd of half a million. It's an amazing burst of excitement and reflection of past that brings me into summer every year.

Tomorrow is a family breakfast and then we all go our separate ways again until the following year. I've got two more days with my family and then finally home to my fiance and cats and seven months of teaching and enjoying my home!!!