Michiana fans find Indy 500 crowds similar to home

The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is packed with tens of thousands of fans today for Carb Day and we’re right there throughout the whole weekend leading up to Sunday’s Indy 500. 

One Michiana fan has an interesting perspective on the sold-out crowd.

John Veach, who has been an usher at Notre Dame Stadium for years, knows Michiana crowds and he knows Michiana sports. But we asked him to compare the crowds he knows back home to the crowds in Indy.

Those crowds are steadily growing with more than 350,000 Indy fans expected to attend the 100th running of the Indy 500.

Many fans spent their Friday enjoying Carb Day activities driving their own Indy cars and dunking people for a good cause.

John Veach has been to the 500 before and he says the crowds at the speedway are similar to Notre Dame’s fans.

“When I go to Notre Dame games, the electricity is just out of sight and you feel that here, too. If you’ve never been here, you gotta come, especially if you’re from Indiana. You’ve gotta come at least once to the race,” John Veach, Notre Dame Stadium Usher.

So if you’ve been to a Fighting Irish football game, you now have an idea what it’s like down here at the speedway this weekend.