Courtesy: Izod Indycar Series
Memorial Day and Memorial Day weekend will be a big one for fans of basketball. The WNBA kicks up its 2013-2014 season in a big way across ABC and the ESPN family of networks. Fans of auto racing get to celebrate the weekend with the annual celebration of the Indianapolis 500, live from Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS). ABC will broadcast the annual race this Sunday, May 26th live for the forty-ninth consecutive year. The race will be preceded by a one-hour pre-race telecast at 11am ET presented by Go Daddy. The green flag is expected to drop at 12:15pm ET.
The broadcast of the race will incorporate eighty-four different cameras including three each on board twelve of the thirty-three cars entered for the Izod Indy Car Series premier race. Those drivers who will be carrying in car cameras will be: Defending race winner Dario Franchitti and defending IndyCar Series champion Ryan Hunter-Reay. Others will be Charlie Kimball, JR Hildebrand, James Hinchcliffe, Townsend Bell, Will Power, Helio Castroneves, Marco Andretti, Graham Rahal and Tristan Vautier. Veteran racer Ed Carpenter will also carry one of the in-car cameras.
Audiences can also get a view of pit road and the front stretch thanks to the enhanced “Batcam” (skycam). The “Batcam” runs on a wire overhead pit road and the front stretch at IMS. The “Batcam” has been used by ESPN for many years. But with its new enhancements, it can now fly over the track at speeds upwards of ninety-five miles per hour. Four Ultra Hi Motion cameras placed around the track will give viewers an amazing view of the race. The cameras, which will be used for the second consecutive year, will be placed in the short chutes at each end of the two and a half mile track. There will also be a camera in the fourth turn exit, and one robotic camera placed at the entrance to turn one. Along with the cameras, which can shoot at a rate of up to 1,200 frames per second, each turn will also have a Super Slo Motion camera.
Thanks to ESPN3, fans watching the race will get the option of streaming live video on a second screen. The live streaming feeds will be available via ESPN’s WatchESPN and WatchESPN app. ESPN3 is available online via http://www.WatchESPN.com. Viewers watching online via ESPN3’s second screen can cwitch between in-car cameras. For the first time this year, fans watching online can also check out the live scoring ticker. ESPN3 will also carry a rebroadcast of the race after it ends on ABC.
Marty Reid will have the lap-by-lap call, while ESPN SportsCenter anchor Lindsay Czarniak will serve as race host. Former driver Scott Goodyear and 1998 Indy 500 winner Eddie Cheever will be on hand for analysis. Rick DeBruhl, Jamie Little, Dr. Jerry Punch, and Vince Welch will report from the pits.
For all the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews, go online to http://www.facebook.com/philspicks and “Like” it. Fans can always keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews in the Phil’s Picks blog at https://philspicks.wordpress.com.
philspicks 