SCHEDULE (All times local):

10 a.m.-6 p.m.: Public gates open

Noon-6 p.m.: Open Practice Peacock

6:15 p.m.: Qualifications Draw, Pagoda Plaza

TICKETS: General Admission tickets are $15 for Indy 500 practice days. Children 15 and under are admitted free with paying adult.

PUBLIC GATES OPEN (10 a.m.-6 p.m.): Gate 1, Gate 2, Gate 3, Gate 4, Gate 6S, Gate 7, Gate 7S, Gate 10 and Gate 10A.

PARKING: Free parking for Indianapolis 500 is located in Turn 3 and Lot 7 (North 40), in the South Carousel Lot for motorcycle parking, and Lot 7 (North 40) and Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum parking lot for ADA parking. Parking is $10 in Lot 2, Main Gate and Lot 3G, and $20 in Gate 1. ADA parking is $10 in Lot 2 and Lot 3, and $20 in Gate 1. Bicycle parking is located outside Gate 1, Gate 6 and Gate 9.

All vendors and ticket sales are cashless. There are machines inside the track to convert cash to a card for purchases.

Today is the fastest day of the Indycar season. The cars get more boost for qualifying and Fast Friday is the day for practice with the extra power.

It could also mean the the drivers who were consistently at the top the speed charts yesterday and Tuesday could slide backwards today, and the drivers lingering mid pack or lower could shoot to the the front.

Today usually sees higher speeds than qualifying weekend because of the draft created by so many cars on track at once. Single car qualifying results in lower speeds.

Weather

Warm and windy according to @Indycar_Wxman

The wind

1knot equals 1.151 mph. a 30 knot gust is about 35 mph.

Things to Watch For

How many of Thursday’s top 15 drivers stay in the top 15? Which drivers will stay relrtively close to where they were yesterday?

Which drivers will break into the top 15 for the first time this week?

How many laps will each car run? Jimmie Johnson ran 166 laps on Thursday.

The no tow list is the key to who will succeed tomorrow. keep an eye on that. I will update that list often today on Twitter and The Pit Window’s Facebook page.

The Draw– The draw for qualifying order can have an effect on the results. If one of the favorites draws an early or late position, his run could be affected by the weather changes during the day. In the current qualifying format, it is less of a problem since multiple runs are allowed. The variable this weekend may be a possible rain shower interrupting Saturday. It takes about three hours to qualify 33 cars.

Have a fun day. remember sunscreen and water.