As we approach the finals of this year’s Indy 500 race, another subset of racers are gearing up to step into the track as well – albeit virtually. iRacing.com has announced that its annual online Indy 500 racing competition will be broadcasted on the big screen this year. Keyboard racers back at home have a shot of being a superstar beyond the confines of their own bedrooms or circle of friends.
The iRacing game Indy 500 game that has the Indy track modeled after the 2.5mile oval track at Indianapolis is touted to be an accurate recreation of the real thing. In the words of iRacing’s marketing manager Otto Szebeni, the track is within two millimeters of the real track.
“Racers feel the excitement of really racing on the historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway. iRacing.com members can feel the rubber gripping every curve and the acceleration on every straightaway. You can even feel bumps in the road that are actually on the Indy 500 track. iRacing’s” virtual racetracks are modeled after real racetracks using hordes of data collected from laser scans, not GPS like many other auto racing games. He said his team spent over a week scanning the 2 ½-mile oval track at Indianapolis. It’s an expensive, laborious task, but authenticity is what it’s all about, all based on real world data.”
The competition has already been going on for weeks and the approaching finals will take place on May 31 and will be live-streamed on iRacing.com and PSRTV.com. Folks on the track during the day of the finals will also get to watch the race on the jumbo-tron screens in and around the speedway. Sounds like it’s going to be an exciting week for Indy Car 500 fans (both virtual and real) all over the world. Head over to iRacing.com for more details.