Ironman

benjmopar
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benjmopar
Hey all, I am thinking about taking my 6 year old son to the Ironman National this weekend. It’s a 4 hour drive and I’m not sure how long he’ll stay interested but thought about leaving Friday night and sleeping over in Indy.Can anyone who’s been there give me any pointers such as bring chairs or ear plugs for him etc? Btw he’s a big fan of Ferrandis and Tomac, go figure his name is Eli lol. Thanks in advance guys.
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Moto Obsessed 8/21/2019 7:04pm
8/21/2019 7:04pm
I've never been to Ironman, but here is the obvious:

- Bring whatever possible to make your son as comfortable as possible! ie, chairs, ear plugs, smuggle in juice boxes if you have to, etc
- If your son has a shitty time, you'll have a shitty time
4
smoothies862
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smoothies862 8/21/2019 7:05pm
8/21/2019 7:05pm
Foldable light chairs. Backpack thats a cooler. Great viewing race track
1
benjmopar
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benjmopar 8/21/2019 7:11pm
8/21/2019 7:11pm
smoothies862 wrote:
Foldable light chairs. Backpack thats a cooler. Great viewing race track
Thanks man, I know track layout is key. I think if he can see he’ll have a great time. Supposed to be awesome weather too unless the forecast has changed. I’ve been to a few indoor races in the last couple of years but haven’t been to an outdoors race since Kenworthy’s was a thing in Ohio if that tells you anything LOL .
Plan on buying tickets at the gate, do they ever sell out?
smoothies862
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smoothies862 8/21/2019 7:13pm
8/21/2019 7:13pm
Nah. Plenty of room. You can move all around easy and plenty of shade
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benjmopar
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benjmopar 8/21/2019 7:16pm
8/21/2019 7:16pm
Thanks man, I appreciate you taking the time to help me out sir.
smoothies862
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smoothies862 8/21/2019 7:29pm
8/21/2019 7:29pm
No worries. I also watched rj and dogger at troy. Ironman is so much better
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Isaish305
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Isaish305 8/21/2019 7:44pm
8/21/2019 7:44pm
Bring toy dirtbikes! My little brother spent the whole time at hangtown building tracks in the dirt. He loved it!
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AngryBear
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AngryBear 8/21/2019 8:52pm
8/21/2019 8:52pm Edited Date/Time 8/21/2019 8:53pm
this will be the 5th year in a row i've taken my two little guys to ironman. they are 6 & 8 now, did it first when they were 2 & 4...

someone asked a few weeks ago about taking kids to budd, i gave them my tips, which of course are applicable to all the races

https://www.vitalmx.com/forums/Moto-Related,20/Taking-Kids-to-Budds,136…
(my comments are in the first reply)

also, if you are looking for something to do in indy the day after with a kid that age, and they are curious/like to learn, 100% recommend the indy chidren's museum. its relatively cheap. it's the largest in the world. it is VERY nice.

https://www.childrensmuseum.org/

we hit it every year on sunday...

let me know if you have any specific questions, we have this down pretty pat by now :-)
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Max D
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Max D 8/21/2019 9:08pm
8/21/2019 9:08pm
I’ve never been to Ironman, but I took my daughter to Budds this year. Bring snacks and water/Gatorade is a must! A few other things I learned real quick like: (1) Get ready for bathroom breaks. Especially if your making sure he’s hydrated. (2) Even if you get there early to get a good close up spot, chances are you’ll be moving from that spot sooner or later. I found it difficult to keep my daughter occupied in the same spot for very long. They like to be on the move, so enjoy different views of the track. It’s worth it! (3) If you have a good spot and leave it, it’ll be gone by the time you get back (unless you mark it well or somebody tries to save it for you). (4) I didn’t get a pit pass this year, but will definitely have one next year. I honestly think the kids like the pits better than the race. Have fun!
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Max D
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Max D 8/21/2019 9:11pm
8/21/2019 9:11pm
AngryBear wrote:
this will be the 5th year in a row i've taken my two little guys to ironman. they are 6 & 8 now, did it first...
this will be the 5th year in a row i've taken my two little guys to ironman. they are 6 & 8 now, did it first when they were 2 & 4...

someone asked a few weeks ago about taking kids to budd, i gave them my tips, which of course are applicable to all the races

https://www.vitalmx.com/forums/Moto-Related,20/Taking-Kids-to-Budds,136…
(my comments are in the first reply)

also, if you are looking for something to do in indy the day after with a kid that age, and they are curious/like to learn, 100% recommend the indy chidren's museum. its relatively cheap. it's the largest in the world. it is VERY nice.

https://www.childrensmuseum.org/

we hit it every year on sunday...

let me know if you have any specific questions, we have this down pretty pat by now :-)
That was me asking about Budds. Haha! We had an awesome time! Thank you for the tips and suggestions!
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AngryBear
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AngryBear 8/21/2019 9:13pm
8/21/2019 9:13pm Edited Date/Time 8/21/2019 9:14pm
AngryBear wrote:
this will be the 5th year in a row i've taken my two little guys to ironman. they are 6 & 8 now, did it first...
this will be the 5th year in a row i've taken my two little guys to ironman. they are 6 & 8 now, did it first when they were 2 & 4...

someone asked a few weeks ago about taking kids to budd, i gave them my tips, which of course are applicable to all the races

https://www.vitalmx.com/forums/Moto-Related,20/Taking-Kids-to-Budds,136…
(my comments are in the first reply)

also, if you are looking for something to do in indy the day after with a kid that age, and they are curious/like to learn, 100% recommend the indy chidren's museum. its relatively cheap. it's the largest in the world. it is VERY nice.

https://www.childrensmuseum.org/

we hit it every year on sunday...

let me know if you have any specific questions, we have this down pretty pat by now :-)
Max D wrote:
That was me asking about Budds. Haha! We had an awesome time! Thank you for the tips and suggestions!
haha just caught that! glad it was a good trip!

and OP, i echo everything Max D said as well!
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Max D
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Max D 8/21/2019 9:15pm
8/21/2019 9:15pm
smoothies862 wrote:
Foldable light chairs. Backpack thats a cooler. Great viewing race track
benjmopar wrote:
Thanks man, I know track layout is key. I think if he can see he’ll have a great time. Supposed to be awesome weather too unless...
Thanks man, I know track layout is key. I think if he can see he’ll have a great time. Supposed to be awesome weather too unless the forecast has changed. I’ve been to a few indoor races in the last couple of years but haven’t been to an outdoors race since Kenworthy’s was a thing in Ohio if that tells you anything LOL .
Plan on buying tickets at the gate, do they ever sell out?
To my knowledge the general
Admission tickets are always available at the gate, but if you want pit passes or VIP tickets you may want to go online. I know at Budds however, they did sell a 3 hr pit pass at Will Call at the track.
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AngryBear
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AngryBear 8/21/2019 9:27pm
8/21/2019 9:27pm Edited Date/Time 8/21/2019 9:27pm
smoothies862 wrote:
Foldable light chairs. Backpack thats a cooler. Great viewing race track
benjmopar wrote:
Thanks man, I know track layout is key. I think if he can see he’ll have a great time. Supposed to be awesome weather too unless...
Thanks man, I know track layout is key. I think if he can see he’ll have a great time. Supposed to be awesome weather too unless the forecast has changed. I’ve been to a few indoor races in the last couple of years but haven’t been to an outdoors race since Kenworthy’s was a thing in Ohio if that tells you anything LOL .
Plan on buying tickets at the gate, do they ever sell out?
- general admission will NOT sell out, ever. its best to buy at gate, as you save the ridic fees of purchasing online.

- to the best of my knowledge, regular pit passes don't really sell out. those are the the approx $20 ticket add ons, you can be in the pits approx 9am-12.

- the racer x pit passes (all day, 9am-5pm), which are $100 (but include the general admission ticket, so $60 upgrade), absolutely do sell out. i've never had them sellout on us at ironman in 4yrs if we went to buy them first thing in the morning, but last year at muddy creek they were gone at 10am.

- the VIP stuff can sellout as well

hope that helps!
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muffdiver936
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muffdiver936 8/22/2019 4:52am
8/22/2019 4:52am
I haven’t checked the weather for this weekend but make sure you pack some mud boots . That place gets treacherous to walk when it’s wet
AngryBear
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AngryBear 8/22/2019 8:29am
8/22/2019 8:29am
muffdiver936 wrote:
I haven’t checked the weather for this weekend but make sure you pack some mud boots . That place gets treacherous to walk when it’s wet
for real. it's been wet more often than not. this year looks like it may be one of the rarer dry one's though, here's hoping.

50% today/thursday, 10% the rest of the weekend

https://weather.com/weather/5day/l/50b1a735e21492e4a2da0290b869b1981417…

Max D
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Max D 8/22/2019 3:01pm
8/22/2019 3:01pm
One thing I forgot to mention. I got a piece of advise from Angry Bear I think that literally made our trip unforgettable. Take your time and move around the track. Get the FULL experience if you can. I showed up early and was hell bent on getting a good spot and keeping it all day long. Then the bathroom breaks started coming and I honestly wanted to move to different spots anyways. Don't worry so much about the BEST spot. Different views of the track give you different views of their talent and speed, as well as it’s a new look for you. I hope you really enjoy yourself! It is truly awesome!
1
AngryBear
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AngryBear 8/22/2019 9:01pm
8/22/2019 9:01pm
Max D wrote:
One thing I forgot to mention. I got a piece of advise from Angry Bear I think that literally made our trip unforgettable. Take your time...
One thing I forgot to mention. I got a piece of advise from Angry Bear I think that literally made our trip unforgettable. Take your time and move around the track. Get the FULL experience if you can. I showed up early and was hell bent on getting a good spot and keeping it all day long. Then the bathroom breaks started coming and I honestly wanted to move to different spots anyways. Don't worry so much about the BEST spot. Different views of the track give you different views of their talent and speed, as well as it’s a new look for you. I hope you really enjoy yourself! It is truly awesome!
wow, SO glad to hear that helped. stoked you guys had a great trip! they get better and better as the kids grow up!
Indy mxer
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Indy mxer 8/23/2019 3:46am
8/23/2019 3:46am
The weather is going to be perfect Saturday! Usually it's hot and humid this time of year.
But we've had an unusually mild summer so far.

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