Dream come true for young Kiwi racing in Indianapolis 500

It's a motor racing dream come true for young Cantabrian Marcus Armstrong as he starts 16th on the grid in tomorrow morning's famous Indy 500.

Armstrong's time saw him finish just milliseconds behind pole sitter and fellow Kiwi, Scott McLaughlin.

For the 23-year-old Armstrong it's extra special given it's his first taste of the iconic oval track known as The Brickyard.

Armstrong, who’s based in Indianapolis said the energy that surrounds the event is truly spectacular. For the month of the May the city of 800,000 welcomes in a few hundred thousand extra visitors for the Indy 500.

On the day, around 400,000 fans will be trackside, watching the 700 horsepower Indy cars fly around the 4-kilometre oval for 200 laps, at close to 400kph.

In his first full season of Indy car oval racing Armstrong said at that speed it becomes like slow motion after a while, with the other drivers travelling at a similar speed.

He said you have to look about 100 to 200 metres further than you normally would because by the time you've looked down the track, you're already there. Another challenge is actually remembering to breathe with the amount of g-force loading and pressure inside the fitted cockpit.

Armstrong's other challenge? He forgets to hydrate inside the car, which isn't great in a three hour race while battling 70 degrees heat in a flameproof suit.

One of the questions on many fans' lips, does Armstrong pee inside the racesuit, given the 500 is three hours long?

He said yes, some drivers do, but it's hard because you're strapped in and pushed down into the car by the g-forces so your body can't relax to relieve itself and also you're so focused on driving from bend to bend that there just isn't time.

The former F2 and F3 Ferrari academy driver has been training four to five hours a day to prepare himself for the rigors of oval racing. That includes cardio training and a weight’s programme to become stronger for wrestling the car at those tremendous speeds.

His teammate tomorrow morning is 43-year-old Scott Dixon — a New Zealand legend of Indy car, Dixon won the Indy 500 back in 2008. It's his only victory at the famous track in over 20 attempts.

Armstrong said he takes great delight in reminding Dixon he was aged just one when Dixon raced his first Indy 500.

So, what salient advice has Dixon given Armstrong before the big race?

"He'll say something like go fast bro, he doesn't get too technical on it."

Armstrong will relax in the coming hours with his dad and friends before a huge day starting around midnight tonight NZ time.

"We'll get a police escort to our team meeting at 8 in the morning cos there'll literally be half a million people trying to drive to the track," Arsmstrong said.

He has one clear and simple goal — get to the chequered flag before anyone else.

And what a dream that would be, to win the Indy 500 on his first attempt.

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