SPEEDWAY — It’s never been easier to capture the sights and sounds of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway thanks to the smartphone.
But race fans of yesteryear had to lug around a shoe-box-sized camcorder to capture the action.
VHS camcorders were the hottest gadget for race fans in 1989. They could seemingly be found at each turn around the famed speedway. At the time, these devices were deemed to be "small" despite the need to rest on a human shoulder.
“This is my first time here so I’m taking in a little bit of everything,” one fan told WRTV. “ I really enjoy the cars and the people are something else too.”
Many of those people were determined to capture the race action for themselves. WRTV reporter Marilyn Lis interviewed a 44-year veteran of the track, who kept his own camera rolling during their conversation.
“I’m taking pictures of you, the cameraman, Rick Mears, and a little bit of everything,” the man said.
It was a new phenomenon for track officials, who, for the most part, embraced the equipment.
“It’s a nice memory for families and so forth,” G. Christopher Duffy of TelX Entertainment said. “Putting that on tape is probably a good thing, but if we find them selling it to an advertising agency or sports program, we could come down real hard on those people. We’ve never had to do anything like that and I hope that we never would have to.”
