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Langston Houck peers through a fence as he watches Trans Ams move through a turn Saturday on the course that was used for the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix in Nashville.

From the eighth floor of the Guaranty Home Mortgage Corp Building in downtown Nashville, a series of Trans Ams are shown negotiating a turn Saturday on the course that was utilized for the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix.

Drew Houck and his son, Langston, pose for a photo Saturday as they watched cars associated with the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix race in the streets.

Langston Houck smiles as he sits inside the IndyCar that was displayed last week in the lobby of Guaranty Home Mortgage Corp in downtown Nashville to promote the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix.

Langston Houck peers through a fence as he watches Trans Ams move through a turn Saturday on the course that was used for the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix in Nashville.

From the eighth floor of the Guaranty Home Mortgage Corp Building in downtown Nashville, a series of Trans Ams are shown negotiating a turn Saturday on the course that was utilized for the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix.

Drew Houck and his son, Langston, pose for a photo Saturday as they watched cars associated with the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix race in the streets.

Langston Houck smiles as he sits inside the IndyCar that was displayed last week in the lobby of Guaranty Home Mortgage Corp in downtown Nashville to promote the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix.

MURRAY —Something that caused a large buzz in the region last week was the second running of the Big Machine Grand Prix in nearby Nashville.

This is one of the more unusual events to land in this area because it features a type of racing that, while huge in other parts of the country, plays second fiddle to more southern-oriented NASCAR. However, open-wheel Indy Cars — which are involved in the Indianapolis 500 each Memorial Day Weekend — can create much excitement, especially when running on the streets of Nashville.

In advance of Sunday’s final race of the weekend, there was plenty of action on Saturday and that is when Drew Houck of Murray and his 9-year-old son, Langston, had a chance to see things in person.They witnessed the qualifying runs for the Indy Cars, as well as for several other divisions and had a view that was much closer than they were anticipating.

“One of our account representatives ( Guaranty Home Mortgage Corp) invited us to their building and we were able to go to the second floor and watch the race and even go up to the eighth floor and watch it from the overview,” said Drew, whose host was a client with whom he works as part of his duties at Global Mortgage Link of Murray. “It was right by the (Korean War Veterans Bridge that spans that Cumberland River) that they raced across, then looped back around and we did go up close and personal.

“My son and I were able to walk down to the gate and we literally were eight feet away from the cars going right by us. So we got to get up really close and we felt the cars go by us. You felt it in your chest. It was an intense feeling.

“They flew! Oh man! I heard they were a little shy of 200 (mph). Yeah, they were flying.”

However, Drew said he and Langston never felt threatened by these machines being so close to them.

“We were really protected. There was a concrete barrier, plus they had to slow down where we were for a little bit before they would zoom back across the river. I didn’t know they blocked off roads downtown, especially with Nashville as busy as it is, but they did a wonderful job making sure it was safe for people to walk around for the event,” Drew said, noting that this thrill did not only apply to the Indy Cars, the hands-down featured attractions of the weekend. “It was a full schedule on Saturday. They had Trans-Ams and GT America. They also had the SUPER Trucks (off-road pickups that raced on pavement) and they brought out the ramps they use for that and you could see them jump right in front of us.

“Langston started school (Wednesday at Murray Middle School) and I’m sure he’s going to be telling them what he did over the summer. He also loves Lamborghinis and there was a Lambo that rode right by us and he got very excited.”

However, while a Lamborghini is a very exciting vehicle, it is still a sports car that mostly travels on streets and highways. An Indy Car races on some of the most recognized speedways in all of racing. Its design is also dramatically different from the popular sports car, with an uncovered cockpit that is set a little more than three feet above the racing surface with a passenger area fit for … one.

“The building where we stayed actually had one of the IndyCars inside and my son and I got to step in it and see how it feels for the racers. Man! It is extremely tight!” Drew said. “You can’t move, and if you’re a bigger person, you’re probably not getting in this thing.”

In addition, fans were also given a chance to get a look at some of the cars that helped make IndyCar racing what it has become over the years. Cars from different eras took part in what is known as Vintage Indy as they would take the track for laps that were considerably slower than those of their present-day cousins. 

Sunday marked the main race of the IndyCar side of the weekend and that resulted in history being made. Scott Dixon of Australia won his 53rd career IndyCar race and that moved him into second place all-time, supplanting one of the sport’s biggest names, Mario Andretti, whose red STP No. 2 car from 1969 is among those featured in the Vintage Indy series. He won his only Indy 500 in that car. 

One last detail this story is found within the company that hosted the viewing venue. Drew said it has a Murray connection.

“You can imagine my surprise when I was introduced to the President/CEO of GHMC and he actually grew up in Murray and graduated from Murray High School in 1988. His name is Chip Adkins and he and his wife Shannon actually moved back to Murray after graduate school,” Drew said. “Chip worked for Red Howe as a CPA. His father still lives in Murray, so they come back often and we look forward to treating them to dinner on their next trip back. I’m constantly reminded that this is a small world filled with wonderful people.” 

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