‘Roger Penske Perfect’: Indy 500 set for first full house under command of ‘The Captain’

INDIANAPOLIS – The owner of Indianapolis Motor Speedway enjoys turning laps around his most prized possession, but former race car driver Roger Penske can hit the rev limiter without going 240 mph on the 2.5-mile ribbon of asphalt that hosts the Indy 500.

Penske is covering a lot more ground by regularly zooming around the entire Brickyard – a sprawling 250-acre facility whose footprint comfortably can fit the Rose Bowl, the Roman Colosseum, Churchill Downs, Yankee Stadium and the White House (with still enough space left over for several more world-renowned landmarks).

On a souped-up golf kart (which bears the No. 18 for his team’s record Indy 500 win total), Penske never stops motoring around the grounds of the world’s most famous racetrack and finding new details (both minute and gargantuan) to improve.

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“Oh, I’ll make a lot,” Penske told NBCSports.com with a laugh when asked how many full tours of the property he’ll log in May. “Every time I go there, I make two or three. I’ve got a special golf kart, and it’s high speed, so I can get around.”

Instead of vetting the premises for new projects, Penske’s trips lately have been more about validating all of the new concepts and construction he has commissioned in the two years since buying the deed to the Brickyard.

At least $30 million in upgrades have been made under Penske’s stewardship at IMS, which has countless fresh coats of paint, LED lighting and gleaming videoboards waiting at (literally) every turn.

Now the trick is showcasing the temple of vroom’s shiny new veneer when more than 300,000 people descend on the track May 29 for the first fully attended