Live From the Indy 500: NBC Sports Revs Its Engine in Inaugural Coverage The broadcaster lauds the quality service, synergy, and partnership of IMS Productions By Kristian Hernandez, Assistant Editor
Sunday, May 26, 2019 - 9:00 am
Print This Story
Story Highlights
When Memorial Day Weekend rolls around in the U.S., racing fans know what time it is. At the world-renowned Indianapolis Motor Speedway, 33 drivers will rev their engines and embark on a mechanical sprint towards history in the 103rd Indianapolis 500. This weekend also marks a massive milestone for the team at NBC Sports, who take over as the host broadcaster this year, bringing The Greatest Spectacle in Racing to homes across America for the very first time.
NBC Sports has taken over lead-broadcasting duties from ABC at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
NBC is deploying an impressive arsenal of live video technology to give this year's race a truly elite on-air look. Much of it is made possible by working alongside the racetrack's experienced in-house operations unit, IMS Productions.
From the engineering and operational side, it has been a success working directly with IMS Productions, says Ken Goss, SVP, Remote Operations and Production Planning, NBC Sports Group. They've been great partners, and they did a terrific job [with helping us] converge all of our operations here. We're looking forward to our first Indy 500 and are happy to forge a strong, ongoing partnership with IMS Productions.
A whopping 80 cameras are scattered across the sprawling 560-acre campus, highlighted by a grouping of five Sony HDC-4300s at 6X super-slow motion. These high-speed cameras will be located on the cars' right side at Turns 1, 2, 3, and 4.
Out of the 21 specialty cameras being leveraged, BSI and Fletcher are providing fans unique perspectives on the day's competition. Through the help of an extensive line of POV cameras, NBC will have on-board cameras installed on more than a dozen cars in the field.
We're excited to have BSI here due to our success with them on [NASCAR broadcasts], said Goss. When you have a show of this size, it is better for all involved.
MORE FROM INDY 500:
IMS Productions Waves a Checkered Flag at Racing's Greatest Spectacle
BSI Puts Fans in the Driver's Seat, on the Hood
NBC Sports Gears Up for Indy 500 Audio
Fletcher units will help illustrate scenes of the nuts, bolts, and tire jacks of pit row with overhead robos in the boxes of No. 20 Ed Carpenter, No. 21 Spencer Pigot, No. 25 Conor Daly, No. 24 Sage Karam, No. 5 James Hinchcliffe, and No. 12 and 2018 Indy 500 winner Will Power.
Outside the track, a combination of six HDC-3500 and HDC-2400 handheld and HDC-P1 robotic cameras with RF wireless capabilities will allow reporters to conduct hits from famous areas like Gasoline Alley. Down the final stretch near the start/finish line, NBC's Inertia will allow high-speed footage of any close calls near the conclusion of the race.
A 180-degree fisheye cam will give views from the Pagoda.
NBC Sports will provide picturesque and stunning views not only from ground level but also from above that. The broadcaster is deploying cameras on both a blimp and a helicopter to provide aerial views of the track. An 85-ft. Strada camera system will also take to the skies with looks from inside the concerts in the Snake Pit. Lastly, a Technocrane will also be on hand.
All these cameras will be fitted with lenses that include 20X, 22X, 100X, wide-angle, and a special 180-degree fisheye from the famous Pagoda.
Decked Out Trucks: EVS, Grass Valley, and More in the Compound
Inside the operational nucleus, five trucks supplied by IMS Productions will house a fair number of the 200 total staffers onsite.
The main race will operate out of IMSP's HD-3 and HD-5 mobile production units. HD-3 is built around a Grass Valley Kayenne K Frame 5M/E switcher, while HD-5 features Grass Valley's Kayenne K Frame 8M/E switcher. The main race telecast will also have 103 iso record channels at its disposal and a full slate of replay equipment from EVS: four 12-channel servers with ChannelMAX and 10 eight-channel XT3 servers, two with SpotBox and two with IPDirector.
IMS [Productions'] engineers have done a great job integrating the five mobile units to service the race, as well as the pre- and post-race shows, said Craig Bernstein, Senior Director, Remote Technical Operations and Engineering, NBC Sports Group.
On the transmission end, NBC Sports is sending 14 discreet feeds out using fiber from AT&T. That's all being backed up by dual C-band and KU-band satellite uplinks owned by IMSP.
The Pit Stop Challenge entertained fans on Friday's Carb Day.
Meanwhile, NBC is loading up its NBC and NBCSN airwaves with wall-to-wall pre-race coverage. Working out of IMSP's HD-6, Tom Popple, VP, Studio Operations and Facilities, NBC Sports Group and his team are supporting a full menu of programming that will take fans from 9 a.m. ET to the start of the race at 12:45 p.m.
We have multiple sets with multiple talent, Popple points out. We're at the Pagoda Plaza, at the front of the grid, on the third floor of the Pagoda, and also at the host position. We're trying to capture the look and feel [of the race] and do something that hasn't been done.
Popple is joined on the production team by Mike Sheehan, Coordinating Director, NBC Sports Group, and a bunch of other professionals.
Mike Sheehan just wanted to get a good shot in front of the grid [that] will be our signature shot and will look spectacular, says Popple. Everyone across the board is excited to be here and to be able to work with IMS [Productions] on this collaboration.
NBC set up shop at The Brickyard near the beginning of last week with coverage of practice and qualifying on the digital front. T
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
26/03/2026
Extron and Audio-Technica have announced that their Design Solutions devices, Ce...
26/03/2026
SPORTEL Asia took place March 24-25 at the Orchard Hotel Singapore, drawing 370 participants representing more than 220 companies from 35 countries. Approximate...
26/03/2026
LTN will demonstrate satellite-to-IP migration solutions for broadcasters, cable networks, MVPDs, and station groups at NAB Show 2026 (Booth W2100).
The C-Ban...
26/03/2026
The Seattle Mariners have partnered with Daktronics to install an upgraded outfi...
26/03/2026
The Esports Foundation (EF) has awarded National Team Partner status to organizations and individuals across more than 100 countries and territories for the Esp...
26/03/2026
Telestream has announced expanded integration between its Vantage workflow platf...
26/03/2026
FOR-A Corporation has announced a partnership with Nippon TV and NVIDIA to distr...
26/03/2026
CBS Sports and the WNBA have expanded their partnership through a new long-term, multiplatform rights agreement. CBS Sports will feature up to 20 regular-season...
26/03/2026
Zac Brown Band will star in the Sunday Night Baseball show open on NBC and Peacock, NBC Sports announced. The open was filmed at American Family Field, home of ...
26/03/2026
Major League Baseball opens the 2026 season with nationally televised games across multiple media partners. Fans can visit MLB.com/Watch for a complete schedule...
26/03/2026
DIRECTV has announced an agreement to carry nine new MLB-operated team channels, covering the Cincinnati Reds, Detroit Tigers (Detroit SportsNet), Kansas City R...
26/03/2026
Nationals.TV, the Washington Nationals' local broadcast channel, is now avai...
26/03/2026
Starting Thursday, March 26, MLB.TV will be available on the ESPN App, giving fans access to more than 2,000 out-of-market regular season games. Fans can also r...
26/03/2026
Spotify's partnership with NAVER, Korea's leading digital platform, is built around one simple goal: making it easier for listeners in Korea to discover...
26/03/2026
Exclusive to ComposerCloud for first month
Sample library and virtual instrument gurus EastWest have announced the upcoming release of a new virtual drum i...
26/03/2026
Friday 27 March
Friday 27 March will mark Dynamic Range Day 2026, the annual day of online activity that was started in 2010 by mastering engineer Ian Sheph...
26/03/2026
Includes four separate instruments
Max Richter's SRM Sounds venture have just announced their fifth release, ASMR Choir. Captured at the main live room ...
26/03/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC), has been tasked with administering the Sixth Presi...
26/03/2026
By Matt Klein
Hello to everyone reading this - whether you're a current YEP, HPA member, or just YEP-curious. I'm Matt Klein, one of the co-chairs of t...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
28 participating companies, from start-ups to blue-chips, lead the UK Group as part of the GREAT Britain and Northern Ireland presence across all the Halls at N...
26/03/2026
Arkona Unveils BLADE//planner and Major Usability Enhancements at NAB 2026
Brie Clayton March 26, 2026
0 Comments
New graphical configuration tool and...
26/03/2026
Bitfocus showcases complete control at NAB Show 2026
Brie Clayton March 26, 2026
0 Comments
Continuing development drives advances in security, availa...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Nevion introduces powerful new Panel Builder to enhance VideoIPath broadcast con...
26/03/2026
2026 Oscar Nominated Films Powered by Blackmagic Design
Brie Clayton March 25, 2026
0 Comments
DaVinci Resolve Studio used on 27 of this year's no...
26/03/2026
Leader to present full suite of advanced Test & Measurement solutions at NAB Sho...
26/03/2026
Boston Conservatory to Present New England and Collegiate Premiere of Groundbrea...
26/03/2026
Thursday 26 March 2026
HBO Max included for Sky and NOW customers from 26 March...
26/03/2026
Thursday 26 March 2026
Sky Sets Iconic Costumes Dancing Together Like Never Before' in Brand CampaignTurn on cookies to view this content. Go to Privacy o...
26/03/2026
Wuppertal March 26, 2026
CS live Builds Future-Ready OB Van With Riedel MediorNet and hi Control SystemRiedel Communications today announced that Czech-based ...
26/03/2026
Back to All News
Have a Wish Worth Dying For? Netflix's First Korean YA Hor...
26/03/2026
Back to All News
The Truthers, Starring Jose Coronado and St phanie Magnin, Pre...
26/03/2026
Enhancements to Harmonic's Sports Streaming Solution Introduce Server-Side Multiview, Contextual Metadata-Driven Advertising, Dynamic In-Stream Ads and Robu...
26/03/2026
Open the report
Our 2025 report brings together results from 79 business magazine titles across 22 market sectors, published by 49 media owners. Over the year,...
26/03/2026
Editor's note: This post is part of Into the Omniverse, a series focused on ...
26/03/2026
RT Commercial today announced Fiat as sponsor of The Louise Duffy Show on RT Radio 1, Weekdays 3pm 4pm.
The Louise Duffy Show is the home of daytime music...
26/03/2026
That gaming backlog won't clear itself - GeForce NOW is here to help. Stream the latest titles straight from the cloud across a variety of devices.
This we...
26/03/2026
Wayne, N.J., March 26, 2026 Phantom High-Speed announces the latest product li...
Live From the Indy 500: NBC Sports Revs Its Engine in Inaugural Coverage The broadcaster lauds the quality service, synergy, and partnership of IMS Productions By Kristian Hernandez, Assistant Editor 
