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Aaron Likens

@AaronLikens • 5,025 subscribers

Author of “Playing in Traffic: My journey from an autism diagnosis to the Indy 500 flagstand” public speaker, displayer of 🏁🏁 for the NTT INDYCAR Series

Shorts

My assistant with his Meta glasses captured a once in a lifetime view of the finish and is too good not to share

My assistant with his Meta glasses captured a once in a lifetime view of the finish and is too good not to share

481,015 views

Using Duane’s flag in an actual qualification run for the Indianapolis 500… I had tears of joy. I wish I could thank him for what that flag did for me. 🏁

Using Duane’s flag in an actual qualification run for the Indianapolis 500… I had tears of joy. I wish I could thank him for what that flag did for me. 🏁

40,078 views

I don’t typically take video from the stand, but I had no duties at the moment and this level of speed and track has to be seen.

I don’t typically take video from the stand, but I had no duties at the moment and this level of speed and track has to be seen.

43,190 views

Videos

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My wife with the capture of the most phenomenal thing I’ve witnessed in my life.

My wife with the capture of the most phenomenal thing I’ve witnessed in my life.

177,071 views • 3 months ago

If there’s one flag that gets more questions online than any other, it’s the blue flag so… let’s discuss! To put simply, this flag means there’s a faster car behind you. But, why is there so much confusion about this flag? As simple as “faster car behind you” sounds it gets complicated because it can be both an informational flag or a command flag depending on who is displaying it and what type of track it is. Let’s start easy! The video is from Milwaukee, where we race this weekend, and you can see that I am using it three different ways. I’m pointing it back to inform a driver that a lead lap car is nearing, I hold it solid when a lead lap car is within attack range, and waving it when a pass is imminent. What does the driver that’s getting blue flagged by me have to do? Nothing. On an oval it’s purely informational. Let’s now get complicated and go to a road course. If you watch practice, you’ll see the corner stations quite often blue flagging more than what the video shows. Again, this informs a driver that there is a faster car approaching or potentially attempting to pass them. In a race, corner stations may blue flag a car that’s down a lap to inform them a lead lap is nearing. Well, that doesn’t sound complicated so far, right? Let’s get to if I blue flag a car on a road course. Should race control call for a “command blue flag” that driver MUST give way or incur penalty. This is the way F1 does it, but the difference in INDYCAR is that, to be command blue eligible, a driver must be one lap down to the entire field instead of about to go one lap down like F1. Until a command blue is called that driver is allowed to fight for position. Why fight? Should a full course yellow fly, and all the cars in front of them pit, they will get the wave around and will be back on the lead lap. Some people ant blues to always be command, others think that lap traffic is a part of racing so it should just always be game on. It’s always a bit of a controversial topic, but next time you see a blue flag being displayed and were wondering the rules, I hope this little blue flag discussion helped.

If there’s one flag that gets more questions online than any other, it’s the blue flag so… let’s discuss! To put simply, this flag means there’s a faster car behind you. But, why is there so much confusion about this flag? As simple as “faster car behind you” sounds it gets complicated because it can be both an informational flag or a command flag depending on who is displaying it and what type of track it is. Let’s start easy! The video is from Milwaukee, where we race this weekend, and you can see that I am using it three different ways. I’m pointing it back to inform a driver that a lead lap car is nearing, I hold it solid when a lead lap car is within attack range, and waving it when a pass is imminent. What does the driver that’s getting blue flagged by me have to do? Nothing. On an oval it’s purely informational. Let’s now get complicated and go to a road course. If you watch practice, you’ll see the corner stations quite often blue flagging more than what the video shows. Again, this informs a driver that there is a faster car approaching or potentially attempting to pass them. In a race, corner stations may blue flag a car that’s down a lap to inform them a lead lap is nearing. Well, that doesn’t sound complicated so far, right? Let’s get to if I blue flag a car on a road course. Should race control call for a “command blue flag” that driver MUST give way or incur penalty. This is the way F1 does it, but the difference in INDYCAR is that, to be command blue eligible, a driver must be one lap down to the entire field instead of about to go one lap down like F1. Until a command blue is called that driver is allowed to fight for position. Why fight? Should a full course yellow fly, and all the cars in front of them pit, they will get the wave around and will be back on the lead lap. Some people ant blues to always be command, others think that lap traffic is a part of racing so it should just always be game on. It’s always a bit of a controversial topic, but next time you see a blue flag being displayed and were wondering the rules, I hope this little blue flag discussion helped.

21,378 views • 21 days ago

Got to be prepared for anything

Got to be prepared for anything

207,801 views • 1 year ago

Some keen viewers asked me “what was the second flag shown on the restart?” Here it is

Some keen viewers asked me “what was the second flag shown on the restart?” Here it is

44,734 views • 3 months ago

Here’s my annual walking to the office photo. If you’ve never been to the 500, that first walk from the infield to the point you can see the humanity in both directions is unexplainable.

Here’s my annual walking to the office photo. If you’ve never been to the 500, that first walk from the infield to the point you can see the humanity in both directions is unexplainable.

45,513 views • 3 months ago

My wife attended the race on her birthday and caught this video of the finish

My wife attended the race on her birthday and caught this video of the finish

128,149 views • 1 year ago

Video credit goes to my wife for this one.

Video credit goes to my wife for this one.

136,522 views • 2 years ago

Indy is in the books. Thanks to my fiancé for capturing this moment. The drivers are the stars, the true heroes, and I’m glad I can add a bit of emotion to the flags to capture the moment.

Indy is in the books. Thanks to my fiancé for capturing this moment. The drivers are the stars, the true heroes, and I’m glad I can add a bit of emotion to the flags to capture the moment.

86,526 views • 3 years ago

Can you hear it through the sounds of Spring? Beyond the chirping of birds awaits the sound of a Speedway coming to life. Can you sense it? The anticipation of opening day, the gathering of friends seen but perhaps just once a year, the deafening silence of Taps, and the collective crowd, 350,000 strong, united by speed awaiting 11 rows of 3 coming to take the green in the Greatest Spectacle in Racing. Can you feel it? It’s almost here. We’ve waited a whole year for this time but the wait is almost over. Once again it’s time to come home. Once again it’s time to gather in a place friends, families, and drivers have gathered for 115 years. Once again it’s time to be in awe of drivers pushing their limit and dancing on a razor’s edge at over 230mph. For those that have been, yes you can feel it. For those who will attend for their first time, they’ll understand all these now seemingly grandiose words about what might appear as “just another race” the day after the race... and be awaiting their next visit in 2027. For one driver, though, everything they’ve worked for their entire life and all their dreams will come true. Yes! It’s almost time. As it has for 109 previous times, the Speedway is about to show us the drama of sport played out at speed for the 110th running of the Indianapolis 500.

Can you hear it through the sounds of Spring? Beyond the chirping of birds awaits the sound of a Speedway coming to life. Can you sense it? The anticipation of opening day, the gathering of friends seen but perhaps just once a year, the deafening silence of Taps, and the collective crowd, 350,000 strong, united by speed awaiting 11 rows of 3 coming to take the green in the Greatest Spectacle in Racing. Can you feel it? It’s almost here. We’ve waited a whole year for this time but the wait is almost over. Once again it’s time to come home. Once again it’s time to gather in a place friends, families, and drivers have gathered for 115 years. Once again it’s time to be in awe of drivers pushing their limit and dancing on a razor’s edge at over 230mph. For those that have been, yes you can feel it. For those who will attend for their first time, they’ll understand all these now seemingly grandiose words about what might appear as “just another race” the day after the race... and be awaiting their next visit in 2027. For one driver, though, everything they’ve worked for their entire life and all their dreams will come true. Yes! It’s almost time. As it has for 109 previous times, the Speedway is about to show us the drama of sport played out at speed for the 110th running of the Indianapolis 500.

15,081 views • 4 months ago

It’s a joy seeing youth with such flagging style!

It’s a joy seeing youth with such flagging style!

13,383 views • 6 months ago

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