[richie]

I love Jim Nabors annual singing of "Back Home Again in Indiana" and it brings a tear to my eye, goosebumps, and a chill up and down my spine on race day every May.

While I will miss this tradition greatly, I can't say I really support the notion of playing a tape of him singing the song in 2015 and beyond. I feel it is time to start a new tradition with a group such as Straight No Chaser who do an outstanding job with their version of the song and can create a tradition that will resonate with a new generation of Indy 500 fans as much as Jim Nabors did for the past 42 years.

Along with Tom Carnegie, Sid Collins, Tony Hulman and the other voices we have heard over the years, time marches on and somebody else must carry on the tradition. Jim Nabors will always be an icon at Indy as much the yard of bricks. It's going to be weird not hearing Nabors' voice after this year and I can't thank him enough for playing a prominent role in my favorite day of the year.