I’m taking off for Indianapolis in about an hour. This year, I’ll be handling the Indy 500 on my own. The race isn’t until Sunday, but the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council has all kinds of pre-race activities scheduled for this week.

Tomorrow, I’ll be out at the pumps. Both EPIC and the Indiana Corn Marketing Council will be sponsoring discounted fuel. Consumers will have an hour and a half to get to the Crystal Flash station on 545 S. Rangeline Rd in Carmel, IN and fill up with E10 for $2.97 or E85 for $1.85. The promotion starts at 4 p.m.

EPIC is sponsoring a corvette giveaway with Hank FM on Wednesday.That’s right. A corvette. Qualified participants will try their luck at pushing a special button to see who will win the two-year lease of the 2008 vette. Find more information online at Hank FM’s Website. The radio station will will be providing live coverage of the Indy 500 on Sunday.

On Thursday, EPIC will host the Ethanol Summit and Panel Discussion. Guest speakers include Joie Chitwood of the Indianapolis Motorspeedway, Andy Miller, director the the State Department of Agriculture, Eermson Fittipidi, a two-time Indy 500 winner, Brazilian ethanol producer and driver of this year’s felx-fuel Corvette Z06 pace car, Bill Becker, president and CEO of LifeLine Foods – the provider of the E100 racing fuel for the IndyCar Series – and more.

The rest of the weekend will feature member activities, driver autograph sessions, garage tours, the IPL 500 Festival Parade and, of course, the 92nd Indy 500.