Harbaugh will lead the pack of 33 cars to the start of the race in the stunning blue Corvette Stingray featured above, which is completely stock except for a few safety features and strobe lights.
This will be a record 12th time that a Corvette has paced the Indy 500, with the first occurring back in 1978.
Harbaugh, too, is no stranger to Indianapolis. He was a quarterback for the Colts football team from 1994 through 1997.
The 49-year-old is also an avid racing fan and a principal at Panther Racing, which fields the two-car, Chevrolet-powered IndyCar team with drivers J.R. Hildebrand and Townsend Bell. Hildebrand will be driving the #4 National Guard Chevrolet and Bell will compete in the #60 Sunoco “Turbo” Chevrolet in the upcoming race.
Anyone hoping to test drive a new 2014 Corvette Stingray themselves will have to wait until this fall (convertible versions will follow a few months later). The car debuts with a 6.2-liter LT1 V-8 engine, good for an estimated 450 horsepower and 450 pound-feet of torque. Pricing starts at $51,995, which includes a $995 destination fee.
For full details on the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, click here.
In related news, Ed Carpenter in his own Ed Carpenter Racing #20 Fuzzy’s Ultra Premium Vodka Chevrolet V-6 scored the pole positioned for the Indy 500. Carpenter put up a blistering four-lap average speed of 228.762 mph.
Ed Carpenter at the 2013 Indianapolis 500
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