Indy Racing fan experience returns this weekend.

The Indy Racing Fan Experience, the one-of-a-kind, interactive mobile entertainment experience which touched more than 1.6 million people in 2003, returns for its second season-long, country-wide tour on February 18.

Designed to bring fans of all ages closer to the excitement of the IRL IndyCar Series, the Experience is divided into five properties - Indy Racing Challenge, Indy Racing Kids, the Indy Racing Live stage, Indy Racing Pit Stop Challenge and Indy Racing Gear.

All five properties travelled to race markets throughout the 2003 season and came together as one to create a carnival of sight, speed and sound at the racetrack each weekend.

After the Indy Racing Challenge visits the Daytona 500 on February 15, the entire Indy Racing Fan Experience moves to South Florida in anticipation of the season-opening Toyota 300 at Miami-Homestead Speedway on February 29. The Fan Experience has more than 25 appearances scheduled during its two-week stay in South Florida.

Throughout the 2004 calendar year, the Fan Experience will criss-cross the USA making its way to Indy Racing League race markets, including Miami, Phoenix, Indianapolis, Dallas, Denver, Chicago and Los Angeles.

"In 2004, the Fan Experience will have even greater entertainment," said Bill Long, vice president of marketing for the Indy Racing League. "We will have more concerts, driver appearances and more fan-oriented challenges and competition. It's going to be a great year."

Although the Fan Experience made many stops in each race market, in 2003 it could also be found at many other venues from coast-to-coast. It visited more than 20 states and covered more than 30,000 miles.

Several of the properties visited Major League Baseball parks, car dealerships, city parks, national retail stores and national landmarks. The Fan Experience also made a two-day stop at the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville.

The biggest reception for the Fan Experience came at Indianapolis in the month of May during the excitement surrounding the Indianapolis 500. Nearly 300,000 fans competed in the Indy Racing Challenge, listened to music on the Indy Racing Live stage, changed tyres at the Indy Racing Pit Stop Challenge, took their children to Indy Racing Kids or bought IRL merchandise at the domed Indy Racing Gear tent.

One of the more popular components of the Fan Experience is the Indy Racing Challenge, where fans sit in a real IndyCar Series car and compete using a simulator screen. Throughout the summer, lines began forming early for the Indy Racing Challenge booth. For those waiting their turn on the simulators, the Fan Experience crew conducted trivia contests, which proved to be both entertaining and educational for the fans.

"The Fan Experience is one of many programmes employed by the Indy Racing League designed to create brand awareness to drive attendance and television viewership and is one of the largest travelling fan exhibits of any sports property in terms of numbers of locations and event days," Long said. "We made over 600 appearances in 2003, providing more fans the opportunity to experience the sport in an interactive way."

The Indy Racing Fan Experience is a joint project of the Indy Racing League and ignition Inc., an Atlanta-based experiential marketing agency.