INDIANAPOLIS — Dave Calabro visited Riley Hospital for Children Tuesday, where the defending champion of the Indianapolis 500, Marcus Ericsson, made a surprise visit.
Calabro: "What are you doing here, partner?"
Ericsson: "I'm signing some autographs for the kids, here. I got the chance to meet some of the kids here at Riley and it's really cool. I'm meeting here with Colton. We had a good chat about racing, he likes race cars. So I'm just giving him an autograph here."
Calabro: "That's pretty special. Congratulations Colton. What is this?"
Ericsson: "This is my special helmet that I have for this weekend at the GP, and it's made out of paintings from kids here in the Riley Children's Hospital. So I've got four different paintings on this and made artwork out of it. It's really cool. And what's also really cool is after the race, I'm going to auction it out, and all proceeds going to Riley kids and the hospital."
Calabro: "So somebody could actually buy this and put it in their man cave?"
Ericsson: "Exactly, and I'm hoping a lot of bids are going to come in after the weekend or now, even, it's even open now. So it's gonna definitely be super cool and hopefully a race-winning helmet as well, you know."
Calabro: "What does it mean for you to be here today, to meet these kids and see all the moments with guys like Colton and I saw you there with Danny, showing off his pet snake and his race car."
Ericsson: "Yeah, it means so much. I've been in Indianapolis now for five years and really got attached to the community here and Riley, what Riley does is so important. For me to be a small part of that and use my platform to help what I can do, and also this month, being Mental Health Awareness Month, I think that's something that's so important as well. So just coming here, interacting with Colton and the other kids, it's so much fun."
Calabro: "It's almost race day, the Grand Prix of Indianapolis. How excited are you to get on track Friday?"
Ericsson: "I can't wait. It's always special to come to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and race here. It's our home, right? And to be here in May, as the defending 500 champion, it's just ... I'm still pinching myself. Can't wait to get out on the track."