INDIANAPOLIS — Central Indiana winters can bring snow, ice and big temperature swings. Just like we have to prepare our homes for winter, Indianapolis Motor Speedway gets ready too. It's a months-long process that starts after IMS wraps up most of its big events for the year. Tyrone Garrison is the vice president of facilities at IMS. He says the track operates on a three-season schedule: projects season, events season and shutdown season.  "It never really stops, especially from a facilities standpoint," Garrison said. "We don't have a break." This is shutdown season. About 75 percent of the infrastructure at IMS is exposed to the elements. That's why crews shut down and drain thousands of fixtures, including every urinal, trough, toilet and faucet throughout the facility. Gas and electricity are also shut down. The entire process takes two to three months. Like our roads, the iconic track is susceptible to cracks, even potholes. "We still have the original bricks under there, so this thing acts a lot different than a traditional road," Garrison said. "It moves, and it has areas that we know will move up to several inches." The repair process is similar to how crews fix a typical road, but you won't see wide ribbons of sealer or strip patching. "Instead of being out there with large equipment, we literally have people out there crawling around on their hands and knees with ketchup squirt bottles filling cracks," Garrison said. IMS is a thousand-acre property. There are more than 5,000 sprinkler heads, and all the water needs to be removed so it doesn't freeze. The property includes not only the track but also 600 acres of turf. Part of that is a golf course, which has its own challenges. "How deep of a freeze we get into allows us to do other things, so if we get a deep freeze, we're able to take heavier equipment out to the golf course, and we'll be more effective at removing trees and pruning," said Jason Stewart, IMS grounds superintendent. "Everything has to be delicate if the ground stays thawed." All of this has to be done before winter to bring everyone the spring, month of May and summer they expect in the racing capital of the world. "Every year, we want to make this place better," Garrison said. "Every time somebody shows up here, whether you notice it or not, we want the feeling that the place is getting better and it's evolving."