Five things to know for Saturday

Happy Labor Day weekend! Here are five things to know to get your Saturday started.

1. Highs today will reach the low 90s, with the slight chance for an isolated shower or thunderstorm. If you have plans Monday, temperatures remain warm, in the low 90s with partly cloudy skies.  As of right now, Monday looks dry. Check the latest forecast and radar.

2. The 61st annual Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals take place at Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis this weekend. The race will feature competition in all four pro categories: Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle. The race will be televised on ESPN2. The 2015 Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals winners were Richie Crampton in Top Fuel; Alexis DeJoria in Funny Car;  Shane Gray in Pro Stock; and Eddie Krawiec in Pro Stock Motorcycle.Tickets and info.

3. Celebrate Indy's south side at the Miracle Mile Parade this morning! The Gateway Community Alliance is marking Labor Day weekend with a parade, car show and bike ride today as part of their efforts to promote the Madison Avenue corridor. Events start at 11:00 am on Madison Avenue from Southern Avenue to Murry Street. Over 1,000 people will march in the parade, including Southport, Roncalli, Perry Meridian and Manual High School marching bands along with IMPD, IFD, DPW, local business and organizations. Madison will close at 10:40am and be closed till 1:00pm on Saturday.

Friends of Garfield Park is hosting the "Star Zone viewing area" on the Parade route at 2829 Madison providing free candy to the first 200 kids. City Barbeque is hosting a Parade VIP Tent for local businesses and dignitaries and they will also be selling to the public.

Southern Plaza is organizing a car show Saturday morning and Bert & Den's and Kroger are providing breakfast for participants. Registration starts at 8:00am at Southern Plaza. The cars in the show will be featured at the end of the Parade.

Direct Connect Printing located on Hanna Avenue, is organizing a 7,14 and 47-mile bike ride "Pedal for Paws" open to all participants with registration starting at 9:00am at the University of Indianapolis. The routes take place on the southside of Indianapolis. Bike ride participants will get to kick-off the Parade. Proceeds from the bike ride will go to FACE Animal Clinic.

More info: Miracle Mile Parade

4. Get your neon on with the Glo Run tonight at White River State Park! Costume contest starts at 8:15 pm and 5K starts at 8:30 pm.

5. Three cities. Two lanes. One great time! Hit the highway and check out ArtsRoad 46, where arts and culture abound. Bloomington, Nashville, and Columbus are home to an abundance of arts, and it's a great weekend to pay a visit. Bloomington will host its famous 4th Street Festival of the Arts & Crafts this weekend. This long-running art event, which has been occurring annually for nearly 40 years, is beloved by locals and visitors alike. Taking over a downtown section of 4th Street, over 100 art vendors will fill the area, representing a wide range of mediums and styles.

Check out more events on WTHR.com's community calendar.

Brandon Farris of VAVEL USA had the opportunity to sit down with Alexis DeJoria at the NHRA Northwest Nationals and ask her a few questions about her season thus far and more.

Photo: Alexis DeJoria Racing

When VAVEL USA recently attended the NHRA Northwest Nationals, this writer had the opportunity to sit down with Alexis DeJoria and ask her a few questions about her season and the event. She had an eventful weekend in Seattle including having her body blow off the car in Friday’s afternoon qualifying session before eventually being eliminated in the second round.

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VAVEL USA (VU) - How was the weekend for you?

Alexis DeJoria (AD) - The weekend was alright; it wasn’t the greatest but we did leave here with another round win and some bonus points, and we’re now tied in ninth, up from tenth.

VU - Talking about that body explosion, what was going through your mind as it happened? Take us through the run from the drop of the light to the end.

AD - We were on a good pass and I didn’t have any warning. All of a sudden I saw sparks, the engine detonated and the body blew up into a million pieces and flew by me. The back end came up off of the car but the parachutes were out and I was able to get it under control pretty quickly, keep it out of the other lane and off the wall, and get it stopped.

VU - How does your backup [body] compare to your original?

AD - The backup body is the body that we won Indy with, so it’s just as good, if not better.

VU - How long did it take your team to recover from that overnight?

AD - They worked at it all night. They were here until well after two in the morning finishing it up.

VU - Was that the craziest thing that has happened to you before?

AD - My crash in Englishtown is the only thing that I can really compare it to, but one is not anywhere near like the other. The crash in Englishtown was way worse, but nothing has really happened to me since then. I’ve had some fires, brushed the wall with my headers, but nothing really other than that.

VU - How do you feel about your car going into the final race?

AD - I feel really good becauseIndy is a place where we’ve done really well in the past and last year we won at Indy.                                            

VU - Is there any kind of additional pressure when taking on a fellow female driver in Courtney Force?

AD - I think if any, it’s just because the media makes it such a big deal. If that wasn’t the case, Courtney is a good driver and so am I, and it shouldn’t be any different but the media tends to put a lot on it.

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DeJoria would go on to Brainerd and qualify in the third position where she had a weird run in round one and was eliminated after smoking her tires and having part of her car tap the wall, giving her a DQ for her run and putting her on the trailer early.

Entering Indy, she sits 10th in points, holding a 73-point advantage over Courtney Force in the last race before the Countdown to the Championship. That advantage is not as large as it may seem; keep in mind that points at Indianapolis are 1.5-times their normal value.