Detroit Red Wings' Dylan Larkin rides Grand Prix track: 'Unbelievable'

Young Detroit Red Wings forward Dylan Larkin can scorch the ice, but he discovered what real speed was all about today at Belle Isle.

Larkin took a two-seat IndyCar ride with former Indianapolis 500 champion Gil de Ferran around the Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix course.

He was wide-eyed after he removed his helmet in the pits.

"It's just crazy how fast he was going," said Larkin, 19, who will be grand marshalSaturday, during the first race of the Verizon IndyCar Series doubleheader weekend. "The acceleration was unbelievable. It was so cool. I couldn't believe how fast they go around the turns."

After catching his breath, Larkin, who was suited up like an IndyCar driver, said he never had been in a race car.

"I joked around in a go-kart, but nothing like this," he said. "I drive a Jeep, not anything fast."

Larkin said he was surprised how drivers get into the small cockpits of the IndyCars. "I was just happy to fit in there. There's not much room."

And the feeling in his stomach while de Ferran, the former Team Penske ace, screamed around Belle Isle? "Oh, jeez, it was like being on a roller coaster. I got that feeling in my stomach. It was so fast and so cool."

How fast did de Ferran go?

"He got going real fast down the back straight," Larkin said. "I felt like my helmet was going to come off. I tried to tuck my head down, but then I couldn't see the track."

So would Larkin take a racing lesson now, or drive in a pro-am race?

"I don't think so," he said. "I wouldn't want myself going around those