ABCSports coverage today of the 90th Indianapolis 500 race is not in HDTV.

Although not labeled "ABCSports," ABC and ESPN coverage of the 2006 Scripps National Spelling Bee, including primetime finals on Thursday night, are to be broadcast in HDTV.

Because, you know, no one needs extra help seeing what's going on when tiny cars half a mile away zoom past at 250mph, but we can't understand the National Spelling Bee unless we can see every pore on every contestant.

Update: It may not be ABC's fault that the Indy 500 was not in HD, but rather the IRL, as this TiVo Community Forum post explains.