On Saturday there were some heroes, some surprises, some unbelievable errors in judgement, and a pole winner that few expected. Let me first say that most of this information comes a bit second hand, as during last Saturday's festivities, I was at my 40th class reunion at Culver Military Academy and was unable to follow qualifications with my usual rapt attention.
Having said that, you have to give big props to Simona DiSilvestro. After being sideways, upside down, and on fire in practice, leaving her with painfully burned "Mickey Mouse" hands, she mustered the courage to become a first day qualifier, leading the four distaff entries to the 500 as the only "first day" qualifier, starting in the middle of row 8. Her guts in putting a ride safely in the show with her tender, medium-rare mitts is the stuff of legend.
If you had told me going into the Saturday Pole Shootout that two Penske cars wouldn't even make the "Fast Nine," I'd have questioned your sanity and suggested you seek shelter in a quiet place for a while. I don't think ANYONE saw that coming.
Nor would anyone have predicted that Target Chip Ganassi Racing would short fuel BOTH cars in the final pole shootout, costing Scott Dixon the pole and Dario Franchitti from posting ANY time in the "Fast Nine." Chipster, we all know you have a reputation for being tight with a buck, but this is ridiculous.
Kudos to Ed Carpenter and Mama Fisher. Their top-nine placing, along with Sam Schmidt's teams' efforts, had to be the feel good stories of the day. Vitor Miera also put together a solid run for the Foyt team, something that had been rare lately, although this year they seem to have come together so far. Newman Hass Racing also reclaims a front row spot with Oriol Servia.
And then, you have the strange Day One story of Andretti Autosport. Only the one-off effort of John Andretti kept the proud family from a complete wipeout on Saturday. Danica, Marco, Mike Conway, and Ryan Hunter Reay all failed to make the first day "safe" list. (More on their drama and trauma later.)
If you had Alex Tagliani in the "Pole Pool," you're a winner. Tags was fast all week in the lmited practice sessions, but most figured that one or more of the Penske or Ganassi cars would put their "stamp"on the top 3 or 4 spots. The Captain only got one in the pole shootout, and if Chip had put a couple more gallons of ethanol in either of his cars, it might have been different.
Sunday's drama was even more interesting. A mid afternoon shower put all subsequent qualifying in doubt, with the field full and Danica Patrick still not on the inside. Immediately, speculation began that Andretti Autosport would buy SOME ride to get Danica into the field. As it turned out, the rain stopped and the track got dry enough for one last frantic hour of high drama.
First off the line after the rain, Danica immediately posted two laps faster than Paul Tracy's best-of-the-day speed, but once she was looking pretty safe, Ms. Patrick coasted home in the 26th spot. Of course, as would prove to be the case for Andretti Autosport, this was a "good news - bad news" thing as the Go Daddy Girl's entry into the field put young Marco squarely on the bubble.
Several attempts came and went and, for a while, it seemed as though the day might end with a whimper rather than a bang. Suddenly, with a few minutes to go, Alex Lloyd found enough speed to put Marco on the sidelines, and leaving Ryan Hunter Reay on the bubble. With a mere thirty seconds to spare before the final gun, Marco bumped his way back into the field, leaving teammate Hunter Reay on the outside looking in. As Sunday ended, Mike Conway and Hunter Reay were looking like Andretti Autospectators for the Greatest Spectacle in Racing.
The first part of the "down week," however, had still more drama to play out. Michael Andretti, desperate to keep his sponsors in the race, opened up his checkbook and bought the ride on Bruno Junqiera from the A. J. Foyt stable. The Indy Star's Bob Kravitz and many others decried this "ride buying" move as "bad for racing," conveniently ignoring their history. Here's my take on the deal.
A. J. Foyt is an Indy icon and has, from time to time, raced a second car at Indianapolis largely out of his own pocket. When an offer to "share" expenses (details still being negotiated,) came from Andretti Autosport, who can honestly say Foyt should not step aside and help a full-time series participant, in addition to recouping his investment. This is not the first time this has happened, even as far as Foyt is concerned. Back in the early 80's, Foyt unseated his regular driver, George Snider, and put the late Tim Richmond in the car. And, as far as Foyt's logic is concerned, who gives him a better chance to win, a one-off who hasn't raced here in a while, or a series regular in RHR?
That drama resolved, we come to Carb Day, my first return to IMS since the early 90's. First, I was stunned at the number of people trying to get in for Carb Day. Back when I used to go regularly to the Speedway, Carb Day was on the Thursday prior to the race and was confined to the final practice and the Pit Stop competition. It was not something I ever attended. Nowadays, it's not only final practice and Pit Stop, there's the Freedom 100 for Indy Lights and a concert. This brings a whole new element into the equation and a whole bunch of people who otherwise would be paying zero attention to the goings on at 16th and Georgetown.
I chose to make my return to the Speedway with my brother and his wife. Having not been to the Speedway in almost 20 years, I had no clue how to negotiate all the construction, new streets and changes that have taken place in the last couple of decades since. Apparently, my brother's sense of direction near the track was not much better than mine, and by the time we got to the gate outside turn 2, INDYCAR practice had been completed.
We were wandering through the infield when the Indy Lights race began. First thing I noticed was how loud the cars seemed. Bear in mind, the last time I was there, a.) there were no "Indy Lights" cars, and b.) the cars that were there were the old turbocharged Cosworths, Ilmors, and Fords, and (though it may be my memory failing,) they did not seem to be as loud. My wife and I decided almost immediately that earplugs might be in order for the Race on Sunday.
We set out to find where our seats for the Race were located, so as to determine the best route for ingress and egress. I discovered that we're going to have a reasonable "hike" to get from the IndyGo Shuttle location to our seats in the Paddock. By the time we had gotten to the outside of the track and found someplace to sit, the Miller Lite Pit Stop Competition was underway. We sat and watched a few runs of that and then decided it was time for something to eat.
This was also something different from my previous experience. Back in the day, about all you could get at the Speedway were hot dogs, sodas, junk food and beer. Now, they offer something that you only find in Indiana: a WONDERFUL breaded pork tenderloin sandwich, something I had not enjoyed in probably 20 years. It was perfect. As the Pit Stop Comptetition wound to a close, we headed for the exits. Papa Roach and Staind might be great entertainment for some, but my tastes are, to say the least, a bit different.
The great thing about the day was that I got to get re-acquainted with IMS with a few people less than we'll encounter on Race Day. It got me absolutely jazzed to go to the Race itself, although, to be honest, it may be the last time we'll make the trip for the Race. It's roughly a 12 hour drive each way for us, and that's before you consider the time spent in traffic trying to get to IMS. It also gave me the opportunity to grab some souvenirs and pictures, which will save me from having to do those things on Sunday.
So far, the weather for Sunday is supposed to be hot, humid, and breezy, everything it was NOT for the Carb Day Festivities. This may cause some folks to be guessing what setup to put on the chariots for the 500, but after a week of rain and semi-cold, it will be welcome for those of us in attendance.
I'll be back later tonight with my handicap of the race itself.
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