Attention all Historians: IndyCar Need Us, A Call to Action

There is no place like Wikipedia on the web. For better or worse, it is the largest public information repository to be found anywhere; all user created and maintained. In some eyes, wiki has a poor reputation with good reasons. Its issues with rampant page vandalism are well publicized and continue to be the number one issue for editors of any level associated with the site. These bad eggs often ruin any shot at legitimacy Wikipedia can hope to maintain. Although this is always a main worry for new editors, it is really a non issue, but more on that later.

Although Wikipedia is open source, it could be the first experience many people have when looking for information on a new subject. Google anything indycar related and Wiki pages are almost certain to appear very near the top of the returned results. Unfortunately, many of the indycar articles are in poor condition, and often have been unedited for months, or even years. I find this painfully difficult to stomach given the sites profoundly public visibility on the web.

Some pages are worse offenders than others. Take the 2011 season review page for example. It should be one of the more complete indycar offerings wiki has, but right off the bat there are two cleanup requests. One is for a poor introduction and the other for incomplete summarization of the subject as there are not even race reports written for six of the year’s races.

The page, for the most part, is well written and informed. But imagine a casual channel surfer who wants to learn some basic, recent history of indycar after watching the sure to be incendiary Iowa race this summer? They Google indycar and stumble across the Wikipedia page. For good or bad, this is where most novices will begin their journey through indycar history and statistics. If this is our first offering, is there any question why indycar is sometimes viewed as second tier, or minor league?

Many driver bio pages are short, outdated or just plain wrong. Track pages are NASCAR slanted even if indycar has a rich and storied history there. Event reports are missing. Entire early seasons of AAA racing are totally unaccounted for. And the picture selection is poor at best, if even present in some articles. The list could go on, but suffice to say, indycar is not well represented.

Keeping these pages updated and accurate is certainly not a league reasonability. In fact, INDYCAR, driver PR, team officials or anyone who takes any kind of payroll due to indycar racing are asked to refrain from editing due to a conflict of interest. Wikipedia doesn’t want socioeconomic underpinnings to taint history as is actually occurred. Operation: beautify indycar Wikipedia begins with us, the fans.

I challenge you to take ownership of our history. Wikipedia is here to stay whether we like it or not. We are some of the most knowledgeable students of a sport to be found anywhere, even in the stick and ball world. Our history is important to us, and we make no apologies for it. Each one of us can make a difference.

Once you have created an account, head over to the WikiProject American Open Wheel Racing and introduce yourself. The group is somewhat lifeless right now, so we need to inject some new historians into the mix. There are extremely friendly and helpful editors associated with the project that are more than willing to answer questions and I have even seen a few floating around on trackforum.

Diving into the world of Wikipedia can be daunting. Stick to your strengths. Are you interested in a track? A particular driver? A certain event? Head there first and fill in any missing pieces of information. If everyone hardcore indycar fan who visits Wikipedia on a regular basis watched and updated a single page, there would not be a missing hole to be found. Peruse the NACSAR and F1 sections to get an idea of how good some of these pages can be written.

Each and every page also has a talk tab attached to it. This is where conversation about content, scope and completion can be found. Most articles don’t have much in terms of activity here, but I promise you someone is watching and will answer you if you ask something.

I have a watchlist, and you should too. A watchlist is a your collection of pages that you have a vested interest in. When edits or changes are made to any page in your list, they are populated in an easy to read timeline you can access once signed into Wikipedia. After I check my email in the morning, I sign in and check my watchlist. 99.999% of the time the changes are worthwhile and no action is needed.

Remember, vandals want to be seen. They are not going to intentionally destroy the race report about Texas 1 from the 1998 season because the masses simply are not reading that page, but to us its content is still important. In the minutes after the Las Vegas wreck, Dan Wheldon’s page was locked from edits and reverted to the last agreed upon revision from a few days prior. A discussion was created in the following days to determine what to include, and how to proceed with an unbiased entry about the events.

Once you gain a bit of comfort in editing, then have at it! Only edit with good intentions, correct information and an unbiased viewpoint. INDYCAR is aware of the decrepit state of its collection and has actively asked historians to help contribute and cleanup some of the mess. Unless we start fixing this stuff it never will be done and each year that passes is one more year of misinformation we will have to live with. If you need help or have any questions, do not hesitate to contact me through the usual routes. Let me know if you are taking action! Let’s use the amazing pool of historical knowledge we have and create the most complete indycar encyclopedia we can.

Eric Hall

The Power of a Hat

As unusual as it may be, I have never been one to root for a specific team or driver. I have always held the opinion that I just want to see good racing week in and week out; a close championship battle by the end of the year doesn’t hurt things either. I always seem to root for the guys in P2 through P5. It doesn’t matter the situation; just seeing the current leader usurped, whether in a race or the championship, is what I watch for.

I have been heavily back into indycar racing since 2006; yet I could never unequivocally define my favorite driver or team. Of course I had a few I would like to do well throughout the year, but I have never lived or died by the finishing results of a particular organization. The closest I had ever been to team allegiance was always with Andretti. Not because were proven winners, but because they used to be. That was the one team that could realistically take the fight to Penske and Ganassi week after week. With that said, I favored Tony Kanaan; the affable leader of a terribly mixed up team.

That all changed during practice for the 2011 Indy 500. I can usually make about two hours of practice after work, so I would load up the backpack and grab my hat… my IndyCar Series hat, the same one I get all my signatures on. I never have felt the need to have specific items for specific drivers to sign. One hat to rule them all.

Early in the afternoon on Tuesday that week Jake Query, sometimes IMS radio announcer, tweeted that we could meet him behind the Pagoda at 5pm and receive a free Panther Racing hat. Not being one to turn down free stuff, I made sure I was there at the specified time. He did, in fact, give about 15 of us a very cool JR Hildebrand hat.

Not only was it visually cool; with its slick camo under the bill and not-flashy-but-classy color scheme, but it was also literally cool. Most IndyCar or IMS related hats are heavy, 100 percent cotton with no circulation to be found. The Panther hat had a nice, white mesh rear and was lighter all around. I immediately swapped hats out and never looked back. I guess I was a Panther fan.

Then race day came. I was there in the bleachers rocking my nice new Panther hat. Again, I still had no skin in the game; just the perennial need to see a good race. The last ten laps were different. I understood the implications of what we were witnessing. A rookie American, driving the National Guard car, leading the 500 for a team who has had a severe fall from grace, but this was different. I had that hat on; I was rooting for my team. I had never felt this kind of connection with a team or driver. I was about to live or die, depending on the outcome of the final few laps.

Pre Panther hat, I would have been amped to see that kind of finish. The king of the underdogs had won the race. This is exactly the type of outcome I always hope for. But I was absolutely gutted; my guy was supposed to win that one! What was I saying?! I had never experienced that sort of emotional reaction to a team or driver. Simply by giving me a free hat, Panther had made a fan for life. That hat instantly became my new race hat regardless of what series I was out to see.

Fast forward a few months, and they are the only operation that I really interact with on Twitter. I follow a handful of teams, mostly the underdogs, but rarely do I succumb to their attempts at fan interaction. But when Panther asks the fans questions, I will usually reply with something, because why not? These guys were the first team to really focus my attention.

Recently, the team asked if any locals were headed out to the state of INDYCAR presentation. In a sign of continued support I answered yes without much more thought. I have no idea how many people answered them, but I know at least two of us ended up winning a prize pack just for showing up. They sent me a box of stuff, included was a signed hat. Awesome! One to wear everywhere and one to display; thanks Panther!

Now I don’t know if Panther, or any other team for that matter, has a free-stuff-for-fans budget, but they should. In a time when focused eyes are the single most important thing the series and teams are going after; personal connections can be a great way to make diehard fans if done correctly. I will always root for Panther and JR, even when they go their separate ways.

With the simple act of giving out hats, the team has made strong personal connections. Handing someone a hat at a race is the best way to get team swag out there and allies in your corner. I have always thought the distribution of team merchandise is a hit or miss scenario. There just isn’t the amount of stuff for the smaller teams out there. This is a simple way for them to circumvent the entire issue, give it straight to the fans.

I will be out there this year; showing my support for the Panther operation and I don’t have a choice in the matter. They thrust their team on me and I graciously accepted. Would I be singing a different song if the 500 had played out differently and Panther was not in the running? Possibly, but that doesn’t change what happened. I still don’t know if I could call JR my favorite driver with TK still out there, but I am sure that Panther is my favorite team; all because of the power of a hat.

Eric Hall

An Evening With INDYCAR

I am sure you will read pages upon pages of writing breaking down what happened at the state of INDYCAR presentation. There are many, better qualified word hacks to dissect what each and every item means, but that man is not me. I am just a fan, nothing more, nothing less. My access is no more special than any random dude walking down the street. It is this reason that I was so excited to be able to attend something like this.

My only honest gripe about the night happened as soon as I arrived. In an attempt to show a bit early and possibly meet some of the people behind the twitter names, I was greeted with a line for us commoners. They kept us outside until 5:10 and by the time we were let in, there was really only time to find a seat and wait for the start. I didn’t appreciate, or understand, the need to keep us out there literally in the cold.

During the early part of the night’s festivities, there were a fair amount of tweets rolling in about the cheesiness of the whole endeavor. I was not innocent myself, but it was nice to see an honest attempt to engage us consumers. We always need some smoke and flashy lights to make anything worth coming to, and we were not let down.

I can imagine how the whole shebang looked across a webcast; overdone and overproduced to an almost comical end. I will admit to laughing out loud when I saw the foam show car sitting on the stage. I initially thought it was a cardboard cutout but was graciously informed to its actual makeup… confusion ensued. Until, that is, I realized its actual role. They used it as a sort of reflection screen and projected different car liveries on it all night. It was quite cool.

As the night wore on I realized more and more that this was not the “press conference” for lack of a better term, that many were expecting during the lead up.  There was a reason why no journalists flew in for this, because it was not for them. More a celebration of what Indycar has done right, and the momentum we carry through to the 2012 season. It was a show purely for the fans. Just the fact that we were being invited to Hilbert Circle Theatre free of charge was impressive. Make no mistake; there is not a more high class venue in the city period.

The series did a great job working the human aspect of competition into the evening. They broke the drivers up into engine groups, handed out more than a few awards and showcased the Americans. I will say that Michael Shanks absence from the Lotus lineup was noted, loud and clear. They even went so far as to create the fearsome five; the group of drivers finishing P2 through P6 in the 2011 standings. Focus was drawn to Dario Franchitti’s run of championships, and Ganassi’s position as the team to beat. All of these cards foreshadow what many fans have been clamoring for. There will be some kind of behind the scenes TV show done with the teams during race weekends. About time, and the series hit a homerun showcasing just a few of the possible storylines the paddock has to offer.

There was a presentation about the top ten on the all time wins list, because Dario is sitting in P9 with 30 and Sebastien Bourdais and Paul Tracy are tied in P7 with 31. We know that PT may very well never see victory lane again, but SeaBass and Dario can make legitimate runs to near the top of the record book. Al Unser Sr. sits in P4 with 39 wins, but with the Andretti boys and AJ Foyt seemingly untouchable at the top. We really are truly in an era of excellence.

The good news just did not seem to stop flowing once for the hour and a half presentation.  I was extremely curious at Firestone Racing boss Al Speyer’s large presence in the early portions of the program. It all came together with the fantastic announcement of Firestones continued presence in the series. Huge news, no matter how you spin it. Fuzzy’s Vodka, Discover (The credit card guys), and Lids were all announced as series partners. I cannot wait to drink a signature Fuzzy’s vodka INDYCAR drink during May. It seems that Lids really wants to make Indycar hats and activate the brand; we even received membership cards as we were leaving the hall. Experience enhanced, and immediate activation of sponsorship noted… well done Lids and INDYCAR.

Missing most from the webcast, I am sure, was the energy of the crowd. The audience was not scared to yell up on stage and the drivers really hammed it up for all of us. There was one guy who would just scream his head off anytime Ed Carpenter was seen or even mentioned. At one point I was sure that the balcony group was getting bottle service, because they were really rocking. The crowd let you know what they liked; Milwaukee and Will Powers double bird, and let you know what they didn’t like. Painful silence for China.

The presence of the Borg Warner Trophy as well as the Astor Championship Cup was classy. Although Dario was somewhat presented the Astor Cup, almost surprisingly the Borg was never showcased. Its presence was enough to remind us of what didn’t need to be said, yet again. Wheldon was remembered for his win, as it should be. I applaud the directors for not memorializing during an hour and a half celebration of sport.

I had many “I love this sport” moments during the entire evening. The display car was parked right out front; not letting indycar slip to the back of the cities collective mind. Fired up, is the only way I could describe my feelings when walking out. To punctuate the positive night, I saw the three Andretti boys walking together to who only knows where, quickly, with purpose, and alone… not something I think you would have seen a few years ago. I think this is a wider feeling through the paddock; good things are happening and good things are coming. A stance that more of us fans could stand to take; thanks Randy for calling out the naysayers. A perfect way to cap off a great evening with INDYCAR.

Eric Hall

Finally… Looking forward to the 2012 Season

It’s February; the INDYCAR season starts next month! Granted, St. Petersburg is still well over a month and a half away, but it still feels good to be this close. As we sit on the cusp of a new racing season we all have our gripes. Yes, we heard you… the car is ugly, the schedule sucks, seven Americans isn’t enough… you hate indycar but still watch… thank you for your support. Nevertheless, I have a few issues that have stuck with me through the past few weeks; hopefully these will be answered during the state of the union speech later this month. With the Super Bowl leaving town and the 24 hours a rousing success; I can finally take a serious look at the foreboding 2012 season.

My number one wish-list item is predicated on the certainty that the Milwaukee Mile will make an appearance on the 2012 schedule. If and when the historic Mile makes its way back to the schedule; I would really like to see a one day show. It is my opinion that the location of the track; inside the fairgrounds, really causes difficulties in making a multi-day show feasible. I have often heard about the Mile: “It’s like the Indiana fairgrounds racetrack; inside a gated area that is surrounded by city sprawl with no real central location to stay.”

A huge part of my personal draw to racing is the flash community created when cars aren’t on the track. Although this can be as simple as a close hotel, I always think of the camping areas around the facility. A major reason why the Indy 500 is so cool is the never sleeping, three day gathering in and around the local neighborhoods and lots. When we visited Kentucky Speedway last year the camping areas were close and accessible; pass outs were given and new friends made during down time at the track.

At Milwaukee there is no home base. For this reason I would never be able to get anyone to go with me. But with the possibility of driving up, watching a full day of action followed by a night race, getting a hotel for one night, and driving home the next morning; I have more than one person interested. There won’t be a two night hotel commitment. There won’t be a “alright, the actions done, let’s go to the hotel and be bored out of our minds for the night” feeling between Saturday and Sunday. There won’t be a need to plan for a multi-day, weekend stealing trip with no real highlights besides the time spent in the grandstands.

A weekends worth of action often goes down the best at locations with a built in audience. Mid-Ohio, Watkins Glen, Road America, Indianapolis, and even Kentucky before they jiggered its spot on the schedule were full all weekend because a huge amount of the paying customers are staying in, or real close to the facility.

Next, I need to see the track map for the Qingdao round to be convinced that we are, in fact, racing in China at all. We have no information about this weekend at all. Admittedly, Indycar.com is not the pinnacle of web presentation, but there is no logo, map or even an option to buy tickets. I’m not even sure I believe it’s actually taking place on August 26^th.

The only track related news we ever hear about are the continuing failings of Baltimore getting their financial situation in order. Though this is bad news in of itself, the deafening silence regarding anything at all pertaining to China is starting to worry me more than a little. Initially I was concerned about the lack of track map, but the more I thought about it, China is really a huge question mark.

Of course I want the track to be fast with good overtaking opportunities and skillful rhythm sections. But what if I want to go and actually attempt to attend the race? The most recent news items I could find were late last year and dealt with the announcement of the race itself. The league has got to know more information; I refuse to believe that they are only in the initial planning phases for the event. I know it’s still too soon to really worry, but if there isn’t more info released at the state of Indycar, I am really going to start questioning the logistics. The infamous 16 race clause in the IZOD contract should be enough for everyone to worry when considering Baltimore, Milwaukee and China.

Finally, I just want to see some good, close racing. I was truly spoiled for an entire day during the Daytona 24 hours. Say what you will about the aesthetics of the DP chassis, but you cannot deny that Grand-Am has found a remarkable mix of entertainment and pure racing; of cost containment and competition while still drawing manufacturers to its paddock. Our new DW12 chassis is just such a machine. A racecar created from an accountant’s spreadsheet.

Make no mistake; although the new chassis is a huge technological step forward from what we were used to, it is the deformed offspring of budgetary worries, competition dreams, safety concessions, and backroom dealing. We already know the car will be a bit slow on the ovals, but it seems to be more than a bit faster around the twisties.

Even with the introduction of engine competition throwing a huge variable into the whole program; we can all still hope for good, close racing. Does it matter if we are a bit slower around Indy or if it does look less than desirable bombing down the Sambadrome if we have absolutely killer action? I think not. Above and beyond all wants, needs and worries; I just want the action to be close. I don’t even care if the car doesn’t work on a fundamental level as long as everyone is struggling together.

The season opener is nearly upon us and it feels like indycar on the whole, has consistently maintained its momentum through the off season. Of course it doesn’t hurt that every attendee of the Super Bowl festivities had indycar on their minds for at least a few minutes during the weekend. It would be nice to have some info on Milwaukee and China soon, but if we have the kind of racing we saw at Daytona I’ll be able to forgive quite a large amount of disappointment throughout the season. T-47 days…

Eric Hall

SuperCars from an IndyCar Fanatic’s Perspective

January, 27^th. That was the day. The entire city has been in a state of mobilization for quite a while, but Friday was the day when all the hard work and planning was finally going to pay off. My fair city was hosting the first cold city Super Bowl in 25+ years and they kicked off the festivities that evening. They had the zip line; which, for the record, looked utterly ridiculous but the line was hours long, the NFL experience, bands, food, street performers and everything in between you could ever imagine. I didn’t care. I was there to see the cars.

Friday would mark the first of three days that all 36 chassis would be in one location before spreading throughout central Indiana to drum up a bit of indycar and NFL love. And I was there. We entered the village from the south and were immediately greeted with an IR03 as the NFL car and the two 2012 showcars we first saw in May as the team cars. All three were open and seemed available for kids to sit in for a cool photo op.

My only impression was that the aero package has really changed from what we first saw. We know that Dallara just went with the oval kit initially, but it was a pig and we have seen some nice changes to help in the speed department. From what the kit looked like eight months ago to what it in now is quite a difference.

Then we got to the eleven rows of three (!). What a cool sight! It’s an odd feeling in the city sometimes. We are so linked to open wheel racing, yet nearly everyone forgets it exists save for one day a year. Today was not the same. These cars were the center piece of the village for the weekend. When I was there you had to cross a live lane of extra busy downtown plus Super Bowl traffic because the cars were actually outside the confines of the village.

The place was absolutely packed when we were there at five or so, and I heard that population only increased throughout the night. It was shoulder to shoulder standing room only when I was there; I cannot imagine how busy it was later. You could tell the cars were bringing racing memories from people. One guy spent the entire time we were there staring at the Cardinals car, and I don’t think it was because he was an Arizona fan.

It’s hard to explain the vibe of the exhibit. You could see memories running through people’s eyes. They scanned the rows of racecars like they were watching them zip past on race day. Memories of forgotten childhood days ran across their faces. I was caught up in the emotion of it as well. Every time my eye drifted past an IR07 a bit of giddiness set in. I had always been a fan, but it was this era that turned me into the lunatic you know today. Not a single soul just breezed by. Each and every person stopped and completely took at least one car fully in; if even for just its paint job.

Admittedly, the hunt for a porkchop sighting was what really got me looking closely at the cars, but the more I looked; more and more ancient chassis started popping out at me. The most recent designs were in the minority. These were old tubs with a huge amount of history behind them. This display spanned the entire lifetime of the IRL and current INDYCAR. The only people that will truly know the stunning history are the teams that own them, but there were hints to past glory hidden on each car.

The 49ers car had a piece of tape stuck to the rear wing upright that said “Off 98015 After Qualifying Phoenix”. I have no idea what this means, but it is so cool that this small reminder of the previous life the chassis once lived will probably forever be attached to the car. Another had what looked to be a video game controlled super glued to the dash above the steering column. Was it a reminder from his son to be safe? A visual indicator that he is just driving a machine? Or just a simple prank played by the mechanics? Who knows, but my mind would not stop running through what could have been.

A stirring example that a racecar is more than just that; often becoming a living breathing member of a team, was a small reminder taped to the dash of yet another car. Written in magic marker on white tape was  “Old Faithful”. My mind started running through possible scenarios that would have necessitated that particular note. But it was there, all the vestiges of a past life were present on each and every car. I was staring at retied crew members. The gravity of that realization struck me. I carried no intention whatsoever to write about this experience walking in, but it was this moment I realized I had to.

I did find porkchop, and I grabbed a picture of it. Oddly enough the sticker is in the picture, but that’s not why I took the picture in the first place. I was capturing a set of cool, old controls that would never be placed on the dash on a modern car. It was not until today while perusing those pictures in preparation for this post that I saw a small glimpse of the infamous personification of a fat chassis.

The Dan Wheldon molding was a staunch reminder of the role these chassis play in our sport; no car more fitting to carry it than the Lions. It was quite amazing to soak all of this history that these mothballed cars carry. I find more connection to these than the pristinely restored examples in the IMS museum. These cars still had their character intact even if they had different dance clothes on. If you are in central Indiana, or can make it here, I highly recommend attempting to see one or two of these amazing racecars.

Eric Hall

Here are the pictures I took down there. Scott Swain has an extensive collection here.

6 Reasons why IndyCar is the Best Reality show on TV

Yes, I am aware there were two other marketing-of-indycar-type articles written today. What can I say, great minds think alike…

Nothing earth shattering this week. With, for once, not much news of note happening right now it would be a good time to finally put a weird, transient thought stream into solid writing. This is always the reasoning I use when trying to put my unnatural fascination with racing into words that non racing, or even sports fans, can digest. They may not agree with it, but they usually can understand where I am coming from. I understand that many, if not all, could be applied to other racing series but this is indycar and thats all that matters.

The Emotion is Real – Sam Schmidt and Alex Tagliani sharing a tearful embrace after winning at Indy. Helio Castroneves showing his utter displeasure for race control to Charles Burns. Will Power flamboyantly displaying his opinions about race control through wonderful nonverbal communication. The list could go on… We know there is just as much emotion in other forms of racing, but we don’t get to see too much of it. It has always been my opinion that there are no higher stakes than indycar oval racing in motorsports and as fans we often get a front row seat to the turmoil that goes hand in hand with indycar racing. For better or worse.

Its life and Death – Our sport is not a sport that is dangerous, it is defined by danger. We have been in a time of relative safety in comparison to history, but that changes nothing. When a football player pulls his helmet down getting hurt, or worse, is far from his mind. He is running plays, breaking down the game or just simply enjoying the care free nature of his career. For a racecar driver, more specifically open wheel drivers, and even more specifically indycar drivers doing average laps speeds of 220 wheel to wheel, it’s a bit different. Each and every driver knows he may never pull his helmet off once it’s strapped on. He may never be able to debrief with engineers or have a family dinner again. This reality is the world they choose to live in; the world we choose to be a part of. I cannot think of anything more real than this.

The Heroes become Villains – Because we get to watch the careers of drivers from the earliest days through retirement, it often feels like we experience the life of our favorite drivers while they are. Danica Patrick is the most stunning example of recent history. Once the golden goose of the series and after one comment on a track PA system she became public enemy number one in many fans eyes. This same type of story has been repeated throughout open wheel history. What will become of Hinchcliffe and Newgarden in ten years? Who knows, but the story will be awesome to watch.

The Villains become Heros – On the flip side, some of the most hated drivers become the fan favorite underdog. These drivers are not loved in spite of their history, but because of the tough road and heartwarming turn around. Paul Tracy was the antithesis of a clean cut, sponsor rep for the later years of ChampCar. He was disliked because of his brash attitude and physically confrontational discussion style. Now, he is the underdog of underdogs; the martyr of a forgotten time. I don’t think there is a single person not pulling for ol’ PT to get a ride; even if it’s just to hate him on track once he gets it. When he retires he will be known as the last man racing to hold a CART championship; the final link to the most recent golden era of championship racing.

Our Show is Never Cancelled – Barring the complete and simultaneous implosion of American open wheel racing and the Indy 500, we will always have at least one episode a year. Some years it seems we are closer to the edge than others, but could you really see a scenario where there is nothing but NASCAR left? I absolutely cannot. We have been going for over 100 years and there is no end in sight. On a large enough time scale, everyone gets replaced by new cast members; drivers, owners, team members, even sanctioning bodies. The show still goes on because it always has. Maybe that is an ignorant view about modern racing but our history tells a different story.

Our stars are never fired – With the glaring example of Rick Mears, modern racing does not let its stars walk away. They are slowly pushed to the back of the field before they quietly fizzle out. Take AJ Foyt as the prime example; a giant in our sport that, by his own admission, stuck around too long. PT is setting himself up for the same outcome and, once again, we will find repeating examples of this same story. Drivers don’t just walk away; they stick around for as long as humanly possible. The hold out hope of catching that mysterious “just one more” ride until the phone stops ringing and they slip into unannounced retirement.

It is sometimes sad to watch our rookies start as heroes, become villains and finally regain underdog hero status only for us to watch them struggle at the back of the field before hanging the gloves up. But this is the reason I watch; to become part of the lives and struggles of these modern day gladiators. Numerous reality type shows will be created and die even faster, but we have had the best one ever made running in front of our eyes for the last 100 years. The fanatical love, just as much as the tyrannical hate for the series is the result of so many years of history and memories; of life and death; of good and evil. The season premiere airs March 25^th, check your local listings for time and channel. Ill be watching, will you?

Eric Hall

Let’s See What Sticks…

Disclaimer: What follows is purely a blind man taking shots in the dark. There was no specific precedent that instigated these ideas; just dumb speculation.

It seems that the recent trend on twitter and in the indycar blogosphere has been to throw ideas against the wall and see what sticks. Most of us have no real inside knowledge of back room handshakes or verbal agreements between teams and drivers. Yet we constantly throw driver and team pairings out there. Word on the street was that a Russian indycar blog had either predicted, or prematurely broke the news about Dragon racing. Whatever the case may be; it’s my turn to stir the pot up. Who knows; I may be spot on.

The main reason I started to really think outside the box was preceded by the Lotus update article by Marshall Pruett. In said article, the Lotus boss stated he had a brand new, unannounced team to indycar racing under the Lotus umbrella. A few days later Dragon racing was confirmed as being a Lotus team and that they had signed Legge and Bourdais to full season rides.

From what I define a “new team to indycar racing” as is not fulfilled by Dragon. Now, this may actually be the team referred to in the article, but I chose to believe that is not the case and there is still a mystery Lotus team rolling around somewhere out there. I have two ideas for teams that may fit this mold to a “T” so let’s see how crazy and out of touch I actually am.

Paul Tracy Racing with Gerald Forsythe – Everybody’s favorite Mexican-wrestler-moonlighting-as-a-Canadian-racecar-driver, Paul Tracy, has been making a considerable amount of noise on twitter regarding his future plans for 2012, philosophical observations about the modern world and authoring thoughtful quips applicable to everyday life. None of this seems too out of the ordinary for PT, but along with his found-again social media voice; there have been quiet questions circulating about the state of Forsythe Racing and how this could apply to him. I have no idea why Forsythe came up, but it got me thinking. ..

From my vantage point, I believed that Gerald Forsythe did have every intension of fielding a team in the combined series for the 2009 season. In 2008, he publicly stated that he would, indeed, field at least an Indy Lights team. There were also more than quiet reports that he was “close” to fielding an IRL team as well as an ALMS team. As we all know, none of this came to fruition and Paul Tracy was forced to sit on the sidelines; unable to sign with a new team due to his existing contract. The team cited sponsorship issues as the ultimate reason for not competing, but they never shut the doors. The shop still sits on Georgetown Road with mowed grass, clean grounds and a nicely painted sign.

Forsythe’s nemesis Tony George isn’t steering the ship anymore and with the ousting of Brian Barnhart; it seems like the perfect time to pay back his old pal Paul Tracy. Derrick Walker, another owner who failed to transition into the combined series, found new life with Ed Carpenter Racing. Could PT be following the same road Carpenter did by taking control of his own future with a little help from a friend? It would almost be too good to be true.

Wayne Taylor Racing – This one is from left field…I know. While talking with the supremely marketing minded @JPIndyCar (make sure to also check his blog out, its great reading), he got me thinking; what just, makes sense? Some out-there team ideas have been floated, and with often national government conspiracy theory levels of complexity for just a slight chance that it might pan out. The previous idea is absolutely an example. But things don’t often work this way in the real world. The easiest solution is often the correct solution.

The Daytona Prototype racing team is based in Indianapolis. Why they are here I have no idea, but they call Indy home. Being an Indiana based team I am assuming they were eligible for the state subsidized buy-a-cheep-tub-from-Dallara program. This is just a shot in the dark, but I cannot doubt that WTR has a fair amount of cash that he could, if he wanted to, spend on an indycar tub. Would it be feasible for him to take advantage of an amazingly cheep chassis? Wayne Taylor Racing sported Dallara chassis before switching to the new Chevrolet Corvette chassis and engine. The team is a winning organization with good backing from Suntrust.

It seems to unreasonable not to think this could be a new team. Obviously, with the Chevy connection, he would almost certainly not be the mystery Lotus team. I don’t think it is out of the realm of possibilities to think he may have bought a DW12 or two. It’s not like they won’t be in heavy demand and he could always sell the chassis to a team in need. With his location, past and present connections, success in road racing and seemingly good backing; if I were Wayne Taylor I would at least entertain the idea of starting an indycar team and definitely purchase a few cheep chassis, if only as a pipe dream.

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So who is the mystery Lotus team? I would guess that it was probably Dragon racing, although the article sounded as if it wasn’t. Pruett made certain we read it as a brand new indycar entrant. Could one of these two pie-in-the sky teams be it? I think they would both make fantastic additions to the indycar paddock and my bet is with both of them. But unfortunately this is all the information on the mystery team we have. I have no other reason to think any new team is on the way to the series at this late stage of the game Lotus, or not, other than that small blurb in the aforementioned article. But if one of these teams does come to pass… You heard it here first… And for my next trick, the winner of the 2012 Indy 500 will be…

Eric Hall