OT: Racing 2006 (Spoiler Alert)

GB_Simo · Post by **GB_Simo** » Sun Mar 26, 2006 6:47 pm

Awful, just awful. Thoughts and prayers with his family.

jondiehl · Post by **jondiehl** » Sun Mar 26, 2006 7:34 pm

R.I.P. Paul Dana

Really sad to see that, doesn't look like he slowed down at all and it looked preventable. I wonder if they'll come out with the radio feed from his spotter (if there is one) to see if/when he was told to slow down.

MotoGP - good race today. Hayden gets a podium, Rossi crashes in the 1st corner but still manages some points.

GB_Simo · Post by **GB_Simo** » Sun Mar 26, 2006 7:57 pm

I'd also like to keep in my thoughts the family of Jorg Bastuck, the Junior WRC co-driver killed on Friday in Catalunya. His car had left the road on SS2 and while Bastuck was changing a wheel he was struck by a Ford Fiesta that left the road in the same place. All it can be put down to is sheer bad luck, but that can't be of any consolation to either his family and colleagues or the driving staff of the Fiesta.

We all know that motorsport is dangerous and competitors do place their lives at risk, but none of that lessens the impact when racers are lost. A dark weekend of motorsport.

DChaps · Post by **DChaps** » Fri May 05, 2006 11:27 pm

Here is some interesting news I received:

Warner Home Video has announced that John Frankenheimer's classic 'Grand Prix' will be released in the US on July 11, 2006 in a Two Disc 40th Anniversary Special Edition.

Special Features will include four never before seen documentaries and the archival film 'Grand Prix: Challenge of the Champions', taking viewers behind the scenes of '60s Formula One racing. The restored 65mm film will be released in widescreen format with a re-mastered Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack.

To reserve your copy of Grand Prix from the first shipment on July 11, fill out the Secure Order Form at www.PutGrandPrixOnDVD.com. Orders will be filled by The Motorsport Collector in Downers Grove, Illinois. All Major Credit cards accepted. We ship worldwide.

All of you who signed our online Petition - more than 7,000 fans from more than 40 countries - deserve credit for convincing the powers that be to release this classic bit of racing history on DVD. You made it happen!

As of now, we are only aware of a US/Canada release date. We'll keep you informed of further developments via email or you can visit isit www.MotorsportCollector.com or www.PutGrandPrixOnDVD.com for the latest information.

Sincerely yours,

Paul Zimmermann
Managing Partner, The Motorsport Collector
email: pz@motorsportcollector.com
phone: 630.515.1440
web: [www.motorsportcollector.com]

Yes the story line and the acting can be a little cheesy, but there is no better movie for racing action. Not to mentinon it basically is the movie version of Grand Prix Legends.

Dave · Post by **Dave** » Sun May 14, 2006 10:31 pm

Dreadful weather this weekend at Indy. Should be a busy Saturday as they try to fill the entire field.

Although it doesn't look like this week's weather will be much better.

The Ganassi and Penske guys seem to be in a league of their own so far. I think this is the year Hornish finally puts it together and gets his name on the Borg Warner.

DChaps · Post by **DChaps** » Mon May 15, 2006 7:47 am

Yeah, I am sick of the rain at Indy. I know it's always a possibilty, but it seems lately that it's been reducing the month of May excitement quite a bit. Although it probably will make next weekend pretty exciting if they can get it in.

pk500 · Post by **pk500** » Mon May 15, 2006 9:16 am

Don't forget that next Saturday a qualified car can be withdrawn and run again, up to three times, without going to a backup due to the new rules. With Ganassi and his ego one of the pole contenders, it should make for a wild Saturday.

If Dixon or Wheldon are just behind Penske or Hornish after one round of qualifying, you know the Chipster will pull one of those cars in another attempt to grab the pole.

Take care,
PK

Dave · Post by **Dave** » Mon May 15, 2006 9:21 am

pk500 wrote:With Ganassi and his ego one of the pole contenders, it should make for a wild Saturday.

The Chipster has an ego?

One of my all-time favorite quotes was from Jimmy Vasser who said something along the lines of "Chip couldn't be more full of himself if he ate his own arm."

Is the forecast for this week looking any better? Last I saw it looked like possible rain for almost the entire week.

Any good wheeling-and-dealing rumors? I saw John Andretti's name pop up for his annual return to Indy rumor.

Can't wait for race day...

pk500 · Post by **pk500** » Mon May 15, 2006 10:32 am

Dave wrote:
pk500 wrote:With Ganassi and his ego one of the pole contenders, it should make for a wild Saturday.
The Chipster has an ego?

One of my all-time favorite quotes was from Jimmy Vasser who said something along the lines of "Chip couldn't be more full of himself if he ate his own arm."

Is the forecast for this week looking any better? Last I saw it looked like possible rain for almost the entire week.

Any good wheeling-and-dealing rumors? I saw John Andretti's name pop up for his annual return to Indy rumor.

Can't wait for race day...

Another of Vasser's classic quotes about Chip was, "There's no 'I' in team, but there is an 'I' in Chip."

I refuse to look at the weather forecast. As for rumors, yes, John's name has popped up. But with 32 seats already filled, I don't think you're going to see that much Bump Day wheeling and dealing.

Take care,
PK

Dave · Post by **Dave** » Mon May 15, 2006 11:03 am

pk500 wrote:I refuse to look at the weather forecast. As for rumors, yes, John's name has popped up. But with 32 seats already filled, I don't think you're going to see that much Bump Day wheeling and dealing.

I'm holding out hope that AJ will find a way to deny Arie Jr. a chance at starting again. Or John Herb...

jondiehl · Post by **jondiehl** » Mon May 15, 2006 11:11 am

Anyone else sleep through the F1 race yesterday? It was a bore-fest, and the CBS coverage didn't help keep me awake either, perhaps one of the most dull F1 events I've watched. The only real highlight was Kimi's start off the grid, squeezing between the Toyota's and then passing both Honda's in the 1st turn. Michael made one pass the entire race, getting by Fisichella on the first pit stop (typical). ZZZZZZZ

pk500 · Post by **pk500** » Mon May 15, 2006 11:34 am

Jon:

That's typical for Barcelona. It's the most popular F1 testing venue, by far, as teams pound out thousands of miles there every year.

So the teams and drivers know everything about the track, and the team's computer setup models are absolutely spot-on for that track. The end result is a very predictable race where the only variable is either a mistake in the pits or a driver error. And since the drivers pound out so many miles at that circuit in testing, driver errors are very rare there.

Take care,
PK

Zeppo · Post by **Zeppo** » Mon May 15, 2006 11:48 am

pk500 wrote:Jon:

That's typical for Barcelona. It's the most popular F1 testing venue, by far, as teams pound out thousands of miles there every year.

So the teams and drivers know everything about the track, and the team's computer setup models are absolutely spot-on for that track. The end result is a very predictable race where the only variable is either a mistake in the pits or a driver error. And since the drivers pound out so many miles at that circuit in testing, driver errors are very rare there.

Take care,
PK

Yeah, what is it now, like 8 out of the last 10 races there were won from Pole? Or at least the first row? The drama in the Spanish race is all in qualifying.

Still, I couldn't get enough of that cable cam. That thing was incredible and made some amazing shots!

Gurantsu · Post by **Gurantsu** » Mon May 15, 2006 3:54 pm

I don't know if any of you caught the Grand Am race from Phoenix, but it was a terrible race for my MSR boys. Ozz gets banned from the race for causing a wreck in the qualifying race (which have now been officially axed, its back to normal qualifying finally!), then both team cars get roughed up throughout the entire race, as did most of the other ones. I think the penalty was handed down to make an example of Ozz to the other drivers, in the hope of avoiding the mess that was last years race.

It didn't work.

I don't know what it is about that track, but the drivers must have to check their brains at the door before entering the place. It's a 3 hour race, and they run it like it's 3 laps. Add to that that some drivers feel the use of mirrors is optional and you have what Mike Helton would call "a good show". Any resemblence to quality racing is purely accidental.

Don't get me wrong, I like a bit of bumping and grinding in my racing, but it has lately starting coming to poor decisions and bullying tactics, and inconsistant officiating (although with so much going on how can you keep track of it all?) I know it is a very competitve series, and that you have a lot of first rate drivers in pretty equal cars, but the last couple races have been just crazy.

Next up is the 6 Hours At The Glen. With a race that long all the winner will have to do is sit in the pits and wait for the rest of the field to take themselves out.

Dave · Post by **Dave** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 11:30 am

I had no idea that the 24 Hours of Le Mans was going on this weekend...

sfz_T-car · Post by **sfz_T-car** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 11:53 am

The new Audi R10 diesel is awesome. It generates massive power at very low revs and sounds different from any race car I can recall.

pk500 · Post by **pk500** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 12:52 pm

Dave wrote:I had no idea that the 24 Hours of Le Mans was going on this weekend...

Yeah, for some reason Le Mans lacks buzz this year. I don't know about you cats, but the Audi dominance is getting very dull from a fan perspective, even if Z is spot-on in saying the diesel R10 is a b*tchin' race car.

Le Mans 2006 is a far cry from the days of three or four manufacturer prototypes duking it out at La Sarthe. You have to respect Audi for its dominance, but it is sucking some of the life out of the event, in my opinion.

That said, Le Mans still is pretty damn cool!

Take care,
PK

Dave · Post by **Dave** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 1:07 pm

I'm apparently with you, PK. I turned on Speed Channel this morning and saw the Aston Martin and had to check the guide to realize it was Le Mans.

Audi's dominance has sapped just about any drama from the big cars and even if the P2s or GTs are cool, they are just a sideshow to me.

As a kid, the GTP cars were the bee's knees and I definitely miss those days.

Did you see that starting in 2010 the P1 cars will be closed cockpit prototypes?

DChaps · Post by **DChaps** » Sun Jul 09, 2006 12:05 pm

Wow. Did not expect this but I think it could be pretty cool.

http://www.speedtv.com/articles/auto/formulaone/28230/

Zeppo · Post by **Zeppo** » Sun Jul 09, 2006 12:09 pm

That's nuts! Now can we get Jeff Gordon (or someone better. . . ) into F1?

This is the part I like the best, though:

By hiring Montoya, who has a residence in Miami, Ganassi fulfills NASCAR's diversity program for Hispanic-speaking people and greatly enhances the chances of a Cup event in Mexico City.

The emphasis is mine, of course, but you gotta love that NASCAR diversity! lol.

DChaps · Post by **DChaps** » Sun Jul 09, 2006 12:30 pm

Just watched the press conference on Speed and I am even more excited now. The fire seems to be back for JPM and he and Chip handled the questions really well. When JPM came to CART in 1999 I thought he was going to be the most exciting racer since Zanardi. His rookie CART championship, rookie Indy 500 win, and rookie season in F1 all pointed to that being the case, but then something happened to that fire. A lot of it probably his fault, some of it the fault of F1 and it's stale racing, but it sounds like this will be pretty fun to watch regardless of the outcome.

Neckthai · Post by **Neckthai** » Tue Jul 11, 2006 1:38 pm

This just in: Montoya out at McLaren immediately. To be replaced by Charlie Hustle (Pedro de la Rosa).

pk500 · Post by **pk500** » Tue Jul 11, 2006 2:07 pm

Reportedly one of the main reasons Montoya was released -- with a nice golden parachute since he's under contract, I'm sure -- was because he didn't inform McLaren boss Ron Dennis of his plans until calling him shortly before the press conference Sunday morning at Chicagoland.

Still, Dennis made it pretty clear that he didn't want JPM when he didn't exercise Montoya's option for next year. So I like JPM's attitude: The Ron can go f*ck himself.

Take care,
PK