OT: Racing 2012 (Spoiler Alert)

[toonarmy]

What's the general consensus on the race at Texas last night, chaps? I switched it on expecting to fall asleep in front of it, not through boredom but through being knackered. I ended up engrossed. Being English and having the opinion that he never really got a fair crack of the whip in F1, I was willing Justin Wilson onward through the last 30 laps, but what a tremendous pooch-screwing exercise from Rahal.

How entertaining it was to see skilled racing drivers having to use an awful lot of that skill to keep themselves on the road on a cookie-cutter oval, not just sticking their foot on the floor and turning left every so often. I'd have more of that, gladly.

It was a pretty good race. Texas is not the easiest track in the world, so props to the drivers for driving a clean safe race. Rahal did his best to match Hildebrand's Indy screw up last year. The pressure of Wilson coming on strong in the final laps clearly got to Rahal. I don't think Wilson could have caught Rahal if Rahal had simply finished the race without messing up since Wilson likely needed a few extra laps to have any chance. I figured it would come down to Dixon and Power at the end, but some bad luck for Dixon and a penalty to Power radically changed the finish. The season has been a lot of fun so far.

[Dave]

What's the general consensus on the race at Texas last night, chaps? I switched it on expecting to fall asleep in front of it, not through boredom but through being knackered. I ended up engrossed. Being English and having the opinion that he never really got a fair crack of the whip in F1, I was willing Justin Wilson onward through the last 30 laps, but what a tremendous pooch-screwing exercise from Rahal.

How entertaining it was to see skilled racing drivers having to use an awful lot of that skill to keep themselves on the road on a cookie-cutter oval, not just sticking their foot on the floor and turning left every so often. I'd have more of that, gladly.

I absolutely loved the race. I was pretty nervous heading into the race, fearing more pack racing. But after a couple laps, it became clear that the good cars were going to be able to get away. How about Franchitti finishing 3 laps down due to an ill-handling car? Or Castroneves going from top 5 to a lap down as his car faded down the stretch?

Even though it ended up biting him in the end, it was awesome to see Rahal find a different line that worked and allowed him to race to the lead. It was cool to see him, Hinchcliffe, and Hildebrand all end up in the top 5; the future of the series appears to be in good, capable hands.

[toonarmy]

Wow! What a great race in Canada. Lewis was on his game today. I loved seeing Lotus do so well. Grosjean was able to not screw things up today. Perez was impressive. The driver's championship is so wide open now. I know some race fans are not too crazy about the parity this year, but I think this season has been a blast so far.

[pk500]

Very happy to see Justin Wilson win last night at Texas. You will not find a nicer, more normal driver in the IndyCar paddock.

I texted Justin congratulations this morning, and he texted me right back with thanks. We've only done a couple of media tours together; it's not like we're tight. He's such a nice, nice dude and a hell of a race driver.

[DChaps]

Did anyone end up getting tickets to the US F1 Grand Prix in Austin? They went on sale this past Sunday through Ticketmaster. I managed to screw up my cart and I ended up having to settle for General Admission.

http://cotausgp.com/

[Gurantsu]

Another LeMans has come and gone. It was another interesting race, and as usual the stories and drama were awesome. Audi is just a monster, man what a well oiled machine that team is. Glad to see that Anthony Davidson will be OK, man that was just a scary looking wreck.

I love the endurance racing!

[pk500]

Another LeMans has come and gone. It was another interesting race, and as usual the stories and drama were awesome. Audi is just a monster, man what a well oiled machine that team is. Glad to see that Anthony Davidson will be OK, man that was just a scary looking wreck.

I love the endurance racing!

It seems like every year there's a big wreck with a prototype lapping a GT car. Last year it was McNish and Rockenfeller in separate wrecks. This year Davidson. Glad Ant is OK.

Man, the Delta Wing got punted into the wall like a playground ball, didn't it? Guess the designers didn't fathom how the light weight of the car could prove its undoing instead of such a huge advantage.

[toonarmy]

Did anyone end up getting tickets to the US F1 Grand Prix in Austin? They went on sale this past Sunday through Ticketmaster. I managed to screw up my cart and I ended up having to settle for General Admission.

http://cotausgp.com/

Holy s***, those tickets are expensive. For the really nice seats you have to pony up nearly $3,000 for a PSL, then over $700 per ticket on top of that. Decent grandstand seats are $500. At least general admission tix are only $159, but who knows how good of a view that will be. The USGP at Indy was such a bargain. On top of the low ticket prices there you could show up on race day and get a decent seat from a scalper for $50. Maybe scalpers will be the best place to get tix at Austin.

[Rodster]

No thanks, not during economic times. I'll enjoy the race for free.

[pk500]

The USGP at Indy was such a bargain. On top of the low ticket prices there you could show up on race day and get a decent seat from a scalper for $50. Maybe scalpers will be the best place to get tix at Austin.

Thank you! I'll forward your praise to my bosses. We know we're the best value in worldwide motorsports: $30 to get through the gate for the Indy 500 and Brickyard 400, too.

[F308GTB]

Did anyone end up getting tickets to the US F1 Grand Prix in Austin? They went on sale this past Sunday through Ticketmaster. I managed to screw up my cart and I ended up having to settle for General Admission.

http://cotausgp.com/

Holy s***, those tickets are expensive. For the really nice seats you have to pony up nearly $3,000 for a PSL, then over $700 per ticket on top of that. Decent grandstand seats are $500. At least general admission tix are only $159, but who knows how good of a view that will be. The USGP at Indy was such a bargain. On top of the low ticket prices there you could show up on race day and get a decent seat from a scalper for $50. Maybe scalpers will be the best place to get tix at Austin.

In-laws live about 30 minutes from the track, so perhaps we'll sneak over there that weekend and I'll try to get in for cheap. The concern I have is that Austin can be hilly in spots, so while the track map looks like there may some great sight lines, the elevation may block those views.

[Gurantsu]

Well you can add my name to the list. The years I went to the USGP at Indy were awesome, not only in price but also the amount of things going on during the weekend. Just a great event every year, until Bernie and Michelin decided to use it to stage their little tire war. Just goes to show you how the F1 heads feel about the US market. Once they have your cash they could give a crap what happens. At least Michelin ponied up the bills to pay for peoples tickets.

Years ago I would have been jumping out of my shoes at the prospect of a F1 race coming to my native New Jersey. Now it's just a big MEH. Too much other great racing out there to shell out crazy amounts of money to bow at the alter of Formula One, even with this season being more interesting than it has been in a long time.

The USGP at Indy was such a bargain. On top of the low ticket prices there you could show up on race day and get a decent seat from a scalper for $50. Maybe scalpers will be the best place to get tix at Austin.

Thank you! I'll forward your praise to my bosses. We know we're the best value in worldwide motorsports: $30 to get through the gate for the Indy 500 and Brickyard 400, too.

[toonarmy]

The USGP at Indy was such a bargain. On top of the low ticket prices there you could show up on race day and get a decent seat from a scalper for $50. Maybe scalpers will be the best place to get tix at Austin.

Thank you! I'll forward your praise to my bosses. We know we're the best value in worldwide motorsports: $30 to get through the gate for the Indy 500 and Brickyard 400, too.

Don't forget about the low prices to the Red Bull Indianapolis GP either. MotoGP 3-day pass for $70 is crazy cheap. Parking is fairly cheap as well. The events at the IMS are truly a great value for fans of racing. Hell, just getting to walk the grounds of the IMS, take in the atmosphere, and see the museum are worth the price of admission.

[Gurantsu]

Just finished watching the Texas race, since we were on vacation last week (still have Milwaukee and the Canadian F1 race to check out). Very cool race, and one thing that stood out was that the drivers for the most part seemed to like the changes to the cars. The interview with Scott Dixon, who was leading when he wrecked, was telling. They asked him if he liked the new car setup, and he said he did. I think the drivers will appreciate that they need to drive the cars more, instead of keeping their foot down the whole lap. And it seemed to be a pretty safe race overall. I'm really liking the new car so far.

I feel bad for Rahal, but man it was cool to see Wilson reeling him in, just waiting to see if anyone would make a mistake. Great racing!

Although I have to say, Justin Wilson should never ever wear a cowboy hat again!

[pk500]

INDYCAR announced today mandatory lower downforce for the oval this weekend in Iowa. No more droning around in packs, foot-to-the-floor, which was RIDICULOUS for a seven-eighths-mile track.

Drivers will be forced to really drive this weekend. Cool.

[toonarmy]

What a boneheaded move by Newgarden to take out Briscoe, who was looking really good out there. Have to give Briscoe a ton of credit for being so classy in his interview after the incident, just attributing it to a rookie mistake.

Man there have been a lot of wrecks tonight. Still 50 laps left too. Very fun race thus far.

[Dave]

Indycar has hit on one hell of an oval package. Another great race tonight, love watching the cars come and go throughout a stint.

[EZSnappin]

What a crazy race in Valencia. One of the best recent memory from that circuit.

[pk500]

What a boneheaded move by Newgarden to take out Briscoe, who was looking really good out there. Have to give Briscoe a ton of credit for being so classy in his interview after the incident, just attributing it to a rookie mistake.

Man there have been a lot of wrecks tonight. Still 50 laps left too. Very fun race thus far.

Joey New was completely at fault, indeed. It was much too late in the corner for him to attempt that move.

Equally cool as Briscoe was Power, who took complete responsibility for taking out Viso. No wonder they're Penske teammates. Class is in the DNA of Team Penske.

[toonarmy]

Indycar has hit on one hell of an oval package. Another great race tonight, love watching the cars come and go throughout a stint.

I wish they would drop some of the road courses and add more ovals to the schedule. The road courses just don't deliver the same excitement and suspense as do the ovals.

[toonarmy]

What a crazy race in Valencia. One of the best recent memory from that circuit.

No kidding. It was neat to see three champs on the podium at the same time. It was also great to see Kimi do so well. Grosjean just cannot buy a break this season. He again was very fast but failed to finish the race. On to Silverstone!

[tjung0831]

Actually made the trek to Newton Iowa last night for the race. Great time for sure and my kids are now hooked so we are going to make it an annual event as long as Indy continues to race there. We even picked our winners for the race, I took Castroneves, my oldest son went with Andrett and my youngest son went with James Hinchcliff and all three of them had leads in the race at one time or another so that made it extra special. Seeing the disappointed look on my oldest sons face when Andretti just couldn't take over Ryan Hunter-Reay was something...he was really into it and then when my youngest son realized his GoDaddy car had wrecked just a few laps earlier, there was just some heartfelt emotion there. Great time can't wait to go back.

[pk500]

Indycar has hit on one hell of an oval package. Another great race tonight, love watching the cars come and go throughout a stint.

I wish they would drop some of the road courses and add more ovals to the schedule. The road courses just don't deliver the same excitement and suspense as do the ovals.

Two problems. One, ovals don't draw as well as street courses, outside of Indy, Texas and Iowa. Two, there aren't many suitable ovals left for INDYCAR to race in the U.S.

INDYCAR may return to Michigan, but the series didn't draw sh*t there for its last few races. Same with Phoenix. Pocono could be an option since it has been repaved. Daytona and Talladega are far too fast. Bruton Smith was on record earlier this month saying Texas would be the only SMI oval that will play host to INDYCAR.

Dover and Gateway are dumps. Rockingham and Darlington wouldn't draw flies, in the heart of NASCAR country in North Carolina and South Carolina, respectively. Richmond is arguably too small, and the crowd dwindled the last few INDYCAR races there.

Crowds also were shrank at Chicago and Kansas, forcing a mutual divorce between ISC and INDYCAR at those facilities.

INDYCAR runs more street races because the sanctioning body and promoters usually make more money at those events. Plus they create a "big event" buzz in the city, attracting race fans and people just looking for a high-octane party. Oval races located far from downtown areas don't achieve that vibe.

[pk500]

Cool, Tim! That's a hell of a road trip. How long was the drive each way?

[tjung0831]

Cool, Tim! That's a hell of a road trip. How long was the drive each way?

It's a 6 hour drive from my house to Des Moines. I drive it for work several times a year so I'm very familiar with the Des Moines area and as well as Iowa in general. The track in Newton is about 45 minutes east of Des Moines. We left Friday morning and just made a weekend out of it and then left the hotel this morning at 10am. With stops for lunch and a bathroom break, we pulled into our driveway at 4:45pm this evening.
Couple of questions for you Paul. How long has Indy been racing in Iowa? Is it a lock they will continue to race there? I ask because to me, it seemed like it really drew a big crowd so I would guess that's a determining factor for IRL. Based on the crowd though, it would seem like a no brainer that I can count on a race there next year.
The only other races I've been to were at Gateway across the river in here St. Louis...the old CART series raced there a few times. That place was a dump but this Iowa Speedway looks very nice...basically just sits out in the middle of a cornfield right off highway 80. After seeing this open wheel racing again, makes me mad that I didn't support IRL when they raced at Kansas. We are definitely heading back to Newton next year as long as IRL returns.
Also wanted to ask you what you know about the Mazda Star series. We watched that race yesterday and noticed that the kid who won is only 17 years old. His first name was Sage..forget the last name. Is this a guy that has his sights set on racing in the IRL? I assume he will just move up to the Indy Lights and then eventually onto IRL?
The real beauty of this weekend though is that while I've been an Indy fan for many years, my kids are now fans. They've gotten into it more each race we have watched this season. Once I noticed they were starting to really like the racing, that's when I brought up making the road trip to Iowa and asked them if they were interested to which I received a resounding yes from both of them. Just a real good father and son weekend for me and we plan to turn this into a tradition.