Go Time

The last couple days in Indianapolis, Indiana have been somewhat subdued for the teams and drivers as they have quietly completed final preparations for this year’s Indianapolis 500. Starting today that all changes. Yesterday I previewed the Carb Day action, but from there the next two days will become a blurr of media and sponsor activities as everyone who has supported you this year will call in their pound of flesh. Indy is the big one, and everyone wants to be there and show off "their" team and driver. A big part of what Indycar racing offers to sponsors over other sports is access…you can’t get in the locker room right before the super bowl, or have dinner with the starting quarterback the night before the game, but in our sport you can do all that and more.

Joe Montana was involved in a team I drove for at Indy in 1995 (Chip Ganassi’s outfit) and he was shocked to see the access that sponsors and their guests had to the team, car, and especially it’s drivers, immediately before we had to go into battle. But although there are a few rare occasions when someone will overstep the situation, I have found that everyone keeps a respectful recognition of where your head is at as you prepare to start the biggest race of your life. And, there is something uplifting to be surrounded by so many people who just want to be close to you and offer their support to you. To be honest, it seemed normal until Joe had discussed it with me, and now I think I have a better understanding of what is great about auto racing. It connects with people, and is probably the only sport where you can get close to the participants, grab an autograph or a quick photo and brief chat, right before you bear witness to the event.

Here’s a brief list of what the AGR drivers will have on tap between now and the race: Final practice laps on Carb Day, Pit Stop competition, couple media interviews, a sponsor suite visit or two, sponsor dinner, Driver’s Meeting, Public Driver’s Meeting, Indy 500 Parade, couple more interviews, couple meet and greets, stop by a sponsor dinner functions for meet and greet / autograph / photo op, then finish Sat. evening at a huge sponsor party at the AGR team shop. That’s enough to make anyone’s head spin, and it is the part they never tell you about when you are a kid wishing to be a race car driver when you grow up. But, after that, you are done and you can begin to really focus on the task at hand…winning the Indy 500.

Now I hope all that has not come out like a complaint in any way, because it is not. The schedule above is just the reality that nobody ever talks about or highlights, and a big part of the spectacle of Indy. Hope you have enjoyed reading my Indy blogs this week, I’ve enjoyed reliving the race a bit through them. Now I’ve got to start my own preparations, getting ready for a huge BBQ at my house for friends and family to watch the greatest race in the world.

Bryan

Carbs Are Bad For You

Tomorrow at Indy is Carb Day. The name comes from many years ago when the cars that ran in the 500 actually used carburetors instead of electronic fuel injection. (The “Car of Tomorrow” in NASCAR still uses the things, despite the fact that no car on the road has had one for years). The name is so out of date, that if you talk about carbs now people wince and quickly reference the Adkins diet. So maybe they should update it to Low Carb Day or even better, No Carb Day. I’ll send a note to Tony George this afternoon.

Naming differences aside, tomorrow’s laps are some of the most important the drivers will turn all month. After two weeks of daily practice sessions, the track has been idle since Sunday. The teams have been busy completely rebuilding every part of the car, so when the teams hit the track tomorrow, they have just a handful of laps to redial in to the new track conditions with their completely rebuilt cars. Every driver hopes to run just a minimum amount before the car feels comfortable because every lap you can save tomorrow means your car and engine is that much fresher come Sunday when it counts. Nobody wants to drop out of the race with two laps to go and think, “if only I had not done that last run on Carb Day.”

That’s what Carb Day means to the drivers…but for the fans it is something totally different. The practice laps are just the beginning. Carb Day officially kicks off the weekend long party that is the Indy 500 for the 400,000+/- fans that turn out. The city is filling up and the energy level is amazing. There is a pit stop competition to take in, and you don’t want to miss Kid Rock on the main stage either…that dude can put on a show. So whether you are in Indy for the race or the party, enjoy it 100% because there is nothing else like Indy and the next one is still 367 days away. Have a cold one for me.

Bryan

OK, Now What

I’m not usually a guy who struggles to find something to say or have an opinion about any number of subjects. So…when I was told over the winter that XM was starting a new one hour radio show for all the Andretti Green Racing drivers, I probably showed the most enthusiasm for the idea. I thought it would be great to have a weekly outlet from which I could wax eloquently about whatever was on my mind. That was the beauty of the show’s concept; we could talk about whatever we wanted. That’s also turned out to be the toughest thing about the show.

This week I get a break from the show. My teammates (Tony, Dario, Mike, Marco, and Danica) take over live from the infield of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway where they get to interact with some fans and answer questions and talk about how they feel about their Indy 500 chances. It is always interesting when you have unscripted questions from the fans, especially if they’ve been out in the sun for hours downing beers like there might be a $100 bill at the bottom of the next bottle, so I’m sure the show will have some memorable moments.

But for me, I’m already trying to figure out what I want to talk about next week. I think I am actually stressing about it. I think I’m still trying to find my groove with the show, cause I really want to do something that people will enjoy listening to. I’ve already covered a lot of different ground from week to week, from interviewing Alfonso Ribeiro (you know him as Carlton from The Fresh Prince of Bel Air) to pissing off a large number of Tony Stewart fans by suggesting NASCAR drivers are less athletic than their open wheel counterparts. I’ve even gone a little "Kathie-Lee" and discussed my son’s karting races on air. So what do I say next? I’m really not sure, hopefully you guys will tune in next week and we’ll find out together.

Bryan

The Glass is Half Full

Nobody “likes” doing PR. Race car drivers like to race, we put up with the endless smiling, shaking hands, and doing interviews because that’s what gets the sponsors to pay the bills so we can do what we love. Don’t get me wrong, there are lots of perks along the way, and as far as bad jobs go, even a PR day as an Indycar driver does not rank in the top one million worst things you can do to earn the rent money. But you want to be driving the car, or working with your engineers to make the car faster, or taking some personal time to get focused for the biggest race in the world just six days from now, anything that will get you closer to putting your face on the Borg Warner trophy as an Indy 500 champion. But bills need to get paid, so you go with the flow and make the best of whatever circus hoop you are being asked to jump through next.

The last few years, that circus hoop has come in the form of a mass trip to New York for all 33 starters in the Indy 500 for a “major market” media blitz. The day will include a photo op at some NY landmark, and then a media luncheon to help promote the race. After two solid weeks of practice on Indy’s 2.5 mile field of dreams, it is great to be anywhere else just to get a break and a change of scenery. It’s great to spend some down time with the other drivers away from the pressures of the speedway. There is a strong sense of fraternity. Everyone there endured their own long road capped by four sometimes terrifying laps to qualify for the race, but now for the next couple days they stand as equals, cause the thinking goes “if you’re in the race you’ve got a chance to win.”

Drivers are optimists by nature, we have to be to do our job. Most sports like baseball, half the teams win a given day, and half loose. For drivers, that thrill of victory comes far less often. To combat this, we all convince ourselves the next race will be the one for us, no matter if you qualified on the pole and are the media darling favorite that week, or you scrape into the field on the very last day in a plain wrapper car that the team has not even had time to place your name onto. Every one of them can envision a scenario that leads to victory lane, why else take the risk?

Now, I’m sitting here at home this year so I can look at things with a bit (but not much) more clarity. So, here’s how I rate everyone’s chances to win Indy this year.

Dan Wheldon 3/1 Early favorite has fast car and tons of Indy motivation

Tony Kanaan / Dario Franchitti / Michael Andretti 4/1 Mike’s my emotional first choice, TK’s looking good, and Dario’s most dangerous when he’s quiet

Scott Dixon / Helio Castroneves 6/1 Scott’s been overshadowed by DW, Helio’s always a threat

Sam Hornish 8/1 Not shown as much flare this year, but don’t bet against Penske

Marco Andretti / Danica Patrick 9/1 A win from one of these two would do wonders for the series, they both have a great chance

Everyone else 100/1 Yup, as far as I can see it, this year is a 9 car race. I don’t think anyone else has a realistic shot.

That’s the way I see it from the cheap seats. Talk to you tomorrow. GO MIKEY!

Bryan

You Never Forget Your First Time

Life throws a lot of "firsts" at you over the years. Your first word, first step, first day of school, first kiss...etc. And if you grow up wanting to be a race car driver you dream about your first 500. It's hard to put into words the emotions that the Memorial Day Classic evokes from me, but I understand why I feel the way I do about the race. You see, racing in the Indy 500 is a great payday (last place will take home around $150,000 for three and a half weeks work), but you never think about that until the day after the race and they start handing out the checks at the awards banquet. No, racing in the Indy 500 represents the final confirmation that you have fulfilled your lifelong dreams of reaching the very pinnacle of the auto racing pyramid. Some people point to Formula 1 as the highest level of motor racing, and I would be very hard pressed to argue with them for eleven months out of the year. But in May, the center of the auto racing universe is firmly fixed on the corner of 16th and Georgetown in Speedway, Indiana. The Indy 500 is the one race that captures the hearts and minds of people around the world more than any other race, period.

Now my first 500 had a few extra twists thrown in..like it was also my first Indycar race of any kind, my first race longer than 75 miles, and oh yeah I was there driving for the Brickyard legend AJ Foyt. Imagine all that, then rolling onto the track for your first practice laps with the likes of Rick Mears, Mario Andretti, Emerson Fittipaldi, Bobby Rahal, Al Unser Jr., Michael Andretti and Danny Sullivan to name a few. To state it mildly, my back side was puckered up so tight I was afraid if I sat down I wouldn't be able to get back up. On my very first lap onto the track for official practice, as I exited turn 4 coming up to speed Eddie Cheever was gaining quickly already on a fast lap, I moved towards the inside to get out of his way on the straight to get out of his way, but he followed me down to pick up some extra speed off my draft, I moved down again, but again he followed me down, now to the very inside of the front straight. Finally, he jinked out to the right, slammed on the brakes as he drew even with me, and gave me the finger! Totally true story, welcome to Indy, rookie.

Luckily things improved from there. I did have to endure the nerve racking experience of finishing bump day qualifying on the bubble, meaning I was the last car to make the field of 33. Keep in mind that back then more cars failed to make the race than actually raced, so it was a huge relief just to make it into the field, let alone as a rookie in your first Indycar race. But I learned a lot, and persevered to finish 9th in the race, a good result considering everything. As I climbed from the car after the race, a reporter came rushing over and shoved a mike in my face and asked, "You just finished 9th in your first Indy 500, what does that mean to you?" Without hesitation I blurted out, "Well, I guess eight guys beat me today." You see I was hooked, and the racer's mentality had me already looking ahead 12 months for another chance to do it all again.

I have so many great experiences from my five Indy 500 starts, and throughout the rest of this week I'll be here to share some more stories with you as well as look ahead to this year's race through the eyes of my AGR teammates. Thanks for the memories...Bryan