John Olsakovsky

IndyCar – Indianapolis 500 Qualifying Recap

May 20, 2014May 21, 2014 John Olsakovsky

Fast Friday This weekend’s qualifying for the 98th Indianapolis 500 Mile Race started with questions, albeit not the usual ones. The new format did away with the traditional Pole Day and Bump Day. And lets not forget the points for qualifying and the Fast 9, making starting position mean far more than pit selection. When IndyCar turned up the boost for practice on Friday, Tony Kanaan and Ryan Hunter-Reay both posted laps in the 231mph range and Marco Andretti laid down a 232.2mph lap. Of those, only Hunter-Reay’s was truly…

The Missed Shift – Weekend At Bernie’s

March 6, 2014March 6, 2014 John Olsakovsky

Over at Bernie’s House There’s a post on Opposite Lock by a user discussing a potential replacement or Bernie Eccelstone should he retire, die or go to prison (the latter appearing to be the most likely). The user suggests that Christian Horner would be a suitable replacement for Bernie, and I can’t disagree. Although I think there are a handful of others who could fill the role equally as well. But who would want to? Let me preface by saying that in order to understand Bernie’s rise to power and…

The Missed Shift – V is for…

February 17, 2014 John Olsakovsky

The Void of the Offseason Now that the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona is over and the dust has settled, there’s a bit of a lull. The Winter Olympics has filled that void somewhat. I think it’s interesting and a bit comforting to hear Leigh Diffey calling the sliding events (Luge, Bobsled, Skeleton) on NBCSN. There’s a tight bond between the racing community and bobsledding, at least. Geoff Bodine built bobsleds fr the U.S. Olympic Team. Now, the foundation that helps fund the team is Bobby Rahal, who I’m sure…

The Missed Shift – A Nose By Any Other Name

February 2, 2014 John Olsakovsky

Philosophical Ponderings of Proboscises Now that Formula 1 has done their dog and pony show at Jerez and the teams’ 2014 cars are revealed, we have a new talking point: the noses. My favorite is the Definitive F1 Nose Chart over at Jalopnik. Although, personally, I think the Williams nose looks more like the the antagonist from The Ant and The Aardvark: Yeah, it’s the best I got. There’s a reason I never attempted the comedic arts. I’ve seen comparisons to Max Rebo, Binky from Life in Hell, and genitalia…

The Missed Shift – SCORE Scores! IndyCar Snores?

January 22, 2014January 22, 2014 John Olsakovsky

I came across an article that SCORE inked a contract to run the San Felipe 250 for the next three years. I think desert racing is insanely fun, for spectators and competitors alike. I’m sure part of the appeal for me comes from growing up in the desert, and running dunes or rock-crawling were commonplace. I knew who Ivan Stewart was long before his name was on a video game. So this was pretty cool news to me. For those that don’t follow off-road racing, SCORE is the sanctioning…

The Missed Shift – Formula WTF-1?

January 17, 2014January 20, 2014 John Olsakovsky

OK, the title is a bit misleading. The recent happenings in the world of Formula 1 are certainly not surprising enough to warrant a true “WTF”, but they are significant. How much impact they will have on the 2014 season remains to be seen. Both of these articles came up within a very short time, so it was too good to pass up. Ecclestone steps down from F1 board Mr. Ecclestone has proposed and the board agreed that until the case has been concluded, he will step down as…

The Missed Shift – Gimmee Gimmee Gimmee!

January 15, 2014January 15, 2014 John Olsakovsky

I have a three year old, so the refrain of “I want!” and “Gimmee!” is common ’round these parts. It’s part and parcel for a child of that age, and as a parent I (as well as Mrs. Race Fan) do our best to instill non-materialistic values and quell the desire for instant gratification. Three year olds are extremely resistant to this sort of life lesson. As a middle-aged guy, I have an inner three year old that wants all kinds of things. OK, more like twelve and not three,…

The Missed Shift – Get It In Gear, Already!

January 8, 2014 John Olsakovsky

Welcome to The Missed Shift, a new weekly column about my favorite subject, racing. What else, right? I’ll do my best to be thought-provoking, entertaining and even insightful on occasion. I welcome discussion, contrasting opinions, criticisms and suggestions. I’m honored to be a part of the OpenPaddock family. I’ll try not to be that one relative that everyone tries to avoid at Thanksgiving dinner, but I can’t promise anything. This past year has been a tough one for a lot of reasons. First and foremost, the loss of my brother-in-law…

IndyCar – Tuesday Talk

October 8, 2013 John Olsakovsky

Tuesday Talk is a weekly rumor/opinion section about happenings in the IZOD IndyCar Series, Firestone Indy Lights, Pro Mazda Series and the Cooper Tires USF2000 Series. All opinions expressed within should be considered as 100% accurate and infallible, because everyone knows I’m never wrong. Houston. Wow. What an event. Taking away all the ancillary factors, Houston wasn’t a bad race. The field was pretty racy. Just go back and look at the box scores. Bourdais went from 13th to 5th. Servia went from 21st to 7th. Vautier went from 22nd…

IndyCar – BREAKING NEWS: Tony Kanaan to Ganassi

September 27, 2013 John Olsakovsky

Jenna Fryer of the Associated Press reports that 2013 Indianapolis 500 Mile Race Winner and 2004 IRL Series Champion Tony Kanaan has signed a deal to drive for Chip Ganassi Racing in 2014. The popular Brazilian has made his free agency aspirations well known in the media since it was discovered that KV Racing Technology was having difficulty financing his 2013 effort. His name had been linked to the Ganassi seat, but also seats at Andretti Autosport, Bryan Herta Autosport, Panther Racing and a possible return to KV Racing Technology.…