Out with the old………a year until “In with the new”. Well it is almost over, the year of 2010 is soon to be history like USAC overseeing the Indy 500. The year was dominated by Will Power who looked to be possibly finished after a horrific 2009 crash. It saw the decision on a new chassis for 2012. We got a new leader in Randy Bernard, gained new unity and respect. The series gained a real title sponsor, and even gained a new X-rated trophy for the winner of the…
Read MoreAuthor: Mike Shaw
Indy Hump Day report, on the bubble: FESTIVUS
A New day for TK As a long time fan of racing, I love guys who give their all and leave nothing on the table. The IZOD INDYCAR Series has a few, Helio, Will Power, Paul Tracy, and Tony Kanaan. Just look at the start of the 2010 Indy 500 and that amazing opening run TK had. That is what I love in a racer, charge like Elwood Blues being chased by the police. (Let’s just hope TK does not fly into a mall toy store.) While TK and de…
Read MoreIndy Hump Day Report, On the bubble: Final Exams
A few quick happy words This week is finals week for myself, and with that I have little time to write a column. So the December 15th edition of the Indy Hump Day Report will be brief. But just be warned I will have plenty of time over the next four weeks to write so expect some more in depth columns. First I am so happy that JR Hildebrand will be in the IZOD INDYCAR Series where he belongs. Not just because he was a great asset to the Indy…
Read MoreINDY Hump Day Report, On the bubble: American seats
THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK: Well, we entered another week with sponsorship announcements. Again the Penske Empire seems to just keep gaining financially on the competition this off season. Should anyone be shocked Penske just keeps upping the ante this off season? They (Penske) have now lost the INDYCAR Championship two seasons in a row at the last race. Penske is an operation that wants to travel the galaxy meet interesting and exotic tracks, drivers and teams, and conquer them. Darth Penske hates losing especially to his biggest rival of an…
Read MoreSpell it ‘IZOD INDYCAR’ and just stop complaining!
Just a quick commentary on the new spelling of “INDYCAR”. So the last few years the series went from “IRL” to “IndyCar” Series. Well in 2010 the series got a title sponsor in IZOD. And notice it is spelled in all capital letters. Look it up, they are not “Izod” They always use all capitals in their logo and press releases. Just go to www.IZOD.com and notice in the “About IZOD” section. The corporation’s PR staff always spell it “IZOD” So when they made up the series logo (which is…
Read MoreINDY Hump Day Report, On the bubble: HIV/AIDS
Normally the Indy Hump Day Report is very humorous. Filled with insight and sarcasm. Today however is World AIDS day 2010. Having grown up in the shadows of Pocono Raceway, I became a massive racing fan watching the late Tim Richmond. Richmond while better known for his amazing talent behind the primitive wheel of a NASCAR stock car in the 1980’s got his big break in Open Wheel racing. Richmond was born into wealth, and in the mid 1970’s was given a chance to hop in a friends Sprint car.…
Read MorePre-Turkey Indy Hump Day Report, On the bubble: Your third cousin Lee Roy
Well for us American IndyCar fans the gluttony of Holidays is here. Tomorrow we will load up on dead birds, potatoes, beer, green beans, cranberries, awful NFC teams on national TV, and being annoyed by our nit witted family members we only have to sit near three times a year. For our non-American fellow fans tomorrow is just Thursday. (Or Friday if you’re in Asia.) First I would like to list what I am Thankful for as an IZOD IndyCar series follower: That Randy Bernard is now the man in…
Read MoreLotus building a new IZOD IndyCar Engine & Aerokit: Respecting its old school roots
It was short and to the point. Tonight at the Los Angeles Autoshow the IZOD IndyCar series and the Lotus group made it official. In 2012 there will be three engine makes in the IZOD IndyCar series. The brand which has never made their own engine for a race car will now be a manufacturer in IndyCar. Lotus Group CEO, Danny Bahar did not give any technical specifications on the 2012 IZOD IndyCar series engine. In a Press Release from earlier in the day IZOD IndyCar series and Lotus says technical specifications…
Read MoreIndy Hump Day Report: On the bubble Spec Engine Racing
Proper attire at Penske Racing requires Bow Ties Well my predictions for who would be the first teams on the new Chevy party boat was wrong. (in that Ganassi & Dreyer Reinbold were not part of the Friday announcement, yet many agree Chip is still very likely between his NASCAR success with Chevy, and the monkey see, monkey do mentality of Ganassi/Penske.) When I was a guest the other night on The Inside Line, I addressed the issue of how great this is for American fans. Yes, obviously it is…
Read MoreWelcome to Indy Hump-Day 2010, on the bubble is Edmonton
I would first just like to thank the crew at Open Paddock for brining me on board. This is one of the best places for Motorsports Consumption of the IZOD IndyCar Series, F1, and Rally. Check the site every Wednesday for my off season Indy Hump-day Reports. Edmonton, is it really gone? You would think the race in Edmonton is dead, heck the series pulled it from the 2011 schedule, and issued an inverted pyramid declaring as much. However why did the event that went viral with Helio’s meltdown fail?…
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