Kansas INDY - Play By Play Via Tweet By Tweet

Vision Racing's team owner, Tony George, checking on "Tweets" in the Vision Racing Twitter account during morning warm ups before the race. Image Credit: Vision Racing

Kansas INDY - Play By Play Via Tweet By Tweet

The first oval race of the season has the teams and drivers of the IndyCar Series visiting Kansas Speedway and its 1.5 mile "tri-oval". It takes a blink of an eye to get around the track at over 200 miles per hour so the experiment of capturing the action on the track via "Tweets" on Twitter may be a tall challenge.


The weather at start time is threatening at best, wind and rain can become a factor that everyone may have to deal with. So let's begin and get this show on the track.

indy44Here's to a safe and rain free race people! WOOHOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FuriousWedgeThat os one nasty looking radar

VERSUS comes on the screen live with the command for drivers to bring their cars to the course - a great Dan Weldon retrospective!

MyNameIsIRLFYI - About halfway through the stock car race at Talladega and the leader is...Sam Hornish Jr.

25 MPH winds gusting to 35 MPH sets the weather background of this gathering at Kansas Speedway.

Forboding skies above Kansas Speedway with nasty gusts of wind during Sunday warm up. Image Credit: Vision Racing

FuriousWedgeI want me one of those giant shopping carts on the Kansas track

TheEDJELooking forward to live tweeting the Road Runner Turbo Indy 300 being run at Kansas Speedway!

luczodragonLatest radar shows rain coming. Hoping it holds off long enough for Kansas race to be official

Long Beach Grand Prix review on VERSUS ... a decent race and a decent reception from IRL to Los Angeles and from Los Angeles to the IRL.

VisionRacingVision Racing cars being called to the grid. Driver intros coming up. Have a nice race everyone.

TheEDJE@VisionRacing We will be watching on ALL channels - Have a good outing with RHR and Ed!!!

FastMachinesTime for the first oval race of the Indy Car season. Who's your favorite? I think Helio will win from the back row. #indycar

FuriousWedgeHow great would it be if Tony finally got his Indy win to go with a afro on the Borg-Warner and all the winner's photos.

MyNameIsIRL@FuriousWedge If - I mean WHEN - Kanaan wins at Indy he might decide to never cut that hair again.

CrashGladysHelio still grinning ear to ear ;-) #indycar

FuriousWedge@CrashGladys apparently grinning about Danica's SHAPE cover photo

MyNameIsIRLBTW - I'm on the LiveBlog now. And twitter. I've cloned myself. http://www.mynameisirl.com/...

TheEDJE @MyNameIsIRL Keep 'em coming, this is warming up to be a great New Media effort all around!! ... Oh, and Go Bobby D!

kvracing1min till Driver Start Your Engine!

DRIVERS, START YOUR ENGINES - Radio broadcast from the IRL officials stating row by row, 1-Hot, 2-Hot, 3-Hot ... pretty cool.

IndyCarSeriesRT: @kvracing: Driver start your engine, all out on track for first warmup lap

kvracingGreen Green Green at Kansas Speedway, let's hope the rain stays away!!

The field at the start of the 2009 Road Runner Turbo 300 race at Kansas Speedway. Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2009)

IndyCarPRGREEN FLAG: #02 Rahal leads field into Turn 1

LAP 5 Kanaan takes it three wide and has to back out - way tight

kvracingP4 after the start, gained 4 spots.

VisionRacingCarpenter is P7. RHR working the weight jacker. P21

IndyCarPRLap 8: Lead change: #9 Dixon takes lead from #02 Rahal with a pass on the frontstretch.

TheEDJE@IndyCarPR ... Bobby D remains at third

LAP 14 Vitor Meira slows and Helio Castroneves rear ends Meira, debris takes off EJ Viso's wing

Helio Castroneves, Penske Racing gets into the back of Vitor Meira, A.J. Foyt Enterprises. Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2009)

FuriousWedgeHelio and Vitor into each other; are we going to get words like 2007 Michigan? Looks like Viso caught debris too.

LAP 16 All cars in for the first pitstop - Doornbos out first

IndyCarPR#06 Doornbos hit a tire from the #02 team on exit.

kvracingPit stopped, changed tires and more fuel. Yellow Flag at the moment! If your watching tv, that was me with the umbrella:)

IndyCarPR#06 Doornbos has been sent to the rear of the field for hitting the pit equipment. New leader is #9 Dixon.

VisionRacing@KVracing 's Fiona gets airtime for twirling umbrella trick.

RESTART

TheEDJEGreat draft dicing action.

VisionRacingDixon leads on lap 25. Rahal and kanaan in pursuit. Ed is P6. Has been battling with Panther's Wheldon. P16 for Ryan.

VisionRacingCan't imagine how tough it must be to be battling this wind in turn 3+4

35 of 200 LAPS Complete

kvracingP5 after 35 laps and gradually pulling away from field, order is Dixon, Rahal, Kanaan, Briscoe, Moraes, Carpenter

IndyCarPRLap 40: #9 Dixon leads #02 Rahal by .6202 of a second. #13 Viso is off the pace.

EJ Viso out of the race - the damage suffered from the debris was more than just the wing.

FastMachinesMy Indy Car pick, HCN, is back to 10th after early trouble. #indycar

FuriousWedgeThe outside line is killing momentum in turns 3-4, we just watched it kill Marco, Whedon and Kanaan all rapid fire

VisionRacing"Light on grip overall." says Ed. 5 laps until pitstops. Very gusty for cars out there.

Doornbos gets lapped on LAP 64 while maintaining P18

VisionRacing"Light on grip overall." says Ed. 5 laps until pitstops. Very gusty for cars out there.

65 of 200 LAPS complete

IndyCarPRLap 71: Leader #9 Dixon on pit road for service.

Scott Dixon, Target Chip Ganassi Racing makes a pitstop - Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2009)

FastMachinesWhy so NASCAR fans like crashfests? Big wreck with 8 to go, not a surprise.

VisionRacingStill loose in 3+4 says Ed. Currently P6. RHR is P15 and making gains. Had a good lap time.

IndyCarPRLap 80: Green flag stops complete. #9 Dixon leads #11 Kanaan by 3.3667 seconds.

85 of 200 LAPS Completed

IndyCarPRLap 90: #9 Dixon leads #11 Kanaan by 3.9404 seconds.

VisionRacingRHR being told to stiffen up front bar. He's having trouble staying on inside line. Ed is reporting a vibration in the 20 car.

IndyCarPRLap 93: #6 Briscoe to second place with a pass on the backstretch.

CAUTION - Luczo Dragon driver, Raphael Matos gets loose from the wash of the car in front and takes the car to the wall with a hard brush.

Pitstops all of the way around - LAP 99

FuriousWedgeI like the VS coverage but they seriously need a "Race off Pit Road" car listing

TheEDJE@FuriousWedge - I'm hip! Out of pit position graphics like NASCAR - Really!

RESTART LAP 105

Three wide and Dario gets racy - Graham Rahal passes on the inside - New tire for oval tracks - grippier!

chunter16Let's start calling it GAP- Gannassi, Andretti, Penske #irl

TheEDJE@chunter16 - That would be true except NHLR is breaking in and Vision is in seventh

IndyCarPRLap 120: #6 Briscoe leads #9 Dixon by .3678 of a second.

garytribIn MA [Marco Andretti] pit....watching a storm coming this way :(

VisionRacingThis tweet is dedicated to our sponsor William Rast CEO Colin Dyne. Happy Birthday from the Vision team. Now back to regular tweeting.

TheEDJE@VisionRacing - Nice play! It never hurts to be cordial ... and commercial.

IndyCarPRLap 130: #6 Briscoe leads #9 Dixon by .5202 of a second.

VisionRacingWeather is headed our way. Ryan not really sorry to hear that. Everyone has dialed it back a little. 130 laps complete. You can smell ra ...

VisionRacingWind has picked up. "Car is all over the place. Wicked loose." Says RHR. " That's the wind. Weather is coming" says Vision eng. Neil Fife.

MyNameIsIRLThis is starting to smell like a festival of fuel conservation.

FuriousWedge@MyNameIsIRL likely everyone trying to last until the rain

LAP146 - Stretching fuel so that the top teams can make it to the end ... if rain comes early. Top 3 Briscoe Dixon Castoneves

Dario on the wall as Briscoe pulls into the pits - waived through because the Yellow came out, Briscoe looses four positions. Dario was carrying too much speed into the pits and almost hits Graham Rahal.

IndyCarPRLap 153: Lead cars on pit road for final pit stops. Dixon wins race off of pit road followed by #3 Castroneves and #11

Scott Dixon, Target Chip Ganassi Racing passes Dan Wheldon, Panther Racing - Image Credit: Andy Sallee

155 of 200 LAPS Complete

VisionRacingWeather is 10 miles away. Ed in top10. "We're going to need a good restart Ed." Says Jeff Britton. No radio for Ed but he can hear team. Top 3 Dixon Castroneves Kanaan. This will be an important restart.

RESTART 41 LAPS to go - Flat out until the end - fuel is NOT an issue.

FastMachines40 to go for Indy Car. A great race is shaping up. #Indycar

IndyCarPRLap 170: #9 Dixon leads #3 Castroneves by .4703 of a second

MyNameIsIRLDidn't Arute say the rain was "10 minutes away" like 20 minutes ago. He'll NEVER get gig as a weatherman with calls like that.

VisionRacingEd battling Rahal for 9th. Lost the position. P10. 25 laps left. 20 car good on fuel.

kvracing25 laps to go, P11, Mario doing very well

CrashGladysCome on guys, beat the rain! #indycar

IndyCarPRLap 180: #9 Dixon leads #3 Castroneves by .4628 of a second.

MyNameIsIRLWith the white racing gloves I half expect Wheldon to be checking his car for dust.

TheEDJERahal gets the best of Mutoh - great patience

VisionRacingEd gunning for Wheldon now. Top 3 Dixon Castroneves Kanaan. RHR let's cars go by on inside. Still P15

kvracing10 laps to go, P11, Mario doing very well

IndyCarPRLap 190: #9 Dixon leads #3 Castroneves by .6733 of a second

TheEDJEDixon looks as though he has this one in the can fo the first win of the season.

Too bad all of the races are not Street/Road courses as opposed to this six race run of just Ovals!

kvracingMoraes finishes 11th at Road Runner Turbo Indy 300. KVRT crew, engineers and Mario all done a great job today :) Indy 500 here we come!!

IndyCarPRLap 200: CHECKERED. #9 Dixon wins the Road Runner Turbo Indy 300 by .7104 of a second over #3 Castroneves.

FastMachinesDixon wins! Helio comes in second. #indycar

VisionRacingNice job guys. Ed finishes P9. RHR p15 and brings it home in one piece. Congrats Dixie. Top 5 are Dixon Castroneves Kanaan Briscoe Patrick

Podium: race winner Scott Dixon, Target Chip Ganassi Racing, second place Helio Castroneves, Team Penske, third place Tony Kanaan, Andretti Green Racing - Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2009)

So ends the third race of the 2009 season and the first Oval - the Transition Players got beat up some ... Will Power had to sit this one out because of contract reasons (Castroneves came back), Doornbos suffered a driving penalty - P12, Rahal had ugly understeer in 3 and 4 - P7 for his best ever Oval finish (previous best - P10), Moraes in at P11, and Justin Wilson finishes at P14. EJ Viso had to come out early due to debris from a contact crash in front of him damaged his car out of race worthiness.

In total season points, the Transition Players hold on to P8 (Rahal) and P9 (Wilson) going into the INDY 500.

See you all in Indiana when all roads lead to the INDY 500.

... notes from The EDJE

Transition Players Nail Down P1 & P2 For 2nd Time This Season

Pole winner Graham Rahal, Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing. This is his second pole award earned in three races this season - he earned on for Saint Petersburg, a road course ... and now one for Kansas Speedway, a short oval course. Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2009)

Transition Players Nail Down P1 & P2 For 2nd Time This Season

Qualifications, Kansas Speedway: Three of the top ten positions held by Transition Players ... with the front row filled by teammates from Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing P1 - Graham Rahal and P2 - Bobby D, Robert Doornbos.

This makes it that in two of three ICS races held this year, a Transition Player has nailed down the pole position ... congrats to Graham Rahal. Further, in all three qualifications sessions this year in the ICS season, a Transition Player has nailed down P2 (Justin Wilson/Dale Coyne Racing at St. Pete, Will Power/Penske Racing at Long Beach, and now Bobby D/Newman Haas/Lanigan here at Kansas Speedway).

Two time Indy 500 winner, Arie Luyendyk as he coaches Robert Doornbos through the 1.5 mile oval from the Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing pit - Kansas Speedway 2009 - Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2009)

It has to be mentioned that Doornbos was lifted to P2 from P4 when the IRL ruled that the lap times of P2 Dario Franchitti/Target Chip Ganassi, and P3 Helio Castroneves/Penske Racing would be disallowed because both drivers, during each of their four lap qualifying runs, dipped their left tires below the White, inside track, boundary line. These two drivers will start from the back of the field for Sunday's race.

Robert Doornbos, Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing secures a quick enough speed for four laps to qualify at P4. This position was later upgraded to P2 next to his teammate, Graham Rahal. The two NHLR drivers will fill the front row to start Sunday's third race of this IndyCar Series 2009 season. Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2009)

Revised qualifying order (** denotes Transition Player):

Pos Driver Team Speed
1. Graham Rahal** Newman/Haas/Lanigan 211.311
2. Robert Doornbos** Newman/Haas/Lanigan 210.665

Danica Patrick gears up and gets ready to qualify fast enough to nab P3 on the grid, Sunday ... just behind NHLR Teammates Graham Rahal and Robert Doornbos - Kansas Speedway 2009 - Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2009)

3. Danica Patrick Andretti Green 210.470
4. Scott Dixon Ganassi 210.368
5. Marco Andretti Andretti Green 210.220
6. Mario Moraes** KV 210.197
7. Ryan Briscoe Penske 210.098
8. Tony Kanaan Andretti Green 210.082
9. Dan Wheldon Panther 209.144
10. Ed Carpenter Vision 208.956
11. Sarah Fisher Fisher 208.543
12. Milka Duno Dreyer & Reinbold 208.537
13. Hideki Mutoh Andretti Green 208.506
14. Vitor Meira Foyt 208.461
15. Raphael Matos Luczo Dragon 208.382
16. Mike Conway Dreyer & Reinbold 208.145
17. Justin Wilson** Coyne 207.971
18. EJ Viso** HVM 206.779
19. Stanton Barrett 3G 205.820
20. Ryan Hunter-Reay Vision 205.673
21. Dario Franchitti Ganassi -
22. Helio Castroneves Penske -

... notes from The EDJE

Dallara Options Pared Down For ICS Transition Parity - UPDATED

Where parity is insured ... the TechPad inspection tool. The 2009 rules change and the process that happens on this tool, will allow for greater competition between teams that field cars like the Luczo Dragon #2 Dallara, piloted by Raphael Matos pictured here. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2009)

Dallara Options Pared Down For ICS Transition Parity

Last year at this time, it was the first year of the merger of the two professional open wheel racing series and a couple of races were under the belt of all the competitors. The pains of transition were beginning to show themselves, in that the teams coming in from the former CART/ChampCar World Series were the teams that had to learn a whole new set of venues, learn how to drive and set up a whole new chassis, and begin to learn the nuances of the allowable variables the Established teams had been working with in order to gain a performance advantage.

One set of option variables focused on the length of the wheelbase itself. Last year, Transition teams were beginning to recognize that they did not have enough chassis parts to compete ... especially on ovals, and this year the IRL decided to do something about it.

Last year, the talk was that the Transition teams were going to have a tough time learning to drive on oval tracks (an IRL main staple) and as it turns out, the deck was stacked against the Transition teams.

The rules for setting up a Dallara chassis allowed the teams to vary the wheelbase length in order to set the car up for greater handling and speed based upon the nature of the oval venue they were tackling. A team could choose wheelbase measurements from 118 inches, 120 inches, and 122 inches. Along with these measurement options were the suspension configuration set up parts which would vary the amount of travel and dampening the chassis would have in the oval corners which could add to greater speed, stability and handling throughout the race.

No wonder the Transition teams were complaining that they did not have enough spare parts to field their Dallara cars ... they did not have ALL of the parts (and wheelbase options for the Dallara) that would give the teams ALL of the set up options available to ALL of the Established teams.

Kansas represents the first oval race of this sophomore season of unification and begins a run of six races where the only intentional right-hand turns during the race will be at pit box exit in order to enter the main pit lane to resume racing on the track. This will be the first oval race where there will be no excuses and all teams will be racing roughly the same chassis, on the same wheelbase, with the same set of set up options in the suspension parts. The deck will not be stacked against the Transition Players as it was on oval venues throughout all of the 2008 unification season.

The 122 inch standard measurement that all teams will be running on oval race venues this year. Parity and costs sited as the reasons to pare down these sets of set up options for the 2009 ICS Championship season. Image Credit: IndyCar.com

This excerpted and edited from IndyCar.com -

Oval equalizer
By Dave Lewandowski - Indycar.com - Tuesday, April 21, 2009

There's an under-the-radar rule change this year as IndyCar Series teams tackle the first oval of the season this weekend at Kansas Speedway. Wheelbase options are out; 122 inches is in.

Partly another cost-saving move passed along by the sanctioning Indy Racing League and partly a competition enhancement, the uniformity (with a half-inch tolerance for caster adjustments) puts more of the emphasis on drivers and their maintenance crews.

"It won't affect the short tracks because everybody had to run the long suspension on the short tracks just to get the car to handle," IndyCar Series technical director Kevin Blanch said. "On the big tracks it will make a difference because what you run into when you have 118, 120 and 122 inches -- and every possibility in between -- is every one of those suspension, because it changes the relationship of the wheel to the sidepod, changes the way the air flows over the car so you have to wind tunnel, shaker rig and 7-post test all those suspensions in every possible configuration.
----
"Because (the wheelbase is) longer, the cars won't be as sensitive in traffic as a short car," Blanch said. "The shorter the car is like driving a Volkswagen compared to a limousine. It should make it easier on the tech side to check things and check relationships to the wheels and wings, too.

"It limits the options the engineer has, but it makes it more important to get it right every time and it makes it more important for the guys working on the car to really pay attention to what they're doing. If you're wheel isn't spinning free and the next guy's is, you're talking hundredths of a second top to bottom (of the field) on an oval in qualifying. Just how easy your wheel spins could make the difference.

"On an oval car, you're almost building a worn out race car. You wear out the rod ends and make the wheel bearings spin as free as you can. You don't want to wait for the car to wear it out. It's a constant kind of game of making sure you get it worn out just the right amount. If you could just change to a different part and go faster, then it's not as important that every little thing you're doing is right.
Reference Here>>

The next six races are critical for all racers, but even more critical for the Transition Player because now he has a playing field of uniformity to compete in and this may show them (and the ChampCar culture-rooted fans they bring along) the promise of competing in open wheel unification!

... notes from The EDJE

UPDATED 4-25-2009, 2:00 PM PT:

Pole winner Graham Rahal, Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing. This is his second pole award earned in three races this season - he earned on for Saint Petersburg, a road course ... and now one for Kansas Speedway, a short oval course. Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2009)

Qualifications, Kansas Speedway: Three of the top ten positions held by Transition Players ... with the front row filled by teammates from Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing P1 - Graham Rahal and P2 - Bobby D, Robert Doornbos.

This makes it that in two of three ICS races held this year, a Transition Player has nailed down the pole position ... congrats to Graham Rahal. Further, in all three qualifications sessions this year in the ICS season, a Transition Player has nailed down P2 (Justin Wilson/Dale Coyne Racing at St. Pete, Will Power/Penske Racing at Long Beach, and now Bobby D/Newman Haas/Lanigan here at Kansas Speedway).

It has to be mentioned that Doornbos was lifted to P2 from P4 when the IRL ruled that the lap times of P2 Dario Franchitti/Target Chip Ganassi, and P3 Helio Castroneves/Penske Racing would be disallowed because both drivers, during each of their four lap qualifying runs, dipped their left tires below the White, inside track, boundary line. These two drivers will start from the back of the field for Sunday's race.

Robert Doornbos, Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing secures a quick enough speed for four laps to qualify at P4. This position was later upgraded to P2 next to his teammate, Graham Rahal. The two NHLR drivers will fill the front row to start Sunday's third race of this IndyCar Series 2009 season. Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2009)

Revised qualifying order (** denotes Transition Player):

Pos Driver Team Speed
1. Graham Rahal** Newman/Haas/Lanigan 211.311
2. Robert Doornbos** Newman/Haas/Lanigan 210.665
3. Danica Patrick Andretti Green 210.470
4. Scott Dixon Ganassi 210.368
5. Marco Andretti Andretti Green 210.220
6. Mario Moraes** KV 210.197
7. Ryan Briscoe Penske 210.098
8. Tony Kanaan Andretti Green 210.082
9. Dan Wheldon Panther 209.144
10. Ed Carpenter Vision 208.956
11. Sarah Fisher Fisher 208.543
12. Milka Duno Dreyer & Reinbold 208.537
13. Hideki Mutoh Andretti Green 208.506
14. Vitor Meira Foyt 208.461
15. Raphael Matos Luczo Dragon 208.382
16. Mike Conway Dreyer & Reinbold 208.145
17. Justin Wilson** Coyne 207.971
18. EJ Viso** HVM 206.779
19. Stanton Barrett 3G 205.820
20. Ryan Hunter-Reay Vision 205.673
21. Dario Franchitti Ganassi -
22. Helio Castroneves Penske -

Heads In The Game - An INDY Long Beach 2009 Retrospective

Penske Racing's driver, Ryan Briscoe, working through chassis set-ups with team owner, Roger Penske during Practice session #3 of the 35th Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. Ryan Briscoe had trouble handling the demands thrown up by the streets around Shoreline Drive, failing to make it into the Firestone Fast Six in "Knockout" qualifying and eventually finishing the race out of the top ten at P13 - while setting the fastest lap in the race at 1:11.2582 (on lap 82 of 85). Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2009)

Heads In The Game - An INDY Long Beach 2009 Retrospective

A Photo/Video compilation of the event from the pits. Photos taken during the three days of practice, qualification, and competition at the 35th Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach and the first ever IndyCar Series event in Long Beach under full unification of open wheel racing competition in North America.

The video uses close-up images of the drivers as they sit in their Dallara race cars while engineers tweak the chassis in order to gain faster lap times. Red Wall tires Vs Black Wall tires, umbrellas, cockpit fans to keep drivers comfortable, pit in, pit out, add fuel, and discuss the set up with team owners are postures expressed by the players who drive here and have their heads in the game.

Video music overlay performed by the Kings of Leon - "Sex On Fire" - launch 

and play while watching video below.

Players in order of appearance are (some are repeated with photos taken in time sequence) Graham Rahal, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dario Franchitti, Justin Wilson, Ed Carpenter, Danica Patrick, Marco Andretti, EJ Viso, Mike Conway, Stanton Barrett, Robert Doornbos, Ryan Briscoe, Helio Castroneves, Vitor Meira, Jimmy Vasser, Paul Tracy, and Will Power.

Dallara platforms at full song from the sounds of Honda engines overlay this version - mute volume and play music from video above as this content is timed to coincide.

Pole Position

Driver Will Power (Penske Racing)

Time 1:09.7107

PODIUM

First         Dario Franchitti (Chip Ganassi Racing)

Second Will Power (Penske Racing)

Third Tony Kanaan (Andretti Green Racing)

Last Note: Danica Patrick (Andretti Green Racing) qualified at P22 in a field of 23 cars and finished P4 just behind her teammate Tony Kanaan.

Enjoy.

... notes from The EDJE 

TAGS: Kings Of Leon, Doornbos, IRL, Long Beach Grand Prix, Viso, Wilson, Conway, Hunter-Reay, Andretti, Meira, Tracy, Patrick, Castroneves, Rahal, Vasser, Franchitti, Barrett, Briscoe, Power, Carpenter, The EDJE

“Vacation” Pays Dividends For Franchitti At INDY Long Beach

Dario Franchitti, driving the Target Chip Ganassi #10 Dallara, receives the White Flag as he crosses the Start/Finish Line on Shoreline Drive with one more lap to go for the win of the 35th Toyota Grand Prix Of Long Beach. Image Credit: James Doss, Have Camera Inc. (2009)


“Vacation” Pays Dividends For Franchitti At INDY Long Beach

On a 97 degree day (a record for this day) at Long Beach, one of the most demanding street courses in modern motorsports history, a driver has to bring his (or her) “A-Game” in order to win. Relaxed, Ready. And Rested … after taking a one year “vacation/break” from open wheel motorsports competition, Dario Franchitti, 2007 ICS Champion (and Chip Ganassi) - out pitted, out conserved (on fuel), and out communicated Will Power (and a Penske pit crew managed by Rick Mears) to win the 35th Toyota Grand Prix Of Long Beach.

Will Power had secured the pole position and maintained the position through the first round of pit stops. Chip Ganassi brought Dario in a little early during the first stint, suspecting that because most all of the teams had opted to start the race using the Red Option sidewall, softer compound tires, that the grip of the tires would go away … and some of the drivers would tangle, or make a mistake that would bring out a full course Yellow Caution Flag. Chip was right.

Mike Conway nosed his Dreyer & Reinbold, Dad’s Root Beer car into the Turn 1 wall bringing out a local Yellow. Then, Transition Player hopeful, EJ Viso of HVM Racing (starting in position #4) was tapped by Franchitti’s Target Chip Ganassi teammate, Scott Dixon (P6), stalling Viso’s broken Dallara at turn #7.

This incidents served to jumble the field and catch Power out for 32 laps until the next pit stop… along with a five car pile up going into the hairpin turn #11 that leads to the long right sweeping straightaway of Shoreline Drive. This incident put another top qualifier, and another Transition Player hopeful, out of the race from the damage the incident had caused. Justin Wilson, who had qualified for the pole position at the last ChampCar World Series race held here at Long Beach in 2008, qualified and started in position #5.

A disruption in communications had Will Power at a little disadvantage. Radio communications with the in-car radio system only operated with a small window of one-way (in) delivery so the Penske team had to resort to Pit Boards hung over the wall to let their driver know when to PIT and etc. Will believed he heard that there was a full course Yellow Flag caution when, in fact, the call was a local Yellow Flag caution. Will slowed and a couple of cars went by – one of them was Dario’s full communications enabled Target Chip Ganassi Dallara.

The stage was set for a show down of pit strategy and driving to conserve fuel. The attitudes of both drivers, in the end, was that each would have had the best of each other if they did not have to drive, maintaining position due to fuel conservation tactics, to win and to keep second place.

To be honest, the way the weekend unfolded for Will Power, and how he responded to the multiple unusual challenges thrown at him and the team (Helio Castroneves late arrival due to an acquittal on Tax issues – Will having to break in a new, untested chassis and still have the fastest track times), Dario needed his prior ChampCar track experience and the one year “Vacation/Break” … just to beat the former ChampCar and current ICS rising star!

How the field fared (*** denotes Transition Player):

Pos / Driver / Team / Gap
1. Dario Franchitti Ganassi
2. Will Power*** Penske + 3.3182s
3. Tony Kanaan Andretti Green + 4.0537s
4. Danica Patrick Andretti Green + 5.0742s
5. Dan Wheldon Panther + 6.5655s
6. Marco Andretti Andretti Green + 7.5900s
7. Helio Castroneves Penske + 8.6332s
8. Raphael Matos Luczo Dragon + 9.4835s
9. Robert Doornbos*** Newman/Haas/Lanigan + 9.9583s
10. Alex Tagliani*** Conquest + 13.6185s
11. Ryan Hunter-Reay Vision + 15.2097s
12. Graham Rahal*** Newman/Haas/Lanigan + 15.8507s
13. Ryan Briscoe Penske + 1m05.1013s
14. Vitor Meira Foyt + 1 lap
15. Scott Dixon Ganassi + 1 lap
16. Darren Manning Dreyer & Reinbold + 1 lap
17. Stanton Barrett 3G + 1 lap
18. Ed Carpenter Vision + 3 laps

Retirements:

Driver Team Laps
Mario Moraes*** KV 71
Hideki Mutoh Andretti Green 60
Mike Conway Dreyer & Reinbold 51
Justin Wilson*** Dale Coyne 24
EJ Viso*** HVM 16
(ht: autosport.com)

Unification of the series had brought out the best in Long Beach for this 35th edition of the race on Shoreline Drive. The competitors were very pleased with the crowd reaction and the environment during the four days of event activity.

Dario said it best during his post race news conference (to paraphrase) - "We went to local eateries at night and the crowds ... the buzz in the atmosphere surrounding the venue were fantastic ... pretty cool."

View Video Highlights From VERSUS Here>>

... notes from The EDJE

Transition Player, Will Power, Takes INDY LB Pole

Rick Mears (center profile with black cap) stands as "Captain" of the Will Power, Penske Racing, Verizon Wireless sponsored pit operation. Will Power takes the pole for the first ever IRL Long Beach Grand Prix ... Will was last year's ChampCar Long Beach Grand Prix winner. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2009)

Transition Player, Will Power, Takes INDY LB Pole

Dario Franchitti, Justin Wilson***, Raphael Matos, EJ Viso***, Scott Dixon and Will Power*** battled for the pole in the Firestone Fast Six after advancing out of the second round. Three Transition Players (***) make the Firestone Fast Six for sunday's race ... now, that's parity!

How they fared ...

Will Power will defend his Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach title from the pole on Sunday after running the fastest lap in the Firestone Fast Six final round of qualifying this afternoon.

Power, driving the "NEW" Vorizon Wireless No. 12 Team Penske machine (with the pit crew managed by Rick Mears) after Helio Castroneves returned to the No. 3 this morning, ran a lap of 1:09.7107 (101.631 m.p.h.) to defeat Dario Franchitti for the top spot.

Row 2 will feature rookie driver Raphael Matos and E.J. Viso, who earned his best starting position in IndyCar Series competition. The third row will see Justin Wilson on the inside and defending series champion Scott Dixon on the outside.

By comparison, last year, Justin Wilson captured the pole position in his ChampCar DP01 with a time of 1:06.6020 (105.898 m.p.h.).

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INDY Long Beach - Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race

INDY Long Beach - Toyota Pro Celebrity Race Winners - Keanu Reeves & Al Unser, Jr.taking a victory lap. - Image Credit Edmund Jenks (2009)

INDY Long Beach - Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race

The Pro/Celebrity race was a test of patience and driving skill in combination with camaraderie and a love of competition.

Press Room branding change to Toyota Pro/Celebrity event - Image Credit Edmund Jenks (2009)

The really fun thing about this type of event is that in the department store of life, Sports is the toy store ... Pro/Celebrity racing is a first step at realizing how toy-like this once proud pursuit can become.

Cars crunch the walls around the track as the Professional drivers set up the unsuspecting Celebrities into doing something stupid ... like crash into the wall at turn one because the driver was not going to let the professional "out-brake" them into the corner and pass. So the Professional pushes the Celebrity just enough but not enough to carry too much speed so that when the celebrity crashes, they could just scoot around and leave the carnage behind.

The Celebrity Dais from left to right - Carlos Mencia - Comedian and host of Comedy Central’s “Mind of Mencia.” Has appeared in “The Heartbreak Kid,” “29 Palms.”, Winner Keanu Reeves - Actor whose films include “The Day the Earth Stood Still,” “The Matrix,” “The Matrix Reloaded,” “The Replacements,” “Speed,” “Walk in the Clouds,” “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure.”, last year's Celebrity winner Jamie Little - ESPN/ABC pit reporter for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series who returns to compete in the “Pro” category, and Eric Close - Actor, currently co-starring on CBS's “Without a Trace” as FBI agent Martin Fitzgerald. Other television roles include “Steven Spielberg's Taken,” “Now and Again,” “Dark Skies,” “Sisters,” “The Magnificent Seven.” - Image Credit Edmund Jenks (2009)

Keanu shares with reporters how he was able to end up winning the Celebrity category after a Green Flag restart toward the conclusion of the event.

Al Unser continues to have a week of his life - after being inducted into the Long Beach Motorsports Walk of Fame on Thursday, re-dedicate the Weyland mural on the side of the Long Beach Convention Center on Friday, Al wins (in an extremely easy style) the Pro category of the 2009 Pro/Celebrity race.

A usually accessible Al Unser, Jr., signs a tee-shirt for a fan as he walks from the pits to an appearance at a sponsor event at the track. Image Credit Edmund Jenks (2009)

This excerpted and edited from China Daily -

Keanu Reeves revs engines to win Celebrity Race
China Daily - Updated: 2009-04-19 11:30

Keanu Reeves came in first among celebrities at the Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race at the 35th Annual Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach event on Saturday.

The “Matrix” star finished fourth overall in a mixed field that included racing pros Al Unser Jr., who won the 10-lap charity race, and Johnny Benson and Tom Rudnai, who finished second and third, respectively.

Other stars who revved up for the event included “Cadillac Records” star Adrien Brody, “Jeopardy” host Alex Trebek, comedian Carlos Mencia, “24” star Mary Lynn Rajskub and “From G’s To Gents” host Fonzworth Bentley.
Reference Here>>

Welcome to the Toy Department!

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