Practice And Cars Picked For 39th Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race

Scion FR-S race-prepped cars await to be fired up and driven for the first time in 2015 for track orientation and racing practice by the participants of the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach Pro/Celebrity Race. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

Practice And Cars Picked For 39th Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race

Grand Prix Association of Long Beach officials held track orientation and practice for the 2015 Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach Pro/Celebrity Race (TPCR) with actors Alfonso Ribeiro, Robert Patrick and Mekhi Phifer, Olympian Dara Torres and musicians Mark McGrath and John Rzeznik who are among the 18 participants from film, television, music, sports, and fashion who will compete for charity.

The 39th annual charity race will take place April 18 on the 1.97-mile street course in downtown Long Beach, Calif., as part of the 41st Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach weekend.

Toyota Scion FR-S equally race-prepped cars used in the Pro/Celebrity charity race heading into Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach Turn1 at the end of Shoreline Drive. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

Tuesday, April 7th, had the participants take what they learned from their training at Willow Springs International Motorsports Park through the instruction provided by Danny McKeever's FAST LANE Racing School and apply the lessons for the first time on the streets of Long Beach. 

Rahal Letterman Lanigan racecar driver, Bill Auberlen, checks the airpressure of the tires on his supercharged BMW M6 which he brought to TPCR Media Day to give rides to the members of the media. Bill drove the track to bring awareness to IMSA's Tudor United Sports Car Championship race of full-bodied cars. The race is scheduled to be run Saturday April 18 as part of the 41st Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach weekend. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

The TPCR event was also a Media Day where the notable drivers for charity were photographed, interviewed, and thrown together for a luncheon where they randomly picked their car number out of a bowl and signed the traditional helmet which will later be auctioned off to the additional benefit of the charities supported.

Nickelodeon television series iCarly's Nathan Kress, who plays Freddie Benson, picks a numbered ping-pong ball out of a bowl held by Jessica Jenkins, Miss Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

The field of racers took to the streets of the temporary course in 210-horsepower Scion FR-S race-prepped cars, navigating high speeds and demanding turns to benefit “Racing for Kids,” a national fundraising program supporting children’s hospitals throughout the United States.  The announced field of intensely competitive personalities includes, in alphabetical order [car number]:

Fast Lane owner and instructor, Danny McKeever gives last minute race driving advice to Donna Feldman. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

•    Donna Feldman (@DonnaFeldmaninc) [15]: International model, TV Host and actress who has graced the covers of Esquire, Maxim, and GQ among many others, is a former “Deal or No Deal” girl, starred in music videos for Justin Timberlake and Enrique Iglesias, was a series lead in 20th Century Fox's drama  "Fashion House," and is a recurring panelist on the Fox News Show "Redeye."

Football Star Willie Gault (L) "catches" his ball for car assignment for the TPCR race. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

•    Willie Gault [10]: Former NFL wide receiver and Olympic athlete.  He played for the Chicago Bears and Los Angeles Raiders in his 11 seasons in the NFL, winning Super Bowl XX with the Chicago Bears.

Strapped in, complete with neck ring cushion, Tricia Helfer takes on Long Beach. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

•    Tricia Helfer (@TruTriciaHelfer) [6]: Tricia Helfer is a Canadian model turned actress who recently played the lead in SyFy’s miniseries “Ascension.”  She has also starred in television shows such as “Killer Women,” “The Firm” and “Burn Notice.”  Her avid fans, however, know her best for her long running role as the humanoid Cylon ‘Number Six’ in “Battlestar Galactica.”

Nathan Kress (R) poses with Robert Patrick next to a Toyota Scion FR-S in the grid paddock at the TPCR Media Day. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

•    Nathan Kress (@NathanKress) [19]: Known around the world for his lead role in Nickelodeon’s hit show “iCarly,” this Kids’ Choice Award nominee also starred in the 2014 feature film “Into the Storm.”

James Maslow is greeted by a knowing media representative. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

•    James Maslow (@JamesMaslow) [17]: Kids’ Choice award-winning actor and musician best known as the star of top-rated Nickelodeon program “Big Time Rush.” Currently co-starring as ‘Kevin Mohr’ on the Sony Crackle original series, “Sequestered” and plays lead in upcoming films “Seeds of Yesterday” and “Wild For The Night.”  He was also a finalist on Season 18 of “Dancing With The Stars.”

Sports announcer Steve Mason (C) looks on as fellow TPCR driver Dave Pasant picks his number car. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

•    Steve Mason (@VeniceMase) [2]: ESPN Radio host of the No. 1-rated “Mason & Ireland Show” for 18 years, and regular contributor to Fox 11’s “Good Day LA.” He has been the lead anchor for the USC Football Radio Network, and most recently began anchoring duties for the L.A. Dodgers Television Network.

Mark McGrath signs his name to the charity auction helmet. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

•    Mark McGrath (@Mark_Mcgrath) [3]: Lead singer of Sugar Ray.  He has graced the cover of Rolling Stone and hosted “EXTRA!,” “Killer Karaoke” and “Don’t Forget the Lyrics.”  He also appeared on NBC’s “Celebrity Apprentice.”

Raul Mendez is cool before taking turns on the TGPLB temporary street track. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

•    Raul Mendez (@raulmijomendez) [5]: Considered by many in Mexico as one of the finest actors of his generation.  Best known for his role as ‘Victor ‘Chacorta’ Casillas’ in “El Señor de los Cielos.”  He will also be featured in the soon to be released “Texas Rising” with Bill Paxton, Ray Liotta and Brendan Fraser.

Joshua Morrow is happy to be a competitor for charity at the TPCR. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

•    Joshua Morrow (@JoshuaMorrowyr) [1]: Soap Opera Digest award-winning actor starring as ‘Nicolas Newman’ on the No. 1 daytime drama, “The Young and The Restless.”

Robert Patrick strikes the visage of a serious driver while in the TPCR paddock. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

•    Robert Patrick (@RobertPatrickT2) [16]: Actor whose breakthrough role came as the legendary T-1000 in Terminator 2.  He has been featured in iconic films such as    “Die Hard 2,” “Last Action Hero,” “Flags of Our Fathers,” “Walk the Line,” and is  currently starring as ‘Agent Cabe Gallow' on CBS’s “Scorpion.”

Mekhi Phifer posed with Suger Ray frontman Mark McGrath and Miss TGPLB Jessica Jenkins. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

•    Mekhi Phifer (@MekhiPhifer) [12]: Actor who portrayed ‘Dr. Greg Pratt’ on NBC’s long-running medical drama “ER,” and had a co-starring role opposite Eminem in the feature film “8 Mile.”  He also starred in the feature film “Divergent” and the upcoming sequel, “Insurgent.”

John Rzeznik of the Goo Goo Dolls looks to secure his right shoulder strap of the 5-way seat belt harness before taking to the TGPLB temporary street track for the first time. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

•    John Rzeznik (@JohnRzeznikggd) [11]: Guitarist and frontman of the Goo Goo Dolls, who have sold more than 10 million albums, with 13 Number One and Top Ten hit singles including, “Black Balloon,” “Iris” and “Slide.”  The Goo Goo Dolls are currently touring in support of their 10th studio album, MAGNETIC.

Drivers who will compete in the “Pro-Division,” starting 30 seconds behind the others, include NHRA Top Fuel Champion and four celebrities who have won the Pro/Celebrity Race in past years:

Antron Brown (C) shares picking his car with some of his new found friends (L to R); Willie Gault, Donna Feldman, Jessica Jenkins, and Steve Mason. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

•   Antron Brown (@AntronBrown) [23]: A NHRA 2012 Top Fuel champion.  Brown is the first African American to win the Top Fuel championship.  He is currently driving the Matco Tools Toyota for Don Schumacher Racing in Top Fuel Division.

Brett Davern inspects signatures on the autograph auction helmet. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

•   Brett Davern (@BDavv) [20]: The returning champion of the 2014 Pro/Celebrity Race.  He stars as ‘Jake Rosati' in MTV's hit series “Awkward.”  In 2013, he filmed the Beach Boys bio-pic “Love & Mercy” playing the young ‘Carl Wilson.’ He also played the lead in the feature film “Born to Race 2: Fast Track.”

Alfonso Ribeiro follows in the steps of fellow "Dancing With The Stars" winner, IndyCar driver Helio Castroneves, taking to the streets of Long Beach during the 2015 TGPLB. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

•   Alfonso Ribeiro (Alfonso_Ribeiro) [22]: A two-time Toyota Pro/Celebrity race winner (1994 & 1995). Best-known for his role as ‘Carlton’ on “Fresh Prince of Bel Air,” last season Ribeiro took home the coveted Mirror Ball trophy on  “Dancing With the Stars.”

Ladies and Gentlemen, to your cars, reads Dara Torres' cell phone screen. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

•   Dara Torres (@DaraTorres) [21]: 12-time Olympic medalist swimmer, who was named one of the “Top Female Athletes of the Decade” by Sports Illustrated. In 2002, Torres was the first female celebrity to win the Toyota Pro/Celebrity race, joined in Victory Lane by Pro category winner Danica Patrick.

Rutledge Wood (R) shares a little trash talkin' with fellow Pro driver Brett Davern. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

•    Rutledge Wood (@RutledgeWood) [24]: Co-host of “Top Gear USA,” NBC Sports Reporter, Host of History Channel’s “Lost in Transmission.” Wood won the Pro/Celebrity Race in 2013.

Auction winner driving for charity is Dave Pasant who hopes he doesn't become "Road Hard." Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2015)

Rounding out the field is the Grand Prix Foundation of Long Beach charity auction winner Dave Pasant [7], a retired insurance executive.  Pasant is also an executive producer of the recently released film “Road Hard,” written by and starring Adam Carolla. 

“This is an impressive and competitive group of stars, athletes, musicians and pro drivers that will put on a great show,” Jim Michaelian, president and CEO of the Grand Prix Association of Long Beach said.  “We are excited to have another thrilling year of the Pro/Celebrity Race as part of the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach.  And thanks to Toyota, the Pro/Celebrity Race gives back to kids in our communities through donations to Miller Children’s Hospital Long Beach and Children's Hospital of Orange County.”

Since 1991, Toyota has donated more than $2 million to the “Racing for Kids” organization on behalf of this race and its participants.

Fans can follow (and find out about tickets for) the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach on Facebook at GrandPrixLB, Twitter @ToyotaGPLB (#TGPLB) and Instagram at ToyotaGPLB.

... notes from The EDJE

#LBePrix (Long Beach Formula E Race) Is A Two-Car One-Driver Affair

Andretti Autosport's Scott Speed practicing pitstop car changes - #LBePrix.

A photo posted by Edmund Jenks (@the_edje) on Apr 3, 2015 at 5:15pm PDT

#LBePrix (Long Beach Formula E Race) Is A Two-Car One-Driver Affair

The FIA, the first sanctioning body to hold a race on the streets of coastal Long Beach city 41 years ago ... that has now become known worldwide as the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach (TGPLB), will introduce Los Angeles California to the Formula E electric car racing series. The race will be held on a modified version of the track used by the TGPLB on Saturday, April 4th, 2015 and will feature FREE ADMISSION and is referred to as Long Beach ePrix (or Twitter hastag - #LBePrix).

The specification cars used are the fully-electric Spark-Renault SRT_01E that were built by Spark Racing Technology together with a consortium of the leading manufacturers in the world of motorsport (Top speed: 225km/h - 0-100kph: 3 secs - Gears: 5 - Min weight (inc driver): 896kg - Max power: 200kw / 270bhp).

One of the more interesting elements of an ePrix is that in order to run sustained fast racing level speeds, the race is held with two cars for each driver competing.

Or as the rule states:

Pit stops/Car changes
During races, drivers must make one mandatory pit stop in order to change cars. This must take place in their box and be observed by an FIA steward to ensure all safety equipment is correctly applied. A minimum time period (determined on the day) will also be enforced. Tyre changes, unless a puncture, are not permitted during a pit stop.

Virgin Racing Engineering gridding up with two cars in pit lane - #LBePrix

A photo posted by Edmund Jenks (@the_edje) on Apr 3, 2015 at 4:32pm PDT

And that is how it is done - a pit stop car change as performed in the pits on Shoreline Drive pit row at the Formula E #LBePrix by the Virgin Racing Engineering's driver, Sam Bird.

,,, notes from The EDJE


TAGS: FIA Formula E Championship, FIA, Formula E, #LBePrix, Long Beach, Virgin Racing Engineering, Sam Bird, Andretti Autosport, Scott Speed, The EDJE,

IndyCar Season Opener Should Be Renamed The Carbon Fiber 200 Of St. Pete

The start as viewed from the entrance of Turn 1. Ryan Hunter-Reay at far left, was caught outside and lost P8 starting position all of the way back to P17. And YES!, there was carbon fiber left behind on the front straight near the Start/Finish line. Image Credit: Chris Owens - IMS Photo (2015)

IndyCar Season Opener Should Be Renamed The Carbon Fiber 200 Of St. Pete

Carbon Fiber ruled the attention of the day of a very competitive 2015 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg that featured five time-consuming full course YELLOW Flags to sweep up and haul off wing elements of latest aerodynamically modified Dallara cars. 

Brian Herta Autosport's Gabby Chaves dragging a greatly modified right wing element without all of those pesky "Slats" that direct the air. Image Credit: John Cote - Indycar (2015) 

Honda front wings were the most vulnerable with a final wing change tally of seven while Chevy only required one front wing to be changed.

Less parts mean stronger parts (Chevy's apparent philosophy) ... the rule governing aerodynamics is that the new wing can be made in most any way the manufacturers choose ... but that the final wing can weigh NO MORE than the original DW12 Dallara wing - to repeat Honda - 7 / Chevy - 1 ... and as in golf, the low number is the winner here.

Full course YELLOW Flag caution to gather up all of the (mostly Honda) carbon fiber body work that was detached from the nose of cars that were tapped with other cars going for the same space. Image Credit: VICS/ABC (2015)

The other thing that was confirmed with this race was that the turbulence mushroom is NOT being lifted up off of the racing surface as before. Both Scott Goodyear and Eddie Cheever (color commentators on the ABC broadcast) mentioned that many of the drivers, Tony Kanaan - piloting in his second year for Target Chip Ganassi - being the most vocal, were mentioning that the cars become unstable farther away from the leading car than before.

This is something we mentioned was going to happen just after the aerodynamic body element designs from Chevy and Honda were revealed <<< HERE >>> when our colleagues saw the way these aero parts looked and the way they were designed.

Where this showed itself the most clearly on the track was the front straight away ... at full speed. Very little passing took place at the end of the straight, save for restarts when the cars were at slower speeds.

Frustrated by being passed during the last round of pit stops, Will Power tries to make a diving move on teammate Juan Pablo Montoya in Turn 10. JPM kept his line knowing the the front of Power's car is more fragile than the back end of his own car. Image Credit: John Cote - Indycar (2015)

Toward the end of the race when Will Power was tracking down teammate Juan Pablo Montoya ... if this was a race with the old aerodynamic template of one year ago, Will would have been more patient and would have felt, with the fact that his car was stronger (he made up a 3 second deficit in just a few short laps), he could have more options to pass. Looking at the drive, what he actually felt due to turbulence at high speeds ... that Turn 10 presented the only 'surprise' opportunity.

Granted, he, Will Power, had a few more laps to pounce, but the only opportunities would come at the twisty bits at Turn 4 or Turn 10 against someone with a very, very fat car.

Edging cars out of the way as some have been able to do with a little effectiveness, with a nudge, will not work this year and competition will suffer due to the fragile aero kits. Image Credit: Chris Owens - IMS Photo (2015)

This excerpted and edited from IndyRacePlace.com -

St. Pete weekend
By IRP

Precarious practice: With the aerokits for Honda (“Slats”) and Chevy (“Extra Bits”) being brand new and spares being scarce, practices were fairly quiet. Quite a few run-offs but contact was avoided at all costs. The one thing that did take a beating was the track record. Loads of downforce with the kits and speeds were climbing quickly.

Penske perfect: The four Penske cars took the top four positions in qualifying after putting in powerful practice sessions. It was Power, Pagenaud, Castroneves and Montoya. Lots of Extra Bits to lead the way at the green.

Papier-mâché parts: As many predicted, debris cautions were the bane of this race. ABC even displayed a wing damage tracker at one point. Slats took the brunt of the damage, spraying bits of cat-mangled Venetian blind parts all over the track. Caution after caution kept the race from developing a real rhythm, which is not uncommon for St. Pete, but the parts sprayed with much lighter contact.

Penske party plus papa: New papa Tony Kanaan broke up what would have been an otherwise all-Penske podium. Montoya and Power took the top two steps on the podium, with Castroneves and Pagenaud filling out the top five. From the looks of things right now, The Captain has the best boat in the water.
(Reference Here)

Andretti Autosport's Marco Andretti has the "Slats" of his Honda areo kit peeled away like an onion during an on-track racing incident. Image Credit: VICS/ABC (2015)

Aero Kit Commentary From The Twittersphere -

Pat Caporali @PCaporali
What kind of sound does #IndyCar aerokit #debris make when it hits the track? Cha-ching Cha-ching Cha-ching? yikes #GPStPete

Bash Beard @SpeedFreakBash
The Honda kit, aka Slats, is taking a beating today. Worse than cat-mangled Venetian blinds. #GPSTPETE #IndyCar

Roberto Martínez @yukiyu99
New #IndyCar aero kit winglets look ridiculous. They cause too many cautions too.

39 year old Juan Pablo Montoya proves that he is happy about coming back to race lighter, faster, and more competitive cars in the Verizon IndyCar Series. Image Credit: Chris Owens - IMS Photo (2015)

More commentary on gamesmanship - this excerpted and edited from IndyCar Minnesota -

Winners and Losers: St. Petersburg
by Matt Hickey

Here are your winners, losers, and Cone of Shame "winner" following the 2015 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg:

Winners

Juan Pablo Montoya
Wow, does Juan Pablo Montoya look like his 1999-form one race in to season or what?! JPM continued his success from the second-half of 2014 right away in 2015, nailing his in-and-out laps on his last pit stop to jump ahead of Will Power on pit sequence to capture the win. Not only did he hold off Power, but JPM was also quick all weekend. If JPM continues in this form, the rest of the field may be in trouble.

Team Penske
Along with JPM and Power were the other two Team Penske drivers of Helio Castroneves and newby Simon Pagenaud. Together, the four drivers took the top four spots in qualifying (something I think has never been done in IndyCar) and captured four of the five top spots in the race. Of the four, Pagenaud had to overcome the most adversity, getting put mid-pack several times and damaging his front wing, but he still found a way to finish in fifth. I have a feeling Team Penske will appear in the Winners category of these blogs for a whole lot of races this season.

Tony Kanaan
The man who denied Penske of their 1-2-3-4 finish is Tony Kanaan. Kanaan had a solid weekend, continually showing pace and keeping a very clean nose on his way to a P5 finish. His other teammates Scott Dixon (air-jack issues), Charlie Kimball (multiple incidents), and Sage Karam (not sure what his deal was, maybe just simply put being a rookie?) couldn't hold a candle to  him in the race. During the broadcast, the ABC analysts talked about Kanaan becoming more comfortable within the team. Remember that before yesterday, Kanaan was the last driver to win a race in the series (Fontana '14). Like JPM, if Kanaan can keep up his form from the second half of last season, the other drivers might be in trouble.

IndyCar Fans
Was it the greatest race in IndyCar history? Of course not. There was debris cautions for days (at least there was legitimate debris on the track and not phantom debris cautions or menacing hot dog wrappers like that other series) that took forever to clean up. There were times of stale action where we had to talk about how great Marco Andretti was doing in P13. 

But overall, the race had moments of excitement, including ballsy passing and dramatic, albeit boneheaded moves on the track. I enjoyed the speed, the passes, the aggressiveness, and the slight strategy that took place which didn't involve an entire race of fuel conservation. Overall, I am very pleased with the race that took place!

Losers

Honda
What's stronger: Tony George's rationale for creating the IRL or a Honda front wing? The Honda wings, which kept getting damaged throughout the race, were so weak that ABC began having a counter of wings broken between Chevy and Honda. At one point, Honda was "leading" 7-1. That's awful. As mentioned during the broadcast, the front wing designs had to meet the same weight that they were in 2014 after the modifications, so obviously Honda did not make a sturdy enough wing. Either that or their drivers are all knuckleheads.

Andretti Autosport's Simona de Silvestro was welcomed back to a seat in IndyCar after spending last year being a test driver for an F1 team. Bent "Slats" of a Honda aero kit had three of the seven Honda nose replacements land on the Andretti Autosport team. Ryan Hunter-Reay was the only Andretti team driver keeping his car intact throughout the race. Image Credit: John Cote - Indycar (2015)

Simona de Silvestro
A driver that really needed to have a great race was Simona de Silvestro. For Simona, the raced served as a tryout for Andretti Autosport for future races or possibly the 2015 season. 

She qualified well, despite being down during some practice sessions. In the race, well, it didn't go too well. She was involved with teammates Ryan Hunter-Reay and Carlos Munoz early on. RHR passed her in turn ten. Seeing his successful pass, Munoz tried to follow. While I would pin most of the fault on Carlos, being in any incident with your teammate, regardless of fault, is not good. In the grand scheme though, this incident wouldn't matter if Simona could rebound. Later on, she missed her braking zone by a lot (my words exactly were "wasn't even close," which were later echoed by Eddie Cheever) and rammed James Jakes. Jakes race was ruined, and Simona suffered damage. Overall, a P18 was not what Michael Andretti had in mind.

Dale Coyne Racing
Francesco Dracone finished P23 and Carlos Huertas P24. Need I say more?

Gabby Chaves
Gabby Chaves was unflattering in his first race of the season. Early on in the race, Chaves was seen slowing down abruptly on the exit of a turn, causing Marco Andretti to run into the back of him (I'm not one to defend Marco often, but he's right in this situation) leaving Marco with a damaged front wing. Accidents happen, that's fine. But later on. Chaves really misjudged a maneuver on James Hinchcliffe, leaving Hinch with a flat tire for one lap and effectively ruining his race. Hopefully Chaves tones down the miscues for the remainder of the season.

Cone of Shame

Graham Rahal
Graham Rahal gained a lot of "fans" following the race.

To recap what set him off, Charlie Kimball got damage from contact (from I believe Simon Pagenaud), leaving his rear guard with a serious rub on his rear tire. Half-a-lap later, Graham, who was following Kimball, decided to try to make a move around the damaged yet still on-pace Kimball. Rahal put Kimball into the tires and received a penalty. People noted that Graham said over the radio, "They'll find any way they can to screw me, it's just the way it goes."

Hold on now Graham. Please tell me how IndyCar screws you? a) the incident was questionable, I could see fault with both drivers. b) you've been irrelevant outside of two or three races since 2013. IndyCar hasn't had a chance to screw you out of a good result. c) maybe, MAYBE I'll take that argument from Will Power, but not you.

After finishing P11, which isn't bad, Graham took to Twitter and was, well, colorful. Now I am not a fan of @TonyJWriter (he blocked me, we just don't like each other), but he and Graham got into after the race. Graham made the argument that anyone who knows anything about racing knows that he shouldn't have gotten that penalty. Well, apparently I know nothing about racing. Tony tweeted, "Gotta have a better argument than "If you don't agree with me, you know nothing about racing."

I agree with Tony (gasp, I know). I can't exactly declare myself innocent of never being stubborn on a subject, but Graham was way out of line here. Denouncing anyone with a differing opinion as yours as a "hater" is obtuse. I am not oblivious to the fact that Graham does have trolls who are pretty ruthless, but those who rationally disagreed with him aren't "haters."

My immediate reaction to the incident was a flashback to Long Beach in 2014. Both Graham and RHR would have been well off by waiting a couple turns to capitalize on a off-the-pace car rather than forcing a pass. But hey, I don't know anything about racing.
(Reference Here)

There was a bunch of frustration to go around for everyone with two new aerodynamics templates to figure out.

For the fan, when we get to the long 185mph straight of Shoreline Drive at Long Beach and short ovals, the frustration will come, in old IRL style nose-to-tail racing we all hated during the era of the original "Crapwagon" Dallara. It is sad to say this early on, but it almost looks as if too much was being done in the off season with Extra Bits and Slats but not enough was being done to protect the competitive Mushroom Busting characteristics of the original DW12!

... notes from The EDJE

Big Time Motorcycle Racing Has A New Series Player - Welcome MotoAmerica

Hot laps on a Suzuki super bike at The Thermal Club.

A video posted by Edmund Jenks (@the_edje) on Mar 23, 2015 at 11:22am PDT

Big Time Motorcycle Racing Has A New Series Player - Welcome MotoAmerica

Two-time AMA Superbike and three-time FIM 500cc World Champion Wayne Rainey says he’s just a cog in the wheel of MotoAmerica.

Wayne Rainey of MotoAmerica talking with Racer magazine.

A photo posted by Edmund Jenks (@the_edje) on Mar 23, 2015 at 9:16am PDT

That’s the affiliate American motorcycle road racing series of the KRAVE Group, comprising Terry Karges, Rainey, Chuck Aksland, and Richard Varner, which purchased the commercial rights to US road racing from the AMA this past September. In actuality, the 53-year-old Californian brings a familiar face, legendary determination, and international support to a national superbike style motorcycle championship that has struggled for years under mixed leadership.

The first race (of a nine race season) of this inaugural MotoAmerica racing series is just a few short weeks away - Friday through Sunday, April 10-12, 2015 - and will begin paired with the European run MotoGP Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas event at Circuit Of The Americas outside of Austin, Texas.

The Thermal Club provided a perfect backdrop to the unique promise MotoAmerica represents ... it is time for the United States to re-establish itself as an environment for racer and competition development.

MotoAmerica at Thermal California

A photo posted by Edmund Jenks (@the_edje) on Mar 23, 2015 at 8:36am PDT

And ... Yes! - This bike, and this racer, depicted in the video above (#18 GEICO Suzuki MotoAmerica Superbike - Chris Ulrich), was the combination members of the media were treated to tag-a-long rides on, and with.

Just nuts!

... notes from The EDJE

Yamaha Takes On Thunderhill On the Road To Austin

Yamaha Takes On Thunderhill On the Road To Austin

This is the fourth in a series of Yamaha-produced videos documenting the development of the new Monster Energy Graves Yamaha YZF-R1.

This special Yamaha development will be raced by factory riders Josh Hayes and Cameron Beaubier in the Superbike class of the 2015 MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing Championship.

The season-opening event is scheduled for April 10-12 in conjunction with Round 2 of the MotoGP world championship at Circuit of The Americas in Austin, Texas.
(ht: MOTOAMERICA)

Original Article Here >>>

... notes from The EDJE

Penske Racing's Reaction To The New Chevrolet Indycar Aero Kit Bodies

Entrance sign at Barber Motorsports Park. Image Credit: Eric Schwarzkopf (2015)

Penske Racing's Reaction To The New Chevrolet Indycar Aero Kit Bodies

Will Power‘s time of 1:07:3118 seconds for Penske Racing topped day two of the two-day Verizon IndyCar Barber Motorsports Park test, which translates to a whopping 123 miles per hour on the undulating road course. Scott Dixon driving the Honda-powered Target Chip Ganassi Racing DW12 holds the track record at the road course facility in Alabama, without the benefit of aero kit, and it stands at over a half-second quicker at 1:06.7750 (set in 2013) than Power’s aero kit aided record time achieved on Barber's Tuesday test.

As for Honda-powered and areo kit prepared teams, Graham Rahal led the way for Honda, posting the fifth-quickest lap time in the final session on Tuesday afternoon, seventh quickest during the full two days.

Graham Rahal navigates the through the Turn 8-9 Esses during Tuesday's Open Test sessions at Barber Motorsports Park. Image Credit: Chris Jones (2015)

Driving for A.J. Foyt Racing, veteran Takuma Sato was seventh quickest in the final practice, and 10th for the full test; while James Hinchcliffe made a successful debut with his new Schmidt Peterson Motorsports team, turning the 10th-quickest time in today’s final session.  In all, 21 drivers (of 23) posted times below the pole qualifying time from the 2014 Honda Grand Prix of Alabama.

2014 Verizon IndyCar champion Will Power is fastest at Barber Test. Image Credit: Chris Owens (2015)

This excerpted and edited from Penske Racing -

TEAM PENSKE OFF TO A STRONG START WITH NEW CHEVROLET AERO KITS
By: Penske Racing

The new-look Team Penske Verizon IndyCar Series program got back to business after a busy off season with two days of testing on Monday and Tuesday at Barber Motorsports Park near Birmingham, Ala. Team stalwarts Helio Castroneves, Will Power and Juan Pablo Montoya, along with newcomer Simon Pagenaud, all took turns laying down some impressive lap times around the picturesque circuit as the teams got their first experience testing the new aerodynamic body kits that have been introduced to INDYCAR this season.

All four drivers placed inside the top-five on the practice charts on day one of what is referred to in the INDYCAR garage as “Spring Training.” Driving the No. 22 Penske Truck Rental Dallara/Chevrolet, Pagenaud led the way with a lap of 1:07:5329 seconds in the afternoon session, which was the second-fastest of the day overall. Power, the defending series champion, came in with the third-fastest lap – also set in the afternoon session – with a time of 1:07:5495 seconds in the No. 1 Verizon Team Penske Chevy. Montoya, piloting the No. 2 Verizon Team Penske machine, and Castroneves, racing the No. 3 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet, rounded out the top-five fastest cars with times of 1:07:6266 and 1:07:7703 seconds, respectively, in the afternoon session.

“It’s been a long off season and one with a lot of changes, both with the new Chevrolet aero kits and the move to four cars at Team Penske,” said Castroneves. “This was our second test together with the aero kits and we have one more before we get to St. Pete. These are very-important for us to hit the ground running when the season starts and I think we’ve shown we are working well together already. I’m really impressed with the speed we have shown.”

Power turned 70 laps on the first day, the second-highest total of the 23 drivers in attendance. Castroneves made a total of 57 circuits, with Montoya and Pagenaud lapping the track a total of 53 times a piece. In all, 16 drivers turned in times faster than Power’s pole-winning lap from the 2014 race at Barber, demonstrating that the new aero kits are going to bring about some fast times throughout the season.

“We are still trying to understand this new car, but it’s good to be back at the track after a long off season,” said Power. “The new Chevrolet aero kits provide massive downforce and the cars are just stuck right into the track. It really has a nice balance between downforce and drag, and the speeds we are running are impressive.”

The second day of the test provided a bit warmer climate, but that did not slow down the Team Penske Chevys. Power led the morning session on Tuesday with a lap of 1:07:3118 seconds, which turned out to be the fastest lap of the test. Castroneves posted his fastest lap of the test in the afternoon with a time of 1:07:5304 seconds, good for the fourth-fastest overall time. Pagenaud’s time in the afternoon session on day one remained his fastest lap of the test and the fifth-fastest time overall. The same was true for Montoya as his time from the afternoon session on Monday was good for the ninth-fastest time of the test.

In all, Power led Team Penske with a total of 157 laps turned during the productive two days on track. Pagenaud completed 155 circuits with Castroneves and Montoya touring the course 141 times and 140 times, respectively.

“All of these tests are important for my acclimation into Team Penske,” stated Pagenaud. “To come out here, in a competitive environment, and have speed like we have shown here at Barber is great for me. We learned a lot during the two days about these new aero kits and I’m excited about the way it will race when we get to St. Pete and beyond.”

The pit crews on all four Chevrolet entries were able to gain valuable preseason experience on a pit road where they will be competing during the season as all teams practiced live pit stops on the second day of testing. Team Penske and all the other Verizon IndyCar Series teams will return to Barber Motorsports Park for the fourth round of the championship – the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama, April 24-26.

“When you have an opportunity to test on a track where you will be racing later in the year it’s very important to take advantage of that,’ said Montoya. “It’s good for all parts of the team to be able to come to come out here and practice in a live situation. It’s an exciting time to be a part of the Verizon IndyCar Series and I can’t wait to get to St. Pete.”

The first race of the 2015 Verizon IndyCar Series season will be the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg (Fla.) on March 29. Power is the defending winner of the event. Castroneves has won the race three times, more than any other driver.
[Reference Here]

With the Chevrolet-powered and areo kit prepared teams filling the eight positions in the top ten speeds registered during the two day test at Barber, the cars powered and outfitted through Honda Performance Development have some catching up to do.

Michael Andretti at the Barber test, driving his Honda Dallara with areo kit. Image Credit: Eric Schwarzkopf (2015)

Overall Barber Test Stack Ranking:

Rank - Car - Driver Name - Chassis/Engine & Aero/Tire - Session Time - Speed - Total Laps

1 1 Power, Will D/C/F Practice 3 01:07.3118 123.010 157

2 9 Dixon, Scott D/C/F Practice 4 01:07.3996 122.849 162

3 4 Coletti, Stefano (R) D/C/F Practice 3 01:07.5224 122.626 120

4 3 Castroneves, Helio D/C/F Practice 4 01:07.5304 122.611 141

5 22 Pagenaud, Simon D/C/F Practice 2 01:07.5329 122.607 155

6 11 Bourdais, Sebastien D/C/F Practice 3 01:07.5829 122.516 98

7 15 Rahal, Graham D/H/F Practice 4 01:07.6203 122.448 149

8 83 Kimball, Charlie D/C/F Practice 4 01:07.6225 122.444 144

9 2 Montoya, Juan Pablo D/C/F Practice 2 01:07.6266 122.437 140

10 14 Sato, Takuma D/H/F Practice 4 01:07.6638 122.370 107

Rank - Car - Driver Name - Chassis/Engine & Aero/Tire - Session Time - Speed - Total Laps

11 67 Newgarden, Josef D/C/F Practice 3 01:07.7204 122.267 121

12 5 Hinchcliffe, James D/H/F Practice 4 01:07.7796 122.161 126

13 10 Kanaan, Tony D/C/F Practice 4 01:07.8081 122.109 148

14 28 Hunter-Reay, Ryan D/H/F Practice 2 01:07.8494 122.035 87

15 18 Huertas, Carlos D/H/F Practice 4 01:07.8868 121.968 114

16 26 Munoz, Carlos D/H/F Practice 2 01:07.9540 121.847 123

17 41 Hawksworth, Jack D/H/F Practice 4 01:07.9572 121.841 119

18 7 Jakes, James D/H/F Practice 4 01:08.0252 121.720 118

19 20 Filippi, Luca (R) D/C/F Practice 4 01:08.1197 121.551 141

20 98 Chaves, Gabby (R) D/H/F Practice 4 01:08.1868 121.431 138

Rank - Car - Driver Name - Chassis/Engine & Aero/Tire - Session Time - Speed - Total Laps

21 27 Andretti, Marco D/H/F Practice 2 01:08.2657 121.291 103

22 8 Karam, Sage (R) D/C/F Practice 1 01:10.7555 117.023 3

23 19 Dracone, Francesco (R) D/H/F Practice 4 01:11.6317 115.591 118

Total Laps for Combined Sessions: 2832
(ht: IndyCar)

... notes from The EDJE


TAGS:  Verizon IndyCar Series, Scott Dixon, Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Honda Performance Development, Target Chip Ganassi Racing, Team Penske, Will Power, Helio Castroneves, Juan Pablo Montoya, Simon Pagenaud, Chevrolet, Barber Motorsports Park, Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg