All-purpose open-wheel (F1, IRL) racing thread

By the way, anyone who has come into contact with Bill York might appreciate this from my aforementioned links:

http://www.suck.com/daily/2000/07/21/nc_index10.html

 

See, this is great. Just some basic logistical advice makes such a big difference with big events.

If done right, the girlfriend might enjoy it. We did the NASCAR race in Joliet a couple of years ago & had fun.

 

My wife, who can barely stand attending a sporting event of any kind, LOVES the day at the 500. For her, it's sort of like the world's largest county fair (with beer), with a 33 cars buzzing around you. Some of the greatest people watching on earth (at least, east of Vegas).

 

At the NASCAR event, we discovered how people buy or rent radios to listen to the teams talk to each other.

Seemed pretty cool.

Can you do this at the Indy 500 too?

 

If you can, it's worth it to try and catch some of the big USAC races that are in the area around the time of the 500 - the Hut Hundred, the Hulman Classic, the Night Before the 500. Even if you aren't a huge sprint/midget fan, it will give you a great perspective on the grassroots side of racing before you hit IMS.

And I kind of have to shake my head at the perception that the lack of sprint/midget drivers having success at Indy is something new. You have to go back to the early 1980s to consistently find race winners who cut their teeth in the sprint/midget world (not counting Al Unser Sr.'s fourth win in '87 or Little Al, who did race sprint cars to some extent growing up but was more of an "Unser" than a "sprint car driver). This isn't a "last five years" issue - it's been happening for 30 years.

 

Yes, you can. The Indianapolis Star copy of the drivers' lineup (which is a must-have on race day) includes the drivers' radio frequencies.

 

You can, but it's not nearly as much fun as a NASCAR race. Not as much chatter, harder to pull in a clean signal. Not quite as "colorful" a cast of characters. We use ours (owned) for a good radio & tv signal at Indy car races. That's about it.

 

I would add that particularly for your first race, don't worry about the radio signals. Just soak in all the copious sights and sounds around you. Though earplugs might not be bad to have around.

 

Eat a pork tenderloin sammy, as well. It's almost worth the closed artery. Join in on the "toss in a buck, choose a drivers name from your neighbor's sweaty hat" pool. Share your beer & sunscreen. It's all part of being at Indy.

 

Pay drivers are in every series known to man, including NASCAR. It's just a fact of life. Though there's actually fewer pay drivers in F1 than there's been in the past.

 

Fuck that shit hard. Bill York is a great guy. Eat a dick bloggers from 11 years ago!

 

Are you telling me Paul Menard is not driving a Menard's-sponsored car because of his innate racing ability?