Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

March 26, 2012

Helio Castroneves






Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

I have been a fan of Indy Car racing my entire life, growing up in Indianapolis it was really difficult not to be. I have a number of friends who are involved with the Indy Car series in some fashion and it often makes for a heightened race experience as my friends sometimes give me access to a few perks that might not be available to many fans. That happened in a big way this past weekend at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.

James Hinchcliffe replaced Danica Patrick in the Go Daddy car.



First up was an invite from my friend Lindy to Ed Carpenter racing’s special qualifications party at the Red Mesa Cantina on Saturday night. Ed Carpenter’s new sponsor is Fuzzy’s Ultra Premium Vodka, owned by golfing legend Fuzzy Zoeller and the drinks were flowing like water at the party which was packed with team members, sponsors and a few fans.

Lindy (center) & friends





Lindy just started working with Ed Carpenter racing, who was smart enough to snap her up after someone at the NBC Sports network made the boneheaded decision to not renew her contract this season as a pit reporter for the Indy racing league races. I still don’t get it as she was easily one of the best, most prepared, intelligent and enjoyable broadcaster who has ever covered the series. Their loss is Ed Carpenter Racing’s gain though and I know she will be great at that as well. It was cool hanging out, meeting her boyfriend Kyle (who works for Tony Kanaan at KV Racing), and getting a little bit “Fuzzy” myself.





Sunday morning, I was up bright and early and headed over to the track for all the race day festivities. The weather was once again picture perfect, bright and sunny in the low 80s with a gentle breeze blowing across the track. I lucked out again, because my buddy Jason who works for Andretti Autosports was able to secure me a team hospitality pass which enabled me to go in, relax and enjoy free delicious food and drinks with their drivers and team.



with Reggie Wayne



That is how I found myself having a lunch of filet mignon and salmon with Indianapolis Colts All-Pro wide receiver Reggie Wayne, who was there as a guest of driver Marco Andretti while watching the warm-up Star Mazda race on closed circuit TV. Not a bad deal at all. Thanks Jason, I owe you big…again.



Dario Franchitti

By the time the driver introductions began, I was out on the grid and then on to my seats along the front straight to watch the start of the race. They had a beautiful and moving tribute to Dan Wheldon just prior to the start and then the command to start engines came and the 2012 Indy Car season was underway.

Hinch



The start was clean, as was most of the race- it was a surprise that there wasn’t much banging and no serious accidents. The need to preserve the new cars for the race next week certainly was a factor, but the drivers raced clean and hard and there was a surprising amount of passing and dicing with the new cars. The new cars performed well and it was a pretty decent race.





Rubens Barichello

Pit strategy scrambled the field and in the end it came down to an amazing pass on the outside by Helio Castroneves over Scott Dixon to snag the lead and eventually the win. Behind Castroneves and Dixon came Andretti teammates Ryan Hunter-Reay and James Hinchcliffe followed home by Ryan Briscoe. The win by Helio was popular and his emotional tribute to Dan Wheldon upon finishing won’t soon be forgotten by any who witnessed it.





Known as Spiderman for climbing the catch fence after each victory, Castroneves stopped and climbed the fence not on the main street as usual, but in turn 10 along the stretch of street that has been named “Dan Wheldon Way”. A clearly emotional Castroneves climbed up and tapped the street sign bearing Wheldon’s name before breaking down in tears of joy and sorrow. It was an amazing conclusion to an excellent first race of the season.

Prove It All Night

March 24, 2012









“This is my confession
I need your heart
In this depression
I need your heart.”
-Bruce Springsteen

For the second time in the past few weeks, I had the tremendous opportunity to see one of the iconic musicians and performers of our generation. Bruce Springsteen along with the E-Street band was scheduled to be playing in Tampa, a short 25 minute drive from my hotel in St. Pete. My sister Marika & her husband Brian had seen the show a few nights earlier in Greensboro and strongly encouraged me to check it out.









Not that I needed much encouragement as I have been a Bruce fan for years and have been catching his shows since I saw my first one back in 1982. He is one of the few performers that you can always count on to deliver an amazing performance no matter the circumstances. I admit that I was a little worried as Bruce is now 62 and the band recently lost his sidekick with the passing of Clarence Clemons, I thought perhaps the show could not live up to what I had seen during his prime.



That fear pretty much evaporated about 15 seconds in to the show and instead he delivered what was easily among the most passionate energetic performances that I have ever seen. Bruce Springsteen is spitting nails angry at the current state of our country and still in pain over the loss of his friend. All these emotions are encapsulated in his brilliant new CD, “Wrecking Ball” and they were released in a furiously explosive performance.









While the Elton John show I saw recently was a journey into the past, this show was a powerful statement of the moment we are in now. Bruce’s songs about the down and out are almost always better in the live setting than on CD and his anger came through in rousing fashion. While mostly sad and bleak, the songs also have a basic belief in the power of the human spirit to endure and eventually overcome. By the time the house lights came on for the stirring encore after 2 and a half hours and 25 songs, it was a celebratory rejoice for the possibilities of the future. If this show comes to a town near you, get tickets immediately.



Marco Andretti

Rubens Barichello



After the show it was back to St. Pete to attend the first qualifying session for the Indy Cars of the 2012 season. It was a beautiful sunny, perfect day and there was some excitement in the air as the cars took to the track. With all the new cars, new engines, new drivers and uncertainty over who was prepared it was fascinating to get an actual test of where the teams are at the moment. That there might be some surprises was also a possibility as some of the smaller teams could possibly have a break through with their new car.



Justin Wilson



Jamie Little

Qualifying itself was a mixed bag, there was certainly a familiarity at the top of the grid, with Team Penske capturing three of the top six spots with Will Power taking the pole for the third straight year. Teammate Ryan Briscoe was second and Helio Castroneves qualified fifth. Two Andretti Autosports drivers were next with Ryan Hunter-Reay and James Hinchcliffe in third and fourth. In something of a surprise, Simon Pagenaud rounded out the top six.









The biggest surprise is who wasn’t in the top six, as neither Target Chip Ganassi driver qualified well. Scott Dixon came in seventh fastest and Dario Franchitti was ninth quick. All in all it was a good first qualifying session, and sets up for an intriguing race. The new cars which take some getting used to, are not as bad as I feared and they certainly sound more like race cars with their turbo-charged engines.

Mike Conway



Dario Franchitti

Catharsis?

March 23, 2012





Joni & Elaine



Catharsis?

Last October, I experienced a sort of double whammy of trauma, which quite frankly I am still having trouble coming to grips with. First Kathy & I were at the final Indy Car race of the season in Las Vegas when we witnessed the tragic accident that claimed the life of two-time Indy 500 champion Dan Wheldon unfold right in front of us. It was a tough thing to see and it affected me a good deal. That tragedy was followed with-in days by a much more personal tragedy when our good friend Matt suddenly and unexpectedly died of a brain aneurysm. Matt’s passing really hit me hard and I am still having difficulty processing it.



Gil & Joni

This week, stark reminders of those two events offered an opportunity for same catharsis as well as reminding me how deep the hurt still is with those losses. Matt’s mother Elaine had let me know at Matt’s memorial that she would be visiting Key West along with her friends Joni & Gil. Somehow it always seemed like an event that was going to happen in the future sometime. Well the future arrived this week and Elaine, Joni & Gil arrived and spent and evening with Kathy & I.





We tried to keep it light, doing the prototypical Key West tourist thing, going to Mallory Square for the sunset, but Matt’s presence seemed to be everywhere and when Elaine scattered a small vial of Matt’s ashes over the calm waters off of Mallory Square, it seemed for a moment all too real and painful. Things got better over a wonderful meal at the Rooftop Café, where we shared stories, laughs and tears and took some small steps towards healing. As difficult as it was, as it is, I am honored that Elaine would take the time to include me and to make the effort to visit Key West. Hopefully sharing stories of Matt and spending a little time here with us offered her a tiny bit of solace.







The next morning, I was on a plane, bound for St. Petersburg to attend the first Indy Car race of the season. It was also the first race since the passing of Dan Wheldon and by ironic coincidence was to be held in Dan’s adopted hometown of St. Pete. The city had honored him by renaming one of the city streets that the race is held on as “Dan Wheldon Way” and there were all sorts of signs, ribbons, t-shirts and personal memorials everywhere.







This marked the first time the Indy Car community had come together as one since Wheldon’s memorial and the mood was somber and reflective. The series has changed a great deal with totally new cars (named the DW12, in honor of Wheldon who did the majority of the testing on the car), new engine manufacturers, and some new drivers. Most notably, former F1 driver Rubens Barrichello has joined the series, which is a huge coup and helps make up for the departure of Danica Patrick to NASCAR.



Rubens Barrichello

Katherine Legge



Alex Tagliani & Oriol Servia

I arrived in St. Pete Thursday evening, just in time for the massive parade that they hold each year prior to the Grand Prix. The parade of Illumination was amazing, over two hours long with literally hundreds of floats, bands, clowns, celebrities and drivers included. Who knew there were so many civic and cultural groups in the St. Pete area. It was a great parade, followed by an even more impressive fireworks display over the bay. The thousands who gathered were thrilled. Thankfully my hotel was with-in a couple of blocks and I could avoid the traffic jams after the fireworks concluded.

Jason

Rubens





Friday morning, I was at the track for my first look at the new cars and drivers as the Indy Cars had their first practice session of the season. The new cars and engines are a work in progress and there are all sorts of kinks to work out. Of course the larger, better financed teams such as Penske and Chip Ganassi were ahead of the curve, and the new Chevy engines seemed a bit better than the Honda and poor Lotus –which seemed way behind.

James Hinchcliffe

Marco Andretti



It was a good first day back at the track and it was not as tough on me at least as I thought it might have been. Though I can’t help but think of how much I would like to be sitting having a cold beer with my friend Matt as we watched Dan Wheldon wheel around the track as we had done on so many occasions before. I miss you buddy.