IndyCars - The Indy 500: "Drivers, start... your... engines!..."

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It’s SIMON!!

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The racing gods stepped in today and gave us gorgeous weather to run the 103rd Indianapolis 500 and then also stepped in to produce a 15-lap shootout at the end of the race that erased all fuel strategies and left the whole contest up to one of a matter of speed and guts and when it was over Simon Pagenaud for Team Penske had his first Indy 500 WIN.

Pagenaud led the most laps of anyone - 116 - taking off from pole and keeping the lead through almost all the pit cycles to end up in an epic 15-lap battle with Alexander Rossi for Andretti Autosport, following a lap 118 shunt involving Graham Rahal for Rahal Letterman Lanigan and Sebastien Bourdais for Dale Coyne w/ Vasser Sullivan that also collected Zach Veach for Andretti, Felix Rosenqvist for Chip Ganassi and Charlie Kimball for Carlin, while damaging Scott Dixon for Chip Ganassi.

The race was red-flagged to clean up the debris and when it was restarted the lead would go from Rossi to Pagenaud to Rossi and finally back to Pagenaud with 1 lap to go, and the Frenchman crossed the line 0.21 seconds ahead of the Californian, with Takuma Sato for RLL lurking in P3 to pounce on any mistake by the leaders.

Another great Indy 500 with an extremely satisfying finish!

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P2 Alexander Rossi (left) and P3 Takuma Sato

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Notable:

  • This was Simon’s month. He WON the Grand Prix of Indianapolis in the rain, WON his first Indy 500 pole and the WON the Indy 500. (His best previous finish was a P6). Almost immediately after the race Roger Penske announced that Pagenaud would be returning as a team Penske driver in 2020.

  • This was Team Penske’s 18th WIN as a team and the 2nd in a row, following Will Power’s WIN, last year. Of the 4 Penske drivers in the race, only Josef Newgarden has yet to get on the Borg Warner Trophy.

  • Best rookie was Santino Ferrucci for Dale Coyne, who finished P7 from his P23 start. He was impressive all day, and especially when he avoided the big shunt by going across the grass and onto the warm-up lane.

  • Biggest mover was James Hinchcliffe for Arrow Schmidt Peterson who went from P32 to P11. His threading the needle at high speed through the last wreck was even more scary and impressive than Santino’s lawn-mowing.

  • Best recovery was James Davison for Dale Coyne Racing w/ Byrd, Hollinger, Belardi, who was punted by Helio Castroneves for Team Penske in the pit lane and spun around, losing two laps. He would recover to P12 on the lead lap by the end of the race.

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left to right, Santino Ferrucci, James Hinchcliffe and James Davison

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With this result, here are the TOP FIVE in points leaving Indianapolis:

1 - Simon Pagenaud 250
2 - Josef Newgarden 249
3 - Alexander Rossi 228
4 - Takuma Sato 203
4 - Scott Dixon 203

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The next races will be the double-header in Detroit on Belle Isle, next weekend, May 31- June 2.
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M

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NBC has released extended race highlights…

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M

Is there any way that someone can pay a certain amount of money to drive one
of these types of cars, on a closed track, going an amazing amount of speed?

I have no where near that kind of money, but maybe if I saved up for half my
lifetime I would.

Of course signing a waiver, that if you die, nobody can sue in your behalf.

But something like driving one of these cars is probably on a bunch of peoples
bucket list of things to do. I know I would love too!

The adrenaline rush would be insanely awesome!

Sorry. No one would let you drive their car. They have far too much invested in them.

But you can buy a used one. It’s only about 300K. Then you have to buy an engine for it, or have one built. That’s at least another 200K for a close copy of what they lease from either Chevrolet or Honda, but it would only be an approximation, as they have proprietary parts and technical secrets they don’t give everyone.

For about 50k you can get an engine that has about as much power, but it will be a lot heavier and less able to stand the gaff for long. Vintage IndyCar engines are for sale all the time, but they won’t fit the current chassis. They are V-8s and these are smaller V-6s. Tires are 800 dollars a piece and will last for a good 30 laps at speed, but be ornaments after that, unless you’re just cruising around.

Once you own it, there are several private tracks that rent out and yes, you have to sign a waiver to absolve them of responsibility for your foolish desire to kill yourself, after throwing away your retirement.

Seriously, I wish I could tell you different, but these things are very, very expensive. The firesuit you would need to be dressed in is 3,000 dollars ALONE. Add a good helmet and you’re near 4k - just to get dressed.

You can actually get some of the smaller formula cars for MUCH less and they would absolutely scare the living crap out of you with their performance. An Indy Pro 2000 car has almost 300 horsepower, and weighs less than a full-dress Harley, and you can buy a brand new one, with engine, for about 130,000 dollars. The Cooper Tires are also cheaper and last longer because they are not meant to be changed during a race, but last through the whole contest. The sound of this car alone will bring tears to your eyes and give you the heart rate of a sprinter.

Here is one:

There is a team called FatBoy Racing! that actually competes, and well, in the series, and it’s just a couple guys over fifty who WANT to do what you talk about, and have the money to do it. Of course, they are almost always last when the race is over, but they don’t care. They are DOING it!

It’s a dream come true, but still a rich man’s dream.

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NOW, if you just want to get a RIDE in an IndyCar, the series has a two-seater that they regularly give rides in and the drivers are VERY, VERY good and will take you up to a very high speed to scare the hell out of you - like almost 200 MPH on the oval at Indy. This is the same car that Mario Andretti gives selected fans rides in before the start of every IndyCar race.

You can get a two-seater ride at Indianapolis - either the oval or the road course - your choice. Or, go to the ovals at Pocono or Iowa or Gateway, or the street course at Toronto or the natural road courses at either Road America or Mid-Ohio. The drivers are typically some of the best former Indy Lights and IndyCar drivers around - including Mario Andretti!

In this pic is the two-seater car and drivers are left to right, Mario Dominguez, Tristan Vautier, Matthew Brabham, Mario Andretti, some lucky rider and RC Enerson - That’s a ton of driving talent for your enjoyment.
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This is only 500 dollars - CERTAINLY do-able for a bucket list item. And they lend you the firesuit and helmet. It costs about 500 dollars to get a ride in a WW II B-17, which is another once-in-a-lifetime experience, so this is a similar deal.

Go here:

https://www.indyracingexperience.com/experiences/experience_types/ride

…and if you do it, come back and tell us about it!
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Mark