Milwaukee Race weekend thread.....

[SarahFan]

what are the compelling stories for you all this weekend?


I500 wins the mile?....its been known to happen

how will Tracy do in the Foyt machine?

point standing beginning to take shape 1/3 of the way thru the season?


off the track...

will Robin be in Milwaukee?

will ABC mention Versus telecasts?

[SarahFan]

cars are on track....

Moreas has the early fast time....

wont last long as vets and those in the top 12 of points are on there way out now

[SarahFan]

barrett into the wall...ouch

safer needs repair

[SarahFan]

briscoe p1

[Hoop-98]

http://i42.tinypic.com/34t72wl.jpg

rh

[Hoop-98]

Checkers...

http://i41.tinypic.com/34zaput.jpg

rh

[NickFalzone]

Mario's still 7th in the list, not too bad. KV's equipment is a major step up this year. I don't know why you'd even ask about ABC promoting VS though, that would be like HBO promoting Showtime. Clearly there's no contractual agreement that they promote VS. It might slip out at the tail end of a broadcast, but I can guarantee you that ABC/ESPN wants to give as little mention as possible to this competing sports cable channel.

[NickFalzone]

Anyone know what's up with Scheckter?

[SarahFan]

Anyone know what's up with Scheckter?

something about a sheared off exhaust.....

have no idea how that happens

[SarahFan]

Mario's still 7th in the list, not too bad. KV's equipment is a major step up this year. I don't know why you'd even ask about ABC promoting VS though, that would be like HBO promoting Showtime. Clearly there's no contractual agreement that they promote VS. It might slip out at the tail end of a broadcast, but I can guarantee you that ABC/ESPN wants to give as little

mention as possible to this competing sports cable channel.

first off... thats not what we were led to believe...

we were told there would be cross promotion..


and the reality is the more folks turning into Indycar on Vs will result in more on ABC... etc etc...

[NickFalzone]

The VS guys may well mention ABC, but I wouldn't expect much of that either. Nowhere have I read that there would be any cross promotion, outside of Indy, where at least VS mentioned ABC many times. Honestly considering the crappy ratings IRL usually gets on ABC/ESPN and the low VS numbers, cross promotion is not really much of a factor at all. It wouldn't hurt, and would certainly be a nice thing of ABC to do since they potentially would benefit from a stronger IndyCar series, but the bigger picture for them is that they don't want people leaving ESPN for VS. If it was Spike or something I would guess it's less of a problem.

[MDS]

My predictions:

First oval win for Graham Rahal

Paul Tracy finishes in top 10

[garyshell]

first off... thats not what we were led to believe...

we were told there would be cross promotion..



Told by whom?

Gary

[chuck34]

Mutoh in second? What?

[Hoop-98]

He was P3 in the first practice last year.

rh

[Wilf]

what are the compelling stories for you all this weekend?

off the track...

will Robin be in Milwaukee?



Robin is here. I just yelled "troublemaker" and he turned and smiled.

[ChicagocrewIRL]

Looks like we are down to 20 cars for the race on Sunday. Just reported on Indycar.com Live Media... Stanton Barret and 3G Racing are packing up and moving on. Seems as if they couldn't get the car back to race quality by tomorrow after an on track incident....

[Hoop-98]

End of P2

http://i42.tinypic.com/2qlepsn.jpg

rh

[Hoop-98]

Helio DNQ, hit the wall not injured...

http://i41.tinypic.com/21ammjd.jpg

rh

[jackmart]

how did the hit look? my comptuer can't run both timing and scoring and the webcast?

I'm really pulling for a win from graham. I'd also like to see Danica on the podium again too.

[DanicaFan]

Congrats to Ryan Briscoe for getting the pole. He also set a new track qualifying record of 168.394 MPH or 26.7966 second lap.

Unfortunately Helio had a crash and has to start at the back of the field..

Here is your starting line-up for tomorrow's race..

Row 1

#6 Ryan Briscoe - 168.394
#02 Graham Rahal - 168.117

Row 2

#11 Tony Kanaan - 167.793
#9 Scott Dixon - 167.089

Row 3

#5 Mario Moraes - 166.791
#27 Hideki Mutoh - 166.139

Row 4

#7 Danica Patrick - 165.168
#10 Dario Franchitti - 164.706

Row 5

#2 Raphael Matos - 164.671
#23 Tomas Scheckter - 163.310

Row 6

#24 Mike Conway - 162.187
#06 Robert Doornbos - 161.657

Row 7

#26 Marco Andretti - 161.531
#4 Dan Wheldon - 161.433

Row 8

#18 Justin Wilson - 161.411
#15 Paul Tracy - 160.798

Row 9

#13 EJ Viso - 160.744
#21 Ryan Hunter-Reay - 160.381

Row 10

#20 Ed Carpenter - 160.079
#3 Helio Castroneves - No Time

Row 11

#98 Stanton Barrett - No Time
__________________

[DBell]

That's a 4 lap qualifying track record. No where close to the track record set by Patrick Carpentier in 1998 of 20.028 and 185.5 mph.

[DanicaFan]

That's a 4 lap qualifying track record. No where close to the track record set by Patrick Carpentier in 1998 of 20.028 and 185.5 mph.

I said a track qualifying record.

[mileman]

That's a 4 lap qualifying track record. No where close to the track record set by Patrick Carpentier in 1998 of 20.028 and 185.5 mph.

I kind of miss the old "new track record" days. 168+ now seems kind of tame next to Carpentier's 185+. I was there when he did it, and it was a very exciting, tension filled lap - to say the least. That speed on a flat one mile track was hard to imagine.

In any event, it was a beautiful day at the track today. Hoping for another picture perfect day - and some great racing on Sunday.

[TURN3]

I said a track qualifying record.

And he said nowhere near the real record which was a 1 lap qualification back when real race cars roamed the lands. This 4 lap record is for these underpowered easy to drive wimp cars. BIG DIFFERENCE.

[gm99]

Are they doing four-lap-qualifying on all oval circuits this year? I thought this was for Indy only.

[SarahFan]

I said a track qualifying record.

it's clearly not

[SarahFan]

http://www.indycar.com/schedule/pdf/2009_milwaukee_schedule.pdf

no morning warm-up?

[Hoop-98]

http://www.indycar.com/schedule/pdf/2009_milwaukee_schedule.pdf

no morning warm-up?

Hasn't been on ovals for a couple years

rh

[SarahFan]

Hasn't been on ovals for a couple years

rh

why not?

[NickFalzone]

They stopped it after Dana's crash, but I'm not sure I agree with the reasoning behind it. IE overly aggressive warmups on race day.

[SarahFan]

Hasn't been on ovals for a couple years

rh

http://www.indycar.com/stats/timing_scoring_reports.php?eventId=24&reportTypeId=&year=2009

looks like they did at Kansas last month

[Hoop-98]

MKE thru the years, from CC.ws and IC dor coms, 96 wasn't listed, some years went by warmup.

They use 2 diferent timing MPH calculations, IRL 1 Miles, CC 1.032 Miles)so i gave both.

http://i42.tinypic.com/n3aeip.jpg

rh

[Hoop-98]

http://www.indycar.com/stats/timing_scoring_reports.php?eventId=24&reportTypeId=&year=2009

looks like they did at Kansas last month

2 day weekend I guess.

[Nikki Katz]

Bah, I logged onto the website about half an hour ago and it said that there was still an hour till the race. Have missed the start because of that! Anything happen?

[harvick#1]

wow thanks ABC, we have Helio watch now :mark:

[Nikki Katz]

I see there's no Conquest again, did 3Gs pull out after first practice?

[Nikki Katz]

Nicely timed break. Came back at the end of the pitstops during a caution they they still haven't explained. Was it just to sweep the track?

[Hoop-98]

http://i40.tinypic.com/256sqyb.jpg

rh

[DanicaFan]

Congrats to Scott Dixon for the win and another top 5 finish for Danica! Way to go girl.

[harvick#1]

anyone know if this was the last coverage race for ABC/ESPN, cause they blow. Versus is way better. nothin like have a great 4 way battle for the lead only to have it ruined by them showing Helio in 12th :mark: just like their old ways

[DanicaFan]

Here are the final results of the race..

1. #9 Scott Dixon
2. #6 Ryan Briscoe
3. #10 Dario Franchitti
4. #02 Graham Rahal
5. #7 Danica Patrick
6. #2 Raphael Matos
7. #26 Marco Andretti
8. #27 Hideki Mutoh
9. #5 Mario Moraes
10. #4 Dan Wheldon
11. #3 Helio Castroneves
12. #21 Ryan Hunter-Reay
13. #23 Tomas Scheckter
14. #06 Robert Doornbos
15. #18 Justin Wilson
16. #20 Ed Carpenter
17. #14 Paul Tracy
18. #13 EJ Viso
19. #11 Tony Kanaan
20. #24 Mike Conway

[SarahFan]

anyone know if this was the last coverage race for ABC/ESPN, cause they blow. Versus is way better. nothin like have a great 4 way battle for the lead only to have it ruined by them showing Helio in 12th :mark: just like their old ways

I think they have 3 more races...can't remember which


but i think they did mention there is a race next weekend at texas on versus at least once

[Easy Drifter]

I went to ABC East on my Bell satellite but of course got TSN commercials etc. It was more like the Milwaukee 225 commercials than the 225 race. Typical terrible ABC coverage added in.
Sounds like PT and AJ are going to have an interesting talk tomorow.
Like take 3 turns of downforce out of front wing and put 3 more in instead. OOOOPS!
No wonder PT described it like driving a dirt track car.
Even AJ admitted that they had screwed the car up for qualifying. Sure didn't do any better for race.
Good chance I won't see next week's race as we do not get Versus in Canada and I do not get TSN2 unless I pay more and get a bunch more stations I do not want.
Any idea what the last yellow was for? Nothing was said that I heard.
At least there were a few real passes.

[MDS]

I have to say it was a good race, didn't drag on forever, the top three cars stayed in contact through most of the event. There was more passing than at Indy. I thought Danica came off as charming, in control and fairly articulate in her post race interview. Graham Rahal got a much needed top 5 and was the fastest car in the final laps.

The only problem I saw was that at least in Atlanta there was almost no ad sales, the ran a lot of promo spots and only sold a couple actual ads to some low-budget insurance companies. That's not exactly a good sign.

[ChicagocrewIRL]

Just got back from the Mile and my biggest impression of the day is Danica.

I am no Danica Patrick fan but that could change. I saw her work her way through the field with the skill and talent of a REAL driver. She easily outclassed 80% of the field out there. She was aggressive when she needed to be and patient and tempered where she needed to be as well.

Hope you get another win again soon. YOU deserve it.
Incredible drive Danica Patrick. Whoever is responsible for the new you in 2009 is a genius whether it be you or someone else.

Congrats on a great run.

It was dayum cold out there today . Sun was shining but there was a constant North wind that was bone chilling. Other than that ... great day.

Great crowd... great atmosphere. All the vendors and attractions were doing booming business.

[TURN3]

Just got back from the Mile and my biggest impression of the day is Danica.

I am no Danica Patrick fan but that could change. I saw her work her way through the field with the skill and talent of a REAL driver. She easily outclassed 80% of the field out there. She was aggressive when she needed to be and patient and tempered where she needed to be as well.

Hope you get another win again soon. YOU deserve it.
Incredible drive Danica Patrick. Whoever is responsible for the new you in 2009 is a genius whether it be you or someone else.

Congrats on a great run.

It was dayum cold out there today . Sun was shining but there was a constant North wind that was bone chilling. Other than that ... great day.

Great crowd... great atmosphere. All the vendors and attractions were doing booming business.


I said it after Indy and I'm not too proud...I'll say it again. Danica's last 2 races (Indy & Milwaukee) in my opion have been the best 2 of her career. She's clearly in class 2 with the rest of the field (Ganassi and Penske being in a class of their own) but yes, on 2 tracks that require driver skill she has performed for the 1st time in her 5 years. Credit when credit is due.

Her vastly changed attitude absolutely makes her more tolerable. Let's not forget either, is it any coincidence this is a contract year? I'm not saying she's gotten the call and it is ONLY 2 races when she's been basically uncompetitive prior to these 2 great performances. I'm curious to see how things will take shape all things considered.

[NickFalzone]

This is the first race that I can remember in which she actually making forward passes in the field, as opposed to lapped traffic, or in the pits. That being said, wait till we get to the road and streets for her top 5 (or even top 10) run to end. She has a number of things going for her on the ovals, one of which has come around recently which is real driving skill on them. What I took away from today (and somewhat Indy as well) is that TCG is finally showing the promise of the pairing of previous Indy/previous series champs. Those 2 are going to give some serious competition to Penske, and I think that working together, Dixon or Dario should have the championship in hand.

[nigelred5]

Maybe Mikey being in her ear full time is actually haveing a positive effect. She's certainly sounding much more calm in the cockpit.

[chuck34]

Maybe Mikey being in her ear full time is actually haveing a positive effect. She's certainly sounding much more calm in the cockpit.

Mikey and calm? I don't know about that. Maybe he's sucking up all the negative energy so there's nothing left for her.

But anyway I do agree that the last few races she's really shown some skill and maturity for whatever reason. She's actually proving herself to be a fairly good driver.

I must also say that Marco showed some maturity in his pre-race interview in dealing with Mario at Indy. Sounded to me like someone sat him down and told him that was as much his fault as Mario's. He still didn't sound too happy with Mario, but at least he admitted that he (Mario) didn't see him.

[Andrewmcm]

I really enjoyed the race last night. Lots of action and good passing throughout the field.

[ChicagocrewIRL]

I really enjoyed the race last night. Lots of action and good passing throughout the field.

AND the attendance was phenomenal . I would say the stands were about 90% full. Some bare aluminum in the corners but otherwise a really really great crowd. People were so polite and nice as well.

[SarahFan]

AND the attendance was phenomenal . I would say the stands were about 90% full. Some bare aluminum in the corners but otherwise a really really great crowd. People were so polite and nice as well.


easily the best crowd in 6 or 7 years......

a couple of years ago it looked like Milwaukee would be toast.....now maybe not so much

[Andrewmcm]

AND the attendance was phenomenal . I would say the stands were about 90% full. Some bare aluminum in the corners but otherwise a really really great crowd. People were so polite and nice as well.

Yeah I noticed that on the TV. Here's hoping that they can get some momentum up. Maybe the perceived lack of availability of the TV coverage means that people are turning up to the races?

[nigelred5]

I sure hope this will pull the track through. It would be an absolute traavesty for milwaukee to be dropped from the Indycar schedule.

I think the stars alaigned a bit this year for milwaukee. There was a lot of press coverage after the 500, even if the race was less than stellar. Milwaukee was returned to it's traditional slot in the schedule, the weekend after Indy, with the same cars and drivers. The weather cooperated. there's been some pretty bad weather for race fans at Milwaukee the past few years.

I wonder how much the new manager/promoter had on the event? Obviously the croud was larger than it's been in years, no matter what series ran there.

Indy had a good crowd, as did Milwaukee. Hopefully it's asign that spectators are returning and are more or less finally done with all the bickering of sides and are ready to see some racing again.


Personally, I think it was simply the PT fan club packing the house to finally see his return to the cockpit and awaiting for the inevitable blow up with AJ!

[ChicagocrewIRL]

It was my first time to the Milwaukee Mile and I was so impressed with the facilities, the atmosphere, the friendliness of the people, AND the racing !

The flat, wide, track looked to have 2 racing lines and I saw Danica and others set up well on the front stretch and dart into turn one to make pass after pass. This was the case with the other drivers as well. ALSO, drivers were actually braking in and accelerating out in the turns. WAS AWESOME to watch. So many times drivers had to check up in traffic and the leaders couldn't really run away from the cars behind due to lap traffic coming up so quickly.

What a great track. I'm in love.

[Andrewmcm]

It did remind me of the CART days in '93-'94 when the drivers had several grooves to play with on the track.

[ChicagocrewIRL]

One last observation before I finally stop gushing about this past weekend's race.....

In the Chicago newspapers, the week before the I 500 and the week following, there were full and half page ads promoting the Milwaukee race every day in the sports sections.

Also... that great TV ad with the NASA countdown dialogue tracks ran on several non-race stations and programs.

This is the way an IndyCar event should be promoted.

Result ? You saw it in the stands in Milwaukee on Sunday.

The guy sitting next to me with his 2 kids was amazed how fast the IndyCars were. 3 new fans.

[champcarray]

Has AJ Foyt's team hit new lows? How often does a team accidentally take out 3 full rounds of wing rather than put it in? Poor PT...

[garyshell]

Has AJ Foyt's team hit new lows? How often does a team accidentally take out 3 full rounds of wing rather than put it in? Poor PT...


I agree it was a bad day, but in reality 3 rounds out versus 3 rounds in is just a headset static glitch away from any team.

Gary

[anthonyvop]

Good crowd.

But I have wondered why they still race on that track for the last 15 years.

[Dr. Krogshöj]

Good crowd.

But I have wondered why they still race on that track for the last 15 years.

I also wonder why the IRL race on the Milwaukee Mile. It is strange because they don't usually do the right thing. :p

Anyway, it is a strange thing to say. So far this year, Milwaukee was the only track where you could actually see overtaking other than at restarts. In my book, it's the best oval ever built for open wheel racing.

[garyshell]

Good crowd.

But I have wondered why they still race on that track for the last 15 years.

Didn't you just answer your own question? Couple that with lots of on track passing, why would you ask why?

Gary

[harvick#1]

I also wonder why the IRL race on the Milwaukee Mile. It is strange because they don't usually do the right thing. :p

Anyway, it is a strange thing to say. So far this year, Milwaukee was the only track where you could actually see overtaking other than at restarts. In my book, it's the best oval ever built for open wheel racing.

and also one of the few ovals where the driver needs to push the other pedal also :laugh: that will make the racing better

[DanicaFan]

Good crowd.

But I have wondered why they still race on that track for the last 15 years.

I actually saw a lot of empty seats myself. :(

[harvick#1]

I actually saw a lot of empty seats myself. :(

not a whole lot of american races are selling out anymore, Dover was pretty empty too for the cup race. over 6 million people (including me) have been laid off of work and dont have the money to go to a race