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Fresh IndyCar! Get it while it's hot! Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach


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#601 Magoo

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 00:38

Good race. 



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#602 nvspace126

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 00:52

This is the first year I really started following Indy. Two first races were pretty bad, but today it was pretty entertaining and it was good to see Montoya defending. However, who is Dracone and how did he get a seat in a race car at a pro level? His teammate was a stand-in driver and he lapped him.



#603 loki

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 03:03

Oh, he's bought some novelty glasses from a pound shop.

Not exactly...

 

http://www.oakley.co...uCode=OO9262-14



#604 whitewaterMkII

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 03:49

Got da killer race swag, so who won the League this week?

Did not see Dixon coming for this one, good job by his team, and him.



#605 anbeck

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 06:16

Interesting bit by Neil deGrasse Tyson:

 

 

Each IndyCar wing can disintegrate into more pieces than there are particles in the universe.



#606 Vitesse2

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 08:17

Got da killer race swag, so who won the League this week?

 

Guilty as charged! :lol:

 

There are 73 people with a score of 151. So, I'm not only leading the Atlas Autosport league, I'm fortieth in the whole thing! :blush:

 

It won't last ...



#607 OvDrone

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 09:55

The F1 race thread has 19 pages. The Indycar race thread, 13. Not bad.



#608 Sheepmachine

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 10:46

11th in round one, 11th in round two, 12th in round three, I'm nothing if not consistent. :lol:

#609 ardbeg

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 10:52

Interesting bit by Neil deGrasse Tyson:

I'm not sure he really thought that through



#610 JHSingo

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 11:17

Straight into eighth place in fantasy IndyCar. As I said before, beginner's luck. :lol:



#611 Risil

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 11:26

One thing that's just struck me is that if the championship is two or three Penske drivers plus Dixon, we might actually get a comprehensible points race this year. As opposed to the now-traditional mess that resolves itself into #IndyRivals with two or three races to go.

 

Double points at Sears Point(s), though. :stoned:


Edited by Risil, 20 April 2015 - 11:26.


#612 B Squared

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 13:24

The first debris caution of many

Sometimes the race needs to be watched. They (Indy Car) have had plenty of non-yellow road course races over the years. Granted, the first two races this year have given reason to jump to this early conclusion.



#613 Sigur

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 13:41

I thought it was a decent race. It was good IMO because of the amount of time under the green, the crowds. Somewhat disappointed that there wasn't much racing in the top Spot...but the battle for the 2nd, 3rd 4th spots was good. Glad to see Conor Daly do was well as he did with a lack of time in the car. Overall, I thoght it was a good day for IndyCar.

#614 Imateria

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 13:59

One thing that's just struck me is that if the championship is two or three Penske drivers plus Dixon, we might actually get a comprehensible points race this year. As opposed to the now-traditional mess that resolves itself into #IndyRivals with two or three races to go.

 

Double points at Sears Point(s), though. :stoned:

I wouldn't count Kanaan out either, he's had a strong start to the season so far, and Bourdais seems to be a constant thorn in the sides of Ganassi/Penske as well.

 

About time Dracone got his licnese yanked, it's back to the bad old days of Milka Duno.



#615 ezequiel

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 14:36

This is the first year I really started following Indy. Two first races were pretty bad, but today it was pretty entertaining and it was good to see Montoya defending. However, who is Dracone and how did he get a seat in a race car at a pro level? His teammate was a stand-in driver and he lapped him.

 

He's very slow but is not as if he comes from nowhere, having plenty experience in Formula 3000 level (Euroseries 3000 and AutoGP, though frequently with part time rides).



#616 Vitesse2

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 15:19

Guilty as charged! :lol:

 

There are 73 people with a score of 151. So, I'm not only leading the Atlas Autosport league, I'm fortieth in the whole thing! :blush:

 

It won't last ...

And blowing my own trumpet a bit further, in the overall three-race standings I'm 95th.



#617 Afterburner

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 17:34



I wonder if paulb fell asleep at the race today?  He was about as needed as a Maytag repairman.

Nah, you can't fall asleep that close to the track. Eagerly awaiting to hear his report--I want to go work Long Beach one day. Might've made it out this year if it hadn't been for prior commitments.

 

If you're reading this, Paul, you'll have to come pay a visit at the Petit Le Mans this year. Two Indycar forumites, one corner, no prisoners taken--it would be awesome. :p

 



And blowing my own trumpet a bit further, in the overall three-race standings I'm 95th.

I was fifth after the first race... and then NOLA happened. :lol:



#618 Vitesse2

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 18:31

Nah, you can't fall asleep that close to the track. Eagerly awaiting to hear his report--I want to go work Long Beach one day. Might've made it out this year if it hadn't been for prior commitments.

 

If you're reading this, Paul, you'll have to come pay a visit at the Petit Le Mans this year. Two Indycar forumites, one corner, no prisoners taken--it would be awesome. :p

 


I was fifth after the first race... and then NOLA happened. :lol:

Looking at the results, my score of 151 - Dixon, Castroneves, Kanaan, Newgarden - was actually the maximum possible within the salary cap. Still had $1 left over too! But that selection will no longer be possible for Alabama - their salary total is now $108.



#619 PayasYouRace

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 21:01

18th with 105. Not bad for just joining in at Long Beach. Fingers crossed for Alabama

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#620 paulb

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Posted 20 April 2015 - 23:00

Well that was the best race weekend ever for me.  I don't think there can be a better way to experience a race.  This report will sort of be a random rundown since I figure that would be appropriate for IndyCar.

 

The day started at roughly 5:45am with a meeting with race control.  They talk about the previous day and expectations for the current day. Two things that made me chuckle are that race series like to poke fun at each other and that folks here share similar opinions with race management about certain drivers who are not as fast as others.

 

The jumpy trucks are awesome.  The concept is absolutely silly but it so works.  Watching a trophy class off road truck go up a ramp on two tires, land on two tires, go on its side, hit the wall by its roof, bounce back onto four wheels, hit the other wall and then somehow continue, is simply awesome.  One of the Turn 12 crew recovered a bit of fender and later found Robby Gordon and the driver to sign it.  RG is quite the showman. He would deliberately jump on two wheels then continue on the course for as long as he could, which was 70% through the hairpin in one case!

 

The Indy Lights race was good.  It was almost sad to see Max Chilton finishing down the order when his teammate won.

 

The proximity of our station enabled us to do the pit walk.  It was very, very, very, very crowded. Bobby Rahal seemed to enjoy being in a Maxim girl sandwich while many photos were taken.  Saw Chip Ganassi scootering with family.  Got to shake Derek Daly's hand and give regards.  Savaadra's hair was in fine form.  On the way out we were helping clear people for Will Powers car on the way to its spot.  One of our guys had a whistle and people pay attention when you blow a whistle.  I took a few snaps, there wasn't enough time to take all the pics I would have liked.

 

For the race, I was stationed at the timeline which for the race is an observer checking for debris, car damage, passing under yellow or anything else that may be of note.  It is just past the hairpin with the cars coming directly at you.  It was simply awesome.  No mucking around there, because if something happens it will happen fast.  I would step back when a car stepped out, just in case.  I did have to deal with photographers.  The primary message that they hammer into our heads is safety so that was my first message to photographers.  Putting a foot between the barrier and the curb was a nono.  I was told barriers can move and break when a car hits so you don't want a foot to be part of the debris.  During the race, it was clear to see who was fast and who wasn't. Dixon who was obviously the fastest, had the same line everytime.  On the slow side, I would say at least 80% of the time Dracone took a wide line out of the chicane that almost caused grief a number of times to following drivers when he recovered.  To the all-important debris question, I came close, but one of our guys did win.  I did not see the incident but Kimball hit Sato I think not far from pit in.  I asked our guy if it was Type 1 or Type 2 debris.

 

The PWC "race" was a yellow-fest. I was shocked when the race was over because there were so few green laps.  Its a shame because the car has an impressive array of cars.  Unfortunately, at Long Beach, the drivers did not seem to be at their best.  It was cool to see the transporters of Coletti, Hunter-Reay, Newgarden, and Rahal on the drive home.  I'll post the few pics I took later, today is a recovery day.



#621 jonpollak

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 04:00



Round 3

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Overall
 
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Jp

#622 Docc

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 04:21

aee9e17bb3f62811740f6a706700faf4.jpgW

What on earth ? Picture from Yahoo story ...


Edited by Docc, 21 April 2015 - 04:24.


#623 Rob G

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 04:36

 

What on earth ? Picture from Yahoo story ...

Are you referring to the whales that appear to be floating in the sky? That's the Long Beach Arena. They house some of the support series in there.



#624 Andrew Hope

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 04:50

I believe Docc is referring to the man in the white shirt standing at the base of the Toyota flag, who like most IndyCar fans who have attended a race so far this year is attempting to figure out if he's been hit by a shred of Pagenaud's winglets or if he's just been stung by a bee.



#625 Docc

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 05:11

It's been years since I went to Long Belch.. I went to F1 there and a couple of Indy..but years ago..

 

Andrew..of course you are correct :smoking:



#626 whitewaterMkII

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 05:12

I'm also in that pic with the rest of the crew, right above the Toyota on the wall, front row GS 18 behind the yellow banner...

And it looks like Vitesse gets the rare Rocky Moran and a wishfully rare Dracone sig as well as a bunch more goodies...

PM me where you want it sent buckaroo, and I'll get it in the mail.

:up:



#627 king_crud

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 12:01

aee9e17bb3f62811740f6a706700faf4.jpgW
What on earth ? Picture from Yahoo story ...


This giant whale will be sure to devour us all! I bow down to our new whale overlords

#628 Sigur

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 12:05

Article about Scott Dixon in Racer. Isn't well known while in street clothes in the US.

http://www.racer.com...-reluctant-hero

#629 JPMFan

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 14:20

Article about Scott Dixon in Racer. Isn't well known while in street clothes in the US.

http://www.racer.com...-reluctant-hero

Given the indy car series lack of popularity/visibility in the US, I don't doubt that the drivers are basically unknowns.



#630 Ross Stonefeld

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 14:39

He's not exactly high profile in racing either...



#631 Prost1997T

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 17:25

pmM6fvi.jpg

#632 whitewaterMkII

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 17:34

Wow, a real crowd at at an Indy race!



#633 jonpollak

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 17:37

Are you referring to the whales that appear to be floating in the sky? That's the Long Beach Arena. They house some of the support series in there.

I've had a few great times in that arena...

Saw some classic rock shows- Led Zepplin, Queen,Thin Lizzy,Yes

Did many shows there myself too Go-Go's, Missing Persons,Van Halen,etc.

 

 

Loved the paulb Man With The Flag report.

Jp



#634 Prost1997T

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 17:40

Speaking of crowds, I wonder how many people were at the Bahrain F1 race the same weekend? 500? :lol:

#635 jondoe955

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 17:44

Ha - Chevy screams about the millions they spent on the new wings, which were banned - and they still take the top 6(?) qualifying spots? I'm generally dubious of all the things they hang off cars. Those wing pods were the worst. And far too vulnerable. It reminds me of when Tracy lost half his front wing - and it hardly affected his time!

Boo-hoo for dirty driver Power. I just wish he had stalled in the pits on the next race. But in the interview, he did take it like a man, blaming himself, and not whining. And running in the back, he didn't do much carnage to the other drivers.

And that's the Arena? I always thought it was a water tank. But looking from above, at the last race, it looked a little large... I remember seeing a guy painting it, during a Cart(?) race. It looked free-form, and he wasn't far away from the side. Pretty amazing. And a nice design.



#636 jonpollak

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 18:23

If I wasn't here, I'd be there!

Say hi to Azoff for me,

Donald Fagen puts an interesting spin on the Bernie Ecclestone of Rock n Roll in his 6 part diary at RollingStone ,com

 

Jp



#637 whitewaterMkII

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 18:48

Yeah, I've been reading his diary. Pretty good takes actually, and pretty much why since the first couple of Coachella Fests I've been giving it a miss. Yes' it's a scene, and pretty hip, but once it blew up, it just doesn't have the same vibe, and the music gets redundant. Seriously, GoldenVoice were originally punk rock promoters, this 'show' is about as far from punk rock as you could get. Pretty funny how SD introed themselves as Uncle Walt and Uncle Donny.

While The Donald probably had a good time hanging wit the Irv, a down home sausage on the grill on the grass was definitely more real, and more my style than Mimosas at the pool.

Now for the next act, country boys at the Stagecoach, doubtful at best that the RS will have a diarist for that gig. I've been to both events, and the eye candy at Stagecoach has a multitude more 10's than the C fest. 

 ;)



#638 JHSingo

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 19:39

So I feel like a n00b after JP's post.

 

I was eighth for that race, not eighth overall. 22nd in fact.

 

Oops. Knew it was too good to be true. :lol:



#639 OvDrone

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Posted 21 April 2015 - 21:27

Article about Scott Dixon in Racer. Isn't well known while in street clothes in the US.

http://www.racer.com...-reluctant-hero

 

Apparently Dixie is living Kimi's dream.