To be 33 or not to be 33?

Well, the good news is, it’s May!  We all know what that means.  The Greatest Spectacle In Racing is just around the corner.   And what better time to start another blog about IndyCar than on May 1^st ?  Of course, the traditional month of May has now been reduced to the last two weeks in May, but hey the Indy 500 is STILL the  Indy 500.  Or is it?   To be sure, the 500 is steeped in tradition.  Some of which have been somewhat attenuated with the passage of time.  The traditional crowds of pole day have long since receded as has the drama of bump day for the most part.   Many a scribe (or blogger) have lamented that Indy now lacks the innovation that spawned such legends as the Turbine, the Chaparral, heck, even the rear view mirror. To some, the passage of time has not been kind to the venerable race.  And now it seems that another tradition is in danger…the starting field of 33 cars.  There has been much navel gazing and gnashing of teeth about the possibility of having one fewer car in the 11^th row this year.  An Indy 500 with 32 cars?!?  Say it isn’t so!   At this point it certainly seems to be a possibility if not a probability.   But let’s be honest here folks.  No offense, but does anyone really think that Jay Howard’s presence in this year’s 500 is going to boost the TV ratings or put more butts in seats?  I didn’t think so.  Sure, Michael Shank appears to be getting the shaft, but I guess that’s just life, isn’t it?   Nevertheless, I was still sad to hear that the field might not actually be full this year.   I’m a die hard 500 fan and I love my traditions.    That vacancy in the last row will certainly seem conspicuous and will no doubt be remarked upon by some as an embarrassment to IndyCar.   I think I’ve already read the headline that said “Indy 500 struggles to fill field” or something like that.  The irony is that for much of the race’s history, a relatively small number of cars in any given field of 33 had any real shot at winning.  I’m sure the same can be said of this year’s race.  Sure, the field is going to be deep.  They seem to say that every year.  And as much as I’d love to see Simona De Silvestro in Victory Lane this year,  the reality is that only about 10-12 drivers (if that) have a real shot at winning.   So, does only having 32 cars in the field alter that calculus?  Not in the slightest.  But I’m still gonna be ticked off at those in the chattering classes who will disparage a race I hold so dear because they couldn’t find an extra backmarker to fill out the last row.   After all, last row backmarkers are as much a tradition at the 500 as the milk!