Mid Term Report Card

Well, the IndyCar season is now effectively more than halfway over, thanks to the China race going down the toilet.   Frankly I had my doubts about that one ever coming to fruition.   It’s not like many people were gonna watch it anyway.  Well, I’m sure I would have stayed up until 3 am to watch it, but I don’t really think the demise of the Qingdao race is going to matter much in the long run.  What is going to matter is the admirable way in which the series has overcome innumerable and seemingly insurmountable challenges over the past year to create a product well worth consuming.  In the wake of last year’s season ending tragedy, this year’s IndyCar season has been something truly remarkable.   The new car seemed to be the source of much pre-season angst, with many referring to it as the “son of the crapwagon”.   To be honest, I always thought it was a pretty cool looking car.  Not as cool as the Delta Wing, but pretty neat nonetheless.   All things considered, it was a sheer miracle that 25 of the new cars have been able to show up week after week so far this season.   Apart from the new cars, all the races this year have been entertaining and worth watching.  Some will argue that Belle Isle was a disaster.  No, I say!  It was chock full of drama.  Who cares if it didn’t go the full distance or wasn’t terribly competitive.  It got people talking, even if it was about flying concrete.   Hey, any press is good press when it comes to IndyCar.  The worst thing that could happen now would be for people to ignore it. Some might disagree, but I’d rather have the media bashing it for one reason or another than ignoring it altogether.   But back to the races.  They have been very fun to watch.  I know the drivers don’t like them much, but the straightaway starts have been breathtaking.   IndyCar’s Crown Jewel, the 500 was legendary in every sense of the word.    Milwaukee was back in a big way (Congrats Michael Andretti for resurrecting it from the dead) and who can forget Justin Wilson’s late race heroics at Texas?  Chalk one up for the little guy…well the 6’2” Wilson isn’t exactly a little guy, but his team would not often be mentioned in the same sentence with Penske or Ganassi.   In the end though, it will still be a Penske or Ganassi driver winning the championship. My money is still on Will Power.  He’s been in hiding as of yore, but his immense talents on the road and street courses will soon re-emerge.  That is not so say he can’t drive on ovals.  He certainly can, but I think we all know on what side his bread is really buttered.   Dario and Dixie will be in the hunt too and let’s not count out Hinchcliffe.  And Wilson is not likely to go quietly into that good night.   I still expect him to win again somewhere between now and the end of the season.  So where does that leave us?  With one interesting second half of the season ahead of us.   As for the first half, I give it an A minus.    I would like to thank Mr. Bernard and all the drivers for keeping it compelling and interesting. And most importantly, safe!  These guys and gals have been fun to watch so far this year!  Keep up the great work.

Cardboard Cutouts

Since the 500, there’s certainly been no shortage of IndyCar subject matter to expound upon.  The Detroit Debacle, the owner’s revolt, fence fears at Texas.  But what I wanna talk about is something REALLY important and that is Cardboard Cutouts.   You see, not long ago—well it was probably a year or so--I was in the local grocery store.  As I was meandering through the snack section, I was greeted by a full size cardboard cutout of Marcos Ambrose hawking Little Debbie’s snack cakes.  There he was in fully race regalia enticing me to buy a sumptuous box of Boston Crème Rolls.  For whatever reason, the image of that cardboard cutout has stuck in my craw ever since.  Not because I have anything against Marcos Ambrose or Little Debbie’s.  Heck, I like both.  I suppose what really got me was that a second string NASCAR driver—ok so maybe he’s not a second string driver, but he’s no Jimmie Johnson either—got his own cutout while Indy Car’s best were nowhere to be found on any product in the store.  I mean, practically every other commercial I hear on the radio these days consists of embarrassingly  lame dialog between Dale Jr. and some sop bargaining over who gets the last “Diet Dew”.   I suppose at some point, I’ve even wiped my butt with toilet paper hawked by one NASCAR driver or another.  And yet when it comes to IndyCar drivers and advertising, it’s practically nada.  Ok, there are a few commercials running these days, certainly a vast improvement over years past.  But that’s not good enough for me.  Seriously, two of the best IndyCar drivers of all time are sponsored by one of the biggest retail stores in the world, and yet as a frequent shopper there, I have yet to see the likeness of Dario of Dixie anywhere to be found.  Come on now!  I mean, their cars are virtual billboards for the products they carry.  Can’t we get at least one cardboard cutout of Dario extolling the virtues of using Suave Shampoo?    Who wouldn’t buy shampoo from a guy with Hollywood hair like that?  So while the rest of the IndyCar blogdom wants owners to stop acting like spoiled brats, more ovals, and aero kits,  I just wanna see a cardboard cutout of an Indy Driver at my local Kroger every once in a while.