Welcome to the RACER Mailbag. Questions for any of RACER’s writers could be despatched to mailbag@racer.com. We love listening to your feedback and opinions, however letters that embody a query usually tend to be printed. Questions acquired after 3pm ET every Monday can be saved for the next week.
Q: I’ve learn eight or 9 articles about Thermal within the final couple of weeks, together with final week’s Mailbag. Beneath each article within the reader feedback part, everyone seems to be complaining concerning the absence of followers on the tv broadcast. The principle set of spectator bleachers had been set excessive up on an embankment, about 20 toes above the observe floor. The TV cameras are arrange at observe stage. Because the cameras pan across the observe to catch the racing motion, there isn’t a approach they may catch a view of the spectators as a result of the bleachers are so excessive.
The bleachers at Thermal had been packed, and it regarded like there was extra followers than Portland and several other different races. At the start of the printed there was a short drone shot of the bleachers they usually regarded full. Unsure what could be accomplished to catch pictures of the followers, however they had been there – simply excessive up and out of sight of the cameras.
Bob Grey, Canoga Park, CA
MARSHALL PRUETT: There weren’t extra folks at Thermal than “Portland and several other different races,” until we’re speaking about Portland and different tracks and their non-IndyCar occasions. In that case, sure, the current SCCA Regional at Portland had fewer followers than the Thermal IndyCar occasion.
There was certainly a small stretch of stands at Thermal that weren’t in an amazing location for TV cameras to catch, however we don’t have to dip into “alternate details” to begin a story that it was well-attended. I want we had been speaking about plenty of followers, however I used to be there, all three days, and no false impressions got because of digicam placement. I’d fortunately say so if that was the case.
Q: Because it was April Fools final week, are you able to share any good pranking (or comparable) tales out of your time within the paddock?
I bear in mind watching a Grand Am race and chuckling to myself when the printed group reported {that a} European producer, Volvo perhaps, was constructing a Daytona Prototype after studying a “report” about that on April 1st.
Kyle
MP: Yeah, these had been our mates at DailySportsCar who cooked up the thought-it-was-obvious-it-was-a-joke Volvo piece that was errantly raised as one thing actual.
No April Idiot’s tales to share from my days as an IndyCar or IMSA crew member, and that’s as a result of the date was meaningless — not less than in my period — as a result of there wasn’t simply sooner or later the place such issues had been tolerated; most days had been spent messing with one another, making up nonsense to see who we may deceive, and working towards common asshattery to amuse yourselves or one another.
Don’t depart your automobile keys sitting out as a result of they may find yourself hanging from the ceiling or tied in the midst of 20 toes of string that may take an hour to untangle. Don’t depart your automobile unlocked or one thing will get disconnected — nothing apparent and simply solvable — and depart you stranded for an hour. Don’t depart you telephone untended, or your laptop computer unlocked…
Hell, it nonetheless goes on as we speak. One colleague left his laptop computer/e mail open on the Nashville season-finale final 12 months and we had loads of enjoyable. One particular person talked about sending one thing, so at my urging, one other colleague despatched me an e mail from the particular person’s work account, saying they had been burned out, bored with the corporate, on the lookout for a change, and wished recommendation. I replied (and copied within the proprietor of the corporate) that I used to be actually upset in them for going to me first as an alternative of the proprietor, chided them for the poor decision-making, and so forth. All whereas they had been out taking pictures and oblivious to the faux e mail alternate about desirous to give up. The proprietor, who’d grown accustomed to seeing faux and inflammatory emails when laptops had been left open, knew it was a joke, however performed alongside.
Did not heed my very own recommendation at Thermal in 2023 after I went for just a few scorching laps with Stefan Wilson. Put my telephone and no matter else I had in my pockets on the pit wall, donned my helmet, strapped into the passenger seat, and off we went for 10 minutes. Sadly, Anders Krohn, who loves discovering untended telephones, knew that whereas he couldn’t unlock my telephone, there was (nonetheless is?) an exploit the place you may entry and use the digicam from the lock display screen.
Stef pulls in, I hope out, and Krohn has that huge dumb smile on his face. I knew I’d been “Krohn’d” and located not less than 100 obnoxious selfies he took — perhaps extra — throughout our lapping session. I’ve saved them on my telephone as a reminder.
Sure, we’re all a bunch of idiots. However we do have enjoyable…
Subsequent you’re going to inform me that the 2022 IMSA press launch about plans to run the Roar Earlier than the 24 on a dust supercross observe was a prank, too. Picture by way of IMSA
Q: I’ve seen this on RACER feedback: If IndyCar goes to lose each producers, which suggests their advertising and marketing cash can be gone, why not undertake IMSA’s mannequin of gasoline movement and torque restrict to chop growth, with producers free to produce engines to as many groups as they need? In the event that they wish to have a manufacturing facility group solely, high-quality. In the event that they wish to provide it to extra groups, high-quality too. Everybody would nonetheless construct a V6. And Ilmor could possibly be used to produce engines for groups that may’t make a cope with an OEM or another impartial engine builder (if it’s financially viable for them to hitch). Cost the identical charges as IMSA and see the place the sequence goes this fashion.
I imply, what else does IndyCar must lose (in a situation the place they’re already dropping Chevy and Honda)?
Another query: How a lot did it price to lease the Honda V8 again then? Did Honda subsidize the entire grid?
William Mazeo
MP: Honda provided CART engines for a few years, so there’s no single reply. In lots of circumstances, the engines had been free, or free plus a number of money, which was a standard observe for each producer with its greatest groups (or groups that had a driver whose nationwide origin was the identical because the producer) throughout CART’s greatest days within the Nineteen Nineties. Adjusted for inflation, thousands and thousands for the choose groups with out the appropriate ties or driver, or ran in the direction of the again.
