|
|
|
|
With the 2009 race over, and with the increasing multitude of web-media available, we may have some here posting outside pieces.
Meanwhile, it has sunk in that Helio Castroneves is a three-time winner. Notwithstanding for a moment, his "controversial" 2002 victory, he has elevated into some elite company: Louis Meyer, Wilbur Shaw, Mauri Rose, Johnny Rutherford, and Bobby Unser. Interestingly, three of those men also argueably have an asterisk next to one of their wins. Rose was only co-winner in 1941. Rutherford won the rained-shortened "Indy 255" in 1976. Unser not only had a rain-shortened win (1975), but he also went through the other "great dispute" known as the 1981 race.
Are we looking at the next four-time winner? Perhaps. No other active driver is close, and in fact, no other active driver has won more than once. Castroneves is signed with Penske for the forseeable future, and Penske always shows up at Indy. The big question is, will he become the first FIVE time winner? He said he wants the "king of the Speedway" crown if he does. Deservedly so.
On another note, I hope you enjoy my facination with the Old Main Gate. It stood from 1957-1981. At some point after the 1981 race, they removed the checkered pillars and the archway. However, I know for a fact that the brick pedestals remained until at least 1992. I believe they finally tore them down when they tore down the old museum/safety office in August of 1993. During the 1980s, pieces of that old main gate (the two "500s" and the wheel/wing/flags logo) were in 'graveyard' storage in the old Goodyear parking lot. They were sitting in the grass, resting up against the white barn which is now largely associated with the Brickyard Crossing golf course. Every year we would see it, always tempted to load them up. They remained there until 1991, because when we came back in 1992, what was fomerly a grass parking lot was a giant mound of dirt due to the golf course reconstruction. Where they moved those items, we might never know.
By the month of May 1995, they had installed the new main gate in the same place (which I thought was rather gaudy and cartoonish at first, but it grew on me).
Meanwhile, with the new format, the main page is getting this fresh new look. I am going to make the effort to to drop everyone a line here from time to time to give updates on what is new and what to look for.
The thing that will take the longest is the images. There may be some broken images until everything is settled.
Typically, when one and four lap qualifying records at Indy are published, little details are given. As we all know, during four laps of qualifying, the 1-lap record can be broken as many as four times by the same driver! However, official publications never tell us that, and only list the fastest single lap of the run. It was my goal to fill in those "lost" one-lap track records. For instance, in 1977 when Tom Sneva broke the 200 mph barrier, he actually did it on his first lap (200.401 mph). However, his second lap was the best at 200.535 mph. Official records list his "record" as 200.535, and never make any mention of the 200.401 lap. Furthermore, people wonder how his 4-lap average was 198.884 mph. We are rarely told that his third and fourth laps were off the pace. My goal is to list all four laps in my charts.
In the research, primarily courtesy of microfilm from The Indianapolis Star, I was quite amazaed how much information was printed. What was even more of a treat, was that the 10-lap qualifying runs (used 1932-1938) were also published in the paper, with all ten laps broken down. Pretty soon I will get the information up and running.