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At 4:45 p.m., the ambient temperature was 58 degrees with a relative humidity of 31 percent and winds from the southwest at 8 mph. Skies were mostly sunny. The track temperature was 92 degrees, according to Firestone engineers.
The top five speeds of the day were:
1) #26 Carlos Munoz @ 223.023 mph (40.3545)
2) #1 Ryan Hunter-Reay @ 222.825 mph (40.3905)
3) #5 E.J. Viso @ 222.523 mph (40.4453)
4) #25 Marco Andretti @ 222.485 mph (40.4521)
5) #2 AJ Allmendinger @ 221.279 mph (40.6726)
At noon, the ambient temperature was 51 degrees with a relative humidity of 100 percent and winds from the west-northwest at 3 mph. Skies were cloudy. The track temperature was 66 degrees, according to Firestone engineers.
The top five speeds of the day were:
1) #20 Ed Carpenter @ 220.970mph (40.7296)
2) #21T Josef Newgarden @ 220.920mph (40.7387)
3) #26 Carlos Munoz @ 220.720mph (40.7756)
4) #83T Charlie Kimball @ 220.633mph (40.7917)
5) #98 Alex Tagliani @ 220.248mph (40.8631)
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INDIANAPOLIS, Thursday, May 9, 2013 – NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Kurt Busch completed the Indianapolis 500 Rookie Orientation Program during a test Thursday, May 9 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, reaching a top speed of 218.210 mph in an Andretti Autosport car.
But Busch is still taking a cautious approach toward any thoughts of participating in “The Double” of racing in the 97th Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 26.
“I need to get more comfortable in the Indy car because on a day like today, I’m white-knuckle, my hands were tense and firm, and that was only after 10 laps,” Busch said. “And so then it started to settle in.
“So there’s the mental side of it, there’s the physical side, there’s the sponsorship side that has to come together, and right now with Kyle Moyer (general manager, Andretti Autosport) looking sideways at Michael, Michael wants to do it, but they’ve already got five cars committed to trying to qualify for the Indianapolis 500 this year.
“To crawl, then walk, and then walk and then run, I think the proper thing is to go out and experience this car at another oval track and get into a race and experience what the buffeting is and the movement of the car when all the downforce changes.”
Busch completed the Rookie Orientation Program in which all drivers must participate to compete in Indianapolis 500 practice and qualifying, under the supervision of INDYCAR officials. Busch fulfilled all three phases of the program: 10 laps at 200-205 mph, 15 laps at 205-209 mph and 15 laps at 210-plus mph.
Las Vegas native Busch totaled 83 laps on the day in the No. 1 DHL Dallara/Chevrolet/Firestone that reigning IZOD IndyCar Series champion Ryan Hunter-Reay will drive in the Indianapolis 500. Andretti Autosport team owner and Indianapolis 500 legend Michael Andretti and Andretti Autosport driver James Hinchcliffe, a winner of two of this season’s four races, assisted Busch during the test.
“Today was an ideal day,” Busch said. “I couldn’t have asked for anything better as a rookie to come to Indy and have the track prepped the way it was and have the perfect weather conditions.”
Busch entered into the test knowing that driving into Turn 1 at IMS in an open-wheel Indy car would provide different challenges from what he’s experienced in a Sprint Cup stock car while driving in the Crown Royal presents the “Your Hero’s Name Here” 400 at the Brickyard Powered by BigMachineRecords.com.
“Today, that was the biggest transition,” Busch said. “When you want to step into the real world, that’s to hold it wide open, and when you do that, your brain says, ‘Wait a minute, you’re not supposed to do that because in the stock car how heavy it is and the lack of downforce.’ So when I did hold it wide open, I was off on my line, actually apexed too early, had a little extra wheel input on exit, and it changed the game. But then once I left it on the floor, the car started to come back to me and the pace started to slow down in my mind, even though the pace kept getting quicker with lap time.”
Andretti was thrilled with Busch’s performance.
“Well, I think it was good for us,” Andretti said. “We got our first laps in May, so that’s always nice. We wanted to do it in the proper way, and we wanted to do it in the proper way mostly for Kurt. We wanted him to have a real experience. We wanted to make some changes that he could feel and start to understand a little bit more about what to expect with the car in different conditions and different setups. I think we were able to achieve that.
“I would say the day went as good as we could have expected. Kurt did exactly what I thought he was going to do. He just drove exactly the way we wanted him to do it. He gave great feedback, right on pace, built up to it nice and steady, didn’t do anything stupid, which we knew he wouldn’t, and it was a really good day.”
SOURCE: Indianapolis Motor Speedway ♦ Photo by: Chris Owens
Lazier Partners Racing filed an entry for the 97th Indianapolis 500, with 1996 Indianapolis 500 winner Buddy Lazier listed as the driver.
The entry adds a fourth winner of “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” to the potential starting field, as Lazier joins three-time winners Dario Franchitti and Helio Castroneves and 2008 winner Scott Dixon.
Lazier Partners’ entry was the 34th for this year’s race, which will breed competition for the 33 starting spots during Pole Day qualifying Saturday, May 18 and Old National Armed Forces Bump Day qualifying Sunday, May 19.
“This all happened roughly 10 days ago and we’re literally putting everything together now. Sponsors are coming by the day, but we’re all heading to Indianapolis to get it done,” said Lazier, 45, who last attempted to qualify in 2009. “When I was 19 years old I was trying to pass my rookie test in a Machinists Union car that was given to us with an all-voluntary crew. So I’ve done it where it’s last minute and I’ve been there with some of the best teams of their era.
Lazier, from Vail, Colo., will drive the No. 91 Lazier Partners Dallara/Chevrolet/Firestone. No backup car was entered. The team owner is Lazier’s father, 1981 Indianapolis 500 veteran Bob Lazier.
2000 IZOD IndyCar Series champion Lazier last raced in the “500” in 2008, qualifying 32nd and finishing 17th in a Hemelgarn Johnson Racing entry. He failed to qualify in 2009.
Lazier, 45, becomes the senior driver in this year’s field in age and experience. He has made 16 previous starts at Indianapolis, with five top-five finishes. Lazier produced five consecutive top-seven finishes from 1996-2000, including the victory in 1996 and runner-up finishes in 1998 and 2000.
“I have so many miles around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway that I feel comfortable with the racetrack,” Lazier said. I haven’t driven this new rules package (twin-turbocharged V-6 Chevrolet engine and new chassis) but I was around with turbocharged engines before the Indy Racing League was formed. I’m looking forward to it.
“I know the car will be fast. I just don’t know how much track time we’ll get before qualifying.”
Lazier Partners Racing purchased the 2012 Dallara chassis that Jean Alesi drove for Fan Force United in the Indianapolis 500. As the name states, the entrant has multiple partners, with sponsor announcements pending.
“We had a good opportunity to buy this car, which is basically brand new,” said Lazier, whose family owns and manages a ski resort. “We were sitting around with a bunch of friends who are businessmen and skiers talking about how we could buy this car, put a team together and run Indy. I come back the next day and these guys bought it. Then I had to explain that we need a run budget, we have to lease the engine, but the process continued.”
Lazier, who has logged more than 2,600 race laps on the 2.5-mile oval, served as Alesi’s driver coach for the month.
“It was thought that Buddy would have been able to get into the back-up car, but as it turns out the only guy he would have bumped would have been Jean,” said Bob Lazier, the 1981 CART Rookie of the Year who started 13th that same year in the Indy 500 (blown engine relegated him to 19th). “So that kind of fell apart, and that was a disappointment for Buddy because he was on his way back to racing.”
Lazier Partners has been in discussions with IZOD IndyCar Series teams to form a technical alliance. Dennis LaCava, longtime chief mechanic with Hemelgarn Racing, will be the crew chief and details are being worked out with a veteran race engineer, according to Bob Lazier.
“Buddy has been counting the days before he could get going again,” Bob Lazier said. “He’s worked hard, the whole family has as well, and I think we’re more thrilled than the first time we were there.”
Source: INDYCAR
Thrill-seeking fans can enjoy an unprecedented perspective of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during the Month of May, as a zip line will be available on selected event days for the 97th Indianapolis 500.
This is the first time a zip line – a pulley and harness suspended from a cable – has been installed at “The Racing Capital of The World.” The zip line will start from a spot 32 feet above the ground and travel 200 feet. Fans must meet designated requirements to ride the zip line.
The zip line first will be installed just north of the Tower Terrace, running parallel to IZOD IndyCar Series cars roaring out of Turn 4 down the front straightaway for a one-of-kind ride of a lifetime. The zip line and will be operational from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Friday, May 17, 6:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday, May 18 and 7:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Sunday, May 19. Each ride on the Tower Terrace zip line will cost $5.
That zip line then will move to the IMS Snake Pit presented by Miller Lite – located inside Turn 3 of the IMS infield – for operation from 7 a.m.-4 p.m. on Race Day, Sunday, May 26. All fans with a Race Day ticket and free Snake Pit wristband can ride the zip line in the Snake Pit for free on a first-come, first-served basis.
Snake Pit wristbands can be obtained either at www.indy500snakepit.com or at one of the Snake Pit Tour stops around Indiana.
The Snake Pit features live music headlined by world-renowned electronic DJ’s Afrojack and Diplo. Besides the live music, activities in the Snake Pit will include one of the world’s largest water slides, volleyball, corn hole, body painting, food trucks, darts, hula hoops, breakdancers, go-go dancers and more.
Source: Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Pippa Mann has paired with Dale Coyne Racing to attempt to make her second start at the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race.
The team confirmed that the 29-year-old Mann will drive a Honda-powered Dallara as a teammate to Justin Wilson and Ana Beatriz. In 2011, Mann became the first British female (and eighth overall) to qualify for the race. She started 31st and finished 20th in a Conquest Racing entry.
“I’m delighted to be able to share this news,” said Mann, who recently has been an analyst on the IMS Radio Network’s broadcasts of Firestone Indy Lights races. “I actually first met Dale (Coyne) several years ago, before I came to the U.S., at what turned out to be the final Champ Car test at Sebring right before the open-wheel merger.
“We’ve sort of had an on-going conversation ever since then, and I actually got very close to getting in one of Dale’s cars on Bump Day last year. A year later, we’ve now put this program together, and I cannot wait to be back on track with Honda and running at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in May.”
Mann, who won a Firestone Indy Lights race from the pole at Kentucky Speedway and earned the pole for the Firestone Freedom 100 at the Speedway in 2010, will participate in a refresher course on the 2.5-mile oval. Opening Day is May 11. Pole Day is May 18 and Race Day is May 26.
SOURCE: INDYCAR • PHOTO: Brian Groce