Open Wheel Racing 2021, anyone there to watch?

[Spartanforlife4]

Only took 12 laps for a Ferrari Moment.

Or not. Gonna try to go with a partial nose here.

 

[MichVandal]

Rain makes this a lot more interesting.

 

[Spartanforlife4]

Rain makes this a lot more interesting.

If only Aston Martin had gone inters... Would have been a much more interesting finale. And Max still nearly ran himself into the wall a few times after the change. I'm sure almost all the drivers were having those close calls, but Max had the time to be extra careful and still seemed to be pushing in areas he didn't need to be.

Could the current F1 cars run the oval at Indy? Or would there be safety issues in regards to aerodynamics? Obviously they ran the road circuit when they used to have the Grand Prix in Indy, but for awhile the 500 was part of the F1 schedule, granted it was seven decades ago now. I know Jimmie Johnson was afraid of doing ovals during his short run in Indy Car, though he did eventually do the 500. Not sure how many, if any, of the other ovals he ran.

 

[Spartanforlife4]

IndyCar is very lucky... Wheel completely came off and the tire flew over the catch fence and barely missed landing in the grandstand. There were a few people walking in the concourse area but it looks like it missed them as well. That was almost a horrific disaster.

 

[MichVandal]

IndyCar is very lucky... Wheel completely came off and the tire flew over the catch fence and barely missed landing in the grandstand. There were a few people walking in the concourse area but it looks like it missed them as well. That was almost a horrific disaster.

We were at a 500 in the 80s when a flying tire killed a fan. We learned that as we were driving away. Pretty terrifying.

 

[MichVandal]

If only Aston Martin had gone inters... Would have been a much more interesting finale. And Max still nearly ran himself into the wall a few times after the change. I'm sure almost all the drivers were having those close calls, but Max had the time to be extra careful and still seemed to be pushing in areas he didn't need to be.

Could the current F1 cars run the oval at Indy? Or would there be safety issues in regards to aerodynamics? Obviously they ran the road circuit when they used to have the Grand Prix in Indy, but for awhile the 500 was part of the F1 schedule, granted it was seven decades ago now. I know Jimmie Johnson was afraid of doing ovals during his short run in Indy Car, though he did eventually do the 500. Not sure how many, if any, of the other ovals he ran.

Can, sure. Being practical and safe doing it is a different question. It would be interesting to see them do it, but I suspect it would be a Monza trim but less.

 

[Jimjamesak]

IndyCar is very lucky... Wheel completely came off and the tire flew over the catch fence and barely missed landing in the grandstand. There were a few people walking in the concourse area but it looks like it missed them as well. That was almost a horrific disaster.

Yeah that was the first thing I immediately saw.

 

[Spartanforlife4]

Well, this turned into a NASCAR super speedway finale.

 

[MichVandal]

Well, this turned into a NASCAR super speedway finale.

At least the green-white-checker finished within regulation.

 

[solovsfett]

IndyCar is very lucky... Wheel completely came off and the tire flew over the catch fence and barely missed landing in the grandstand. There were a few people walking in the concourse area but it looks like it missed them as well. That was almost a horrific disaster.

INDYCAR needs to revisit putting tethers on the wheels or raising the catch fence by at least 15 feet before another disaster happens.

also, they absolutely need to outlaw the dragon/snake moves the leaders make down the straights. It’s ridiculous. Also, crowding cars toward the pit wall should draw immediate penalties or dq’s. I’d they don’t end that practice we’ll see a car careen over the pit wall and kill a dozen people.

they’ve come a long way with safety but these drivers are out of control now.

 

[Jimjamesak]

What a legendary celebration by Newgarden though.

 

[Drew S.]

This was the first Indy 500 I’ve watched in probably 20 years and it was pretty enjoyable. The Captain knows what he is doing and I’m sure there are good times ahead for open wheel racing in the US.

Is it too unsafe for them to race at Michigan and Fontana now? I know those races used to be great back in the day.

 

[Russell Jaslow]

INDYCAR needs to revisit putting tethers on the wheels or raising the catch fence by at least 15 feet before another disaster happens.

also, they absolutely need to outlaw the dragon/snake moves the leaders make down the straights. It’s ridiculous. Also, crowding cars toward the pit wall should draw immediate penalties or dq’s. I’d they don’t end that practice we’ll see a car careen over the pit wall and kill a dozen people.

they’ve come a long way with safety but these drivers are out of control now.

They have tethers on the wheels. Somehow, the tether got sliced off the way it hit the other car. I’m sure they’ll be investigating that.

I agree with the weaving. Hated it when they first started doing it a few years ago. I don’t understand how Indy doesn’t consider that blocking. Not to mention darn dangerous.

 

[Russell Jaslow]

This was the first Indy 500 I’ve watched in probably 20 years and it was pretty enjoyable. The Captain knows what he is doing and I’m sure there are good times ahead for open wheel racing in the US.

Is it too unsafe for them to race at Michigan and Fontana now? I know those races used to be great back in the day.

Indy car left Michigan and Fontana for economic reasons. Not safety. Those races weren’t selling tickets anymore.

 

[solovsfett]

They have tethers on the wheels. Somehow, the tether got sliced off the way it hit the other car. I’m sure they’ll be investigating that.

I agree with the weaving. Hated it when they first started doing it a few years ago. I don’t understand how Indy doesn’t consider that blocking. Not to mention darn dangerous.

Thanks. I didn’t know they still had tethers. I hope they have their engineers investigate closely and respond for future safety.

 

[MichVandal]

They have tethers on the wheels. Somehow, the tether got sliced off the way it hit the other car. I’m sure they’ll be investigating that.

I agree with the weaving. Hated it when they first started doing it a few years ago. I don’t understand how Indy doesn’t consider that blocking. Not to mention darn dangerous.

It's bad enough they are weaving like that, but sometimes they seem to cross over the boundary into the pits- which is an even sharper set of weaving. That seems really bad. The weaving to break a draft could have been a big contributor to that restart crash.

edit- espn just showed the finish of the lap- Newgarden drove deep into the pits before coming back out. He and Ericsson were deep inside of the pit wall.

 

[walrus]

I’d like to see how they tether the wheels.

 

[MichVandal]

I’d like to see how they tether the wheels.

It's actually the upright that is tethered. Since the normal point of failure for them to let go is the suspension failing (they are just CF sticks) the tether is supposed to protect for the most common failure type. I don't remember how the car failed yesterday- did the wheel, stub axle, or upright fail instead?

 

[Russell Jaslow]

It's actually the upright that is tethered. Since the normal point of failure for them to let go is the suspension failing (they are just CF sticks) the tether is supposed to protect for the most common failure type. I don't remember how the car failed yesterday- did the wheel, stub axle, or upright fail instead?

You bring up a good point.

When the wheel came off, it looked like there was nothing attached to it. If so, then the failure was the wheel nut somehow being cleanly “snapped” off.

 

[solovsfett]

It's bad enough they are weaving like that, but sometimes they seem to cross over the boundary into the pits- which is an even sharper set of weaving. That seems really bad. The weaving to break a draft could have been a big contributor to that restart crash.

edit- espn just showed the finish of the lap- Newgarden drove deep into the pits before coming back out. He and Ericsson were deep inside of the pit wall.

Yes, both Newgarden and Ericksson went below the pit lane stripes. Honestly, both should be disqualified for that imo.