My Old Kentucky Home

Actually, I've never lived in Kentucky.  And I've told my share of Kentucky jokes.  When you grow up in Indianapolis, you do those sort of things.

But I'll give Kentucky credit for building one helluva racetrack.  Kentucky was my first non-Indianapolis race, as I soaked in the excitement of 2- and 3-wide racing and the duel between Good and Evil Ed Carpenter and Ryan Briscoe.

And while I can't make it to Kentucky this weekend (a major disappointment), I can still preview the race with words (note, this also runs on SB Nation Indiana):

After their 86th IZOD IndyCar Series race decided by less than a second (in 199 events), the series heads to Kentucky Speedway, site of one of the most exciting races of the 2009 season.  0.0162 of a second separated Team Penske Ryan Briscoe and underdog Ed Carpenter.  For Carpenter, the win would have been the signature (and only) victory of his career.

The 1.5-mile oval is similar to Chicagoland Speedway, where pack racing dominated most of last weekend's night race; more is expected at the track just south of Cincinnati.

2009 Winner: Ryan Briscoe.  The Australian dueled with Carpenter over the final laps, each utilizing their push-to-pass button throughout and keeping fans on their feet.  

Briscoe's season has not gone as smoothly as last year's when he came within a few laps of the series championship.  He qualified on the pole at Chicagoland and ran up front throughout until his last stop put him back in the pack.

What to Watch:  Don't take your eyes off the lead pack.  Having been in attendance at Chicagoland, I can vouch for the addictive nature of watching 10-12 open-wheel cars moving at 200-plus mph within inches of each other.  Kentucky should feature more of the same - it did last year until late pit stops separated the field.

Who to Watch: Carpenter.  The 29-year old was inches from a career-defining win at Kentucky in 2009.  One wonders if he had won the race if he would have a full-time ride in the IZOD IndyCar Series this season.  

When Carpenter has run, he has been competitive.  At the Indianapolis 500, he qualified in the third row and was running near the front before a (dubious) blocking penalty brought him through the pits.  At Chicagoland, his car was once again at or near the front, only to be felled by mechanical troubles.

When to Watch: Versus has the coverage of the race, beginning at 8 p.m. ET (find Versus in your area here) on Saturday night.  Indycar.com will have streaming of practices, qualifications and the Firestone IndyLights race.  

On Kentucky

I got back from Kentucky Speedway at about 4:45 this morning. So forgive me if my thoughts on the race are not terribly coherent.

Obviously, some of the changes implemented by IndyCar worked, especially removing the half-inch wicker on the rear wing. It really seemed to allow the drivers to obtain an aero-draft and pass much easier.

The push-to-pass system, the subject of some controversy over whether or not it would allow for actual passing, added a different dynamic to the race. While sitting in the stands I could not tell who had used the button, it added an element of intrigue to the racing.

It's easy to feel bad for Ed Carpenter, since he didn't pick up his first career win (that's how it looked with the leaders nearing the finish line on lap 200), but overlooked in that is the fact that Ryan Briscoe came dangerously close to hitting the wall earlier in the race (on the only yellow flag restart, the second straight race with just one yellow). Briscoe charged from eighth to first in the last segment of the race, which is pretty darn impressive, and would have been impossible earlier this year without the new options being given to teams.

Tony Kanaan was solid in third place, jostling with Scott Dixon and Helio Castroneves for most of the final segment. At one point, it looked like he might have a chance to pass both Briscoe and Carpenter, but he pulled back. Given what AGR and Kanaan have gone through most of the summer, a podium result for Kanaan is a positive.

Getting this gem of a race, the closest in Kentucky Speedway history, is great, especially with the IndyCar Series moving the event to Saturday, September 4 next year. Especially when Bruton Smith, whose Speedway Motorsports, Inc., owns the Kentucky Speedway, promises to sell out the race next year (now if he'd keep his opinions on the oval-road/street course numbers to himself, that'd be fine with me).

Personally, it was my first trip to a race not at Indianapolis, so allow me a moment to reflect upon that experience. Having gone to Indianapolis since I was 11, the fact that coolers (and by proxy, alcohol) were not allowed in Kentucky Speedway was a big change.

However, I didn't mind it terribly for a couple reasons: first, the tailgating in the parking lots reminded me of college football season. It seemed as if 1 of every 5 cars brought a grill and cooked dinner prior to the race. Secondly, as quick as the race was (200.893 mph - the second-quickest in series history), there wasn't much time to have a beer. With all the green flag racing (and resulting side-by-side racing), there was never a lull in the action.

My only complaint was with traffic leaving the race - it felt like I was trying to leave Deer Creek - which resulted in my wife and I pulling in the garage about 4:30 (after sleeping for an hour at an I-275 rest area).

The Speedway itself was fantastic - I'd wanted to go there because I had heard that there wasn't a bad seat in the facility, and it was true. From our seats in the Grandstand (Section 3A, Row 6), we could see the entire track, crowd and pit areas - everything a fan would want. You could see the cars setting up for passes on the backstretch entering turn three and follow the entire race. In all, it was fantastic.

With Kentucky Speedway emphasizing camping next year, and the Labor Day weekend date, I'm in for it again, even if the IndyCar Series can't produce a finish as exciting as the 2009 version.

Let's See What Happens

Basically, the Honda engines that will race at Kentucky will be equipped with push-to-pass.

We'll see what it adds to Saturday's race (and I'll file a full report on returning from Kentucky Speedway), but Graham Rahal seems to think it will be a idea, telling Curt Cavin of The Indianapolis Star:

"You wouldn't think so, but 5 horsepower is a pretty big deal, even on these ovals. Every little 'hp' is going to help you.It will improve the racing because people forget that it's not only something that's used for overtaking, it's also for defending. It can be interesting. There's no doubt in my mind it's a good thing."

Rahal would know - he used a similar system when running Champ Car. Whether the push-to-pass and the added car options for teams help the racing this weekend remains to be seen, but give the IndyCar Series credit for trying to spice up the competition.