Greatness Before Our Eyes

On October 2nd, Dario Franchitti was crowned champion of the 2010 Izod IndyCar Series.  In the time since then, I’ve started to realize that we’re seeing something special- greatness is before our eyes.  The statistical rundown in and of itself displays greatness (you can look up the stats here).  However, accumulating a large number of wins is only a part of what makes a driver great.

The most applicable meaning of the word great is “of exceptional talents or achievements” (Dictionary.com).  Quite a few current Izod Indy Car Series drivers have exceptional achievements and talents, but none more so than Dario Franchitti.  Here is a list of drivers I have purposely left out and why:

1.  Helio Castroneves– He has won three Indy 500’s which is an exceptional achievement.  However, prior to his days racing with Penske, he had never won a race.   Also, to date, he has not won a championship.  His 24 victories are impressive; I won’t say otherwise.  However, winning half of your victories with one of the top teams in a spec series weakens the claim a bit.

2.  Scott Dixon– Two championships, one Indy 500 victory, and 24 career victories is a stout body of work.  Although a very good driver, Dixon has two strikes against him.  First, all but one of his victories has been with Ganassi, one of the top teams.  Also, he struggled mightily while using Toyota power in IRL.  While he had a few redeeming moments then, great drivers are able to create more of them with underpowered equipment.

3.  Tony Kanaan– With one championship, 15 victores, and the tenacity that most drivers wish they had, TK displays his quality.  The most glaring element of a successful career that keeps TK from being listed among the great drivers is an Indy 500 victory.

4.  Dan Wheldon– One championship, one Indy 500 victory… but virtually silent since 2008.  He has no wins when driving for lower tier teams.  He’s fast, but it seems he only finds this speed on ovals which severely limits what he can do in the series.

Franchitti, on the other hand, has raced well from the outset of his career dating back to his CART years.  In his favor, he nearly one the 1999 CART championship (tied Montoya but lost tiebreaker), won one IRL championship, and has won two consecutive championships since unification.  Even more incredible, he shows no signs of slowing down as he ages.  In fact, the maturity he has gained over the course of his career makes him one of the smartest drivers in the Izod Indy Car series.

Only time will tell if Franchitti will be able to match the greatness of a bygone era.  As long as he has the fire to race, he will be winning.  If that fire takes him another ten years into the future, you can bet that he will be winning races, and placing himself next to the great drivers of American open wheel racing.

 

Only 364 more days…

Countdown anyone?  I should probably leave that to Will at Is it May Yet? to handle.

I almost put my life on hold for the 500.  However, due to the amount of caution flags and other things, I didn’t actually watch the last 4 laps.  I know, shoot me now.  Thankfully, my dad had the radio on already in the car so I missed less than a lap.  The transition between standing in front of my TV nervously jumping up and down to sitting at the edge of my seat in the car would be amusing, I’m sure.

Overall, I’m pleased with the outcome of the race.  I’m also pleased that I called the race winner.  Alright, I gave myself some wiggle room, but I had it down to two drivers.  You can see the proof HERE in the comments section in addition to my reasoning behind it.  This race had excitement.  By far, one of the best stories was the performance given by TK; that was some crazy awesome driving!  I would loved to have seen him have a chance to win.  But alas, fuel is rather important (just ask Scott Dixon).

Another factor was pit mishaps.  Although, some were driver-induced, most were made by thew crew.  Uncharacteristically, two mishaps were from two different Penske teams.  Never mind that the only Penske team to not have issues, had their car in the wall shortly thereafter.  The complexion of the race was changed by these mishaps.  Strong cars had issues.  Will Power, Helio Castroneves, Scott Dixon, Rafael Matos, and Ryan Hunter-Reay.

Also making an appearance were black flags for blocking.  Cool, Barnhart, cool.  If he wishes to enforce the blocking penalty as strongly as he did at Indy, he better continue it or there will be numerous complaints.  I found the one on Townsend Bell to be a stretch, but if that’s to be the minimum for a block, then it should be held up as a standard.  We’ll see how this all plays out, I suppose.

It was exciting to see not just one or two, but three Dreyer and Reinbold cars lead at one point.  That team has been interesting to watch with four cars this month and showed nicely in the race.  My prayers and best wishes for a speedy recovery go out to Mike Conway.  After seeing the replay, I’m glad I didn’t get to see that live as it would have definitely hampered my enjoyment of my boyfriend’s grad party.

I’m excited for next year’s race already.  However, I can now focus on the championship battle which I’m sure will shape up to be excellent as always.

This is THE race

This is it.  I’m ready, I’m waiting, and I have refused to do anything during the time it’s on tomorrow.  My boyfriend’s grad party will just have to wait, I’m not practicing violin then, and my messy room will have to remain a biohazard that much longer.  And I’m totally okay with that.

It’s only the biggest race of the year.

I’m incredibly excited about watching the 500.  Maybe it’s because I usually end up missing part of it or my fan-dom has begun to be an obsession with me (at last).  It doesn’t matter.  I’m watching the Indy 500 tomorrow.  Watching thirty-three cars make their way around the track.  As I was reading other blogs tonight, I came across a post by Paul at Planet-IRL about his “eve of the 500 thoughts.”  One metaphor that resonated with me was comparing the Speedway to a cathedral.  I’ve been in a number of beautiful European cathedrals and every time, I was struck by the quiet awe they inspire.  I’ve walked through them hardly daring to breathe and wonder in my eyes.  I imagine that I’d feel the same if I ever have the privilege to attend the 500.  Someday, I’ll be there.

So, tomorrow, I’ll join thousands of other fans sitting in front of their TVs who wish they could be in Indianapolis.  I’ll witness THE race of races being run for the 94th time.  I can’t wait, and I hope you can’t either.

It’s May!!!

And 18 days after it begins,  I finally get excited.  Granted, I only had finals and my jury (ask if you want more info) before the semester was over, but it’s hit me.  Really hit me.  I have never beenthis excited about the Indy 500 before.  The first one I ever watched was in ’98 so it’s not like I’m exactly new at this.  There’s something in the air this year that has me and a lot of other fans buzzing.  And I like it.  To be honest, we have a lot to be excited about: car count is up, we have new blood among the powers that be, and some storylines are forming.  It’s great!
What really gives me the buzz, though, is reading firsthand accounts from people that are there.  I take in every word knowing that someday, I have to go to a 500.  Until that day, I’ll just have to get my fill of IndyCars at Iowa which I realize cannot in any way, shape, or form compare to IMS.  Anyway, I’m ready to see the potential that this year’s race has and celebrate its journey and culmination on race day.

Author’s note:  While written on 5/18, I feel the same thing, even more strongly, now.