As 2013
comes to a close, I want to take a minute and reflect. I am so darn ready for
2014 to come. Have been for awhile. Wasn’t easy for me personally and as a race
fan, it felt worse.
I think
most racing fans and those in the racing community agree that a new year would
be a good thing.
I haven’t
seen a year that so many negative events have happened, some that have made
headlines in mainstream media nationally and/or worldwide! The only 100%
positive story I can think of with that honor was Danica’s pole at Daytona.
So I’ve put
together what I call the good, bad, and ugly about racing in 2013 (both
experiences everyone had and some personal ones), not ranked, just organized in
a way I saw fit. BTW, I mostly stuck
with NASCAR, INDYCAR, Formula 1, and sportscars as that was the main racing
series I kept up with this year.
THE GOOD
Tony Kanaan Finally
Wins the Indy 500
It didn’t end like some would’ve
preferred (bringing up that “let’s have a green-white-checkered” debate), but
how can you not be thrilled to see somebody who has waited so long to win the
500? I know I was excited. Not only did TK join Emerson Fittipaldi, Helio
Castroneves, and Gil de Ferran as the only Brazilians to win at Indy but he is
on the Borg-Warner with two of his best friends Dario Franchitti and Dan
Wheldon all in a row. That makes it sound even more special.
The Future of Racing
Looks Bright
As the drivers that have made their
marks reach the twilight and/or end of their careers, I can think of quite a
few young racers throughout the world ready to make their presence known. For
the next decade or so, these young drivers are going to be future of their
respective series:
Kyle Larson
Erik Jones
Carlos Munoz
Mathew Brabham
Jordan Taylor (and his “JT Facials”)
Sage Karem
Chase Elliott
James Hinchcliffe
Bubba Wallace
Ryan Blaney
And a heck of a lot more people I can’t remember off the top
of my head or who haven’t even been noticed yet.
BTW: Yacaman Did Calm
Down
I don’t think any driver in
Grand-Am was more criticized than Gustavo Yacaman early in the year. As a fan
of his team, Michael Shank Racing, I will admit there were times it was
warranted.
Detroit was not pretty. Not only
was Memo Rojas taken out extremely early but also one of Yacaman’s teammates
John Pew (who had nowhere to go and resulted in the first of two impressive
rebuilds by the Shank team). Then I think he went and hit someone else later on
before turning the car over to his co-driver. Yeah. He did deserve probation.
Mid-Ohio I still consider a mixed
incident. Rojas was being a bit aggressive too. Obviously, with the previous
incident, much of the blame (well, pretty much all of it) was placed on Gus
especially when his trek through the grass and back onto the track broke an oil
line and resulted in a pretty massive fire. That was crazy.
But from Watkins Glen through the
series finale at Lime Rock, I saw a lot of improvement in his performance. The
one that stands out the most to me was Lime Rock. Holding off Scott Pruett, one
of the greatest in the series, for second is impressive. Given time,
experience, and another good ride and Gus is going to surprise more people.
Some Awesome At-Track
Experiences
I was very
lucky to go to three different events this year that were racing-related. The
best part is I’d never been to any of these before.
In January,
I attended one day of Preseason Thunder at Daytona (Thursday became of the Fan
Fest). One of the coolest experiences ever. Met some great NASCAR drivers,
including my favorite, Tony Stewart. I will say that I think Kurt and Kyle
Busch were two of the NICEST drivers that night. I am even more of a fan of the
Busch brothers because of how nice they were.
In March, I
went to my first and only Grand-Am race at COTA. It was cold (except on pit
road) but the event an extremely cool experience. The highlight for me was what
I truly want to go to the race for – to meet the drivers and owner of my
favorite team in person. I am a huge Michael Shank Racing fan and that fandom
has grown in recent years (I’d always liked the team back when I had the Rolex
24 on at my birthday parties). I can conclude that Ozz Negri, John Pew (whom I
forgot to get a picture with), and Mike Shank are three of the nicest racing
people I’ve met. They’ve made me an MSR fan for life.
In October,
I attended the Grand Prix of Houston. That was a very crazy weekend (more
below) but I had a great time and met several great drivers. I also attended my
first Tweet Up where I met some great individuals whom I’ve had Twitter chats
with for a long time. I still think the idea of moving this race to June is a
bad idea. Just multiply Saturday’s weather times two. That’s a big possibility
for both races that weekend. Just sayin’
Oh Yeah… I Was On a
Racecar Too
Again, a
unique experience that I’d never experienced before was being one of the 200+
fans on the Michael Shank Racing #60 car at the Grand-Am series finale at Lime
Rock. That was very special and another moment that makes me even more of a fan
of this team. Super fan friendly with some talented drivers.
THE BAD
Um… Richmond?
If you don’t remember… Truex Jr. on
bubble of making the Chase, Bowyer is asked if arm itches, Bowyer spins out
suspiciously, Vickers suspiciously pits (radio chatter indicates confused
Vickers), Truex Jr. makes Chase, Waltrip team found to be manipulating the
outcome of the race, Truex Jr. taken out of Chase and Newman put in, Gordon
becomes 13th Chase driver in Chicago, in the drama Truex Jr. loses NAPA as a
sponsor and Waltrip is forced to downsize… That’s my brief version of what happened.
And it did NOT make NASCAR or Michael Waltrip Racing look good.
An Unusually High
Number of Injuries and Illness
I don’t really have to explain this
so here’s a list of several notable (at least to me) injuries and illnesses
that occurred and affected drivers this racing season (with the exception of
two that will be referenced later):
Ozz Negri – broken leg, mountain biking incident
– missed 3 Grand-Am races for surgery
Denny Hamlin – broken back, Cup series crash
(Auto Club) – missed 4 Cup races
Ryan Briscoe – broken wrist, INDYCAR crash
(Toronto)
Tony Stewart – broken leg, sprint car crash –
missed 15 Cup races (set to return at Datyona)
Bobby Labonte – broken ribs, mountain biking
crash – missed 3 Cup races
Martin Truex Jr. – broken wrist, Cup series
crash (Bristol)
Kimi Raikkonen – back problems – missed final 2
F1 races due to surgery
Justin Wilson – broken pelvis, INDYCAR crash
(Auto Club)
Brian Vickers – blood clots – missed final 3 Cup
and final 4 Nationwide races
Trevor Bayne – diagnosed with MS
A Rough Year for My
Favorite Sportscar Team
As I pretty
much stated above, I am a Michael Shank Racing fan. It was a tough season to be
one. There were some big days and some rough ones. In short – having to come
back form 7 laps down to finish 3rd at Daytona, the Daytona penalty, Ozz
getting hurt, two major car repairs, lack of speed, the “One that Got Away” at
Watkins Glen (still stings), being the only Ford team left, having to cut back
to one car for 2014…
There were
some positives – while tough, that was a Daytona run that I was proud of (maybe
even more than the 2012 victory), Ozz’s return (as a big fan, this was great),
John’s amazing run at Mid-Ohio, Gus’ improvement, more appearances from A.J.
Allmendinger and Justin Wilson, some good looking cars (thank you AERO), and
the “Never Give Up” attitude.
THE UGLY
The End of an Era and
How It Ended
I had a few
gripes after the Houston race weekend but they don’t compare to how I felt
after the second race. The fact that I was at what turned out to be the final
race of Dario Franchitti’s career is bittersweet. His retirement due to his
injuries marks the end of an era in INDYCAR racing. The man did it all and he
had a few years left in him. It’s said we didn’t get to see how those final
years would pan out.
That crash
itself still makes me cringe. Not only was Dario injured but so were fans and
an INDYCAR official. That’s scary. That was not how you want to end an event
you’ve brought back after several years absence.
Back to
Dario, I am proud to say I witnessed him win a race in person (one of the Texas
races in 2011) and to be able to watch the final years of his amazing career.
I’m going to miss watching him. I’m even going to miss watching he and Helio
fight to be the fourth four-time Indy 500 champion.
Thank you for the memories Dario.
Can’t wait to see what’s next for you.
Saying Goodbye Way
Too Soon
Maria de
Villota, Sean Edwards, Jason Leffler, Roger Rodas Allan Simonson, Dick Trickle…
Just to name a few.
I feel like
we as a racing community had to say goodbye to too many people in the racing
world much too soon. It’s painful to say.
To all of
those in the racing community who are no longer with us, young and old,
Godspeed.
One Final Blow to
Make Us Say “2013 Was Rough”
As we close
out 2013, the racing community waits with fingers crossed, praying for a racing
legend who is fighting for his life after a skiing accident. Hopefully the new
year brings new promise and we continue to hear of improvements in Michael
Schumacher’s condition.
In conclusion, 2013 had some good/great days, some bad days,
and some ugly ones. Here’s to a better 2014 with more good days and less bad.
Also, keeping fighting Schumi.
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