photo by Bob Jennings

Buddy Rice made his breathtaking pass to take second place, from Tony Kanaan and Helio Castroneves, on the restart of the 88th "Indianapolis 500," after rain halted action on the track for ninety minutes. That was the pass where Rice moved within inches of the inner concrete wall that separates the pits from the track. I think Rice's bold move was the highlight of the 2004 "500." I believe it was the single most important development in the 88th running of the "greatest spectacle in racing," because it essentially set the tone for the remainder of the race. 

Within seven laps of the restart of last year's "Indianapolis 500" on lap 27, Rice passed Dan Wheldon to take the lead. Despite stalling the engine on his Rahal - Letterman Argent/Pioneer G Force - Honda during a pit stop halfway through the race, Buddy displayed his superiority over the field on several occasions. The only time Rice was passed on the race track, throughout the 88th "500," was on lap 50, when Sam Hornish went by into first place.  

As Buddy described Hornish's pass, on the DVD about the 88th "Indianapolis 500," he wasn't concerned when Sam got by, because it was early in the race and car 15 was caught in heavy traffic at the time. So Buddy decided to let the Penske car go by. Rice's narration, over footage of the "500," revealed a very pragmatic approach to that race. Perhaps Buddy's post race commentary does not portray the emotions he was feeling while he was waging his battle to win "Indy." But on the DVD, Rice was a cool customer indeed. The stall during the pit stop didn't seem like any big deal to Buddy either.

The primary cars Rice had to beat on May 30, 2004 were the Andretti Green Dallara - Hondas of Tony Kanaan and Dan Wheldon. On lap 172, Rice passed Kanaan for second place. At the same time, race leader Adrian Fernandez rushed into the pits for fuel. This elevated Buddy into first, followed by Kanaan and Wheldon.

Within two laps, rain began falling, which brought out the yellow flag. With tornadoes threatening the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the cars were circling under caution, when the red and checkered flags were waved simultaneously, after 180 laps. The "Indianapolis 500" victory belonged to Buddy Rice.

Buddy Rice is on the charge, on the way to victory in the 88th "Indianapolis 500," on May 30, 2004.

photo by Bob Jennings

Like Arie Luyendyk, Graham Hill and Troy Ruttman before him, Buddy Rice's first Indy car win came in the biggest racing event in the world, the "Indy 500." Whenever something like that happens, the first Indy car triumph in a racer's career coming at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, it feels odd. For instance, Dan Wheldon's win in the 89th "Indianapolis 500" seemed very natural, something expected and anticipated, especially after the Englishman won three of this season's four opening Indy car events. Rice's win on May 30, 2004 wasn't quite like that, although so strong was Buddy's performance, his win felt appropriate. It was a "best man wins" situation in every sense.

Buddy Rice's story in 2004 was like - - - Cinderella.

When Eddie Cheever fired Buddy with three races remaining in the 2003 season, in favor of Alex Barron, it appeared Rice's Indy car career was in a stall. You can't keep a good soldier down though. After Kenny Brack was seriously injured in the 2003 season finale at Texas Motor Speedway, Bobby Rahal hired Buddy as a temporary substitute for the 1999 "Indianapolis 500" winner. Rice responded by putting the Pioneer/ Argent Mortgage car 15 on pole for the 2004 Indy Racing League season opening event at Homestead - Miami Speedway, on February 29. That was a surprise to me at the time.

That was before everyone figured out that Honda was on the verge of blowing Toyota away in 2004, after Toyota won eleven of sixteen events and Honda only won twice, with Sam Hornish taking the other three wins for Chevy/Cosworth, during the 2003 season. Honda cut a swath through Indy car racing, in 2004, like I never anticipated, winning fourteen of sixteen events last season, with only Sam Hornish taking the season opener at Miami and Marlboro Team Penske teammate Helio Castroneves winning the season closer at Texas Motor Speedway. Those were the only wins the mighty Toyota brigade could salvage from their Japanese rival auto maker and I suspect those wins were more Marlboro Team Penske than Toyota.

Honda adapted better than Toyota to the package of changes the Indy Racing League introduced for 2004, after Kenny Brack's crash at Texas, in October 2003, and Tony Renna's fatal crash a couple weeks later, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. When the IRL introduced a reduction in engine size, from 3.5 liters to three liters, for the 88th "Indianapolis 500," the Honda - Toyota battle was over. Now Toyota is preparing to hide tail and run for the safer world of NASCAR. What a bunch of chicken shits! 

I have driven Toyotas since December 1978 and each of my four Celicas and three Camrys have been wonderful automobiles. I am a bona fide, satisfied customer and perhaps it can be said that Toyota builds the finest consumer vehicles in the world. But as racers they stink.

Yes, I realize Scott Dixon ended a forty race victory drought at Watkins Glen, in a Target Ganassi Panoz - Toyota. I also know that Sam Hornish won at Phoenix and Milwaukee in a Marlboro Team Penske Dallara - Toyota and Helio Castroneves won at Richmond in his Marlboro Team Penske Dallara - Toyota. That gives Toyota four wins in the sixteen Indy Racing League events held so far in 2005. Subtract Tomas Scheckter's win at Texas Motor Speedway in the Pennzoil Panther Dallara - Chevrolet from the total number of races and that means that Honda still has taken eleven race victories of a possible sixteen, which shows a significant advantage for the smaller of the two Japanese auto makers competing in the IRL. 

I am sorry that General Motors did not change their mind about remaining in the IRL though. I think they were doing pretty well, with the Cosworth program. The Chevy/Cosworth Indy V8 is fast.  My guy Tomas Scheckter has had some good races this season, with Chevy power. The win in Texas was a gem. I loved it!

Roger Penske was ready to switch to Chevrolet for 2006, if GM agreed to stay in Indy car racing. Penske could have his choice of engines. So that says to me the potential of the Cosworth package is pretty high.  I really wish Chevrolet had decided to stay in the IRL.

Thank goodness for Honda, who at California Speedway, announced they would continue supplying engines in the Indy Racing League through the 2009 season. In making the announcement at the IRL finale, Robert Clarke, who heads Honda's U.S. racing program, announced Honda will remain in the Indy car series, even without competition from another manufacturer and also if they have to supply the entire field of competitors with power after 2006.

That's terrific news!

To start the 2004 season, Buddy Rice finished seventh at Homestead - Miami and followed that with a ninth place at Phoenix and a sixth at Twin Ring Motegi.

Rice was pole position qualifier at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, for the 88th "Indianapolis 500," on May 15.

I recall thinking it was unexpected that Buddy beat the Andretti Green cars for the "Indy" pole in May 2004. The Rahal - Letterman number 15 was only sixth quickest in pre-qualifying practice runs. I believe most of the pole speculation centered on Tony Kanaan and Dan Wheldon, with a nod towards the Marlboro Team Penske cars and some speculation focusing on the new arrival (from CART) Adrian Fernandez too.

Buddy Rice qualifies on pole position for the 88th "Indianapolis 500," at 222.024 mph, on May 15, 2004.

photo by Bob Jennings

Buddy Rice found his stride at the right time. His "Indy" victory was deserved, just as Gil de Ferran's victory in the 87th "Indianapolis 500" was well deserved.  After the 2004 "500" ended, second place finisher Tony Kanaan proclaimed Rice the fastest driver during the "500." Kanaan was stating the obvious.

Success in 2004 didn't end at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for Buddy Rice. The "Indy" winner took his second career Indy car victory, on July 4, at Kansas Speedway. That was an excellent day for the Rahal Letterman team as Rice beat teammate Vitor Meira by a mere .0051 seconds to the checkered flag. On August 1, Rice inherited first place at Michigan International Speedway, with ten laps remaining, after leader Tony Kanaan stopped for fuel (needlessly) on lap 190.

In addition to his wins last season, at Indianapolis, Kansas and Michigan, Rice made a charge at the 2004 Indy Racing League championship. After crashing at Texas Motor Speedway, on June 12, to finish fifteenth, Buddy had second places at the Milwaukee Mile and Kentucky Speedway, a fourth at Nazareth, a fifth at California Speedway and a pair of sixth places at Richmond and Nashville. 

However Rice was the twenty second (and last place) finisher at Pikes Peak International Raceway, on August 22, when he crashed out of the race on lap seven. Then on September 12, at Chicagoland Speedway, after leading 39 laps, Rice had a scary moment when he flipped car 15 on lap 185, fifteen laps from the finish. That put Buddy out of the IRL title chase and he finished third in points behind champion Tony Kanaan and runner up Dan Wheldon.

Which race was it where Rice and Dan Wheldon banged and bumped off each other in 2004? I remember the incident but I can't place it with a particular event. It was near the end of the race and I think Buddy and Dan were battling for the lead. Hold on, let me go to the IRL website and see if I can figure this out.

Was it Pikes Peak?

Okay - - - - - .

I couldn't determine where the Rice - Wheldon confrontation occurred, from looking on the Internet. Maybe it didn't happen at all and I'm just imagining things. Damn, I hope not. No, I know there was an IRL  race, in summer 2004, where the two drivers banged into each other going for the lead. 

Old age. I hate it!

I am going to have to go back and watch some of the videos I recorded during the 2004 season because I can't recall where Rice and Wheldon slammed and banged into each other. I am nearly overrun with VHS cassettes I made from racing on television. Hell I haven't watched most of them anyway. Between those here at my place and in my mom's basement, I bet I have recordings of 99 percent of all the Indy car, Formula One and NASCAR races run since 1985.

I'm a racing collector. I collect photos (mostly my own now), I collect books. I collect videos and now DVDs. I collect magazines. I collect die cast models. I collect computer racing games. I have so much racing memorabilia, someone could start a museum with all the racing I have stored here and stacked there. In the final analysis, I will likely die before I can get  through my racing related possessions and catalog and organize them in some manner. Maybe not. Perhaps it's a good winter project. But I probably won't do it. 

It's all nuts. What am I going to do with my collection? Basically, it's going to sit here and there until I pack up and move somewhere else. Then I will take it with me and store it here and stack it there again. I don't have as much money to spend on models, magazines and books as I used to. But I will keep collecting. It's what I do and I'm too old to change now. 

Forget about me. Let's get back to Buddy Rice.

A case can be made for Buddy Rice being celebrated as the Indy car driver of the year for 2004.  It's true that Tony Kanaan's sensational string of finishes in 2004 (Miami - 8th, Phoenix - 1st, Motegi - 2nd, Indianapolis - 2nd, Texas - 1st, Richmond - 5th, Kansas - 3rd, Nashville - 1st, Milwaukee - 4th, Michigan - 2nd, Kentucky - 5th, Pikes Peak - 5th, Nazareth - 2nd, Chicagoland - 3rd, California - 2nd and Texas - 2nd) is without parallel. But Rice whipped Kanaan when it counted most, on May 30, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and he matched Tony's victory total for the season too.

Unfortunately, Rice has been unable to put together another successful season this year. In fact, after hitting the highest of highs last year, bad fortune has dogged Buddy throughout 2005. It's like the navy blue, cinnamon red and white number 15 Argent/Pioneer Panoz - Honda became stuck in a sand trap. Where 2004 was mostly positive for Rice, his fortunes have fallen faster in 2005 than those of the Dan Aakroyd character Louis Winthorpe III, in the classic 1983 film Trading Places.

Do you remember that movie? It was great! Aakroyd and Eddie Murphy were both at their best. Jamie Lee Curtis showed off her charms. They were nice, real nice! That was a good flick. How long has it been since I have watched a movie? 

I can go months and years without watching a movie now. Perhaps that's because I find reality chaotic and absorbing enough, without introducing fiction into my realm. I no longer read novels anymore either.

Buddy qualified fourth in the 2005 Indy Racing League opener, at Homestead-Miami Speedway, but car 15 broke after 92 (of 200) laps and Rice finished in nineteenth place. At Phoenix International Raceway, on March 19, Rice qualified tenth, but had an accident on lap 15 and finished twenty second. Things went better in St. Petersburg, with Buddy finishing seventh. On April 30, Rice finished third at Twin Ring Motegi and as May approached, it appeared that Buddy was getting back into the groove.

Then came the unthinkable! On the second day of regular practice for the 89th "Indianapolis 500," on Wednesday May 11, Rice hit the wall in turn two, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Although Buddy was able to get out of car 15 on his own, he was diagnosed with a concussion and severe back contusions.

At first, it was thought Rice would only be out of action through the first weekend of qualifications. After further examination however, the Speedway medical staff announced the defending "Indy" winner would not be cleared to drive in the 89th "Indianapolis 500." Think about how disappointed Buddy must have felt at not being able to defend his victory.

Rice displayed grace far beyond his twenty nine years in handling his hurt. I felt empathy for Buddy as he stood by to congratulate his replacement Kenny Brack (how ironic) when the Swede put the Argent Mortgage/Pioneer number 15 into the field, for the 89th "Indianapolis 500" on May 21, with the fastest qualifying average on the grid, at 227.598 mph.  

Boy that's a mouthful. I still have a lot of work to do before I can call myself a writer. But I'll keep trying.

Anyway - I was impressed by the way Rice handled Brack's qualification success, very impressed! It must have been tough for Buddy to watch that, but he was first to congratulate Kenny after the qualification run.

Since Rice's Indy car debut, at Michigan International Speedway, in July 2002, I recognized the talent which Buddy the racer possessed. His "Indy" victory in May 2004 basically confirmed what I already knew. But the way he handled his heartbreak in May 2005 also made me a fan of Buddy Rice the person.

Unfairly, Rice's return to action at Texas Motor Speedway, on June 11, has not been anything like a turn in fortunes. His post "Indy" season mostly reads like a bad novel; twenty first at Texas; eleventh at Richmond; tenth at Kansas; eighteenth at Nashville; seventeenth at Milwaukee; twenty second at Michigan; fourteenth at Kentucky; eleventh at Pikes Peak; then finally something to smile about, a second at Infineon Raceway on August 28.  

It was back to "disappointmentville" on September 11, at Chicagoland Speedway, for Buddy however. I listen to Jimmy Buffet's Radio Margaritaville! quite a bit. It's a good channel, terrific music, much of it stuff I never heard before. I like Jimmy Buffet. I think he's a cool guy and a wonderful story teller. I like to listen to Buffet's music too. I still like The Beatles, Steely Dan and Eric Clapton the best, but Buffet's lyrics are exceptional; very clever and well crafted. The mix of country and folk, punctuated with the sound of the tropics that Buffett puts into his music generates an interesting blend of visual and audio images.

Anyway, after starting next to Rahal Letterman teammate Danica Patrick, on the front row of the starting grid for the "Peak Antifreeze Indy 300," car 15 fell back in the field, and finished thirteenth, albeit only 1.1535 seconds behind race winner Dan Wheldon.

Think about that. There was only 1.1535 seconds separating the first thirteen finishers at Chicagoland Speedway on September 11. People can worship their NASCAR heroes. They can savor Formula One like fine wine. Robin Miller and the old CART fans can tell us time and again how the Champ Car series is on the way back, with its horse shit street racing. The real truth is the Indy Racing League puts on the best racing in the world and it's better now than it has ever been!

The IRL hasn't caught on with the general racing public the way it should. I would be lying if I didn't say I was concerned about avenues of growth in the current climate, but regardless, it's still the best racing there is - anywhere, anyplace, anytime.

Tony George's crew is trying to find the hook. It's not easy in today's environment. They have a wonderful product, but they need to find a way to sell it better.

I heard a figure, from recently departed Indy Racing League official Ken Ungar, that attendance at IRL races is up 17 percent in 2005, and based on the crowds I have seen, in person and on TV, there does appear to have been a nice increase in that respect. TV ratings are up 26 percent, which is very good. Obviously Danica Patrick has played a large part in both attendance and TV ratings increases. 

But the automobile factories are pulling away from the Indy car series, as they always have in the past, and always will in the future. There is uncertainty about how to replace the glitter and gold that came to the IRL when Toyota and Honda entered competition in 2003. It's very similar to when the same thing happened to CART in 2001 and 2002.

Fortunately, Honda is sticking with the IRL for at least four more years. To show my appreciation, when I purchase a new car, it will be a Honda. Thanks Honda.

Kevin Kalkhoeven and Gerry Forsythe picked up the pieces of the CART shambles left by the departure of (in order) Mercedes Benz, International Speedway Corporation, Roger Penske, Toyota, Chip Ganassi, Honda, Michael Andretti and Bobby Rahal. They have a done a good job rebuilding Champ Car. Kalkhoeven isn't afraid to spend money. He spent a lot of money when he bought the Long Beach race, to keep it from becoming an IRL event. When the organizers of the Montreal race tried to switch to the IRL, Kalkhoeven' s attorneys rattled their swords and that race will stay with Champ Car in 2006.  

Champ Car had terrible crowds at Milwaukee and Las Vegas, declining crowds at Long Beach, Portland, Cleveland and Montreal and a race that didn't come off in Korea. But they also had terrific crowds in Mexico, Toronto, Edmonton and San Jose. I didn't pay much attention to the race in Denver, but I'm sure there was a decent crowd, as there is at most Champ Car street races.

I heard the new Champ Car CEO Steve Johnson on Kevin Lee's sports talk show, on WIBC, a couple weeks ago. Johnson seemed like a positive fellow and expressed a lot of confidence in the future of his series and reinforced the focus on street racing and the basic downtown festival concept approach in Champ Car's marketing.

Johnson did not discuss television or TV ratings for Champ Car events. I can't recall seeing any ratings figures regarding the series events shown on broadcast TV. This season, the races in Long Beach (NBC), Milwaukee (CBS), Portland (CBS), Toronto (CBS) and Montreal (NBC) were shown on broadcast TV, with the other events being televised on Speed TV on a live or delayed basis. Champ Car buys it's time on the networks, which isn't the best situation.

There seems to be a trend, if you look at the "Ask the experts" forum, on The Indianapolis Star website, in some people's opinion, that Champ Car is on the rise while the IRL is in a free fall. Joe, from Avon, Indiana, called it "circling the drain," in reference to the fourteen race schedule announced by the Indy Racing League for 2006.

Even with these negatives popping up in the past few months, I still don't want to see the IRL and Champ Car reunite into one series however. I have watched a few Champ Car races this season. Milwaukee, Cleveland and Edmonton immediately come to mind.  I write that, even though I am interested in how Justin Wilson and A.J. Allmendinger do in each race and would like to have both drivers in Indy cars. I acknowledge that Kalkhoeven and Forsythe have exceeded my expectations since they purchased the CART assets in January 2004.

To be honest, I did not think the newly packaged CART series would make it through 2004. I was wrong. It isn't the first time and it won't be the last.

I like the look of the new Panoz Champ Car chassis, that will debut in 2007, as it is represented by the drawings in the recent press releases that have appeared on the Internet. The upturned nose section and angular lines of the proposed Champ Car Panoz look good. It looks like a race car of the future. I also like that the price will be 35 percent less than the current spec Lola and the car will be smaller and lighter while engine horsepower will increase. Those are good moves by Kalkhoeven and company. 

Those guys obviously have a better grasp of the situation than their ego driven predecessors in CART. They have retained the allegiance of old time hard core "CART - isans" and capitalized on what did work in the past for CART.

I acknowledge that it really bothers me to see A.J. Foyt IV  leave the Indy Racing League for NASCAR. I am disappointed because I think young Foyt is talented and is the kind of racer the IRL needs to better sell its product.

A.J. Foyt IV only finished 28th in the 89th "Indianapolis 500," completing 84 laps.

photo by Bob Jennings

But I don't want to see half the races on the Indy car schedule run on street circuits. I hate those things! To me they aren't racing. I hated street racing in the 1980s, when CART kept adding new events. I did not like it that St. Petersburg was added to the IRL schedule this season, although to its credit, the first Indy Racing League race with right hand turns was more competitive than any street race I have ever seen.

I enjoy competition at places like Watkins Glen, Road America, Mid Ohio and Laguna Seca, but I don't think even these events project nearly as well on television as the races on ovals. However when I used to go to Road America and Mid Ohio, in the 1980s through the mid 1990s, to see CART races, the photo opportunities were terrific and the atmosphere was good, in many ways much better than sitting in a grandstand at one of the newer generation oval circuits.     

For pure racing excitement though, you cannot beat the show the Indy Racing League puts on at Texas, Kansas, Michigan, Chicagoland and California. It's the best.

I will admit that I am disappointed by the 2006 IRL schedule. Instead of cutting the number of races by three, new events should be added to the seventeen run in 2005. I can understand not wanting to go against football. Seeing empty seats at Nextel Cup events, since the "Chase" began, even at Talladega, which blew me away, is proof the NFL still rules. So closing the season in early September at Chicagoland makes sense.

But there is time in the spring for more Indy car races. Nearly the entire month of March is open. Why not run these March races in Florida (Miami and St. Petersburg) in March. Then free up April for Kansas and Motegi. For the race immediately following Indianapolis, why not try doing it at California Speedway? I realize the IRL races in Fontana have always been (shall we say) attendance challenged. But Los Angeles is such a huge market, too big to discard.

I'm not a racer and don't have to do the work, but how can converting racing machinery from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway to Watkins Glen configuration take any more time than taking the basic "Indy" setup across the country to California?

I don't blame the IRL for dropping Phoenix. That was a lost cause, especially now, with two Nextel Cup races each year. It's too bad though, because Phoenix has been part of the Indy racing tradition for sixty plus years. But hey, what can you do? If they don't want you anymore, to hell with them. If my beloved pal John Dailey were alive today, he would be so disgusted that Phoenix let Indy car racing get away.

I am sad about Pikes Peak International Raceway going away. That seemed like a nice mile track and the crowds appeared to be solid and ever on the increase for the IRL. It's too bad C.C. Myers was not able to make a go of it. With exception of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and a handful of other tracks (New Hampshire, Pocono, the Milwaukee Mile, Kentucky, etc.), if you don't belong to International Speedway Corporation or, to a lesser extent, Speedway Motorsports, it's going to be difficult to maintain a major league facility in the coming years. Dover Downs is even at the mercy of the Frances and Bruton Smith, for all intents and purposes.

That's just the way it is today baby. Is it a good thing? I don't think so. But it's life in 2005 nevertheless.

For the life of me, the only valid reason I can think of for NASCAR denying Kentucky Speedway a Nextel Cup date is because the France family wants to drive the local management out of business so they can buy the place for next to nothing.      

Some of the things going on in modern racing, I don't like. But I still love the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the "Indianapolis 500" and the Indy Racing League, warts and all, more than ever. Again - it's the best. 

Back to Buddy Rice - again.   

The IRL race in Watkins Glen had to be another letdown for Rice, as he finished nineteenth in a twenty car field, after an accident on lap 27 (of 60) eliminated Buddy from the third road race of the season.   

The Rahal - Letterman team hasn't been nearly as strong as it was last season. In 2004, at many of the Indy Racing League events, the Rahal - Letterman cars were on an even (if not superior) level with the Andretti - Green armada. Of course, there has been Danica - mania this season and Vitor Meira was second at Indianapolis and Kentucky and raced Tony Kanaan and Wheldon three wide to the checkered flag in Kansas. But for the most part, Bobby Rahal's bunch has lagged behind Andretti Green, Marlboro Team Penske and to a lesser extent, Panther Racing this year. The team has yet to score a race victory in 2005.

Perhaps running three cars for a full season is stretching Rahal - Letterman too thin. Maybe it's merely a case of Andretti Green becoming that much stronger than they were in 2004. Whatever it is, it's clear something is missing from 2004 for Bobby Rahal's operation.   

I think Buddy Rice was hurt badly at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in May, perhaps worse than we thought at first. I hope that he's back to full strength by next season. He's an "Indy" champion, and a legitimate one at that. There's a lot of skill among the current group of drivers competing in the Indy Racing League at the moment and Rice was at the top of that group last season. I hope he gets back to that level again.  

- - - - -

I like this photo of Scott Dixon during the 89th "Indianapolis 500." It stands up well to a reduction in pixels to fit this web page. Does someone out in cyber land know how to fit a jpeg to a web page, without losing resolution, the way Microsoft does it on Internet Explorer?

I have never been a fan of the color scheme of the Target Chip Ganassi cars. In this photo however, I like the way the silver border accents the contrast between the white top of the car and the red bottom section. Unfortunately Dixon's Target Panoz - Toyota number 9 wasn't as good as it looked in the 89th "500." Dixon only rose as high as ninth during the race, before an accident took the 2003 Indy Racing League champion out after 113 laps.

  photo by Bob Jennings

I hope what happened to Scott Dixon, at Watkins Glen, will happen to Buddy Rice. 

Two years ago, at this time, Scott Dixon was the hottest racer in the Indy Racing League. During the 2003 season, there were three drivers who were basically in charge, if you will, in Indy car racing. Those three drivers were "Indy 500" winner Gil de Ferran,  two time series champion Sam Hornish and CART import Scott Dixon. 

I remember when Dixon came to CART in 2001, after winning the 2000 Indy Lights championship, to drive a Reynard - Toyota for the old Pac West team. I watched Dixon win his third ever CART start, at Nazareth, beating Kenny Brack, Paul Tracy, Jimmy Vasser and Christian Fittipaldi. I think Dixon was something like the youngest winner ever of an Indy car race; if you can call a CART race in 2001, an Indy car race. I thought it was pretty good for a twenty year old to win so early in his CART career, even though, if I recall correctly, Dixon was the benefactor of a fuel consumption situation.

Scott Dixon did not win again in 2001. But he did finish eighth in final CART standings for the season. Dixon joined the Chip Ganassi Target team after the 2002 season got underway, when the Pac West team folded, and then Scott came with Ganassi to the Indy Racing League, after Chip abandoned CART for the IRL full time for 2003.

I was intrigued by the prospect of a Scott Dixon, Tomas Scheckter pairing for 2003, in the red and white Target Ganassi G Force - Toyotas. I felt that Dixon would provide a good measurement for Scheckter in his second season of IRL competition. Somewhat to my surprise, Dixon was superior to Scheckter when the two were paired at Target Chip Ganassi in 2003.

Although Tomas led a lot of laps, in the number 10 Target  Ganassi G Force - Toyota during the 2003 season, including a race high 63 laps in the 87th "Indianapolis 500," he did not win, although he could have easily won three or four times with a small amount of good luck. Dixon was victorious at Homestead-Miami, Pikes Peak and Richmond and then came out on top in a five way battle, at the season finale at Texas Motor Speedway, with a second place finish behind Gil de Ferran, to take the IRL championship.    

When you think about the fact that Dixon won his very first Indy Racing League start, at Homestead-Miami Speedway, on March 2, 2003, it's pretty significant. If memory serves me correctly, the only other time a driver won his debut IRL race occurred when Buzz Calkins won the very first race for the series, in January 1996, at Walt Disney World Speedway. Perhaps I need to check my facts a bit closer before I sign off on that statement, but I believe I'm correct that only Scott Dixon and Buzz Calkins won first time out in the IRL.    

It looked as if the sky was the limit for Scott Dixon at the end of 2003.

Then much like the way misfortune has plagued Buddy Rice this season, after his dream success in 2004, it all turned to nothing for Dixon. Scott was considered to be one of the top prospects for a Formula One ride with the Williams - BMW team, after his success in Indy cars. But from what I could determine, the test did not go well for Scott. It seemed to all go down hill after that.

Dixon hit the end of the pit wall, at Homestead-Miami Speedway, on lap 87 of the 2004 IRL season opener. It was a nasty looking incident and it shook up Scott quite a bit. It's ironic this occurred at the scene of Dixon's most notable victory a year earlier. The New Zealand driver finished second in the next race, at Phoenix. But that's as good as it was. The last time Dixon led an Indy car race was three laps in the 2004 race, at Homestead, before his accident. There have been some top ten finishes but no contending drives since then - until Watkins Glen.   

The downturn in Scott Dixon's career runs parallel to the poor performance of the once powerful Target Ganassi team and the Toyota Indy car program. That makes sense. Honda has kicked Toyota's ass so badly in the Indy Racing League the past couple years and the Target cars have been the primary victim of Toyota's decline.

It seems inconceivable that Dixon's job with Target Ganassi was actually on the line on July 24, at the Milwaukee Mile. After Ryan Briscoe crashed another one of Chip's Target Panoz race cars, Ganassi told Dixon and Darren Manning that if either driver wrecked during the Milwaukee race, they would be fired on the spot. Neither driver had a mishap, but Manning brought his car to the pits after 34 laps, complaining about the handling on the number 10 Target Panoz. Darren was fired a few days later.      

The rain stopped pouring down on Scott Dixon and Chip Ganassi at Watkins Glen however. Dixon's driving was crisp and Scott put on a superb 2003 like demonstration.

During the first half of the race, at the Glen, Helio Castroneves looked good. It appeared to be a Castroneves day. The two time "Indianapolis 500" winner led 23 laps of the opening thirty, in the 60 lap event, with Tony Kanaan, Dixon, Patrick Carpentier and Dario Franchitti following in order. But Dixon overhauled Helio on lap 31 to move into the lead, in an Indy car race, for the first time since February 29, 2004, at Homestead-Miami Speedway. After that, the number 9 Target Ganassi Panoz - Toyota was solidly in command and took the lead for good on lap 48, after the final pit stop cycle.  

Dixon's win had to be of substantial importance to Chip Ganassi. It's been reported recently that Ganassi was becoming weary of losing in the Indy Racing League. There have been rumors that Chip was either going to leave the IRL, cut back to two cars for 2006 or run a partial schedule in the Champ Car series.

Despite the fact Chip Ganassi is difficult to take sometimes, his team is still an important resource to the Indy car series. If the Target cars were to disappear from IRL starting grids, it would be another setback in a sequence of big disappointments this summer, following the announcement by General Motors that it was definitely pulling out after 2005 and Toyota's decision to leave after 2006.  

What is going on? I feel sorry for Buddy Rice, Scott Dixon and Chip Ganassi when it's my life that stinks. If Buddy Rice and Scott Dixon have each been stuck in a thick funk, it's yours truly who is in the big hole and immersed in the deep blues. It ain't the worst! It isn't the lowest low. Those times already occurred, when I still had the resources to experience the pain. But it sure as hell isn't anything to celebrate either.

I passed birthday number fifty-nine, in June, and the next time June 23 rolls around, I will be sixty.  Do you know what almost being sixty means?

It means I don't have the slightest idea where I belong. 

I hang on in a work place, but at night, when I am alone with my thoughts, I have my doubts about how relevant I actually am. Most of the people I work with are much younger than I am and they are an exceptional group, probably the best group of folks I have ever worked with. My co workers treat me well and I enjoy being with them every day. But there are times when I don't feel part of what's going on. No one else does anything to make me feel that way, but the thought nags me often anyway.

I still feel the endorphins running around in my brain when I see an attractive woman (lately it's been most women because I see something I like about all of them) and what little testosterone that remains, makes its presence felt. But if I let my eyes wander over the body of a woman, in my line of vision, and that woman catches my eyes caressing her body like curious fingers, her scorn quickly becomes apparent and guilt overwhelms me, once I remind myself that I am on the verge of being sixty and the lust, which inhabits my body, is reason for ridicule - and for me, the safest retreat is to be respectful and realize and understand my place in society - - - that of a has been.    

However I still feel the desire to experience a woman again and in my timid way, I will continue to explore what few opportunities remain.

On an early September, late summer night, I hung out at Daddy Jacks, knocking down a couple shots of "Turkey 101" and a Heineken on draft. I looked over the ladies on site, in the back room at Apres Jacks. It was the Friday night at the start of Labor Day weekend. Some of the ladies present were with their husbands/significant others. Others were like me, older people trying, at least for the evening, to be young again.

The scene was typical. Some "part timer," a weekend entertainer, probably a guy with a regular job during the week, played some sort of a computer simulator keyboard musical device, covering 1970s records ("Dancing Queen" - ugh!) along with standards from The Monkees, mixed in with John Mellencamp and that kind of stuff. Most of the ladies wore their jeans and tank tops too tight, in a futile effort to turn back the calendar about twenty five (or 30) years.

There was one beauty however. I had seen her before, a blonde with shoulder length hair, jeans tight on her butt, her bosom looking good as it gently stretched her top forward and slightly downward (as you would expect), and her eyes sparkling, no actually  in a mature way they smoldered. My guess is she is in her forties. I think I heard someone say, during an earlier trip to Daddy Jacks, she was 48. I liked her. She looked inviting - oh so inviting! She made me melt and twitch in a way that hasn't happened for a long time.

For most of the evening, I sat by myself, at the far corner of the bar in Apres Jacks. Actually I was leaving, after a shot of Turkey and a  Heinekens on draft, and had started to pull out of the parking lot, when I saw her pull in. I remembered the blonde from my earlier visit and parked my car and went back inside. I ordered another "Turkey," with an ice water on the side and returned to my corner seat at the bar.

The blonde was surrounded by an assortment of men and she was reveling in the attention. A couple times however, she looked my way. I made sure she knew I was paying attention and tried to convey that I was ready to consume her and I even received a slight smile in return and I noticed she stole a couple glances herself.       

I took my glasses off and continued to stare, even though I couldn't see. Maybe I looked like a blind person who takes off their sunglasses. But after awhile, I finished my drink and knew I was not going to be able to talk to the blonde without interrupting the attention she was getting from the guys crowded around her. So I walked past, looked directly at her, as I walked by, without any noticeable reaction, and left Apres Jacks to go home.

The down side of that particular experience occurred when I went to the men's room on my way out of Daddy Jacks. As I washed my hands, I looked in the mirror. Yuck! I looked like shit. There's no denying it.  Reality reached out and cuffed me because when I saw Bob Jennings looking back, I realized there was no way in the world I will ever connect with that blonde. When she looked at me, it was probably because she was scared to death when I looked at her.  

Life is mostly a bitch lately!

I am often sad, feel despair and wish I could cry my heart out.  Poor me!

The "little girl" I rescued from the grip of the Peoples Republic of China, at  the Eagle Heights complex, in Madison, Wisconsin, in late 1997, wanted a green card. I was too naive to realize it at the time and married her. I thought it was love. But when she no longer needed me, she left. How naive and stupid could I be?

I wrote a friend several weeks ago:

A thought like that isn't what I want in my head when I fall asleep at night. Because almost every morning when I wake up and remember who I am and where I have been, the new day greets me with a cold slap.

Then I remember what I thought when looked at video footage of the suffering in New Orleans and along the Gulf coast in Mississippi, Alabama and Texas, brought on by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, on TV. That's when I realized I should be ashamed for feeling sorry for myself while so many lives have been lost and many more have been ruined forever.

I need to get up early enough some Sunday morning to attend the worship service at Orchard Park Presbyterian Church. I need some spiritual assistance because I am empty. I would go to the Carmel United Methodist Church, which played a part, however so small, in my childhood environment and is part of my family heritage. But my wife and I tried to go to church for a couple months around the end of 2002 and the early weeks of 2003 and we attended Carmel United Methodist.

When I think about my wife in that vain, I begin to become haunted with thoughts about how I could have done better. That makes things even more difficult. It's easier for me to think of her in a unhappy way, rather than the way she touched my heart  with  her smile and excitement as I introduced her to the United States. God, she was so adorable!

Let's get back to racing. It's a hell of a lot more enjoyable than the realities of my daily life. Besides I do have Bitsy and her fluffy, adorable devotion is one treasure I get to experience in life. Thank you Lord for Bitsy, who follows me around from room to room and has more love in the tiny heart, in that eleven pound body, than my wife will ever feel. Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night, shuddering from a dream that resembles my dreary existence. Thank goodness Bitsy is cuddled against me because it eases  the hurt.

Bitsy 7 on August 20, 2005

photo by Bob Jennings

Whenever I walk Bitsy on the Monon Trail or drive, with her cute little head sticking out of the driver's side window (I hold on to her collar), I hear people tell each other "look at that cute little dog!" It never fails to happen that people pay attention to Bitsy. "Cute pup" or "I like your dog" or "what kind of dog is that?" are comments I hear all the time when I take Bitsy in public. She is a treasure and I would be in even more trouble than I am, without love from my puppy.

I admit it. I ripped this photo off the Speed TV website. I like this photo. I love this girl. Isn't she adorable? Nice legs. Cute little tootsies too. She looks pretty yummy doesn't she? Danica is such a darling!

Miss Patrick has been a blessing for the Indy Racing League and I am one of those grateful IRL fans who thank her for all the attention she has brought to our beloved and often beleaguered racing series. I am also one of those people who understand the best thing that could possibly happen for the Indy car series would be for Princess Danica to win.

Have you seen the Peak anti freeze commercials on TV? Danica looks so hot! Have you seen the latest commercial? It's for Honda, advertising the Civic model. Danica is driving and is stopped for speeding. She whispers "show time" to herself, sort of flirts a bit and exposes some cleavage, but the motorcycle cop turns out to be a female.

I think the excitement over Danica Patrick started to blossom on April 30, at Twin Ring Motegi, during the "Indy Japan 300." Danica qualified second, beat pole sitter Sam Hornish to the first turn, led the opening eighteen laps of the race and ran a total of 32 in front before finishing fourth, behind winner Dan Wheldon, Scott Sharp and Rahal Letterman teammate Buddy Rice.

May 15 was the day when Danica - mania burst out in full bloom however.  Even though she bobbled, entering turn one, on the first lap of her qualifying run, Patrick still averaged 227.004 mph, which was good for fourth place on the grid behind Tony Kanaan (227.566), Sam Hornish (227.273) and Scott Sharp (227.126). It was widely speculated that were it not for Danica's first lap, which was in the 224 mph range, she would have taken the "Indy 500" pole. I'm not sure that would have happened, but she would have been closer than she was, which was very close anyway.

Danica Patrick qualifies for the 89th "Indianapolis 500" on May 15, 2005, at an average speed of 227.004 mph. To my way of thinking, this is the day when Danica - mania began in earnest.

I was standing in the pits, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, later in the afternoon of May 15, and watched Patrick sit in her car, waiting to make another run at the pole. When Bobby Rahal put an end to the chance of another qualifying run, I saw Danica express frustration and disappointment.    

Our little doll wanted another shot at Tony Kanaan's pole, to say the least. It was fun watching the scene play out in the pits between Rahal and Patrick. Danica was ready to go and when her boss pulled the plug, she let him know she did not agree with the decision, in the best tradition of A.J. Foyt.  In other words, Ms. Patrick was pissed off.

Another interested onlooker was Lyn St. James, the second woman to qualify for the "Indianapolis 500." With Patrick's fourth place average speed, she exceeded the sixth place qualifying run by St. James (224.150) for the 1994 "500." St. James was sitting in a golf cart, parked against the inner pit wall, while Rahal was managing the crisis. After Bobby made his decision, he leaned over the wall and I heard him ask St. James, "what do you think of my girl?" Lyn responded with a smile and a wink.

1986 "Indianapolis 500" winner Bobby Rahal talks to racing journalist Dave Argabright, on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network, on May 15, 2005, about Danica Patrick's qualifying run earlier in the day.

photos by Bob Jennings

That was the big moment which created the buzz surrounding the 89th "Indianapolis 500" and to a large extent, put it's stamp on the remainder of the 2005 IRL season.

ABC did a media event in New York City, on Monday May 23, as part of it's promotion for the "500" telecast, using all 33 drivers in the starting field. Danica Patrick received most of the attention. By then, the media picked up on the story that a female actually had a realistic shot at winning at "Indy." 

I heard Donald Davidson comment about Danica Patrick, on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network broadcast of the 89th "500," that the previous time he could recall a driver receiving so much attention was in May 1993, when Nigel Mansell came to race. 

Nigel's first run at the Speedway was a huge deal, especially to me. But while the 1992 World Champion's entry in the 1993 "Indianapolis 500" created a buzz, I don't think it was anything like the excitement generated by Danica Patrick in the days leading to the 89th "500" last May.

Much of it probably had to do with the fact that the weather for the 89th "Indianapolis 500" was near perfect, sunny, clear and temperatures reaching 79 or 80 degrees. It was the first nice weather "Indy 500" race day since 2002. Even though I could see empty gaps of seats in the third turn grandstands, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, on May 29, 2005, the infield section in turn three was packed with young people ready to party, unlike anything I have seen in several years. 

As the "500" developed, and Danica Patrick's involvement became more important, the large crowd of young folks, assembled behind my location in turn three, became more animated and vocal in their enthusiasm for what was taking place on the race track. 

The 89th "Indianapolis 500" was essentially a three chapter story. The first chapter belonged to Sam Hornish, Tony Kanaan and Dario Franchitti. Between that trio, they led all but three of the opening 100 laps. But each of the three met with misfortune during the second half of the "500." Hornish's final lap in front was 119 and Sam was out of the race after 146 laps, when he crashed in turn one, while racing with Champ Car series champion Sebastian Bourdais. Franchitti stayed in contention through lap 149, which was the final lap Dario ran in first place. The Scot ended up in sixth place at the finish. Kanaan led through lap 145, but faded in the final segment of the race and the 2004 Indy Racing League champion finished eighth.  

Pole sitter Tony Kanaan and Sam Hornish, second on the grid, pick up speed coming through turn three, during the pace lap on the way to the start of the 89th "Indianapolis 500."

Dario Franchitti led a total of fifteen laps, on the way to a sixth place finish in the 89th "Indianapolis 500."

Dan Wheldon came on strong, when it counted, in the final fifty laps, to win the 89th "Indianapolis 500," on May 29, 2005.

photos by Bob Jennings

The second chapter of the 89th "500" covered the next fifty laps, as the personality of the race was reset after the Hornish - Kanaan - Franchitti battle, which occurred over the first 100 trips around the Speedway. This was the period when Hornish faded and AGR mates Kanaan and Franchitti took over.

The third chapter of the 89th "Indianapolis 500" was all about Dan Wheldon and Danica Patrick.

Dan Wheldon came through the field gradually, from sixteenth grid position. Wheldon moved up to fifteenth by the tenth lap of the 89th "500." Wheldon was fourteenth after twenty laps. By lap 30, Dan cracked the top ten. At fifty laps, Wheldon ran in eighth position. The number 26 Klein Tools/Jim Beam Dallara - Honda moved to fifth place on lap 59 and stayed in that position for twenty laps, after which another pit stop cycle began. Wheldon was in sixth after the field re-established its natural order after pit stops. For the next several laps, Wheldon, Vitor Meira  and Scott Sharp engaged in an intensive fight for fourth place. On lap 122, the Englishman emerged on top, in the three way battle for fourth. Dan made it to third on lap 127.  

Then while the yellow flag flew for the Hornish accident, Dan Wheldon moved into the lead of the 89th "500" for the first time. 

Unlike Dan Wheldon's forward march, Danica Patrick's rookie run in the "500" was an up and down trip. Car 16 ran inside the top ten for the first 79 laps, with the highlight being in the lead for one lap, on the 56th circuit, which was the first time a female driver ran in front at "Indy."

After stalling in the pits, on lap 79, Patrick fell back to sixteenth position. Then Danica began her move forward. She was in eleventh after 120 laps. By lap 150, car 16 was riding in eighth, behind leader Dan Wheldon, Vitor Meira, Dario Franchitti, Tony Kanaan, Champ Car series champion Sebastian Bourdais, Scott Sharp and Buddy Lazier. 

Danica was running seventh, when the race restarted on lap 155. Some observers reported that Scott Sharp, who was directly in front of Patrick, blocked Danica. In the ensuing melee, off turn four, car 16 spun and Panther teammates Tomas Enge and Tomas Scheckter were caught up in the accident and both drivers were taken out of the race, as was rookie Jeff Bucknum.

I caught the accident on the video board, inside turn three, out of the corner of my eye. All I needed to see was Scheckter's silver Pennzoil Panther Dallara - Chevy number 4 being caught up in the crash to know my hope of a "Indy 500" win for Tomas was done for another year. I had a radio and was listening to the IMS Radio Network broadcast. When I heard the details, I was mad as hell at Danica!

Of course in the time since, I have forgiven her. Based on what I saw during the 154 laps he completed, it did not look to me as if Tomas Scheckter was going to win the 89th "500" anyway. The highest car 4 ran during the race was fifth, from laps 80 through 84. It seemed as if the silver Pennzoil Panther was stronger at the start of a fuel run than it was in the laps preceding a pit stop.

Kosuke Matsuura (car 55) and Danica Patrick (car 16) race during the 89th "Indianapolis 500" on May 29, 2005. Didn't the donut on Matsuura's sidepod come from an earlier incident with Danica?

    photo by Bob Jennings

So, even though I don't subscribe to Bobby Rahal's "no harm, no foul" comment, on ABC, at the time of the Patrick - Enge - Scheckter incident, when I look at the big picture, I push it aside.

When the "Indy 500" restarted on lap 162, Patrick was in ninth place. By lap 170, Danica moved to eighth. Then the Rahal Letterman team decided to take a gamble and roll the dice. Patrick pitted on lap 159. On lap 172, when all of the cars running ahead of her on the race track (Wheldon, Meira, Franchitti, Bourdais, Buddy Lazier, Sharp and Kanaan) pitted, Danica moved into first place.

That got the crowd going. The roar from the grandstands and infield was deafening. It reminded me of the 1982 "500," when Rick Mears was chasing down leader Gordon Johncock, in the closing laps. Danica stayed in the lead until Wheldon went by on lap 186. But when the race restarted after Kosuke Matsuura's crash in turn three, on lap 190, car 16 flew past Wheldon's number 26 and the crowd went even more crazy than when Patrick assumed the lead on lap 172.

This was one of those classic "Indy 500" moments. It ranks in a group with the Johncock - Mears battle in 1982, Danny Sullivan's spin and win in 1985, the fight in the 1989 "500" between Emerson Fittipaldi and Al Unser Jr. and the Unser Jr. - Scott Goodyear finish in 1992. It was easily the biggest buzz for the "greatest spectacle in racing" in a decade.

Whether Dan Wheldon was just too fast for Danica Patrick or car 16 was running dry on fuel and had to ease the pace, the Klein Tools/Jim Beam car regained the lead on lap 195 and took the checkered flag of victory.  On lap 198, Meira and Bryan Herta went past and Danica came in fourth.

But those final twenty five laps of the 89th "Indy 500" were magic and the crowd was buzzing on their way out of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on May 29.

The excitement about the race continued for several days. The overall ratings for the ABC telecast of the race were 6.5, with an eighteen percent share. That represented a sixty percent increase in TV ratings, from 4.7, with an eleven percent share, for the 88th "500." The ratings for the final fifteen laps, when the Wheldon - Patrick battle occurred, were 8.6, with a 23 percent share. It was the highest ratings for a telecast of the "500" since the 1996 race drew 7.1, with a twenty three percent share.

Danica made the cover of Sports Illustrated. It was the first time anything "Indy 500" was on the cover since Danny Sullivan's 1985 victory. Danica Patrick was all over the television in the days following her fourth place finish. She appeared on David Letterman's late night TV show. She was on the Regis - Kelly program. She was everywhere.

As I already wrote, Danica - mania has had far reaching effects throughout this season, with a seventeen percent increase in attendance at Indy Racing League races and a 26 percent increase in TV viewers for the IRL.

Recently however, there have been suggestions the bloom is off the rose, so to speak, as far as the positive effects Danica is having on Indy car racing. Some guy, by the name of Dan Weil, wrote the following recently, on a website called Media Life. I never heard of the site before, but Weil's commentary is in line with what I am trying to describe.  

Yes, it would have been very beneficial if Danica Patrick had won in the Indy Racing League in 2005. She has one more opportunity at California Speedway. I don't consider that likely, but it's possible. I still believe Danica has had an impressive rookie season however. She had three pole positions (Kansas, Kentucky, Chicagoland). In addition to her season best fourth place finishes at Twin Ring Motegi and Indianapolis, Patrick scored five other top ten finishes, tenth in Richmond, ninth at Kansas Speedway, seventh at Nashville, eighth at Pikes Peak and a sixth at Chicagoland Speedway. I watched Danica closely at Chicagoland and she ran a nice race.

Regardless of the numbers when it comes to finishes, Danica Patrick has shown talent and her presence has been one of the most positive developments in the ten years of Indy Racing League competition, if not the most positive.

Thanks Honda. Thanks Danica.