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Movie Review-Reengineering Sam

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Sam Schmidt has dreams. He dreams of being able to walk his daughter down the aisle at her wedding.  He dreams of being able to drive a car on the street again. He wants as normal a life as he can. For the first time since the crash at Walt Disney World Speedway that rendered him a quadriplegic, one of his dreams is close to coming true.

The Heartland Film Festival premiered the movie Reengineering Sam yesterday. While it is mainly about building the car that Sam Schmidt drove around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway the last two years, the film also tells Sam’s story from childhood to the present day. Ironically, his father was a racer who also had a crash that left him partially paralyzed on his right side.  We also get an intimate look at Sam’s daily routine away from the racetrack and how his family tries to have as normal a life as possible.

The movie contains quite a bit of racing footage, mainly showing some horrific crashes. The 2011 crash at Las Vegas is shown, though not in its entirety. It was difficult to watch.  Schmidt’s crash in 1998 where he broke his feet also appears. It was a foreshadowing of what was to come. His wife tells how he was in a wheelchair after that crash and all he wanted to do was get back in a racecar.

The majority of the film alternates between his family life as told by his wife, Sheila,his children, Savannah and Spencer, and his parents; and ongoing  research and technology  to help quadriplegics regain some mobility.  A neurosurgeon wondered if it would be possible for a quadriplegic to drive a car. He had never heard of Sam until a colleague suggested him.  Arrow Electronics was eager to build the car.

The movie ends triumphantly with Sam driving the modified Corvette around the Speedway in front of a cheering crowd.  The state of Nevada just issued Sam the first driver’s license for a semi-autonomous vehicle. He is the first quadriplegic to receive this license.

Several noteworthy things about the film:

  • Sheila Schmidt’s strength and dedication.
  • The hope for all quadriplegics for more quality of life.
  • Sam’s carry on attitude.
  • The dedicated researchers in the military and hospitals who are working hard on the technology to help improve the lives of paralyzed people.
  • The reminder to me to keep things in perspective.

Reengineering Sam has three more showings at the festival- tonight at 8 pm at Trader’s Point; Tuesday at 12:45 pm at Castleton; and Saturday at 10:45 am at Castleton.

 

 

October, 2011

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Note: I published this story last year. After the events of yesterday, I thought I would present it again. It is a time to be kind to each other.

I was calling Las Vegas the fire sale race. It was the final race for the old cars, and every team wanted to race every car they had. Thirty four were entered, more cars than Indianapolis 500 entries most years.  Indycars hadn’t raced there in a while. Several drivers questioned the track’s safety.

The race was the season finale.  As usual, the championship would be decided. That alone should have been enough. But Randy Bernard, who had done many great things, decided this wasn’t enough. He declared a $1 million prize for Dan Wheldon, winner of the 500, if he won the race starting from last place.  I never liked the idea.

First, it diminished the championship battle. Second, it was a NASCAR type gimmick. I was very disappointed that Indycar thought it necessary.  Third, instead of the usual twenty or so cars, there were going to be thirty-four racing on a one and a half mile track.

Everyone expected a big pileup. Only 15 laps in, it happened.  An airborne car went into the fence. It looked really bad.  I couldn’t tell who it was at first, but I knew that driver was seriously injured. The broadcast team said it was Wheldon.

The times I’ve been at a track when a driver is killed, awareness is instant. There is an eerie silence that descends over the venue. Things move in slow motion. Oddly, sitting in my living room watching on television, I had that same sensation. I had been tweeting about the race with my friends. That activity halted for several minutes.

Inside sources began hinting on Twitter what I had feared. Nothing was official, but I knew that the source was reliable. We could do nothing but wait. The image of the helicopter ascending was all the confirmation I needed.  It looked just the end of the movie Senna, which I had just seen a few weeks before.

……………………………….

That Sunday also marked the beginning of a severe decline in my wife’s condition. She had been home from rehab two weeks. Things were looking better, but in the following week, her energy slowly drained and by the following Friday, she was back in the hospital. Friends came to be with her the next Sunday so I could go to Dan’s memorial downtown.She knew it was important to me. Knowing what was coming, it was hard to sit through. She died Wednesday of that week.

I never met Dan Wheldon. I have no photos of him. I never got his autograph. But I always admired his skill, his passion, and his joy for life.  Vicki had many of the same qualities as Dan.

At the five year mark, which at times feels like five minutes and other times like fifty years, I strive to live up to their standards, to embrace the joys of life, and let the little stuff go.  Ten days from now I will go to a quiet place and at 11:22 say a quiet prayer of thanks, and have the strength to get through another year.

 

 

Indycar Celebrates the Season; Air Races at IMS

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awards16-011Last night Indycar presented its end of season celebration, an elegant award presentation at the Hilbert Circle Theater in downtown Indianapolis. Simon Pagenaud was the star of the show for his incredible year. He received the Verizon P1 Award for the most poles and the Astor Cup for winning the series championship. Will Power and Helio Castroneves also received trophies for second and third place.

Conor Daly won the Don’t Crack Under Pressure Award for passing the most cars during the year.  That award title needs work. Charlie Kimball received an award for completing the most laps.

Several drivers were not present.  James Hinchcliffe was occupied  with Dancing With the Stars, and some drivers from Florida were at home preparing the coming hurricane.

The highlight of the ceremony was the Most popular Driver Award, won by Bryan Clauson.His fiancee, Lauren Stewart, accepted the award.

” He would say he’s not really an Indycar driver, and he would be honored that you think of him as one, ” she told the crowd following a standing ovation.

It was a fun night. I saw many friends from out of state who came in for the presentation.  It was nice to catch up with them one more time before Indycar’s still too long off season.  It’s only five months and seven days until St. Pete.

 

The Red Bull Air Race

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Last weekend IMS hosted the Red Bull Air Races.  It was strange being at the track and seeing cars drive around.  But there were many typical elements of a race. Pilots made mental errors and tactical mistakes. Matthias Dolderer, the race winner who clinched the season title Sunday, was Will Power-like on his determined runs to set the best time.

The format of the race is similar to Indycar road course qualifying.  It is a three round knock out system, ending with a final round of four. The planes fly on their sides until they come a gate, where they must become level with only a ten degree tolerance. It sounds easy, but it wasn’t always. I was impressed with how quickly the planes straightened out as they approached the gates.

While the racing was fun and exciting, there was two hour gap between the first round and the last two segments.  When they return next year, I would like to see some more track activity to fill some of the down time. The races are quite short and something needs to keep the fans entertained between rounds.

Other than the down time, it was another great event put on by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The crowd was around 40,000. It will be interesting to see if it grows next year.  With more activity, I think it’s possible. Next year’s event is slated for October 15-16.

Silly Season Update

This morning the worst kept secret in the paddock became official. Josef Newgarden will drive the 2 car for Roger Penske next year. This was long rumored and may have been a done deal sometime during the season.

Late last week, Alexander Rossi was confirmed to stay with Andretti-Herta Autosport in the 98.

Seats that are or may still be open by car number:

21, 20(road course), 41, 14?, 10?, 19, 18? 11, 26?, 8?

Stay tuned. Newgarden’s signing is just the beginnning.

 

 

 

Off Season Thoughts- Driver Musical Chairs, Rules, and Points

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Today is the day. Josef Newgarden’s deadline to act on the offer from Ed Carpenter Racing is today.  What he decides determines many things. Where will Juan Pablo Montoya be next year?  Will he bump Tony Kanaan out of Ganssi? I have heard he has talked to Carpenter. I honestly don’t see that as a fit at all. I would think Fuzzy’s would want a more personable driver for their car.

Another factor is Carlin.Will they make the jump to IndyCar? Will they partner with KV/KVSH or just buy them outright? Will Max Chilton go there creating an opening at Ganassi?

A.J. Foyt Racing will have at least one opening. It could be Kanaan, if he leaves Ganassi.

Coyne apparently has signed Sebastian Bourdais. Conor Daly is rumored to be under contract for next year as well.

My suggestion- If you’re not going to the season opener at St. Pete, have a friend who is mail you a spotter’s guide. That will give you plenty of time to learn names and car numbers before the 101st Indianapolis 500.

Rules

The aerokit packages are frozen for next year and a new universal kit will be on the cars for 2018.  This means that unless Honda can develop a stronger engine package, Chevrolet will again dominate in 2017. I’m all for the new universal kit, but for next year I think the teams should be given leeway to work on the kits themselves.

I hope the 2018 aero package makes Indycars look more like Indy cars and less like single seat sportscars.

Points

Double points, like interleague play in baseball, is played out and needs to be eliminated.  Yes the 500 is the most important race, but it still counts as one race in the standings.  The final race of the season should not count as double points, especially on a road course. Let the championship be decided as it happens. if someone clinches the title with two races to go, so be it. Very few World series have ended with a game-winning home run. Not every series goes seven games.

Qualifying points at Indy- There are way too many points awarded for qualifying.  I can understand the need to award points in the current format, which I wrote about in May, but I don’t think the pole winner should get more than 25 points.  Then each position after that receives one less point. Positions 25-33 get one point each.

Race points- I still mainly like the point system, but I don’t believe every driver in a race should get points. I liked the old CART/USAC system of awarding points to the top twelve spots only. I also would like to do away with a bonus point for leading a lap. This would tighten up the points battle and eliminate the need for double points races.

I think I’ve fixed Indycar enough for one day.  I need to take the rest of the day off. I’m going to the Red Bull Air Races Sunday. I’ll have a report on that next week.  Have a great weekend.

 

 

Indycar Season Review- A Penske Walk in the Park

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Dominance returned to Indycar this season. Chevrolet dominated the engine battle. Drivers dominated races. Penske cars dominated the standings. Simon Pagenaud dominated the championship. Pagenaud had an early run of three straight wins and a couple second places. Will Power had a mid-season run of four wins and two second places. The difference? Power had to sit out the first race of the year due to medical issues.

While Chevrolet won more races and fourteen poles, Honda did show slight gains with two poles and more Fast Six qualifying rounds this year than last.Their two victories were well short of the six wins of 2015. With the aero-kit freeze in place for next year, Honda will focus on engine development to offset the aero disadvantage. It would be nice if the teams could work on the aerokits themselves next year.

There were several dominating drives this year. Pagenaud was clearly the class of the field at Long Beach, the Indy Grand Prix, and Sonoma. Josef Newgarden beat up on the field at Iowa. It appeared James Hinchcliffe had everyone covered at Texas, but he was nosed out at the line by Graham Rahal.  Will Powqer led virtually the entire way at road America.

Team Penske won ten of the sixteen races.  Pagenaud won half of those. His late season wins at Mid-Ohio and Sonoma were something we hadn’t seen from a series champion in a while. The last few years, the points leader won races early then hung on desperately to either win the title in the last race or lose it there.

Three classic venues returned to the schedule this year- Phoenix, Road America, and Watkins Glen. Watkins Glen was a mid-season replacement for the cancelled Boston race. It was a great upgrade from a street race. I was fortunate to be at all three. It was very exciting to have these three tracks back.

Opinion section

The best races this year, always subjective were Barber, the Indianapolis 500, Pocono, and Texas.  There is also something beautiful in the way Newgarden crushed Iowa.

The worst races- Phoenix and Sonoma.

Worst luck driver- Helio Castroneves.  He “earns” this honor with the following resume:

Indianapolis- Hit exiting the pits by Townsend Bell, then rear-ended by JR Hildebrand while he had the strongest contending car. Detroit- leading  Race 2 but waited too long to pit and was caught by a yellow. Twice at Iowa a yellow came out while he was in the pits for his scheduled stop.  At Pocono he was an innocent bystander in the Rossi/Kimball pit incident.  In spite of all this, Castroneves still managed to finish third in the standings, but not without a fight from Newgarden.

Runner-up for this category- Scott Dixon.

What broken clavicle? Josef Newgarden somehow escaped a horrific crash at Texas in the first attempt to race, ending up with a hand and clavicle fracture. He was expected to miss at least one race. Amazingly, he was back int he car at the next event at Road America. Two weeks after that came his perfect game at Iowa. The points he lost by crashing at Texas probably cost him third place. He finished two points behind in fourth.

On Wednesday, I hope to have some silly season updates and more thoughts on next year. Overall, it was a great year for Indycar’s image.

 

Simonized-Simon Waxes the Field

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Simon Pagenaud cruised to another dominating victory Sunday afternoon in Sonoma to earn his first IndyCar series championship. The title had pretty much been a foregone conclusion for weeks despite a little closing of the gap by Will Power at Pocono. All doubt was erased after qualifying Saturday when Pagenaud took the pole on his last lap.

Will Power’s last hope ended on lap 36 with a clutch issue.  He stalled on the backstretch causing the day’s only yellow.  He finished eight laps behind.  Power did not  have a bad season. Four victories and two second place finishes will usually win a title. Missing the St. Pete race cost him this Astor Cup.

The interesting part of the race was the battle for third place in the standings between Helios Castroneves and Josef Newgarden.  Newgarden finished sixth Sunday and Castroneves was seventh. Helio ended the season third by two points.

Roger Penske celebrated his fiftieth year in motorsports capturing the top three spots in the championship.

Notes:

We now enter Silly Season. According to all sources every driver seems headed for a new seat next year.  A slight exaggeration perhaps, but there will be a lot of movement.   The number of Indy Lights drivers able to move up is another unknown.

Will there be fewer teams? Team consolidation is possible. Has Ed Jones winning the Lights title accelerated Carlin’s jump to IndyCar?

Josef Newgarden has eight days to respond to his offer from Ed Carpenter Racing.

The event. The staff at Sonoma Raceway did a great job this weekend. You could tell they had done their homework. Saturday and Sunday had the biggest crowds I’ve seen here in the three years I’ve gone.  It ok s also a fan friendly track. After parking, fans receive a card with the lot number and shuttle color to take when they leave. Sunday as we stood in line,  workers passed out water bottles.

Next  Monday I will have my season review and more about next season. I will also  have some Sonoma photos.

 

Update: It appears Newgarden and Rossi are now off the table. Josef moving on to Penske and Rossi staying with Andretti/Herta.

Sonoma Practice Day-Nothing Learned

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The last weekend of the IndyCar season is off to a slow start. The first practice session mainly featured cars sitting on pit road.  Helios  Castroneves led the session, running only 4 laps. Scott Dixon was near the bottom, doing a few very slow laps early, then going out near the end but only getting to eighteenth place.

The second round of practice had more action.  It was another clean session until Conor Daly lost an engine with about ten minutes to go heading toward the hairpin. After a brief halt practice resumed but ended quickly when Alexander Rossi suddenly stopped just past the start/finish line. Castroneves again led the session, followed by his Penske teammates who are fighting for the title.

While Hondas were strong in the morning, Ryan Hunter-Reay was the only one in the top five in the afternoon.

I don’t think much was learned today about how the weekend will go. Tomorrow morning’s practice should tell us a lot. Someone other than Power or Pagenaud winning the pole is in Pagenaud’s favor.  Power needs every point he can get.

Notes:

The new scoring pylon, a four sided digital screen, is great. Much more readable than the old pylon.

It was a decent Friday crowd, maybe slightly better than last year.

I was thinking today that a spotter guide will be a required item at St. Pete next March. There are almost as many possible combinations for 2017 as there scenarios f o r who will. win the championship.

I had a great day seeing friends, some who I will not see again until next year.

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Sonoma Preview- Simon has a Simple Task

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The IndyCar season closes Sunday at Sonoma Raceway with a two man race for the Series title.  Simon Pagenaud has a pretty easy job to win the championship- just stay close to Will Power all day.  Power has been very quick here winning the pole the last two years. In -race issues, a self inflicted spin in 2014 and contact with Juan Pablo Montoya last year took him out of contention for the win.

After spotting the field a race, Power has scored the most points in the races he has started. I don’t think he will be able to get enough points to beat Pagenaud, assuming both drivers run their usual race.  Power will probably lose the title by fewer than the 43 points he trails by now though.

Scott Dixon, while too far back to win his fifth title, could factor into who wins the Astor Cup. Dixon has won the last two races here with great pit strategy.  If he takes the lead,  Pagenaud simply has to follow one spot behind Power the rest of the race.

I think it’s great when the points I reader wins the last race. It puts an exclamation mark  on the season.  We could be in for an interesting game of who chases who on Sunday.

Notes:

Sonoma Raceway has a new four-sided scoring tower and video board to enjoy g dance viewing and tracking the race.

First points as they prepare for practice- Power -43.

While I’m sad to see the season end, I am grateful I attended a personal record number of races and am very excited for next year.

My race and season reviews will probably come out late next week. I am spending extended time in California visiting family.  As always, thanks for  reading.

Lunch With a Legend

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Sunday morning’s routine never varied.We ate a big breakfast at home, went to the restaurant to take inventory, restock and help Dad prepare for Monday. Then we went back home to read the Sunday Star before deciding how to spend the rest of the day. The Sunday before Thanksgiving in 1962 was no different.

I usually began with the sports section, looking for a column by George Moore, the racing writer for the Indianapolis Star at that time. I had gone to my first Indianapolis 500 that May, and I wanted to know everything about racing I could. There was nothing by him that day. I would then turn to the auto section. Cleo Kern, the automotive writer, always had something in Sunday’s paper about a new car and what was going on with dealerships in town.

A news blurb got my attention.  It was about Harry Hartz, one of the greatest drivers to never win the Indianapolis 500, joining a Chrysler-Plymouth dealership not too far from where I lived. The article gave a brief review of his racing career. I remarked to my dad, “This guy must have been a great driver.”  He asked who I was talking about. “Harry Hartz.”

“Oh yeah. He comes into the restaurant a couple times a week for lunch.”

Stunned stony silence was my only response. How long had this been happening? All summer while I was out of school?

” I don’t have school Friday since it’s Thanksgiving break. Will he be in then?”

“I don’t know.”

“Well, if he comes in, can you call home and tell me?” The restaurant was an easy walk from our house.

” I don’t want to bother him.”

” I sure would like to meet him.”  No response.

Nothing more was said about it through that holiday weekend and into December. Dad’s word was usually pretty final, but he somehow always found a way to make his kids happy. So life went on through December. Then it was time for Christmas Break.

The second day of break, the phone rang. It was Dad.  “Harry Hartz is coming for lunch today. Would you guys want to come and eat with him? He’ll be here at 11:30.”

Was this a trick question? This was so typical of Dad. He may not have liked what we were interested in, but he would find a way to support us.  I knew this was not an impromptu meeting. He probably planned it the day after Thanksgiving.

My brother and I were at the restaurant at 11.  Harry and a colleague walked in. I was struck by how small he was. I had not given much thought at the time that drivers were usually small. We shook hands and sat down for lunch.  I wish I had recorded that conversation. I remember we discussed the pros and cons of riding mechanics and about the board tracks that were popular when he drove. He was a great guy and seemed genuinely happy to be talking with young fans. Before he left, he signed the above photo for my brother and me and promised to get us a copy of Floyd Clymer’s Indy 500 yearbook.

We met one more time, at the Speedway the following May. I was amazed that he saw me first and approached me. We had a brief talk before he had to go to a meeting.  Meeting him inspired me to delve deeper into the history of the race. I have come to admire the great drivers who were never fortunate to win the 500 but were always a threat every May- Rex Mays, Ted Horn, Jack McGrath, and  Michael Andretti. I’m planning an off-season blog on the greatest 33 non winners.

I owe a lot to my dad for arranging the meeting. It was the equivalent of having lunch with A. J. Foyt or Al Unser today. The photo hangs on my wall, and  I still have the yearbook (below). They are the oldest and most cherished. memorabilia I have .

 

 

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Harry Hartz Indianapolis 500 record:

1922  2nd

1923    2nd

1924    4th

1925     4th

1926      2nd

1927       25th

1930       Winning car owner- Billy Arnold, driver

1932       Winning car owner-Fred Frame, driver