Robin Miller's Mailbag for December 31

RM: The easiest way to answer your question is to read my tribute and see what Parnelli, Mario and Uncle Bobby said about Andy. I wrote that he was one of the best things that ever happened to Indy car racing and, as Parnelli points out, he probably did more to promote the sport than anybody ever. And he loved to try new things at Indy but I'll always cherish him keeping the Novi alive.


RM: In 1972, my pal Art Pollard took me to Chicago to Andy's shop so I could buy a Formula Ford that Francis McNamara had given him as a present (McNamara designed the slug that Mario drove at Indy for Granatelli in '70 and '71). I borrowed $5,000 from my banker buddy and just before we went inside, Art told me to put $2,000 back in my pocket and let him negotiate. Well, Andy wasn't around so his son, Vince, handled the transaction and he wasn't about to sell it for $3,000. I was foaming at the mouth looking at that gorgeous little day-glo orange FF sitting next to a couple of Novis, but Pollard stood firm and Vince finally. Suddenly I was the proud owner of a car that wouldn't fit in my rented trailer without the aid of a forklift because the trailer was way too skinny. Art went with me to shake it down at IRP and just before we started it up he asked me if I'd added oil and water. "Don't they come with oil and water?" I replied. Ah, the first sign I should have NEVER been allowed to own a racecar.


RM: I think you are spot on. She needs a step up and there doesn't appear to be anything left for 2014. Marshall Pruett may have an update sometime soon but her career is at a crossroads and she can't afford to sit out a season.



RM: Thank you Randy. Newgarden is a great kid who truly appreciates the opportunity he's been given and has done a fine job with a small, one-car operation. Would love to see him move up or see Sarah add a second car with a veteran teammate like Oriol Servia. But, yes, Josef is GREAT with the fans and media.



RM: No, nothing that sinister. The in-car cameras are paid for by sponsors. But watching Ed save his butt at Fontana several times would have been good television.

RM: Not sure it's been decided they won't have them but a lot of fans criticized the wheel guards for not preventing Dario's wreck when, in fact, he ran over Sato's tire. But the new Lights car does look good.



RM: Doc Olvey was loyal to CART but he started at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and loved it as well. Obviously, his book was written during The Split and he summed up how a lot of people felt. I do think Derrick Walker, Will Phillips and Beaux Barfield are passionate about open-wheel racing and making IndyCar better but they can only do so much.


RM: Force qualified at Indy in 1951 (finished 11th) and again in 1960, while Porky (that was Rachwitz' nickname) attempted to make the show in '62 and '63 but had a couple of accidents and failed. Snider was a badass when he arrived in USAC (pole at the Hoosier Hundred in 1965 and front row at Indianapolis in '66) and always good in sprinters. Olivero was a damn good midget and dirt car racer who qualified for Indy in 1977. Kaufman was tough in sprints.

I think Snider, Johnny Parsons, Steve Krisiloff, Tom Bigelow, Mel Kenyon and Rich Vogler were all good racers who never won in an Indy car but to my mind Lee Kunzman, was the best. He recovered from serious injuries and finally got a good Indy car ride only to get hurt again and then made another comeback and almost won at Atlanta in 1979. Kunzman was as good in a midget and sprint car as anybody I ever saw race.

RM: A lot of people seem to think that innovation and different cars and engines will bring people back to the tracks and sitting in front of their televisions. I think it could help a little bit during May but the racing has never been better and nobody is watching, so maybe it's time to throw away the current rulebook.

RM: I think JPM might play nice for a couple races but I expect the old Montoya attitude to surface sooner than later and I just hope he's half as thrilling as he was in CART. Good idea regarding Franchitti.



RM: I think this whole Brazil thing is about lowering the sanction fee, because the race was reportedly losing a fortune. But losing this race isn't good because it drew a good crowd and was a helluva show. Randy is happy at RFD-TV because he doesn't have to deal with snakes on a daily basis.



RM: I'm hearing that an official announcement will be made early next month. 

RM: It's funny, because sometimes the owners whine and complain about the state of Indy car racing and, of course, their shortsightedness and greed combined with TG's missteps is exactly why IndyCar is suffering today. Obviously, if CART would have shown up at the first two IRL races, there would have been no IRL because 90 percent of them wouldn't have qualified for Indy. A book? Naw, it's too depressing a subject.  



RM: It would be an excellent idea providing ESPN signed on to show practice, which I seriously doubt would happen. But going an extra hour might help attendance a little bit.  



RM: I think the last time Indy car racing was taken to classrooms was back in the 70s and 80s with the Champion Spark Plug Safety Team (Indy 500 drivers going to schools) and it was well received. IndyCar needs to have a national commercial about its drivers running on sports events all winter like NASCAR to show off the personalities but it takes money and I don't see it happening. 

RM: I imagine if they grenade enough engines, a few teams might try and back off but, really, how can you tell considering the disparity??



RM: This is the last letter of 2013 and an optimistic way to start 2014, so if Justin Wilson gets to run for Rahal/Letterman/Lanigan, Simona finally lands something decent, Servia is snatched up and Sage Karam gets a ride, it might be even better than last season.