Robin Miller's Mailbag for December 2 presented by Honda Racing / HPD

Your questions for Robin should continue to be sent to millersmailbag@racer.com We cannot guarantee we’ll publish all your questions and answers, but Robin will reply to you. And if you have a question about the technology side of racing, Robin will pass these on to Marshall Pruett and he will also answer here.

Forrester Morgan

RM: What if I told you they were both right? Mears has advocated less downforce and more power to put the driver back in the car and get away from running wide open through the corners. That appeals to a lot of racers – the idea of running 250mph down the straightaway at Indy and then either rolling out of the throttle early or braking (or both) and fighting for control in the corners. To Hull's point, I remember being at Milwaukee when Patrick Carpentier ran an unthinkable 185mph to win the pole and then had trouble lapping people 10mph slower because of the aero package.

Is there a happy medium where cars are tougher to drive yet the racing stays as good as it's been the past three years? There was a 'wow factor' to an IndyCar that took people's breath away and that seems to be missing, but a lot of those races from the '60s through the '90s also had guys winning by a couple laps instead of today's logjam at the front. The race at Fontana was run at 215mph, but it was riveting and scary and drove up TV ratings the rest of the year. But the good, unpredictable racing isn't packing the grandstands so what would? Big HP and cars slithering through the turns? Wish I had the answer.

Q: Just an opinion question for you. With Watkins Glen being an approved testing track this year for IndyCar, could this be looked at as a possible light at the end of the tunnel for a return to the track for the series? Scott Dixon is keen on it (although consecutive wins will do that). It is possibly one of the best tracks out there, although I am totally biased as I have been going there for 31 years – and I am only 35. With all the racing I have seen there (Can-Am, NASCAR, IMSA, Trans-Am, SCCA, Trucks, IndyCar ... heck, I was even in the stands freezing my 'cheeks' off that foggy rainy Tuesday morning for the car swap between Lewis Hamilton and Tony Stewart ...  it breaks my heart to not see Will Power, TK and others hotfooting it around all 11 turns. I know attendance was always an issue (especially when you have ginormous grandstands all over the darn place and no butts in them), but if you were on the inside of the track or in the free stands (top of the esses, the 90 and Turn 10) as well as the viewing areas the crowds were good. Please give a fan some hope! Pretty Please!

Yvonna M. Moonan, Reading, Pa.

RM: The IndyCar drivers and teams would go back to The Glen in a heartbeat but, as you stated, the bottom line dictates any race's fortunes and there's no indication ISC is clamoring for IndyCar's return. Maybe a double-header with sports cars would be worth a try and IndyCar's Jay Frye does have ISC/NASCAR's ear so it's not totally out of the question. But it's a long shot. Sadly.

Q: I was disappointed to read this morning that

Sage Karam was dropped by Ganassi

. I think it is a loss for the series as he has such a bright future. However, getting experience with other series within Chip's empire can be beneficial to his overall career. I do hope he can at least secure funding for a ride at Indy. Do you think Dale Coyne would be interested in him? I don't know if that would be a smart move. I would rather see Sage with Jimmy Vasser.

Deborah in LA

RM: It's very disappointing because we were all hoping Ganassi would mold Sage into a lifer like Dixon. Dale is interested in just about anybody with a sponsor (which I don't think Karam has) and KVSH also needs funding. If Sage falls by the wayside along with Conor Daly and Matt Brabham, it's a big setback for the ladder system and IndyCar in general.

Q: Is Honda waiting to get approval for its aero upgrades before it renews with IndyCar? With the beating it took in F1, I would think it would want to put its best foot forward in a series where it is mechanically competitive.

Dino from New Hanover, Pa.

RM: I believe Honda is pleased it got some aero kit relief, and I expect a new deal to be announced soon. But Japanese Honda and American Honda are two separate entities.

Q: One simple, short question: With all their experience and success in racing, why can't Penske, Ganassi and Andretti get together and develop a comprehensive development and marketing plan so that IndyCar can finally get its act together? I think with their latest car design, they produce the best racing around so why can't they take full advantage of it? It is time for these key owners to stop throwing rocks and lead Indy Car back to where it belongs.

Dick Hildebrand

RM: Well, to be honest it's not their job to promote and market the series and I think they're challenged enough just finding funding to field cars. There is no doubt that R.P. could probably use his global clout to spread the word, but IndyCar likely couldn't afford his services. It's up to IndyCar and Verizon to deliver the message, market the drivers and promote the series with help from the team's sponsors. But, other than Charlie Kimball's national commercial for Novo Nordisc a couple years ago and a Target spot with Scott Dixon last year, IndyCar's primary allies in this area are Honda and Firestone. I've said for years that IndyCar needs to spend the money on a national driver promo like NASCAR used to show off its personalities and faces but that's obviously not going to happen. Josef Newgarden's personality and sense of humor could resonate with the American public but not in a couple of videos on the IndyCar website.

Q: How is the nosecone tether going to work? When a driver invariably damages a front wing, how will the team replace it if the cone is tethered to the car?

Zack, Atlanta, GA

RM: Here's the response from Dallara's Andrea Toso:

"The driver pits, the mechanics unlock the quick cams and pull out the damaged nose assembly (as they currently do). The design accounts for some slack in the tether so the mechanic can pull the nose a few inches away. A quick disconnect pin on the front bulkhead holds the eyelet of the tether to a bracket, the mechanic operates the disconnect and now he can remove the damaged nose assembly. Then he takes the spare assembly to the car. The eyelet of the tether is held in place by beams of a rubber string, easy to reach out. Thanks to the slack, the mechanic can pull this eyelet to place it around the bracket, then he secures the tether to the bulkhead with the quick disconnect. Then he places the nose assembly to the monocoque through the locating pins (as they currently do) and activates the quick locks. Yes, it will be a bit slower, but it is a matter of a few seconds. It is doable."

Q: I noticed a full-course-caution procedure during Saturday's WEC race that caught my attention: Race director announces an impending FCY over his channel (which reaches all cars). He gives a count down, and it appeared that on beginning of the FCY period all cars engaged a speed limiter until the FCY was ended, again via radio communications, in-car warnings and flags. No safety car was dispatched. There were no wave arounds. The FCY's seemed to be much quicker and efficient than what we now have in IndyCar. It seems that Safety Car periods have gotten longer and longer because of wave arounds and closed pits and things. The competition is more pure as car positioning remains static. I would love to see IndyCar explore this system. F1 should remain the same as they are now. Only because the AMG GTS safety car sounds much better than the current F1 vacuum cleaner motors.

Brian Bristo, London, Canada

RM: Figured the best way to answer your question was to ask Derrick Walker:

In IndyCar, as you may know, when it calls a full-course yellow goes out over the radio, flags wave, messages go to the driver. Race control sends out the pace car to slow down the field to allow for safety and or rescue vehicles. Race control also watches and catches drivers who exceed the required yellow speed by looking at track spit times from the numerous timing lines across the track. Driver who exceed the required yellow speed get a penalty. Pits are closed and the pace car is dispatched to catch the leader, if it can be dealt with by a local yellow it is and no vehicles are despatched. Once the field is packed up behind the pace car, the race director opens the pits. As I said, incidents that don't require a full course yellow are dealt as a local yellow and the pits of course are not closed.

The part that takes the time is when safety vehicles are dispatched to tow or pick up a damaged vehicle, or sometimes there are waiting for TV to come back from a commercial break before restarting the race.
How could we do it better?

(1) Install cranes around the track in the key locations to lift a car out of the way.
(2) Develop a starter system for IndyCar.
(3) Develop better anti-stall system.
(4) Install more lifting vehicles around the track so clearing away the area much quicker.
(5) Install more timing lines with system to catch speeders better and ramp up the penalty for speeding in danger areas and leave the pit open when possible.

More should be done but its not that our system is so bad, and believe me, Race Control is always pushing the safety guys to get back racing.

Cheers, DW

Gerry Courtney, San Francisco, CA

RM: Not sure how many different parties are planned but mine would include Gary B., Bill Finley, A.J. Watson, Mark Bridges, Lloyd Ruby, Troy Ruttman, Freddie Agabashian, Art Pollard (if they were still with us), the tough guys like A.J., Jim McElreath, Lee Kunzman, Pancho, Merle and Phil Krueger and the Sunday afternoon banzai artists like Jerry Sneva, John Mahler, Tom Bigelow and Bob Harkey.

Q: Great video about Goldie. I was talking to him yesterday and he was in Indy (flying a client) and after I got off the phone, I then saw your video, and when he got back to Griffith I called him, and had him watch it. He was very pleased, and so am I. Goldie is one of a kind. One story: he won what was then the 'Firecracker 250' in a Pontiac Tempest #50 by over two laps, and before the race Foyt who was in a Corvette told Goldie he'd wave at him every time he lapped him. In the race it was Goldie that lapped AJ – twice – and he waved at Foyt both times! The car has been re-built and Goldie signed the car for the owner. Anyhow, great video of a truly special man, who is the poster child for being able to drive, ride, or fly anything. I am a pilot and even at 90 he is still the best pilot I've ever flown with. He is telling everyone he intends to retire in 15 years. And I am beginning to wonder if he might make it! Thank you!

Thankful Ted

RM: I got a pleasant surprise last week when Paul called to thank me for the video and I told him it was a pleasure to recognize such a great racer and I was glad A.J. had enlightened me about his career. Goldie is truly amazing and we talked for 20 minutes about some of his great adventures. What a book he would make. Thanks for watching.

Q: So, Jeff Gordon is finally free from his NASCAR responsibilities and restrictions. What would keep him from doing Indy in May? What would keep an owner from doing everything possible to find him a ride? Surely the press he would garner, and for Indy's number 100 no less, would be of economic value to Hulman & Co. Does he really have no interest in checking this off his bucket list? Thanks as always for your insights and taking time to always respond to emails. Please keep it up.

Jim, Austin

P.S. Nice job on some Honda sponsorship for the mailbag!

RM: Three things are going to keep Gordon from ever driving in the Indy 500: money, risk and his wife. He's got too much to risk driving an IndyCar to 15th place, and his divorce would be very costly. He's said for a long time he had no desire to drive in the Indy 500 and I totally understand why. Twenty years ago that's all he wanted to do, but he never got the opportunity so he won Indy five times in the discipline that wanted his talents. Honda has been sponsoring the Mailbag for three years and it's very much appreciated, but I had nothing to do with it.

Q: Is RACER magazine available anywhere aside from subscription?‬
James Ambrosia‬‬

Q: I just wanted to jump on the book bandwagon. If you were to write a book about your years in racing I would pre-order it! Come on what's the worst AJ could do? Throw a pint of Blue Bell at you?

Tom Patrick, Lake Arrowhead, CA

RM: Well I appreciate your support and enthusiasm, but no book until I'm at least 70 (four more years). And A.J. would love 90 percent of what I write about him. Next Monday I'll have a video about good Christmas presents for race fans and I think you'll love one of the new books coming out this month.

Q: In these dark, dark days of no racing or not much news I have a question for you. I am re-reading a book I read in 1969. I enjoyed it all those many years ago and I'm enjoying it now. It's called They Call Me Mister 500: the story of Andy Granatelli. My question to you is, what did you think of the book? And more so what did you think of his career in IndyCar racing?

Mike Latino, Fontana, Ca.

RM: Can't recall if they sold that book in the fiction or non-fiction section but it was entertaining, even though it had a few exaggerations. At least it captured the true spirit of Andy (RIGHT), who was one of IndyCar racing's greatest promoters, thinkers and doers. If Granatelli would have run USAC, it would still be on top of American motorsports – along with IndyCar. His turbine car remains the single best marketing tool in IndyCar and IMS history, and his STP association and commercials got IndyCar more attention than anything before or since. Bringing Johnny Carson to Indy to run the turbine showed he knew more about promotion than any five PR agencies. Sure, he was a self-promoter, but Andy was good for IndyCar racing and one of those fabulous characters that helped make Indianapolis so intriguing. Too bad USAC and some of its members spent so much time trying to get rid of him.

Q: Here I am watching the history of F1 for the third time, along with the new Paul Newman story for the second time! We all just love the details. When are you going to get someone to do the history of IndyCar racing? We all know you are the go-to guy while Posey, Willy T, Ribbs, Mario, Lone Star JR would all good voiceovers. Heck you could probably get it down to a 10-hour show if you really tried, or even a four-part series.

Walter Troup, kart racing fool here!

RM: I can tell you that Gordon Kirby is working on a massive project for Racemaker Press about the decline and fall of big-time auto racing in America (if not the world). And it's going to be much more than just CART/IRL. It's about the serial failure over 100 years of more than 20 major racing categories through then-AAA & USAC and including the likes of the Can-Am, the original Trans-Am, Formula 5000, the 'new era' Can-Am, IMSA GTP, Formula Atlantic, etc, as well as the USAC's and others failures with midget & sprint car racing. It will be a very complete story and will include many words of wisdom from DSG, Mario, Parnelli, Uncle Bobby & Big Al, Rocket Rick Mears, Jim Hall plus John Barnard, Gordon Murray, Nigel Bennett, Bruce Ashmore, etc. It should be a great read and I can't wait.

Q: Hey Robin. Don't know if yer aware so thought I'd write in. The other day I DVR'd a movie about Paul Newman's racing career on Velocity and watched it yesterday. Really interesting, with commentary from such folks as Mario, Robert Wagner who co-starred in 'Winning', Leno, Redford, Sharp and several others, as well as lots of clips of PLN. It's produced and directed by comic Adam Corolla, who's a serious car guy and vintage racer who's actually restored and races some of PLN's cars. They ran ads for a DVD from Amazon, so that could be a pretty cool Christmas choice for fans.

Bob in Peoria

RM: Thanks Bob, I know the documentary has been well-received and I hope to buy the DVD so I can watch it. About 10 years ago prior to the start of the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, I was sitting in the media center when Corolla waltzed in with some of his posse. I yelled, "I love The Man Show" and he came over and wondered how his group could get next to the cars. Champ Car's Steve Shunck fixed him up with pit passes, and a racing fan was born.