Robin Miller's Mailbag for July 13, 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.

Ron Ford, Muskego, Wisconsin

RM: When you think about the budgets and experience assembled by Penske and Ganassi, and think JoNew and ECR have either out-run or matched them the past two years, it's damn impressive. And Sunday showcased what a little team with talent can do when it's had the same car for a few years and development is limited. RP let Pagenaud bring Ben Bretzman with him to Team Penske so I wouldn't rule out Jeremy Milless staying with Newgarden if The Captain hired him. The late Sunday afternoon start looks like a loser at the box office, regardless of which city or track.

Q: A crazy Iowa race and great win for Newgarden - it's been a long time since somebody has lapped the field. Ed Carpenter looked kind of strange in Victory Lane; he wasn't smiling or congratulating Newgarden in the shot on TV. Is there some jealousy there or is he afraid he's losing him? It also looked like a disappointing crowd, didn't seem like many people to watch these guys risking their lives. Appreciate your opinion.

CAM in LA

RM: Ed seemed plenty happy when I was in Victory Lane. I know he was frustrated about his gearbox trouble because he felt they could have run 1-2, but I think he's a big JoNew fan and will do whatever possible to keep him. Carpenter is proud and was the guy to beat on ovals just a couple years ago, so I'm sure it's no fun getting your butt kicked by your teammate, but he knows how good Josef is and there's no jealousy in my mind. The 25,000-seat grandstand was half-full, so another disappointing turnout on an oval.

Q: Why are we not seeing Josef everywhere? Why is he not starring in a Papa John's commercial delivering pizza, or in a Jimmy John's delivering sandwiches freaky fast? Why has corporate America ignored this kid? He is smart, friendly, articulate, great with the media, a winner, and my fiance says he is really cute. He is also the perfect person to market to the 20 and 30-somethings here in America. 

Denny Z., Dallas, TX

RM: I doubt he's got an agent so you probably need a high-powered one just to make the proper connections, and neither of the brands you mentioned have any involvement in IndyCar. I will say that IndyCar uses JoNew every chance it gets in promotions, but videos on its website isn't exactly marketing to the masses. He and Hinch need to have an IndyCar TV show that they co-host and IndyCar needs to pay for it (or find a sponsor for it) and they need some kind of national TV ad promoting their personalities.

Q: I just watched Josef dominate here at Iowa. Why is he not driving for Penske or Ganassi? If I'm Chip, I break the bank and put him in a car regardless if you have a sponsor. The kid has it and is the future! Ed and Sarah got it, but does Roger or Chip?

Todd, Iowa

RM: Tim Cindric interviewed Josef a few years ago and thought, at the time, he was too immature and crashed too much - at least that's what he told me at Sonoma in 2014. My response was that yeah, he was 21 in 2012, and crashed because he was on a little one-car team trying to keep up with Andretti, Ganassi and Penske at that time. The Captain said last April that Newgarden was high on his list but he had nowhere to put him, and I imagine Mike Hull has already started the process, if I know him. But, like I wrote on Monday, I hope Ed Carpenter (or IndyCar) can find the money to keep JoNew and keep the balance of power in the series, because it's the best thing for IndyCar.

Q: In NASCAR, when cars take the wave around, they aren't allowed to pit. At least some of the cars did pit at Iowa, but still were shown back on the lead lap. I was hoping your NBC comrades would explain it all but if they did, I missed it somehow. So what's the deal/rule?

Bob in Peoria

RM: I asked Brian Barnhart to explain: "It came about after a race at Pikes Peak, maybe around 2001. We had a good race going, and were cycling through green flag pit stops when someone spun on pit road exiting their pit box. This brought out a caution, and all the cars that had made green flag stops were then pinned down a lap and we went from about 10 cars on the lead lap to two. The rest of the race kind of stunk, so we came up with the wave-around rule. Initially, cars waved around had the pits closed to them but that changed about four or five years ago, and now they can pit after getting waved by. NASCAR followed with their version, the lucky dog, the next year."

Q: How is it possible that the yellow comes out on Lap 109, and Josef and Simon Pagenaud are the only ones on the lead lap, everyone pits, and now most of the field is back on the lead lap? Shouldn't they still have been one lap up on the rest of the field? The boys in the booth didn't comment on this, and I couldn't figure it out. It seemed Josef and Simon pitted alone first and then everyone else pitted afterward. Did I miss something? What is the rule on this?

NH Mike

RM: Back in the CART days, can't remember which year, the yellow would come out and the pace car would try to pick up the leader, but the pits were always open so they would still be racing like hell. In the interest of safety, the pace car started picking up the first available car to get everyone slowed down. Then it would wave everyone around until it found the leader. And that was later modified when they began closing the pits. As you will read in the question above, it's done in the interest of the show.

Q: Reading between the lines during the Iowa coverage on NBCSN, it sounded like Tony Kanaan was certain he'd be back next year, but not with Ganassi. Is this just the reality of him being low man on the totem pole when Ganassi signs Newgarden? Dixon's the Mailman and Kimball and Chilton have sponsorship, so T.K.'s out? Where do you see Kanaan going? Back to KV, maybe? Bourdais' got a win but he's pretty much stinking it up otherwise this year.

Bo Williams, Madison, AL

RM: First off, I wouldn't assume that JoNew is going to Ganassi. I think Penske is the likely destination if JPM goes sports car racing with Porsche. And I wouldn't assume T.K. isn't returning to Chip. He also brought some sponsorship this season and he's qualifying and running up front, so don't count him gone just yet. But I don't see any way that he goes back to KVSH.

Q: Kevin Lee was reporting early in the race about how T.K.'s race was going. He then dropped a little nugget about his future. It sounds like T.K. will still have a full-time ride next year, however the team he'll be driving for is the unknown. Based on your connections, do you have any idea where T.K. will be? Also, during your post-race interview with Dixie it seems like Josef could be headed to CGR. Is there any fire behind that?

Chris, Alexandria, VA

RM: Not really. I know A.J. Foyt wanted T.K. a couple years ago and that team needs an overhaul, a spark and a proven winner so ABC Supply could make the 2013 Indy winner an offer he couldn't refuse. I'd love to see T.K. and Conor Daly in Foyt colors – that would be good for IndyCar. As for my question to Dixie, I was just trying to get a reaction from him, and I imagine Mike Hull has JoNew on his radar, but who doesn't?

Q: I used to think Tony Kanaan's reason for not winning more races was that he was not on one of the Big Three teams. Since joining Ganassi's team, Kanaan has won only one race and finished seventh, eighth and is currently sixth in the season standings. Scott Dixon, by contrast, has won six races in that same time period, and has finished third, first and is currently fourth in the season standings while driving for the same team. Is Kanaan in danger of losing his seat with Ganassi if he doesn't win more races?

Scott R., Portland, OR

RM: I'm not sure what T.K. told Kevin Lee about his future, but he's told me that without bringing some sponsorship this year he likely wouldn't have had a ride with Ganassi. As for his performance, he's still qualifying up front (average starting spot is seventh through 10 races) and running there (one more lap and he'd have beaten Power at Road America) but I'm not sure more wins are as important as sponsorship. T.K. still the most popular and recognizable driver in the series, and should have a home in 2017. But I think a lot depends on Chip's sponsorship situation. And, by the way, Kanaan won 14 races in a seven-year run with Andretti, and he's still gassing it.

Q: I can't say how disappointing it was to see all of the empty seats at Iowa on Sunday. My wife and I attended Road America and it was cool to be home by ten on Sunday night. I can say we probably wouldn't have gone if the race had started at 4:30 local time. Do you think the terrible starting time had something to do with the lack of spectators? Who comes up with these ridiculous times?

Paul, Indianapolis

RM: I do think it hurt, and that helped kill Milwaukee. Iowa needs to be a night race, so I suggest Friday since the next two years NASCAR is racing on NBCSN on that Saturday night of Iowa's weekend. Let's do it Friday or Wednesday.

 

Q: Can you please pass along a Carl Haas story that most long time fans won't know?

Mark McKinley, Floyds Knobs, IN

RM: In 2005 or 2006, we were at Road America and my sister had found some Paul Newman treasure in a second-hand store in L.A. It included movie flyers from Cool Hand Luke, a poster from Winning, and the Life magazine where he was on the cover stumping for George McGovern for president. I asked P.L. (who hated signing autographs) if he would autograph a couple of items, and he wound up signing everything – including every page of the 12-page movie flyer. He also spent 45 minutes talking about George Kennedy, Strother Martin and how much fun they had making that movie. To my knowledge he never talked about Hollywood, and Ralph Hansen and Carl were sitting in the motorcoach with me soaking in all this history. I thanked P.L. and walked out and Carl followed me. "How much to you want for all that stuff?" he said. I told him it wasn't mine to sell, but he insisted there had to be a price tag. So I finally said I'd trade him all the Hollywood treasure for one of Mario's old Lolas. He said he didn't have any but he could get me a hat and a jacket. What a character.

Q: What is your favorite Carl Haas story?

David, Waxhaw, NC

RM: It's everyone's favorite. He accidentally blessed Bobby Rahal's car before a race at Mid-Ohio (it was red just like Mario's) and Rahal won. Carl was depressed for a month.

Q: Heck of a race. Newgarden was Foyt-like. The kid is a racer. Crowd looked good on TV. What was your estimate? Is it my wishful thinking or is IndyCar finally getting its act together, or at least heading that way?

John T. Feeser, Wilmington, NC

RM: Newgarden was superb but the crowd was disappointing --I'd guess 13,000 – so our NBCSN cameras must have done a good job. I think Jay Frye is doing a good job of shaping the schedule into places that IndyCar has a chance and Mark Miles is working on improving the TV package. IndyCar still needs owners, cheaper cars and better purses but the racing is just fine.

Q: "Newgarden is 4.5s behind Pagenaud." Graphic comes up. Pagenaud's last lap speed is 169.3mph, and Newgarden's is 170.1 mph. Let's quantify that in time lost, because his speed compared to the leader is meaningless. I love that IndyCars go so fast, it's a great showcase, but their speed is not something that can be quantified in terms of what that means to a race.

Ryan in West Michigan

RM: I guess the best way to use speed is to say something like Newgarden's fastest lap was almost two mph quicker than Pagenaud's (which it was early in the race) – to me that illustrates quite an advantage on a short track.

Q: Here is my Hail Mary for the Foyt team. Replace both drivers for next season. Hire whoever gets cut from Penske or Ganassi when they pick up Newgarden, or JR Hildebrand and Sage Karam. It's a long shot, but would be fun to watch.

John Downing, Meridian, ID

RM: I'd love to see Sage go to Foyt because it would be a pairing like Robby Gordon and Super Tex in the early '90s – volatile but fast and entertaining. J.R. to ECR to replace JoNew would be fine as well (and keep Spencer Pigot for all the road races and Indy 500).

 

Q: Will Pirtek Team Murray (ABOVE) and Marotti Racing run any more races this year, or full-time in 2017? What's the latest on Grace?

Matt Bockstruck

Tony, New York

RM: Because it's the right thing to do and the smart thing to do, and I applaud Mark Miles and IndyCar's legal team for doing it, because those people would have never watched another IndyCar race - let alone attend one - had they not been compensated. Call it good business and good P.R. I knew Boston was in trouble when I heard the names of two of the clowns that were involved.

Q: A friend of mine thinks Tim Cindric might be lukewarm on Graham Rahal because he's saving a seat for his son, should he be ready and one opens at Penske. Any thoughts?

John Fulton, Akron, Ohio

RM: Graham said last year that Cindric doesn't like him, but Austin Cindric is a long way from being ready for an IndyCar.

Q: With all the talk about where Josef, Graham, and Conor land in the next couple of years, it seems like one name is falling off the radar - The Mayor. Does he have a possible future at Penske or Ganassi, or is he destined to run with the strong but smaller teams like Schmidt or KV? Or would a return to Andretti be in the cards?

Darrick Smith

RM: I think Arrow really likes Hinch and there's really nothing available that's better than SPM. He won the pole at Indy and finished third in the road race at IMS, so there's plenty of potential. But let's give them a couple years to gel. I think Allen MacDonald is as good as any engineer in the paddock.

Q: Mark Miles is looking to release both the 2017 and '18 schedules next month? Wow! Not one, but two schedules out before the end of the season! If this comes to pass, would this be some kind of record?

Rob Peterson, Rochester, NY

RM: I think that might be a bit optimistic, but the reality is that the 2017 schedule should be out next month and, to quote the late, great Tom Carnegie: "it's a new track record."

Q: As a local in the Watkins Glen area, I was really pumped to see the return of IndyCar in September. After the great response to Road America, it truly proves that a return to the classic road courses is a giant step in the right direction for the regeneration of a successful series. Having said that, I believe that there is already too much pressure on Watkins Glen to match up to Road America. It was a late entry, still has no major naming sponsor, and it is booked on Labor Day weekend.

The Finger Lakes is a major summer destination for the Northeast. Couple that with the lack of accommodations in and around Watkins Glen (one of the reasons F1 left a number of years ago) and the exorbitant camping fees, I fear that this event will be under-attended and viewed as a failure. My family loves to attend the races at WG but I refuse to pay the cost of a three-star hotel to pitch a tent at the track. Only a day after the race was announced, I started to look for hotel rooms in and around Watkins, and due to it being the last big summer holiday weekend, the closest room we could find was 20 miles away in Elmira - too far to enjoy the experience at the track. We will be attending the SVRA Vintage races the following weekend and camp at the track for 25 percent of the Indy weekend cost.

Being a diehard open wheel fan, I'll drive down the morning of the race and leave afterward - not the experience I want, but what I am forced to accept. There are three major metro areas totaling more than three million people less than 90 minutes from Watkins Glen. Get this race on the schedule for next year, schedule it for a non-holiday weekend, and I will guarantee a great turnout.

Greg Lane

RM: Thanks for the local knowledge Greg, I've heard from a lot of fans who feel like the camping charge is too high. But you are right that The Glen can't be judged like Road America when they've only had three months to promote, and it's not typically a race-friendly weekend. I think IndyCar is more or less leasing the track (and sharing the promotion) so it's not going to be a financial disaster for ISC regardless of the turnout. I would think if 20,000 showed up it would be a major success, but IndyCar's plan is to establish a date and keep it because, obviously, it's one of the premier road courses anywhere.

 

Rick Johnson, Lynnwood, WA

RM: It's Pocono (ABOVE), and I imagine next month's turnout will go a long way in determining whether either side wants to return in 2017.

Q: As a long time supporter and spectator at The Glen IndyCar races, I can not justify $275 for a spot to park a camper on the infield, or $150 to park outside the track. Every person in the camper section also needs an admission ticket in addition to the camping pass. We are middle-class people with basic travel trailers who have been supporting The Glen for years. Scenic Watkins Glen State Park (two miles away) will now be where I stay at a cost of $22 a night.

Paul Winter, Eden NY

RM: I sent your email, along with several others, to IndyCar, because if lots of loyal fans are balking at the prices then maybe they can get them changed. I think Elkhart Lake was really smart in its pricing ($140 to camp for three days I believe) and that contributed to the great crowd.

Q: According to some local news reports, the Norfolk race is now off the table. Any talk of other possible races in the mid or south Atlantic? We've got two great natural terrain road courses which provide good racing (and camping) in VIR and Road Atlanta, but it's well known they need some safety upgrades to accommodate IndyCar. Has there been any serious discussion between IndyCar brass and track owners or a thorough assessment done on what (and how much) these improvements may be? I think Barber proves there's a market in what's traditionally NASCAR country if paired with the right type of track.

Kevin, South Carolina

RM: VIR is way too narrow and doesn't have nearly enough runoff (mostly grass) so it would take a considerable investment to have an IndyCar race, and I doubt that's a reality. IndyCars are too fast for Road Atlanta: that's the party line and has been for 20 years. But it's a great layout.

Q: I'm assuming this is too little too late since Mark Miles is intent on laying out the schedule of events for the next two years, so maybe this is an idea for 2019 at the earliest. Problem #1: The race and testing schedule is too compressed and team members are getting burned out. Problem #2: Fontana was an exceptional event, but desires an October date to return. Problem #3: Surfers is showing interest, but the Supercar event has deep roots established in October.

Solutions: Sacrifice Miles's goal of ending the season by Labor Day, and end it in late October instead. Add Surfers in mid October, Fontana after it as the finale, and stretch out the summer schedule to incorporate the month of September. You save the crew guys from fatigue, while also increasing their useful employment period for two more months. You add two classic events, and Fontana at 500 miles is a fantastic championship decider anyway. What am I missing here?

Steven Kilsdonk, Noblesville, IN

RM: Because IndyCar doesn't have the leverage of F1, it can't dictate a race every other weekend and has to go with what the promoter/track wants most of the time. Plus, television is a huge factor in the equation and NASCAR takes precedent (as the ratings dictate) when NBCSN takes over, so that's another consideration. Having said that, Mark Miles wants to open the season in February in Australia if possible but still wants to have it over by mid-September, so it's always going to be fairly compacted and a strain on the mechanics. Four more good mechanics quit two teams last weekend after Iowa and the burnout factor is huge, so IndyCar needs to pay attention to that, but it doesn't appear to be a factor in scheduling. Of course the problem has always been the people who make up the schedule never worked on a car and have no concept of the grind of this current schedule. But banning in-season testing should be mandatory.

 

Q: It was announced that Menards will sponsor Simon Pagenaud's car for two more races at Iowa and Pocono. Even though it is great news and makes sense as he is the championship points leader, Pagenaud has little name recognition in the U.S. market outside of IndyCar fans. I can't help but compare that with the NAPA/Rossi deal. An American driver won the Indy 500 and consequently got a lot of media coverage, so you would think NAPA would have sponsored the #98 car beyond the Detroit double-header. So what's the deal with NAPA not sponsoring Rossi beyond Detroit? Are they simply not interested in IndyCar? If an Indy 500 winner cannot keep a sponsor such as NAPA on the car, isn't this bad news for the series?

M.P., Indianapolis, IN

RM: Menard wisely wanted to spend his money on a high-profile team and one that owns the Indy 500, so it made lots of sense. NAPA was a last-minute deal just for Indy (and not that much money) and it got a helluva bargain, but there was no long-term plan so it's not like Rossi was dumped. It would be great to see NAPA jump on board with Rossi for 2017, and I'm sure Andretti Autosport is pursuing them.

Phil Kaiser

RM: Thanks Phil, I'm always thankful I went from worshipping them as a kid to reporting on them to becoming friends. They still have that awe-struck affect and I think they're amazed so many people still care about them.

Q: Your article "Giving thanks to my Mount Rushmore" was great. When are you going to write a racing book?

Tony, Mamaroneck, NY

RM: No book Tony. Dan's book will be out soon and it's going to be fascinating. The other three have already had several books written about them, and I enjoy writing short stories about the past for RACER.com.

Q: When did spotters become standard in IndyCar oval racing? Obviously in-car radios made it possible to communicate in the first place. I imagine the super-close oval racing we're seeing would be impossible or (even more) extraordinarily dangerous without them.

Patrick from Brooklyn

RM: The first spotter I recall was Tom Sneva's boyhood friend, Greg Bogus, back in the '80s at Indy and Milwaukee and he sat either high up in the turn or stood on the roof (in the case of Milwaukee) with a two-way radio. When IndyCar seats became cocoons it became tougher and tougher for drivers to be able to see and, you are correct, it was the Indy Racing League that really made spotters a necessity instead of a luxury.

Q: I keep hearing about a new chassis, engines, aero etc. and wanted to share my thoughts on a solution. Let's keep the DW12. Give the aero back to Dallara, take the current aero kits, study them and develop a single kit to make all parties happy. Here is where the manufactures get to take over. Why not allow them to develop any aero that's related to the engine: engine cover, air box, cooling ducts and exhaust exits? Freeze the current aero kits and engines for 2017. Allow an Indy 500 special engine that manufactures can tune and modify up to the point when the car is qualified for the 500. Dallara should have its 2018 aero figured out - or be close to it - at this point, and manufacturers can study the new aero to develop the new engine/aero kits. Freeze the kits for two years, and have a new car in 2020. Since teams have an interest in developing their own parts, identify 10 or so areas where they can - only for the Indy 500 and season finale in 2017, but full season in 2018 and 2019 and incorporated into the new 2020 car. If you think the idea is good, feel free to pass it on to the IndyCar brass.

John in the US Virgin Islands

RM: It sounds expensive and nobody could afford it. I don't think people realize how tight things are in the IndyCar paddock. The unofficial vote sounded like people favored Pratt & Miller to build the common kit for 2018, but I think IndyCar is still looking at its options.

 

Q: Do you find the current generation of IndyCars attractive? Which car, over your long career, was the ultimate beauty?

Jenkins

RM: Uh, no they are hideous compared to Sam Hanks' Belond laydown in 1957, Jim Hurtubise's Novi in 1963 (ABOVE), Jim Clark's 1965 Lotus, Lloyd Ruby's Eagle of 1966, Parnelli's turbine in 1967, Bobby Unser's Eagle in 1972, A.J.'s Coyote in 1977, the Parnelli of Danny Ongais in 1978, Mike Mosley's Eagle in 1981, Rick Mears' Penske in 1982, Tom Sneva's March in 1983, Mario's Lola in 1987, Alex Zanardi's Reynard or Michael Andretti's Swift in 1997.

That said, what concerns me about this is that Chevy is currently running circles around Honda on the racetrack, with a 9-1 advantage in the win column. If aero kit development were to be put into a freeze for the rest of this season and through the next, it stands to reason that we may be subjected to an extended period of manufacturer dominance by Chevy. Is that really what the series needs? And does IndyCar have a play in its rulebook that could prevent that from happening?Also, in the same article, I read that the teams are vehemently opposed to returning to the base DW12 chassis, as they were unhappy with its performance. I hate to hear that, as the 2012-2015 seasons contained the best road/street course racing IndyCar has ever seen. (The IR-05 still holds the record for best oval racing).

Garrick, Alabama

RM: The teams will be thrilled to leave things alone for another year but, believe it or not, even though Chevy has the upper hand, it's against freezing the aero kits. In talking with Ilmor's Paul Ray, the Bowtie folks want to continue development and competition because it's one of the main reasons they're in racing. And Honda probably isn't too keen on not being able to try and improve considering this year's results, but it saves everyone money so that's the motivating factor. The 9.3 rule was instituted last year to give Honda a chance to catch up, and it did at some tracks. But you must remember than IndyCar racing was never about equality – it was about fresh ideas and innovation and kicking the other guy's butt but with so few owners, sponsors and cars, it's become necessary to try and keep things as even as possible to keep everyone in play. At least, that's how I see it.

Q: Do all the teams use the same make of shocks? Chevy teams seem to do better over the bumps at speed - or is the aero kit that much better? I am for not changing the kits until 2018. Maybe Honda can take the data from this season to tweak the set-up for their teams. What is the Honda "fin" supposed to do? What are the chances of Pocono in 2018? Is Jay Frye trying to talk Miles into a run deeper into the fall? Lots of questions; looking to the man in the know for answers.

Dino from New Hanover, Pa.

RM: Team Penske builds (and sells) its own shocks, and Ohlins of Sweden has been around since the '90s. The Honda fin helps slow the car down in the event of a spin and, coupled with the fin on the nose, works to prevent the car from getting airborne by breaking up the airflow over the car (thanks Dan Layton of Honda). I think Pocono is year-to-year, but don't think the season will run past mid-September.

 

Q: As a fan of the INDYCAR Series, let me begin by saying thank you for your vocal support/advocacy of the series. I recently began watching IMSA and WEC races and noticed the numerous manufactures involved in those series: Corvette, BMW, Ford, Porsche, Audi, etc. In comparison, IndyCar has struggled to gain interest from additional manufactures and is on bended-knee to keep the two it has. I may be wrong, but I can't imagine that profits earned in sportscars are better, or that much better, than that of IndyCar. Why the vast difference in manufactures involved in each respective series?

Cody Decker

RM: Over to Marshall Pruett. "The first and easiest answer is in the IMSA series, those manufacturers are able to repurpose their production-based engines. It's a lot cheaper than commissioning brand-new, purpose-built IndyCar motors. Pulling something off the assembly line and developing it for endurance racing is a convenience, so that's what we see in IMSA on a regular basis. And then there's the issue of size. A full-size production motor is large and heavy compared to a miniaturized IndyCar engine, which makes stuffing an IMSA prototype or GT powerplant into a Dallara DW12 all but impossible. There are one or two exceptions, but as a whole, IMSA manufacturers wanting to compete in IndyCar would need to spend a lot on cooking up a brand-new solution."

Q: Recently a Formula 1 engineer said that the driver is responsible for 20 percent of the car's performance, with the remainder being divided equally between the engine and aerodynamics. In your opinion, what is the current driver/car ratio in today's IndyCar? Also, in what era do you think the driver had the most influence on the car's performance and which drivers, past and present, could make an average car competitive with their combination of guts/skill/experience?

Josh H.

RM: It depends on the track. At ovals, it's more about the aero package and engineering, so the driver is less of a factor than at a street race or road course, where he can make more of a difference. But in the '60s when there was no dependency on aerodynamics, downforce was non-existent and they raced on dirt and pavement, ovals and road courses, the driver definitely had more to do with the outcome. A.J., Mario, Parnelli and the Unser brothers were as diverse and adaptable as anyone before or since. Ditto for Dan Gurney, sans the dirt, and Jimmy Clark was leading Riverside in Rolla Vollstedt's car in 1967. But unlike F1 today, where there is such mass discrepancy from the front to the back because of budgets, engines and building their own cars, at least IndyCar gives a good driver a chance to shine.

Q: I'll be at Pocono again next month and am trying to somewhere find an event schedule, without success. (I have looked on IndyCar and Pocono track sites). Am I just missing something or is nothing yet published? Also, why no Indy Lights at Pocono again? Last year SVRA was running on one of the infield road courses, but that's not on the schedule at all this year. Are there no support races at all? 

John Weaver, Camp Hill, PA

RM: Here's the schedule: IndyCar practice on Saturday from 9-10:30 a.m, qualifying at 1 p.m. and final practice at 5 p.m. for a half hour. Sunday there is a one-hour driver autograph session at 10:15 a.m. and the green flag falls at 3:35 p.m. There will be vintage cars running both days, but no Lights race. But you are spot on: ovals have got to give the people more to watch.

Q: I'm surprised that none of your readers mentioned this, but Road America (ABOVE) should serve as a huge "I told you so" moment for Mr. Miles and the IndyCar Management. How long have the fans been crying to get the series back to this fantastic track? What a venue and what a race weekend! Thankfully, after the successful execution of the anniversary Indy 500, we have another event to be proud of.

I assume that you are following the Boston fiasco as it plays out. One thing that I have seen is that leading up to the sale of tickets nobody - except IndyCar fans - knew what they were proposing for the Seaport on Labor Day weekend. The local Boston media-types variously referred to the Boston Grand Prix as an F1 race (because, if it's a Grand Prix, it must be F1, right?) or as a NASCAR race (because, if it's an auto race, it must be NASCAR, right?). Of course, it all worked out because the Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey has now clearly identified the series as a prime player in the lawsuit that she has filed to get ticket refunds for customers. So, IndyCar now gets mentioned on the Boston news channels every night. Kidding aside, IndyCar clearly needs to consistently brand its product with a common naming convention so that people know who they are, especially when entering a new market. And Mr. Miles should team up with the Attorney General in any way that he can so that they come away as the 'good guys' assisting in the pursuit of the promoters and the fan's missing ticket dollars.

Royal Richardson, Chester, N.H.

RM: I give big props to Derrick Walker, Miles, Frye and George for getting Road America back where it belongs – on the IndyCar schedule – and hopefully Watkins Glen and possibly Portland can attract an audience moving forward. IndyCar very wisely contributed almost a million dollars to the ticket fund at Boston and should get props for doing the right thing for the fans.

Q: I always love reading your Mailbag and your thoughts are on motorsports-related issues. I have two questions for you. There is only one doubleheader in the IndyCar season and that is at Detroit. Is money and time the reason IndyCar can't have more doubleheaders? I think it would also be easier on the drivers, teams, and equipment if a doubleheader was held at a permanent road course. The only problem is that usually the road course weekends are packed with other events (MRTI, PWC). My second question is about double-points races. I think they should go back to the old USAC scoring system when they give a different amount of points depending on how long the race is. Or, if you want double points at Sonoma, run 250 miles on Saturday and then another 250 on Sunday. What do you think is the perfect scenario/solution?

Emerson

RM: First off, thanks for reading. As for doubleheaders, Mike Lanigan (Houston) and Savoree/Green (Toronto) both seemed to favor doubleheaders – as did the fans. But it is more expensive and more taxing on the teams, especially at Detroit coming off the month of May. I always loved the twin races/heats that USAC ran at Indianapolis Raceway Park, Mosport and Brainerd along with Michigan. But after reading the previous letter about Pocono, it makes so much sense for IndyCar to run a couple of twin 150s at a place like Pocono. There are only 22 cars so they get real spread out over 500 miles, and there's no more Triple Crown, so why make it 500 miles? Give the fans two races for the price of one. I'd love to see Iowa run a Friday night and a Sunday afternoon doubleheader.