Robin Miller's Mailbag for December 25, presented by Honda Racing / HPD

Your questions for Robin should 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.

Q: Thanks for another great end-of-season contribution with your IndyCar 2019 Report Card (thanks to Mr. Glendenning for his role as well). It is a valuable reality check on our perspectives. It’s also good to hear the viewpoints from team leadership. If you could be given the gift of one change/adjustment to the May schedule at Indy for this year, what would it be? (Bigger purses for drivers/teams is a must, but doesn’t count on this question).

Secondly, if all the 2020 tracks are run as now scheduled, and you could see one track added (whether it is humanly possible, with revision or not), what track would it be?

Final question: if IndyCar could get a non-championship dirt event with a number of drivers slipped in this coming year with a great promoter, what cars (midgets, sprints, etc.) would you choose at what track? Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and thank you for all you do for racing and we the fortunate fans.

Rick W., California

RM: I thought the latest qualifying format was damn good for NBC and the paying customers, but I’d get rid of the Monday practice session the week of the race and give the mechanics a chance to breathe. I’d try Milwaukee again, but it would entail moving it to the week after Indy, and R.P. would never let that happen as long as Detroit is on the schedule. But if the locals are ever successful in evicting IndyCar from Belle Isle, I think The Captain could make Milwaukee work. I’d have an IndyCar feature during the Chili Bowl and let NBC televise it. Thanks for being a loyal reader.

Q: Why isn’t The Captain in any of the feeder series? Seems that Penske is a team with all the resources needed to help add to the admittedly dismal car count in Indy Lights. Is it simply because Penske is all about winning at the top level, so lower series aren’t that important it?

Max Camposano, San Francisco, CA

RM: He fielded a Super Vee for his son, Roger Jr., back in the early '80s, but my theory is that R.P. is all about competing at the top levels, be it NASCAR, Supercars, IMSA or IndyCar, and he’s fine with other people developing drivers that he can eventually hire.

Q: How much if any control does IndyCar have on the Lights series, specifically at Indy? They put on a great show there, but they need more cars. Maybe if some IndyCar drivers were to compete also it would increase the field and exposure. Do you know if this is even open for discussion? Get on that book!

Tim West

RM: Well I suppose IndyCar could add a couple of cars if things got real desperate, but amazingly enough the last few Freedom 100s have been great races despite a small field, so not sure anything needs to be done. And no IndyCar vets have any interest in going back down to run a Lights car.

Q: I'm going to steal a line from Chris Medland's article on F1 and apply it to IndyCar: "How do we make owning a new team something that is a good business proposition, not just a pursuit of passion?" Do you have anything new on how Roger Penske will address the profitability of teams that will ensure their long-term survival and also appeal to new teams? I'm also interested in how he's going to address the same issue in Indy Lights. That series has a great car, but the fields need to grow if it is going to be taken seriously throughout the world. Pato losing Super License points because of the small fields is an example of the problem.

Rob, Ringwood, NJ

RM: I have no idea what R.P.’s checklist consists of. Obviously he’s aware the Indy 500 and IndyCar purses need fortified to try and help draw more participation, but I don’t believe Lights is real high in the pecking order. He’s repeatedly said he wants to improve the fan experience at Indianapolis so I think that’s his immediate goal, but let’s be patient and give him a year or so to get things in motion.

Q: Great article on Bill Simpson. My favorite recollection of him is when he decided to retire spontaneously on a practice day at the Speedway: “I was driving into Turn 3 and realized I was thinking about my business instead of the car, so I’m done.”

Rick K, SD, CA

RM: Good memory. I wrote that story for The Indianapolis Star in 1977 and there was another anecdote that went with it. Clay Regazzoni was Simpson’s teammate that year and the F1 veteran barrel-rolled his car during the second day of time trials. He hustled back to Gasoline Alley and pointed to Simpson’s car and wondered if that was his backup car? “If you want to drive that badly, hell yes it is,” said the guy we called Silly Bimpson. Regga made the show the next weekend, and Bill quit driving to concentrate on safety equipment.

Q: Nice article on Simpson, and good job getting it out quick! I’m an amateur racer and only wear Simpson suits (and restraints). There are more affordable suits and more popular, but none of their manufacturers will get in one and set themselves on fire! Bill made a difference in this world.

Mark Schue

RM: He knew that would get him and his company a lot of attention, and of course it did, but the second time he set himself on fire was outside Turn 1 at Jim Bob Luebbert’s shop. Everything went fine, but Bill kept shaking his wrist until the fire was extinguished. He’d neglected to take off the gold chain around his wrist, and let’s just say it got quite warm.

Simpson in 1971, possibly reflecting on the time he blanked Robin on a flight to LA a year earlier. Image via Robin Miller Collection

Q: A great tribute to Bill Simpson. I would talk with him at IMS during the required photographed autograph sessions, and found him very outgoing and pleased to be asked racing questions.

Richard Dowdy

RM: My first encounter with Simpson came in 1970. His old ****box had blown up and threw scalding water all over him on Bump Day, so he got burned pretty badly on his leg. I wrote a qualifying story for The Star and then hauled ass to the airport to fly to L.A. for the Pacers-LA Stars playoff game. As fate would have it, Simpson was in the aisle across from me and the plane was three-fourths empty, so he was able to stretch out his legs. I knew who he was and what had happened so I tried to engage him in polite conversation, and he basically ignored me. But when he landed at LAX he was having trouble getting his luggage, so I jumped up and carried it for him all the way to the curb – where a gorgeous blonde was waiting for him in a red Corvette. He thanked me and we eventually became friends, but I knew right then being a race driver might be an OK profession if a journeyman racer like Simpson had a girlfriend that looked like Barbara Eden.

Steve C., Ithaca, NY

RM: Thanks Steve, you just gave Mr. Wolfe his due, but I’ve always been curious as to why Johnson would have been given that moniker and not someone like A.J. or Parnelli or Daniel Sexton Gurney. I get the moonshiner angle, but those three all came from nothing and became worldwide heroes in all kinds of cars. I agree that Junior was an American hero – just not the last one.

Q: In your opinion, what were the five things IndyCar did right this past season, and five things IndyCar got wrong.

D. Krueger, West Allis, WI

RM: I liked the new qualifying format and aero package at Indy, both made for dramatic TV and good racing. I liked going to COTA, moving Iowa back to Saturday night and signing up Richmond for 2020. Not wild about the aeroscreen but I guess it’s a necessity, and IndyCar seemed to do its due diligence and get Red Bull Advanced Technologies involved before pulling the trigger. I still hate finishing the season on a road course instead of an oval, although Laguna Seca had a very healthy crowd so it looked good. I didn’t like Mark Robinson and Pat Caporali being cut loose from IndyCar PR, because they were assets. Not sure of all the circumstances, but I thought Jeff Horton [ED: ex-IndyCar director of engineering] deserved some kind of a farewell for his years of service. I wish there was a way to get NBC Gold to Canada.

Q: I wrote to you some time ago about the importance of getting people to the tracks in order to create loyal followers. The best way to get and keep people interested is a live experience. The sights, sounds and the chance meeting with a driver will deliver genuine memories and perhaps create a lifetime fan, something watching on TV will never do. Giving TV the right to control start times seems to work contrary to an effective plan for series growth. Late start times will cause many fans to rethink attending races and could diminish popularity for events starting late. Diminished popularity could spook promoters of those affected events. Sometimes it seems the series is its own worst enemy.

John Fulton

RM: I’ve always bitched about late starting times but we’ve got to have television and NBC had eight races on network this past season, which was great, yet it’s always a compromise that sometimes hurts the paying customer. I don’t mind a street race with a late start because most of the crowd is close, but it’s tougher for a Barber or Mid-Ohio because that means getting home late on Sunday night.

Q: So, I've attended qualifying for the 500 since 1991, but never the race. My 10-year- old son is insistent on going to the race this year. While I know my way around the neighborhood, including Mug ‘n’ Bun, any helpful hints on what time to leave for the track if we spend the night in Indy? Do we park a distance away to avoid traffic? Happy Holidays!

Jason G., Chicago, IL

RM: It depends on where you’re sitting. If you’re on the south end of the track then there are several paid lots available right on 16Th Street, and if you’re on the north end there are lots of front yards of homes that are accessible. Traffic is a bitch so it might also be smart to take an Uber or bus from downtown and be dropped off by the main gate.

Q: Just wondering if Foyt gets sponsorship in this awesome economy? Will Larry Foyt improve the engineering? OK, I thought that James [Hinchcliffe] was going to Coyne because of Honda. Obviously, I was wrong! Does he go to Foyt now? Maybe he doesn’t get a ride and has to run the McLaren tent?

Dan Kirby

RM: I think T.K., Charlie Kimball and Dalton Kellett all have some sponsorship, but probably nothing approaching ABC Supply. Yes, Larry is trying to get new engineers, but it’s not easy because not many good ones walking around. I told you Hinch wasn’t going to drive for Coyne, and he’s got one good option remaining with a Honda team.

Foyt still needs sponsors and is still chasing some new engineers. Image by Abbott/LAT

Q: I don't get it. The economy is growing, employment is at record levels and serious money problems all at once for what seems to be every IndyCar (sorry Captain!) team but the Big 3. What the hell has been going on the past two months?  In the 55 years I've been loving IndyCar, I've never seen anything like it. Did you see/know/hear the Hinch, Bourdais, Pigot, O’Ward and Askew "upsets" coming? With all the sponsor BS of the past month or so, I haven't heard Jimmy Vasser and Sulli mentioned. What gives? Are they in or out at Coyne? Are they trying to do their own deal? Have you ever seen anyone run into so many pitfalls and somehow keep going as Conor Daly?

David Sutton

RM: Just because the economy is good and unemployment is low doesn’t mean that translates to lots of sponsor dollars for IndyCar. It’s still about TV ratings and business-to-business relationships, so it’s no different than many years gone by. Not sure what Vasser and Sulli are doing, but nobody saw Seb’s situation coming. And I told you back in August that Hinch wasn’t going to be at Arrow McLaren SP. Conor is resilient and I think he’s going to help ECR turn around its road racing program.

Q: R.P. buying IMS and IndyCar is a great thing. Long-term – say, 15 years – do you know of any first right of refusal to the Hulman family or other long-term legal aspects if the Penske family decides to sell? I doubt Tony or Mari ever thought it would get out of the family, and here we are. Things change. I used to think 15 years was a long time, but not anymore!

Thomas Miller

RM: I have no idea what IMS and IndyCar will look like in 15 years, but I’m pretty sure it won’t be going back to the Hulman/George family. You know R.P. has a long-range plan and that his sons will likely be in the middle of it. But I think we’re all hoping The Captain stays on top of his game until he’s 90.

Q: Thanks for all you do for us racers! Being 81, almost 82 years old in January, I’ve seen seen racing since 1949. Still enjoy them, but not as much as in the past. I watched all the guys from here in Texas race on small dirt tracks and then go on to fame and some to fortune. Take care, and Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. And I hope 2020 bring us both good health.

Bill LeNoir

RM: A.J., Lloyd Ruby, Jim McElreath and Lone Star J.R. put Texas on the open-wheel map when USAC was king, but IndyCar heroes are coming from other places nowadays. Thanks for the kind thoughts.

Q: Do you know of any Mallard roadsters in the museum basement or lurking in garages around Indy? Sure would like to see one again. It's been a while.

David Hyson

RM: I don’t, David, but I hope that if somebody has one and sees this they’ll let me know and I can tell you where to find them. Not sure if Pete Hurtubise has one of the originals or not, but he’s still in North Tonawanda, N.Y. if you want to try and look him up in the phone book.

Q: Are you beginning to feel like Clint Eastwood in Play Misty For Me? You’re getting some pretty weird letters in the Mailbag, dude.

David Spear

RM: Not at all David, you should see the ones I don’t print.