Indycar 2013
Posted: Sat Jul 13, 2013 8:24 pm
Well, now that I am up to date with the Formula 1 thread, I would like to begin a thread on the IndyCar season so far. And wow what a season this has been! But before I get to tomorrow's race I wanted to get a few things about the series down so everyone knows a little more about the series.
The Indy Racing League, LLC or IndyCar as it is more commonly known was founded in 1994 and currently owned by Hulman and Co. The main reason it is called IndyCar is because of the centerpiece of the season, the Indianapolis 500. Trying to explain the overall history of how it was formed would take about 20 posts, maxing out the text allowed for each post so I will instead point to the Wikipedia page and you can go from there: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indycar
Currently in IndyCar every team uses a common chassis supplied by Dallara, this has helped all teams keep the cost of racing down while improving the safety and spectacle of the sport. The name of the chassis is known as DW12. The 12 represents the year Indycar began using the chassis, 2012, while unfortunately, the DW of the chassis' name stands for Dan Wheldon. The reason I use the word 'unfortunately', is because Dan Wheldon was tragically killed at the final race of the 2011 season at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Soon after, Dallara named the new chassis after him in tribute. Before his death, he closely worked with Dallara making the chassis very safe and voicing his concern for how dangerous the Las Vegas Motor Speedway for open wheel racing cars was. To learn more about Dan Wheldon click here.
The full specifications of the current car may be found here. A few quick things about the IndyCar cars: Indycar is the 'fastest' racing series on the planet with a top speed of 240 mph. Though a Formula 1 car would easily beat an IndyCar on nearly any circuit. IndyCars currently use an engine supplied by either Chevrolet or Honda engine. IndyCar's have a rated horsepower range between 550-700 horsepower by the way of a 2.2L v6 single- or twin-turbo charged engine. The cars must weight a minimum of 1565 lbs.
I'll probably add more about the IndyCar cars at a later time, but now to the current season!
Tomorrow, Sunday July 14th, is the 13th race of 19 in the 2013 season. But before we get to tomorrow's race, lets begin at the top! The season began with the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in St. Petersburg, FL. This 1.8 mile, 14-turn course takes place on the streets and a section of runway of the Albert Whitted Airport. Like nearly every race this season, it was fantastic, the end of the race was amazing! There are three videos below, the first is a virtual tour of the circuit, the second is highlights from the race, and finally the full race from IndyCar:
Note: The race begins at the 30 minute mark.
The second race of the season was the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at the Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, AL. This is the first Race Circuit of the season which is 2.38 miles in length with 17 turns. This race was funny because James Hinchcliff sat in his car waiting for a caution to come out so he could get restarted and get back to the pit to rejoin the race...which never occurred. Again I've included three videos below, the first being a virtual lap of the course, highlights of the race and finally the entire race:
Note: The race begins at the 30 minute mark.
The third race and beyond will follow in the next post.
The Indy Racing League, LLC or IndyCar as it is more commonly known was founded in 1994 and currently owned by Hulman and Co. The main reason it is called IndyCar is because of the centerpiece of the season, the Indianapolis 500. Trying to explain the overall history of how it was formed would take about 20 posts, maxing out the text allowed for each post so I will instead point to the Wikipedia page and you can go from there: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indycar
Currently in IndyCar every team uses a common chassis supplied by Dallara, this has helped all teams keep the cost of racing down while improving the safety and spectacle of the sport. The name of the chassis is known as DW12. The 12 represents the year Indycar began using the chassis, 2012, while unfortunately, the DW of the chassis' name stands for Dan Wheldon. The reason I use the word 'unfortunately', is because Dan Wheldon was tragically killed at the final race of the 2011 season at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Soon after, Dallara named the new chassis after him in tribute. Before his death, he closely worked with Dallara making the chassis very safe and voicing his concern for how dangerous the Las Vegas Motor Speedway for open wheel racing cars was. To learn more about Dan Wheldon click here.
The full specifications of the current car may be found here. A few quick things about the IndyCar cars: Indycar is the 'fastest' racing series on the planet with a top speed of 240 mph. Though a Formula 1 car would easily beat an IndyCar on nearly any circuit. IndyCars currently use an engine supplied by either Chevrolet or Honda engine. IndyCar's have a rated horsepower range between 550-700 horsepower by the way of a 2.2L v6 single- or twin-turbo charged engine. The cars must weight a minimum of 1565 lbs.
I'll probably add more about the IndyCar cars at a later time, but now to the current season!
Tomorrow, Sunday July 14th, is the 13th race of 19 in the 2013 season. But before we get to tomorrow's race, lets begin at the top! The season began with the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in St. Petersburg, FL. This 1.8 mile, 14-turn course takes place on the streets and a section of runway of the Albert Whitted Airport. Like nearly every race this season, it was fantastic, the end of the race was amazing! There are three videos below, the first is a virtual tour of the circuit, the second is highlights from the race, and finally the full race from IndyCar:
Note: The race begins at the 30 minute mark.
The second race of the season was the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at the Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, AL. This is the first Race Circuit of the season which is 2.38 miles in length with 17 turns. This race was funny because James Hinchcliff sat in his car waiting for a caution to come out so he could get restarted and get back to the pit to rejoin the race...which never occurred. Again I've included three videos below, the first being a virtual lap of the course, highlights of the race and finally the entire race:
Note: The race begins at the 30 minute mark.
The third race and beyond will follow in the next post.