2017 Indy 500

I hope some of the Honda motors go the distance. Can you imagine Fernando's frustration if he is running in the top 5 at 150 laps and his motor.... No, I won't even type it.


8 or 9 honda engine failures at Phoenix alone ........ not looking good for Honda this weekend
 
8 or 9 honda engine failures at Phoenix alone ........ not looking good for Honda this weekend
Idk wtf that graphic was about. The Hondas all wrecked on the first lap at Phoenix. They didn't have time for engines to fail lol. They had a lot of failures at Long Beach and Indy so far for sure though. I think Honda just put new engines in their cars after Monday too so Hinch not lasting through Carb Day is...not good. I think it would be an upset if it weren't a war of attrition tomorrow. Really adds a layer of intrigue.
 
Idk wtf that graphic was about. The Hondas all wrecked on the first lap at Phoenix. They didn't have time for engines to fail lol. They had a lot of failures at Long Beach and Indy so far for sure though. I think Honda just put new engines in their cars after Monday too so Hinch not lasting through Carb Day is...not good. I think it would be an upset if it weren't a war of attrition tomorrow. Really adds a layer of intrigue.


I wondered too but I haven't got to watch much Indy car this year
 
So many of the fast guys have been either rockets or totally lost, back and forth that you have to wonder who is going to show up on raced day? Just about everyone has had good days and been out to lunch on others, so it makes picking a winner almost impossible. We probably have 20 cars that can win this thing if they get the car dialed in for the last 100 miles. It could be almost anyone's race.
 
Wow, a fabulous race! As a frequent detractor of IndyCar racing under the current formula, I am really glad to say that was awesome. For whatever reason, the leader didn't seem so aero-penalized this year, not so much a "sitting duck" that the chaser could pass at will. Passing was hard, and therefore making the pass was meaningful.

Taku-san was awesome. Or was Helio calling him Taco-san, LOL? Either way, congrats to him. He's always fast, and has had his great disappointments. He earned it... well done. So happy to see Scott Dixon emerge from that horrifying crash. Thank God for that.

Fernando Alonso's Indy adventure was superb, simply magnificent. What a statement he made about.. What a true racer is.
 
Wow, a fabulous race! As a frequent detractor of IndyCar racing under the current formula, I am really glad to say that was awesome. For whatever reason, the leader didn't seem so aero-penalized this year, not so much a "sitting duck" that the chaser could pass at will. Passing was hard, and therefore making the pass was meaningful.

Taku-san was awesome. Or was Helio calling him Taco-san, LOL? Either way, congrats to him. He's always fast, and has had his great disappointments. He earned it... well done. So happy to see Scott Dixon emerge from that horrifying crash. Thank God for that.

Fernando Alonso's Indy adventure was superb, simply magnificent. What a statement he made about.. What a true racer is.
 
Sorry about the poor posting above. The time limit on editing had expired while I was correcting it. Here's what I meant to write:

Taku-san was awesome. Or was Helio calling him Taco-san, LOL?

You probably won't be surprised that's what AJ always called him!

Going in, Sato was one of the few guys I would not have been happy to see win, but he drove such a clean race, fought his way back from a bad put stop, and then put it away with a brilliant set of passes, well, it's hard not to be happy win that's how this race is won. A truly deserving champion. He's probably going to represent the 500 very well, especially in Japan. I can easily see their interest in Indycar exploding.

In the 2012 500 Sato crashed on the last lap trying to pass Franchitti. Dario left him just barely enough room, and I'm talking about inches here. Sato felt the car step out and instead of letting it run up into Dario he held it down and spun it. So, instead of winning the race he played fair and lost. That's the kind of guy I'm happy to see win the world's greatest race.

Hunter Reay ran superbly and probably would had had a shot at it but you could actually hear the motor pop from the in car camera. Even nastier was Alonso's blow up which sounded like someone threw a hand full of roofing nails in a garbage disposal. Attrition is back!

Other notables include Ed Jones, but anyone who saw the opening races knew he was going to have a hell of a race. James Davison surprised me by being in position to actually win the race, but he and Servia took each other out. Rahal was in the top five or so when he absolutely got hosed by Carpenter. Lots of desperate driving out there, which is what we like to see.
 
Lots of people are #madonline that Fernando got ROTY over Ed Jones. Weird, there wasn't anywhere near this level of outrage when Kurt Busch won over Sage Karam.

You can make a great argument for both and I would've tried to split my vote if I could. Not much you can do about a media vote though.
 
We hosted a family get together for Memorial Day and one of my inlaws
stated he was not happy about Sato waving the Japanese flag on the ride around.
To his credit, he is not a race fan and does not know what's customary. In his eye ,
he saw a Japanese man waving his flag in the face of our Memorial Day weekend.

I educated him it was not out of line to do so but made me think about those
like him who do not know. I can see their point.

Did any of you all think twice about the flag on the ride around?
 
We hosted a family get together for Memorial Day and one of my inlaws
stated he was not happy about Sato waving the Japanese flag on the ride around... In his eye , he saw a Japanese man waving his flag in the face of our Memorial Day weekend.
That thought never crossed my mind. Sato was celebrating winning the Indy 500, and the Japanese flag paid respect to his own heritage. It was not a Memorial Day ride around, but rather an Indy 500 ride around... to me.

Having said that, it is an interesting dilemma, now that you raise it. Memorial Day is our nation's most solemn day, a day of remembrance of fallen heros who gave their lives in the defense of the United States. And Japan was our enemy in WW2 which cost so many American lives, and veterans of that war were present at the Speedway to receive our honor and respect. I'm sure that none of that was on Sato's mind at that moment. While I see your in-law's point, I have no problem with Sato's flag in this situation. Many race winners fly their nation's flag to celebrate.
Sato Flag.jpg
nicky-hayden-flag3.jpg
 
America is the only place in the world where it's not fashionable or objectionable to be proud of your country. When foreigners wave their flag they are being nationalistic. When we do it we're being xenophobic or just plain arrogant, ugly Americans. Double standard much?

I'm really ok with them waving their flags as long as we can do the same thing and not face such criticism.

Japan is probably the deadliest enemy we ever had, but even my father in law, a Pearl Harbor survivor, eventually got over it. It was war. it sucked, but we're allies with the British, Germans and Italians, all people we have gone to war against. About the only hard feelings left over from WWII are at lemans where they still fight the war, only with cars, which is probably how we should have done it to begin with. Would have been epic and sure saved a lot of bloodshed, and Ford would have stomped their asses anyway.

Today, though, Japan are probably our best friends. Not once have they stabbed us in the back in the UN the way that France does like regular clockwork. We can always count on Japan's support. We are certainly going to need them when it inevitably goes sideways with North Korea,

That and hanging on to WWII is a little like insisting the south shall rise again. Almost everyone involved in WWI is dead, so it's probably time to let it go and live in the now when Japan are our friends.
 
We hosted a family get together for Memorial Day and one of my inlaws
stated he was not happy about Sato waving the Japanese flag on the ride around.
To his credit, he is not a race fan and does not know what's customary. In his eye ,
he saw a Japanese man waving his flag in the face of our Memorial Day weekend.

I educated him it was not out of line to do so but made me think about those
like him who do not know. I can see their point.

Did any of you all think twice about the flag on the ride around?
Didn't give it a thought. It's an international sport with international stars. What would be their reaction during the Olympics when Germany or Japan won a gold medal?
 
... Did any of you all think twice about the flag on the ride around?
Never crossed my mind until you brought it up. Different government, different flag, different time, different people.

I had a half-Japanese high school buddy who graduated from the Univ. of South Carolina. Having successfully completed the Navy ROTC program, he was fortunate enough to qualify for pilot training. An artistic school mate painted a custom helmet for him, although it was an old shell and not up to flight standards. One side was the Univ. of SC Gamecock mascot. The bird's reddish feathers wrapped around the back and over the top, merging on the other side into the rays of a Rising Sun.
 
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