Tuesday, May 23, 2006 | 7:34 a.m.
The last two weeks at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway have been a true test of patience, knowledge and skill. We have been on the air 12 hours live so far, and about eight of those hours were for rain delays without a single car qualifying. On what was supposed to be the official Pole Day a week ago Saturday, everyone in the racing community was put to the test.
Many people ask me what we do in those situations. Well, first of all, the drivers become your best friends for waiting around in their garages "on call" for the media. I covered everything from the traditions of Indy, such as how the custom of drinking milk in the victory circle started, the yard of bricks at the start-finish line and the history of the Borg-Warner trophy. It allowed me to research and learn quite a bit about the history of this storied place. I actually loved getting to learn about the Speedway and the things and people who have made it what it is today. Visit www.indy500.com if you'd like to know more.
We also interviewed many drivers about their setups and how they were dealing with a rain-drenched month. After the first week of practice, drivers had only run about 200-300 laps each. That's about half of the normal laps turned during the first week. Although drivers and teams were a bit stressed about the lack of track time, they all seemed to be very relaxed and open. That is my favorite time to interview. There's nothing like interviewing a driver as he pulls into victory lane, overwhelmed with emotion, but getting to hang out with someone when their mind isn't "in the race car" is so revealing.
During our shows, you may have caught one of my favorite pieces. It was a trip I took down to Florida just a week before we came to Indy where I got to visit Helio Castroneves at his Coral Gables home. He is so much fun. He gave us a tour of his beautiful mansion, complete with about 50 trophies (two of which are baby Borg-Warners thanks to his '01 and '02 Indy 500 victories) and two pace cars. Oh yeah, and he had a nice Lamborghini in the garage.
I absolutely love getting to show the behind the scenes of drivers' lives and who they are under those helmets. Also during that trip, we got to visit defending Indy 500 champion Dan Wheldon. We went out on a boat together, and he took us on a tour of St. Petersburg, Fla., which he calls home. Do I have a tough job or what?
During our rain show, I visited Andretti Green Racing's Bryan Herta in his motor home just outside of Gasoline Alley. It was quite comical as he was playing an Internet boxing game that connected him to teammate Dario Franchitti. Both drivers had devices that allowed them not only to speak to each other on headsets but allowed them to compete against each other from completely different motor homes. We did a split screen for the television audience, and it went over great.
For the record, Franchitti won. Dario's wife, actress Ashley Judd, told me that during this month they will have both of their dogs in their motor home and will "rotate" cats. They have five cats, and only one can stay with them at a time.
After the rain days, I had a chance to play golf at one of my favorite places, the Brickyard Crossing golf course. Four holes are inside the track. You can play while cars are thundering past you at 220 mph during practice. I played golf with former Chip Ganassi driver Darren Manning. Believe it or not, there are quite a few drivers who love to golf, and many of them are pretty good! Kosuke Matsuura, Tomas Scheckter, Buddy Rice and AJ Foyt IV are a few.
For Pole Day qualifying, we had to be on headset from noon to 6 p.m., then do a live show from 7 to 10 p.m. It's a grueling schedule, but what a day it was. Car owner Roger Penske got an unprecedented 13th pole as his driver Sam Hornish recorded the fastest time.
This week there are a few team dinners for me to attend, including one with Penske and his drivers Hornish Jr. and Castroneves. There's a fashion show today that all drivers will participate in, including their wives and girlfriends. It's an annual event that raises money for CARA (Championship Auto Racing Auxiliary) Charities.
Friday is Carb Day, when drivers will get to shake down their cars one final time before the 90th running of the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday.
It's going to be a great race, so let's pray for sunshine!
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