2011 Indianapolis 500 Daily Trackside Reports and Daily News Articles
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2011 INDIANAPOLIS 500 DAILY TRACKSIDE REPORTS AND DAILY NEWS ARTICLES 1 Indy 500 is first phase of Mann's pursuits By Dave Lewandowski May 12, 2011 While Midwesterners were completing lunch, Pippa Mann dutifully completed the paperwork for engineers and exited the stuffy conference room with a broad smile. An hour earlier, she systematically completed all four phases of the indianapolis 500 Rookie Orientation Program and exited the confines of the No. 36 Conquest Racing car with a broad smile. “I really enjoyed it. It surprised me how difficult it was to stay within the limits that were set, especially toward the end when we put on our second set of tires,” said Mann, who seeks to make her IZOD IndyCar Series debut in the 100th anniversary Indianapolis 500 on May 29. “I went out there and got into a rhythm really quickly because the new tires have so much grip, but was told to back it down a little. We completed all 35 laps of ROP in 35 laps so the boss (team owner Eric Bachelart) is happy. “It was a good first day, and now we can spend some time on the car and spend some time on my fit to get at it Saturday.” That’s Opening Day at the Speedway, when the seven ROP participants will be joined on the 2.5-mile ribbon of asphalt by any/all entrants for a practice session from noon-6 p.m. (ET). The day includes other fan events, including autograph sessions with Parnelli Jones and Danny Sullivan. All the ROP participants -- JR Hildebrand (National Guard Panther Racing), James Hinchcliffe (Newman/Haas Racing), Charlie Kimball (Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing), Ho-Pin Tung (Schmidt Dragon Racing), James Jakes (Dale Coyne Racing), Scott Speed (Dragon Racing) and Mann – completed at least three phases of the exercise. Jakes, driving a race car on an oval anywhere, will complete the fourth phase (10 consistent laps above 215 mph) any time before qualifications May 21. Hildebrand posted the quickest lap at 221.533 (on Lap 59 of his 68 for the day), while Hinchcliffe recorded the most laps (101). Mann has been displaying the work of her orthodontist for the better part of the past month. A race winner and pole sitter in two years in Firestone Indy Lights, she is unabashedly excited at the prospects. “At the moment I just break out into a big smile because I’m so thrilled to be given the opportunity to do this with Conquest Racing,” she said. “For a long time this winter it looked like I wasn’t going to be doing this or doing anything even after having such a successful test (over the winter at Texas Motor Speedway). That was really difficult. “The fact that it finally came together was a huge relief. I’ve had some help back home in England and we’ve been absolutely unrelenting all winter long. We had a lot of companies we were talking to and thought we had really great opportunities with, and when it came down to crunch time it got really difficult to persuade anybody to sign the paperwork and come onboard.” Sponsorship assistance from a start-up media company called nov.us and a “couple of small investors in England” got Mann on the track. “This thing came together so late. Even in Long Beach when the entry list came out and I saw the 36 -- I had been told that if we could put together the program it would be for me -- I didn’t quite believe it until I got the phone call on Monday afternoon saying, ‘Hey, come in and sign.’ ’’ 2 Those types of phone calls are few and far between, but welcome nonetheless. “I had so much of that this winter that it was so hard to keep believing that we were actually going to do this,” Mann continued. “At Texas, despite the fact that I hadn’t been there in a Lights car, a lot transferred. I was able to feel comfortable very quickly, and it felt fairly similar to my Indy Lights car I had been running the previous year, and that helped me give Conquest Racing a direction for the test. And as we went on we got faster and with better handling. It was a really positive test, and I’m hopeful the experience in Indy Lights is going to be helpful in the same way at Indy.” Mann also is hopeful of extended her number of races – either in the remainder of this season or in 2012 with the introduction of the next generation car and the INDYCAR rules. “We thought that was the best way to make the absolute best of the hand we’ve been dealt,” she said. “We’re hoping that me running at Indy and doing a good job we can expose my name and my brand to more people, and hopefully some people will like what they see and decide to come onboard with us.” 3 Daily Trackside Report - Saturday, May 14 Saturday, May 14, 2011 Welcome to Indianapolis Star Opening Day/Celebration of Automobiles for the 100th Anniversary Indianapolis 500, the fifth race of the 2011 IZOD IndyCar Series season. Amy Konrath, vice president of public relations/communications for INDYCAR, Mark Dill, vice president of marketing and public relations for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and their staffs are here to assist you. Please direct your questions and requests to anyone in the Media Center. *** This is the 45th edition of the Indianapolis 500 Daily Trackside Report, which was first distributed at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1967. As stated on the first page of the 1967 DTR: "This press information has been compiled as an added source of your information in your coverage of the '500.' It is our sincere wish that it will be of assistance in your assignment." Notes and items of interest will appear on these pages during the month and will also be available on the official IZOD IndyCar Series Web site, www.indycar.com. Performance histories will be issued at the end of each day in the Media Center and on the IZOD IndyCar Series Web sites. Live timing and scoring reports from the Indianapolis 500 will be available on the Internet at www.indycar.com. The live timing and scoring module provides statistical information, including track segment speeds, lap information and much more. Feature stories, reports, driver quotes and notes, and photos will be posted on the site each day. More detailed information, including media advisories and VNF coordinates, is available at www.indycar.com/media. *** TODAY’S SCHEDULE (all times local): 8 a.m. Garages open Noon-6 p.m. Indianapolis 500 practice *** Firestone Firehawk race tire facts for the 100th Anniversary Indianapolis 500: •Firestone Racing returns to Indianapolis in 2011 with the same tire specification as 2010. •A full-month entry receives 33 sets (132 tires), and a partial-month entry receives 26 sets (108 tires) for all of practice, qualifying and the race. Rookie Orientation Program participants receive an additional four sets (16 tires) for that session only; veteran refreshers receive two additional sets (eight tires) that must be returned before practice Monday, May 16. More than 5,000 tires in all are available. •Tire stagger: A single stagger of approximately .30 of an inch is available. Stagger, created by molding the right rear tire with a larger diameter than the left rear, helps race cars turn more naturally and smoothly on oval tracks. AL SPEYER (Executive Director, Firestone Racing): "The Indianapolis 500 is the race we most eagerly await each season, but we are anticipating this year's even more with the centennial anniversary of this great event. We take immense pride in knowing that Firestone tires carried Ray Harroun to victory in the inaugural Indianapolis 500 a century ago, and that Firestone Racing still plays a pivotal role in the sport a hundred years later. Come May 29, we 4 know that whoever takes the checkered flag first will do it on Firehawk tires and become Firestone's 62nd Indy 500 champion. It's a win total more than all other tire makers combined and powerful proof of the legacy that the Firestone brand has maintained through the years. For 'The Most Important Race in History,' we are supplying the identical Firestone tire specification that was used in 2010 and received such wide praise from teams and drivers last May. With the entire racing world watching on this historic occasion, we want to provide a proven tire that will do its part to help make this landmark Indianapolis 500 even more memorable. Firestone wishes the best to all of this year's competitors and congratulates Indianapolis Motor Speedway on its centennial milestone." *** Six rookies assigned to cars for the 100th Anniversary Indianapolis 500 passed all four phases of the Rookie Orientation Program on Thursday, May 12: JR Hildebrand, James Hinchcliffe, Charlie Kimball, Pippa Mann, Scott Speed and Ho-Pin Tung. James Jakes completed three of the four phases and can finish the test during practice this week. Jay Howard only needs to complete a refresher test – the final two phases of Rookie Orientation – because passed the Rookie Orientation Program in 2008 and participated in 2010 Indianapolis 500 qualifying. The Rookie Orientation Program consists of turning consistent laps at four speed phases on the 2.5-mile asphalt oval. Drivers must turn five consistent laps at 200-205 mph, and 10 consistent laps at each of these three speed phases: 205-210, 210-215 and 215 or faster.