Oilpressure

Good morning from a cool, sunny and energetic Road America. We actually got here around 7:30 this morning, because Susan decided she wanted a photo vest for the weekend. That will give her access to photo holes, pit lane and victory lane. But we had to be here at 7:30 when they give away the photo vests for the weekend. Surprisingly, there was a lot of energy here at that hour.

Continue reading →

Since 1982, Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin had been a fixture on the IndyCar schedule; except for 2005, when lack of sponsorship left it off of the Champ Car schedule. The race returned in 2006 and 2007, but was inexplicably a casualty of the open-wheel reunification in February of 2008. For eight seasons, what we now know as the NTT IndyCar Series was not to race at what is perhaps the premier road racing facility in North America. Continue reading →

On Sunday, we learned that Dennis Reinbold had passed away at the young age of 65. I will admit, that I was totally unaware that Reinbold had been battling cancer for several years. I was in a press conference back in May, where Reinbold was at the stage. It occurred to me he had aged, but I never thought he looked sick. It serves as another example of how short and precious life is.

Continue reading →

Those of us who stayed up for the conclusion to last night’s Bommarito 500 were rewarded with one heck of a race. Two red-flags for intermittent rain may have deterred some who needed to get to bed on a Sunday night, but for those who stayed with it – it was worth it – as the race ended at 12:23 am EDT.

Continue reading →

The 2026 NTT IndyCar Series season is suddenly flying by. The Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at World Wide Technology Raceway (Gateway) will be the halfway point in the season, marking the ninth race out of an 18-race season. While Alex Palou is seemingly running away with another championship, by winning four of the eight races (along with the pole for the Indianapolis 500), things are a lot tighter than they were this time a year ago. Heading into Gateway last year, Palou had a 90-point lead over Pato O’Ward. This year, Palou leads by 62-points over Kyle Kirkwood, and 79-points over David Malukas. Still, it’s safe to say that Palou has a comfortable lead to win his fifth championship in six years.

Continue reading →

If you read my Detroit Preview on Friday, you know that I said I may have nothing up here for Monday, due to out-of-town guests coming to visit Sunday afternoon before going to dinner Sunday night. Well, the race ended a couple of hours before they were due, so I jotted a few thoughts together.

Continue reading →

Please Note:  Before I get started, I wanted to let everyone know that there is a very good chance that I will have nothing here on Monday. We learned a couple of days ago that we will have out of town guests coming to visit us on Sunday afternoon around 4:00 pmand we will be going to dinner with them afterward. With the race probably ending after 2:00 pm CDT, I am not sure I’ll have time to gather my thoughts and write anything before they get here, and I would be considered very rude if I holed myself up in my mancave to write, just as they got here. At best, I may have something very abbreviated for Monday – but don’t expect the usual Random Thoughts if I have anything. – GP

And just like that, we have another race weekend upon us. The way the calendar fell this year, we get another race in the Month of May that is not on the grounds of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. This time the NTT IndyCar Series heads north to take on the streets of Detroit, for the Chevrolet Grand prix of Detroit.

Continue reading →