INCHES APART AT 200-PLUS
At the Indianapolis Motor
Speedway, side-by-side racing
is short, sharp, but very intense
“It’s a very tense
situation. But
neither of us is
going to lift to
give position”
HELIO CASTRONEVES
so that the higher pressure above the
car will apply a downward force. The
front and rear wings create
downforce, which forces the car to
the track. The underbody venturi
tunnel creates a low-pressure area
between the chassis and the track,
which sucks the car to the track.
“The primary reason they can run
so close together is the car is
generating so much downforce,” says
Les Mactaggart, senior technical
director for the Indy Racing League.
“That’s providing the basic stability for
the car because it’s sucking down to
the track. They’re not sort of weaving
in and out with each other. The car
feels very stable underneath them so
they can drive very close to the other
one, knowing that the car is not going
to continue to run into it because it’s
just the level of control they’re
getting from the car underneath.
“There is a little bit of pressure
buffeting from the wheels, but it’s
difficult to quantify from an actual
point of view. As two surfaces get
22 2008 INDY500 PREVIEW
close together there’s a small pressure
increase between the wheels, but not
something that would feel unsettling.”
Speedways with high banking are
more conducive to side-by-side
racing – even three-wide at times. At
the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the
perception of extended side by side
exists because of the speeds.
“At Indy, your side by side is
short-lived, and usually somebody
is getting pinched pretty low,”
Andretti Green Racing’s Danica
Patrick says. “You do everything you
can to not make that happen. If
you’re in that situation, you’re
thankful when you come out of it,
especially when you’re on the
outside. At 220mph, you’re through
the corners pretty quick, so it’s not
like you have a lot of time to go
high and go low.
“Through the month, you learn
who you can and can’t trust to go
side by side with. You know by
whoever has the experience.”
Almost three weeks of practice
time is allotted on the relatively flat
2.5-mile oval to gain knowledge of
its weather- and time-of-dayinduced
peccadilloes. Hopefully, a
byproduct for drivers is experience
running in traffic. They’ll need it for
the 200-lap race May 25.
“It’s really awesome to be going
that fast and to have somebody next
to you that you race with going the
same speed,” Vision Racing’s A.J. Foyt
IV says. “It’s a big trust factor and it’s
exciting when it all works well. I
know I definitely trust some of the
drivers more than others.
Dan Streck/LAT
ANATOMY OF AN INDYCAR
These are the main components on an
IndyCar Series car. We’ll test you on it later
1 Front tire
2 Center spine
3 Anti-roll bar adjusters
4 Refueling adapter
5 Headrest structure
6 Oil cooler
7 Fuel vent
8 Roll hoop
9 Air jack fitting
10 Air inlet
11 Oil scavenge tower
12 Rear anti-roll bar assembly
13 Rear damper/spring assembly
14 Transmission/gearbox
15 Rear wing
16 Front wing
17 Front brake rotor
18 Brake master cylinder
19 Front spring/damper unit
20 Front air jack
21 Engine control unit
22 Water radiator
23 Molded seat
24 Impact lights
25 Exhaust system
26 Air box
27 Rear brake rotor
28 Rear attenuator
29 Rear tire
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