Bert Beiswanger

Last night, a little after the midnight hour (Indianapolis time), I packed it in for the night. The White Sox were heading into the 13th inning against Detroit, and I had given all the time I had to give for the game. Having listened to quite a bit of it while relaxing on the back porch, then watching a large portion of the second half of the game on TV, I was convinced I had once again invested too much time in a team that was spiraling out of control.

The way Fernando Rodney was mowing them down for Detroit in his three innings of Rolaids style relief, I wasn’t sure the Sox had anything left in the tank. By the way, how slow did Griffey Junior’s bat look facing Rodney? That (and his flawed play in center) was proof positive “The Kid” ain’t no kid anymore.

The 14th inning comeback victory last night was definitely one of the most satisfying so far this season. There’s nothing like an Ed Farmer “Light it Up” or Hawk Harrelson “You can put it on the boarrrrrd; YES!” homerun call to cap drama like that. There have been enough frustrating defeats to date to last an entire season, so this was a much welcomed feeling. The timing of this win was huge, too - obviously. The Sox needed this one in a bad way. Hell, this fan needed this one in a bad way. Honestly, with Detroit up 6-1, did you really have much hope for this team? They were staring down the barrel of a third consecutive butt whooping. But, Swisher’s sweet three-run shot in the 14th capped an amazing roller coaster of a game that helped ease the recent pain and frustration.

Will this be the magic moment that propels the Sox to a division championship? Well, this team still doesn’t play good overall defense (kudos, though, to Juan Uribe for playing an excellent, excellent “hot corner” last night - what an awesome throw out on the hard grounder that knocked him on his can), is second in the league in unearned runs allowed, has a bullpen that has been showing signs of completely collapsing and doesn’t have a starter right now that can be relied on consistently. Other than that…

The great thing about baseball is that your team almost always plays the next day. Nothing cures a three-game losing streak like a big win, and that’s just what the Sox got last night.

Had I been on the ball, posting a blog entry Wednesday morning, I would have written about Tuesday’s loss being a microcosm of the entire season - failed execution; missed opportunities; blown game. I would have written about how, if the Sox don’t make the playoffs, they will look back on this game as the biggest reason why. I would have written about how every game matters and the Sox have simply not executed in every game as such. I would have written about how this team should EASILY be 20 games above 500 and comfortably in first place. In all, I would have written about how I had simply lost faith in this team’s ability to close out and win the division; about how a trend of fundamental breakdowns and blown games early in the season was not correcting itself and was destined to do this team in.

But alas, as I sat on the back porch last night and listened to radio announcers ”Stoney” and “Farmeo” bring home a “White Sox Winner” (my tribute to classic Sox announcer John Rooney), all seemed a little better with the baseball world - unless they lose tonight…

Bump Day Sunday offered all the excitement that qualifying for Indy has been know for during its rich history. Drivers and teams put everything on the line, swapping spots in the field during the final hour of qualifying for the Indy 500 this Sunday, May 25.

 This was certainly the most exciting Bump Day we’ve seen in a while. At the end of the day, five cars were involved in a fight for the final two spots in the 33 car field.  What added to the excitement and intrigue was the fact that each car gets three qualifying attempts per day to put it in the show. In addition, gusty winds (the worst of the month by many accounts) made conditions downright frightening for the drivers out there laying it on the line. Qualifying at Indy is one of the toughest things a driver does in motorsports. Cars are so trimmed out (less downforce) to gain every little bit of speed, handling the car for four laps becomes an adventure. When you add inconsistent wind gusts and direction to the mix, it becomes a cross-your-fingers and pray proposition. Nonetheless, it provided for plenty of action and drama during the final half hour:

• 5:30 p.m. - 1996 Indy 500 winner Buddy Lazier, having been bumped out of the field earlier in the day by the No. 25 car of Marty Roth, took a crack at re-qualifying. Lazier’s Hemelgarn Johnson Racing team didn’t get their first track action until Friday and conditions and time were not in their favor. One of the most underrated drivers in Indy history couldn’t find the speed to make the field. 
• 5:34 p.m. - Mario Dominguez qualified the No. 96 Visit Mexico City car. He was on the bubble in the 33rd spot. He bumped the No. 98 car of Roger Yasukawa out of the field. Dominquez’ Pacific Coast Motorsports team came together just three weeks ago and was challenged with re-building the team’s car after a Saturday practice accident. It was quite an impressive effort.
• 5:38 p.m. - Yasukawa took a shot at bumping Dominguez out of the field. His time after three laps was identical to the four-lap average of Dominquez! However, the fourth lap was too slow. Dominquez was safe - for now.
• 5:47 p.m. - The performance of the day. Lazier’s team takes as much downforce out of the car as possible. On the warm-up lap, Lazier radioed his crew, “Will it stick?” His crew assured him it would. He was two miles per hour quicker than his previous attempt and put the car in the field. The crowd cheered the former champion. Emotions were running high. Dominquez was out of the field and Marty Roth was now on the bubble with an average speed of 218. 965
• 5:52 p.m. - Yasukawa takes one more shot. He doesn’t have the speed to make it back in. That leaves time for only one more qualifying attempt.
• 5:58 p.m. - Dominguez takes to the 2-1/2 mile oval for one more attempt. The team has just removed more downforce out of the car in hopes to find more speed. At that moment, one prominent motorsports journalist said to me, “If I know Mario Dominguez the way I think I know Mario Dominquez,  he’ll either put it in the show or in the wall.” Dominquez completed lap one: 219.780 mph! Moments later, Dominguez lost control exiting Turn 1 and crashed. It didn’t stick. The gun sounded ending qualifying. Dominquez was out, Roth was in and the field was set.

The day was the ultimate example of what making this race is all about. Teams mortgage the future to be part of the event. Drivers drive the car on edge to make it. If Bump Day is any indication of what the race will be like this Sunday, we’re in for a special day.

After some jockeying for position atop the scoring pylon during Pole Day at Indy Saturday, Scott Dixon, driver of the No. 9 Target Chip Ganassi car, won the coveted Pole for this year’s Indy 500 and will start the May 25th race on the inside of row one. His teammate, 2005 winner Dan Wheldon, will start in the middle of the front row, while Team Penske’s Ryan Briscoe will man the outside of row one.

Two stories played out all day. On one end, you had a group of drivers involving Briscoe, Wheldon and Dixon battling back-and-forth for the pole. On the other end, you had drivers such as Tomas Scheckter and Graham Rahal battling for the 11th position (only the top 11 spots are locked in on the first day of qualifying), the day ending with the latter frustrated and on the outside looking in. Speaking of Rahal, this kid is every bit as charismatic as he is talent - and that’s saying a lot. Having talked with him quite a bit Saturday, I really can’t believe he’s only 19 years old. He’s a class act. One of his car team owners is Paul Newman, who paid a visit to the Speedway on Saturday. Despite the fact Rahal is not in the field at this point, Newman looked like a kid in a candy store. He certainly enjoyed the day. 

 Positions 12-22 were scheduled to be filled on Sunday. However, as has been the case too often already this year, Sunday was a washout. Thus, next Saturday should be pretty interesting and busy as teams work to fill positions 12-33. Bump day will be Sunday, May 18.

There is simply nothing better than being at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in May. The atmosphere and excitement is something very special in sports. This year presents a noticeably heightened level of excitement. Activities for the 92nd running of the Indianapolis 500 are in full swing. Though rain washed out practice on Wednesday, 33 cars took to the track on Tuesday with Marco Andretti, driver of the interesting looking No. 26 Andretti Green Team Indiana Jones presented by Blockbuster car, posting the fastest speed of the day at 226.599. Tony Kanaan, Scott Dixon, Ryan Briscoe and 2005 Indy 500 winner Dan Wheldon rounded out the top five. Among other notables, two-time Indy 500 winner and “Dancing With The Stars” champion Helio Castroneves was sixth on the speed chart, while Danica Patrick was ninth.

The day was highlighted by a visit from Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton. I’m not sure if the visit helped Hillary carry the state of Indiana in Tuesday’s primary, but you certainly never know who you will run into at the Speedway in May.

The recent unification of open-wheel racing, coupled with a deep, talented group of veteran and rookie drivers (deeper than I can remember in a while) has certainly added to the excitement heading into this year’s “Greatest Spectacle in Racing.” Thursday appears to be another washout (welcome to Indy in May!), but once the track opens for practice on Fast Friday, there will definately be a need for speed as teams prepare for the month’s first race - Saturday’s race for the Indy 500 pole.

My almost not-so-great brush with greatness: Sunday, I attended opening day with my wife and two boys. As we were pulling into the Speedway, driving past Turn 1, I was pointing out to the boys a new portion of the MotoGP course (recently constructed in preparation for the Red Bull Indianapolis GP motorcycle race in September). My wife said alertly, “Bert, why don’t you worry about watching where you’re going. And good God don’t hit that car in front of you.” The car was non other than Al Unser Junior’s 1992 Indy 500 winning car. It’s one of the more famous winning cars as the ‘92 race was the closest finish in Indy 500 history. Earlier that morning, it was featured in a tribute to the famous Unser family. It was being towed slowly down Hulman Blvd. (a road that dissects the speedway infield) and I was right on its tail. Okay, I did have some room to spare, but just the thought of rear-ending Al Jr.’s ‘92 car would not have been a good start to the month…

FYI - you can catch all practice and qualifying action via video streaming at indy500.com or indycar.com. It’s a great way to relax at work…

Open-wheel racing in America is unified once again due to the acquisition a couple months ago of the Champ Car World Series by the Indy Racing League. This unification should pave the way for growth of the IndyCar Series - both in audience numbers and corporate dollars. I think we’ll begin to really see the fruits of this unification as the season plugs along and we head into 2009.

I attended the Honda grand Prix of St. Petersburg on April 6 and sensed added excitement among the fans. It didn’t hurt that Graham Rahal won the race and became the youngest winner in series history. His Dad, Bobby, won Indy in 1986 and Graham seems destined to become a star - along with the likes of the talented Marco Andretti, Will Power and Danica Patrick. In addition to the young rising stars, established veterans Helio Castroneves, Dan Wheldon, Scott Dixon and Tony Kanaan help round out a deep, talented core of drivers and personalities.

Before the open-wheel split in the mid-’90s, Indy car racing was neck-in-neck with NASCAR in sponsorships and TV ratings. Once the split happened, it drastically hurt open-wheel racing, while NASCAR continued to soar in popularity. Now that it is once again under one umbrella, I really feel the IndyCar Series will grow steadily during the next few years. It will take time. There’s a lot of lost ground to make up. However, I feel corporate America will embrace the IndyCar Series moving forward (DirecTV signed on as a major sponsor recently), as will the fans. I also feel this will result in the decreased likelihood that drivers, such as 2006 Indy 500 winner Sam Hornish, Jr., will leave IndyCar for NASCAR in the future. Just my hunch.

The IndyCar Series races this Sunday at Kansas Speedway - ESPN2 Sunday at 5 p.m. (ET). This track always produces outstanding IndyCar racing and should provide us with more exciting storylines as we gear up for the 92nd Indianapolis 500. It promises to be a very busy, yet, exciting month of May.

I’ll report from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway all month long and will post notes and insight on a regular basis. This should be an exciting year at Indy.