The latest Idiocy from 16th and Georgetown

B99 · 4/7/10, 6:56 PM

I can't believe the new Pole Day procedure!

From 11am Saturday, May 22nd, until 4pm, teams will have a shot at all the spots on the grid. Then until 6pm that day, a psuedo Firestone Fast 6 will have at it.

At the 4pm cutoff, the 9 fastest cars will compete for the pole!

Indy qualifying used to be special, now it'sjust stupid. I'm sure there will be some that will crow about this, but this does nothing to bring back the magic of pole day and how special the last couple of hours or the first two hours used to be.

I know something needs to be done, but this????

What's next, a 25 lap B main instead of bump day?

4/7/10, 7:33 PM

It shouldn't surprise you at all.

Bostonian · 4/7/10, 8:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by B99

I can't believe the new Pole Day procedure!

From 11am Saturday, May 22nd, until 4pm, teams will have a shot at all the spots on the grid. Then until 6pm that day, a psuedo Firestone Fast 6 will have at it.

At the 4pm cutoff, the 9 fastest cars will compete for the pole!

Indy qualifying used to be special, now it'sjust stupid. I'm sure there will be some that will crow about this, but this does nothing to bring back the magic of pole day and how special the last couple of hours or the first two hours used to be.

I know something needs to be done, but this????

What's next, a 25 lap B main instead of bump day?

They will need more than 33 cars to show up before thay can consider running a B main

richie · 4/7/10, 11:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bostonian

They will need more than 33 cars to show up before thay can consider running a B main

They are probably going to have 40 car/driver combinations attempting to qualify this year. So, that's a good thing.

767 · 4/8/10, 9:10 AM

Look at it this way, atleast the last car on the track (when the gun goes off) won't be tring to bump into 9th place. No negative comments from me for a while. I love everything to do with Indy. Its real simple to me, this new guy has to try things at indy. Indy is his single biggest crowd of the year. He will have more buts in the stands and people watching on TV. On this day he has to try to hook fans for the rest of the season. We all know he is going to make mistakes, thats part of the learning process. 1 of the biggest things he did in the PBR was made sure the fans knew who the riders were. In this senario, you are going to take 9 drivers and put them in a 2hour spotlight. Hopefully we can get 1 or 2 unsposored teamsin this group. Also several fans are going to tune in from 3-4 to see which drivers will be in the top 9. Just tring to think positive here.

cmakin · 4/8/10, 9:42 AM

Man, I just don't know. I will be there this year, and most likely next year; largely for the 100 year anniversary. Not sure about after that, though. I understand all about change, and all; but I just don't know about the manipulation that these sports marketers do. That said, the idea of a "B" Main does intrigue me. . . .

Kevracer58 · 4/8/10, 5:17 PM

Quote:

Man, I just don't know. I will be there this year, and most likely next year

I've been thinking long and hard about making the trip this year. This stupid qualifying procedure has settled it for me- I'm done with the Speedway.

billwill7 · 4/8/10, 5:26 PM

Haven't been to the Speedway since I figured out that the IRL could care less about giving the USAC guys a fair chance, I'll go to Little 500 the night before and see much better and more exciting racing.

B99 · 4/8/10, 7:40 PM

I assume the Little 500 at least has the good sense to keep it's format and no try something this dumb.

The sad fact is that unless you crash them head on into each other, many of the IRL drivers do not draw a crowd and won't. Randy Bernard is asking a lot of the right questions, the problem is that those in certain positions keep coming up with the wrong answers.

You want to 'gimmick' pole day how about this....

Sat
Practice 9-10
Qualifications 1030-12noon
12-1 no activity
1-4 Practice Only
4-7:30 or 8 qualifications.

Better yet, bring in some temporary lighting and run for the Pole FRIDAY NIGHT.

bherzog513 · 4/8/10, 9:47 PM

If they want to change the show for the fans, how about making the track easier to see acrossed? How much money can the golf course generate after expenses?

4/8/10, 9:42 AM	#6 Re: The latest Idiocy from 16th and Georgetown
cmakin Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 6,062	Man, I just don't know. I will be there this year, and most likely next year; largely for the 100 year anniversary. Not sure about after that, though. I understand all about change, and all; but I just don't know about the manipulation that these sports marketers do. That said, the idea of a "B" Main does intrigue me. . . . __________________ Be sure to visit www.manvelmotorsports.com. 2024 Robert Ballou Calendars are available.

4/7/10, 6:56 PM	#1 The latest Idiocy from 16th and Georgetown
B99 Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 249	I can't believe the new Pole Day procedure! From 11am Saturday, May 22nd, until 4pm, teams will have a shot at all the spots on the grid. Then until 6pm that day, a psuedo Firestone Fast 6 will have at it. At the 4pm cutoff, the 9 fastest cars will compete for the pole! Indy qualifying used to be special, now it'sjust stupid. I'm sure there will be some that will crow about this, but this does nothing to bring back the magic of pole day and how special the last couple of hours or the first two hours used to be. I know something needs to be done, but this???? What's next, a 25 lap B main instead of bump day?

4/7/10, 7:33 PM	#2 Re: The latest Idiocy from 16th and Georgetown
outsider Posts: n/a	It shouldn't surprise you at all.

4/8/10, 9:10 AM	#5 Re: The latest Idiocy from 16th and Georgetown
767 Senior Member Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 1,001	Look at it this way, atleast the last car on the track (when the gun goes off) won't be tring to bump into 9th place. No negative comments from me for a while. I love everything to do with Indy. Its real simple to me, this new guy has to try things at indy. Indy is his single biggest crowd of the year. He will have more buts in the stands and people watching on TV. On this day he has to try to hook fans for the rest of the season. We all know he is going to make mistakes, thats part of the learning process. 1 of the biggest things he did in the PBR was made sure the fans knew who the riders were. In this senario, you are going to take 9 drivers and put them in a 2hour spotlight. Hopefully we can get 1 or 2 unsposored teamsin this group. Also several fans are going to tune in from 3-4 to see which drivers will be in the top 9. Just tring to think positive here.

4/8/10, 7:40 PM	#9 Re: The latest Idiocy from 16th and Georgetown
B99 Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 249	I assume the Little 500 at least has the good sense to keep it's format and no try something this dumb. The sad fact is that unless you crash them head on into each other, many of the IRL drivers do not draw a crowd and won't. Randy Bernard is asking a lot of the right questions, the problem is that those in certain positions keep coming up with the wrong answers. You want to 'gimmick' pole day how about this.... Sat Practice 9-10 Qualifications 1030-12noon 12-1 no activity 1-4 Practice Only 4-7:30 or 8 qualifications. Better yet, bring in some temporary lighting and run for the Pole FRIDAY NIGHT.

4/8/10, 9:47 PM	#10 Re: The latest Idiocy from 16th and Georgetown
bherzog513 Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 91	If they want to change the show for the fans, how about making the track easier to see acrossed? How much money can the golf course generate after expenses?