Every New Beginning Comes From Some Other Beginning's End

(This post was written on the last day of April, 2013 and, after 2 days of reflection and consideration, was posted)

Tomorrow represents the figurative upswing of momentum and acceleration in Indycar toward the Memorial Day weekend classic and what I still believe is the single greatest of all auto races, The Indianapolis 500. 

Before the clock strikes midnight and May begins, however, I take this remaining time in April and mark my final day of unvarnished opinion of the current state of Indycar until further notice. There is precious little to say that hasn't already been said by myself or others if one bothers to read and, as my blog is not monetized (requiring steady and popular content), I choose to not add unnecessary noise... after today.  I plan to post in the future with most everything being nostalgic bits from the past I find worth savoring and sharing.

Today will be a summation of my thoughts on various subjects regarding the current state of Indycar. If you disagree vehemently with my opinions today, be assured you won't see them rehashed in the future, and likewise, if you agree with some or all of what I've said, bookmark it for future reference, but I won't continue to preach to the choir.

Preamble - Noting that I have no personal, first-hand experience on the inner workings of Indycar, Indycar teams, racecraft, race engineering, or race event promotion, except for what I've experienced from the end customer's (fan's) perspective since my early exposures as a kid in the mid-1970s, my writing is based in observations that attempt at best to be even-handed from my volume of experience as a fan, as information to used for the betterment of the sport, if possible.

Past - I doubt anyone will argue with the thought that the essence of Indycar (as also with many other autosports) has changed immensely over the last 50 years. Since 1911, as a standalone event, and later with a related racing series growing up around it (Midget/Sprint/Championship Cars), the Indy 500 and the Speedway has always garnered the most attention in the world of open-wheel racing. 

Initially, as a working laboratory for the automotive industry, IMS and the Indianapolis 500 evolved during the 1930s - 1950s from oddity to grandiose public sporting event with worldwide fame.  Many people paid money for the opportunity to see something they haven't before. Most likely what they were paying to see (or actually saw) was a combination of competitive auto technology, amazing speeds, celebratory outings, sensory-overloading race action, and some even watching the perilous dance done by drivers with death. Out of this, the drivers who managed to survive and somehow even win races, became American folk legends. The drivers who won frequently became legends and icons of automotive sport. The general public swooned.

As traits from the past changed, gone are the days of competitive technologies, speeds that amaze, and, at Indy, the significant threat of horrific death. New traits emerged - tightly-regulated, limited-cost competition, a 20-year plateau in racing speeds, and the level of daring tempered with the likelihood of severe injury or death reduced significantly. Most of this evolution was absolutely necessary and needed on a permanent basis. Fairly sanitized, now people primarily come to the 500 out of tradition, to celebrate an annual memory, or to simply be at a world-class sporting event. 

Present - Today's Indycar has an inherent dichotomy of appreciation between the popular and savage past and the evolved and refined present. The gap in these divergent viewpoints has only been widened over time, but I believe the best of both are needed to survive. Today's reality is that lagging ticket sales and anemic TV ratings indicate a product that isn't nearly as popular as it once was. Indycar as a business exists somewhere closer to Hunger Games than salad days. 

As recently evidenced, the associated sponsor exposure dollars that follow ratings, ticket sales, and client entertainment don't stay around out of tradition for very long, therefore we have precious little time for reconciliation to produce a better future.

Future - Can there be a solution that satisfies all constituents? I believe so and in my view, clearly understanding and providing what people want or expect to see from your product is the key to it thriving.  The only question of importance then becomes, "what do people want or expect to see from Indycar". In answering that question, the key to best securing a future will be found.  So often here the temptation is to look to the past, to the salad days, and replicate that today. Clearly if it were that simple, nothing need have changed before and the current problems would not exist so that argument is fallacious.  Also tempting is to copy the closest, most-currently successful model but will that also translate to the audience of Indycar?  Again likely not or there would have not already been a differentiation in product existing. 

It is my opinion, as a fan for nearly 40 years, the enduring essence of Indycar from inception, hallmarked throughout it's most popular days, and recalled into the present can be summed in one word - innovation.

Innovation can be defined as 'the introduction of something new'. It is a very broad term, but also one with much appeal in (and some might say it is synonymous with) this country. The very essence of this country is tied to innovation - from something as broad as bringing a new form of government into the world to the most minuscule of modern products for living. Improving things and methods is a rather optimistic view in my opinion in that people work and desire to see improvement for present and future generations.

Innovation in Indycar can be symbolized by the very vehicle itself. Autosport already exists in many forms with numerous sorts of rules and competition but by giving the public truly innovative and amazing vehicles and technology to witness and can't find anywhere else, will you be able to capture the imagination of a nation of people for whom innovation is essential. 

How can Indycar use this national raison d'être for its own benefit seems rather easy. Of course the devil is always in the details, but without a more broad, unified vision and direction, the details become fiendish distractions that waste the time and energy of those engaged in the business. Only with a unified vision for the sport can an opportunity for its future be assured. 

I implore all those involved charged with the sport and business of Indycar to use that essence of what made this country to your own benefit.  With innovation as the escalator to greater altitudes, don't be content to simply ride, but boldly climb with a purpose and direction.Remake this thing into the image of what made this country, the facility of IMS, and the Indianapolis 500, famous. Without the survival of the sport as a whole, no more can there be an Indianapolis 500, an Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Make it something with which people and businesses want to associate. Make it a sport that captures the imagination and interest of generations of people. 

I challenge you, overseers of the sport of Indycar, to boldly remake this endeavor into THE pre-eminent form of autosport in the world. 

I believe it can be done.

Be bold. You need to believe it can be done.

If you do not, the game is already over.

'Nostalgesic' and Home Remedies

Hanging On
Here in the middle-west of the USA, winter has seemingly clung all too desperately, truncating the typical spring rhythms. I've been guilty of staying too late at a good party myself, not listening to the signs that tell me "you're done here".  I often find it interesting how the subconscious / universe / nature / mysterious higher powers so often whisper hints. So often those hints are helpful, if we can be bothered to listen.

Looking Back

I enjoy nostalgia as many of you tens of readers are well aware. I, almost daily, saunter down to the Indycar clubhouse pool, with my white 80s sunglasses, checkered Vans, neon-colored zinc-oxide on my nose, corduroy OP shorts, and faded Spuds MacKenzie beach towel for a dip into the numbers and names of Indycar lore to produce #DZsIndycarTrivia on Twitter. If you have no idea to what I've referenced, please spend some time on Google and follow me on Twitter after you finish reading this post. Produced in contrast to the hyper-current, immediacy-addicted world of 'news first, ask questions later', my 'nostalgesic' was produced to soothe the pains of Indycar's cycle of 'bad news' which seemingly came on a daily basis during the latter half of 2012.

It's a Trap!

Nostalgia, at it's best, can use the past to help create a better future. This is the aim of my Trivial fun - to playfully remind or illuminate others to how things actually were before them and by having a clear understanding of the past, we are far less likely to repeat the mistakes. As much fun as I have doing #DZsIndycarTrivia on Twitter, I've also heard this little whisper lately to be careful of what's upcoming... There is a 'trap', while only looking backwards out of the family sedan's rear window - you will most-certainly miss the good bits right in front of you. The actual on-track Indycar product has been quite good out-of-the-box from St. Pete in 2012 to date (Barber 2013), and I've been careful to listen to that voice of reason. The perception of how that product is produced however is the problem.

Out the Front Window

Sooooooo... with Pole Day JUST A MONTH AWAY (yes, you read that correctly), I find myself still shaking off the winter doldrums and beginning to turn to that annual automotive congregational feast of racing nostalgia that is The Indy 500. Nothing for me is as therapeutic and this race and all its history and how almost every year adds something great to the lustrous patina of Indycar. How and why the bounty of that feast is so difficult to pass around and feed the rest of the Indycar calendar is subject of much ongoing debate. All I know is that if one is quiet enough to shut out the chatter of the day and simply enjoy the racing, you will more often than not have that satisfied feeling of fullness. I find it a bit like enjoying something like calimari - the more I can compartmentalize the intricacies of the substance and its preparation, the more I'm likely to simply bite into it and enjoy. Not always is that possible however and we should always be conscious of what we consume, so betwixt and betwain we humans often are.  

To Every Thing a Season
So time now for me to look forward, to enjoy it for what it is, and to not forget to savor those most tasty bits for they also are too few and far between. I wish you all good Indycar times with friends and family and if you'll be at Indy or Pocono, I hope to see you at the track. If not, keep on hanging around the blogosphere or catch me on Twitter for #DZsIndycarTrivia. I'll keep cooking up fresh questions for you.

Crystal Ballin'

Howdy folks! Your old pal DZ here again writing on the very cusp of another Indycar season. Nothing like waiting 6 months during the off-season and then rushing together a post while the cars practice in the sun at St. Pete, Eff-Ell-Ayy. 

Actually, my lack of posting should not be mistaken for ignoring Indycar. I simply have nothing new to say really.  Nothing anybody wants to hear anyway. I've posted a great deal of my opinion and thoughts on Indycar and the improvement thereof, much of which hasn't changed one iota in the last 3 years. To say the same thing in a different way is superfluous. 

If you are reading this and thinking to yourself, "Wait, what ideas? I'm curious, yes, what are your ideas?". Firstly, bless you and thank you! Secondly, it's all found at various points in the 80-odd posts found over the course of the last 42 months of my blog.
(Use these helpful blog tags over there on the left side of the blog to help find those ideas)

Today, after completing my NCAA bracket just 30 hours ago and inspired by the freshness of a new Indycar season... I feel the energies for sooth-saying flowing grandly through my being, so without further ado...

DZ's Wildly Accurate

(and Possibly More Than A Slight Bit Alarming)

2013 Indycar Prophesies

- From the "BAM! Stone cold, Lead Pipe Cinch" Dept.: I can't get out of my head that James Jakes will win a race this year, JakesyNation will froth and weep openly. Jakes and I look a slight bit alike I'm told, so maybe when he wins, someone will confuse me for an Indycar driver and allow me to saunter around the garages at will.

- Motors being rendered "non-functional" (a new James Hinchcliffe engineering translation) will continue to be an issue for teams all season and will play a part in the Championship points finale at Fontana. What I'm saying is that someone in contention for the title will 'get screwed' because of it.
- From the "On this day in 2014" Dept.: One year from now: the season opening in St. Pete will feature only 20 full-season cars on the grid. I won't divulge how the drop by 5 cars occurs, suffice to say that a majority of those leaving will be USCR-related departures.

- Tony Kanaan will win the Indy 500 BECAUSE, for the first time in 7 years, I'm NOT predicting TK to win and saying the Helio gets his 4th. Make sense?

- Simona will finish 8th in points. I want her to win a race and finish in the top 5 points, but that's my heart talking, not my 3rd eye. Still quite a heartening improvement over 2011, 2012.

- No one will win the Triple Crown. In fact we'll have 3 different winners for each of the races. *sad trombone*.  Davey Downer I know, but don't shoot the messenger for what the universe told me... I will continue to drink Fuzzy's unabated however.

- From the "You can lead a horse to ovals, but you can't get any damn fans there" Dept.: Pocono will be the best race of the season that 14,000 paid fans will see live. Head-shakingly low attendance at non-Indy ovals will cause much consternation among all 'stakeholders'. No matter, I will be there and will have seen the race and this historic track in all it's glory with my own eyes. You will also read my first-person account of the weekend at IndycarUK! 

- The Indy 500 will be completely rained out for the first time since 1997 and run on Monday.

- No CEO of Indycar will be named for all of 2013. More consternation and concern over no growth and lack of direct leadership will further unsteady the tenuous relationships with  team sponsors. 2 full-time cars will be gone for 2014 directly because of it.

- From the "I will hate to say I told you so" Dept.: Near the end of 2013, Miles will announce a much-ballyhooed revised rules package for 2014. Slight increases in allowable horsepower and slightly reduced downforce will be the primary focus. Big whoop. NO AEROKITS for 2014 and NO new engine manus. Same as it ever was, same as it ever was...

With good racing and no one outside of the 375,000 worldwide fans watching, Indycar will spend much of the late 2013 season and off-season wondering why. AGAIN. Another season rolls by, another opportunity to shake up the Indycar world wasted, with little direction out of the fog. 

That foghorn you're hearing Indycar? That's the sound from your diminishing fan base trying desperately to lead you to safety one last time. Whether your questionable navigation agrees or not, it is (and ever has been) your only option. You're drifting farther away with each passing year.

Back in 2011, I outlined a way I believe Indycar can put in place a product that can help move out of the fog and to reach a much wider audience. With each passing year that prospect only gets more expensive and will include fewer and fewer teams. That plan also is nothing new and in some form has been REQUESTED by fans since 1998. That's 15 years ago. FIF-TEEN. Agonizing.

Nobody should realistically expect that incredible racing stretch from 1966-1975 to ever happen again, but it seems the basic environment for which that situation occurred can be formed again in a modern setting to provide a diverse and exciting product which will engage new generations of fans and sponsors, and lead Indycar out of the fog.

Until the 1-chassis, uber-regulated, lameness of spec-era dies, Indycar cannot live.

Simple as that.