Pelicans relish opportunity to be in the hunt
April 15, 2015
UPDATE: School board asks for cheerleading rules to be reviewed
April 15, 2015
The weekend was soggy. The track was wet on race day.
But obstacles and Mother Nature aside, an inaugural champion was crowned at the Indy Grand Prix of Louisiana.
Canadian James Hinchcliffe took home the race’s first-ever title on Sunday afternoon at NOLA Motorsports Park, outlasting the competition along the 2.74-mile road course in Avondale.
Hinchcliffe’s No. 5 car outlasted Helio Castroneves, James Jakes, Simona De Silvestro and Juan Pablo Montoya, who rounded out the Top 5.
The opening stages of the race were run clean, but soggy conditions caused several late-race crashes that forced the majority of the final laps to be run under caution.
When it finished, it was Hinchcliffe who crossed the finish line first, scoring his first victory since June 2013.
“On one hand, I feel badly that we didn’t have more green-flag laps for the fans and everybody here at NOLA,” Hinchcliffe said after scoring the title. “But on the other hand, those guys called it awesome.”
Awesome is a word that a lot of folks used to describe the entire weekend – rain or not.
Fans turned out in droves to enjoy the weekend packed with racing from Friday to Sunday’s Grand Prix.
For the first 15 laps of the IndyCar event, drivers were able to run clean, despite a soggy track that had standing water in some patches, but was clean in others.
Everyone in the field started on grooved Firestone rain tires to take precaution against the slick road. As the race progressed, other drivers adjusted their tires to allow for more aggressive navigation.
But Hinchcliffe was the guy that everyone was chasing for the majority of the afternoon. He said that he loved the way his car ran on the Firestone tires.
“The car was unbelievable on the Firestone reds,” he said. “We pulled away from a couple of Penskes on those restarts. If we had gone green (in the final laps), I think we could’ve held them off at the end as long as we had the fuel. I’m just so happy.”
The race was scheduled for 70-plus laps, but IndyCar rules mandate that a race must be completed within a one-hour and 45-minute time limit. After on-track accidents created several caution flags, the race was forced to be halted after 47 laps.
The shortened run proved to be a giant strategic advantage for Hinchcliffe who stopped in the pits just once because he anticipated a shorter race was going to take place. He said he was going to take a second stop, but was ordered by his crew to keep rolling – a gamble that gave him an edge over others who made a second stop to prepare for a 70-lap race.
“When we first decided to stay out, I thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be funny if we could make this a one-stopper?’” Hinchcliffe said. “I just never thought it would happen.”
It did, and now the winning racer is out a helmet.
Hinchcliffe joked that he promised his team owner Ric Peterson a helmet during his next victory while dining in the city earlier this past week in New Orleans. Little did the two know that the exchange would happen in the immediate future.
“We were talking about this at dinner two nights ago with Ric,” Hinchcliffe said with a laugh. “He said, ‘I want one of your helmets, but it has to be a race-winning one.’ So I feel like I just lost a helmet.”
NEW ORLEANS A
WINNER FOR RACE WEEK
The actual race itself was shorter than fans and organizers wanted, but the entire experience throughout the week was a success, according to everyone involved.
Drivers, captains, fans and folks affiliated with the track all said that the Grand Prix of Louisiana was as good as could be expected in the weather conditions present.
Saturday was soggy throughout, which canceled the qualifying stage that was going to determine the starting order for Sunday’s race.
Because of the washout, Montoya started at the pole because he is IndyCar’s points leader. He said his team’s Big Easy experience was a pleasurable one.
“This is a great city and the fans are good race fans,” Montoya said. “This is a place that is going to become a stop that everyone really looks forward to.”
Other drivers lauded NOLA Motorsports Park owner Laney Chouest for taking initiative and doing things necessary to make the weekend a success. As drivers came into and out of the track in the past several months for test runs, they left behind wishlists that they thought could improve the facility in advance of the race.
Upon return, the drivers were thrilled to see many of those tweaks were made.
In recent weeks, gravel-filled pits were installed beyond three turns on the track that were some of the lowest spots on the facility. This eliminated a problem of standing water and made things safer for everyone involved.
“What they have done here in such a short period of time is incredible – kudos goes to the people who run the facility,” IndyCar driver Charlie Kimball said. “It’s been quite a few improvements made to get things ready for competition.”
Fans enjoyed it, too.
Houma native Tommy Reid attended Sunday’s race with his son. Like everyone else, Reid said he wishes Mother Nature would have allowed a cleaner ride. But he said the whole experience was a success.
“We had fun,” Reid said while walking out of the track. “It was a good time. They didn’t order the rain, you know? You could see where if the stars align, it’d be a great event.”
Mist flies off the soggy track at NOLA Motorsports Park during the first-ever running of the Indy Grand Prix of Louisiana, which took place on Sunday afternoon. Drivers and event organizers tout that the inaugural event was a success, despite soggy weather that plagued the Avondale-based track throughout the weekend. Canadian James Hinchcliffe won the race.
