Thursday, July 10, 2014

Josef Newgarden at the Pocono 500

We saw Josef at the Pocono Indycar 500! 
Again and again and again.

And it was great because he led 8 laps of the race!!!
Which was terribly exciting for Alex even though we broke it to her that he had to stop for fuel.

Josef finished 8th!...
which isn't fantastic but was great considering the bad luck (and finishes) he's been having recently. 
(You'll note that we never did a Josef update from Houston because it was not good 
and he finished 20th in both races.)
 
Alex was happy, okay, ecstatic, that we got to see and talk to Josef within moments
of arriving in the paddock.  He seriously was walking behind the van
that we were riding in and even though he was in a hurry to get to his car
on pit lane for the practice session he stopped a moment
for the obligatory photo with Alex.
Thanks Josef!
 


Watching Josef get ready to qualify
(She's still trying to forget about his run, the crash was very upsetting for her)
 


That's Josef waving to Alex after we yelled to him as he drove by for driver introductions.
Alex with Josef's dad, Joey Newgarden
(technically he's not Josef, but he is Josef's dad,
and he told her stories of Josef and Josef's rescued kitty, Simba so she really likes him)
Mr. Newgarden, I hope you don't mind we used your picture but Alex really wanted it in the post.

Josef at the raceday autograph session
(we  told Alex that we would not wait in line for his autograph, since we already have it,
so she was content to get his attention and he waved to her)


Josef in the pits
(we had lots more of him in the pits, but we decided to narrow it down)
Josef in the pits talking (or is it dancing) with Simon Pagenaud
 


Josef's crew working on some stuff after the race. 
 Alex thought that they were making dinner. Seriously.
We explained that it's like a garage in the bottom of the hauler, not a kitchen



 
Alex by Josef's pit.....
we spend way too much time peering through fences looking at Josef's pit box
(even when he and his car aren't in it.)
If she wasn't only 7 we'd just leave her there all day and she'd be content.
 
 
Josef's car being pushed back after the race
(isn't it a beautiful shot, with the flag in the background and Josef' banner waving in the wind)
Watching for Josef in his garages after the race.
(We didn't see him, but we did see his crew members, his gear and his car...
way too many times except for Alex.)
And our favorite picture of the Pocono 500...
JOSEF LEADING THE RACE!







Schaefer 500 1976 Mario Andretti Card

How cool is this?!
 
A 1976 Mario Andretti Schaefer 500 card!
 
 
 
 

Wednesday, July 09, 2014

Indycar Pocono 500 Videos Getting to the Track

 
We decided to have a little fun at Pocono before the 500.
Enjoy our two short videos!
Thanks Brandon Igdalsky and Pocono
for letting us run around outside your track unquestioned!
 
 
 
Pocono 500 Indycar Mission

 
 
 
Pocono 500 Weekend is Here!

Tuesday, July 08, 2014

Pocono Indycar 500 Re-cap

The Pocono Indycar 500 was amazing!!
 
Will Power, Helio Castroneves, Juan Montoya and Tony Kanaan dominated the race, with a determined rookie Mikael Aleshin running in 5th for much of the day.
The race stayed green for the first 168 laps until Graham Rahal brought out the only caution of the day.

It was the fastest 500 mile race in Indycar history at 202.402.
The fans at Pocono seemed really got into the closing laps and seemed thrilled to see Montoya win in Indycar for the first time in 13 years.
 


 
 
After starting from the last position, Josef Newgarden led with just 6 laps to go, but had to make a splash and dash pit stop and finished 8th.  Kanaan took over the lead but also had to stop for gas. Will Power was penalized for blocking Helio.
So pole sitter Juan Montoya won the race, Helio Castroneves 2nd, and rookie Carlos Munoz finishing 3rd.


 
 
The Top Ten:

5 Chevys, 5 Hondas
5 Different Teams
7 Different Countries
 
1st Juan Montoya 
 
-First driver this year to win from the pole
-His 12th Indycar win
-Can he win the championship?
 
2nd Helio Castroneves
 
-Now tied with Will Power in the season points
-His 5th podium this year
 
3rd Carlos Munoz 
 
-He has 3 podiums this year                                                                              
-Is 6th in points         
 
4th Ryan Briscoe
 
-Highest Ganassi Racing finisher
-His best finish this season
 
5th Scott Dixon
 
- Last year's Pocono winner
- Is this the turning point in his season?
 
6th Simon Pagenaud
 
- 3rd in points
- Can he beat the Penske team to the championship?
 
7th Mikhail Aleshin
 
- Was running fifth all race till the last 10 laps
-  For someone who has never been to these tracks he is amazing!
 
8th Josef Newgarden
 
- Led laps 188 to 194
- Previously had only led 1 lap in his Indycar career
 
*9th Marco Andretti
 
- 2nd top ten in 2 years at Pocono
- Had a drive through penalty for speeding on pit lane early in the race
 
10th Will Power

- Seriously blocked his teammate late in the race
- His 5th penalty of the season cost him a podium finish


 
 
 
 
 


Monday, July 07, 2014

Indycar Pocono 500 in Photos

The Pocono Indycar 500 was fantastic!!
 

Drivers, start your engines!
 A great day for racing, upper 70's and sunny. 
Missed having rookie Jack Hawksworth in the field after he bruised his heart
in a vicious 100G crash in practice on Saturday.

Let's go racing!

And the winner is... Juan Pablo Montoya!
What an exciting finish with Josef Newgarden & Tony Kanaan both leading late but having to stop for fuel, and front runner Will Power falling back after getting a penalty for blocking his teammate Helio.
 
The top 6.
Montoya, Castroneves, Carlos Munoz, Ryan Briscoe,
Scott Dixon and Simon Pagenaud
  
Hinch signing autographs....
Why does he always look like he's about to get into trouble?

We ran into Robin Miller!
(We'll have to thank Alex for that, we were
 hanging around the garages to watch Josef)


Cheering Josef on in qualifying
(that didn't go so well when he crashed in turn 2 and had to start last)
 
Your pole sitter and eventual winner
(being interviewed in The Fan Zone before the race)
Carlos Munoz taking a post-race bike ride
after another very successful 500 mile race.

The obligatory 'Josef' photo with Alex
(We honestly don't stalk him. 
We were getting off the van in the paddock and he walked behind it.)