Monaco GP // Indy 500 -- WARNING!!! -- SPOILER ALERT!!!

[BIG E]

Wow, unbelievable cluster f*** on the pit stop for Red Bull Racing. They call Daniel Ricciardo into the pits for tires, and when he stops in the stall -- there are NO TIRES laid out! The crew looked like the Keystone Cops running around getting four tires on the car. The guy drives his butt off, winning the pole and leading the race, then the team does that to him. Ricciardo was left gutted and stunned on the podium, with the pit stop fiasco allowing Lewis Hamilton to take advantage and hold on for the win. That was worse than last year's screwing Lewis himself got from Mercedes at the same event. Ugh!

Meanwhile, in the USA... The 100th running of the Indy 500 did not disappoint. No one crashed out in turn one at the start, or on the restarts, which has happened often at Indy in the past. Very competitive racing brought many lead changes and exciting passes in the short chutes between the turns and a few spin out crashes, with Sage Karem's admitted miscalculation the biggest bash of the day. To see race rookie Alexander Rossi, an American born Andretti Motorsport driver running on a great fuel mileage strategy from team boss Brian Herta (who had merged his operation with Michael Andretti's) take the victory was a great story line for this historic event, and returned the famous number 98 to Indy's victory circle once again. All the usual IndyCar heavy hitters were in contention, but defending champion Juan Pablo Montoya put himself out with an uncharacteristic spin, and some pit road bumping took team mates Ryan Hunter-Reay and Townsend Bell out of contention. J.R. Hildebrand ruined Helio Castroneves' bid for his 4th 500 win by hitting and damaging the rear wing assembly on the Brazilian's Pennzoil car. Most of the rest were caught up in late race splash and go fuel strategies, allowing Rossi to drink the milk in the end. Disappointed team mate Carlos Munos again finished second after another brilliant drive at Indy, giving Andretti Autosport a 1-2 for the day.
I thought the broadcast was very well done, honoring Indy's history and America's military personnel. My only complaint was the selection of Darius Rucker to sing the national anthem. Not nearly one of rock 'n' roll's more melodic vocalists, that was just a plain bad performance, in my opinion. Sorry if I've offended him or any of his fans. Other than that, I very much enjoyed this year's historic running of the 500, and look forward to reading and viewing more commentary about it as it becomes available.

I hope every one had a happy and safe Memorial Day weekend, wherever they may be. Enjoy! -- Ernie :>)

[waaytoomuchintothis]

Ernie, you forgot he was the main vocal for Hootie and the Blowfish first album, 16 times platinum record. He is huge in R&R. His stardom tends to be overshadowed by current idiots clomping through stupid lyrics, completely redone by electronic autotuners. He just screwed up, like everybody does. At the very least, he beat the crap out of these twits who yodel on every sustained note as though they were singing some semi-rock gospel tent show (though, I gotta say, he did it a little today).

What is it about Monaco that makes pit directors nuts? Last year wasn't the first insane screwup. Maybe it was the most egregious since there was no reason for it at all (that's why it was investigated), but today was just a screwup caused by the indecision about which tire to get ready, because they were watching Mercedes for a clue (sorry, make that CUE, just a slip).

Were you pulling for Rossi? I wasn't, though its great that he made it happen. Massive accomplishment, a rookie win at the 100th running of the big race. I was pulling for my old pal, Tony Kanaan. I tend to pull for him all the time.

I had a GREAT day, uninterrupted by anything, awash in car stuff. That's a first, around here.

[DrumPhil]

The wet start and all the tire drama made this Monaco GP a much more exciting race than the basic follow-the-leader that it sometimes becomes. That was fun to watch (other than DR's agonizing pit slop).

After church and lunch I had good intentions to watch Indy, but got distracted working on my new track. Glad to hear it was a good race. Any more, I have a hard time getting excited about any oval racing. It just doesn't do much for me. No offense to those who like it.

[Retro Racer 44]

My wife and I watched both Monaco and Indy which we had recorded. Who says you can't pass at Monaco? Max Verstappen, started from the pit lane and made his way half way up the field. He was making such banzai moves, I said to my wife, "He will crash out before the end of the race." Which, of course he did.

It was great to see Hinch and former teammate Hunter-Reay dicing back and forth for the lead at Indy. I was impressed to see James back to form after his accident last year. He was in third before the gas ran out, and I expect would have been right there at the end. If your team says you're two laps short, you don't gamble at a big track like Indy.

Cheers,

Keith

[BIG E]

To explain further...
Believe me, I didn't forget about the Hootie and the Blowfish thing, I just didn't mention it, figuring it was common knowledge. Guess it sounded like I was making more of a big deal about it than I intended, I'm not out to bash the guy here. Darius is of course a pro, there is no denying that, and as you had mentioned, it was unfortunate that he was on that particular event's stage where, in my opinion, he may not have had his best performance. I had to play that song (I Only Want to Be With You was the title if I remember correctly) in my bar band back when it was new and popular, and only because of that popularity and the fact that everybody would have kept asking us to play it anyway. I got out voted on that one by the two guitarists, so I had to bite the bullet, smile and play the song! He definitely knocked it out of the park on that tune, for sure. Just never was a fan of his vocal technique, that's all - no biggie. And yes, I agree with you - there are way too many performers today that lean on technology to get them by, or just have no business (though they are getting rich) in the performance industry.
Anyone who watches a lot of sporting events has unfortunately heard much worse renditions of our nation's anthem. Sometimes I think they must just contract a performer, without really auditioning or at least listening to how they're going to present the song. It is, after all, our national anthem and (again, in my opinion) should be sung within a more traditional arrangement. And I say this realizing that it is far from an easy song to sing, it's stumped many performers in the past.
I'm glad everyone enjoyed the races, and hope the weekend was both fun and safe for all. Enjoy! -- Ernie :>)

[BIG E]

While further explaining my comments concerning the pre race ceremonial music, I forgot to mention this:
I traditionally pull for for anyone driving for my all time favorite, A.J.Foyt, regardless of their odds to win the thing. And TK again proved to us all why we love to watch him race, pulling that 'down the inside along the pit wall' pass just as he had done in 2013 when we all were thrilled to see him finally win the 500. He's just awesome on restarts, and he almost had it again this year if not for the fuel thing that plagued most of the late race front runners. I loved his post race comments about how much fun he had all day!
As far as pulling for Rossi, I was a fan of Michael Andretti (another great driver on the restarts) when he was driving in the IndyCar series, and I tend to watch all of the drivers in his stable. I believe we all were very fortunate this year to have had so many good competitive cars in the 100th running of the Indy 500, regardless of the teams they were associated with and who our favorites may have been for the win that day. -- Ernie :>)

[waaytoomuchintothis]

I'm right there with you, Ernie. I did the same stuff, just a bit earlier. Robert Plant was to blame for the end of my singing career. That guy is not human. You know he still does that stuff? We were always just a cover band, losing people and gaining people all the time. Being in Memphis, we did a lot of classic R&B, but I got to do my Joe Cocker act from time to time (I smoked a lot in those days), and take it up an octave for Mick. Lots of CCR, Grand Funk, and even some Canned Heat, because their stuff was mostly updated versions of the same blues stuff we already did. Man, that was fun- and the girls!!! But college classes got harder, and it was time for me to grow up.

I kept thinking through the whole race, "This is the 100th Indy". It came to me over and over, and I don't think it could have been one bit better for this auspicious occasion. And Monaco just knocked me out. All my favorites keep me on the edge of my seat the whole time.