IRL at Sears Point...

The IRL ran in Sonoma, CA today for the first time at the old Sears Point raceway, now called Infineon Raceway. Anyone know what Infineon is anyway? Just kidding... yes I know they make PC components... memory chips and such.

What a gorgeous facility. I drove by it when in Sonoma 3 years ago. Unfortunately the track was closed for private testing that day and I couldn't see it in person. The rolling terrain makes for a great road course. I'm sure the track is an absolute blast for the drivers.

Unfortunately ESPN had their standard cast of characters and since I was unable to see this race live with the IRL's live timing and scoring on my computer, I really have no idea what happened today. Todd Harris contributed nothing except the "Sullivan Spin to Win" comment immediately after Enge's 360... Hey Todd, did Enge win? I didn't think so. Scott Goodyear didn't have anything to say without being able to talk about "dirty air" 15 times. And ESPN did a fine job of using Dario's nose camera for over half the race. It was a great angle to see the track... once... couldn't see much of what was going on in the battles for position 7-12 though.

I can understand why the drivers would love this race. Constant shifting, turning left, braking, turning right... but from a fan's perspective... what a boring race. After lap 20, I found myself snoozing. Outside of Danica's road block and Briscoe's impatience leading to some excitement on lap 11, the rest was a parade. A pretty parade... but a parade none the less. Kudos to Helio for being an upstanding guy when taken out by the Brisco Brain Fade. It wasn't Danica's fault and he said all the right things.

80 laps... that race was 60 laps too long. But at least the IRL used the carousel unlike the taxi cabs who take the short cut between turns 4 and 7.

And what was with Booby Rahal's comment about this being the "toughest race in the history of the series?" Yeah, much tougher than 500 miles at Indy... what a dumbass!

Overall I have no problem with a couple road races every year. Here and Watkins Glen provide some fun for the drivers and some beautiful scenery for the fans. A nice change of pace. Now, on to Chicago for some excitement next weekend.