This week marks the one year anniversary of one of the worst Indycar races evah. *kazoo* The “Indy Grand Prix of Louisiana,” which was such a steaming pile that it was mercifully ended after a mere 47 laps, at which point they had managed a full 31 minutes of green flag “racing”.
I put racing in quotes there because, as the highlights below show, there were no highlights. Just slippery roads, sliding cars, and a whole lotta yellow flag laps and cleanup crew work. Actually, I should correct myself. There was one highlight, as noted in the featured image of this post. It was that unknown track worker who somehow though he’d just go give Gabby Chaves a push on a LIVE race track, because, uh, Southern hospitality? As noted at the time by Tony DiZinno, memes ensued, including the one from James that adorns this post.
On the one hand, I feel for the fans who had to wait in awful weather to watch an awful race. On the other hand, much respect to the drivers who also suffered through this chaos. Who among us would be willing to mash a throttle to the tune of 150 miles per hour with pretty much zero visibility? I mean, the in-car cameras in the clips below show utter soaking madness. Those many-thousand dollar steering wheels in the DW12s have many buttons, but a windshield wiper ain’t one of them.
And as a postscript to all of this, do note the legal issues that resulted from this mess of an event have now been settled. Happy Anniversary, NOLA.
billytheskink
April 15, 2016 at 1:37pmThe event pin I bought at Indy in 2011 says “I was there” on it. That’s what the event pins from the NOLA race should have said too.
While it might not have made a difference with the race’s financial quagmire, it probably would have been a fine race had the severe weather not interfered. Such is Indycar’s luck…
S0CSeven
April 19, 2016 at 2:21pmI applaud the worker pushing the car. Marshals (who wear white pants) would cheerfully and eagerly do that anywhere on the planet but after the Ribbs incident in Vancouver where a marshal was killed, Indycar has said that you will, as a marshal, never, ever go on the track unless race control authorizes it.
Don’t know who this seasoned professional is but I bet he’ll never work another Indycar race…….. not that it matters at NOLA.