Nice to See Portland Back in IndyCar

This is the Statt Mann Baby. Time to Scatt a little bit.

It was cool to see IndyCar racing again in Portland last weekend. There were great races in the past with passing into turn one and through the Esses and going into the last turn before the long drag strip in front of the grandstands.

We didn’t see a lot of that in this race though. The downforce on the current IndyCar allows anyone to drive it but it also makes passing difficult.

My racing tastes lean more toward drivers who can navigate anything and don’t need aero aids to help them keep the cars planted.

Still, it took me back to a different time when drivers drove and passed each other when they wanted and raced for wins. They didn’t outlast the competition with fuel strategies and tire maintenance.

But, I’m an old man!

Portland International Raceway had surrendered itself to SCCA regionals and rally weekends in recent years. Good to see someone dust off the memories and get the major leagues there again. Hopefully Portland can be back again next Labor Day and start another tradition in American racing. We need it.

This one felt good.

Peace.