DD

[EagleEye]

"DD" is 7 seconds off pace from the leader, and 4 seconds off the next position. No one, not even the Danica bashers, can compare he to anyone but the backmarkers of ther past.

The IRL, as it struggles to grow the series, needs to get rid of the dead weight in the series that does nothing but give it a black eye. Two black eyes in this case. Maybe more on a cold day...

With so much talent available, the series should take a page from the US F1 team, who apparently have refused to take ride buyers for their testing program. It is time for BB to pull her license and get both of her silicone jugs off the track, and send them back to a marine sancuary where they can be used as floatation devices for injured sea life.

If DD gets in the way during the race (and at 7 seconds off pace, the leaders will be on her around lap ten) she should be blacked flagged, or waved in for a pit stop. ( )( ) does not belong here or anywhere. Send her back to Chavez!

[harvick#1]

she seems to run ok on ovals, but shes horrid on a road course, I hope the IRL tells her not to race tomorrow

[beachgirl]

I'm usually a supporter of Milka, because I think she's shown steady improvement over the past couple of years. But this weekend, she doesn't have any business being on this track. I don't want to see any racer being told he/she should not start a race, because I think it could set a bad precedent. But, in this case, I think Barnhart should very, very seriously consider it, because this is NOT a good situation right now. For anybody, including Milka.

[Jimmy Magnusson]

She has been very slow, and that's with running a lot of laps, so there doesn't seem to be any sort of improvement going on this weekend. Milka is usually fine and I don't really like to bash drivers for being slow, but a 111-112% off pole is not good. In Europe there's usually a 107% or 110% rule that prevents people who are to slow from starting. And I don't know what Milka gets out of this - isn't this money better spent on ovals only, combined with Grand Am racing?

I don't criticize DRR for taking her on though, gotta pay the bills. If pay drivers were banned there'd only be 14-15 starters at most...

[jackmart]

I asked Michael Andretti what he thought of her, not trying to get him to bash her just asking him if he thought she was a danger out on the track. His response was actually interesting, he says we need more milkas to switch it up out there. He says when he would race there used to be more milkas. He went on to say that it makes for better racing to pass and use stratedgy to get around her. If she is holding people up it might help other drivers use lapped traffic to make a pass on the ones on the lead lap. Interesting view I was kind of surpised.

[NickFalzone]

PT's been blogging from his website, since Racer.com has been offline for a week or two now. He had a comment today on Milka:

"I’ve got to comment on Milka. She’s a disaster out there and it’s beyond even funny. Why do they give her a license? She’s what…seven seconds off me, so eight seconds off of Briscoe. That means Ryan’s gonna be lapping her every nine or ten laps if we’re green all the way! Why do they let her drive? Why does she want to embarrass herself so bad?"

http://www.paultracy.com

[SarahFan]

PT hits the nail on the head.......

[NickFalzone]

Not a good sign when Frankie Muniz in an Atlantics car is posting a faster quals time than you. (let alone, the rest of the Atlantics grid minus Lefevre).

[call_me_andrew]

Does the IRL enforce a minimum speed during the race?

[beachbum]

Does the IRL enforce a minimum speed during the race?
Normally, yes. I would expect "mechanical" problems and an early retirement.

[drewdawg727]

I have two words for you - 107% rule...........

[Marbles]

I have two words for you - 107% rule...........

Is there a series that uses this rule today? I think even F1 dropped it years back when the grid started to shrink.

This is one of the easier judgment calls for those that rule. For the sponsors sake, avoid the shame of failing to qualify on speed or being black flagged during the race and bring it in early with mechanical problems. This would not be a suggestion either!

Hiro, Dr. Jack, Milka... It would be neat to see a bottom 10 of all time.

[SarahFan]

Hiro doesn't belong in the Milka category.....IMO

[TURN3]

Hiro doesn't belong in the Milka category.....IMO

Hiro the moving chicane? I'd say he belongs!

[Jimmy Magnusson]

Is there a series that uses this rule today? I think even F1 dropped it years back when the grid started to shrink.

This is one of the easier judgment calls for those that rule. For the sponsors sake, avoid the shame of failing to qualify on speed or being black flagged during the race and bring it in early with mechanical problems. This would not be a suggestion either!

Hiro, Dr. Jack, Milka... It would be neat to see a bottom 10 of all time.

Most series do, just not the ones that use knock-out qualifying (F1, DTM and the likes). Texeira failed to qualify for the GP2 race at Monaco earlier this year, for instance. It's all dealt with sensibly though, as later at Hungaroring Grosjean crashed before setting a lap - Romain is clearly fast enough, and was allowed to start.

[SoCalPVguy]

I have two words for you - 107% rule...........

that's acutally five (5) words "1 one 2 hundred-3 seven 4 percent 5 rule, but you are completely right !!!

[PA Rick]

I asked Michael Andretti what he thought of her, not trying to get him to bash her just asking him if he thought she was a danger out on the track. His response was actually interesting, he says we need more milkas to switch it up out there. He says when he would race there used to be more milkas. He went on to say that it makes for better racing to pass and use stratedgy to get around her. If she is holding people up it might help other drivers use lapped traffic to make a pass on the ones on the lead lap. Interesting view I was kind of surpised.

We could dress up people in clown suits and send them out in orange tricycles as moving chicanes. They could be bottom weighted so if you hit them they pop back upright. Or beter yet, use swimsuit models for better photo ops....

Maybe I should get more sleep?

[garyshell]

Hiro the moving chicane? I'd say he belongs!

...king Hiro! The king is dead. Long live the king.

Gary

[V12]

I don't want to see any racer being told he/she should not start a race, because I think it could set a bad precedent.

To be fair I think the precedent has already been set long ago. CART pulled Shiggy Hattori in 1999 IIRC, who was probably quicker than Milka (maybe more accident prone though?), and there's countless examples in F1 history before formal qualifying rules (e.g. top 26, 107%) where a driver would be refused a start at the organisers discretion due to simply being "too slow".



Is there a series that uses this rule today? I think even F1 dropped it years back when the grid started to shrink.


It wasn't because of shrinking grids (it was introduced in 1996 when entry lists were already shrinking to 22/20), but when they introduced single-lap qualifying in 2003, because if a driver say spun on his lap or had a problem, then it wasn't really fair that they should DNQ because of it.

And now with all of this three part qualifying they've had since 2006, working it out would just be a minefield, plus the typical field spread in F1 these days is usually under two seconds so there's no real need for it.

[EagleEye]

she seems to run ok on ovals, but shes horrid on a road course, I hope the IRL tells her not to race tomorrow

Ask any driver, official or engineer who has worked with her in the past, and she hasn't a clue on any track. Given a good car and asked to hold her foot down for an oval is one thing, like what we saw from Roth. Sure, they can "hold on" and get around the track, but once the race starts they are an utter disgrace.

At Indy Ms. DD into the wall, with her "whould I pit, or stay out" wavering. She causes near wrecks in her wake.

As for MA saying she is good for the series, what he really saying is I'll take her money for one of our cars next year. Since AGR might be down to two cars, their have been some discussions on DD bringing go money to AGR.

She is one of the most clueless drivers we have ever had in open wheel racing. She does not belong, at any level.

[SarahFan]

Ask any driver, official or engineer who has worked with her in the past, and she hasn't a clue on any track. Given a good car and asked to hold her foot down for an oval is one thing, like what we saw from Roth. Sure, they can "hold on" and get around the track, but once the race starts they are an utter disgrace.

At Indy Ms. DD into the wall, with her "whould I pit, or stay out" wavering. She causes near wrecks in her wake.

As for MA saying she is good for the series, what he really saying is I'll take her money for one of our cars next year. Since AGR might be down to two cars, their have been some discussions on DD bringing go money to AGR.

She is one of the most clueless drivers we have ever had in open wheel racing. She does not belong, at any level.

do you put Hiro in the same category?

[grungex]

As for MA saying she is good for the series, what he really saying is I'll take her money for one of our cars next year. Since AGR might be down to two cars, their have been some discussions on DD bringing go money to AGR.

A two car team with Danica and Duno would be awesome! :p

[drewdawg727]

that's acutally five (5) words "1 one 2 hundred-3 seven 4 percent 5 rule, but you are completely right !!!

Okay, thanks for making me sound like a complete dope.

[EagleEye]

do you put Hiro in the same category?

He would actually use his mirrors to speed up when the leaders came up on him. He was equally frustrating, but at least he actually won races in OW (Atlantics). And, I think Hiro was only a AA.

[TURN3]

Ask any driver, official or engineer who has worked with her in the past, and she hasn't a clue on any track. Given a good car and asked to hold her foot down for an oval is one thing, like what we saw from Roth. Sure, they can "hold on" and get around the track, but once the race starts they are an utter disgrace.

At Indy Ms. DD into the wall, with her "whould I pit, or stay out" wavering. She causes near wrecks in her wake.

As for MA saying she is good for the series, what he really saying is I'll take her money for one of our cars next year. Since AGR might be down to two cars, their have been some discussions on DD bringing go money to AGR.

She is one of the most clueless drivers we have ever had in open wheel racing. She does not belong, at any level.


No no no no...we're talking about Milka, not Danica.

[garyshell]

What was most telling for me about Milka, was watching her brake at the end of the back straight leading into the esses. She was REALLY slow coming off the corner. (The one where the pick was set.) I am not talking just a bit slower but a very significant difference. One that appeared to be associated with significant white knuckles.

Gary

[TURN3]

What was most telling for me about Milka, was watching her brake at the end of the back straight leading into the esses. She was REALLY slow coming off the corner. (The one where the pick was set.) I am not talking just a bit slower but a very significant difference. One that appeared to be associated with significant white knuckles.

Gary

She was just having an off weekend. Conway was having issues with his handling too and they seem to have sorted it out by race time. :confused: She's not a good driver but I don't know that she's been THAT bad before...that has been the worst by far.

[Jag_Warrior]

CART pulled Shiggy Hattori in 1999 IIRC, who was probably quicker than Milka (maybe more accident prone though?),

Maybe? Maybe?! Maybe???!!! As one of the charter members of the Shiggy Hattori Fan Club for Life, I feel the need to come to my man's defense here. Shiggy "Mr. Bombastic, Simply Fantastic"... Shiggy "The Human Wrecking Ball" Hattori had and has no equal! He da man!

-Daddy, what's that fireball on the back straight?
-It's OK, Jimmy. It's Shiggy... he's doing some crash testing for the CART Safety Team.

Shigeaki "The Shig Man" ftw!!!

[Shifter]

She was audibly snapping off the throttle in the middle of turn 4. If she tried to do anything close to the race pace she'd have spun the car there every lap.

[garyshell]

She was audibly snapping off the throttle in the middle of turn 4. If she tried to do anything close to the race pace she'd have spun the car there every lap.


That's exactly what I was talking about. It was REALLY strange. Because it was in the middle of the turn not going into it or just before the middle. Odd.

Gary

[SoCalPVguy]

Okay, thanks for making me sound like a complete dope.

You're no dope !!!
You are 100% (1. one 2. hundred 3. percent) CORRECT in that it is disgraceful for any so-called top level professional racing series to allow qualifiers 8+ seconds slower than pole - in this case 8 -+ MPH slower on the track. It is a hazard to driver safety. The 107% rule is a real afety item if you ask me and should be implemented.

[nigelred5]

Maybe? Maybe?! Maybe???!!! As one of the charter members of the Shiggy Hattori Fan Club for Life, I feel the need to come to my man's defense here. Shiggy "Mr. Bombastic, Simply Fantastic"... Shiggy "The Human Wrecking Ball" Hattori had and has no equal! He da man!

-Daddy, what's that fireball on the back straight?
-It's OK, Jimmy. It's Shiggy... he's doing some crash testing for the CART Safety Team.

Shigeaki "The Shig Man" ftw!!!


That's CLASSIC.! lol

[calacan]

Anyone remember "Stupid" Dan Clarke. I would say he was more of a hazard on track than DD. Ed Carpenter is also pretty darn slow on road courses.

Maybe they should have a 'special race' for all the B drivers, but in bumper cars.

[beachbum]

Anyone remember "Stupid" Dan Clarke. I would say he was more of a hazard on track than DD. Ed Carpenter is also pretty darn slow on road courses.

Maybe they should have a 'special race' for all the B drivers, but in bumper cars.Yeah Ed is dismal - right. Mid Ohio is considered a drivers track and his fast lap was a whole .05 seconds slower than that road race ace Bobby D, and only .2 behind that old guy racing for burgers (his quote) PT, and .5 seconds slower than Helio. Vision is not known for it's road course setups, but I think Ed is doing just fine for an oval guy.

[Jag_Warrior]

Anyone remember "Stupid" Dan Clarke. I would say he was more of a hazard on track than DD. Ed Carpenter is also pretty darn slow on road courses.

Maybe they should have a 'special race' for all the B drivers, but in bumper cars.

Dumb Dan Clarke... yeah, unfortunately an image of that goofball is burned into my mind. What I never could understand about him was the fact that he had an actual fan following. Especially among the Fanatics, he had quite a following. IMO, it wan't just that Dan was a bad driver, he was also a nut. The guy acted like he didn't have good sense much of the time. And to compound the problem, he could be quite fast at times. So you had this nut, who was fast, out there taveling like an unguided missile. He was truly the SCUD missile of CCWS.

But what can you say about a guy who wears a hat with his own name on it? :rolleyes:


Milka is just slow and nervous. Either she's going to get hurt or she's going to hurt someone else. But it seems that the IRL is putting car count ahead of safety in this case. Let her do ovals - if she can keep up, fine. But where drivers can't meet some sort of predetermined qualifying or race pace, they need to be benched. I like Milka (personally), but the truth is the truth. Safety should come first.

[Hoop-98]

Dumb Dan Clarke... yeah, unfortunately an image of that goofball is burned into my mind. What I never could understand about him was the fact that he had an actual fan following. Especially among the Fanatics, he had quite a following. IMO, it wan't just that Dan was a bad driver, he was also a nut. The guy acted like he didn't have good sense much of the time. And to compound the problem, he could be quite fast at times. So you had this nut, who was fast, out there taveling like an unguided missile. He was truly the SCUD missile of CCWS.

But what can you say about a guy who wears a hat with his own name on it? :rolleyes:


Milka is just slow and nervous. Either she's going to get hurt or she's going to hurt someone else. But it seems that the IRL is putting car count ahead of safety in this case. Let her do ovals - if she can keep up, fine. But where drivers can't meet some sort of predetermined qualifying or race pace, they need to be benched. I like Milka (personally), but the truth is the truth. Safety should come first.

I wanna see a death match between Hiro, Milka, and Del Monte...

;P

rh

[Marbles]

Dumb Dan Clarke... yeah, unfortunately an image of that goofball is burned into my mind. He was truly the SCUD missile of CCWS.

But what can you say about a guy who wears a hat with his own name on it? :rolleyes:


I remember when his team took the dry tire gamble in the rain in Toronto. Yeah, Dangerous Dan the rain-miester. When the commentators broke the news I choked laughing and had milk spew out of my nose... and I was drinking beer. That roll of the dice lasted about 500 meters before he wadded up his car.

I have two lasting images of Dan and neither of them are related to driving. One is of him relentlessly sucking on a drink bottle straw during an interview and the other is of him making Beekhuis cool his heels on live TV as he waited for Dan to get off his cellphone for a post race interview.

[ClarkFan]

Yeah Ed is dismal - right. Mid Ohio is considered a drivers track and his fast lap was a whole .05 seconds slower than that road race ace Bobby D, and only .2 behind that old guy racing for burgers (his quote) PT, and .5 seconds slower than Helio. Vision is not known for it's road course setups, but I think Ed is doing just fine for an oval guy.

Carpenter was as slow as a sundial, but most of the time he kept touch with the very tail of the field.

Duno was in a League of Her Own and would have finished something like last in the Atlantics race. :rolleyes:

ClarkFan

[speeddurango]

She was just having an off weekend. Conway was having issues with his handling too and they seem to have sorted it out by race time. :confused: She's not a good driver but I don't know that she's been THAT bad before...that has been the worst by far.

I don't think she had an off weekend comparing to her own statistics.

[NickFalzone]

Ed has shown some progress on road courses this season, and he had very good lap times at Mid-Ohio. Another season or two of road courses and I think he'll be fine. Milka shows no evidence of progress, and I thought that she even came from this type of racing...?

Also, not to pile on, but someone mentioned her odd braking zones at Mid-Ohio. I noticed exactly the same thing at WG and I think I mentioned it when I got back from the track. Everyone would hit their marks at roughly the same place (except PT who routinely braked much later) but she would be braking somewhere around halfway down the straight, I'd say a good sec or so before the others braking zones, and the engine didn't rev up the right way into the corners either. Very weird. It could be that the equipment sucks, but I'm not so sure about that.

[Jimmy Magnusson]

I remember when his team took the dry tire gamble in the rain in Toronto. Yeah, Dangerous Dan the rain-miester. When the commentators broke the news I choked laughing and had milk spew out of my nose... and I was drinking beer. That roll of the dice lasted about 500 meters before he wadded up his car.

I have two lasting images of Dan and neither of them are related to driving. One is of him relentlessly sucking on a drink bottle straw during an interview and the other is of him making Beekhuis cool his heels on live TV as he waited for Dan to get off his cellphone for a post race interview.

Dan came over to the states from F3 with the (I think self-selected) nickname "Speedy Dan", which was later changed by others to first "Dangerous Dan" and later "Desperate Dan". He had quite good speed at times but was prone to brainless moves, like taking out four cars at the first lap of Friday practice at Zolder. He was benched for the rest of the event.

[Chamoo]

I wonder if the CITGO money would stay if Milka ever decided to own a race team? Wouldn't that make much more sense? She must see that she is that far off the pace and out of place.

If she could continue to make all the appearances that she makes now for CITGO, except as an owner, and CITGO would stay on with her team for a new young driver, that would be a big positive. Milka could also run the I500 in a second car or something like that.

[Easy Drifter]

Milka is always off the pace but usually not as far as she seemed at Mid Ohio.
'Stompin Danica' is also sometimes further off the pace than usual.
This is politically incorrect, but it just might be a certain time of month.
I worked for 2 female drivers and one was certainly affected adversely. The other it didn't seem to affect her speed but she might have been a little MORE aggressive.

Do I duck now or run for cover? :eek:

[Mark in Oshawa]

Milka is always off the pace but usually not as far as she seemed at Mid Ohio.
'Stompin Danica' is also sometimes further off the pace than usual.
This is politically incorrect, but it just might be a certain time of month.
I worked for 2 female drivers and one was certainly affected adversely. The other it didn't seem to affect her speed but she might have been a little MORE aggressive.

Do I duck now or run for cover? :eek:

put the shovel down now and climb in the hole....

[Mark in Oshawa]

What bothers me is people LET Milka out onto that track knowing she is a rolling road block. As for what Mike Andretti said, he is either an idiot or being politically correct.

The point is Ed Carpenter is showing improvement, Danica on road courses is not a danger and shows signs of improving, and a few other oval only types are learning. Milka CAME from Grand AM and should have this turning right and left stuff figured out. This should be where she is at her BEST. 8 seconds a lap off the leader at Mid Ohio? You gotta be frigging kidding me. My fat out of shape carcass could get around there faster than that NOW and I have never sat in an open wheeled car but I can grasp where the hell the line is and where to get on the gas. She obviously cannot...

[jackmart]

As for MA saying she is good for the series, what he really saying is I'll take her money for one of our cars next year. Since AGR might be down to two cars, their have been some discussions on DD bringing go money to AGR.

She is one of the most clueless drivers we have ever had in open wheel racing. She does not belong, at any level.

I can't see AGR splitting, having her and one other driver. Can you use her money on other cars too? Is that fair if the money is going to sponsor her?

[anthonyvop]

I wonder if the CITGO money would stay if Milka ever decided to own a race team? Wouldn't that make much more sense? She must see that she is that far off the pace and out of place.

If she could continue to make all the appearances that she makes now for CITGO, except as an owner, and CITGO would stay on with her team for a new young driver, that would be a big positive. Milka could also run the I500 in a second car or something like that.
Citgo will only sponsor a Venezuelan driver.

[Chamoo]

Citgo will only sponsor a Venezuelan driver.

That's fine with me, either sign up E.J. Viso or put another young Venezuelen in the cockpit. There must be someone out there who can be better then her?

I'm all for American's and Canadians, but in this case, a straight Venezuelen for Venezuelen is a good trade.

[Copse]

That's fine with me, either sign up E.J. Viso or put another young Venezuelen in the cockpit. There must be someone out there who can be better then her?

I'm all for American's and Canadians, but in this case, a straight Venezuelen for Venezuelen is a good trade.

Maybe Pastor Maldonado... He's about to reach the top of the sub-F1 ladder in Europe without any chance of moving upwards, and will probably need somewhere to move on to for next year. Going across the Atlantic would be a good option for him. He is often very reckless, makes stupid rash decisions and is prone to crash other drivers out. Also, he probably has never ran on an oval. I.e., he is definitely better than Milka, but possibly not better than anyone else in the field. There are plenty of drivers out there who would be much, much better in the IRL than him. If it is Venezuelan or nada for Citgo, then he's my pick.

Edit: Forgot to mention that despite all his flaws, he has won several GP2 races, and almost a season of the World Series by Renault if it weren't for a technical infringement penalty.

[Mark in Oshawa]

Whether CITGO is there or not makes no difference to me, but I think putting a crap driver in the seat for national reasons shows you how stupid Chavez is in his running of CITGO. Before it was the nationalized oil company of Venezuela, it was not run like a propganda vehicle....

[EagleEye]

Citgo will only sponsor a Venezuelan driver.

They sponsored non-venezuelans in the past, but currently DD is romantically involved with one of thier top executives.

The company had sponsorhips in NASCAR and Grand Am, long before DD came along.

[Jag_Warrior]

I thought they were married.

[garyshell]

They sponsored non-venezuelans in the past, but currently DD is romantically involved with one of thier top executives.


I thought they were married.

Oh please, you two are killing me. These two lines make such a great Ed McMahon set up for some classic Johnny Carson one liner.

Gary

[Jag_Warrior]

Oh, OK... I see it now, Gary. :D