John Polidori's New Writeupshttp://everything2.com/?node=New%20Writeups%20Atom%20Feed&foruser=John Polidori2001-06-08T03:21:51ZMario Andretti (person)http://everything2.com/user/John+Polidori/writeups/Mario+AndrettiJohn Polidorihttp://everything2.com/user/John+Polidori2001-06-08T03:21:51Z2001-06-08T03:21:51Z<p>Mario Andretti is the first and only man to win the three most prestigious auto racing titles in the world. He has won the <a href="/title/Indy+500">Indy 500</a>, the <a href="/title/Daytona+500">Daytona 500</a>, and the <a href="/title/Formula+1">Formula 1</a> World Drivers Championship.</p>Cart (thing)http://everything2.com/user/John+Polidori/writeups/CartJohn Polidorihttp://everything2.com/user/John+Polidori2001-06-08T03:13:07Z2001-06-08T03:13:07ZJust three minor corrections:<br>
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It's <a href="/title/Roger+Penske">Roger Penske</a>, not Roger Pensky.<br>
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Roger Penske does not own CART, though he has been a major <a href="/title/shareholder">shareholder</a> in it since its inception.<br>
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CART is generally considered to be <i>more</i> competitive than <a href="/title/Formula+1">Formula 1</a>, not less competitive. While it is true that the better drivers tend to gravitate to <a href="/title/F1">F1</a> this is more because of financial reasons than anything else. Due to the degree of technical sophistication and development necessary to be competitive in <a href="/title/Formula+1">Formula 1</a>, it's been pretty much a two-team show (<a href="/title/Ferrari">Ferrari</a> and <a href="/title/MacLaren">MacLaren</a>) for the past several years, even though there are 12 or 13 teams that have been competing. Due to the wide technology gaps between the F1 teams, the drivers rarely get to showcase their abilities.<br>
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CART is currently a publicly traded company. CART's stock ticker is MPH. It first went public in 1998 at which point all franchise owners were issued shares and an <a href="/title/IPO">IPO</a> was made. After the IPO CART used…Indianapolis 500 (thing)http://everything2.com/user/John+Polidori/writeups/Indianapolis+500John Polidorihttp://everything2.com/user/John+Polidori2001-06-08T02:56:37Z2001-06-08T02:56:37ZSome other interesting facts:<br>
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The Indy 500 has been run for 85 consecutive years as of this writing, with exception of years during <a href="/title/World+War+I">World War I</a> and <a href="/title/World+War+II">World War II</a>. The first Indianpolis 500 mile race was run in 1911, and the winner was Ray Harroun. This is the grandaddy of all American auto races.<br>
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The Indy 500 was first run at The <a href="/title/Brickyard">Brickyard</a> as an endurance race. At one point in time, <a href="/title/Indianapolis">Indianapolis</a> was a major automotive manufacturing center (in fact, it was home to the legendary <a href="/title/Stutz+Bearcat">Stutz Bearcat</a>). The auto manufacturers decided that they needed a race to showcase their finest work, and the Indy 500 was born.<br>
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In it's current incarnation it is run on the <a href="/title/Sunday">Sunday</a> before <a href="/title/Memorial+Day">Memorial Day</a>. There are always 33 starters and 2 alternates (in the event that one of the qualified starters destroys their <a href="/title/qualifying">qualified</a> car during practice on carb day). The Indy 500 is the only major professional auto race where the field will start three abreast instead of the…trioval (thing)http://everything2.com/user/John+Polidori/writeups/triovalJohn Polidorihttp://everything2.com/user/John+Polidori2001-06-08T02:26:56Z2001-06-08T02:26:56Z<p>The easiest way to describe a trioval is to imagine a <a href="/title/triangle">triangle</a> composed of three straight lines that are connected by curves (or rounded points) rather than sharp points. Other people refer to them somewhat D-shaped.</p>
<p>The best examples of triovals are probably Daytona International Speedway in <a href="/title/Daytona+500">Daytona</a>, Florida and Pocono International Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. Typically a trioval will be considered to have 3 corners or turns, although some racing traditionalists will count up to 5 or even 6 distinct corners. Nazareth Speedway in Nazareth, Pennsylvania is one such case, though I only count 3 turns from looking at the track from overhead and count 4 turns from driving it. I guess that it all depends on what line you run.</p>