June 25, 2012
Thank you Michael Andretti for believing in Milwaukee and the continuation of the Milwaukee Mile's history with Indy cars. On June 15 and 16, Michael Andretti and his team put on an incredible show with the Indy cars and they made it a family affair. This wasn't your normal race weekend. Michael Andretti made it a festival with an infield full of fun. There was a carnival atmosphere with a ferris wheel, bumper cars and even a concert with the band Smashmouth after the race Saturday. All that was missing was funnel cake!
If you want rain, just schedule an Indy car race because in Milwaukee we haven't had rain in over a month and as soon as it was race time it poured. The race was delayed for about 1 1/2 hours but the crowd didn't leave since they had things to do while waiting. There were all of the many infield activities and all kinds of food to eat. Once the race started, the crowd came back to their seats and they stayed for the whole race. I sat in the grandstands for the last 30 laps and watched Ryan Hunter Reay pull away. Usually you see people leaving towards the end, but not this time. Everyone enjoyed a good race and a good concert afterwards.
The race itself had Dario Franchitti on the pole position with his Honda engine that has apparently been figured out. At the beginning of the season the Hondas were slow but Dario won the Indy 500 and took control with the beginning of the race in Milwaukee. Unfortunately, Dario crashed out after leading for a bit and then Ryan Hunter Reay was coming. Watching a couple of restarts from the grandstands Ryan just pulled away from the pack. Tony Kanaan usually is the master of restarts but Ryan was the guy with the perfect setup at the end as he just pulled away from Tony. Ryan won the race and Tony finished second for an exciting race.
Before the start of the race Michael Andretti announed he would promote the Milwaukee race again next year. I can't wait for our 2013 Milwaukee Indy Fest!
Attached are a few photographs from the past few years for you to enjoy.
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Thanks,
Rich Zimmermann