September 7, 2015

The biggest surprise of the Indy Racing League this year has to be that Scott Dixon is the 2015 champion!

Everyone was looking at Juan Montoya or Graham Rahal or Helio Castroneves to win the championship.

Meanwhile, Scott Dixon was quietly saving fuel, winning a few races and he becomes the champ!

Congrats to Scott and here are a few photos of Scott from 2005 to 2014.

Happy Labor Day and have a nice week.

Thanks,

Rich Zimmermann

Juan Pablo Montoya, racing in CART at the Milwaukee Mile and Road America in 1999 and 2000.

March 31, 2014

To all of my rock'n'roll friends, we need to take a break from my rock blogs please! The Indy car season starts today as I am writing this blog on Sunday afternoon!

Juan Pablo Montoya, raced Indy cars a while back when the cars looked and sounded a lot better.

In the attached photos you will see that he was driving for Target and Chip Ganassi Racing in 1999 and 2000. He won the championship, many races and the Indy 500. Then he went to Formula 1. After that, he came back to the States and tried Nascar. He didn't do as well as he did in an open wheel car.

Thankfully, he has come back to Indy cars and team Penske, which is Target Racing and Chip Ganassi Racing's rival! He is older, wiser and a married man with kids now.

I wish him the best of luck. He will help to make the season exciting!

Time for me to go watch the race and I hope Juan Pablo does well.

Please join me on Facebook at Rich Zimmermann Photography to keep in touch with some nice rock'n'roll and racing photography.

Have a great week.

Rich Zimmermann

December 23, 2013

Recently, Dario Franchitti announced that he was retiring from racing Indy cars. This was a sad day for us Dario Franchitti fans who have watched him race since he came to the United States in 1997.

Dario, won the Indy 500 in 2007, 2010 and 2012. He won the IRL championship in 2007, 2009, 2010 and 2011.

The injuries Dario sustained in the crash in Houston this past year have forced him to retire from driving Indy cars. Luckily, he is still with us because if you saw that crash, it is amazing he survived.

I have spent most of my Saturday morning here going through photos of Dario from 1997 to 2013, so we have a lot of photographs today! These are just from my digital collection and do not include any of my film from Dario's CART days! Sometime soon, I will scan those photos and do another blog on Dario.

One of my other favorite racers that I got to know a little bit was Greg Moore who was one of Dario's best friends. Dario has a Greg Moore helmet sticker on the back of his helmet in memory of our friend who we lost in 1999. A while back, I did a blog on Greg and Dario sent me a little note saying that he liked it.

Dario is one of the good guys and has always been real nice to me. Thanks Dario and I wish you the best in your retirement days. I feel that I have not seen the last of you and I think you will still be strolling along pit lane at the track with our friends!

Enjoy the photos folks and have a great holiday with your families!

Please join me on Facebook at Rich Zimmermann Photography and Merry Christmas! Let it snow, let it snow and let it snow some more!!

Thanks,

Rich Zimmermann

October 28, 2013

I have not done a racing blog in a while. It's time for me to congratulate Scott Dixon, our new 2013 IRL Series Champion!

Scott has always been one of the nicest and most humble guys in pit lane.

He won the Indy 500 in 2008 from the pole position and won the IRL championship in 2003 and 2008 with Target and Chip Ganassi Racing.

Here are some photos from 2007 to this past year at the Milwaukee Mile.

Enjoy and congratulations Scott!

Thanks,

Rich Zimmermann

April 30, 2012

My blog today is about a Champ Car/Indy Car driver like no other.  Without Alex Zanardi, we would not have a race car driver celebrating a victory with the race car spinning around in circles making donuts on the pavement!   This seems like a victory dance that has been going on forever but Alex started this in 1996 after a victory.  It is similar to Dan Gurney's victory champagne celebration that is now a tradition after nearly every race worldwide.

Alex has raced in Formula 1, Champ Car, F3000, the World Touring Cars and now is headed to the 2012 Summer Paralympics doing handbiking since he lost his legs in a tragic accident in Germany racing Champ Cars/Indy Cars in 2001.  He demonstrates amazing determination in whatever he sets out to do.  In my race room,man cave here at home, I have race helmet visors that I have collected and have traded photographs for through the years. My Alex Zanardi visor is one of my biggest treasures.  Just looking at it gives me inspiration.

I heard last week that he may be racing next year in the Rolex 24 hour race at Daytona with his former Chip Ganassi teammates and friends- Jimmy Vasser, Dario Franchitti, Scott Dixon and Juan Pablo Montoya.  How awesome is that and I am sure he will be very competitive.   Alex has a main sponsor in Barilla pasta, which in this house is the only pasta we eat!   We are having some tonight with some homemade meatballs if I ever get done here!

Attached are a few photographs of Alex.

Enjoy these images on my new website and please keep checking it for more photos and stories. 

Go have some Barilla pasta tonight and celebrate Alex with some good wine and pasta!

Please visit me on Facebook or Twitter @ richzimmermann.com

Thanks,

Rich Zimmermann