Why has AR1.com been silent?

A reader writes, Dear AR1.com, Although you have pointed out that the new IndyCar exposes the drivers head to impacts more than the existing car, and that IndyCar should investigate canopies over the cockpit for safety, AutoRacing1.com has not been highly critical of IndyCar' 'pack' racing since Wheldon's death, even though your publication for years called IndyCar drivers 'sacrificial lambs' because of the danger IndyCar was willing to put on its drivers in an attempt to out-do NASCAR and artificially create photo finishes on the ovals. What's up? Are you getting soft? Dave Hacker

Dear Dave, Indeed for years we have called IndyCar drivers 'sacrificial lambs' due to the high number of injuries we have seen since 1996 when the series focused on oval racing and 'pack' racing. Watching that accident in Las Vegas was horrifying and underscored just how helpless those 'sacrificial lambs' were. But we don't blame Randy Bernard, because IndyCar has been 'sacrificing' the driver's safety way before he arrived on the scene. We do have full confidence that Bernard will see to it that its drivers are never 'sacrificial lambs' again. So our comments have been more focused on what areas IndyCar needs to look at going forward – canopies, showing videos of how good CART's Handford Device oval racing was (no pack racing, but lot's of passing), getting off the high-banked ovals, standing starts on road courses, higher more protective sidepods, etc. Mark C.