Brazil IndyCar Notebook – Saturday
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Drivers will have 15 pushes of the Honda overtake assist – an ECU software alteration employed by Honda Performance Development – each lasting 22 seconds during the race. It is activated by the driver via a button on the steering wheel and provides an extra 200 RPM (about 10 horsepower) to the Honda Indy V-8 engine. Parameters are updated before each race weekend to meet the circuit layout.
There is a 10-second recovery period between pushes. One overtake assist push is available for the warm-up session on Sunday morning.
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The dry weather tires for this weekend are the street course primary, which is a new spec for 2011 and used on the streets of St. Petersburg and Long Beach earlier this year. The red-rimmed alternate tires are the same spec as used at St. Pete in March..
The alternate tire program, part of the IZOD IndyCar Series since 2009, calls for a second tire specification at road/street courses using the same construction as the primary specification but with a softer tread compound to provide more grip and faster lap times while trading off compound durability for those shorter-term advantages.
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Charlie Kimball might be checking out the Rosetta Stone display at the airport soon so he can converse freely on his next visit to Brazil.
The Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing rookie hosted a group of youngsters from the local juvenile diabetes association in the IZOD IndyCar Series paddock. Kimball was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 2007.
"It brings it home," Kimball said after showing the inquisitive youngsters the workings of the car and what all the buttons on his steering wheel operate. "They're so enthusiastic and excited with so many questions and thoughts.
"They came up with questions before they got here. I wish I could have spoken Portuguese so I could answer them more and covered so much more.
"They get to see first-hand that race car driving is not ruled out because of diabetes. It's important to show them at an early age that it's possible to live a normal life and participate in sports."
The 26-year-old Californian was thanked for his time with a box of sugar-free treats.
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Ana Beatriz was busy between practice sessions.
First, Brazil national soccer team coach Mano Menezes stopped by to say "Bom dia,"and then Williams Formula One driver Rubens Barrichello visited with the Dreyer & Reinbold Racing driver.
The 2010 race on the streets of São Paulo was the first in the IZOD IndyCar Series for the Firestone Indy Lights graduate.
With sponsorship on the No. 24 car from Brazil-based Ipiranga, Beatriz is coming off a 19th place at Long Beach — a race in which she competed with a broken wrist. Beatriz has been wearing the Ipiranga logo on her cast.
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They may be fierce competitors on-track, but there's a spirit of cooperation in the competitive IZOD IndyCar Series.
Because most of the AFS Racing crew was delayed more than 18 hours from arriving in Brazil because of travel issues related to storms in the States, members of A.J. Foyt Racing, HVM Racing and the Indy Racing Experience pitched in to help set up equipment.
One group of travelers was diverted to Santiago, Chile, before continuing on to São Paulo.