Mid Ohio Friday 2:00 pm report

The nice thing about being in the right spot – and this weekend it is Mid-Ohio – is that you get to ask the right people the right questions. Derrick Walker not only emphatically confirmed that IndyCar will run aero kits next year, but those kits are currently in production. Part of the emphasis is just to make the cars look different, not only from each other but from other open-wheel racing series as well. However, admitted Walker, there is only so much you can do with open-wheel cars.

Morning IndyCar practice was paced by Ryan Hunter-Reay and Simon Pagenaud. Scott Dixon, Mikhail Aleshin and Sebastien Bourdais round out the top 5. Aleshin took it in stride — "It is just practice" he commented to me after morning practice. Afternoon practice, under hazy skies, starts in a few minutes (so I gotta type fast!).

The new Indy Lights car for next season continues to be a source of conversation as well. They prototype was on the track, and completed 6 laps, but it's nowhere near ready to, say, run a few laps with the current Indy Lights cars during practice.

Amend the silly season report! I bumped into Conor Daly — literally — in the paddock (Recall Brian Carroccio's article from October about Daly). He's still working hard to put together a full-time ride for next year, and while he leaves the door open for other teams, most of his conversations are with AJ Foyt Racing. If he signs with Foyt, it would be as a second car, as it looks like Sato is close to signing up for another year.

This is a racing paradise. For a few bucks and a tent you can see all of the rungs of the IndyCar Series as well as the World Cup people. While there is a 50% chance of thunderstorm — no doubt it is more than that 'cause I'm using a tent again this year — I can't think of a better place for a race fan to be.

— Tim Wohlford, reporting from Steam Corners, er, Mid-Ohio!