Baltimore Friday morning update
IZOD IndyCar Series teams were scheduled for 2 hours, 15 minutes of on-track time. Firestone Indy Lights drivers will have their first practice at 2:55 p.m.
Delays were caused because of safety fencing that was taken down in preparation for Hurricane Irene last weekend, which is being re-installed. Safety of the drivers, crews and spectators is paramount. Downtown didn't sustain any damage from the hurricane that roared up the East Coast.
Further revisions might be necessary, according to INDYCAR president of competition and operations Brian Barnhart.
09/02/11 Wall construction and fencing is still yet to be completed. Last weekend's hurricane required some stuff to be taken down so instead of moving forward they went backward for a couple of days and hence the delay this morning.
09/02/11 Skies are a bit overcast at the moment but should clear soon. Activities are delayed this morning because of first year construction delays. USF2000 was supposed to be the first series on track at 8 AM and now they will not be on track until noon. First ALMS practice is now 1:20PM with qualifying at 5:05 PM and first IndyCar practice is at 2:50 PM and then again at 6:05 PM to 7 PM (all times Eastern).
Izod IndyCar Series drivers "found a number of flaws" with the Baltimore Grand Prix course during Thursday afternoon's track walk. The drivers "brought up varying concerns," with Graham Rahal noting that there is "a lot of work still being done" ahead of Sunday's race. Ryan Hunter-Reay said, "The location is perfect. It's an amazing area, and I hope the race works. I also hope I like the track". Race organizers "estimate the three-day attendance for the inaugural event" at 100,000-200,000 but based on what we see here already early Friday morning, we think it will be closer to 200,000 than 100,000.
Preparations for the race "created havoc" on Thursday for members of the Orioles and Blue Jays who were "trying to get to" Camden Yards for an afternoon game that was originally scheduled for 7:05pm ET. Blue Jays RF Jose Bautista said that it "took around 40 minutes to cover a mile." When the game started, there were "only around 5,000 fans" at the ballpark according to the AP.