Infineon Sunday Notebook

Another beautiful day here in Sonoma. The cool morning cloud cover has given way to sunshine and beautiful temperatures. A good crowd appears to be coming through the gates……..Former Penske Racing driver Andre Ribeiro is here this weekend talking to old friends. He spent quite some time catching up with ex-Honda HPD boss Robert Clarke and he is also here keeping an eye on his Indy Lights driver Ana Beatriz…………Spotted Tony George leaving a meeting at Roger Penske's hospitality unit. Was Roger giving Tony his opinion/direction on the 2009 Surfers race quagmire?……..Infineon Raceway is going to sell a signature wine to benefit the Speedway Children's charity. They have planted 1 acre of grapes which they expect will yield 300 cases of wine a year. Their first harvest won't be a big one, but they expect to plant more acres in the future. This is the first year that their vines are producing grapes. This southern part of the county, which gets cool in the morning, often with fog, is perfect for Pinot Noir wines…….Jimmy Vasser and Kevin Kalkhoven have also gotten into the wine growing business. Vasser V12 winery has planted 8 acres so far and the first year he hopes to produce 100 cases of wine…….Kevin Kalkhoven also is growing grapes on his property that he also has his home on. He expects to make 15,000 bottles per year but he may not sell it, instead he may just be giving a lot of wine to family and friends……..The Historic Grand Prix cars, mostly from the 1970s, have been turning laps all weekend and they are serious. They appear to be as fast as today's IndyCars, but they are running the longer course here so we cannot compare lap times……….Spotted some guests in the Dale Coyne pit that we did not recognize. Friends, or potential sponsors? Mark C. reporting from Sonoma, CA