Dario Franchitti Picks Up Third Victory At Richmond, Further Solidifies Points Lead For AGR

This past weekend marks the middle of the year, and what better way to mark the hump than attending the SunTrust Indy Challenge? I can't think of one. This weekend wasn't that much different that the past few IRL races at Richmond. We still had to contend with the threat of rain, the nightmare of parking and leaving. What I didn't plan on contending with was the tunnel traffic getting to Richmond. Leaving at 2 meant that it took us 45 minutes to get to the on-ramp for the tunnel. 45 minutes to go not even 3/4 of a mile-the length of the Richmond track! The traffic around here is getting to be as bad as DC, without the salaries and cool monuments to match. Thankfully, once our lane merged, we were able to fly to Richmond and get there about 4:30. I was so hungry I could've eaten the gravel in the parking lot. We bought our programs and decided to head to the willcall counter and pick up our pit passes. Well, the willcall had been moved from where it was the previous 5 or so years we've been coming to this thing. I was so pissed off the only thing that could calm me down was getting some food into my system. This year, we noticed a Famous Dave's BBQ stand and decided to go for it. It was good enough for there and then, but once you've had Pierce's BBQ, everything else pales in comparison. It was really too late to go in and watch the practice sessions, so we decided to buy stuff and get in line for the autograph session.

The autograph session was held in the same exhibition hall as always. I tried to focus on getting the autographs I didn't have, which meant not getting in Danica's line. I already had her sign my copy of her book (addressing it to me), so I'm happy with that. Besides, I'm not all that proud of her performance or her attitude this year. I made sure to get Marco and Dario's autographs. I got just about everyone I wanted by the time the session was over.

We found good spots in the Commonwealth section, all the way at the back where the skyboxes cover it. Good cover just in case it rained.

And rain it did. All of a sudded, there was a terrential downpour that continued for about an hour. Qualifying would be decided on points standings, which meant that Dario had the pole.

Saturday morning looked much better. We arrived at the track around 9am, early enough to get our pit passes and spend a little money on souvenirs. 11 came around and it was time for the previous night's midget car race. It really wasn't very exciting, and pole winner Bobby East didn't have much competition until the last few laps. We left our seats and headed back out to the midway and settle on ice cream at Haagen Dazs. It was blazing-so hot that I decided only water would do the whole day.

We entered the Paddock Club at 2 and no sooner did we hit out seats that Milka Duno arrived to talk to us. She was very friendly, but very hard to understand. Hopefully her English will improve as she spends more time in the series. Danica showed up next and supplied us with some attitude, although she did poke fun at her incident with Dan Wheldon at Milwaukee. There was this annoying woman in front of me who kept blocking all my shots. Before Tony Kanaan and Dario Franchitti got there, I made sure I had a much better spot, which I think my pics and video demonstrate. I didn't move from that spot until Sarah Fisher came, who was very friendly and had a lot to share about why she came back to open wheel racing. I remember seeing her for the first time in 2002 at the first SunTrust Indy Challenge I attended. It's good to have her back in open wheel racing.

After gorging ourselves at the Paddock Club, it was time for the main event. Sam Hornish Jr. spun out on the opening lap, but did recover and was able to get back in the game. But no one save the Target boys could hold a candle to Andretti Green's dominance. Tony led a few laps, but Dario dominated the entire race. Tomas Scheckter and Danica did make great strides, but Tomas pitted just as a caution for Jeff Simmons' accident appeared, which screwed him royally. Like the 2006 race, there were very few cautions, which made for a fast race. Dario picked up his third victory and cemented his points lead. Scott Dixon presented a good challenge towards the end but had to settle for second. I'm glad Dario won-I was getting tired of seeing either Penske or Target win, even though Dan and Scott are my favorites. As always, anything is possible at Richmond.