The 2012 INDYCAR season saw new engines, chassis, drivers, and most importantly, fans. I made contact through Facebook and Twitter with a number of fans who were either new to the series or returning after a long absence.

Taking part in this survey are:

Janette Compitus (JC) from Plymouth, Devon

James Knighton (JK) from Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire

Ben Haddleton (BH) from Yorkshire

Mathew Restiano (MR) from Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, and

Giuliano Canbera, (GC), from Sao Paulo, Brazil

Was the 2012 season your first time watching the Indycar Series?

JC – Yes it was my first full season following the series

JK – No, I started watching last year occasionally, but followed the whole season this year 

BH - It was my first time following it properly for a while yes. Last time I was properly following driving stateside was probably 2003 CART. Always like Paul Tracy as he was pretty no nonsense. Have caught the odd race in a season here and there since but never really followed a championship fully since then.

MR - 2012 was definitely the first year I took serious notice of the Indycar series. I was very much into the Champ car series pre-unification but didn't really follow the new unified series after that due to a lack of terrestrial coverage and a lack of interest in oval racing.

GC – No, I Started watch in 1994 and 1995... And then stopped watching because it became to confusing to have 2 separated classes. The CHAMP CAR was nice, but I miss the ovals, and the IRL was nice too, but the races used to be so boring.

Why, or what attracted you to watch the series this year in particular?

JC - When Rubens Barrichello was unceremoniously ousted from F1 and Adrian Rickard thrusted a copy of the 2011 Indy 500 race in my hand I thought "what the heck" I will check it out and see why Adrian works all the hours god sends to pay to go and watch this "for real" in the USA and why a defunct F1 driver would want to do it.

JK - Had followed Mike Conway through his early career in the UK Junior formula and F3 and was interested how he'd get on. 

BH – I figured the new chassis' and the new regulations would be a good time to start following it again. Plus my participation in an online racing club helped reignite my love of all things with wheels and engines.

MR - Mainly Rubens Barrichello, the new DW12 and Lotus joining the series added lots to my already increasing interest.

GC - The new car, new engines and having Fontana back on the schedule.

Have you been to or watched other forms of motorsport series before, such as Formula One, NASCAR, WRC, BTCC, etc.?

JC – I am a huge F1 fan, adore WRC especially when it is on the snow.

JK – Yes, F1, BTCC and Sports cars. F1 on TV, other areas on TV and live including some European travel to watch sports cars, DTM, Formula 3.

BH - Watched F1 since 1992. My Gran got me into it and used to tell me about when she used to go to Silverstone, way back in the past (50's era I think!). Also watch BTCC (although normally only for the first half of the season as after the seemingly insanely long mid-season break I tend to forget about it). In the past have also watched NASCAR and Indycar (and CART / ChampCar) from stateside.

MR - I have been a life long Formula One fan and I would say it is my motorsport of choice although I am as equally interested n the BTCC.

GC – Yes, GP2, Global Rallycross and the Grand-AM. I watched the full season, ALMS, NASCAR almost the whole season, FIA GT1, V8 and Super GT. 

What was your knowledge of the Indycar Series prior to 2012?

JK - Quite good, I read Autosport weekly and have been aware of Indycar since the days of Mark Blundell but not been able to watch races before.

BH - Pretty much none really. Ever since the merger (Indycar/Champcar) I haven’t really been following open wheel in the states and any US races I watched were NASCAR (mainly to keep tabs on how Montoya was getting on/who he was annoying). I had even forgotten the points system! So basically started watching as if from the beginning. With so many changes it was almost like watching a new series.

MR - I was very much interested in the Champ car series pre unification but when the two series reunited and it was clear that overage would be on Sky sports (which I did not have) my interest dipped some what.  During 2010 when details of the prospective new Indycar designs were being unveiled I was pretty blown away by the Deltawing concept. This really got me interested in the selection process and into the series a bit more (although it inevitably lost out to the Dallara design). I did read a lot of the 2011 season race reports online but still did not take in much coverage.

GC - I used to watch back in the middle 90's... saw a few races around 2000, 01, 02.. And then stopped watching. Not long back into the series, but I am well informed with what is happening.

What is your view on oval racing compared to street / natural road courses which are more prominent in Europe?

JC - I was perplexed at first at why these guys would just want to drive round and round and round an oval, "isn't it just dizzy work doing that? And very laborious also?" I was looking at the race very simply, I wasn't quite seeing the bigger picture yet. It wasn't until the drivers were deeper into the race, the pit stops and tactics were becoming apparent and all other incidents that were going on that I started to get a 'wee' grip of what this was all about. "Hhmmmm this is actually quite good to watch, maybe I should check this out a bit more often."

JK - More entertaining as cars were able to pass and run closer together.  Street & road courses where interesting but the ovals add a difference that we do not experience in UK

BH - Oval racing has its own merits. It tends to be more about strategy and pacing rather than outright speed which I actually like. I enjoy following strategies and seeing how they pan out and the amount of pit stops done in such races makes it hard (but fun) to try and keep on top of! This seasons DW12 really improved the racing too I think as instead of just hammering the throttle, drivers were reporting that you actually had to slow it down a touch to take the turns, more as you would a corner on a track rather than a flat out oval.

MR - I much prefer street and road course racing compared to oval racing but I do very much admire the skill involved in oval racing and the close proximity the cars run at. That does not mean that I do not enjoy oval racing, it is still exciting to watch and enjoyable.

GC - Oval races are amazing to watch when you know the series, the drivers, the rules... But people ignore that and just say ''Oh oval races are boring, running around in circles''... But no, Oval races with open wheel cars are the best thing ever. We don’t have anymore great road tracks on the schedule because of the money, for example Road America, Glen, Laguna Seca, Portland. We miss them. Even the Cleveland track on the Airport is better than Sonoma or Mid-Ohio or Barber.

How did you watch or follow the racing, on screen, at the track or another way?

JK - On Sky Sports, but I would attend a race in the UK if one was held these days.  Also through Autosport and Radio Le Mans Midweek Motorsport programme which has an 'ear on the oval' section covering US racing which is quite informative/funny. 

BH - Normally I would follow the racing with a few friends on party chat on the Xbox. I normally would use other sources rather than SkyGo on Xbox as I found the picture a bit too unclear at times, but this normally led to me seeing the action before the rest of them due to their streams buffering which was fun. Would quite often be 20-30 seconds ahead of them in the coverage so I would go "aaah!" and then promptly shut up. They always knew when something was coming!

MR - Due to still not having a Sky Sports subscription still I utilise a lot of online media to follow the races. The official Indycar twitter feed & other people I follow tweet live updates during the races. I also read race reports and news on the Autosport website & the official website. To its credit, the series also puts full race reruns on YouTube allowing me to watch the races at a later date.

GC - I went to the track to see all three races of Indycar here at Sao Paulo, Brazil. The rest of the season I watch on the internet. Sometimes the Brazilian TV (Bandeirantes) shows some of the races, but only the Indy 500 and Sao Paulo.

Are you a Sky Sports subscriber, if not would you consider it?

JK - Sky Sports main package - though I don't understand why they don't put Indy racing on the F1 channel and keep all the motorsport in one place.  Changing channel and sometimes only putting races on the red button don't always make them easy to find! Also when US commentators start talking about graphics we can’t see it gets frustrating but at least they sometimes stay with the race rather than follow the US advertising schedule.

BH - I just got the F1 channel this year. I still hope that they will put Indycar on there for next year as it would make sense to have motorsport on a channel for it rather than Paul di Resta in a Helicopter for the millionth time! If not then I will consider it, but to fork out for a full sports package for the sake of watching Indycar is a bit steep for my liking.

MR - The cost of the Sky sports subscription on top of the Sky TV subscription is the only reason for not getting it really. If the Indycar races were moved to the SSF1 channel then I probably would get it as the HD pack is some what cheaper than the Sky sports pack.

Was there a particular team or driver you supported or were drawn to?

JC - Today I am a few races in, still learning all about the teams, drivers, history of the sport and I know that the 'wee' Brazilian drives for KV Racing, is very happy and having a blast doing so.

JK - Mainly UK drivers - Conway, James Jakes, and Dario but he's almost American these days.......like the battle between Ganassi & Penske though sometimes it would be interesting if the featured the smaller teams at times.

BH - Well from when I watched back in 2003, the only names I remembered were Tag and RHR. Because of that, I kept my eye out for them but would say if I followed any drivers, it would be Sato (I think I nearly cried at the end of the Indy 500!) and Rubens from their time in F1. Mainly though I followed, of course, the Yorkshire lads, Justin Wilson and James Jakes, in the Dale Coyne team (aka Team Yorkshire).

MR - The three drivers I followed the closest were Rubens Barrichello, Takuma Sato & Justin Wilson.

GC – I have liked Will Power since 2010. As a Brazilian I like Tony Kanaan and Helio Castroneves. I like to see Bourdais on the top too. I would like to see American Racers winning races. And I want to see Simona de Silvestro racing good next year with a good car!

Is there something which stands out to you from the Indycar series compared to other forms of motorsports you watch?

JK - The willingness of the drivers to talk to the media and that they do not always follow the PR lines and occasionally say what they actually think!   The ovals add something the European motorsport doesn't have as well.

BH - The main thing I think is the strategies. They seem to pit a lot more than say an F1 race which makes keeping tabs of who pitted when for what tyres and what fuel strategy a lot more interesting. Plus they throw out cautions a lot more as well which really spices things up in that regard!

MR - Obviously the new DW12 is rather different looking to other Single seater cars. The tracks on the whole are a lot less technical than F1 circuits (this may be due to the higher ratio of street circuits) but I feel these actually create better racing.

GC - Oval courses, and the new rear wheel guards on the cars!

What do you make of the driver / team use of social media such as Facebook and Twitter?

JC – It is Awesome, it keeps you in touch with the drivers during the none-race days.

JK - Very good at times - follow several on twitter and sometimes provides good insights though is becoming more and more PR driven where drivers tend to tow the party line.

BH - I do use Twitter quite a bit and have a separate list for all drivers, teams, journalists in motorsport that I care to listen to. Have most F1 drivers/teams on it, a fair few Indycar drivers/teams, some BTCC drivers, various journalists / websites and a few drivers from lower formulae as well. It tends to get quite hectic following it some weekends!

GC - It’s really nice! They always talk to you. I got answered by almost every driver/team/track/sponsor that I talked to. In USA they really make the sport for the fan.

And finally, will you be back next season?

JC - I look forward to the next season with much anticipation and cannot wait to sponge up more of this motorsport.

JK – Yes, as long as Sky (or BBC/ITV) sign up to cover races and it does not increase the cost of my TV subscription.

BH - Of course, bring it on! Want to see "Team Yorkshire" showing the Americans how to do it!

MR - Hell yes!

GC - Yes. But Indycar needs to bring the OLD ONES back! They should stop race at boring street venues only because of the money.

You can follow everyone on Twitter; the links are in the names at the top of this blog.

Being a British IndyCar fan, I have spent many a long night in the company of Keith Huewen and the Sky Sports IndyCar team, albeit usually from the comfort of my own front room. Considering I was rather excited to have a tweet read out on air by Keith following the Edmonton race, you can imagine my excitement when - through an auction from the magnificent cause Riders for Health, of which Keith is an ambassador - the opportunity to watch the 2012 season unfold in the studio itself arose.

I had never had any doubts that it would be anything other than an amazing experience, but it went even beyond what I expected –around every corner appeared another pleasant surprise. First was news on the studio guests; Tomas Scheckter and Andy Brown.

I had actually met Tomas previously, around 1999/2000 during my time as a marshal at my then-local track Oulton Park when he was competing in Formula 3. While I didn’t expect him to recall our previous encounter – which consisted of an approximately minute-long chat probably about the weather or his chances in the race that day – I had an idea of what to expect as I knew what a nice guy he was.

The prospect of meeting Andy was also both exciting and daunting  given my affection for the man he spent several years working with at the Target Chip Ganassi Racing team, Dan Wheldon. Those who know me, or indeed that follow me on twitter, know that Dan was (and will always remain) one of my idols and  how I, like so many racing fans - British or otherwise - have still not quite come to terms with his passing. One of my proudest moments as a racing fan was in the stands at the Iowa Speedway for this year’s Iowa Corn 250 race draped in a Union Jack flag bearing his name, particularly during the moment of silence in his honour at the track where he had previously visited victory lane. 

The approving nods and thumbs-up during and the comments made  subsequently by other fans on that day (and that it was picked up by the TV cameras) showed how strongly he is still regarded by IndyCar fans. The chance to spend time in the company of someone who worked alongside him for so long was a real treat.

That wasn’t where the links ended either. In fact, that was the next pleasant surprise. we arrived at the Security checkpoint at the Sky Studios, following a rather comical taxi ride which featured the only cab driver in the area who didn’t know where Sky was, this made all the more remarkable by the fact that the Sky complex is roughly the size of the town in which I grew up.

 Upon arrival, and signing in and receiving the relevant visitor’s passes, the Security guard raised an eyebrow and said “There should be six of you”. Unless I had misread the terms of the auction rather badly, something was awry. As it transpired it was the other studio guests; Tomas Scheckter, Andy Brown and, to my surprise, Holly Wheldon and guest.

As it transpired, she had accepted a long-standing invitation from Keith to visit the studio for a race, which was offered during Keith’s visit to the Wheldon’s home in the build-up to the Indy 500 coverage.

While it would be a huge honour to meet Holly, I was also quite anxious about what I might say. Although I wanted to convey that I was a huge fan of her brother, I was also mindful that there would be some painful memories evoked by the final round of the season and that my glowing recollection of her brother’s successes may open some relatively fresh wounds. 
 
There wasn’t long to dwell on that, however, as we were soon led through the huge complex, passing the Sky Sports F1 facility along the way to the main building. Upon navigating the revolving door, you are immediately  greeted by the sight of a Force India F1 car in the reception area. As we were extremely early (I wasn’t risking being late!), we were led to the canteen area (although if that is a canteen, we need a new name for some of the canteens I’d been in in the past, as even that had an element of grandeur about it) where we waited and had a picture with the huge mural-like Sky logo that adorned the canteen wall.

The Sky complex is an incredible facility, home to eight studios, including five HD studios, forty-five edit suites, fourteen voice-over suites and four audio suites. The main building is state-of-the-art and houses content production, platform control and transmission services for all of Sky’s sport and Sky Sports News content. To give you an idea of the size, the building consists of five floors, each roughly the size of a football pitch, and is home to a staggering 1,300 members of staff.

Sky began broadcasting there in July 2011, expanding the portfolio of broadcasts from there ever since, but unlike my usual perception of a big corporation building such a facility, the thought that had gone into its inception from a sustainability point-of-view is astonishing. An integrated wind turbine provides 90% of the energy to power lighting throughout the building, while an on-site Combined Cooling and Heating Power plant supplies 20% of the energy needed for the building’s electricity and heating systems, to name just two of the innovations that led to it being named ‘Sustainable Project of the Year’ at the 2010 Sustainability Awards.

It wasn’t long before a familiar figure appeared in the distance, and indeed it was that of Keith Huewen. It is a somewhat strange feeling being greeted by someone who has spent several years in your living  room a couple of times a month without having ever set foot in your house! But, Keith and I had exchanged emails in the days leading up to the race, so he (I hope) had a fair idea that I wasn’t a complete lunatic. He was, as expected, an absolute gentleman, first inquiring about whether we had found our way ok and whether we were sufficiently fed and watered. He ran through the arrangements for the night and what we would be seeing prior to settling into the studio to watch the drama unfold, both on the track and in the studio. We were also introduced to “Producer Dave” [Dave Lawrence], who was to show us around the gallery area, where the technical wizardry takes place to bring the likes of myself the seamless coverage we’ve come to expect from Sky IndyCar.

Shortly afterwards, we were joined by Holly and her friend Tim. After introducing each other, we got to talking about the various tracks she had been to this year and how she found them, while I added my experience at Iowa, before discussing who we thought might win the Championship.

Keith returned to lead us all back down towards the studios to give us the tour. We popped into the make-up room, where we first met Andy, and once a few good-natured jokes were exchanged regarding how long it might take to make him look presentable, we continued to the studios. First we were led to the Sky Sports News studio, as it was approaching midnight this was one of the few studios still occupied at this time, and watched Jim White in full flow from the background as he rounded-up the days football results.

Following this, we were led to the gallery and introduced to the rest of the Sky IndyCar team. As my knowledge of TV production is very limited and given that the room looked rather small, I was expecting a fairly small team  of personnel. I’m not sure how it compares, but it was bigger than I expected,  there being a team of around 12 people in the gallery with duties ranging from sound to graphics and some focussed on the American ‘feed’ (the live coverage  direct from across the pond) and some on the studio in London. It was a mix of fascinating and overwhelming – not quite knowing where to look, with the array  of monitors and buttons.

My main objective in the gallery was consistent once we went next door to the studio – don’t get in the way and don’t touch anything  important! We were introduced to the floor manager Cliff who howed us to our vantage point to watch the race, just behind the cameras (thankfully for the viewing public) with two large screens, one with the ‘live feed’ from America, the other with the coverage that everyone in Britain will have seen. We were then invited onto the set to have our picture taken in the chairs next to Keith.

Once that was done, it was down to the serious business. A quick run-through of the intro, before Tomas and Andy took their seats and were wired for sound and the rest of us took our seats at the back of the studio. Before we knew it, Cliff was announcing “20 seconds to air” and a near-eerie silence swept across the studio, before Keith launched into his intro for real.

As expected, the on-camera coverage was flawless, as it usually is. As a viewer at home, they make it look easy. Having witnessed it first hand, I can assure you that is only down to the fact Keith and co make it look that way. Cliff would regularly sit near us as he marshalled the studio and we could hear from his radio the constant dialogue that was filling Keith’s ears from the gallery. The gallery are also kept on their toes, often ‘turning around’  segments and interviews literally within seconds of them having been shown in the US TV build-up.

This was particularly prevalent during a pre-race feature with Marty Sneider interviewing Championship contender Will Power. After they discussed Will’s toils in previous season finales, talk moved to the previous  year and Las Vegas. This must have been difficult for Holly, but I suspect all of us were a little nervous when Will spoke about Holly in the interview. Thankfully it was all positive, him discussing a meeting between the two of  them in the early season and his reaction to Dan’s crash.

Once the green flag dropped, the studio was quite relaxed as we all began to become glued to the coverage. As the in-race commercial breaks in the States are often covered by the team in the studio in sound only, the team  could afford to be a bit more relaxed. However, rather than putting their feet  up or undoing their belts to get comfortable, instead they were bringing out laptops with live timings and other race-related information. Every few laps they would discuss who was quickest or who was falling away and the various implications this would have for pit strategies.

The big twist in the race came about an hour in, with Championship leader Will Power getting caught in a seam on the Fontana track and spinning out into the wall. What struck me was how everyone, fan and professional alike, had the same reaction - no-one knew what to say. Just like the American commentators, for a good few minutes all of us in the studio where just sat there saying “I don’t believe it”. Once the initial aftermath of Power’s crash had subsided, it was down to the serious business, as Keith, Tomas and Andy quickly delved into the detail of where Ryan Hunter-Reay had to finish in order to clinch the Championship. In the interest of full disclosure, they did figure it out much quicker than their American counterparts!

Not only do twists in the race like that mean drama and excitement on the track, it also has a similar impact in the studio as incidents mean yellow flags and yellow flags mean ad breaks that the guys in the studio need to fill. As a viewer at home, it always comes across as seamless and well-planned, but again, having been in the studio as it happens,  it shows how good they are at it – especially under pressure. Not only is the autocue dormant in the corner of the studio, but often the decision of whether to cover the break in the studio or go to adverts themselves is made at very short notice. At one point Keith and the team were given 20 seconds notice to cover a break – I very much doubt anyone watching at home would have had the slightest inclination.

Luckily, the race maintained its level of excitement throughout, however, due to the red flag and IndyCar’s traditional ‘why take 10 minutes when you can take 45’ approach to the post-race ceremonies, it meant that the Sky team were running very close to the scheduled end time of their broadcast.

The non-professionals such as myself had simply assumed‘it’s 05:30 in the morning, who will notice if it runs over?’, but of course that would have ramifications for the programmes that followed, which would have a  domino-effect to those on at peak hours. The show was concluded somewhat hastily and it was only then it began to dawn on me that I had been sitting there for 5 hours! 

Keith concluded his on-camera duties with the recording of the intro and closing to the highlights show which was to be aired on Sunday afternoon before a final trip to the gallery where everyone was thanked for a job well done, before we all began to disperse. We thanked Keith for what was truly one of the best experiences of my life (although, I shouldn’t say that as  if it ever comes up again I may be encouraging rival bidders!) and were  escorted back to the security point. 

Keith had provided each of us with a running order of the show signed by all three of the team and Dave had given us a Sky Sports HD-branded bag with an array of Sky Sports HD goodies, and the nice surprises didn’t end
there. Not only did we bump into Chris Kamara in the lobby as he arrived for ‘Goals on Sunday’, but as we waited for a taxi we were given a DVD of the show. 

From start-to-finish this was an incredible night on and off the track and I’m very grateful to Keith for having given me the opportunity. The fact that I was able to contribute to Riders for Health in the process is fantastic also – Keith was extremely passionate about the great work being done  – and long may it continue!

Twitter Links - Dan Brown / Keith Huewen / Holly Wheldon / Tomas Scheckter / SkyIndyCar

Riders for Health’s vision is of a world in which no one will die of an easily preventable or curable disease because barriers of distance, terrain or poverty prevent them from being reached.

Riders for Health manages and maintains the vehicles used in the delivery of health care and other vital services to rural communities in Africa. We manage them on a planned, preventive basis so that the vehicles do not break down however difficult the conditionsRiders, therefore, manages and maintains vehicles used in the delivery of health care and other vital services to rural communities. With proper maintenance, motorcycles, ambulances and outreach trekking vehicles can last for at least five years, covering a distance of 150,000 miles, and reaching 10.5 million people.

"It became clear in the early 80s that something had to be done to keep 'the wheels turning' on outreach efforts in Africa. I was made aware of the complexities and scale of the problem when I was racing in Grand Prix, and my friends and co founders of RfH invited me to join the board. The prospect of helping one of the most cost effective and efficient charity organisations achieve goals that make a real difference to millions of people is as exciting today as it was in the begining" Keith Huewen, Sky Sports Presenter & Riders for Health Board Member

More details from - http://www.riders.org/ & on Twitter