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.

This past weekend I appealed via Twitter and Facebook for people who would be happy to share some pictures of either themselves and Dan Wheldon, or some personal pictures that they have taken over the years. Pictures very often say more than words and a lot has be said about Dan these past twelve months, one overriding memory is how he used to interact with fans. I was grateful to meet him a couple of times travelling to watch Indycar racing all over America, some unique memories to carry with me.

Carrie (@indycarrie) with Dan at Nashville in 2006. He took the time to chat with me and ask about my favourite drivers because he liked my Jimmie Johnson hat.

This set comes from Isabelle (@indyfan1994), taken around the 2011 Indy 500, from the downtown parade and also the first time she met him.

These two photos come from Brenda (@Nytewynd18), the first one was the first time she met and spoke with Dan, Brenda asked for a second hero card to send to a friend in the United Kingdom.... Dan replied "I wished I had a friend". The second was from Las Vegas, and after meeting him throughout the weekend he was his usual vibrant and funny self, and even though he wasn't considered one of my favourite drivers, still misses him and has a tribute tattoo done in his memory.

These next two picture collects were sent by Patsy (@patsylwhite) and Jeff (from SSM). First set is from Kentucky race weekend, the second from Las Vegas. Many thanks for passing these on.

After Dan's second Indy 500 win, he and other Indycar drivers came to the Goodwood Festival of Speed as part of a celebration of the centennial anniversary. Matthew Spencer (@Hudders_Matt) took these pictures

Kelsey (@KelseyUSA) took this picture at Kentucky in 2009, and had this to say, "He always had a way of making everyone feel like a friend - even for a ten second stop for a photo on pit lane"

Now to mine, I can honestly say that I have never met anyone who after a few brief conversations, treated you and made you feel like you had known them forever. My pictures are from 2010 Indy 500, Texas Motor Speedway in 2011 and from Las Vegas. After a few discussions he remembered that I spoke to him about my somewhat epic road trips following Indycar all around America, he said thank you to me, it really meant a lot to him. On the Friday practice session, I bumped into Dan in the garage, I had a Union flag I was trying to get fully signed by all the drivers, he, as always, happily signed and we briefly spoke. Just as we heard a bang both turning around, James Jakes had crashed in turn two, without a split second though Dan was apologising to me, he said he needed to go to his team and make sure who it was who crashed was ok. Last time we spoke, thank you for the time you gave me.

My final set of pictures are very special, sent to me by Darren Jack (@Dazincanada), a Brit living abroad in Canada first saw Dan drive in Formula Ford at Brands Hatch competing with amongst others, Jenson Button, in 1998. After moving Darren continued to follow Dan's career in the States, in the end becoming friends with him and his family. His pictures range from flag which he handed to Dan in victory lane at the '05 Indy 500, to his famous new teeth (and smile)!

Strangley enough Darren and myself paths have crossed, although we did not know it, but thanks to twitter the world is a much small place. Later this week, there will be a fuller story with Darren with more stories to share.

I would like to thank everyone who got in contact these past few days, for sharing your pictures and memories and please carry on using #lionheart

Go back several months to a time, a day, an event, which for those who were there, for those who saw on television, and for those who read after one of the darkest days in IndyCar, maybe motorsports history... 16th October 2011 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. 

Previously I had already been in contact with people on twitter, (travelling alone on long road trips you have to do these things!) fans of IndyCar from all around the USA who were going to the Las Vegas race arranging to meet up at the track or go out in the evening, none of whom prior to the race weekend had I met in person before on my last trips to America. Throughout the weekend I had met a group of these people by chance, winning a draw or some other way as it seems to happen quite a lot! 

I don’t need, or really want to go into details about the race that Sunday, but the motor racing family lost a driver, a star and a friend in Dan Wheldon.

During the days that led up to the race I was offered a ticket to the Sam Schmidt Paralysis fundraising party to go with Robin and Chris which was to take place that Sunday evening at a nearby hotel.   I think, understandably, I didn’t really feel like going out that evening, just wanted to stay near to my hotel.  So I put a message out on Twitter inviting any IndyCar fans still in Las Vegas that night if they wanted to meet me for a drink I would be in the hotel bar at 8pm. So after a few Wi-Fi issues and‘which bar are you at again?’ people found me and the way to the bar. Chris and Robin from Indiana, Kieran from California, John from Washington, Ross from Texas, and me... from England. For what was a very difficult day for all of us, it was a great chance to sit back, relax, talk racing and remember Dan over a few drinks.

One slightly funny way to end the night, I made it back to my room to see a tweet from John to everyone... “Has anyone lost a set of keys for a  mustang?”..... I checked... oh s**t, me... so a big thank you to John for  driving back that night, from the north side of the city, with my keys!

Go forward seven months, we had all kept in touch through Twitter and Facebook, talking about racing, life (including births), the  usuals and put yourself in a car park of a local restaurant with over a thousand  other people present, and to get the opportunity to all meet up again nearly 2,000 miles from the Nevada desert.

So under very different circumstances to the last time, we all arranged to meet up again. 

I had heard through many contacts, that one of the pre-race events for the Indy 500 worth going to was the Burger Bash. Which is part radio show, part fan gathering, and part chance to get a burger type of social  gathering at 96th Street Steakburgers, located on the north side of Indianapolis, which is now in its 5th year. The event does not have a set format or guest list, other than an hour long live radio show hosted by NBCSN reporter Kevin Lee and Indianapolis Star writer Curt Cavin. Invites are sent out to drivers and a few turn up for a quick Q&A session with the fans, with raffles and auctions throughout the evening,  to raise money for local charities.

On the evening after Carb Day at the track, we were sitting down on the kerb eating burgers and drinking milkshakes, we were all back together again. Some of us taking part in the auctions, listening to the live radio show, enjoying the question and answer sessions with drivers Katherine Legge (British female driver), Alex Tagliani (2011 Indy 500 Pole Winner), Pippa Mann (British female driver, and first female to win pole at Indy in any race), as  well as the new IndyCar Race Director Beaux Barfield. It was a great evening, a chance to meet up again, talk, remembering the past seven months, and looking forward to the race weekend ahead.

Life is full of ‘ifs’, it would be fair to say that if I had not been bumped off my flight in June, I wouldn’t of been in Las Vegas, if the events in Las Vegas did not happen I would not of been back to watch IndyCar racing in May and June of this year. So a few mentions to Chris (@Crumpacker),   John (@JohnBrughelli), Kieran (@acrossthebricks), Ross (@therossbuynum) and Robin (@RobinCrumpacker), thank you for being around for two of the most  memorable moments from my travels. For somewhere so big, it is amazing how small America can be at times! This last trip to America lasted nearly four weeks, over 12,500 miles of travels in planes, trains, boats and Nissan’s, so many memories these two will remain with me for a very long time. 

So, until next time...

 *technically speaking, the baby Chris is holding, was also in the first picture!

 “Of all things which wisdom provides to make life entirely happy, much the greatest is the possession of friendship” Epicurus