Today, Katherine Legge, a race car driver from the United Kingdom, will attempt to become the first woman to participate in the Indianapolis 500 and NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600 on the same day.
Five drivers have previously undertaken the logistics and the risk of driving in both races. This is an undertaking which is difficult because it requires so many things to go right. Qualifying for the two races is its own challenge, and so is managing the plane trip from Indianapolis to Charlotte.
But the key challenge are the miles. Legge will have to drive 200 laps, 500 miles, at Indianapolis at speeds over 220 miles an hour. She will then drive 400 laps, 600 miles, in a stock car at a difficult track in Charlotte.
These are two disciplines which are completely opposite from each other. Sure, both cars have four wheels and a steering wheel, but the challenges are completely different.
Today will also present a further challenge: there is rain in the forecast in Indianapolis and in Charlotte. And it is rain which could present a problem for Legge’s quest. Neither NASCAR nor IndyCar race on ovals in the rain. Neither Indianapolis nor Charlotte are made to dry quickly; each of these tracks take upwards of one to two hours to dry out after the end of a rainstorm.
And the grip and friction needed to keep a car on an oval track won’t even allow grooved racing tires to work like they do on road courses, where they do race in the rain.
I’m just wondering if the powers-that-be in Indianapolis and Charlotte will do their best to stagger the starting times of both races to allow Legge to compete.