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Cue the Circus Music ... One Last Time

I was standing in the middle of the Hy-Vee grocery store near pressdog WORLD headquarters tonight when I thought ..."Geez, I still have to do race notes" and then sighed a sigh that's usually connected with having to get your tires rotated or keeping a dental appointment or spending a weekend with your politically opposite relatives.

And it shocked me ... but not really. Because I knew, standing there by the asparagus, the notes were fini.

When I founded this blog in May 2005 I said "I'll do it as long as it remains fun."

For reasons that have much more to do more with changes in me than in IndyCar -- reasons that would be completely self-indulgent to get into here -- I've reached the point where race notes are more drudgery than delight.

For about a year or so now, cranking out the notes hasn't been noticeably fun and has burned a lot of creative fuel that I could and should have put into my day job.

PLUS after eight years in the arena, I find myself looking for a seat in the gallery, removed from the More Serious Than Cancer debate over the state of health of this, that or the other connected to racing in general and IndyCar in particular.

And so ... adieu from the circus clowns who glide gracefully into retirement ... after banging each other on the head with rubber chickens. pressdog.com will continue, I think, perhaps with interviews and maybe Uncle pressdog postings. I am honestly not sure what's next. But for now, a hiatus.

The knowledge that least a few people enjoyed my race notes is a big big part of what kept them going this long. I sincerely thank you for eight years of warm fuzzies that came from that, and your kind and insightful comments that more often than not made me say "that's a good point."

So, one last time, Cue the circus music.

Notes from the 2013 IndyCar Race at Pocono

Team Chippy goes 1, 2, 3 at Pocono Raceway

Notes taken during the ABC broadcast of the Pocono IndyCar 400 Fueled by Sonoco on July 7, 2013.

Welcome to Long Pond, PA and the 2.5-mile, three-turn “Tricky Triangle” for the return of IndyCar after a 24-year hiatus. pressdog® Beer of the Race is Stella Artois.

Cue the historic montages. This is the final IndyCar race on ABC for this year. Marty Reid, Eddie Cheever and Scott Goodyear in the booth, Jamie Little with the Man Killing Ponytail deployed, Rick DeBruhl and Vince Welch in the pits.

Notes from the 2013 IndyCar Race at Iowa

James Hinchcliffe (center) tastes victory at Iowa Speedway.

Welcome to Iowa Speedway, home of the track that Rusty (Wallace) Built. Insert many cornfield montages here.

pressdog® beer of the race is New Belgium’s Fat Tire. I’m trackside at Iowa Speedway, which is only 45 minutes from pressdog WORLD Headquarters in West Des Moines, Iowa.

Before I fire up here, a huge thank you to all the fans who buy tickets and show up for the races at Iowa Speedway. The fans are really the rock stars of this place and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Manly tears for everyone who invests time, money and effort into making the trek out here and showing up for the race. PLUS, bit ups to the Iowa Corn Growers, because without their sponsorship we’re done here. TOAST.

Notes From the 2013 IndyCar Race at Milwaukee

Ryan Hunter-Reay and son Ryden celebrate the W.

Notes taken during the NBC Sports Network broadcast of the Milwaukee IndyFest, Milwaukee Mile, on June 15, 2013.

Welcome to Milwaukee, home of brats and beer … and what else do you need to know? pressdog® Beer of the Race is Stella Artois.

Leigh Diffey, Townsend Bell and Mr. David Hobbs (insert tinkle of scotch on the rocks here) are in the both. Kevin Lee, Will Buxton and Jon Beekhuis are the pit infantry.

Notes From the 2013 IndyCar Race at Texas

Notes taken during the ABC broadcast of the Firestone 550 at Texas Motor Speedway on June 8, 2013.

Welcome to Eddieville, the cavernous Texas Motor Speedway operated by Eddie Gossage. pressdog® Beer of the Race is Alpha King from Three Floyds Brewing in Indiana.

The big question (for me, anyway) going into this one is how much the speeds will drop off during the fuel run. Last year IndyCar reduced the downforce on the cars. Less downforce equals more tire wear and by the end of the stint cars were going a lot slower than the beginning. Insert debate here whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing.

Notes Taken During 2013 IndyCar Race 2 in Detroit

Simon Pagenaud is ready for some victory crepes.

Notes taken during the ABC broadcast of the Chevrolet Indy Dual in Detroit Race 2, Detroit Belle Isle, June 1, 2013. (Notes from Race 1, held a day earlier, are here.)

And we’re back in Detroit on Sunday for race two. IndyCar is trying this doubleheader format at three tracks -- Belle Isle, Houston and Toronto -- as a way to increase race count without increasing track count, so these are two full-length, full-points races on one track.

Notes Taken During 2013 IndyCar Race 1 in Detroit

Mike Conway indicates the number of beat downs he issued on Saturday.

Notes taken during the ABC broadcast of the Chevrolet Indy Dual in Detroit Race 1, Detroit Belle Isle, June 1, 2013. (Notes from Race 2 of the doubleheader are here.)

Welcome to Detroit, which if you have been deceased for the last year, is ROGER PENSKE’S TOWN and this is ROGER PENSKE’S RACE. That would be story line Number 1. The deal is Roger loves Detroit, Roger is a big Chevy guy and they are based in Detroit, and last year the track went to crap mid-race with random parts of it turning into potholes, so I think Penske paid a million plus to repave the entire island, and maybe even drove a cement truck himself.

Notes from the 2013 IndyCar Race in Brazil

Notes taken during the NBC Sports Broadcast of the Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300, Streets of Sao Paulo, Brazil, May 5, 2013.

pressdog beer of the race is an Anchor Steam like product home brewed by my friend Keith. DRINK, ye BASTARDS.

Cue the hat (running order at the top). Yo to my brothers and sisters in the B Unit (graphics creating unit). Maybe I'll see you at Indy.

Notes Taken During the 2013 IndyCar Race at Long Beach

Tacuma Sato celebrates with some of the Japanese media who shadow him at every
IndyCar event.

Notes taken during the NBC Sports Network broadcast of the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, April 21, 2013.

Welcome to Long Beach. Have some lovely Chablis and chill. pressdog® DRINK, ye BASTARDS® Beer of the Race is Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA proudly brewed in Chico, California.

Cue the HAT (running order at the top of the screen). Word up to my posse in the B Unit (creates the on-screen graphics and runs the hat). I picture them in the truck wearing huge surfer shorts and flip-flops all like “dude, tasty race.”

Notes Taken During the 2013 IndyCar Race at St. Petersburg

James Hinchcliffe sends the People of the Leaf (Canadians) into joyous drinking.

Notes taken during the NBC Sports Network broadcast of Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg (Florida) on 3/24/13.

Welcome to St. Petersburg, Florida. Since this race started at the crack of dawn (11:30 a.m. Central, which is 8:30!! Pacific) while I was still in church (in Central time), I'm watching it via DVR and therefore it's time for No-Offense Fast Forward through the pre-race show.

pressdog® DRINK, ye BASTARDS® Beer of the Race is Ranger IPA, one of my go-to beverages. New crew for NBC Sports Network. Brian Till, Jon Beekhuis and Kevin Lee in the pits. Wally Dallenbach Jr., Townsend Bell and Leigh Diffey in the booth.