Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach Preview with Indy 500 winner Marcus Ericsson and Team Penske’s Gary Yingst

Speakers: Bruce Martin, Marcus Ericsson, & Gary Yingst

Scott McLaughlin:

Hi, I'm Scott McLaughlin, driver, the number three Team Penske Chevy, and you're listening to Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental.

[Music Playing]

Bruce Martin:

IndyCar fans, it's time to search your engines. Welcome to Pit Pass Indy, a production of Evergreen Podcasts. I'm your host Bruce Martin, a journalist who regularly covers the NTT INDYCAR SERIES.

Our goal at Pit Pass Indy is to give racing fans an insider's view of the exciting world of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES in a fast-paced podcast featuring interviews with the biggest names in the sport.

I bring nearly 40 years of experience covering IndyCar and NASCAR, working for such media brands as nbcports.com, si.com, ESPN Sports Ticker, Sports Illustrated, Autoweek and Speed Sport. So, let's drop the green flag on this episode of Pit Pass Indy.

Welcome to this week's edition of Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental. We are proud and honored to bring Penske Truck Rental to the show as the presenting sponsor of Pit Pass Indy. We will continue to cover the entire NTT INDYCAR SERIES community, and our new partners at Penske Truck Rental will help us tell those stories.

It's a big racing weekend for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, the 48th Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. The event is the biggest street race on the schedule and is the biggest event outside of the Indianapolis 500 in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES.

North America's biggest street race ranks just below Formula 1's Monaco Grand Prix as the world's biggest street race. And any IndyCar series driver that wins it comes fame and prestige.

It's built as Southern California's 200 mile an hour beach party, and for good reason. The three-day event draws crowds approaching 250,000 spectators, including close to 100,000 fans on race day.

Team Penske's, Josef Newgarden is the defending winner of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. Later in the show, we will hear from Team Penske Transportation coordinator Gary Yingst on how the IndyCar series teams make the long haul from the race shops across the country to Long Beach.

But first, we have an exclusive interview with Chip Ganassi Racing driver, Marcus Ericsson, the winner of last year's 106th Indianapolis 500 is ready to add the accolade of Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach to his growing trophy collection. He joins me in this exclusive interview for Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental.

An old friend rejoins us on the show. It's Marcus Ericsson of Chip Ganassi Racing. He's our special guest here on Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental. Marcus, you're off to a great start to the season.

You're currently second in points, heading into this weekend's Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. I'm sure you're ready to continue the momentum of 2022 into this weekend, which is arguably IndyCar's second biggest event of the season.

Marcus Ericsson:

Yeah, I am. I'm really excited to get to Long Beach. I think it's, like you say, it's one of the big races on our calendar, a lot of history there, and always a race I look forward to. And I had some unfinished business after last year when I crashed out late in that race, and was on for a podium. So, I'm really looking forward to it, and especially after this strong start to the year that I’ve had.

Bruce Martin:

You won the season opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg after Pato O’Ward had the plenum issue, but you forced him at the end of the race to really race hard, which may have caused that issue to happen. You were able to capitalize on that.

How was your race at Texas Motor Speedway? You started 16th and finished 8th. It was a pretty good day for Chip Ganassi Racing as three of the four drivers finished in the top eight. Two drivers finished in the top five.

The only driver who finished outside of the top 10, top 15 was Takuma Sato, who was taking over the number 11 car on the ovals this year. How would you categorize the way your race went at Texas and what did you think of that style of racing?

Marcus Ericsson:

Yeah, I think first of all, the racing was amazing. I think the downforce package that we brought there, or the series brought there was really good. And the track being in early April, it was pretty cool temperatures, and we did a high line practice to put some rubber up there as well.

The racing was arguable one of the best races we've seen on the oval for a long time, especially at the speedway. So, I think that was really exciting.

For us on the H car, we had a car that wasn't really fast from the get go and in practice, we were struggling a bit and then qualifying, I thought we had a good qualifying run and the car felt good, but it was only good enough for 16.

So, there was definitely some warning signs there. And then the race again, I think we had a solid day, but it was just not enough pure pace in the car. So, we're investigating it now to try and understand on a super speedway like Texas, even the smallest drag in brakes or something can slow you down a little bit.

So, we need to investigate and see why we were just lacking a bit of that top end that you need for Texas. But overall, still a strong result. And like you said, we're still second in points, so we're definitely off to a good start.

Bruce Martin:

And even though Pato O’Ward is a fierce competitor of yours — you had to battle him for the victory in last year's Indianapolis 500. Here's a guy who's had two pretty good races to turn off the season and he's finished second in both of them. Can you almost sometimes understand what it's like when a driver gets that close to victory and isn't able to pull it off?

Marcus Ericsson:

Yeah, I mean, I'm sure it's frustrating for him. He's been right there for two races in a row, but I'm sure he’s going to win races this year. And he's a fierce competitor, like you say, and we’re going to have to bring our A game every time to beat him and other top guys.

So, that's what's great with the series at the moment. The level of the drivers and teams are so high and the competitiveness in the series is just incredible. So, it gives you a lot of motivation to work hard and always bring your best.

Bruce Martin:

Speaking of bring your best, you're going to need to bring your best to the streets of Long Beach, although it's a great event to be a part of. Your record at that race and the three races you've competed in, your best finish is 20th when you were with Schmidt Peterson Motorsports back when in the Arrow car.

The last two years you've been in the Huski Chocolate Honda for Chip Ganassi Racing. You were 20th in 2019. Of course, there was no race in 2020 because of COVID. 28th in 2021 and 22nd last year, you crashed the last two races there. How treacherous of a racecourse is that?

Marcus Ericsson:

Yeah, I mean, when you put it out like that, it doesn't sound very good for sure enough. But I think, like you said, it's been circumstances the last two times we've been there. We've been on for really good results. I think in ‘21, we were on for top six, if I remember correctly, until I crashed out of that race.

And then last year we were on a podium. We were p3 there with that restart with 18 laps ago when I hit the wall and broke my car that I had to retire. So, the speed has been there, but as we know, it's three courses, you make the smallest of mistakes, and it can be the end of your day. And that's what's happened to us the last two times there.

But I'm confident we're going to be right there in the mix. I've been really strong on three courses the last two years and won three races on three courses. So, I feel really confident and like I said, I feel like I have some unfinished business in Long Beach. So, I'm going there with high confidence and high expectations.

Bruce Martin:

And for people who talk about attendance issues, you need to bring them to Long Beach because that place is packed. It's pretty hard to get from point A to point B, driver introductions there. It's a crush of people. It's a crush of people to get to your car on the starting grid.

What's it like to see that type of reaction and enthusiasm every time you go to the streets of Long Beach?

Marcus Ericsson:

Yeah, it's super cool. The atmosphere there is just amazing. It's so much fans, like you say, and it's just something about the place. And I think with the history of the race as well, it actually reminds me a lot of Monaco.

I did Monaco in Formula 1 for five years, and it gives sort of this similar atmosphere and feeling that I got there. And it's a really fun race to be a part of. And yeah, the fans really makes it a very cool weekend. So, I'm really looking forward to it.

Bruce Martin:

Now, after Long Beach, very important race weekend, even though it's not a race, it's going to be the two-day Indianapolis 500 open test. Every car that's entered into the 107th Indianapolis 500 will be on track.

How important is that two-day test? How important was it to you last year in coming up with the right setup that you were able to start off with in the month of May and ended up with you in victory lane?

Marcus Ericsson:

It is very important. Every time we get out on a track these days, it's super important because we don't get a lot of track time.

So, ramping up now for month of May, you always want to start off strong. And we have obviously a strong package from last year that we can sort of start from, but we still need to improve on that because everyone always improves. So, we've worked hard in off season to try and find more performance and first time we really tried it out is in that open test, so we're very excited about it.

Bruce Martin:

The other thing with Indianapolis in the middle of April, you don't know how much track time you'll actually get over a two-day test. So, how much of that is spent looking at the weather forecast?

Marcus Ericsson:

Yeah, I mean that's the thing. With Indy, it's all about looking at the weather and making sure you can be out there and driving. So, it's definitely part of it, but we can't do much about it. I try and focus on the things we can do something about, and the weather, unfortunately, we cannot change.

Bruce Martin:

You've been back to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway since you won the Indianapolis 500 last year, but now, when you show up for the open test, you're going to go in there as the defending champion. And how much do you think about that? How important is that and how much does that put a little extra bounce in your step when you arrive in gasoline alley?

Marcus Ericsson:

It's going to be super special. It gives me a lot of confidence going into the month of May and even to the open test, knowing that and having that victory from last year sort of with me. So, for me, it's just a confidence booster and I can't wait to experience the whole month of May being the defending champion.

And yeah, it's very exciting that we're getting closer to it and I'm just going to try and obviously, the goal is to win again and defend that win from last year. But also, my goal is to really enjoy this month, enjoy being the defending champion, and enjoy being at the speedway as the defending champion, that's going to be very special.

Bruce Martin:

And what's it like when you show up on 16th Street and see that giant banner of Marcus Ericsson at the main entrance to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway?

Marcus Ericsson:

It's, again, one of those moments when you have to pinch yourself and sort of make sure it's real, because it's ginormous and it's just super cool, and knowing that everyone will see that, everyone will drive through that tunnel going to the racetrack, it's pretty cool.

Bruce Martin:

We'll be right back to Pit Pass Indy after this short break.

[Music Playing]

Here is the rest of my interview with 106th Indianapolis 500 winner Marcus Ericsson of Chip Ganassi Racing for Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental.

Bruce Martin:

After that, comes the trip to Barber Motorsports Park. We want to take care of our friends down there and talk a little bit about that race. This year Honda is allowing the Children's Hospital of Alabama to be the entitlement sponsor. Honda remains as the presenting sponsor.

It's still a Honda race, although they're helping out with the charitable efforts down there for the Children's Hospital. What do you think of Barber Motorsports Park? Does it remind you a lot of the racecourses that you came up on when you were in the Junior Formulas in Europe?

Marcus Ericsson:

Yeah, I was actually going to say that. It reminds me a lot of my early racing career when I was racing a lot in the UK on those like flowy tracks with a lot of elevation, and not a lot of room for errors, it's grass and wolves.

And then Barber really reminds me of that, and the flow you get on that track, it's really cool. It's one of my favorite road courses of the season, no doubt. So, I'm really looking forward to it. And also, it's usually a very good turnout with fans there as well, which makes it definitely one of the top weekends of the year for me.

Bruce Martin:

In springtime, in a picturesque part of the country, that's probably the most beautiful natural terrain road course, in some ways that's on the schedule. Of course, there's the beauty of Laguna Seca and other tracks like that, but it's a different type of that's West Coast Pacific, California type beauty. This is more old school, deep south in the springtime. And what do you just think of the whole facility?

Marcus Ericsson:

The facilities are absolute top class, and we always say that drivers and teams that going to Barber Motor Sports Park is always a highlight because of that. Because of the facilities, because of the track, it's always in top conditions.

The fans are always coming out strong and camping out there, and adding to the whole experience. So, it's always everything for me, with Barber Motorsports Park is top class and the races are usually very interesting as well because there is plenty of pit stops and different strategies going on and some good action.

So, yeah, I'm excited about it. I want to have a strong result there because I haven't been on a podium in Barber yet. And that's definitely a goal of mine.

Bruce Martin:

As a rookie in 2019 with Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports, which is now Arrow McLaren, you started 20th and finished 7th. That's a pretty good race on that course. The next year with Huski Chocolate as your sponsor and the number eight at Chip Ganassi Racing, started 6th finished 8th.

Last year, you started and finished 12th at Chip Ganassi Racing. One interesting stat, you finished on the lead lap of all three races. What do you recall of those three events? How were they similar? How were they different?

Marcus Ericsson:

Yeah, so that first year you said, like you said, they're going from 20th to being 7th, that was for sure, one of my best races during my rookie season. I had a really strong race there. We did some good strategy and had good race pace and that was really a good race for me in my opening season, my rookie season.

And last year, we tried a bit of a different strategy that didn't really work out, so we're sort of stuck in the mid pack. And the year before that, we were actually on for a top five results until the end when we had a bit of a miscalculation with the fuels and had to save a lot of fuel on the lost pins. And I dropped I think from fourth to eighth in that stint.

So, I think the speed has been there every year. But yeah, we haven't found that sort of great result. We had solid results, but we want more than that this year.

Bruce Martin:

And the Children's of Alabama Indy Grand Prix, it's always an important race because it's usually the final race before the month of May begins, and you head to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Of course, the first race of the month at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway will be the GMR Grand Prix on May 13th on the IMS road course.

And then after that, it's getting ready for the 107th Indianapolis 500, it will be a full week of practice qualifying weekend, another day of practice, Carb Day, and then straight in the race day. So, do you start to think race season is here when you get to Barber?

Marcus Ericsson:

Oh, for sure. From Barber onwards is pretty much every week with racing it feels like. So, it's what we love, it's what we want to do, and it's what we work all winter to prepare us for that time of the year. So, it's definitely kicking into top gear when we get to Barber and it's really a race that starts at mid part of the season where it's so many races.

Bruce Martin:

And I know that you come from Sweden, but one of the great things that Alabama is known for is it's barbecue, and if you've had a chance to try it and what you think of it?

Marcus Ericsson:

I love it. I love all kinds of food and I love to experience all kinds of food, and I've definitely had some good barbecue down there, so I'm looking forward to that as well. I can't have too much before the race, so I don't want to get too heavy before race day. But I'm definitely going to have some and enjoy when I'm down there.

Bruce Martin:

What is your favorite type of barbecue?

Marcus Ericsson:

Oh, I don't know. I would say briskets, but I like all kinds.

Bruce Martin:

And as far as the way the staff at Barber Motorsports Park, George Barber and his staff, they really treat the drivers top notch. It's very accommodating group of people that work there. And how important is that when you have the competitors out there to put on a show?

Marcus Ericsson:

It's very important. You want to feel welcomed, you want to feel taken care of, and we always get that feeling going to Barber. So, it's something we appreciate a lot of the drivers, and I think that's one of the reasons why we always highlight Barber as one of the best races to go to over the year.

Bruce Martin:

And with this year, Honda allowing the Children's of Alabama Hospital to take over as the entitlement sponsor of the race, it's for a good charity for a good cause. Honda is usually always looking at a way to give back to the community. And does that really make you that much more proud to be part of the Honda family?

Marcus Ericsson:

It does. I think I'm extremely proud to be part of Honda and be powered by Honda, and things like this just makes me even more happy to be part of that family. So, I think that's a great thing that they're doing and I'm probably supporting that. And like I said, I'm proud to be part of Honda.

Bruce Martin:

And in years past, there was always a group of Honda drivers who went over to the assembly facility over in Lincoln, Alabama. Have you been a part of that trip before?

Marcus Ericsson:

I have not, no.

Bruce Martin:

But you are always on part of the trip that goes to Torrance, to American Honda, and that's usually a big day at that campus?

Marcus Ericsson:

For sure. It is. Yeah. No, we try and go out there and meet people within the company and I think that's one of the important part because you go out there and build connections and relationships is always an important part of things.

Bruce Martin:

And here's a question that's probably better suited for somebody else to answer, but I'll go ahead and throw it at you anyway. When Marcus Ericsson came over here to start a career in IndyCar, we knew him as a former Formula 1 driver who ran 97 Formula 1 events. But now, do you feel like Marcus Erickson is an IndyCar star?

Marcus Ericsson:

Yeah, you probably better ask someone else, but I think for me I feel like I see myself as an IndyCar driver and I'm happy and proud of the years I did in F1, but I love where I am at the moment. I love being in IndyCar. I love winning races and fighting for championships, and running up front an IndyCar championship, it's definitely living my dream, so I really enjoy it.

Bruce Martin:

And as far as the actual Barber Motorsports course itself, what does it remind you the most of any course that you competed on in Europe?

Marcus Ericsson:

That's a good question. I would probably say Oulton Park, it does remind me a bit of Oulton Park in the UK. It's a quite small track, but it was always one of my favorite tracks in the UK and I drove there a lot in my junior years in single theater racing. So, it does remind me quite a bit of that.

Bruce Martin:

And where are the passing opportunities at Barber? I know some people like to get a run going in the turn five, that seems to be the action corner. But there's also some other areas of that racecourse that the drivers know very well. What are your favorite parts of it?

Marcus Ericsson:

Yeah, I think five is probably the biggest opportunity for overtaking, but what you can do as well is to get someone to be defensive in five, and then line them up to get around them before turn eight. And also, the last two corners, turn 16, 17 you can also catch people by surprise there and then get an overtake done.

So, there is some spots where you can yeah, take advantage and then try and overtake, but it's not the easiest track to overtake.

Bruce Martin:

And also, at the end of April, will be the debut of the Vice docuseries on the CW 100 Days To Indy. I know they've followed you around quite a bit. What do you think of that project and how much will we be seeing Marcus Ericsson on these shows?

Marcus Ericsson:

I think it's great for the series. I think it's great for us drivers and hopefully, will help get more people into IndyCar racing because I think the products we have at the moment, the racing we have at the moment is the best in the world. We have so many good drivers, so many cars, and we just need more people to watch it because I think when people watch it, they love it.

So, I hope this series will help put more light at our series. I think for me, I've been part of quite a bit of filming, so I'm hoping I will be featuring quite a bit in the series, and it seems to be such a good group of people producing it as well. So, I'm very excited to see the end result when they premiere it in the end of April.

Bruce Martin:

And does it also seem like when there's a camera crew following you around that after a while, you try to act as if they're not even there?

Marcus Ericsson:

Yeah, I mean, for sure. That's the way they've been trying to film things to sort of be a very much documentary type of filming, not sort of intruding in what you're doing. And just more following you in the background to make it as realistic as possible.

So, I think that's really cool because that's what we want to show off as well, not want to be like scripted. We want it to be the real life of an IndyCar driver.

Bruce Martin:

And also, when you think of Barber Motorsports Park, it seems like an ideal place to bring the motor home and camp. Do you do that, and if so, is it one of the better places to spend a weekend with the motor home?

Marcus Ericsson:

I don't actually have a motor home yet, so I don't do it. I know a lot of drivers and team members and fans obviously does it, and it looks like a perfect spot for it. So, in the future when I have my own motor home, I'm definitely going to bring it to Barber Motorsports Park.

Bruce Martin:

And I'm sure that if you haven't got a new contract with Chip Ganassi Racing, that might help make that project a little bit easier.

Marcus Ericsson:

Yeah, I know, you would hope so. So, let’s see here in the future, yeah that would be nice.

Bruce Martin:

You have found a home with Chip Ganassi Racing, but do things look really good there as far as renewing a contract?

Marcus Ericsson:

I mean, nothing is decided yet, but like you say, I love it with Chip Ganassi Racing. I think what we've built over the last four years has been amazing and winning the biggest race in the world shows that.

So, that's where we're at the moment. At the moment, I just try and focus on this season, try and win a championship, win another 500. And if we do that, I'm sure the other things would work itself out. So, that's sort of where my head is at.

Bruce Martin:

Well, he has certainly become a star of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. Marcus Ericsson, driver of the Huski Chocolate Honda for Chip Ganassi Racing. Congratulations on winning last year's Indianapolis 500. Congratulations on getting off to a great start in the 2023 IndyCar series season.

Good luck with these upcoming races and especially, good luck defending your championship, your title in the Indianapolis 500 coming up on Memorial Day weekend. Thank you for joining us today on Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental.

Marcus Ericsson:

Thank you.

Bruce Martin:

One of the great things about Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental is we get to visit with the big names of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, but we also get to introduce our listeners to the men and women who work behind the scenes for the racing teams.

One of those is Gary Yingst, the transportation coordinator at Team Penske. He is in charge of orchestrating six transporters with 14 people that left the team’s race shop in Mooresville, North Carolina, early Monday morning for the 40-hour drive to Long Beach, California site of this weekend's Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.

The teams in the NTT IndyCar series traveled to nearly all parts of the United States plus one trip each year to Toronto, Ontario in Canada. Just as Penske Truck Rental are the winners on the highway, the men and women who help transport the IndyCars from race to race are the winners in the IndyCar Paddock.

Let's take a deep dive into what gets the equipment from race to race with Gary Yingst, transportation coordinator at Team Penske in this exclusive Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental interview.

Joining us now on Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental is Team Penske transportation coordinator, Gary Yingst. Gary, you got a big trip coming up all the way out to Long Beach, California with the shop based in Mooresville, North Carolina and going all the way out to the city streets of Long Beach. How big of a challenge is that and how long of a trip is it?

Gary Yingst:

Well, it's one of our longest throughout the year since Sonoma's not on the schedule or Edmonton anymore. It's one of the biggest, it's for sure, one of the most logistically hard ones to coordinate that we do all year long.

We have five, six semis going with the 14 people total. We send two per truck in every unit except for our hospitality. And we send three extra to get out from the checker flag in Long Beach to the Indianapolis Open Test.

Bruce Martin:

And the fact you go into Long Beach, you start hitting the metropolis of Southern California-

Gary Yingst:

Yes.

Bruce Martin:

Way out in Palm Springs?

Gary Yingst:

Yes.

Bruce Martin

And from then on, it's got to be quite a challenge just dealing with Southern California, Los Angeles traffic.

Gary Yingst:

Yes, it is. So, obviously, we keep safety in everybody around us first, but obviously, the streets of California of are a bit of a busy place. So, I guess we want to say it gets a little more tense as you get into California and like you said, through Palm Springs and all the way up through Fontana and into Long Beach.

Bruce Martin:

What type of reaction do you get when you're on the highway and people realize, hey, that's a Team Penske transporter that I'm following?

Gary Yingst:

Well, throughout the last few years, especially, since everybody's gotten cell phone cameras and all, it used to just be kids driving by, waving and wanting you to blow the air horn, but now, it's everybody taking pictures and really showing the love out there.

But you got to be careful because people often lose focus on what they're doing too, to take a look at what's going by them.

Bruce Martin:

So, what day and time will you leave the Team Penske shop, and what day and time will you arrive in Long Beach?

Gary Yingst:

So, we have two series heading out there. We actually left this morning with our hospitality unit to head out there to be there Sunday to wash, Monday. The MC units will leave Sunday night after Easter dinner, and the IndyCar units will leave Monday morning.

Bruce Martin:

About what time?

Gary Yingst:

They'll probably leave four or five in the morning to beat Charlotte traffic out and down through Atlanta.

Bruce Martin:

So, will that be about a 45-hour drive or less than that?

Gary Yingst:

It's closer to 40. The way we go down through 20 to 10 and across Texas, up through Phoenix and all. If we were to go 40, it'd be more 43 hours.

Bruce Martin:

And then what time will you arrive, and then after that, you wash the trucks? I believe that's it.

Gary Yingst:

So, our plan is to get to Fontana Speedway about eight o'clock Wednesday morning. Meet with our guy that does our West Coast stuff out there, get all the stuff really dialed in, and then head to Long Beach where in years past, we'll roll right in and go right into the tent setup.

So, if you think about it, it's not just a 42, 43-hour drive plus the time to wash. Now, we're setting up the awning right away too. So, it makes for a long few days.

Bruce Martin:

It's very important, especially at Team Penske with Roger Penske's attention to detail that the trucks are washed, they're polished, and they shine. And how important is that and how professional does that make any racing series look when you see all of those brightly colored team transporters with their great paint schemes all shining and sparkly?

Gary Yingst:

Well, it's everything to especially us, I can't comment for everybody else. But if we're not doing good on the track, at least we can look good going down the road, and support the brand and put our best efforts forth. So, as far as we go, that's our number one job is looking good.

And that's why us, for example, we have a special company in California that we have a longstanding history with, really spend the time and clean us up, and do a really good job polishing and everything. And as we park and get our tent set up, we'll do the same. We'll really spend some time and dial in the units to make sure they look great.

Bruce Martin:

So, as the transportation coordinator, if you could give us a breakdown of how you do each truck in terms of drivers, time on-time off, places that you will stop for refueling.

Gary Yingst:

Sure.

Bruce Martin:

How important that is? How much time there must be devoted to rest? If you could give us maybe a breakdown of that?

Gary Yingst:

So, here at Penske, and I'm sure every team does the same, but we follow all federal DOT standards which allows you to drive 11 hours out of a 14-hour time schedule. So, with the recent rule changes back in 2015, I want to say you have to drive your 11 hours, not 14, you can't split shifts.

So, what we do here is we'll drive 10 consistent hours and switch. As far as stopping and fueling and such, we'll leave here at the workshop where we keep a full 10,000 gallon tank of the R99 renewable diesel that everybody else is using in Indianapolis, the speedway.

So, we'll start out with that here and try and stop wherever that's either applicable or who's using the R99 or if there's a refueling station set up by IndyCar, or just along the roads, we'll try and pick the most safe place.

Bruce Martin:

Do you have any arrangements with any particular truck stops that those are the ones that the team uses?

Gary Yingst:

We try and fuel at PTLs as much as we can, the Penske Truck Leasing centers especially as we get out west, they do have the R99 in their tanks. And obviously, what Roger's doing in the series is doing with renewable stuff and sustainability. We try and support that as much as we can.

But to answer your question, no, we don't have a formidable partnership with any truck stops. We usually just try and stay in the nice clean, open spaces.

Bruce Martin:

I know that once you get on the road, it’s hammer down, so when you stop to pick a … you're picking something up to eat, you're not staying to eat.

Gary Yingst:

Yeah.

Bruce Martin:

So, what is that like, and how do you coordinate all that?

Gary Yingst:

So, in the 10 to 11 out of 14-hour day, you're driving, you have to take a 30-minute break. Obviously, that's the rules. You can obviously stop as much as you want, whether you need to. So, what we try and do is coordinate as we go down the road.

We'll use that 30-minute break in order to stop and get something to eat, refuel so that you're basically knocking you out all the dominoes in one stop. Now, obviously, like I said earlier, you can stop more than you want if you have to, but as we run down the road, pretty much all five together to keep an eye on everything, we try and pull in together and stay as a team wherever we go.

Bruce Martin:

Do you do showers at truck stops?

Gary Yingst:

We will, we will. And it's all depending on, for example, how quickly we have to get there, how backed up against working on the cars, getting to the racetrack, loading in. It all depends on what the window is in between.

Obviously, we like to be as relaxed as possible and try and not back ourselves up against a hard exit if something were to happen. But if there is time, absolutely. It's at will and we try.

Bruce Martin:

Well, I mean I think back to the days of your prototypical truck stops from the 1960s and 1970s where they serve very large portions of food. But that's not today's truck stops anymore.

Gary Yingst:

No.

Bruce Martin:

It's a lot of fast food because truckers are like on the go, they want to grab and get.

Gary Yingst:

And I also think the quality of truck drivers aren't the same anymore either. As most of our guys, 50% are now on the pit crews. They're working out every day, they're pitting the car. So, stop and grab two roller dogs and a Coke's not really a thing anymore.

It's protein packs and salads and trying to eat healthy. And a lot of the guys will meal prep and bring their meals in the trucks because we have microwaves, we have refrigerators, we have all the amenities we need to try and stay healthy while we're moving.

Bruce Martin:

As far as the return, I bet you probably get some pretty good meals from the hospitality.

Gary Yingst:

Sure, we do. They really take care of us. They pack lunches and meals for the first couple hours out and whatever we need. And that's what's great about us, is we have a ton of resources and a ton of depth, and we all just work together. Tammy and the group over there they're great to work with and easy.

Bruce Martin:

So, what is contained in the transporter? Each transporter has different — one transporter carries the cars.

Gary Yingst:

Yep.

Bruce Martin:

I'm sure you have one that's devoted to engineering, but in a lot of ways, there are many race shops because there are times you have to fix something at the event.

Gary Yingst:

Sure. And if you want, I can take you through every one that we have, but I don't know how much time we have. Obviously, our first and main one is RP1, which we've all been inside, it's nothing but an office, carries very little. It's literally just for doing business. A few bathrooms and mostly just office space.

The support truck carries all our minibikes, golf carts, ancillary items, hospitality stuff, rain tires, the rest just support. And then we get into our three race trucks. Whereas back in the day, like you said, fixing things, it used to be more of an effort and a focus, especially when we had new cars every year to fabricate on the road.

Whereas the thought process anymore is the more engineers the better. Which it’s great. I mean it shows by our results. So, actually three of our three racing transporters have offices in them now rather than a fab shop.

Bruce Martin:

But what are the tools that are on these trucks that will actually fix something if you do have to go out and fix something.

Gary Yingst:

So, we do have a truck now, whereas we used to have in the front lounge, we had a full fabrication office with a lathe welder, I mean all the composite stuff. Whereas now, we kind of have made a smaller few lockers of it because we don't get into it as much as we used to.

But obviously, we've not run into anything we can't fix on the road. I'm sure the day's coming, but as of now, we still have a couple fabricators full-time and most of the tools we need.

Bruce Martin:

One of the great things about the Long Beach paddock is it's pretty wide open.

Gary Yingst:

It is.

Bruce Martin:

Whereas at a lot of street courses, for instance, St. Petersburg, some are set up in a parking garage, others are set up outside with the more entries that are at each race now, you're having to park closer and closer together. It looked like you were really separated by a foot or two this past race at St. Pete, but how challenging is that to set up once you arrive at the track?

Gary Yingst:

In our standard setup, the more cars we have, the harder it is. Because we connect our rigs together like in Aussie and a few others, McLaren. But obviously, if we have a tent that really starts to bring things in, but we're so used to parking them close together, it doesn't really faze our drivers anymore. They're really good at it.

Bruce Martin:

How long does it take to set up the work area where you lay down the tiles, you put up the awnings and the covers?

Gary Yingst:

And so, about the time that we get the green flag to park and we're actually pulling the brakes in our parking space to 10 upsides up, tile down, most of the garage set up, we're about with six to eight people, we're about four hours. So, that's really come down over the years. But it's basically the group you got and being efficient about it.

Bruce Martin:

The other thing about working for an IndyCar Series team is a lot of early mornings. So, once you do get to go home at the end of the day, yeah, you'll go out and grab a meal, maybe have a little bit of downtime with the guys, but there's still a lot of early wake up calls. And how important is that to just stick to that routine?

Gary Yingst:

It's huge because as we've all seen in the last few years since pre-COVID, the schedule's really changed, it's become more compact throughout the weekend. And the later practices, the later qualification sessions are now a thing of the past where we're getting wake up calls at 4, 4:30 in the morning where that only used to be Indianapolis.

So, the days of going out and having dinner all together and staying out a little bit later are a thing of the past. So, everybody's in pretty early and making sure they hit the wakeup call in the van first thing.

Bruce Martin:

Although if you win the Indianapolis 500, you do get to let it loose.

Gary Yingst:

We do let it loose and usually it's a team order that the whole team stays and celebrates.

Bruce Martin:

And I know that Tim Cindric, the president of Team Penske's, come up with some creative ideas to how to let you guys celebrate in Indianapolis. I know one year, it was the actual bars, the bicycle bars or whatever that-

Gary Yingst:

Everyone pop one polo on.

Bruce Martin:

Yeah. What are some of the other more unique celebrations at Indy?

Gary Yingst:

So, we've done that, we've done some game stuff. There's a place in Indy, Punch Bowl Social with all the games, we've done that. Obviously, we've done the club thing with after parties and driver parties and literally, just everything to keep people together.

We've even just done a dinner, we've done Fogo de Chao and just where everybody's together and really just taking the time to celebrate. Because that's one of the biggest things and the differences here at Team Penske compared to other teams, is other teams will celebrate a win for days and months.

Like it is a big thing but us, for some reason, we're just onto Detroit and focusing on the next thing. Even though we remember and really care about what just happened obviously the next day you're focused on turning around the car and getting to Detroit.

Bruce Martin:

The other thing that's interesting about Team Penske is if any of your drivers win, whether it be IndyCar, NASCAR, IMSA, you have a winner's toast a few days after the race at the race shop, and it's usually a pretty good … some pretty good food-

Gary Yingst:

Yeah.

Bruce Martin:

With a chance to toast the winner. How much does that really build team camaraderie and really make you guys go the extra effort?

Gary Yingst:

I think you're always trying to win the race regardless, but as far as the win toast and bringing the travel guys and the shop guys together, I really think it's done well because now, we used to just do it at Monday at three o'clock, whether the team was in the building or not.

And now, for example, like this past week in Texas, we waited until Tuesday and this has been happening for a while. We waited until everybody that was there is available so that everybody can celebrate together. And I really think that when we do win, not just celebrating the W, you look forward to that three o'clock having a beer and some good food together.

Bruce Martin:

We'll be right back to Pit Pass Indy after this short break.

[Music Playing]

Welcome back to Pit Pass Indy. And now, here's the rest of my interview with Gary Yingst, transportation coordinator of Team Penske for Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental.

As far as the transportation, how many tanks of fuel does each truck carry? How often do you have to refuel, and if you could just maybe give us a ballpark of what each tank of fuel would probably cost.

Gary Yingst:

So, obviously, the tanks in the truck, most are 150 each, so 300 just in the tractor, and the trailer itself carries 50 and the generator. Ours are a bit smaller, they're 125s because weight reasons and such because we do run down the road pretty heavy.

Those 250 gallons together just in the tractor, plus the trailer with another 50, down the road, they can get you 700 to 800 miles. And based upon the current diesel price, which is anywhere from $4 to $5 these days, you're paying $1,000 for fuel for a 10-hour drive.

So, out to Long Beach for example, it'll be each truck, $4,000 to $5,000 just to fill them up, to show up in Long Beach with full tanks.

Bruce Martin:

So, and you're taking how many trucks?

Gary Yingst:

Five on the INDYCAR SERIES, six with hospitality, three more incase and nine total.

Bruce Martin:

So, nine times that amount-

Gary Yingst:

And that's just one trip, yes.

Bruce Martin:

And then double it?

Gary Yingst:

Yes.

Bruce Martin:

For the trip back?

Gary Yingst:

Yes.

Bruce Martin:

Generally, when a person goes on a long car ride, it seems like the drive back takes longer than the drive up, is that the same phenomenon with a trucker?

Gary Yingst:

I actually think it's opposite. I actually think the drive home takes less than the drive out. Just because based upon your results and how you've dealt with the weekend, obviously, yes, the drive home can be longer if your results weren't good.

But for us, you're coming back home, it's been a long trip, you're excited to get home to family, friends. So, I think on that end, the drive home is a little more pleasurable.

Bruce Martin:

The importance of all the trucks traveling together, I'm going to go back, I believe it was 2009 or 2010, when Elio's truck had the-

Gary Yingst:

2008.

Bruce Martin:

2008, yep. Elio's truck had the wheel bearing fire-

Gary Yingst:

It did on its way to Sonoma.

Bruce Martin:

And burned to the ground. So, was there one of your trucks was behind that radioed to the driver, what had happened, and then did you guys immediately just get to work to try to put the fire out?

Gary Yingst:

So, that scenario is actually why we drive down the road pretty much within either CB radio distance or visual. Because if you remember, Bruce, we used to leave either Watkins Glen or I can't remember now — and head out to Sonoma for a test a week before the final race.

So, the one truck would go test, the other one would head home. That was when we were two car teams still. So, in that scenario, the one truck was already in Sonoma, so it was traveling alone. Since then, we've had it happen — not that, but similar instances where a tire was blowing, a bearing was about to go, similar things. But we've learned since 2008 so that's why we travel together.

Bruce Martin:

As far as mechanical failures, are wheel bearing failures probably the most hazardous?

Gary Yingst:

In the last few to 10 years, obviously, the teams throughout the paddock and throughout other series, brakes and wheel bearings are the number one cause of basically transporter fires. So, that's why every year, every one of our units that goes down the road, whether it turns a hundred miles or a hundred thousand, it goes and gets completely surgically disassembled and put back together.

Bruce Martin:

In 2020, a similar incident happened to Colton Herta's truck going to St. Petersburg for the race that never was held because of COVID that year. But when you hear that with a fellow team — it doesn't have to be Team Penske, but I mean, is it really something that the whole IndyCar paddock kind of commiserates and is able to support those guys because they know it's something that nobody wants to go through.

Gary Yingst:

Yeah, and if you've ever been in that situation, you feel helpless, especially, when you're trying to get to a race and perform. So, for that example, and I remember it 100%, we reached out because we're fortunate we have some resources that we were going to lend them a trailer, whatever they needed to get their stuff.

Because at that point, when we found out, we didn't know if it was a total loss or it was just the trailer, the equipment was damaged or not. But we offered to send a truck and trailer if they needed help.

Bruce Martin:

Now, to talk about our friends at Penske Truck Rental, I'm sure that from time to time, you probably depend on them to help bring in parts to maybe use as an auxiliary truck or maybe with an unexpected situation. So, what's the synergy level like between Team Penske and Penske Truck Rental?

Gary Yingst:

On our level, it's at the top. It is a 100%. We deal with PTL and the partners of PTL. Every week, we have service. We take all of our units there for service: trucks, trailers, our shop vans, our street cars, whatever we use here at shop, it goes to them for service except for the Ford and Chevy performance vehicles.

They obviously, go and get their service at other workplaces, but all of our box trucks, our transporters, straight trucks, anything we use to do business is meticulously maintained by PTL on a very strict service regiment.

Bruce Martin:

And do you feel that the team has a bit of advantage because the team is affiliated with one of the largest automotive companies in the world?

Gary Yingst:

I wouldn't say it hurts, but what's great about PTL and PTL’s partners and their services, they have a service called SOS, which I don't know if you're familiar with. It's an on-road 24-hour service. If you need help, we will help you.

So, Rogers extended that to all the race teams; the transporters, if they're on the road and they need service they're welcome to call.

Bruce Martin:

And as far as a lot of the guys at the shop, some of them are from other parts of the country. They get hired by the team. I'm sure they give Penske Truck Rental a call to help them relocate to the-

Gary Yingst:

They do. Absolutely.

Bruce Martin:

The North Carolina area.

Gary Yingst:

Yeah, we actually, as a relocation deal as far as moving, we'll offer a Penske truck if they're willing to do that or go down that road. But yeah, we try and stay in-house as much as possible. And it is very nice, especially with all the movement and logistics we do to have the ability for them to rent us stuff all the time.

Bruce Martin:

And as one of the great things about when you get a Penske truck from Penske Truck Rentals, the fact that they’re as meticulously prepared as you do your team here at Team Penske.

Gary Yingst:

Yeah, the attention to detail is … I mean, that's just Penske, you can see it on and off the racetrack and their trucks and every facility you walk into with that Penske name because Roger over the years, has made it a great point to just pop into these places and surprise, “Here I am.” So, if they know he's coming or have a feeling he's coming, the shops are in tiptop shape.

Bruce Martin:

And especially in a race like the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, there will be a lot of businesspeople that are going to come by your paddock area.

Whether they talk to Roger, whether they talk to Bud Denker, whether they talk to Tim Cindric — is that one of the busier times of the year in terms of business-to-business customers that come by and get an up close look at the race team and the cars?

Gary Yingst:

Long Beach is good. It's top five for sure. I want to say Indianapolis is the biggest just because of the stage it's on and the amount of detail we go to inside the garage. But Long Beach is good. There's a lot of West Coast stuff that happens there. A lot of these dealerships, PTLs and such, it's definitely top five.

Bruce Martin:

Now, you do the awning setup for most every race on the schedule. Some ovals have garages, but at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway you have gasoline alley with permanent garages.

Gary Yingst:

We do.

Bruce Martin:

How different is that set up and how valuable is to have that set up where you have basically, you can close the garage doors every night, lock them up and go home?

Gary Yingst:

So, I think that's valuable for so many different points. Whether it be just us, the guys, the ease of just operation, marketing, business to business, everything we do, it's a place to come and whether it be you're working on the car or showing the cars, it's just a great, great like base to work out of.

Bruce Martin:

And with the people who set that up, don't you send a crew up early?

Gary Yingst:

We do. We're sending a group up May 1st, which is our facilities group, and Jeffrey Barker and his team here, which have done it for years and years. And I think you'll find a little bit of a different look to us this year.

Bruce Martin:

And in a situation like Gasoline Alley in Indianapolis, is that where you utilize, say Penske Truck Rental for some of the stuff that you bring in to help set it up to turn it into an office?

Gary Yingst:

Yep. So, basically over, on Holt Road is one of the oldest facilities where we used to do pit stop practice at. When we'd leave for a couple days during the turnaround, we'd go over there and work.

We are over at Holt Road almost every day, whether it be turning a truck around, borrowing a cube van, using a box truck, going to Penske Chevrolet or Penske Honda or whoever up on 96th Street. So, they’re huge for helping us in Indianapolis.

Bruce Martin:

And of course, it all begins with the captain, Roger Penske.

Gary Yingst:

Yes, sir.

Bruce Martin:

When he enters the paddock area, do you feel his presence before he really arrives because he really is a motivating individual that you can just sense greatness.

Gary Yingst:

The great thing about Roger is you don't really know when he is coming, he just shows up. And what's great about that is it's kept the team ready all the time. He'll be there — where he used to come on a Saturday or Sunday, he's now there on a Thursday.

So, nobody's really letting their guard down if the captain's coming in or not. So, but yes, of course, when he is there, I mean, he comes up, he walks up, shakes your hand, usually calls you by name because he remembers everything and just asks you how you're doing.

Bruce Martin:

And also, the crew takes great pride in being meticulous in terms of the clean uniforms, clean shirts, no grease on the white shirt, nothing like that. And to present that professional image in a lot of ways, he started that when he arrived at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1969 because he said that they were called the college kids with the cruise shirts.

But it raised the level of professionalism in the sport. And how valuable do you think that is because every race team now has some influence. It was started by Roger Penske and Penske Racing.

Gary Yingst:

Well, I think it's great for the sport. I think it's great for all the teams. I think it's easier to find sponsorship. One of the biggest things, usually, we will get back letters from families or kids, is “Thanks for helping.” And you hear all the things about how you guys are so clean and meticulous, clean-shaven and polite.

Well then when you get some of these families comment on it and you'll see letters hung up on the bulletin board of how we help somebody's child or something that was in special need. They always make mention of how professional, clean, meticulous, properly-groomed, polite. So, that's just a bit of self-worth.

But for the sport, I think it's huge now that all the teams, even some of the teams that aren't as well-funded are as meticulous or how should I say, just defined — are that way now as well. And it's just good because it's easier for a sponsor to say, “Here I want to help you out.”

Bruce Martin:

And of course, you feel that same professionalism whether you go into a Penske Chevrolet dealership or a Penske Truck Rental location. It seems to be the common thread that begins at the top.

Gary Yingst:

Sure. And every time we go into a PTL, we try and be as professional and as at the top of the game we can be because those guys, they love to see the race stuff come in. It’s a treat for the transporters and the guys to come in. So, we'll usually try and take them something too, something nice to make sure they know the gratifications there.

Bruce Martin:

And then wrapping up here with Gary Yingst, transportation coordinator at Team Penske after a 40-hour one-way trip to Long Beach, 40 hours back, does that make the nine hour trip to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the open test seem like just driving down to the supermarket?

Gary Yingst:

So, we, because we're based here, we will go right from Long Beach to Indianapolis. But yes, anywhere in a 10-hour stint seems pretty easy after one of those drives, especially, when we used to go to Edmonton and Sonoma, which were upwards of 40 hours plus, almost 50. So, yeah, one of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is never bad.

Bruce Martin:

So, what is the route you will take to get from Long Beach to Indianapolis?

Gary Yingst:

So, we will most likely go across 40, straight out of California, and then cut up through New Mexico and such.

Bruce Martin:

And then you will take I-70. At what point do you cut on I-70?

Gary Yingst:

Oh, so you'll end up just kind of working your way up through Kansas and Missouri until you get going across. I think it's Joplin where we usually cut down.

Bruce Martin:

So, it'll be I-35 up to-

Gary Yingst:

Yes.

Bruce Martin:

I-70.

Gary Yingst:

Yep.

Bruce Martin:

And I-70 straight into Indianapolis. Then will you go straight from Indianapolis to Barber, or will you return to Mooresville?

Gary Yingst:

No, we'll come home because now, we'll have to reset from our oval cars to obviously, a road course package. But the great thing about us, and not being from Indianapolis where everybody else is, and having a few more resources, we'll have a truck deployed from here with the speedway stuff, switch out the street course stuff, bring it back so that's now here at the workshop getting worked on a little bit so that when the guys do come back from the Open Test, it's not as much of a grind.

Bruce Martin:

And that's got to be one of the easiest trips to plan because it's simply I-77, I-85, hit I-20 in Atlanta.

Gary Yingst:

Well, you said that dirty city word, “Atlanta.” Not that it's dirty, but boy, you can't get into some traffic there.

Bruce Martin:

Yeah, I've seen entire calendar years go by sitting in traffic in Atlanta. But once you get on I-20, it's-

Gary Yingst:

A beautiful ride.

Bruce Martin:

All the way into Barber Motorsports Park.

Gary Yingst:

Yep.

Bruce Martin:

Well, Gary Yingst, very fascinating stuff. I know there's a lot of work involved and a lot of logistics involved in coordination, but Gary Yingst, transportation coordinator, Team Penske, thank you for joining us today on Pit Pass Indie presented by Penske Truck Rental.

[Music Playing]

And that puts a checkered flag on this edition of Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental. We want to thank our guest, 106th Indianapolis 500 winner, Marcus Ericsson of Chip Ganassi Racing, and Team Penske, transportation coordinator; Gary Yingst for joining us on today's podcast.

Along with loyal listeners like you, our guest help make Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental, your path to victory lane for all things IndyCar. And because of our guest and listeners, Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental is proud to be the winner of the best podcast by the National Motorsports Press Association. For more IndyCar coverage, follow me at Twitter at BruceMartin_500.

This has been a production of Evergreen Podcasts. A special thanks to our production team. Executive producers are Brigid Coyne and Gerardo Orlando. Recordings and edits were done by me, Bruce Martin, and final mixing was done by Dave Douglas. Learn more at evergreenpodcasts.com.

Until next time, be sure to keep it out of the wall.