Monday Extra
Camping it up: Winners, losers and more from the Glen
The IndyCar Series hit the road Sunday with Justin Wilson coming out on top at the Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen
WATKINS GLEN — The Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen had its share of ups and downs, highlights and lowlights, losers and winners. Its biggest winner wasn't even the winning driver. Here's a look at the IndyCar Series' annual visit to Watkins Glen International.
Big winner: Justin Wilson won his second IndyCar Series race with a dominating late-race performance, beating Ryan Briscoe by 4.99 seconds.
Bigger winner: Dale Coyne, Wilson's team owner. Dale Coyne Racing's owner had been a part of open-wheel racing since 1984 but hadn't won as either a driver or an owner in his previous 557 starts.
Big week for big winner: Coyne's birthday is Wednesday. The Illinois native will turn 55.
Big loser: Ryan Hunter-Reay came to the Glen as the defending champion, but is struggling this season under new owner A.J. Foyt. Things got worse as he failed to even complete one lap, getting caught up in a wreck and finishing dead last in the 21-car field. He skidded from 12th back to 15th in the points standings as well.
Big non-driving loser: Gov. David A. Paterson was showered with boos during pre-race ceremonies.
Deserved worse: Marco Andretti managed a fifth-place finish. Early in the race, he was a lap down and decided to race the leaders as if he was one of them.
"I don't know what the guy was thinking, getting into the mix of the leaders," said third-place finisher Scott Dixon. "I guess what goes around, comes around."
"I was pretty disappointed, we've seen a lot of that with [lapped] traffic," said Briscoe. "At a certain point, guys should have a bit more respect, and let the race unfold."
All talk, no traction: Longtime Canadian standout driver Paul Tracy made his first appearance at the Glen and said, "At this point of my career, I'm not out there to finish races. I am out there to win."
Tracy started 14th and finished 20th after losing control between Turns Eight and Nine.
"I was just trying to get through the race," he said after the incident. "I was just trying to follow Briscoe and Dixon, but I just outdid myself and threw it into the wall."
Race for recruits: University at Buffalo football coach Turner Gill gave a strong starting command for the race as the grand marshal, a role he said he used to spread the word about UB: "It's another opportunity for the University at Buffalo to get our name out there in July," he said. "That hasn't happened in the past, so it's great to do that."
Most welcome sight: Mike Paz, a veteran Watkins Glen and Western New York race announcer who is from the Rochester area, was telling racing and announcing tales with old comrades.
Paz was in a wheelchair for his first visit to the track since suffering a serious stroke this spring. Paz is not only heard in New York but at major tracks like Daytona.
Best scene: Jean Argetsinger and her late husband, Cameron — who developed the original 6.6-mile sports car circuit through the streets of Watkins Glen — were inducted into the track's "Legends of the Glen."
Jean Argetsinger accepted the award and posed for a picture with outgoing track president Craig Rust and incoming president — and Hamburg native — Mike Printup.
Best-located IndyCar race fans: They just might be those that live in Buffalo. It's 131 miles to the Glen, but it is 100 miles to the series' next stop: this coming weekend's Honda Indy Toronto.
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