CANADIAN DRIVERS HIT THE ROAD
James Hinchcliffe is the only Canadian currently racing full time in the Verizon IndyCar Series. But the Indy cars aren’t the only vehicles that will be in action at this weekend’s Honda Indy Toronto. Here is a look at the other Canadian drivers who will
PUPIL TO TEACHER: I’M GOING TO KICK YOUR BUTT
Russell Boyle is an up-and-coming Canadian racer who’s taken a different route to attract attention that could result in financial backing.
Instead of going formula car racing — although he and his family are taking a serious look at Pro Mazda in 2017 — the 16-year-old Boyle will once again be racing Saturday and Sunday in the Stadium Super Trucks Series at the Honda Indy.
And the kart veteran will be going up against his sometimes-coach and mentor, the legendary Paul Tracy.
“Tell him when you’re talking to him that I’m going to kick his butt,” Boyle, of Toronto, said the other day during one of two conversations we had. The first time, he’d said, “I think I can take him,” but his confidence had apparently grown between chats.
And he didn’t say “butt.” It was something a little more graphic.
Tracy, who’d tweeted a few weeks ago that he had the itch and was going to go truck racing at the Honda Indy, had no comment about the threat, but Boyle said his coach has always marched to his own drum. For instance, he had a much different way of imparting knowledge than other coaches.
Instead of quietly talking to a student driver, and passing on instructions about rev limits and apexes of corners and momentum and all that other stuff, according to Boyle, Tracy would get into a kart in front of his, yell back, “Keep up!” and go roaring off down the track. “It was up to me to stay with him and watch how he did things and adapt my driving style that way so I could go as fast as he was. It was pretty fun, and I learned a lot.”
But then Boyle got serious. “He’s always given me great advice on and off the track, and he’s helped us by pointing us in the direction of sponsors and that sort of thing.”
Stadium Trucks is a great series because it’s got lots of action. As well as flat-out racing around the Honda Indy circuit, there are ramps at strategic parts of the track that the trucks have to jump over. It can be pretty spectacular — particularly if two trucks are side-by-side.
Boyle, who had a problem in one of the two races held last year (he wound up with the truck on its side), said the trick to a quick lap time is lining up the truck to go over the ramp properly.
“You have to try to go at the ramp as straight as possible, and then you tap the brake just before you get to it, to lower the front end a bit, and then you floor it as you launch so that you have good speed and trajectory when you land. It’s great for helping with car control that I expect to be able to use as I progress in racing.”
The Stadium Super Trucks will practice at 1 p.m. Friday and then race Saturday at 3 p.m., and Sunday at 1:40 p.m., just before the big Indy car race gets flagged off.