Carpenter Takes 4th in Thursday's Pocono Test, Learning More About the Tricky Triangle

Carpenter Takes 4th in Thursday's Pocono Test, Learning More About the Tricky Triangle

Topics: Ed Carpenter, Pocono IndyCar 400

Carpenter Takes 4th in Thursday's Pocono Test, Learning More About the Tricky Triangle

Tom Blattler
Ed Carpenter Racing
July 4, 2013

Carpenter Posts 4th Fastest Speed Thursday in Pocono testing.

July 4th 2013 - LONG POND, Pa. -- The Tricky Triangle lived up to its name Thursday for team owner/driver Ed Carpenter and his ECR/Fuzzy's team.

The unique 2.5-mile tri-oval of Pocono Raceway proved to be a difficult adjustment for many of the IZOD IndyCar Series teams in Thursday's (July 4)test session. And Carpenter was among the group attempting to figure out the new racing surface.

The IndyCar Series will be making its first appearance in 24 years this Sunday (July 7) when the green flag drops for the Pocono Indy 400 fueled by Sunoco. The last IndyCar race winner at Pocono was Danny Sullivan in 1989.

Despite Carpenter's learning curve, the Butler University grad still managed to clock the fourth fastest speed of the day in the 24-driver field. Driving the No. 20 Fuzzy's Ultra Premium Vodka Chevrolet, Ed recorded a lap of 41.1357 seconds for a speed of 218.715 miles per hour, easily bettering the old 1989 track record set for Emerson Fittipaldi of 211.715.

Fatsest on the day was Marco Andretti, who drove his Chevy-powered car to a 220.963 lap.

"We were pretty decent this morning, but we tried some things after lunch that didn�t work as well," said Carpenter, the Indy 500 polesitter. "So we went back to other settings and the car was better. I wasn�t too happy with changes but the ECR/Fuzzy�s team did a good job to get us back in line. We ended up finishing strong. I would have liked to have gotten in a little traffic driving today. Many guys were getting in group running and we had to get the car back the way I liked it. I do think we learned a lot today.

"I think we can be in the mix but there are some very fast cars out there. Like all season long, the competition is tough. Pocono is definitely like Indianapolis in that the conditions really change a lot. Sometimes the heat or wind can affect the car. You don�t have to change much to give you a different feel. We are trying to figure out how the place changes. We are trying to adapt to the changes quicker too. And those things come with the new track for us and the new racing surface.�

Carpenter and the rest of the 24 drivers will qualify on Saturday (July 6) at 1:15 p.m. EDT with the green flag set for 12:15 p.m. EDT. The Pocono Indy 400 will be televised live on ABC-TV.