| | Associated Press
INDIANAPOLIS -- Michael Schumacher's first lap around the new 2.6-mile, 13-turn Formula One circuit at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway was probably the slowest he'll ever run.
The German star, locked in a tense points duel with two-time defending world champion Mika Hakkinen, wheeled a scooter painted the same blood red as his Ferrari race car in a lumbering, stop-and-start trip around the layout on a quiet Thursday afternoon as preparations continued for the official start of practice for
the U.S. Grand Prix.
Like everyone else, his main preparation for this visit to Indy had been studying the computer models built by the team engineers.
Looking as intense on his solitary ride as he appears in his race car, Schumacher stopped at a concrete curbing and pounded on it with his foot. He then moved slowly on to the first tire barrier in the infield portion of the track, stopping long enough to peek under the covering to see how the tires were stacked.
"It is important to know these things," Schumacher said before donning his helmet and stepping into one of the official Mercedes pace cars for a faster look at the track that includes a portion of the historic banked 2.5-mile oval on which the Indianapolis 500 and NASCAR's Brickyard 400 are run.
"My approach is to get out there and see what it is," Schumacher said. "But, until we put our race car on the track, we will not really know what we are seeing."
McLaren's Hakkinen, who leads Schumacher by just two points with three races remaining, also got out in a pace car, as did several other drivers. In fact, just about all of the F1 drivers managed to drive or walk the circuit by Thursday afternoon.
"I think it's better to do both, to go around with the car and by foot to look at the curves and understand the characteristics of the corners," the Finnish driver said. "And because part of the circuit is banked, it's important to understand how deep it is and if you can really use special lines in some places and also to see
if the circuit is bumpy or not."
F1's first visit to the United States since 1991 will officially
begin with practice Friday.
Since there has been no opportunity for testing by any of the F1
teams, the first time on the race track for the sleek,
sophisticated race cars will be a real learning experience.
Heinz Harald-Frentzen, who drives for the Jordan team, was the
first driver to set foot -- or tire -- on the track, driving around
the just-completed circuit in a rental car during a visit to the speedway in June on the way to the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal -- F1's only other North American stop.
"The only circuit that comes close to resembling this is
Hockenheim," Frentzen said, referring to the longtime home of the
German Grand Prix. "But this track is more complex, and finding
the correct aerodynamic set-up will be a huge challenge for all the
F1 teams."
The infield portion of the course will be slower than most F1
tracks, while the segment on the oval is expected to see speeds up
to 220 mph -- among the fastest anywhere F1 races.
"That could make it a little more difficult to get totally
comfortable," Schumacher said. "Usually, at a new track, you get
into a sort of rhythm within a couple of laps and then you just
develop the set-up and adapt it until the final moment of
qualifying and the race. That is what I expect here."
The history of the Indianapolis track, which dates to its
opening as a test track in 1909 and the first 500-mile race in
1911, is lost on many of the F1 drivers -- most of them in their
20s.
Ralf Schumacher, 25, Michael's younger brother who drives for
Williams, said, "To be honest, I do not have much interest. I do
not know much about the Indianapolis history. For me, it's just
exciting to come here to America and basically see how we are
received here and drive a type of circuit like we have never driven
before."
Asked if he expects American race fans to take to the F1 version
of the open-wheel sport now that it has apparently found a home at
Indy, he said, "I've heard everything is sold out on Sunday. ...
That's a good sign for us. I just hope that we entertain the
American crowd well.
"I mean, maybe it rains so they can see we race in the rain as
well. That would be something new for them. It should be good."
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