IRL, Indy 500: Greg Ray Practice Notes from Indy
18 May 1999
Greg Ray#2 Glidden-Menards Dallara/Aurora/Firestone
Practice Notes/Quotes - Monday, May 17, 1999
The 83rd Indianapolis 500
Indianapolis Motor Speedway
For the third day in a row, Greg Ray and the #2 Glidden-Menards Dallara/Aurora/ Firestone entry recorded the fastest lap of the day in practice for the May 30th running of the 83rd Indianapolis 500. Ray drove the back-up Glidden-Menards car to a fast lap of 224.843 mph. Today's next-closest competitors (John Hollansworth, Kenny Brack and Arie Luyendyk) were in the 221-mph range. Ray also drove his primary car to a fast lap of 219.7 mph today. Ray's fast time from Saturday in the back-up car (a track-record 225.887 mph), and his fast time from Sunday in the primary car (225.124 mph) are the first- and third-fastest times overall from the opening three days. Luyendyk's 224.674 mph run on opening day is the second-fastest of the opening three days. A brief but heavy thunder shower brought today's practice to an early end at roughly 4 p.m. CDT. Practice resumes Tuesday with Pole Day qualifying set for Saturday (May 22).
GREG RAY - "Today's conditions were far from perfect, but I really thought we could do a 225 (mph) and I was really trying. It was windy, the track was greasy, and it was getting pretty hot and muggy out there today. Maybe as a personal challenge to defy the conditions or something, I really wanted that 225. But, overall, we're pretty happy with the work we got accomplished today. We ran 219s with full fuel and second-run tires and the conditions being what they were. The weather stopped us from being able to go out there and try to lay down a faster lap. But that will wait till another day. Basically, we're trying to turn over all the stones, crossing off the things that aren't working for us, and trying to learn as much as we can."
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