Kurt Busch to undergo Indy 500 rookie orientation UPDATE:
It’s been 14 years since Kurt Busch was last called a rookie. And even though Busch has a Sprint Cup championship trophy at home, he’s still a rookie open-wheel driver as far as the Indianapolis 500 is concerned. That’s why Busch and four other drivers will take part in the rookie orientation or veteran driver refresher course to be eligible to compete in the May 25th Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the track announced Tuesday. Busch will join four other drivers - Mikhail Aleshin, Martin Plowman, Jack Hawksworth and 1995 Indy 500 winner and former CART and F1 champion Jacques Villeneuve - for the three-pronged orientation and driving program on Tuesday, April 29th and Monday, May 5th. Villeneuve will only have to complete the final two phases of the three-phase program to be recertified to race in the 500 because of his prior experience there. The orientation/refresher is designed that all five drivers can potentially complete all three phases in one day. If they are able to do so, the second day would be for practice - or if they need more instruction.(NBC Sports)(4-23-2014)
UPDATE:
Andretti Autosport unveiled Monday the black-and-white #26 car that Kurt Busch seeks to race in the Indianapolis 500, and Busch will drive that car Tuesday in the first day of rookie orientation at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Busch is attempting to become the fourth driver to race in the Indianapolis 500 and Coca-Cola 600 in the same day. John Andretti, Robby Gordon and Tony Stewart have done it. Stewart finished in the top 10 in both races in 1999 and 2001. The double was last run by Robby Gordon in 2004.
Rookie orientation at Indianapolis Motor Speedway consists of three phases where drivers must maintain a consistent speed within a preset range. Typically the range is 200-210 mph, 210-215 mph and then 215 and above. Once they have met those standards while being judged by observers, they are cleared to practice for the Indianapolis 500.
A second day of testing will be May 5. Busch will be allowed to run that day regardless of if he completes the rookie requirements Tuesday, an IndyCar official confirmed. Busch is scheduled to return to Indianapolis Motor Speedway May 11 - the day after the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Kansas Speedway - for practice. Suretone Entertainment will be Busch’s sponsor.(Motor Racing Network) (4-29-2014)
Toyota moving U.S. headquarters to Texas:
Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. announced that it will pack up and move its headquarters from sunny Southern California to Texas, after 57-years in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The move will take place over the next three years and will affect about 4000 marketing, management, and communications jobs. Expected to move to Toyota's new campus in Plano, Texas, right outside of Dallas, are approximately 2000 employees from Torrance, Calif., 1000 employees from Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America in Erlanger, Ky., and a number of employees located in New York, NY. Toyota will break ground on its new campus this year, with construction expected to finish by late 2016 or early 2017.
A number of the automaker’s operations will be unaffected including its current distribution centers, other regional offices, Toyota Racing Development, AirFlite Inc, Toyota Info Technology Center, and its Calty Design Research campuses in Southern California and Ann Arbor.
The reasons for Toyota's exodus from the Southland are many, reports the Los Angeles Times. When Toyota launched its North American operations in 1957, the Japanese automaker picked L.A. as its U.S. headquarters because of easy port access in Long Beach and San Pedro, and easy airline access to Tokyo. Now with about three-quarters of its production located in the South Eastern United States, a move to Texas puts Toyota big wigs closer to the company's factories. The other reason for Toyota's move is expenses. The Los Angeles metro area is reportedly the ninth-most expensive in the U.S., while the Dallas metro area is 19th. Toyota would also pay less business and real estate taxes in Texas than it does in California.(Motor Trend)(4-29-2014)