The Brickyard

Blowback

Kevin worked the simulator, keeping the wheel steady in the simulated IMS short chute between the simulated turns 1 & 2. Simulators could not replace actually being on the track, because they're simulations, as the name suggests. But they were still invaluable in modern racing, even though the only racing equipment Kevin wore right now was a pair of blue gloves.

Skip, Reggie, Tom, and the team's director of racing and competition, Oswaldo "Ozzie" Guttierez, watched, taking notes and examining the data. Reggie leaned to whisper something in Skip's ear, then turned his attention to his son, two sims down from Kevin, with Deschamps in between. Deschamps's crew chief, Greg Baldwin, and Marcus's crew chief watched from the same spot, albeit focused on their respective drivers.

All three drivers were set up in their own simulator, just a seat from the Dallara DW12, in front of a U-shaped screen that wrapped around each driver. The simulated IMS displayed on the flatscreens in front of them, a 180-degree display. Unlike the high-tech simulators that F1 teams, or even IndyCar's chassis provider Dallara use, these particular simulators at the Team Disney facility on Chicago's Goose Island were more like glorified arcade or home simulator setups. Yet, with the high-tech software, and seat motion simulators, and the barebones setup in the simulator room, it was as good as they could get. They probably weren't the only ones, either. IndyCar teams don't even have a fraction of the budget F1 teams have.

This barebones setup was in one of the bigger rooms at headquarters and set up like this: Kevin, Deschamps, and Marcus were all lined up in their sim rigs from left to right. Their crew chiefs and crew members followed the simulations behind them, computers set up on folding wooden tables, displaying real-time data about the car, track temp, and surface.

Going into the virtual turn 3, Kevin understeered and slipped up the track. Tom groaned. "Come on, Kevin, what're you doing!? You can't make that kinda—"

"Tom," Reggie interjected.

"Mistake in the Five—"

"Tom!"

"Hundred and expect to win—"

"TOM!"

Tom stopped, turned to Reggie, who was unhappy with him. "Calm down, it's just a sim."

Sighing, Tom turned his attention back to the simulators.

Clenching his teeth, Kevin sped up through turn 4, almost running into a virtual car in front of him.

"Easy, buddy," said Skip. "Take some deep breaths, alright?"

Following Skip's suggestion, Kevin re-gripped the steering wheel. He wondered why his dad couldn't keep his mouth shut while he was driving, but that was about the last of his complaints about his father. Action in the simulated race brought his attention back to where it belonged, as a pair of virtual cars got tangled up in front of him, forcing him to brake and swerve out of the way just in time.

"Hope that wasn't one of you guys," Kevin said to Deschamps and Marcus.

"Nope," said Marcus."

"Not me," Deschamps answered.

"Nah, it was Simon Pagenaud and Scott Dixon," said Skip.

"Aw, I wanted it to be Barrichello," Kevin chuckled.

"Alright, we're gonna restart," said Skip. He nodded to one of the sim controllers. The sim reset, the cars lined up in a two-by-two formation seen in NASCAR restarts that IndyCar was bringing back for oval tracks. Kevin found himself right behind a virtual Kathrin Muller. As soon as they were given the go-ahead, all three drivers pressed the gas pedal in their sim rigs, their virtual cars virtually screaming down the virtual IMS front straight away.