May 12th marked the 20th anniversary of Mark Dismore qualifying our 2001 Dallara Indy Car on the inside of row 2 for the 85th running of the Indianapolis 500. Back then its wardrobe was the bright red, black and yellow colors of sponsor Delphi Technologies. Powered by the ultra-fast and reliable Oldsmobile Aurora engine, Dismore’s 4-lap average was 224.964 mph, just an eyelash from capturing the pole. In fact, a wafer thin 1.073 mph separated the top four qualifiers that year.
What has always fascinated me about Indy Cars is that when they are dialed in the feeling is like hitting the A7 note on a Stradivarius and when they aren’t….well, it’s like wrestling a bear with a bad toothache. On May 27th, 2001, Dismore and his Dallara were one with the universe. Car and driver were dialed in and poised to make a serious run at the checkered flag. What they didn’t know was that everyone else’s universe was about to turn upside down. Pole sitter Scott Sharp crashed on the first lap with a second crash occurring before lap 17. Add in two major rain delays that day and suddenly a month of promise turned into a day of disaster. Dismore dodged wreckage and rain drops for 500 miles and finished a frustrating 16th. It wouldn’t be his best finish at Indy but it was his best chance to win.