INDYCARNATION

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Ryan Hunter-Reay’s packing checklist includes the usual clothing and personal items … and his thick binder. He doesn’t leave home without the compilation of racing notes.

They are Hunter-Reay’s compass, a process begun early in his open-wheel racing career and continued through his IZOD IndyCar Series run. They’ve served him well, another element to his resume and a calling card with the various engineers along the way.

“It’s been an interesting road for me in that I’ve had the chance where I’ve jumped from team to team to team, so it’s been critical that I be as analytical as I can of what I’m doing on the track and not to lose touch with what I’ve done in the past,” said Hunter-Reay, who will compete in the No. 37 IZOD car in the season opener March 14 in Brazil.

He’ll be working with Ray Gosselin at Andretti Autosport – his fourth team in as many years in the series that spans 40 races.

“Every driver and engineer is different, and his level of preparation before an event is certainly different than what I’ve seen other drivers do,” said Gosselin, who was the race engineer for Hideki Mutoh last year. “You go through the previous history to get a feel. By the time we start talking in detail, the goal is that we’re on the same page. If you’re going to have a successful driver-engineer relationship, you’re going to have to agree on things. The sooner you can come to understand what a driver needs regardless of what your opinion is of what a racetrack needs, it’s him that has to be happy and go fast.

“The fact that he’s that thorough is encouraging that we’ll be able to get to whatever our optimal level of performance is. Hopefully that’s P1 all the time, but if the best we can do on a given weekend is third, then let’s be third and not be sixth and say, ‘Oh, if we had just done these things we could have been on the podium.’ Let’s do our maximum every time out.”

 Hunter-Reay visited the Indianapolis shop multiple times during the off-season to set a course and build relationships. He enters the season with a victory (Watkins Glen in 2008) and 16 top-10 finishes. Gosselin appreciates the input. Hunter-Reay appreciates having a voice after doing his due diligence that also includes watching race video.

“After every on-track activity, I do detailed notes not only on what I find from the track but what I get from the car and the changes we made to the car – from the dampers to the ride heights, wing settings, everything,” Hunter-Reay said. “At the end of the weekend, I lay out a complete test or race report for the engineering staff and for myself.

“My binder that I take to all the tracks has everything of relevance that I’ve done in an IndyCar, and I also I have my notes from when I was driving a Lola or a Reynard. When you’re leading up to a race weekend, there are many steps involved. Sometimes we only have a couple days of turnaround, but I’ll go to my notes and see what I’ve done in the past, what the trims are for the track, how things progress during a weekend, how much grip comes to the track and what that does to the set-up. I’m also looking at race videos, one or two years prior broadcasts of that particular race and I’ll look at any in-car cameras I have of myself. See what went right, what went wrong and what’s needed when we go back to that track.”

The detailed-oriented reports started in the 2000 Barber Dodge Pro Series season, and the corresponding work ethic was instilled by Oswaldo Negri and Peter Argetsinger (his unofficial driver coaches).

“Even when I was at the end of my karting tenure, we started using some data acquisition and I really liked that side of it – analyzing everything you’ve done in the car,” Hunter-Reay said. “You can go back and be more prepared when you get back in the kart.

“The reason I kept doing (the reports) was because it kept working. You can only drive by the seat of your pants so much. You have to be prepared before you get to the track, especially here where it’s the top level of open-wheel racing. It’s an accomplishment to get a top 10 because the competition is so high.”

Referencing reports in the binder, combined with open communication between Hunter-Reay and his engineer, is the first line of preparation to achieving success on the racetrack.

“The most important relationship on a race team is the driver to the engineer,” he said. “It’s not just ‘OK, let’s put this change on’ and you go out and it goes better. If there’s miscommunication or a misunderstanding, if you miss a few changes or go down the wrong road and wind up confused after one practice session, you’re behind the 8-ball all weekend.

“That relationship is critical and that’s what’s been tough for me starting over every year with new engineers. I’m very thankful for the opportunities I’ve had; I’ve driven with great teams and here I am going into what is probably the best opportunity of my career. There’s a positive side that I’ve jumped around. It’s made me very detailed-oriented.

“I have to bring to the team what I know what I like in a race car. I can’t just show up and say ‘OK, guys, put a set-up on the car and I’ll drive the heck out of it.’ That’s all well and good but it doesn’t get you very far. They’re a very professional and prepared team. I really like their approach. They don’t miss anything; they’re analyzing everything there is to analyze.”