Milka Duno 16 en Kansas

La piloto venezolana Milka Duno finalizó en la décima sexta posición en la tercera válida de Indycar, carrera disputada el domingo en el óvalo Kansas Speedway, en los Estados Unidos, en su retorno oficial a la categoría junto a la formación Dreyer & Reinbold.

Video: Milka Duno y las 500 Millas de Indianapolis

Los fuertes vientos que se hicieron sentir a lo largo de todo el fin de semana en el óvalo de Kansas Speedway, perjudicaron severamente la estabilidad del auto de Milka Duno, en especial en las curvas 3 y 4, lo que generaba mucho subviraje que le impedía sacar el máximo rendimiento a su máquina.

Milka tomó la salida desde el duodécimo puesto en el pelotón de veintidós monoplazas, luego de obtener el sábado su mejor posición de largada a un promedio superior a los 330 kilómetros por hora, sin embargo, durante la carrera dominical su máquina confrontó severos problemas de estabilidad, por lo que la caraqueña tuvo que conformarse con finalizar la prueba a cinco vueltas del vencedor, el campeón defensor Scott Dixon.

¿El auto era sencillamente inmanejable en las curvas 3 y 4 - relató Milka - el viento era muy fuerte y la puesta a punto que teníamos no nos favoreció, era imposible tomar las curvas a fondo porque sino iba a perder la parte delantera y terminar contra el muro. Nuestra meta era rodar constantemente en 26 segundos y fracción, pero hubo muchas vueltas en las que ni siquiera pudimos bajar de los 27 segundos. Durante las clasificaciones tuvimos un auto estupendo, debo agradecer a todo el equipo Dreyer & Reinbold por el gran trabajo realizado. Lo importante fue haber culminado la competencia alejada de los problemas, a pesar de no poder estar con el pelotón me sentí muy bien a lo largo de toda la prueba, y ahora nos toca enfocarnos en la carrera más importante del año, las 500 Millas de Indianápolis¿.

La competencia de Kansas tuvo un inicio prometedor para Milka, colocándose en el puesto trece antes de efectuar su primera detención debido a una bandera amarilla, pero inmediatamente después de salir de los pits, su Dallara Honda con los colores de Citgo, PDV, Cantv, Inatur, empezó a perder estabilidad, por lo que de inmediato cayó al fondo del pelotón. Más adelante, Duno recibió una penalización en los pits al tocar una pistola de aire de otro equipo y en su parada final el motor de su auto se apagó, situaciones que la llevaron a completar 195 de las 200 vueltas de la carrera.

El segundo auto del equipo Dreyer & Reinbold conducido por el británico Mike Conway también sufrió los severos problemas de estabilidad que confrontó el de Milka Duno, pero el prospecto inglés tuvo que abandonar al rozar la pared lo que rompió una suspensión. La próxima válida de Indycar se disputará el último fin de semana de mayo, mes en el que toda la categoría se concentrará en Indiana para prepararse para la carrera más importante del calendario, las 500 Millas de Indianápolis.

Road Runner Turbo Indy 300 Full of Twists and Turns for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Kansas City, Kansas (April 26, 2009)- Dreyer & Reinbold Racing's first oval of the season was full of twists and turns for the team. The Indianapolis-based squad battled windy weather conditions and plenty of action during the Road Runner Turbo Indy 300 in Kansas City, Kansas today. As the green flag dropped, both Milka Duno (No. 23 CITGO) and Mike Conway (No. 24 Dad's Root Beer) were off to a very good start. They had a clean first lap and immediately started to get into the groove. Conway gained two positions going from 16th to 14th, while his teammate, Duno, went from 12th to 13th position. Both drivers were running a steady race and after the first full course yellow, had quick pit stops on lap 16, but then it started to change. Rookie Mike Conway was taking advantage of his opportunity, as he gained positions and experience during his first oval race. The Brit had a taste of what it was like to run through traffic and battled Justin Wilson for a couple of laps. Things started to turn for Conway on lap 68 when came into the pits for his second stop. He received a minor pit infraction that resulted in a drive thru penalty, putting him in 19th position. On lap 104 the 25 year-old had too much under-steer going into turn one and brushed the wall damaging his front right wishbone, ending his day early. It was a similar story for Duno. The Venezuelan started off strong, but unfortunately struggled with under-steer due to the windy conditions in turns three and four. On lap 97, Milka came in for her second stop and as she tried to get around another team's air hose, but she made contact with it, which resulted in a pit infraction and she had a drive thru penalty. After Duno's final stop the car stalled, but she finished the race in 16th position. Dreyer & Reinbold Racing looks forward to the month of May. The team heads back to Indianapolis as they prepare for the Indianapolis 500. What they have to say... Mike Conway: "I enjoyed my first oval. I was moving up a little bit at the beginning of the race, buying my time and keeping it safe. We were looking good, but when I came into the pits I locked the front left and I'm sorry to the crew, because I clipped one of the guys and luckily he is okay. We got a drive thru and lost two laps. The Dad's Root Beer car felt really good after that and we were making great time, but unfortunately our day ended early. I feel that Kansas prepared me well and I look forward to the month of May." Milka Duno: "We had a great car all weekend, but the weather conditions created too many problems in turns three and four. There was a lot of under-steer and when we left the pits the car was good for two laps, but then I started to have under-steer and I wasn't able to keep the car flat, because I would lose the front of the car every time I took that corner." Dennis Reinbold: "With Mike we had a pit incident that put us down two laps, but once we sorted through that we were running pretty quick. In fact we were running times that were equal to, and at times, faster than what the leaders were doing. We made some adjustments to the car and Mike got out and did a great job of passing people and got a lot of experience running in traffic, which is what we wanted to accomplish. Unfortunately, his car had some push and caught a gust of wind and brushed against the wall, which is what ended our day. With Milka, she did a great job qualifying yesterday. She had a good start to the race. Everyone was having trouble in turns three and four where the wind was so strong. She had pretty severe push with the car and couldn't stay on the gas all the way through there, but she held on and drove through all of those stints like she was supposed to and held on. We are disappointed with our finishes, but we learned a lot heading into Indy."

Terra Autos / Prototipos