Munoz, Allmendinger impress in their Indy 500 debuts - MotorSportsTalk

Considering the manic amount of lead changing that took place during the 97th Indianapolis 500, it’s possible to assume that Andretti Autosport rookie Carlos Munoz (pictured, right) could have won the biggest race in the world.

Munoz had already impressed with his front-row start for today’s race, but then went even further by staying a legitimate threat to win the “500” throughout the day. The Colombian, who races for Andretti’s Firestone Indy Lights squad, went along with Tony Kanaan past Ryan Hunter-Reay on the final restart with three laps to go.

Any hopes of somehow defeating the former IZOD IndyCar Series champion went away when Dario Franchitti’s crash between Turns 1 and 2 ended the race under yellow with Kanaan as the winner and Munoz in second. But it was still a phenomenal effort from Munoz, who has to be making team owner Michael Andretti wonder about bringing him back to the big leagues for at least a few more races this year.

“I really wanted to fight for the win,” said Munoz. “Maybe I could win, maybe not, but I really wanted to fight. I have nothing to be ashamed of. To be second and a rookie and the best [finisher] of the team is a great job. At the beginning, I was a little bit nervous with the pit stops but in the end, the car was great and it’s a good second place.

“Hopefully in the future, I will be able to drink milk. Right now, I’m thirsty, but hopefully, it’s in the future for me.”

Also having a great day in his first ‘500’ was A.J. Allmendinger, who led three times for 23 laps and finished seventh for Team Penske. The former Champ Car star initially fell back into the field in the opening stages, but bounced back and took the lead on Lap 98. His time at the front, however, came to an abrupt end when his seat belt came undone and he was forced to go to pit road on Lap 113 to sort it out.

“I guess it’s God’s way of saying, ‘Maybe you’re not going to win it your first time,'” said Allmendinger. “…Maybe it was because my heart was beating too hard from leading the race. But it came undone. I tried to do it down the back straightaway. I tried to loose it back up and stick it back in, but it wasn’t going to happen.”

Allmendinger went down a lap but managed to regain it and made his way right back to the point at Lap 137. Unfortunately for him, the seat belt stop had an adverse effect on his pit strategy for the second half of the “500.”

“It killed our pit windows [for] the rest of the race,” he said. “That last stop [on Lap 173], we barely got into our pit window. The pit stop was long just for the mere fact we had to get it completely full of fuel while all of those guys had a little bit shorter stops.”

At least Allmendinger has another race to look forward to for Team Penske. He’ll race in next weekend’s doubleheader at Detroit’s Belle Isle Park – and his work at Indy this afternoon may have gotten him a few more runs with Penske as well.

Vicki Golden has earned a career worthy of a thousand stories and 805 Beer tells at least one of them, as “Inverted Perspective” premiered March 30 on the company’s website and YouTube channel.

Golden did more to break the glass ceiling in SuperMotocross than she ever thought possible. She knows this because riders have never felt the need to explain any of her accomplishments with the disclaimer, “for a girl”.

At this point in Golden’s career, she’s been the first woman to finish top 10 in AMA Arenacross Lites, the first woman to qualify in the Fast 40 in Monster Energy AMA Supercross and the first woman to compete in freestyle Moto X competition, earning a bronze medal by doing so.

Her love for moto came from childhood while she watched her dad and brother ride. By seven she was on her bike and making waves throughout Southern California.

Golden, 30, is still madly in love with the sport and has no plans on moving away but her career is already one to talk about. 805 Beer’s film series wanted to do exactly that.

“I’m taken aback by it all,” Golden told NBC Sports about the documentary. “It’s just crazy to see your story, it’s one thing to live your life and battle everything that comes about but it’s another to just sit there and talk about it.”

805 approached Golden about the feature by asking, “Do you even realize that what you do, and your story is special?”

Golden took the question as a blank canvas to map out the highs and lows of her career and life.

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The title “Inverted Perspective” came from a brainstorming session with Dominick Russo and it highlights Golden’s outlook on the sport of SuperMotocross and her life in general.

“My whole life, my whole career was thinking differently and looking at things that shouldn’t be done and aren’t there, while being able to make a place for myself, where no one thought there should be a place,” Golden said. “It’s inspiring someone to think in different ways. It sums up my life.”

*Vicki Golden is not “fast for a girl”; she’s just fast. – 805 Beer*

While Golden is no stranger to the spotlight, this was the first time she’s been fully involved with the storytelling and creation of a feature about herself.

“It’s not like a full new experience,” Golden said. “Obviously, you get your standard questions about your upbringing and accomplishments, but I’ve never really put into perspective things that happened in my past with my dad and putting that to light. Also, certain other things that maybe got overlooked in previous interviews or films. I wanted to touch on these and Dom wanted to create a story. It’s just cool to see it come to light, it’s a nearly impossible thing to tell somebody’s life story in 40 minutes.”

Golden’s father was left paralyzed after an ATV accident, robbing him the opportunity to ride again. This happened a few months before the father-daughter duo was set to compete in the Loretta Lynn’s Amateur Nationals when Vicki was 12. While she might have been unable to grasp the severity at the time, it’s something she carries with her. Golden continues to ride in his honor.

Years later, an accident in 2018 nearly sidelined the then 25-year-old Vicki when a freestyle accident almost resulted in the amputation of her lower leg.

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Golden 805 Beer — *Vicki Golden has ridden a variety of disciplines in SuperMotocross, which gives her a unique perspective. – 805 Beer*

“Inverted Perspective” highlights her father’s diligence in helping Vicki continue with her career and the kindness and strength he carried while fighting his own battle.

“My dad was the entire reason that I started riding in the first place,” Golden said. “So, to honor his memory and to honor what we went through and how hard he pushed to keep our dream alive and keep everything going – in that sense then, it was really special to be able to honor him and talk about him.”

The 40-minute feature was filmed entirely in black and white, a stark contrast from the oversaturated world of motocross where the brighter the suit the easier it is for fans to find their rider and follow him in the race. By filming in monochrome Russo and Golden had the chance to focus on the race and track from a different perspective.

“It was cool to be able to film it differently,” Golden said. “It created a challenge in the sense of what was going to be more visually impactful for the film.

“I couldn’t be here without the companies that back me but at the same time, it’s not like the logos or colors disappeared, it’s just different lights shed on different spots. It’s just a cool way to do it and to take color away and still be impactful. When you think of black and white, you think of old school, the OG way of doing things.”

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