Q: My wife and I are on our way back to California after a Midwest tour of IndyCar racing. Elkhart Lake, Iowa, Mid-Ohio, the Speedway, then St. Louis – we were all lined up for a perfect motorhome vacation. We all know what happened to the spectator situation at a couple of those races, but the idea was a good one. I’m hoping when IndyCar comes up for the 2021 schedule they will make it so that a Midwest tour is practical again. Use your influence.

Rodger in Oklahoma

RM: You are great fans for making this trek, but I think we got lucky in terms of all the Midwest grouping of races because the pandemic made it so nobody could, or wanted to, travel outside IndyCar’s wheelhouse of Ohio, Wisconsin, Iowa and Illinois.

Q: Aside from the virus, the biggest story going into the 2020 season was the influx of new, fast, aggressive rookies who represented the changing of the guard in IndyCar racing. Nine races in, the story is exactly the opposite. The rookies haven’t won, the veterans keep winning. You can debate the reasons, and there are many, but it hasn’t happened yet. They have shown flashes, and they have shown their speed and talent, but it takes a complete driver and a complete team to win in IndyCar. No doubt they will have their day, but not yet, and that has been a surprise for this season. It just shows how tough it is to beat the experienced guys.

GS, Concord, Ohio

RM: With a little luck, Pato O’Ward could have three wins and Ferrucci, Veekay and Palou aren’t that far from victory lane. Of course it’s tough to beat Dixon, Newgarden, Power, Rossi, RHR and Sato, but those kids have shown a lot more than flashes. Herta is fifth in the points and Rosenqvist has a win, so the changing of the guard isn’t complete yet, but it’s damn sure on the way.

Q: I noticed this season on the ovals, minus Indy, that Ed Carpenter still runs the USAF car that was partnered with Conor Daly even though he only does the road and street courses for the team. First, I think it’s in very poor taste from Ed to get a sponsor full-time but only allow the driver that brought it in part-time. Providing that is the case, I don’t know the behind the scenes info, but on the outside it doesn’t look good to me.

To my actual question: is there a chance Conor will have a full-time ride with one team next year? He’s been a solid driver and I think one team that he can work and grow with will make a great difference for him, instead of his bouncing back and forth.

Anthony A.

RM: Why wouldn’t it look good for a three-time Indy 500 polesitter to carry the colors of one of his sponsors? It’s all about exposure, and USAF has taken a liking to Daly and Carpenter so I’m sure they’re not disappointed to see their colors flying at some ovals. Depending on what Ed decided to do in 2021, Conor could get the call for the No. 20 car, and he might also be drafted by Trevor Carlin if he gets the funding for two cars. Or it’s possible Daly could be in both cars next year like he was this season.

A ‘Come back soon Conor’ livery with a giant picture of Daly’s face on the sidepod would have been much more tasteful. Michael Levitt/Motorsport Images

Q: What’s happened to Ed Carpenter? He’s an oval-only specialist and is known to be prodigiously fast at Indy (three poles). But this year he has been nowhere at Indy, and on ovals, generally qualifying midfield or worse. Some of his woes are down to Chevy power, but he is being outperformed by his younger and much less experienced teammates on ovals. It is not all bad luck, either. Ed wouldn’t have been caught up in that first-lap crash at Gateway had he qualified higher up at. Is he simply past it now?

Anthony Jenkins, Toronto, Canada

RM: It’s certainly one of the mysteries of 2020, because it’s like someone flipped a switch and Ed went from the front to the back. I don’t think he’d blame Chevy because Veekay and Penske have both performed quite well with BowTie power, but something is missing from the guy who was always a favorite on any oval. I’ll wait until the season is over and ask him if he’s considering just running Indy or possibly concentrating on just being an owner, but he’s not that old (39) and I can’t imagine the fire has gone out yet.

Q: I read your mid-season report card and I have a question about MSR and Jack Harvey. I can’t help but root for these guys to do well, as both Mike and Jack seem to be the kind of guys that IndyCar needs to have on the grid. And they seem to really be on the cusp of being regular challengers. So, every time that Jack qualifies well I am hopeful that they are going to have that big breakthrough weekend. Then they seem to run well at the start but fade at the end. I know you haven’t been there to observe, but any idea what the missing piece is – besides “cubic dollars” – that is keeping them from finishing up front? It seems like if Mike can figure it out that they have the potential to grab some big results from the Big 3.

Royal M. Richardson

RM: Mostly unlucky yellows or a mechanical problem have deprived them of good results, because Jack has been qualifying and racing quite well. It’s not money, it’s racing luck.

Q: Dixon is very well placed to nab his sixth championship. In fact, I think he is going to wrap it up with a race to spare, short of the cartoon anvil falling repeatedly on him. When Mike Cannon joined Ganassi, obviously that was bad news for the rest of the paddock. I don’t know every driver he’s worked with, but doesn’t Cannon usually work with up-and-comers more than not? There are some obvious reasons, but what exactly led him to Dixon?

Eric Z, Lancaster, NY

RM: I think Michael enjoyed working with all the kids at Coyne and A.J. Allmendinger, but with Chris Simmons moving into an overseeing role, an opening came up. And I imagine it took Cannon five seconds to say yes. It’s Scott Dixon, for God’s sake.