Television Update
"IndyCar Rear View Mirror," a season review of the 1996 PPG Indy Car World Series, will be televised at 1 p.m. ET Sunday on ESPN. The one-hour show will take a look at all of the key elements of the highly competitive year, including Jimmy Vasser’s run for the PPG Cup and The Inaugural U.S. 500. The season wrap-up show also will be available on ESPN on Thursday, Oct. 17, beginning at 9 p.m. ET.

In addition, encore presentations of the 1996 races will be shown on ESPN2 beginning Monday, Oct. 28. PPG Indy Car World Series events will be aired Oct. 28-31; Dec. 5-6, 16-20, 23-24, 26-27. Each broadcast will begin at 4 p.m. ET.

Where's our toolbelts Tim?
Mario and Michael Andretti have been invited to appear as special guests on an episode of ABC-TV’s hit show, "Home Improvement." The Andrettis will join the show’s star, racing aficionado Tim Allen, and the "Home Improvement" cast Oct. 23-25 to tape the episode at Buena Vista Studio in Burbank, Calif. The episode will serve as the Thanksgiving show for "Home Improvement," and will air Tuesday, Nov. 26. The Andrettis have been frequent guests on "Home Improvement" in previous seasons.

KOOL deal for Americans
IndyCar owner Barry Green announced earlier this week the formation of the Team Green Academy, a program in conjunction with his sponsor, KOOL, that will help develop American open-wheel racing talent.

The process will begin in October or November when the academy’s seven-member panel, which includes Green and 1996 PPG Cup champion Jimmy Vasser, will designate 25 American racers as candidates for the program. That group will be invited to participate in a three-day test program at Derek Daly’s Speedworld Centre at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Five finalists will be selected from that group and they will undergo two more tests before two winners are chosen. The five American drivers will be tested at the Human Performance Institute in Daytona Beach, Fla. and then return to Las Vegas in January for a final five-day test session at the Team Green Academy. The two winners will be contracted to Team Green and receive financial assistance in 1997 for participation at a level of racing that fits their experience and abilities.

Among the candidates for the academy’s "Class of ‘97" are Derek Hill (Barber Dodge Pro Series), Matt Sielsky (US Formula Ford 2000) and Brian Tomasi (Formula Continental).

"There’s an enormous reservoir of driving talent in this country," Green said. "The Team Green Academy’s goal is to encourage the development of that talent, not just for the benefit of the drivers and Team Green but for the sport as a whole."

Feeling at home
Michael Andretti could not be happier that Gateway International Raceway will play host to PPG Cup competition for the first time in 1997. Andretti had four of his series-leading five victories in 1996 come at tracks that had ties to the Newman/Haas organization.

Gateway will provide another on May 24 because the track is five minutes from downtown St. Louis, home of Newman/Haas sponsor Budweiser. "This past season we had good luck at the tracks where we had a connection. Of my five wins, four of them had a special connection to either myself or the team," Andretti said. "Nazareth was my home track, [team co-owner] Carl [Haas] is the promoter at Milwaukee, Kmart is headquartered in Detroit, and Texaco sponsors the Road America event. Naturally, I’m glad to see St. Louis on the schedule. I think it will be a good market for us to race in. It’s good to add new markets to our schedule."

Test of a Champion
Patrick Carpentier, the 1996 Player’s/Toyota Atlantic champion, will participate in an IndyCar test session Oct. 22 with Arciero-Wells Racing at Buttonwillow (Calif.) Raceway. Carpentier, who will test a 1996 MCI Reynard Toyota, was given the opportunity by Arciero-Wells by virtue of winning the championship.

"First, I want to congratulate Patrick on winning the Player’s/Toyota Atlantic championship," said Cal Wells III, who owns the IndyCar team with Frank Arciero. "This series has proven itself to be a steppingstone for future IndyCar stars, and I am sure that is where Patrick is headed. We have planned a test for Patrick that will challenge him and give him a good idea of how the Indy car drives. We aren’t just sending him out to run a few laps. He will be working with [Arciero-Wells driver] Max Papis and our technical director, Gordon Coppuck, on improving the setup of the car and trimming down his lap times."