As I write this on Tuesday after the Canadian Grand Prix, I am getting ready for my third transatlantic flight in less than a week. Out to Montreal on last Thursday, back on Sunday night and on Thursday it is out to Chicago and then a domestic flight down to Indianapolis. And on Sunday night it is back from Chicago to Copenhagen - in this past week I have probably spent more time in the air than professional pilots!

The United States Grand Prix is another of my favourite races. If you love motor racing history (I do!) there are few places in the world better than the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on the corner of 16th. and Georgetown Street. The Speedway was built in 1909 as a 2,5 mile oval and it earned its enduring nickname “The Brickyard” from the original bricks that were used to surface it (a small line of the original bricks is now used a the finish line) It is the oldest motor racing circuit in the world, and the first of the famous 500 mile races was held in 1911. In 2000 a narrow, twisty track was built in the infield for the United States Grand Prix, which returned the F1 calendar after a long absence. While the Indy 500 runs anticlockwise on the oval, the F1 cars run in a clockwise direction, and only use one corner and the start/finish straight of the oval.

Last week´s Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway´s F1 circuit have only two things in common: They are both in North America - and both require the F1 cars to be set up with medium downforce. But apart from that, the only two North American circuits in the F1 calendar are VERY different: The Canadian Circuit Gilles Villeneuve is idyllically located on a small island in the St. Lawrence river and U.S. Indy circuit is inside the gigantic oval.

The Indianapolis F1 circuit consists of 13 turns; nine right and four left and some 55 percent of the lap is full-throttle. While this is not exceptional, the fact that the cars spend close to 23 seconds non-stop at full throttle is: The final high-speed corner (part of the oval) and the long start/finish straight make Indianapolis the circuit with the longest "pedal-to-the-metal" distance in the calendar. This part of the circuit rewards engine power and at least on the straight, low downforce would be the ideal solution. Unfortunately the rest of the lap is rather "Mickey Mouse", where lots of downforce is required, so the compromise is a medium downforce set-up.

While I flew back to Europe for a couple of days, the F1 cars and tons of materials were transported from Montreal to Indianapolis on a fleet of trucks. It was a journey of some 1400 km and it started on Sunday night. When I arrive in Indianapolis on Thursday afternoon the Panasonic Toyota Racing pit and paddock facilities will be up and running. Last year´s United Stated Grand Prix (with only six starters after all the Michelin runners were forced to retire after the parade lap) was not one of Formula One´s finest moments, and everybody in the circuit are eager to make a better impression this time.

I will be back on Friday with my first diary from Indy, but before that I have to endure another transatlantic flight. Did I mention I probably spend more time in the air than professional pilots this week? I think I did...

The first day of practice for the United States Grand Prix here in Indianapolis saw third driver Anthony Davidson fastest in both sessions with almost identical times. Michael Schumacher was second in the first session but dropped to sixth in the second after he stopped out on the circuit.

Panasonic Toyota racing driver Jarno Trulli and Ralf Schumacher only ran a handful of laps today. Jarno was 23rd this morning after 16 laps, but in the afternoon he was only credited with two laps and no lap time. Ralf was 27th in the morning session after 10 laps and like Jarno he was credited with only two laps but no time in the afternoon.

Both drivers encountered minor technical problems and the track was very slippery, so the team did not complete their planned “Friday programme<“. Still, after Jarno´s strong performance in Montreal last week the team expects to be competitive tomorrow when final qualifying takes place.

If it was a difficult day on track, both Ralf and Jarno had reasons to celebrate in the paddock. Ralf was celebrating his 31st birthday, and his national soccer team gave him the perfect present when they defeated Argentina in the World Cup. A couple of hours later it was Jarno´s time to celebrate when Italy also made it through to the semi-finals by beating Ukraine. So on the soccer front, everything is fine with the Panasonic Toyota Racing drivers - for now: In the semi-finals, Germany will now play against Italy, so either Jarno or Ralf will be sorry. On the other hand: One of the Panasonic Racing drivers are certain to have “their” team in the final. But who?

And with third driver Ricardo Zonta´s Brazil and test driver Olivier Panis´ France also still in the World cup, there is every reason to say it has been a successful World Cup for Panasonic Toyota Racing. I will not go into details with the team´s home country Japan. And I will not even mention the home country of the diary editor. (if you are not interested in soccer: Denmark did not even qualify...)

Practice today took place in sunny and hot weather with temperatures up to 31 degrees C. Track temperatures were between 39 and 47 degrees C, so conditions were ideal when the F1 cars were on the track. But not long after the afternoon session had stopped, it began to rain quite heavily and I am told this could also happen on both Saturday and Sunday. Right now it is early evening here in Indy and it is sunny again, but rain could create big problems tomorrow or on Sunday. As you know, a good part of the Indy 500 oval is part of the F1 circuit here, and if it rains during the Indy 500, the race is stopped. This is not the case in F1, of course, but the thought of the final, banked corner in the rain is... shall we say: Mind-blowing.

Still, the official weather forecast for tomorrow promises us a dry day. Just like it did for today, in fact...

Qualifying for the 2006 United States Grand Prix here in Indianapolis brought both good and bad news for Panasonic Toyota racing. Ralf Schumacher qualified for the third session without problems, but then he struggled a little with grip and balance and in the end he took eighth fastest time. Jarno Trulli had more bad luck: Problems with his rear suspension meant he did not even make it into the second part of the qualifying session, and his provisional grid position is 20th. place. But there is still hope for a strong race for both Jarno and Ralf tomorrow, as Indianapolis is a circuit where overtaking is not too difficult and the team´s Bridgestone tyres should be a great asset in the race.

At the front of the field, Ferrari drivers Michael Schumacher and Felipe Massa were in a class of their own; making the front row a “red affair” with Giancarlo Fisichella second, Rubens Barrichello fourth and World Champion Fernando Alonso fifth after a small “off” in the final session.

The grandstands were fairly full today and that is a good sign. Last year´s United Stated Grand Prix was not one of Formula One´s proudest moment when only six cars started the race, and it was feared the American public would turn their back to F1 after last year´s (non-)event. Happily, this seems not to be the case, and it seems fair to expect a full house here tomorrow.

After the 2005 fiasco, drivers and team members have been eager to please the public this year. There has been a lot of autograph sessions and press conferences, and everybody in the >circus< has been working hard to rebuild F1´s reputation.

“It is in the nature of a racing driver to want to race, and I hope the fans will understand that it was just impossible last year. Now we just have to hope that we have a trouble-free race this time so that the American public can see F1 as it really is,” Panasonic Toyota Racing driver Ralf Schumacher says.

His team-mate Jarno Trulli agrees:

“All we have to do is make people happy here,” Jarno said before practice. “Try to be very polite and friendly because of what happened here last year. For sure no one wanted it to happen, but that is part of the game. It probably will never happen again, but it was unfortunate that it happened in the United States. I just hope that we can do a good show this year and make the spectators forget what happened last year”.

Let me finish today´s diary with a story of rivalry between brothers. In one of the many press conferences in Indianapolis, Michael Schumacher was asked what things his brother Ralf is better at than the seven-times World Champion. To begin with, Michael was not too keen to answer: “That is not a very nice question to ask,” he said.

But there was no escape - the journalist just repeated the question. “Well,” said Michael. “What do you call those things in the magazines - crossword puzzles? Ralf is very good at that!”

Tomorrow is about Grand Prix racing and not crossword puzzles. But with two Schumachers in the top-eight, the prospects for more brotherly rivalry are promising!

The 2006 United States Grand Prix is over. Michael Schumacher won in front of Felipe Massa while Panasonic Toyota Racing driver Jarno Trulli finished in a strong fourth place. His team-mate Ralf Schumacher also looked on his way to some points but retired a few laps from the end.

As soon as I have finished this diary story I will hurry down to the media parking, take by car and head for Chicago and my flight back to Denmark. It will be with very mixed feelings I drive out of the big gate to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, because for several weeks there have been rumours that we may not come back. This was the final race under the original contract between the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Formula One, and after what happened last year - when only six cars started the race - relations between the two parties have not been too warm.

In my opinion, it would be a great shame if F1 will not return to Indianapolis. Before coming here for the first time in 2000, the United States had been without a Formula One Grand Prix for almost 10 years - and some of the United States Grands Prix before Indianapolis took place at some...shall we say: “peculiar” street circuits in cities like Phoenix, Las Vegas and Dallas, where interest in F1 was somewhat limited. And even when we went to “Motown” Detroit, the capitol of the U. S. car industry, the United States Grand Prix was not a great success.

But when Indianapolis was announced as the venue for the United States Grand Prix, many people felt that race had finally found a permanent home. Indianapolis is the “Auto Racing Capitol of the World” and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway was built back in 1909 and the Indy 500 has taken place on the track annually since 1911 (except during America´s involvement in the world wars in 1917-18 and 1942-45). The “Speedway” is the largest spectator sporting facility in the world, and today it plays host to three of the largest sporting events in the world: The Indy 500, the Brickyard 400 for NASCAR and the United States Grand Prix (which set a modern-day attendance record for F1 at the first race in 2000).

There is so much motor racing history and tradition in this city that I think it is fair to say that if the United States Grand Prix will not work here, it will not work anywhere. The facilities - for spectators, the teams and the media - are second to none in the F1 calendar, and the people in Indianapolis are among the friendliest we meet all year.

If you think I am very pro-Indianapolis you are absolutely right. The United States Grand Prix is probably THE race I enjoy most, and I will be very sorry it this was the last F1 race here. I was therefore very happy to hear what Indianapolis Motor Speedway CEO Tony George had to say about the future of the United States Grand Prix: “Many months ago Bernie Ecclestone and I agreed to wait until the conclusion of the 2006 event to evaluate our future together. We expect to do that in the coming weeks. The good news is that we enjoy the partnership that has been forged and are committed to working toward continuing to build on the foundation that has been laid over the last seven years.”

Panasonic Toyota Racing´s Jarno Trulli adds: “Indianapolis is a special venue and I enjoy the atmosphere both at the circuit and in the town because the people are so friendly.”

I couldn´t have put it better myself!