INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – When Michael Schumacher comes to America each year, he doesn’t have to hide.

The Formula One great can actually stroll down the street. He is forced to stand in lines and is spared the throngs of fans that usually crowd him.

Schumacher was asked why he seems more relaxed in the United States.

“Maybe it is because I am,” he said.

Finding anonymity anywhere on the planet is tough for Schumacher these days.

His 77 race wins are an F1 record.

He broke another series record last year when he won his sixth world title and is chasing another milestone this year – his fifth straight driver’s championship. By winning the 2003 points title, Schumacher tied the mark set by Argentina’s Juan Manuel Fangio from 1954-57.

This season, Schumacher has been almost unbeatable. The 35-year-old German enters Sunday’s U.S Grand Prix with five poles and seven victories in the season’s first eight races. He has 70 points, with Ferrari teammate Rubens Barrichello next at 54.

“His life is perfect, isn’t it?” said Ralf Schumacher, Michael’s younger brother, who drives for the BMW Williams. “I think for him it is simply great.”

Michael Schumacher likes the quiet life. He speaks softly and moved his family to a small Swiss village partly because of the solace. America gives him another hideout.

Schumacher is so unrecognizable on this side of the Atlantic that in 2002, he stood in line at Texas Motor Speedway to participate in the Richard Petty NASCAR Racing Experience.

After a long wait, Schumacher left without even getting in the car or going to the front of the line in true celebrity fashion. He wasn’t even bothered by fans.

“I found it very nice,” Schumacher said with a smile.

Still, Schumacher rarely takes it easy. When he’s not driving, he plays soccer, rides bicycles, lifts weights, works out in the gym, rides all-terrain vehicles and horses.

Even in the United States, he stays in the fast lane. Schumacher has won two of the first four U.S. Grand Prix races and has never finished worse than second.

Friday’s first practice was the exception. Schumacher’s best lap of 1 minute, 11.036 seconds was only day’s the fourth-best time.

Barrichello was the fastest of the 25 cars, going 1:10.365 on the 13-turn 2.6-mile road course. England’s Anthony Davidson, a test driver for BAR Honda, was second fastest at 1:10.967 and Colombia’s Juan Pablo Montoya, driving for the Williams team, was third at 1:10.982. Montoya won the 2000 Indianapolis 500 when he was a regular on the CART circuit.

Barrichello knows there’s little margin for error, especially after seeing Schumacher win from the sixth starting position in last week’s Canadian Grand Prix.

“We were actually thinking where did he come with those times?” Barrichello said, referring to the Montreal race. “We were one second ahead during the weekend and then all of a sudden he was one second ahead.”

While many expected Schumacher to again be a force, he never anticipated such overwhelming success.

After testing in January, he went home expecting another hard battle for the title. He returned more relaxed and full of enthusiasm, sensing a different kind of season.

“When we met in the beginning of the year, I saw he was so eager to go in the car,” said Sabine Kehm, Schumacher’s longtime press officer. “At one point, he finally said, I’ve got all these questions about records out of the way and I can just drive.”‘

In America, that’s all Schumacher has to do. With fewer distractions, crowds and requests, he can focus on the one thing he enjoys most – winning.

“I’m relaxed in Europe as well,” he said. “Though it is interesting and nice to be moving along and not be recognized.”