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I walk away from today’s race in Kansas with the same reaction I frequently had with a former co-worker who just tended to babble on in unrelated cliches: Huh?
I should have known something was up when the answering machine at home featured a cryptic message from my brother-in-law Brad. He with an evil Beavis-n-Butthead laugh and a “watch what happens around lap 30″ remark. I’ll let you in on a little secret: we frequently have to TiVo the races because we’re usually in church when a race starts 10 am PST. Given the fact he returns home earlier than we do, we often get such messages when something good, interesting or downright bizarre happens. In today’s case, the latter occurred on cue.
In my mind, it ranks up there with the Busch race in Montreal as the weirdest race we’ve had all year. Everything started out the way you’d expect with all the usual suspects (Kenseth, the Busch boys) running up front and all the usual suspects (Michael Waltrip, Scott Riggs) fading back after qualifying well. Then, as promised, Junior inexplicably whacks Kyle Busch on lap 28 for no apparent reason. Now I am no real fan of the #5 Kellogg’s Chevy, but it looks fishy. Junior apologized later and took responsibility, but you really have to wonder if the guy who had nothing to lose felt like messing with the guy he replaces at HMS next year. It makes me wonder.
Then there was the 2nd red flag of the day, and the ensuing drama of Tony Stewart’s fuel supply. In my mind, you could have made an argument for finishing the race here. I knew that a resumption of the race would result in circus following it, but since Tony’s no favorite of mine, I didn’t fuss much about it. I got to watch my beloved Broncos get pummeled by the Colts and would get to see the finish in real time. Like I said, it was shaping up to be a weird day.
I can’t forget the Jeff Burton “I wasn’t messin’ with my car” flap. He got sent to the back because he was working on his car during a red flag- a NASCAR no-no. I like J.B., but he’s gotta be the worst actor in NASCAR. I’m not a big fan of Rusty Wallace as a commentator, but I got a laugh as Wallace shared about having one of his crew on sentry duty when he would do the same. Seriously Jeff, with all those cameras around, you need to plan your skullduggery better than that.
Sure enough, though the race would be shortened, we weren’t shortchanged on drama. Throughout the race we watched the lead get tossed around like the old baseball game of “Flip.” We had Matt Kenseth running hard and running well, Dave Blaney making some noise, Kurt Busch representing Penske and Dodge well in this race, Jimmie Johnson charging hard from the back, and Kansas’ favorite son Clint Bowyer looking like he could be a man of destiny. Let us also not forget that Tony Stewart was looking pretty good for a while there too.
The Tony and a whole gaggle of other participants set off a chain of events that greatly altered the outcome. Chasers Kyle Busch and Jeff Burton were already having a bad day. Smoke already had a bent up fender and there were questions about how the fender on the Home Depot Chevy would “travel.” Crew Chief turned commentator Andy Petree questioned the move by the #20 team to stay out, and by golly, Greg Zipandelli and Tony Stewart made the former Earnhardt pit boss look like a prophet. Sure enough, Tony seemed to slow down a bit, got hit by his old buddy (NOT) Kurt Busch and got taken out of the game, while collecting Carl Edwards in the process. Unlike yesterday, Tony wisely took a look around and declined comment. The picture of him throwing his steering wheel said quite enough.
Oh, but only if the drama ended there! You remember how things got nasty between Denny Hamlin and Paul Menard yesterday. It was followed with more drama between the 26-year-olds. On one of the restarts, we had 3-wide action between Menard, Hamlin and Jamie Mc Murray. Mc Murray on the inside, brushed Menard in the middle, who in turn, rammed Hamlin. Of course Hamlin’s people blamed Menard. It was his fault right? Sure (cough,cough- Nextel’s next nasty rivalry).
So, as the race nears the finish we have Kevin Harvick gutting out a tough day and yet running towards the front with company from fellow chasers Clint Bowyer, Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon. As the laps click away, it sure looks like Bowyer may have a shot at catching Mr. Hard Luck himself- Greg Biffle. Just as it looks like we’re gonna have a Dayonta style dogfight at the end, Juan Pablo Montoya brushes the wall. Caution comes out, darkness prevails, and Greg Biffle finishes under yellow. Or did he?
Of course there has to be more drama. For reasons unclear to me and a lot of other people, the #16 Aflac Ford cruises onto the infield grass. Some say Biffle was running out of gas and couldn’t finish under his own power. Others would say that the “frozen field” rule was in effect and this whole flap is immaterial. I’m not sure myself (after all, I am a fan and not an expert), but it gives those unhappy with the NASCAR governing body one more reason to complain about how such matters are handled.
Me? I was just glad to have it over, glad to see a face in Victory Lane we had not seen in a while, and glad to see the leaderboard shuffled just a little bit more.
Man, I need a nap.

When one thinks of exotic or unusual destinations, one tends NOT to think of Kansas. I’ve never been there, I have no burning desire to be there in the land of endless fields, bitter winters and fierce tornadoes. It’s kind of like Iowa, but with less respect. Yet in spite of its averageness, there’s no place like Kansas on the NASCAR tour.

Unlike many other NASCAR stops, Kansas City only sees the endless trail of haulers once a year. Think of how this differs from New Hampshire and Dover where all the teams have notes and information from earlier in the year. Further setting Kansas apart is the fact that drivers revert to driving the old style cars after a couple of weeks of Car of Tomorrow driving. This will certainly bring a sigh of relief to teams struggling with their COT programs. Kansas also provides one of the the flattest tracks on the circuit. Think of how differently driving goes for you in a car when you go into banked or unbanked turns. There’s definitely a difference in handling. According to a comment by Rusty Wallace, who’s raced five times at Kansas, the 1.5 mile tri-oval provides great passing opportunities, especially in Turn 2.

Kansas is also a home track of sorts to several drivers that haven’t seen the midwest in a while. Chasers Clint Bowyer and Carl Edwards hail from this neck of the woods, as do Jamie Mc Murray and Kenny Wallace. For the chasers, every little edge matters. That feeling of being in your own house provides a definite plus.

Today in qualifying, we didn’t see the spinning and weaving we saw in Dover. Nobody hit the wall, the worst complaints concerned themselves with tightness of the car and the condition of the track for the earlier qualifiers who had problems with a slick track and a slower second lap. Jimmie Johnson claimed the pole once again, with solid performances from Ryan Newman, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Martin Truex Jr., and Jeff Gordon. It was also good to see go-or-go-home team Michael Waltrip Racing get all three of its drivers in, led by Ol’ Mikey himself.

Of course, regardless of where they qualified- you can be sure of two things: 1) Carl Edwards and Tony Stewart will make a run towards the front before the end, and 2) Sadly, Evernham racers Elliott Sadler and Kasey Kahne, who always seem to qualify so well, will fall back.

I won’t venture to predict a winner in Sunday’s venture into the heartland, but I will go this far. The winner will come from one of the Chasers. Jimmie looks very strong, Jeff is running well and all the other guys have too much to lose to not run well. In addition to the aforementioned racers, I expect something from Penske Dodger Kurt Busch and the ever consistent Matt Kenseth.

You may think of Kansas as Nebraska (but with a better basketall team), but we should see something a little different than what we’ve seen lately- the exception being who we see towards the front. The question, however, still lingers: who will that be?

Turn on, tune in, and let’s all find out.

Though I am frequently irritated by some of the inane questions and dialogue on Yahoo! Answers (”Is Jeff Gordon really gay?”), I still visit there. If nothing else, it gives me a sense of what serious and casual NASCAR fans are thinking. Given the fact we live nowhere near a NASCAR track, I have to rely on forums like this to stay connected to my race fan community. A question was asked last night that fueled my curiosity and led me down a sobering path.

Someone asked for a link on the report of the cause of death of Dale Earnhardt, which unless you’ve been living in a cave, you know that “The Intimidator” died on Turn Four of the final lap of the 2001 Daytona 500. I wasn’t a real serious race fan at the time, I was actually watching an NBA game that day, but I still remember well the scene in my living room and where I was and my reaction and shock, though I’d seen and heard death on the race track before.

Sadly, since that time, a lot of conjecture, blame, and urban myth has surrounded the death of perhaps the greatest, certaintly the most popular, and conversely the most controversial race car driver of all time. I remember the death threats and blame thrown in the direction of other drivers involved in the crash- Sterling Marlin and Ken Schrader- two guys at or near the top of the clean driver list. Some insist Earnhardt was throwing a block for his teammate (Michael Waltrip) and his son (Dale Jr.). Some say Earnhardt’s lap belt frayed because he cut it, suggesting suicide. Others have come up with all manner or zany ideas on what happened that day. Being a part of the media, you might say I am nosy by nature. I had to learn more. I clicked on to the link of the report.

It’s not a quick read, and I won’t bore you (or gross you out) with all the details. What is all boils down to is that Dale Earnhardt died of head injuries that are the result of a high speed crash. Earnhardt was missing a key safety device (the now-famous HANS neck restraint), and he wore an open face helmet. The conclusion of the report is that there were quite of number of factors occuring at just the wrong time to play a part of the death of the driver of the #3 Goodwrench Chevrolet. I try to avoid being preachy or get into a long discussion in this kind of forum about my religious beliefs, but it is my conclusion that it was Dale Earnhardt’s appointed day to die and he would have died whether he was in that car, a shopping mall, or in his own easy chair in his living room.

His death and those of Adam Petty, Fireball Roberts, Niel Bonnett, Joe Weatherly and others are reminders of the dangers of racing around in a 3,500 pound hunk of metal traveling close to 200 miles per hour. We have been immensely fortunate in that NASCAR hasn’t seen a death on the track since. A considerable amount of study came out of that tragedy to spring forth and mandate safety innovations that we don’t think 5 seconds about today, other than when we think about how this may have changed the outcome of affairs in Daytona, Florida on February 18, 2001.

The whole study of this event reminds me again not to take for granted the risks involved with those who participate in NASCAR racing. Those guys are either brave or crazy, or are more likely a little of both. I suppose that’s why I get a little miffed at those who say they “hate” a driver. These guys are human beings with families and loved ones and would be missed if they died. Futhermore, almost all racers use a portion of their riches to help the less fortunate via programs like Victory Junction and Jeff Gordon’s Children’s Hospital. That isn’t even the beginning. I guess I’m saying you can love your driver, you can have drivers you don’t root for, and you can even hope they don’t win. Wishing for a crash: bite your tongue! My kids would be on the receiving end of a serious scolding if I caught them wishing for such a thing. DON’T EVEN THINK IT, PEOPLE.

Appreciate what these guys do, and keep this sport in perspective. Can we agree on that?

“The Chase”- to some NASCAR fans, this is a profanity. I hear a lot of people railing against it, yet I have never heard anybody really offer up a well-articulated argument against it. More often than not, I sense that fans who hate NASCAR’s answer to a “playoff” are just using this as one more argument against Brian France and Mike Helton and their governing of NASCAR.

By now you know I have no problem taking up an unpopular opinion. After all, I’m a Jeff Gordon fan- NASCAR’s 2nd most-loved and at the same time, probably the most hated driver in the sport. I suppose if Tony Stewart (according to Gordon) is the “Rosie O’ Donnell of NASCAR”, then The Rainbow Warrior is the “Howard Cosell of NASCAR.” According to a poll in the 1970’s, Cosell was the most popular and the most hated announcer in sports.

I digress. My best guess is the simple fact of the human condition that people hate change. Until 2004, NASCAR ran for some 55 years without a playoff format. Certainly, I’m not aware of any other governing body in auto racing that has a format quite like this.  I think most chase “haters” would say that there are 30+ other drivers on the track that should be accounted for. What if Mr. #13 goes on a tear and would have enough points to win were it not for the chase. It could happen. There are still others who point out that Jeff Gordon would have won the Cup in 2004 were it not for the chase instead of Kurt Busch. Many interesting comparisons of the old format versus the new have been made, and there’s no denying it is different.

“So why do you like it, Jim?” you may ask. I like the idea of a playoff format. Though I root for the #24 Dupont Chevrolet, I’ll admit to being bored if he ran away with it. The chase is NASCAR’s best answer for the best drivers of the year to square off against each other. I mean, you really can’t just have the 12 best do a drag race, can you? Just 12 cars on the track would be boring, and after all, as we saw at Dover, there’s a skill to weaving your way through lapped traffic- just ask Denny Hamlin. It’s a part of racing man! I think it sets a part of a group of the best to square off for the title, just like every other sport does.

Does the team with the best regular season record win the title every year? No. Ask the Seattle Mariners. They won a staggering 116 of 162 games and didn’t even make it to the World Series!  The Yankees were a very good time that got hot at the right time- kind of like Tony Stewart! Are you going to argue that he doesn’t deserve a shot at the title though he didn’t catch fire until late? How would he have any shot at catching Gordon without the Chase? The fact is the season is too long and there are too many factors that go into points. If you ask me, what’s happening in the Busch Series is a good case for the chase. Carl Edwards has made a joke of the run for the title. There’s just no way David Reutimann or Jaons Leffler will have any chance at catching him. Think about the years the wild card team has won the Super Bowl. I can remember one NBA playoff series where the eighth seeded Denver Nuggets completely shocked the number one Seattle Super Sonics.

Maybe I’m all wet, but the chase has been fun for me so far. I personally think it’s a travesty that Matt Kenseth (though I find him likable) won a Cup with only one victory under his belt that year. Something’s goofy with that.  Look at the standings with intellectual honesty. If you look at the wins, and all the finishes, I think the chase standings reflect it well.

Is this a perfect system? No. After years of watching baseball make few good changes for the sake of tradition, it’s refreshing to see a sports governing body with the cajones to try to do things differently to make the sport better. For all you detractors- here’s some good news: if you hate the chase bad enough, and there are enough of you, it WILL change.

Now if we can only change the top 35 owner points rules for qualifying, then we’re on to something.

SHAMELESS PLUG: If you want a great explanation of how points are scored in NASCAR, check out Charle’s NASCAR 411 update at “nascarlfordummies.” Very nicely done. 

Now that was a race! I’m not sure I’d grade it as the best of 2007, but it was certainly a change of pace from the dominating performances we’ve recently seen.

Jimmie faded fast. To make matters worse, he came up lame with a flat tire. Then it looked like Denny Hamlin might break out the broom for a Dover sweep. He fell back and then he and Kype Petty offered up our daily dose of fireworks. A little more intense than the near mishap between Carl Edwards and Jeff Gordon in the pits. It sure looked like Matt Kenseth was going to pull away with the win, then he ran into uncharacteristic engine trouble. Rusty Wallace of ABC/ESPN pointed out this was the first DNF due to engine failure that M.K. had in over 2 years. Then the King of Concrete- Carl Edwards overtook the lead and mastered the Monster Mile for the win.

He had plenty of familiar company near the top. One gets the feeling that Roush/Fenway Racing has a handle on the Car of Tomorrow. we expect Carl to be good. It was nice to see teammates Kenseth and Greg Biffle running up front with him.

We had a little something for everybody- not only did Roush fans have something to cheer about- there was good news for HMS fans too. In spite of finishing outside the Top 10, Jeff Gordon is now the leader in the Chase standings, followed by teammate and defending champ Jimmie Johnson.

Old schoolers had to love that Mark Martin ran well today. He had the staying power to run up front, just not enough juice to overtake the Office Depot 99. It sounds like the furthering progression of the merge between DEI and Ginn Racing is enabling Mark to get better information.

Junior fans had a top 5 finish to cheer about. He couldn’t quite reach the very front, but seemed to run a very smart efficient race.

Fight fans had to get a kick out of the Denny Hamlin- Kyle Petty confrontation. Kyle said something about Denny hallucinating on whatever he was taking for his “flu.” If you ask me, when referencing my post from yesterday- Denny won the batte and lost the war.

Wreck fans weren’t cheated either. We got a mini-version of “The Big One” at Dover. Seems Kurt Busch blew a tire and collected about 11 other cars with him.

Looking back, it’s still early yet, but it looks like a pecking order is coming into view. It is my opinion that Hamlin and Harvick will finish outside the top 10, with Gordon, Johnson, Edwards, Stewart and I’m gonna say…….Matt Kenseth making the top 5.

Shout Out For The Boards- Kodiak 621 at “NASCAR for Dummies” has a great set of files on NASCAR families, and “Women of NASCAR” (I suspect his wife Amanda is carrying some ‘o’ the water on that one). You can see a great love of auto racing history and stats there. The kind of stuff I like.

I get a lot of good laughs out of ‘NASCAR Drivers Rule”. lots of good humor here. Somebody decided yesterday to re-cast “Star Wars” with NASCAR celebs. Imagine Junior as “Luke Skywalker” or Kenny Wallace as “C3PO”? I loved it!

See ya later,

Jimmy Mac

Today, we experienced another chapter in sports history where a crippled up or sick athlete gutted his way to victory. Did you see Denny Hamlin before today’s Busch Series race? He looked like a real rock star, ahem, the way they look the morning after the show. He looked horrible. What it is about being in that shape that elevates the game of professional athletes is truly a curious thing.
It brought back memories of a Michael Jordan performance that NBA star-turned Busch car owner- turned announcer Brad Daugherty would be happy to forget: His Airness poured in an super-human 69 points for the Chicago Bulls while beating Daugherty’s Cleveland Cavaliers while battling the flu. As a Broncos football fan, I remember QB Craig Morton checking out of the hospital to engineer a playoff win over the hated Oakland Raiders, after which he promptly checked back in as a was suffering from….pneumonia. Pistol Pete Maravich once scored 68 for the (then) New Orleans Jazz on the same day he thought he had suffered a heart attack. It turned out to be a chest strain fom lifting weights. Long time sports fans will remember Willis Reed limping onto the court and leading the New York Knicks to victory over the Lakers, or then there’s gimpy Kirk Gibson hitting a game winning bomb for the Dodgers over the Oakland A’s. The guy had to hit a home run because he literally didn’t have a leg to stand on.
Hamlin’s performance wasn’t a squeaker either. He pretty well had the same control over matters that Clint Bowyer did in the Cup race last week, or that Jimmie Johnson has had on far too many occasions lately. He rocked today! However- he sure looked like death warmed over afterwards. The poor man could hardly get out of the car.
The question now is whether or not DH can pull it together tomorrow. The flu can pass quickly, but it sure whips the life out of you while you have it. Frankly, if it were me, I would have let future teammate Kyle Busch take the wheel and the risk today.
I still think it employs questionable judgment for a Cup driver to keep driving the Busch series while in the Chase. Too many things can go wrong- especially when you have impatient rookies around creating havoc. I understand the love for racing and the desire to be out there. I also understand Martin Truex wanting to be out there when he’s close to home and NASCAR allowing the better known Cup drivers out there to fill the seats. In Hamlin’s case, I’d just want to be as well prepared for the race that really matters by getting healthier. I seriously doubt he’ll be a heck of a lot better tomorrow.
This Chase is wide open right now. When you look at the seperation between 1-12, there’s not much. Denny has a real shot at winning a title in his 2nd season. That’s a great achievement. I wouldn’t want to risk it on a race of small consequence like the Busch race.
Yet- he won- so what do I know?
OTHER RANDOM NOTES
It sure looks like control of the car is a real issue on the “Monster Mile.” If I were a Chase driver, I’d want to know where David Ragan and Juan Pablo Montoya were at all times, and run as far away from them as I could. Qualifying yesterday was pretty wild, and it was caution city out there today.
Nice to see Sterling Marlin on the track again
I was bummed to see Tony Raines and Brent Sherman go down early today. These guys have uncertain futures and today’s wrecks did not help them in gaining an opportunity to audition for other teams.
By the way, though I am no fan of Robby Gordon, I DO NOT think he ran Tony Raines off intentionally. I appreciate that Gordon took the fall for it. I think Raines’ spotter who stirred up this mess should pay half the fine.
Let’s keep watchin’.This baby’s far from over.

If you’ve come here looking for great revelations, I have none. I do this more for the purpose of record-keeping than anything else. There will be things that seem like big deals today that won’t be tomorrow. It will also measure on some level my prognosticating skills. Ahem, I warn you that my track record is VERY spotty on a good day. I subscribe to the “hand grenade theory” of predictions: if I throw enough of them up there, I’ll hit something sooner or later. Here’s what’s making noise today:

1) We can stop asking questions about Jr.’s number and sponsor. He’s driving the #88 car with Mt. Dew/Amp and the National Guard. I like the green car.

2) Silly Season For Sponsors. Word has it that the #18 car that Kyle Busch will be driving in 2008 will be sponsored by M&Ms. No idea what this means for David Gilliland who currently drives the #38 M&Ms car, or Interstate Batteries for that matter. The Budweiser logo will now go to a guy who doesn’t look old enough to drink the stuff- Kasey Kahne.

3) David Reutimann. There’s word going around that Reutimann could be leaving Michael Waltrip Racing to take on a 4th car at Richard Childress. Officially, Michael Waltrip is committed to keeping “Beak.” Rumor has it that Reutimann is seeing who ponies up the best offer. Prediction: IF RCR takes on a 4th team, Scott Wimmer will be driving it. #00 is staying put.

4) Mighty Mo is with Jimmie Johnson. JJ won the pole today at Dover. This guy can’t seem to do anything wrong right now. I still say this is the most underrated driver in NASCAR. I think he’s a victim of being an HMS driver (which makes him unpopular in some circles), his crew chief has been in trouble (Chad Knauss)- so some label Jimmie a cheater. Soome hate him because they fancy him a “Gordon lite.” I say the man’s a winner. Prediction: His late charge will steal Jeff Gordon’s thunder, and he’ll win a 2nd consecutive cup.

5) A NASCAR invasion.It looks like open-wheelers Dario Franchitti and Jacques Villanueve will be joining the ranks next year, as well as Sam Hornisch Jr. I spoke with a fellow fan today who’s concerned we may see more Juan Pablo Montoya types in the sport. Hopefully, they have learned from JPM’s experience and have a smoother transition.