5 Reasons 2010’s Been Good So Far

by Jim on September 2, 2010 · 1 comment

Right or wrong, there’s a perception out there among drivers like Tony Stewart, and some fans (you know who you are), that the media has gone a long way to create a feeling of unhappiness and general unrest within NASCAR Nation.

People’s opinions are what they are, and I have no illusions I will change them. I will take some heat for this, but that’s the price one pays for making their opinions public. I will bet there are others who agree, and there may be more than one thinks….

I’ve actually enjoyed the 2010 season. Again, this is just one fan’s opinion…

1. The Races Have Been More Enjoyable- Don’t get me wrong, not every race has been an instant classic. Newsflash: some baseball games are boring, some football games are blowouts.

I thought Talladega was the best I’d seen there in a while, I REALLY enjoyed the Nationwide race at Montreal, and I enjoyed the races at Daytona and the night race at Bristol.

Better yet, we’ve had- in my opinion- no dyed in the wool stinkers, like that cluster of a race at Indianapolis in 2008, and none of the other majors have been completely thrown off by weather. There’s still room for improvement, but there always is.

2. The Revivals- No, I’m as dry as a Baptist wedding as I write this. I know he’s a big time long shot to make the Chase, but like Jamie Mac himself, I think he’s had a good season with wins at Daytona and Indy, and he’s made good pushes at ‘Dega and Bristol.

I find it refreshing the guy races for wins, not points. In a sport populated by its share of “chap asses,” here’s a genuinely nice guy.

It’s also good to see Richard Childress Racing on it’s game again, and to see Roush Fenway Racing showing signs of life. It’s no fun to watch one organization run away with it all the time. As it stands now, it looks we’ll only see two Hendrick drivers in the Chase.

3. Ding-Dong, The Wing Is Gone- I seriously don’t know enough about engineering to know whether its made any difference in the racing or not, some drivers say it’s made very little.

If you ask me, it’s case where something little means a lot. The fans wanted the wing to go away, and NASCAR granted their wish. It’s a decent step, if only a little one. Now, if they’ll grant teams a little more freedom to tweak and re-instate testing.

4. Jimmie Johnson Is Getting Raced- Well, well, well- he’s human after all. I’m no Jimmie Johnson hater, but I’m really not a fan. Come to think of it, Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch aren’t my cup of sunshine, either. At the same time, I think the parity is good.

That Jimmie won’t “five-peat” isn’t foregone conclusion; nonetheless, somebody has slipped some kryptonite is Superman’s gas tank. He’s getting challenged like he hasn’t been in some time, and there’s no clear cut front runner as we head for Turn Three.

5. Some Of The Rule Tweaks Actually Work- We’ve got a full season of the double file re-starts, and it does a lot to at least gin up a little excitement in what are otherwise quiet races. I don’t have a problem with that.

I don’t get all the outcry by some old schoolers about the green- white- checkers. Personally, I have little interest in seeing a race end under caution.

As for “Have At It Boys,” I think we’ve made it through just fine…so far. Seems to me if you race how you want to be raced, you’ll be fine on most days. I’d still like to see David Reutimann punt Denny Hamlin one of these days for that deal at Pocono last year.

Here’s the truth, folks: the sky isn’t falling. Yes, I join the critics in agreeing the schedule changes don’t do much for me, the Chase really hasn’t delivered the desired results and something needs to be done do where a driver doesn’t just take the lead and set sail due to clean air.

That’d o.k., if NASCAR leadership owns up to what needs working and addresses it, I am more than willing to be patient. I do find myself occasionally frustrated that the Boys at “The Beach” appear one deaf and disconnected.

Is the glass full….or half empty? You can put me down for “half full.” Like I’ve said before, it’s just an opinion, but it’s mine.

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If This Track Could Talk

by Jim on September 1, 2010 · 7 comments

In just his third start, back in 2001, Kevin Harvick won here. In celebration, he held up three fingers in honor of the number three. You long time fans know what I’m talking about. For you newer fans, Harvick was doing so in honor of Dale Earnhardt. Harvick’s #29 was originally the “3,” but car owner Richard Childress shelved the number in honor of his fallen friend. In winning, the Cup rookie beat out Earnhardt’s last great rival, Jeff Gordon. (Click here to see the finish)

Speaking of Earnhardt, this place was the site of his first NASCAR Winston Cup victory on April Fool’s Day in 1979. The seven-time champion is the all-time victory leader at this track with nine wins, including number 75 in 2000, edging out the eventual 2000 champion, Bobby Labonte. (click to see video)

In the season finale of 1992, NASCAR’s king made his final start. Richard Petty called it a day for the final time. As one champion was heading home, another was just getting started. Ready or not, a kid from Indiana, by way of California made his NASCAR Winston Cup debut. Jeff Gordon’s career started here in a fashion as inauspicious as the final bow for Petty.

Atlanta Motor Speedway is not often the place you here fans talk about as a personal favorite. More often, you hear about Daytona, Darlington, Bristol, Martinsville or Talladega. On the other hand, the Hampton, Georgia track is home to NASCAR history.

Perhaps the greatest moment of all came in that 1992 battle for the championship. It was a wide open race for the Cup, with as many as five drivers fighting it out within 100 points of each other at season’s end.

Daytona 500 winner Davey Allison took the early season lead, but 1988 champion Bill Elliott- NASCAR’s most popular driver of the era- offered up a fierce challenge by sweeping the month of March at Rockingham, Richmond, Atlanta and Darlington. Between Allison, Elliott, Alan Kulwicki and Mark Martin-  a Ford won the first nine races of the season!

Elliott would eventually seize the lead, Kulwicki, Kyle Petty and Harry Gant were all on hand- along with Allison- to keep the pressure on the Awesome Bill. Gant won at Michigan the same week that Allison’s brother died in a Busch Series practice at that track. To show that some things never change, Gant got his win on fuel mileage.

Ricky Rudd was also in the mix, to an extent. In Rudd’s win at Dover, Kulwicki crashed out, and he said the mishap likely finished him off for a shot at what he called “the championship deal.” The championship landscape took a sudden turn, when Elliott’s dya ended early at Charlotte. By now, six drivers were within 114 points of each other.

Back in those days, the NASCAR Cup schedule ran 29 races, with the season’s final race scheduled for Atlanta on November 15th. Allison re-captured the lead after taking the checkered flag at Phoenix, with a week off following. Kulwicki was 30 points back of the leader, Elliott trailed by 40.

In a day when southerners still ruled the sport, Alan Kulwicki- a native of Wisconsin- looked a little out of place. In a sports popularized by farmers an old moonshine runners, Kulwicki had a college degree in mechanical engineering. In the heart of the Bible Belt and that old-time hellfire and damnation religion, Kulwicki was a devout Roman Catholic. While many drivers preferred the “checkers or wreckers” approach to driving, Kulwicki was very measured and methodical.

At the Hooter’s 500, the race quickly became a two-car battle for the championship. Davey Allison crashed early in the race in a collision fueled by a tire blow out on the car of Ernie Irvan, opening the door for an epic tussle between Elliott and Kulwicki. Kulwicki has problems now of his own, as first gear broke in his car’s transmission during the race’s first pit stop. Kulwicki left pit road in fourth.

The professorial Kulwicki figured in his head throughout the race just how many laps he’d need to lead to win the title as the race progressed. Before this race, Kuelwicki got permission from NASCAR and Ford to take the “T” in Thunderbird off his car’s bumper, so it could say “Underbird,” as Kulwicki said he felt like the underdog, racing against the brash young Allison and the prodigious former champion Elliott.

Kulwicki needed to conserve fuel, and was running on old tires at the end. Sure enough, Elliott won the day’s battle, but Kulwicki won the war- finishing second, but leading the most laps to eke out a 10-point victory over Elliott for the championship. (click to see end of race).Allison finished the season in third- 63 point off Kulwicki’s pace. Harry Gant placed fourth, Kyle Petty took fifth on the year.

As the story goes, it was Kulwicki’s one and only title. By the middle of the following summer, both Kulwicki and Allison were gone. The defending champion died in a plane crash on April Fool’s Day of 1993, Allison perished in a helicopter crash at Talladega. In honor of the rivals- the 1993 champion, Dale Earnhardt, and the winner of the season ending race, Rusty Wallace, performed a side-by-side “Polish Victory Lap” (a backwards lap that was a Kulwicki trademark) in honor of Kulwicki and Allison.

Indeed, if this track could talk it could tell many more tales of Yarborough, Petty, Bobby Allison and Freddy Lorenzen. As Atlanta Motor Speedway celebrates 50 years of NASCAR racing, let there be no doubt it will forever be remembered as the site of NASCAR’s most magical moments. 

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Bench Racing: A Bad Day At The Racetrack

by Patrick Reynolds on August 31, 2010 · 3 comments

Man, it was awful.

Regular readers of my columns know how much of a proponent I am of the grassroots level of auto racing. At the end of my weekly radio show I encourage listeners to get out and support their local racetrack.

My family and I went to a short track this past weekend and a regional touring series was the featured division. And I am sad to say it was one of the worst presented programs in my recent memory.

Allow me to omit the name of the speedway and sanctioning body for reasons I will explain later.

Upon first entry, one immediately notices the grandstands are built facing due west. The late summer sunset is directly into the eyes of the entire crowd, which makes August heat just a little more uncomfortable.

According to the track’s website the seating capacity is 8,000. And the stands were roughly three-quarters full, supporting a tremendous crowd. The catch was the admission was free. A promotion allowed everyone in for no money but with a parking charge. The plan worked and the gate size was great.

But in all honesty I still feel like I didn’t get my moneys worth for the racing I saw. It was presented so poorly I felt someone owed me the money for my gas and my time. The show was that bad.

A three-division program began at 5pm. The first undercard feature had only 9 cars take the green flag. A mere three finished. The high heat necessitated a break from being a fan.

We took shelter in a hospitality pavilion during another division’s support race. I counted only 13 cars starting that event and did not watch it, preferring the cooler shade.

Following the first two features time trials took place for the headlining race. In other words “We interrupt the racing to bring you more qualifying that should have taken place before any racing should have started.” A weak total of 15 cars set time for the 250 lap main event.

The initial division ran a second feature that was shortened from 50 to 30 laps after only five cars answered the call to line up. Three finished that race also.

A scheduled 7:30pm green flag for the touring series feature actually occurred at 8:43pm. The final support race mercifully got its checkered flag around 7pm. It took 30 minutes to push all 19 of the headlining class cars to the frontstretch for the pre-race autograph session. These meet and greets are nice but not when you for some reason are running so far behind schedule.

The autographs ended about 8pm and then we sat in limbo for 15 minutes before the track PA system started introducing local officials and dignitaries. Then we proceeded with driver introductions.

My five-year-old daughter who thoroughly enjoyed Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston Salem, NC earlier this summer offered her commentary about this particular speedway. “This is a stupid track. They sit here and don’t do anything.” This is the honest impression left on a potential life long customer.

Taking the green flag were 19 cars. The spare four cars were start-and-park rides. By lap eight we were back down to 15 cars for the remaining 242 circuits. We were on our way home before lap 100 and so were other families.

I defend auto racing to the fullest extent to its critics who do not understand the sport. Inevitably I hear the sarcastic question “Isn’t it just cars going around in a circle?”

Sadly to report that is how I would describe the program I witnessed. And I have a passion for racing.

I offer my assessment for specific reasons. I do not bash just to bash. I love this sport and always want to see it improve and get better. If the problems and shortcomings are not pointed out then they cannot be overcome and fixed. For as long as I have followed it, motorsports has always fought an uphill battle to be recognized in the mainstream world as a legitimate sport alongside the stick-and-ball games. Nights like this do nothing but take auto racing steps backward in professionalism.

I won’t slam the track or series’ by name because I don’t want potential fans of either turned off. Will I boycott this speedway or type of car? No. I will give them another chance. And I hope all the other fans do too.

It is my hope track operators from this speedway and any others recognize the problems that are unacceptable to the paying customer. Loyal racing fans are some of the most tolerant and patient in all of sports. But why should they have to be?

(Patrick Reynolds is a former NASCAR team mechanic who hosts “Motorweek Live” Thursdays at 9pm ET. Listen at www.racersreunionradio.com)

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