Bench Racing by Patrick Reynolds
“Man I am so sick of seeing Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon win all the races. I wish somebody else would get up there and fight. It’s the same guys up front week after week.”
That was paraphrased from a 2007 conversation I had with a co-worker at a Sprint Cup team. During this aforementioned season, the Hendrick Motorsports duo sprayed victory champagne sixteen times during the thirty-six-event championship contest.
The victory trophy was hauled back to the very same building forty four percent of the time. Impressive statistics to say the least. The same people in the same shop prepare the Johnson and Gordon driven machines so that particular group had a lot to be proud of.
I could see my friend’s point of view. Nobody in his sports fan side of the world wants to watch same-old, same-old, week after week. But I disagreed. And looking around his office I found the perfect metaphor.
He shared his office with another, and the two men’s desks faced each other, almost like an umpire and ball club manager arguing a close call. These two happened to get along well, but the office was very drab and clinical. My friend had decorated his side with NBA posters and magnets; in particular prominence was the local Charlotte Bobcat’s merchandise.
“Basketball fan?” I asked, as the urge to reel the silly question’s words back into my mouth was unsuccessful.
He went on to tell me the obvious answer and described his part time gig as a Bobcats usher. I learned a little bit about how the basketball arena operated business-wise and how large a hoops fan he actually was. Perfect.
He was a younger man probably between ten to fifteen years my junior so I reached for my auto racing and basketball history knowledge to make the connection with him.
“How much would you pay for a basketball ticket and a time machine?” I asked. “Did
you ever watch Larry Bird and Magic Johnson play against each other?”
“No. That was before my time. Did you see that?” he responded with building enthusiasm.
“I sure did.” I went on to describe how I spent most of the 1980s in my teen years. Racing was what I really cared about but I did see some great NBA matches. Julius Erving, Kevin McHale, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Danny Ainge were some of the superstars of the era.
His eyes widened as I spoke further, retelling watching some games at the Boston Garden and the Los Angeles Forum on television that are now considered basketball classics.
“Back then people felt the same way now that you do. It seemed as if the same teams matched up in the playoffs every year.” I said. “They were probably right because we watched the best that basketball had to offer. Now a guy like you might pay big bucks to time travel back and see that just once wouldn’t you?”
He agreed with a slight nod and a grim that implied a little jealousy.
So now I stated my point. “Right now that is happening in racing. You are seeing the very best this sport’s era has, compete right in front of you. The Jimmie Johnsons, Jeff Gordons and Tony Stewarts of today are the Robert Parishes and James Worthys of yesterday.”
Someday all the stars of right now will be gone. It is inevitable. I am far removed from where I was in my life twenty years ago. I’ll bet you are too.
Carl Edwards and Kasey Kahne just might be doing something different in twenty years also.
Earlier heroes like Buddy Baker, Donnie Allison, and Cale Yarborough no longer drive but I consider myself fortunate to have witnessed their talent. How many new race fans would like a crack at that time machine and go back to Darlington thirty years ago just once? Just to view the talent and legendary names that raced there?
Some fans complain, “It’s the same guys up front week after week.” I believe I have heard that somewhere before.
Today Kyle Busch is carving out his own mark on the motorsports landscape. He is often talked and written about. His driving style and attitude is praised and criticized. Which is good. So much of the fun in this sport is a fan rooting for and against different drivers. However Busch’s current performance will be talked about for years to come.
Like who you want. Dislike who you want. But please watch closely the talent that is performing in front of all of us. Kevin Harvick. Denny Hamlin. Greg Biffle. It doesn’t matter. Pick a favorite. Or don’t. Just watch.
There will be the next generation of race fans that will ask, “You saw Kyle Busch drive? Wow. What was that like?” And if you paid attention you can tell them.
Patrick Reynolds is a former NASCAR mechanic, most recently employed by Germain Racing on the team of Mike Wallace and the #7 Geico Toyota. Reynolds is an aspiring writer/broadcaster living in the Mooresville, North Carolina area. Reynolds also contributes for Race Talk Radio, dot com, The Bleacher Report and Spin Out Zone dot com.
PHOTO CREDITS- Johnson, Gordon racing by eric.1969. Buddy Baker in 1985 by Ted Van Pelt. Magic Johnson/ Larry Bird portrait by Jason Swain photographed by Shanon VG. More of their work may be found by either clicking on the hyperlinks or by visting flickr. com.
{ 3 comments }
what a great post. You are more than right and I wish that other people who love the other sports would look at things NASCAR that way.
I will be 70 in a few days and I hope I will be around to see Kyle fulfill the promise I see in him. Several have been great in recent years but none have the pure joy of driving Kyle has. You can’t see it as well on TV but he makes chancey moves not because he needs to but just because he can. I love it!
It is a matter of perspective. I loved the Celtics and Lakers match ups because I was a Celtic fan and I respected the Lakers even though I did not like them. I also like Jeff Gordon and respect Jimmie Johnson so that match up was fun for me too. However I understand how it is not fun if you are rooting for someone else. At this point Kyle Busch is making it not fun for some of us. I will just never be a fan of his unless he changes his attitude and drives a Chevy of Ford again. But to be honest the attitude is the most important part because I could not stand him when he drove a Chevy and was Jeff Gordons teamate. The attitude is just to much.
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