Before proceeding- Bump Drafts salutes the men and women who serve and protect our freedom in the armed forces. Let us never forget that “Some paid all, all paid some.”
To you who are the families of our men and women in uniform, we recognize and salute your sacrifice as well. “Freedom isn’t free.”
Though only there in spirit, we stand with those in attendance at the Coca- Cola 600 in saying “Thank you” as we pause to consider the lives given to obtain and defend our freedom.
God bless you, and God bless America.
“Luck is where preparation meets opportunity.” I consider myself a pretty lucky guy in many respects, and so that quote my folks once had on a refrigerator magnet has been a mainstay among my favorite adages for years.
By being in the right place in the right time, David Reutimann wins the rain-shortened Coca- Cola 600. In doing so, “Beak” wins his first NASCAR Sprint Cup race. The victory marks Michael Waltrip’s first win as an owner and Toyota’s first victory at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in the heart of NASCAR country.
It’s the first win for a Toyota driver not associated with Joe Gibbs Racing in Cup competition.
I don’t even think Reutimann or crew chief Rodney Childers will argue that they had the best car. Kyle Busch was a beast from the get-go, overtaking pole sitter Ryan Newman by lap four.
Though he had a little bit of a scare with an electrical smell, Busch pretty well owned the lap leadership throughout the race. Shrub has had issues with his crew from time to time, not on this day, the boys behind the wall and the calls of chief Steve Addington did a brilliant job of keeping the “18″ up front.
Busch wasn’t without a challenge. Brian Vickers was once again denied victory on his home track after leading a slug of laps. Vickers settles for a finish of 5th, though there was no doubt he and Kasey Kahne posed the biggest threat to a Busch beatdown. Jimmie Johnson had stretches of success, but couldn’t sustain it.
All of that seems logical- unless you figure Mother Nature into the mix.
She figured large not only in shortening the race, but also bringing on numerous delays- creating another challenge for Vickers. Once again, in this race, we saw the “18″ being the masters of the re-starts and short runs, while the longer runs favored Vickers, Kahne and other contenders.
I know some will say Busch was robbed, but say “Balderdash!” With the extra 100 miles tacked on, the “600″ is one of those races that tends to shine on the lesser lights. Remember, it was Casey Mears winning here in 2007 with competition from Kyle Petty and a “go or go homin’” Brian Vickers at the time. Last year, Kasey Kahne rode a wave of success from the all-star into NASCAR’s marathon race.
In that respect- this race didn’t disappoint. The only guys in the top you’d expect to see there are second place Ryan Newman, Carl Edwards in fourth, Kyle Busch in sixth and Matt Kenseth in tenth. Otherwise, you’ve got Robby Gordon getting his first top five in what seems like forever by finishing third, Kahne took seventh, Juan Pablo Montoya 8th and rookie Joey Logano registering his third ninth place finish of the year.
I think of all the times Reutimann’s had a good car and not won it because of one bit of bad luck or another, and this may even the score a little bit. Yeah, there’ll be fans who will complain, but you know what? It’s not the first time a driver has won a rain-shortened race, and it won’t be the last. At some point in time, everyone has to go home and move on to the next date.
Here’s another thing to consider: Busch and all those other guys who pitted could have stayed out. What is Reutimann supposed to do? Refuse the win? I’m quite sure he would have rather won it the more conventional way, but that’s the way these things go.
All I know is this: Rodney Childers gets a lot of credit for rolling the dice.
Sometimes the race is not won by the swift, but by the smart. Quite often that’s how it goes at the Coca- Cola 600.
For all the other drivers and fans disappointed by this day- there’s always next week.
PHOTO CREDITS- Photo by Jason Smith/ Getty Images for nascarmedia.
