Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Missing Dale Earnhardt





Today, April 29, would have been Dale Earnhardt's 57th birthday, and I've had a difficult time thinking about what might be different about Nascar today, had Dale survived February 18, 2001. Ever since Dale entered the Cup series full time in the 1979 season, the sport changed radically, and a lot of the credit for that can be laid squarely on Earnhardt's shoulders.

Dale went from a hungry, wide eyed, total disaster at times on the race track to becoming Nascar's first international star. He saw the sport through some of the most important changes that the sport has ever seen, and when he left, suddenly, on a Sunday afternoon in February, not only did the sport change for ever, but for some, the entire world changed as well.

We will never know exactly what the Nascar would look like had Dale lived. We can only speculate, and as fun or as sad, depending on your point of view, that might be, we're still only guessing. One thing we do know is that Dale Earnhardt was very instrumental in the exploding popularity of Nascar in the 1990's. Had Dale lived beyond the first race of 2001, Nascar might be the most watched sport in America, by far. Dale was 49 years old when he died, but he still provided the Nascar world specifically, and the entire sporting world as a whole, a ton of excitement every time he climbed into his race car.

Dale Earnhardt electrified Nascar, starting back in 1979, when he won Rookie of the Year awards, followed by his first Winston Cup Championship in 1980, the first time in Nascar history, which is still a record unequaled, even by superstars of today, Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. Dale Jr. didn't do it either, and neither did Tony Stewart or Kyle Busch. Some might say that the Nascar world is more competitive now than it was in Dale's early years, but back then, the cars were a lot harder to drive, with no air conditioning for the drivers, and with no power steering. If you look closely, most of today's crop of Nascar drivers are relatively small men. The drivers are certainly in good physical shape, but back when Earnhardt started in Nascar, most of the drivers were big, burly men. They had to be just to take the physical punishment that a 400 or 500, or even a 600 mile race exacted from their bodies. Earnhardt was a pretty big guy, compared to most of today's drivers.

No matter what his physical stature was, he soon became the driver that seemingly stood ten feet tall and bullet proof. Earnhardt endured horrible pain in his racing career, but never complained about it. Dale defied doctor's orders, and swore them to secrecy after bad crashes, just so he could get back into his race car the next weekend. I don't think he ever considered taking a week off, unless he physically couldn't walk out of the hospital. He never considered it, because racing was what he did. It's all he ever wanted to do.

Dale Earnhardt never finished high school, a shortcoming that he regretted for the rest of his life. He went sometimes to extremes with his children, trying to make sure they got the best education they could get. Dale seemed to regret very much that he disappointed his father by not graduating, and he was determined to see that his father Ralph's grandchildren did get a good education.

Dale came up hard, as we say here in the south. At times, he practically starved to support his racing. It was often said that if Dale had enough money to pay the power bill or to buy a new set of tires for his race car, the decision was a no brainer for him. He bought the tires. Dale's overwhelming desire to race eventually cost him 2 marriages, and custody of 3 of his 4 children, at least for a time. Dale lived to race, early in his life, but on the day he died, he was a content family man.

It's pretty much assured that had Dale lived, he would be retired by now. Knowing Dale, he might still have run an All Star race or a Shootout, just for fun, or he might be running a few races in the Trucks series even. We'll never know, obviously, but we do know he would probably have been a very successful team owner, at the very least.

Dale was called the Intimidator, because many drivers lost their poise when they saw the black number 3 Chevrolet on their back bumper, especially late in the race. Dale never drove for consistency, he always drove to win. His steely eyes could back down the pushiest reporter, when he didn't like the questions they were asking. Dale also could be very friendly and open, giving up a lot of his time to try to satisfy the growing craving for all things Earnhardt, allowing camera crews onto his private property, to allow himself being photographed hunting and fishing. I know first hand that Dale was very gracious when it came to contacting with his fans. When he signed autographs, which was often, he would meet his fans with eye contact and his famous smile. Dale Earnhardt always knew on which side his bread was buttered. He raced hard, because he was great at doing it, and he was very appreciative of his fans, because he always knew that his fans helped to make him what he was.

Dale Earnhardt had an extremely good head for business, basically inventing the modern Nascar marketing phenomena that we experience today. Dale very quickly understood the demand that tee shirts and die cast cars might become, and he capitalized on it, making a fortune in the process. Dale went from being the guy that couldn't pay his bills to a multimillionaire, but he never really changed as a person. He lived in nice houses, drove nice cars, bought a private jet, but Dale never really changed from the kid who grew up in Kannapolis, NC. He never lived more than a few miles from the home he grew up in.

Dale Earnhardt was many things to many people, but to me he was more than a race car driver. Dale was a hero, in the truest sense. Dale beat the odds, succeeded on levels that are difficult to comprehend, and did most of it by sheer determination and will. That's a hero in my mind, and as long as I live, I'll never forget Dale Earnhardt.


Sunday, April 27, 2008

Possible to like Nascar drivers but dislike their fans?

You bet. I joined the Harvick Online site a few years ago, but quit posting much, because even though I was a Harvick fan, I got ripped every time I posted there. I could say Harvick was the best driver ever, and there appeared some poster that had a problem with everything I said. Today, on the eve of the Talladega race, some poor soul admitted feeling sorry for Dale Jr.'s winless streak. She was invited to leave the site, and not very politely.

What was funny, was that about 2 posts above the Dale Jr. comment, someone thought it wise to post about Ferarri winning a Formula One race. There was not problem with that, but mention Dale Jr. and the entire board has a veritable hissy fit.

I joined the HOL board in good faith a few years ago, and have never, ever run Dale Jr. up the flag pole, but I could say that Harvick was the greatest driver out there, and I would find some poster who basically said the sky was green. You can't win on HOL. You either belong to the clique, or you don't. Lately, it appears that most of the HOL posters are of an emotional age of around 8 or so. Slash. Burn. It's what the HOL folks do. That's their right., I suppose, but even though I like Kevin Harvick, as a driver and as a team owner, his fans seem like absolute dweebs.

Why the problem with Dale Jr., you might ask. Good question. It's pure jealousy. HOL members will never admit it, but they are so jealous of the media attention that Dale Jr. garners, they just can't stand it, and they do the usual posts, Dale Jr. has no talent, he's a traitor, etc.

Kevin Harvick is a great driver in the Nationwide series. Until he puts up some numbers like Dale Jr. has in the Cup series, Kevin is a has-been. Kevin is a second tier driver, and will remain that way until he produces a lot more wins. Kevin Harvick, I like you, but you seriously need to torch your pathetic message board and start a new one.

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

And the Silly Season is in full force now

Rumors today are predicting that Tony Stewart and Martin Truex Jr. are leaving their respective teams after the 2008 season. Stewart is rumored to be buying up to 50 per cent of Gene Haas' operation, and running a car there, possibly taking Home Depot sponsorship with him. Haas teams, both the 66 and the 70 Chevrolets are powered by Rick Hendrick engines, and supposedly, Tony wants to return to Chevrolet in the near future.

Martin Truex Jr. has had a couple of engine problems so far this year, and that might be leading to the rumor that he will be leaving Dale Earnhardt, Inc. after the 2008 season. Martin definitely has more than a few possibilities to pursue, namely the 4th Richard Childress team, or possibly Tony's old ride at Joe Gibbs Racing. Possibly a Roush driver or even two might be leaving after this year, and Martin could end up driving a Ford for Jack Roush. All of this is purely speculation at this point.

Bobby Labonte appears to be heavily favored to get the Childress team's 4th ride, since they will be carrying his General Mills colors next year. That's still entirely possible, but rumors also state that Bobby will remain with Petty Enterprises until he retires. Bobby's not saying, and neither is Robby Loomis, who is currently in negotiations with Labonte on behalf of Petty.

Richard Childress my just decide to chuck it, and put Scott Wimmer in the 33 next year. Or he could put a former Roush driver in the car. The fact is that we just don't know right now.

And we probably won't know until much later in the racing season. This is why the Silly Season is so much fun, because we can all speculate, and even if we are entirely wrong, so are probably at least half the other fans out there.

Last year, when Dale Earnhardt Jr. announced he would leave Dale Earnhardt Inc. after the 2007 season, I predicted that Dale would end up at either Richard Childress Racing or Joe Gibbs Racing, but that was before I knew that Gibbs would be switching brands to Toyota for 2008. The rumors began to grow that Dale Jr. would eventually go to Rick Hendrick, but I dismissed many of those. As it turns out, I was 100 per cent wrong on that one. Dale Jr. has revealed in the past year that Hendrick was really the only place he wanted to go, since his relationship with Rick had been a strong one, since Dale Jr. was just a boy. Personal relationships mean a lot in Nascar, and Jr. went where his heart told him to go.

I will be following the news about Stewart, Truex Jr., and Labonte with interest over the next few months, and I'm not making any predictions this time. For all I know, Labonte may end up at DEI, Truex Jr. might end up at Roush, and Tony Stewart might just decide to go open wheel racing again, in the new IRL/Champ series. I have no idea.

My instincts tell me that Bobby Labonte doesn't want to retire, he wants to win again. RCR could be the place that he does that. Truex Jr. obviously wants to win, but he's probably frustrated with DEI's engine woes, even though they seem to have improved much over last year. It's been rumored before that Stewart wanted to buy into a team, and that he wants to go back to Chevrolet, so Haas makes sense to me. That might be a totally wrong guess, but unless I'm missing something, Haas is probably in a position to be bought into, and soon. Tony's got the money, and I would not be surprised to see him make a transaction with Haas before the season is over. Whether the Home Depot will follow Tony is debatable, but I think that Home Depot would be crazy for not following Tony.

If all these changes happen, who would fill the voids left by these drivers? JGR, DEI, and Petty would have some vacancies to fill. Martin Truex Jr. could go to Gibbs. I could see that. Who would go to DEI and Petty though? Probably drivers that are just trying to prove themselves, either fired Cup drivers that need a job, or some Nationwide talent. Bobby could probably have the job at RCR if he wants it. Whether he does or not will have to be revealed at a later date.

If DEI or Petty hires Jeremy Mayfield, we will all know they are scraping the bottom of the barrel, not because Jeremy is a bad driver, but he's had some problems with authority, in the past. Personally I like Jeremy, but he's burned a bridge or two in the past. Bill Elliot seems to be the driver that never retires, so he might be a fill in for a while. Personally, I'd like to see Kenny Wallace get a shot at one of the open jobs, if they become available. Jason Keller is another driver I'd like to see in a Cup car again. Chad McCumbee appears to be waiting in the wings to replace Kyle Petty or Bobby Labonte, but I wouldn't mind seeing him in a DEI ride either. Stephen Leicht might be another viable driver.

The point is, who knows? I certainly don't, and neither do you, I would suspect. Silly Season is just what it is, guesses and speculation, and it's fun.

What we tend to forget, as Nascar fans, is that fun is what it's supposed to be for us. It is fun.

Have fun, will ya?

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

A fan's point of view of Nascar racing

I've been a racing fan since the early 1970's, and I've watched Nascar and open wheel racing.  Back in the early '70's, there was not much racing on TV except for the Indy 500, and an occasional open wheel race over seas.  ABC's Wide World of Sports would sometimes show some Nascar highlights, but there was not that much racing on television back in those days.  In February, 1979, all that changed, when the Daytona 500 was carried live on TV, and the great fight broke out after the race that is still familiar to this day for Nascar fans.  With the cable revolution, Nascar became available for more and more viewers.  

In just a few years, Nascar became a venue that was familiar to people from all over the country, not just in the Southeast, where the sport began.  Petty was winning races, but not as many as he did back in the early part of his career.  The King was starting to show some age, and there were a lot of hot drivers out there challenging Richard for the crown.  Waltrip, Yarborough, Allison, Pearson, Parsons, Rudd, Labonte, Bodine, Earnhardt.  Yes, Earnhardt.  1979 was Dale Earnhardt's first full season in Nascar, and he won Rookie of the Year.  In 1980, Earnhardt went on to win the championship, the Winston Cup, and is still the only driver to accomplish that incredible feat.  

The 1980's saw moderate growth in fans for the sport.  In the 1990's, the sport exploded.  A young driver named Jeff Gordon began winning everything there was to win, and Dale Earnhardt basically invented the modern business of sports marketing, selling tee shirts, hats, diecasts, and every other imaginable collectable.  By the end of the 1990's decade, Nascar had become a huge sport, with tons of money being exchanged.  In 2000, another Earnhardt came along, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and his easy manner and party style garnered him lots of fans from the very beginning.  In many of the fan's minds, a dynasty was born, with Dale Jr. driving for the company that his old man started, Dale Earnhardt Incorporated.  Drivers no longer drove to the track in their cars, or hauled their race cars behind their pickup trucks as they had in the 1970's.  Drivers now flew by private jets, the cars were hauled by professional truck drivers in high tech 18 wheelers to the tracks.  The drivers didn't stay in cheap motels anymore near the track.  They stayed in comfortable motor coaches in the infield at the track.  Nascar was booming.  This is business, baby!

In 2001, Nascar and the broadcasting networks made their moves.  FOX and NBC bought the rights to broadcast the races, paying multiple millions of dollars for the right to broadcast the races.  FOX hired veteran driver Darrell Waltrip, and crew chiefs Larry McReynolds and Jeff Hammond to provide color for the races.  NBC hired Benny Parsons and Wally Dallenbach for the same reasons.  This was the big show now, and Nascar was destined to become America's most watched sport.

The 2001 Daytona 500 was huge even for FOX, and everyone was ready to see racing on prime time TV.  Bill Elliot started on the pole, and many people were watching Dale and Dale Jr., the Master of Restrictor Plate Racing and his son, and DEI did very well, with DEI driver Michael Waltrip winning his first race ever in the Winston Cup, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. pushing him to victory.  But on that last lap of the Daytona 500, history was made, and the sport changed forever.  Dale Earnhardt hit the Turn 4 wall slightly off center, and died instantly.  Driver Kenny Schrader was involved in the accident, and stopped down in the infield near Dale's car.  Kenny was worried about his old friend, and jumped out of his car to check on Dale.  Kenny looked in the window of the GM Goodwrench Chevy, and turned away, shocked.  Kenny had lost a good friend, and the Nascar world had just lost it's biggest hero.

In the aftermath of Dale Earnhardt's death, Nascar implemented numerous safety requirements.  New inspections of seat belts, new crash bars, and the requirement that all drivers wear head and neck restraint devices.  Nascar soon began thinking about softer walls, and the end result was the SAFER barrier, a little bit of a cushion between the car and the hard concrete wall.  For some reason, the safety craze didn't really hit Nascar until Dale Earnhardt died, even though the year before, drivers Kenny Irwin and Adam Petty had died of similar injuries.  Dale Earnhardt's death was the event that forced Nascar to change, though.  Within a year, Nascar became much safer.  Unfortunately, the measures that Nascar took were much like shutting the barn door after the horse has escaped.  The damage was done, and Nascar was changed forever.

In the years following Dale Earnhardt's death, Nascar changed the system around.  They implemented the Free Pass, or what is commonly called the Lucky Dog pass, for the first car one lap down.  Nascar implemented the Chase for the Cup, which still has many mixed reviews among fans.  The actual racing became more orchestrated, or more of a pageant.  Networks covering the sport spent more time on the nuts and bolts of racing, and talking up the current favorites than they did actually showing the racing, the true racing on the track.  A leader leading by 3 seconds is exciting for the fans of that particular race car driver, but what about the cars mired back in the pack?  That's actually where the majority of the racing occurs, but many of the TV networks don't show much of that these days.

When I go to my local short track, Anderson (SC) Motor Speedway,   I can pick and choose which driver to watch.  If watching the leader gets boring, I can just go back through the pack and pick the particular battle I want to watch.  TV doesn't give you that option, and I can sympathize with the TV crews, because some of them are not really race fans, and think we just want to see the leader or the booth's favorite driver drive endless circles around the track by himself.  Racing is about competition, and they all compete at some point, but having a camera follow lap after lap of a driver who's just keeping time and not really racing anyone is just plain boring.

Today's racing world is all about money, and that's not likely to change soon.  Nascar today is all about packing in the most fans, selling the most tee shirts, making the best TV ratings.  Nascar today has not much in common with the racing of the past, where the drivers raced, and the cameras covered the action.  Nascar today is all about the money, and the racing is a by product, it would seem.

If you want to see what racing is really all about, go to your local short track and watch the people with names you probably don't know do what they do best:  Race.

I wish Nascar would get back to racing.  If they don't, one of these days, people will be comparing stock car racing to the WWE. 

Oh what?  Really?  Guess what, they already are.

Message to Nascar:  Do what you do best.  Go racing again.  In my opinion, IRL broadcasts are much better than the current overhyped Nascar broadcasts.  In IRL, you can actually see the racing happen on the track, not the drama of a Kyle Busch blowing his top after doing something stupid.  I mean, we want to see it all, but really, why waste time with Kyle when you know he's going to say something stupid when you could be showing racing on the track?

Maybe Nascar should change it's name.  What used to be the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing has become the National Association for Stock Car Automobile Marketing.  

NASCAM.  Kinda has a ring to it, don't you think?




Talladega Dreaming

This weekend Nascar goes to Talladega, the 2.66 mile super speedway that is all about restrictor plates and drafting.  Talladega is the longest oval in all of Nascar, and before the days of the restrictor plate, the highest speeds ever achieved in the sport happened at this track.  The track has good, high banking, and nice soft turns, and this is the track that all the drivers keep the gas pedal pegged all day long.  Aerodynamics are really more important here than horsepower, and drafting skill is the major difference among the drivers, because most of the cars will be just about equal.

Jeff Gordon is the current active driver with the most wins at 6 total.  Dale Earnhardt Jr. is 2nd with 5 wins at the monster track.  The late, great Dale Earnhardt holds to most wins ever at this track, at 10.  The fact that Jeff and Dale Jr. are now teammates could be very important at 'Dega this weekend.  In the past, they've always been on different teams, but this year, they are teammates.  That will all go out the window with about 4 laps to go, but the Hendrick cars have the opportunity to draft together and work their way to the front if they indeed have that opportunity.  Racing being what it is, there's not guarantee that they will be able to run together at all.  I'm guessing that Jeff, Jimmie, and Dale Jr. will find their way to the front, and if the Hendrick invisible driver, Casey Mears can get in that mix, it's all good for them.

Talladega has always been a very unique race track.  The fans that regularly attend the race are among the most hard core in all of Nascar.  There will be partying in the infield, and there will be a few fights amongst drunken fans, but Talladega is a track that almost defies description.  I've been there, and looking down the track is like looking at a small airport, without the airplanes.  You just cannot believe the size of this track until you've seen it in person.  Remember, you're looking at cars, not jumbo jets out there.  Without binoculars, you will miss a lot of the race, if you are in the stands.

My one and only race at Talladega was in 2004, and I was sitting in the Turn 1 stands.  Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the race, and I saw a cloud of smoke over around the start/finish line, but I never actually saw the burnout.  Like I said, I was in Turn 1, and I couldn't see anything but smoke.  If I were to go back to Dega, which I surely would, I'd sit up high in the front stretch stands, and I'd have some good binoculars.

When you look at a track like Talladega, it's easy to see why the 1.5 mile tracks have gained a lot of popularity over the last few years.  At Atlanta, you can sit just about anywhere and see everything, without magnification.  I've never been to Pocono, but I imagine there is much the same feeling as I had at Talladega.  I never really saw the race, or at least most of it, until I came home and watched the video.

In my opinion, all racing is good, and I would be interested in seeing what Cup cars could do on a 3 or even a 5 mile oval, if given the opportunity.  I suppose it's not much different from watching a road course race in person, because you never get to see everything when you are there.

Personally, as much as I love Talladega, I'd rather see more Darlington or Rockingham style race tracks, where the fans can see everything, all the way around the track.  Shorter tracks mean often lower speeds, because of the restrictor plates on the really big tracks, but if Nascar could created drafting on a 1 to 1.5 mile track, I'd be interested.

Nascar needs the 2.5 plus mile race tracks.  It's good for the sport, because it challenges the teams and the drivers, just as much as running a couple of road course races per year does.  It's all different strokes, and I love Daytona and Talladega, but sometimes I think the best racing happens on the short tracks.

This weekend we'll get to see if Chevy has got the groove back, or if Toyota and Dodge still rule the restrictor plate tracks.  Or will Ford make make another run?  We won't know until we get there, and I can't wait!


Monday, April 21, 2008

Danica Patrick wins in IRL

On Saturday, Indy Racing League driver Danica Patrick made history, becoming the first woman driver to win in a IRL race. Danica has been probably the most talked about driver in open wheel racing in the USA since her debut at Indianapolis in 2005, but now there are a lot more reasons for her to be the buzz of the racing world.

Traditionally, women have been racing since the very beginning, but very few have reached the top levels, and even fewer have actually won at the highest levels. Nascar has had several women racers since it's beginnings, but none have scored wins at the very highest level.

It's not uncommon to see women racing at short tracks all over the country, with varying levels of success. Some are track champions, and are highly respected among their male peers. Some just struggle to get a decent ride, and struggle even harder to be competitive on a weekly basis.

Danica's historic win in IRL proves what I've been certain of for many years; that women can win at the very highest levels of auto racing. Shirley Muldowney has been doing it for years in drag racing, and now Danica Patrick has proven that it can be done in open wheel racing. When will Nascar have a Danica Patrick moment?

A female winner in a Cup Series race may still be a few years away, but Danica's feat should give all women racers hope. Years ago, when Dale Earnhardt Jr. and brother Kerry were first getting into racing, sister Kelley wanted to go racing too, so their father helped her set up a car as well, and the 3 young Earnhardts went racing at short tracks around the Carolinas. Kelley gave it up after a few years, but father Dale Earnhardt once said that he thought Kelley had the most talent out of his 3 racing kids. Who knows what might have happened if Kelley had stayed with racing? She is still certainly involved, overseeing the operations at JR Motorsports and acting as her brother Dale Jr.'s business manager.

Danica Patrick's win in Japan Saturday showed that women can compete at racing's highest levels, and hopefully soon we will be celebrating our first female Cup winner or maybe even Cup champion.

It's just a matter of time now!

Friday, April 18, 2008

And as we used to say back in Old Mexico City

AMF. For those of you who live in the DC area, your probably know what I'm talking about. The Greaseman Show is still on, and let's all drink one more martini to that guy. Funniest guy on the radio, EVER! I used to hear him in Atlanta years ago, and I still wish I still could. For those of you not in the DC area, or for that matter, back in Old Mexico, AMF means Adios.... My Friend. Or something like that. Use your imagination, this is a family oriented blog here!

Mexico is basically a marathon for the Nationwide Series teams, as they travel tremendous miles to drive even more miles at a race track that is higher than Denver, Colorado. I like watching the races at Mexico City though, because that's one of the more competitive road courses on the circuit. There is always a great turn out for the race, and that's all good for Nascar. More than a couple Cup drivers will be making the trip down to Mexico City to compete on the Corona Mexico 200. Clint Bowyer will be there. So will Carl Edwards, and Kyle Busch. Stan Barrett will drive Stanton's car for him. Interesting stuff.

I have no idea how many Mexican TV viewers watch Nascar on a regular basis. There appears to be a fan base there, and I know that Nascar will try to use it. If any of you Canadian residents would like to see a full blown Nascar race, I wouldn't mind seeing that, though we already do see one in Montreal. Want to see a circle track? Canada has some good tracks, and quite a few of them would be perfect for a Cup Series race, and I think Canadians should unite and demand a race in Canada. The drivers will come, but will Nascar?

Nascar in Mexico City is great, but I'd love to see more Nascar in Canada, or even the U.K. because I feel like there is a fan base there. Let's go to where the fans are, instead of where the population centers are. Mexico City was a major coup for Nascar, but let's see what we can do in Alberta, or Quebec.