The Montreal Demolition Derby

I didn't get to see all of the NASCAR Nationwide series race from the road course at Montreal, but I did get to see the last 25 or 30 laps or so. Those relatively few laps took about 2 hours and change to watch, since there were more cautions in those closing laps than often occur in many local figure 8 track races. With school buses racing instead of cars. That's about how bad it was.

If you like seeing torn up cars, Montreal in the rain is the place to be. I did notice the absolute king of the wrecking machines though, and that was one Steve Wallace, driver of the number 66 Five Hour Energy Drink Chevy. In the closing laps of the Montreal race, I think even the driver's seat in that car must have gotten bent a few times. I still don't understand how Steve even finished the race, as beat up as his car was. Had there been about 2 more cautions, Steve would have needed the Ten Hour Energy Drink as a sponsor.

The Tasmanian Devil, Marcos Ambrose dominated the race, leading by far the most laps, and lead right up until the last corner of the last lap when he shot his car airborne over the rumble strips and went wide, opening up a hole for race winner Carl Edwards to shoot through. Marcos was obviously unhappy in his post race interview, giving a short, terse one sentence summation of his day and then walking away from the microphone. Marcos did give us his winning grin though, and that was nice, though it must have been very hard for him to do.

Carl Edwards gave us his trade marked back flip, and for the second time in his career, at least that I've noticed, he landed on the pavement, instead of the grass. I really hope that young man doesn't misjudge his flip and finds himself in the hospital with a concussion. Suggestion to Carl: Leave your helmet on next time you do that on the pavement! Take off the HANS device, but leave the helmet. It would be a shame to lose a driver because he was pulling off a race win tradition, and did it badly.

I'm of mixed emotions about racing in the rain after Montreal. It's pretty cool watching the cars kick up rooster tails of spray as they go around the course, but please, Rusty Wallace Inc., do us all a favor next time.

Find a substitute for Steve Wallace next year, please!