Don't Disparage What You Don't Understand

Since about 2001, or even before, there has been an entity known as the Junior Nation, or perhaps now that Big E is gone, simply as the Earnhardt Nation. Either way, this is a group of NASCAR fans who used to wear Budweiser red, and now wear AMP or Mountain Dew green or National Guard blue. For some reason, they have become some of the most hated fans in any sport on planet earth.

Some of that hatred is probably justified. I imagine a few Budweiser cans were tossed over the fence by some Junior fans at places like Talladega in the past. Strangely enough however, the only fan we saw being taken away in handcuffs was wearing a Lowe's vest. How very odd. Odd indeed.

On many message boards, Junior Nation fans are called idiots, rednecks, and sometimes even words that could be called disparaging. Personally, I don't mind being called such names, because in some areas, being called a redneck is actually a term of endearment. I just wish I lived in a place like that.

But getting down the the meat of this post, being a Junior fan does not mean that you have to be either a prepubescent teen age girl or a 40 year old woman who wishes she was still a prepubescent teen age girl. Junior Nation fans cover virtually the entire spectrum of humankind. Junior Nation fans cannot be classified by sex, race, career choice, or even by their intelligence quotient. I've met bank presidents who were Junior fans. I met one that was a Kyle Busch fan too, for some reason.

Why do Dale Jr. fans like Junior? Some of them are female and realize he's still single, even after all these years in the limelight which has become NASCAR racing. Being Mrs. Dale Earnhardt Jr. probably ranks highly on the all time lists of things to do for many women. But that's not all there is to it all. Not at all.

Some of us simply respect the roots of NASCAR and where it all started. In some ways, Junior is a throwback to an older era, where times were much more simpler and easy. Junior would have loved to have raced in his father's day, back in the 1980's and 1990's. For any of you who detect accents, it is obvious that Dale Earnhardt Jr. was born and raised in North Carolina, which for some of us here in South Carolina, still makes him a Yankee.

Dale Jr. is a link to the past with many of us fans who have been around for more than 8 or so years. He probably won't win 200 races or 8 championships, but we love the guy. He's as honest as the day is long, and he tells the truth, always. Is he the best driver out there? Probably not. But we love him for his ability to be candid about all things racing though.

Dale Jr. will probably not be remembered as the best driver ever, but he will be remembered as one of the most popular drivers ever. If you want an honest opinion about a race track or a race car, Dale Jr. is your guy. He will tell you the truth.

Dale Jr. has a lot of respect for the traditions that were started way before he was even alive. I was alive before him, so I know. Dale Jr. has become the most popular NACSCAR driver mostly because of his personality, not just his driving abilities.

Like him or not, Dale Jr. keeps fans watching NASCAR. Thank whatever God you to pray to for that.

Remembering Neil Bonnett

The 1994 season had not yet officially begun, only a hand full test sessions had taken place, when the news came from Daytona that Neil Bonnett had died from injuries sustained in a practice crash for the Daytona 500.

Neil, popular driver and broadcaster, was taking the next step in his comeback effort after three years of recovery from injuries suffered in a 1990 crash at Darlington. Everyone knew how much Neil and Dale Earnhardt loved to hunt and fish, but during a press conference announcing his comeback Neil admitted racing meant much more to him. During Neil's comeback efforts he tested for RCR and was a key part in the development of the new Monte Carlo coming out in 1995. Neil found something during all this testing and he felt he had a great chance at the pole and Daytona 500 in 1994. I guess we will never know what happened to the car that fateful day, but I can tell you that it was not driver error. There are a lot of unanswered questions about the car, but all the answers in the world will not bring Neil back. There are no answers to the question why. The only comforting thought can be that unlike Alan Kulwicki and Davy Allison, Neil lost his life doing what he loved, driving a race car.

Neil's 18 career wins and 20 poles will be remembered. So will his talents behind the microphone and in front of the camera. Most of all Neil will be remembered as a man who gave 100 % to everything. Whether it be his family, hunting, fishing, or his ultimate love, racing. Neil Bonnett was a Racer!

I have so many fond memories of Neil and his family and I wanted to share some of them with you. I started to follow Neil's career when he was racing in the IROC series. Neil was one of a kind and will be missed, but his memories will live forever.

These are quotes from a Neil Bonnett fan, and the site is Here if you'd like to read all the quotes and see all the pictures. Neil was indeed a great race car driver, a great broadcaster, and an all around good guy. I miss him every day.

Thanks to Neilbonnett.com for the information and the pictures.

Here's some Driver Pictures for You!

The man above is indeed the legendary Dick Trickle. He was a hard charger in his day, and though his name has been made fun of by a lot of people, Dick was all business on race day.


This next pic is of Cale Yarborough. Cale was an iron man in his day. He drove hurt or sick, but nothing could keep Cale down.


This next pic shows Richard Petty, a young Kyle Petty, and Bobby Allison. These were all guys to beat back in the day.


Buddy Baker. He was a legend in NASCAR for many years. I miss hearing Buddy call the races.

The Silver Fox, or better known as David Pearson talking to Buddy Baker. David is second on the all time win list, and mostly only ran part time in the Grand National series, or what later was known as the Winston Cup and now the Sprint Cup. Had David run full time, who knows how many races he would have won? At 105 wins only running part time, David might have been one of the greatest drivers ever.


Davey Allison talking with Sterling Marlin. Davey was tragically killed in a helicopter accident at Talladega in 1993.


Once again, the Silver Fox, David Pearson.


The man, Dale Earnhardt. This was taken in the late 1990's.


Lake Speed, one of NASCAR's drivers from the 80's and 90's.


The great AJ Foyt. AJ won at pretty much every series he ever ran, and is still revered as one of the best race drivers ever, regardless of series.

Some Pictures for You

Here's some oldies but goodies.  In the first pic you see the number 3 Piedmont Airlines Chevrolet.  The driver was Richard Childress.

In the next pic you see the 21 Wood Brothers Ford driven by the Silver Fox, David Pearson.

And here we have the old number 3 Wrangler Chevy driven by Dale Earnhardt.

Check out the 28 Hardees car driven by Cale Yarborough.

The 43 STP car in 1992, during Richard Petty's farewell tour.

One more shot of the old Wrangler #3 of Dale Earnhardt.

Predictions for 2009 You Can Take to the Bank!

I rarely make predictions here, because if you ever played on any fantasy sports league with me, well, uh, you would understand.  In my football league, I finished about 10th out of 12 teams total.  I don't think 11 or 12 ever updated their rosters after the first week either, and I did update mine.  Well, most of the time I did.

But anyway, I'm going to make some predictions for the 2009 NASCAR season that you can bet your 401k on, if there's anything left in it.  If you will indulge me, I will do a countdown list here for your reading pleasure.

Prediction number 10:  No matter how the Chase for the Cup turns out in 2009, even if all 12 of the Chase contenders finish within a tenth of a second apart, fans will still complain about it.  Old timers will always see the Chase as young Brian France monkeying with the system, trying to fix something that didn't need to be fixed in the first place.  I consider myself to be among that group.  Not that I'm an old timer, of course.  I was barely out of my diapers when Richard Petty ran his last race.  Some people don't consider 29 to be too old to be potty trained, do they?

Prediction number 9:  Speaking of Brian France, even if the 2009 season provides the best racing in the history of NASCAR, some people will not be happy with the job he's doing.  NASCAR purists will remember that Big Bill France gave us NASCAR.  Little Bill, also known as Bill France Jr. gave us the modern era of NASCAR.  Brian France gave us the Chase, and the Car Of Tomorrow.  NASCAR president Mike Helton gave hope to those of us with mustaches that we can still look cool wearing them in the 21st century.

Prediction number 8:  Someone, oh, I don't know, maybe the driver of the 14 car, will say something bad about Goodyear tires in 2009.  Someone will also be called to the big house for a sit down, come to Jesus meeting, and probably won't say anything at all again for a few weeks about tires.  Goodyear and NASCAR will be burning the midnight oil to ensure that the tires for the Indianapolis race in 2009 will be better than they were for the 2008 race at the Brickyard.  But then again, I think that if they rolled out the tires they used at Watkins Glen in 2008, they would be better than what was used at Indy last year.  If they rolled out the cheapest passenger tire that can purchased at Wal-Mart, it would probably be an improvement.  What I want to know is where can I buy a supply of 2008 Indianapolis tires to put on my truck in order to have a valid excuse for being late to work about 3 times a week in 2009? 

Prediction number 7:  NASCAR's beefed up drug testing policy for 2009 will probably net exactly nothing.  If any of the crews, drivers or anyone else involved in the drug testing program can't quit long enough to pass the newly mandated tests, they're in the wrong business anyway, and probably have already left the sport, at least temporarily after the announcement last month.  The drivers supposedly can be tested at any time, and I seriously doubt that there will be any of them that will try to beat the system in that regard.  Sure, NASCAR has had a couple of drivers over the last few years who did have drug problems, but they're pretty much gone now.  I believe we're fortunate in many ways that NASCAR has evolved as sport that seems to not have major drug problems, as other sports have had, and still continue to have at times.  Most of America is so used to random drug testing now, that we who actually attempt to work for a living try to steer clear of anything that might cost us our jobs.  Heck, I even avoid eating poppy seed rolls, since they have shown up as opiates on some drug tests.  You have probably been drug tested several times if you've changed jobs at all in the last 30 years.  I know I have.  What NASCAR should really do is institute mandatory polygraph testing for their crew chiefs.  "Did you purposely move that shock mounting bracket to cheat?"  "No, sir.  I did not."  BUZZZZZZZZ!  "Wrong answer, dumb butt!  You're outta here!"

Prediction number 6:  Former driver and now FOX TV broadcaster Darrell Waltrip will once again lavish excessive praise upon a rather unpopular driver, and tick off a lot of fans.  Last year, it was Kyle Busch, and Darrell's e-mail inbox is still probably overloaded with upset fans' messages.  Give Darrell some credit though.  He's been in this sport longer than just about anyone else who's still around now, and he likes what he likes.  We need to remember that once upon a time, Darrell wasn't the grand old guy of this sport.  When he showed up around 1972, he peeved a lot of people off, and did so for a large chunk of his career.  Darrell has never been shy in front of a microphone, and in many ways, he's helped bring our sport to the level of popularity that it currently enjoys.  To me, Darrell Waltrip is a genius.  He understood, early on, that NASCAR gains popularity when controversy reigns.  Darrell's just doing what he's always been so good at:  Stirring the pot.  He gets people talking and buzzing about things.  For a sport that's seen a down turn in ticket sales and TV ratings, starting off the 2009 season with ole DW on FOX is just what the sport needs right now.  (DW, please e-mail me.  I'll tell you where to wire the money!)

Prediction number 5:  No matter how well the various networks that broadcast NASCAR in 2009 perform their duties, racing fans will be unhappy.  In 2008, I thought each network had it's strengths and weaknesses.  My personal favorite is FOX.  The guys in the booth just seem to have more fun with their broadcasting duties.  I like fun.  I don't watch racing because I want to get stressed out, even though I often do.  I like fun, and to me, the guys at FOX keep it fun.  I do, however give kudos to the other networks that broadcast NASCAR as well.  Kyle Petty is always a joy to watch and listen to.  Kyle has a no nonsense way of getting his point across and I appreciate that as a fan.  TNT was very smart to hire Kyle Petty to be in the booth.  I will say the same for ESPN and ABC for having the smarts to hire Dale Jarrett.  Dale is obviously a chip off the old block, because his dad, Ned Jarrett has been a long time favorite of mine as well, not just as a broadcaster, but as a driver, and indeed, just a nice guy.  (Dale and Ned, please see my message to DW above!)

Prediction number 4:  The new NASCAR testing ban probably will not cut down on testing very much.  The teams that have the pockets laden with cash to test, will test.  They can't test at a ton of tracks now, but there are always tracks out there not sanctioned by NASCAR.  If I had about 1000 more acres, and access to a bulldozer and and asphalt machine, I'd build a prefect replica of Daytona in my back yard.  (DW, Dale, and Ned:  You might want to keep that in mind while you make your contributions.  Wink, wink.)

Prediction number 3:  The number '3' will not be run in NASCAR in 2009.  Richard Childress, I assume, will keep the rights to use the number this year, and will not use it.  I don't know that I ever want to see it used again, except if Childress' grandson Austin Dillon wants to use it.  I know that Richard would probably give it to any Earnhardt that wants it as well, but right now, I don't see the '3' being used in 2009.  For many of us, I think we're only just beginning to sort out just how much the loss of Dale Earnhardt has meant to the sport.  It's amazing to me, but the fact is that the pain I felt on February 18, 2001 still exists today.  I miss Dale.  I miss him more than I ever believed I could.

Prediction number 2:  Jeff Gordon will win again, and probably in 2009.  That team was so close, so many times, in 2008, that I know Jeff still has more wins left in him.  I don't know about the championship, but he's got more wins left.  I believe that Jeff could possibly become at least the 3rd winningest driver in NASCAR history, after Richard Petty and David Pearson.  I also believe the crew chief Steve Letarte will be in for even more flack from many of Jeff's fans, unless the 24 team wins early and often in 2009.  Love him or hate him, Jeff Gordon is still the real deal.  (Jeff, please see prediction number 4, and I'll add you to the list!)

Prediction number 1:  This one is easy.  If Dale Earnhardt Jr. wins 20 races in 2009, and wins the Cup by 1000 points, there will still be fans calling for the head of crew chief Tony Eury Jr. delivered on a silver platter.  The hatred of Tony Jr. is phenomenal, to say the least.  Cousins for life, Tony's often blamed for the lackluster performance of the 88 team in 2008.  At the beginning of the season in 2008, they set some goals for themselves.  Win a race.  They did at Michigan in June.  Make the Chase.  They did, but ended up finishing 12th out of 12 Chase contenders.  Not a great year for the 88 team, but they improved tons over 2007, their last year with DEI.  My personal feeling is that Tony Jr. be given a chance in 2009.  I know many of my Earnhardt Nation brethren feel differently, but I say give Tony a second year at Hendrick Motorsports.  If they don't do a better job in 2009, I'll join the anti Eury Jr. choir on this one.  If I see 2 or more wins, and see Junior competing for wins during the Chase, I will vote that Tony Jr. stay on the job.  Personally, I see Junior's mind wandering at the end of a long season.  I'm not questioning his commitment to the job, I'm just saying that Junior probably needs a little extra pumping up when it gets to the end of a long, grueling season.  He's human, as are we all, but if he's going to win the whole enchilada, he needs more cheerleaders on the radio, and Tony Jr. can help more in that area than he has in the past.  I say both Jr.'s need to step up to the plate a little more in 2009, and if they can do that, they can win it all.  That's what they're for anyway, isn't it?

Let's get the Show on the Road!

It's 2009, and it's almost time to go racing again!  Let's see a show of hands for who you want to win in 2009!  Ok, down in the front there.  I doubt that Dick Trickle will win in 2009.  I'm sorry, but I'm just going to say it.

2009 is a brand new year with brand new promises for wins and championships.  Am I going to predict winners?  No, I'm not.  I'm going to predict some losers though.

EGR, which is the name for the new Earnhardt Ganassi Racing will not win in 2009, unless it's at a road course with Juan Pablo Montoya.  Martin Truex, Jr., please call your agent.  EGR is doomed to fail, just as has DEI in the last few years.  Put the fork in it, it's done.  

GEM will not produce greatly in 2009. Buying out Petty didn't gain much except the number 43, which was a major number in the sport, but no longer is.  Richard Petty doesn't drive the 43 anymore, and though Andretti and Hamilton, the number would have lost it's luster years ago.  Not really, of course.  For major fans of NASCAR, the 43 will always be famous.

As will the 21.  As will the 3.  As will other numbers.  But some of those will not be back this year, or possibly ever again.

What's in store for 2009?  Probably more of the same.  Hendrick, Roush, JGR, and maybe RCR will win the races in 2009.  I expect a surprise win by Stewart-Haas Racing as well, who will be running Hendrick equipment.  We might see a win by a minor team as well, such as GEM, but I don't expect any miracles from the EGR group.

Who's my winner for the Daytona 500?  I predict Jeff Burton.  I don't know why, but I just dream about it happening.  I see all the RCR cars running strong at Daytona, and newcomer Casey Mears putting in a strong appearance.  Watch out for Kevin Harvick, who knows how to win this race.  He's done it before.

Watch out for a guy named Earnhardt as well.  He's won here a lot, and you just never count out anyone named Earnhardt at Daytona.

Time Goes By So Slowly

And time can do so much, as the old song says.  It's much the same way in NASCAR's off-season as well.  Yes, the tedium of no racing and very much reduced coverage leaves us hardcore race fans feeling like we're living in a vacuum.  The news that has filtered through, however, has been rather grim.

With the  few strokes of a couple of pens, Dale Earnhardt Incorporated and Petty Enterprises have basically ceased to exist.  What was DEI is now partnered with Chip Ganassi Racing to become Earnhardt Ganassi Racing.  At least the name remains, but little of what Dale must have envisioned for his family business will exist in 2009 and beyond.  What was once NASCAR's greatest team has been swallowed up by a relatively new upstart, Gillett Evernham Motorsports.  GEM will now own the most famous number in the sport's history, the 43.

It is likely that there will be no one named Petty racing in NASCAR in 2009.  It is possible, for the first time since the very founding of the sport, that no one named Petty will even be involved in any of the teams in 2009.  Has the era of Petty finally ended for good?  If so, I personally am removing my hat and bowing my head in a moment of silence.

It appears that another founding team will only be seen on occasion in 2009.  The Wood Brothers 21 is only planning to run a hand full of races in 2009, unless major sponsorship becomes available.  For those of you who are old enough, or have been a fan long enough to remember those classic battles between the 21 Wood Brothers car driven by David Pearson and the 43 Petty Enterprises car driven by Richard Petty,  knowing that the day has finally come that neither of these teams will even be a presence at the track is a very sobering realization.  NASCAR has truly turned a full circle now.

Several drivers are looking for rides in 2009; the most prominent among them being Eliot Sadler and Bobby Labonte.  Both drivers signed contract extensions with their owners during the 2008 season, yet both of them are looking for a ride for 2009.  I sincerely hope that both of these drivers, and others as well, find the sponsorship and support they need to go racing in the Sprint Cup series in 2009.

All is not forlorn though.  Even though fans have suffered through the usual doldrums that occur in the average off season, plus the knowledge of the tough times our sport faces, there is good news.  It's now 2009, officially.  As I write this, the 2009 Daytona 500 is only 42 days away, and even though because of testing bans, the Daytona Speedweeks will be somewhat shortened, the end of the tunnel is beginning to come into sight once again.  In just a matter of weeks, the NASCAR faithful will once again be treated to the spectacle that is our sport's greatest race, and all the excitement that will entail.

I'll be saddened to see the teams who will not be at Daytona this year, and saddened by the passing of eras that many of us thought would never end, but as a fan, I am ready to get back to the pageantry, the drama, and the just flat out fun that is NACAR racing.