Get Well Soon
Donnie Allison was unable to make the Legends Helping Legends event due to having the flu because he didn’t want to get fans and other legends sick. And Bobby Allison called from an emergency room where he had taken his wife to let folks know he wouldn’t be attending. I hope everyone is well.
Congratulations To Tiger Tom Pistone & Fred Lorenzen
Tiger Tom Pistone, former stock car racer and inventive genius behind a lot of racing parts and safety innovations still being used today, will be inducted into the Illinois Stock Car Hall of Fame as part of their inaugural induction class. The induction ceremony will take place on April 14th. Also included in the induction group will be the original Golden Boy, Fred Lorenzen and Andy Granatelli of STP Indy car fame. They’ve included 15 folks in their inaugural induction class. Something the NA$CAR Hall of Fame should’ve done.
Winning Hearts & Minds…NOT!
It seems that at the fall Richmond race, a young driver was on his way to the media center while walking in the Cup garage when he was suddenly shoved from behind not once but twice. And who did the shoving? Why none other than NA$CAR’s celebrity spokesmodel having one of her petulant frenzies and her accompanying bag, I mean PR lady.
Despite the lamestream media refusing to show the darker side of NA$CAR’s latest messiah, reports of her misbehavior and poor interactions with fans and other drivers still are making their way out of the garage area. As are reports that the lamestream media is receiving “suggestions” to spend lots of time singing her praises from the mountain tops. Or atop the scoring towers at the tracks. You don’t win people over by being rude or uncouth. Especially when you’ve already got a bull’s eye painted on you for being rude to fans and having a potty mouth. You do realize who the fans are? You know, the ones who buy or use your sponsors products & services. The ones who directly or indirectly pay your paycheck.
The Lines Grow Blurrier
“I guess NASCAR thinks ’Hey, wrestling worked, and it was for the most part staged, so I guess it’s going to work in racing, too’. I can’t understand how long the fans are going to let NASCAR treat them like they’re stupid before the fans finally turn on NASCAR”. “I don’t know that they’ve run a fair race all year.” - Tony Stewart, 2007.
On WWE’s “Monday Night Raw” show, it was announced that WWE wrestler John Cena would be the starter for the Daytona 500. Obviously somebody down in the Ivory Towers hasn’t been paying attention to what the fans have been saying regarding how the races are manipulated and NA$CAR’s taking on the appearance of pro wrestling. Don’t get me wrong here. I like John Cena because of his support for the troops. I watch the WWE from time to time. It’s like a soap opera for men & boys. But when you’ve already got lots of fans suspecting the sanctioning body of using the same sort of behind the scenes manipulation that’s used in pro wrestling to affect the outcome of races, the last thing you want to do is add fuel to the fire. Add this to last week’s points buying so that NA$CAR’s celebrity spokesmodel can make an appearance at the Daytona 500 and it really goes from racin‘ to motorasslin‘.
What can we expect next? Good ole JR (John Ross) and Jerry “The King” Lawler to bump Jabber Jaws and his parrot from the announcing booth? Cousin Carl & John Cena to administer some pre-race body slams to the Busch brothers? The Big Show giving Mafia Mike Helton a choke slam in Race Control? Maybe a TLC match between Vince McMahon and Faux King Brian? How about a post-race Diva’s Lumberjack Match with NA$CAR’s celebrity spokesmodel versus The Glamazon? Or will an announcement be made that Vince McMahon purchased NA$CAR back in 2004 and Faux King Brian has been merely a puppet running things? Maybe a change to what NA$CAR actually means? Instead of the National Association for Stock Car Automobile Racing, it will stand for National Association for Spec Cars and Rasslin’? Or maybe they’ll adopt the rasslin’ moniker of NWO? NA$CAR World Order with Hulk Hogan and Kevin Nash replacing Faux King Brian and Mafia Mike?
Maybe at this point Vince McMahon should furnish some real writers to develop more believable storylines than what’s been coming out of the Ivory Towers week after week since 2004.
I did see one suggestion that makes sense. Have John Cena wave the yellow flag for the mystery debris cautions. It’s a “perfect marriage” of both sports entertainment organizations.
Historic Cleveland County Speedway Re-Opening
I don’t know how many folks have visited this historic old track in Shelby NC but thanks to renown racing artist Michael W. Smith, the track is getting new life breathed into it. On April 20-21, the First Annual NC Vintage Championship Exhibition and RacersReunion will be held at the track. Plans currently call for a vintage racing exhibition, a racing celebrity autograph session, family fun, food, & vendors. As soon as I find out who all will be signing autographs and other plans, I’ll let folks know.
Southern National Motorsports Park Added to Rolling Thunder Modified Schedule
Southern National Motorsports Park has been added to the Rolling Thunder Modified 2012 schedule and is slated for SNMP's final weekend of their 2012 season on September 29, 2012.
IndyCar Testing
IndyCar will be having an open test at Texas Motor Speedway on March 13th and March 8-9 at Sebring along with a private test session on March 5-6 at Sebring International Raceway.
Some Worried About Ugly F-1 Cars
There seems to be a growing concern about the new front end design on the F-1 cars by manufacturers and other companies involved with F-1 because, quite honestly, they’re so damned ugly. Even if you understand the reasons behind it, it's like a face that only a mother could love. Obviously F-1 didn’t bother checking out the fan reaction to the Camry of Today (COT) and how fans have reacted to that. Fan reaction to the new DW-12 for IndyCar seems to be getting a more positive response. Maybe the leadership at F-1 should’ve looked at what IndyCar was doing before coming up with their new design for the 2012 season?
Nissan Returning to Australian Touring Car Championship
Nissan, which has been absent from the Australian Touring Car Championship for 20 years, will return in 2013. Kelly Racing will be fielding 4 cars under the name Nissan Motorsports and will be a factory team.
I haven’t quite figured out how they’ll be competing in the V-8 Supercar Series as Nissan doesn’t have a V-8 in any of their street models. It’s supposed to be a part of their Car of the Future (COTF) program (sound familiar?) which is supposed to help reduce the cost of racing (also sound familiar?).
Unlike NA$CAR’s failed and highly disliked Camry of Today, the COTF will maintain the manufacturer’s bodylines and identification, 4 doors, rear wheel drive, and V-8 engines. Which leads me to ask again, where will Nissan get their V-8 from for their cars?
Interesting Stats
Based on stats used during an interview by Neil Cavuto with Faux King Brian, NA$CAR estimates 30% of the US population is a NA$CAR fan. That means approximately 90 million people as the US population is about 300 million. This is up from the previous estimates of 75 million. And yet with the poor TV ratings and attendance, I don’t see how there can be more than maybe 15 million and that’s being overly generous.
Kyle Lockrow Live
Seems like young Kyle Lockrow is becoming popular. Kyle will be a guest on MotorWeek show with Patrick Reynolds on Feb 27th @ 7:15 PM. I expect you’ll be seeing more of and about Kyle over the next few weeks and months.
Bet You Didn’t Hear About This
(AFNS) Air National Guardsmen from the 129th Rescue Wing here performed a rescue mission 200 miles off the coast of California on Feb. 4.
Responding to a call from the Eleventh District Coast Guard at Alameda, Calif., pararescuemen, two HH-60G Pave Hawk rescue helicopters and one MC-130P Combat Shadow aircraft departed here mid-morning and were on scene by noon.
The team provided medical assistance to a 54-year-old male who had suffered stroke-like symptoms aboard the cargo ship MSC Beijing. Guardsmen performed a medical evacuation, taking the patient to the San Jose Regional Medical Center in San Jose, Calif.
"This is a prime example of how the 129th and California National Guard is ready to support civilian authorities at a moment's notice," said Col. Steven J. Butow, the 129th RQW commander. "The Coast Guard knew they could depend on our specialized capability as one of the premier rescue units in the nation."
Great job folks. From one old war horse to our citizen soldiers.
Curtis Turner for 2016 HOF
Showing posts with label Fred Lorenzen. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fred Lorenzen. Show all posts
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Various Nuts and Bolts
I want to send my condolences out to Ken Schrader, his family, and friends over the passing on Ken’s mom. And say a few prayers for Mary, a long time race fan who’s going in for some major surgery.
It Finally Happened!
1960 Grand National Champion and my good friend Rex White was finally inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame (IMHOF). It’s about 35 years overdue in my opnion. The great thing is that Rex is still here to enjoy it. Other inductees to the IMHOF haven’t been so lucky. Now the challenge is to get Rex into the NA$CAR HOF while he’s still with us and before the place either becomes a total ghost town, gets shut down, gets bought by Rick Hendrick and turned into the Jimmie Johnson Shrine, or becomes the Palm Tree Hunter Center of Worship for "Soda" Spilling.
White Line Fever
It looks like JC France, who was busted for street racing and cocaine possession which were later dropped thanks to Judge Kennedy (who dismissed cases against other France family members), is back racing in the Rolex Series again. At a recent testing event, he kept the nose of his car right on the white line all around the track. An unconfirmed rumor has it that the white lines had to be repainted as they disappeared when JC’s car supposedly snorted them.
Bayne, what’s next, and Follow the Wood Brothers
I’ll be curious to see what happens with Trevor Bayne. Although he’s a Roush “property“, it’s looking like he’ll run at least 17 races with the Wood Brothers. It’s possible he could run some more if some sponsorship comes through. After the news that Bill Elliott was going to drive for James Finch and then it was denied, I can’t say as I blame the Wood Brothers for wanting to run Bayne the full season.
And speaking of the Wood Brothers, you might want to follow them on Facebook and Twitter. From time to time they run a trivia contest and you can win some interesting swag. I know because I played on Boxing Day (December 26th) and won a t-shirt, driver’s card, and two decals. Not bad for answering some pretty simple (to me anyways) questions about the Wood Brothers. Of course, you might want to bone up on their history first if you’re not familiar with them.
German TV Gets the Racing Right
German Sky, a German TV network, will be not only broadcasting F-1 in HD but also without commercial interruption. How long have we race fans across the board been wanting something like this? Imagine seeing the entire Daytona 500 or World 600 at home without commercial interruption? Or the NHRA Winter Nationals? Or ARCA races? The German Sky network execs know they’re competing against other series, sports, and shows so by foregoing the commercials they’re looking to pull in the maximum number of F-1 fans and gear heads they can. Hello Ivory Towers?
http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&sl=auto&tl=en&u=http://www.digitalfernsehen.de/Sky-zeigt-Formel-1-Rennen-2011-erstmals-in-nativem-HDTV.47125.0.html&prev=_t&rurl=translate.google.co.uk
Buyer Beware!
In today’s Buyer Beware category, it seems that a NA$CAR personality may have tried to pull a scam in the past. It seems that when asked for paperwork regarding the charity that this NA$CAR personality had established, this personality fails to produce it. It didn’t matter if this personality was hired for a personal appearance or an autograph session. Supposedly the money collected for these appearances goes to their charity but as the paperwork was never produced for that charity, it’s hard to say if the money is actually going where it’s supposed to. Apparently, failure to produce the charity paperwork is illegal according to what I’ve read.
Fading Glory
As a kid, one of my favorite racers was Fred Lorenzen. Fred was the original Poster Boy when it came to good looking drivers promoting the sport and promoting Ford, which is what he drove at that time. He was well spoken, clean cut, and an all-around decent guy not to mention one heck of a driver. As time has marched on Fred’s mental health has slowly deteriorated and he’s now living in an assisted care facility. While he can remember races from the old days, he has trouble remembering what’s happening today. If you want to make his day and give him some words of encouragement, you can drop him a card or letter at the following address:
Bridgeway Christian Village
Attn: Fred Lorenzen
Room No. 146
111 E. Washington
Bensenville, Ill. 60106-2674
I need to give credit Rick Houston at NA$CAR.com for the great article he wrote about Fred.
He’s a real commode-ian. He should be flushed with success.
Like the separation of church and state, I sure hope that The Human Shill can keep his day job as a supposed comedian separate from his night job as a shill/cheerleader on Speed‘s coverage of the Truck Series. It’s bad enough having to put up with his constant shilling for his team’s sponsors and his manufacturer plus the cheerleading he does for select drivers who drive the same make of truck. The fans at home don’t need to have him testing out his comic material on them during the truck races. Although when you consider the fact that some fans consider his racing career to be something of a joke, maybe he’s finally in the right line of work?
Daytona 500 Conspiracy Theory
With the Daytona 500 coming up along with the 10th anniversary of the death of Iron Head and Faux King Brian in desperate need of some major headlines to try to lure in more of the Short Attention Span Crowd and in desperate hopes of getting a few old fans to return, wouldn’t it be a real coincidence if Jr. won the Daytona 500? If you think back to the wins Jr. got on certain anniversaries, it definitely makes you wonder and lends some credence to this theory and it’s something that a lot of conspiracy theorists point to. Jr’s wins on the various anniversaries. So think about it, draw your own conclusions, form your own opinions, and see what happens on February 20th. If the conspiracy theorists are right, it lends even more credence to Steve O’Donnell, VP of Racing Operations, and his sworn statement that the sanctioning body and its’ activities are sports entertainment and not actually a motorsport. If the conspiracy theorists are wrong, then they’re wrong. It wouldn’t be the first time and probably wouldn’t be the last. So think about it and don’t go blasting me for putting this idea out there or say I‘m a Jr. Hater. I want folks to think about it and discuss it. And for those that think a race can’t be rigged, go back through NA$CAR’s history and you’ll find several races that were manipulated or had some irregularities that were overlooked, encouraged, or swept under the rug by both Big and Little Bill. The very first Strictly Stock race in which the winner was DQ’ed because Big Bill didn’t like a bootlegger winning the very first race and the tone that would set historically, Fireball Roberts being DQ’ed in order to keep Kiekhaefer’s mega-team in NA$CAR, Joe Weatherly and Curtis Turner being awarded points for a race they didn’t participate in, and the King’s 200th win are just some examples. So cuss and discuss the upcoming Daytona 500 and the possibilities the conspiracy theorists are putting out there.
Gone with the Wind
At the end of the 2011 season, Firestone will not renew their contract with IndyCar. While no official reason has been given yet, it could be for financial reasons. Bridgestone, the parent company of Firestone, is pulling out of racing across the board. This leaves the 2012 season wide open for a new tire provider to work with IndyCar. Michelin, Kumho, Hankook, Cooper, and Dunlop could all be in the running to replace Firestone for the IndyCar Series and a load of other companies could replace Bridgestone in the series that they’re involved in. So it’s possible there could be some tire wars going on this season in a bid to replace both Firestone and Bridgestone.
Two Thumbs Up to IndyCar
3 time Indy 500 winner Johnny Rutherford, Mario Andretti, Al Unser Jr., Sarah Fisher, Davey Hamilton, and Larry Foyt will be doing the Indianapolis 500 Centennial Tour, which is being coordinated by Morale Entertainment Foundation and Armed Forces Entertainment, in conjunction with the IndyCar Series and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and they start this week. The 10-day goodwill trip to Europe and the Middle East has a goal of boosting the morale of a lot of troops they plan to meet during the 10 day tour. Their first stop will be the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Landstuhl Germany, which was next to door to where I was stationed, Ramstein AB from 1980-1985.
The last time I heard of a NASCAR driver or personality doing something like this was several years ago when Jeremy Mayfield visited the troops and even went to one of the outlying outposts in a hostile area to meet with some race fans. So to the IndyCar folks and the racing greats involved with this tour, two thumbs up, a checkered flag, and a trophy for this great effort.
It Finally Happened!
1960 Grand National Champion and my good friend Rex White was finally inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame (IMHOF). It’s about 35 years overdue in my opnion. The great thing is that Rex is still here to enjoy it. Other inductees to the IMHOF haven’t been so lucky. Now the challenge is to get Rex into the NA$CAR HOF while he’s still with us and before the place either becomes a total ghost town, gets shut down, gets bought by Rick Hendrick and turned into the Jimmie Johnson Shrine, or becomes the Palm Tree Hunter Center of Worship for "Soda" Spilling.
White Line Fever
It looks like JC France, who was busted for street racing and cocaine possession which were later dropped thanks to Judge Kennedy (who dismissed cases against other France family members), is back racing in the Rolex Series again. At a recent testing event, he kept the nose of his car right on the white line all around the track. An unconfirmed rumor has it that the white lines had to be repainted as they disappeared when JC’s car supposedly snorted them.
Bayne, what’s next, and Follow the Wood Brothers
I’ll be curious to see what happens with Trevor Bayne. Although he’s a Roush “property“, it’s looking like he’ll run at least 17 races with the Wood Brothers. It’s possible he could run some more if some sponsorship comes through. After the news that Bill Elliott was going to drive for James Finch and then it was denied, I can’t say as I blame the Wood Brothers for wanting to run Bayne the full season.
And speaking of the Wood Brothers, you might want to follow them on Facebook and Twitter. From time to time they run a trivia contest and you can win some interesting swag. I know because I played on Boxing Day (December 26th) and won a t-shirt, driver’s card, and two decals. Not bad for answering some pretty simple (to me anyways) questions about the Wood Brothers. Of course, you might want to bone up on their history first if you’re not familiar with them.
German TV Gets the Racing Right
German Sky, a German TV network, will be not only broadcasting F-1 in HD but also without commercial interruption. How long have we race fans across the board been wanting something like this? Imagine seeing the entire Daytona 500 or World 600 at home without commercial interruption? Or the NHRA Winter Nationals? Or ARCA races? The German Sky network execs know they’re competing against other series, sports, and shows so by foregoing the commercials they’re looking to pull in the maximum number of F-1 fans and gear heads they can. Hello Ivory Towers?
http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&sl=auto&tl=en&u=http://www.digitalfernsehen.de/Sky-zeigt-Formel-1-Rennen-2011-erstmals-in-nativem-HDTV.47125.0.html&prev=_t&rurl=translate.google.co.uk
Buyer Beware!
In today’s Buyer Beware category, it seems that a NA$CAR personality may have tried to pull a scam in the past. It seems that when asked for paperwork regarding the charity that this NA$CAR personality had established, this personality fails to produce it. It didn’t matter if this personality was hired for a personal appearance or an autograph session. Supposedly the money collected for these appearances goes to their charity but as the paperwork was never produced for that charity, it’s hard to say if the money is actually going where it’s supposed to. Apparently, failure to produce the charity paperwork is illegal according to what I’ve read.
Fading Glory
As a kid, one of my favorite racers was Fred Lorenzen. Fred was the original Poster Boy when it came to good looking drivers promoting the sport and promoting Ford, which is what he drove at that time. He was well spoken, clean cut, and an all-around decent guy not to mention one heck of a driver. As time has marched on Fred’s mental health has slowly deteriorated and he’s now living in an assisted care facility. While he can remember races from the old days, he has trouble remembering what’s happening today. If you want to make his day and give him some words of encouragement, you can drop him a card or letter at the following address:
Bridgeway Christian Village
Attn: Fred Lorenzen
Room No. 146
111 E. Washington
Bensenville, Ill. 60106-2674
I need to give credit Rick Houston at NA$CAR.com for the great article he wrote about Fred.
He’s a real commode-ian. He should be flushed with success.
Like the separation of church and state, I sure hope that The Human Shill can keep his day job as a supposed comedian separate from his night job as a shill/cheerleader on Speed‘s coverage of the Truck Series. It’s bad enough having to put up with his constant shilling for his team’s sponsors and his manufacturer plus the cheerleading he does for select drivers who drive the same make of truck. The fans at home don’t need to have him testing out his comic material on them during the truck races. Although when you consider the fact that some fans consider his racing career to be something of a joke, maybe he’s finally in the right line of work?
Daytona 500 Conspiracy Theory
With the Daytona 500 coming up along with the 10th anniversary of the death of Iron Head and Faux King Brian in desperate need of some major headlines to try to lure in more of the Short Attention Span Crowd and in desperate hopes of getting a few old fans to return, wouldn’t it be a real coincidence if Jr. won the Daytona 500? If you think back to the wins Jr. got on certain anniversaries, it definitely makes you wonder and lends some credence to this theory and it’s something that a lot of conspiracy theorists point to. Jr’s wins on the various anniversaries. So think about it, draw your own conclusions, form your own opinions, and see what happens on February 20th. If the conspiracy theorists are right, it lends even more credence to Steve O’Donnell, VP of Racing Operations, and his sworn statement that the sanctioning body and its’ activities are sports entertainment and not actually a motorsport. If the conspiracy theorists are wrong, then they’re wrong. It wouldn’t be the first time and probably wouldn’t be the last. So think about it and don’t go blasting me for putting this idea out there or say I‘m a Jr. Hater. I want folks to think about it and discuss it. And for those that think a race can’t be rigged, go back through NA$CAR’s history and you’ll find several races that were manipulated or had some irregularities that were overlooked, encouraged, or swept under the rug by both Big and Little Bill. The very first Strictly Stock race in which the winner was DQ’ed because Big Bill didn’t like a bootlegger winning the very first race and the tone that would set historically, Fireball Roberts being DQ’ed in order to keep Kiekhaefer’s mega-team in NA$CAR, Joe Weatherly and Curtis Turner being awarded points for a race they didn’t participate in, and the King’s 200th win are just some examples. So cuss and discuss the upcoming Daytona 500 and the possibilities the conspiracy theorists are putting out there.
Gone with the Wind
At the end of the 2011 season, Firestone will not renew their contract with IndyCar. While no official reason has been given yet, it could be for financial reasons. Bridgestone, the parent company of Firestone, is pulling out of racing across the board. This leaves the 2012 season wide open for a new tire provider to work with IndyCar. Michelin, Kumho, Hankook, Cooper, and Dunlop could all be in the running to replace Firestone for the IndyCar Series and a load of other companies could replace Bridgestone in the series that they’re involved in. So it’s possible there could be some tire wars going on this season in a bid to replace both Firestone and Bridgestone.
Two Thumbs Up to IndyCar
3 time Indy 500 winner Johnny Rutherford, Mario Andretti, Al Unser Jr., Sarah Fisher, Davey Hamilton, and Larry Foyt will be doing the Indianapolis 500 Centennial Tour, which is being coordinated by Morale Entertainment Foundation and Armed Forces Entertainment, in conjunction with the IndyCar Series and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and they start this week. The 10-day goodwill trip to Europe and the Middle East has a goal of boosting the morale of a lot of troops they plan to meet during the 10 day tour. Their first stop will be the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Landstuhl Germany, which was next to door to where I was stationed, Ramstein AB from 1980-1985.
The last time I heard of a NASCAR driver or personality doing something like this was several years ago when Jeremy Mayfield visited the troops and even went to one of the outlying outposts in a hostile area to meet with some race fans. So to the IndyCar folks and the racing greats involved with this tour, two thumbs up, a checkered flag, and a trophy for this great effort.
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