Loose Lugnuts by Mike Sanders
You're Kidding, Right?
There are a lot of NASCAR-related blogs out there. Some are run by guys who are already members of the media (local or national), some by just regular guys with a passion for the sport and a bit of spare time on their hands. I try to peruse as many as I can as often as I can to see what people are saying about the topic of the day. I love it when I can see what the kool-aid drinkers in the national NASCAR media are spouting. It's even better when I can send in a comment when I think they're trying to blow smoke up my butt. Such an occasion came about after the Cup race in Kansas a couple of weeks back. In a blog penned by a well-known member of the national NASCAR media (I won't mention his name, but if I did you'd instantly recognize it). He was talking about the now infamous incident when The Bimbo got p.o.'ed at Landon Cassill and tried to wreck him, only to send herself careening into the outside wall and destroying yet another race car, while Cassill drove away laughing at her and ending up with a top 20 finish. In the last paragraph of the blog was this line: "Danica Patrick is a talented racer who will almost certainly enjoy a long and lucrative NASCAR career." I couldn't help but sending in a response to that. I said that line sounded more like a talking point generated by the cementheads at NASCAR HQ than it did a heart-felt opinion. I called her Michael McDowell with breasts, except that McDowell is a better driver in worse equipment. I also said that she'd be out of racing in five years or less and that she's already had a lucrative career, but hasn't done a thing to earn it (even her sponsor is growing weary of the lack of on-track results; after next year they could become Gone Daddy). Well, none of that sat well with the author, who refused to publish my comments but instead issued this rebuttal: "If you're looking for your comment, you will not find it. Name calling does not fly on this blog, and we also do not travel the cheap insult route. If you are capable of making your point without the trash talk (and based on your first effort, I suspect you may not be capable), feel free to try again. Otherwise, don't waste your time submitting another comment that will never see the light of day". Wow...you're telling fans who are passionate enough to not only read your blog but write in to comment on it not to trash talk? Especially when the blog that day features a story about the most polarizing figure in the sport today? Are you effing kidding me? Trash talking is part of being a fan. Hey, it's your blog so you can make your own rules, but don't expect many fans to bother reading it. Later that day I sent in a politically correct comment and he did publish it, and thanked me for not name-calling. Too late, dude. You showed yourself to be a thin-skinned coward. And yes, I still think you were just regurgitating talking points at the end of your blog.
It's Only Going To Get Worse Next Year
Other members of the kool-aid drinking national NASCAR media were gushing over The Bimbo's 24th place finish at Texas last week. Not only did she almost get a top 20 finish, but she FINISHED ON THE LEAD LAP !!!!! NASCAR is saved!!!!! Yep, I'm telling you, if she were to actually get a top 10 finish in a Cup race next year (nah, not gonna happen, but don't tell these guys that) we would never hear the end of it. I counted at least five separate articles on Monday breathlessly chronicling her day at TMS. It must have been a slow news day for NASCAR, or something. Of course we've already been subjected to complete, lap-by-lap accounts of her 14th place, 2 laps down finishes in the Nationwide Series this year as well. And I wish the media would quit referring to her as a "star". She's NOT a star, she's a publicity stunt. She's Geraldine Ferraro in a firesuit. For those too young to recognize the name, Google "Geraldine Ferraro" and you'll see why I call her a publicity stunt.
The Storyline Continues
Last year, as soon as Bent Sh!tcan was mathematically eliminated from Chase contention, it appeared that NASCAR HQ sent out a memo to the media that said that 2012's storyline would be the 48 team's pursuit of title number six. You saw more articles published about that than you did the finish of the Chase, almost as if since the 48 wasn't going to win it wasn't worth paying any attention to. Once this season started, it appeared that The Felon was going to make damn sure that the 48 did win it all again this year: what, Cheating Weasel gets busted for cheating in Daytona? Well, we'll just appeal it and I'll make a couple of rather large contributions to Brain Dead's liquor fund and all will be forgiven. (You'll notice that the 27 team didn't have as much luck with the appeal process after getting busted at Michigan. I guess Childress' pockets aren't as deep as The Felon's). And then there was last week at Texas, when Bent Sh!tcan jumped the final restart and held off B-ski for the win. Ummm...that's against the rules. But once again, we can't be interfering with the storyline, can we? So, Robin Hoodless comes out and says yes, he did something illegal, but it was so close we decided not to call it. Really? So, in order to get busted for cheating it has to be blatant? I think Clint Bowyer would disagree with that...
Something Else That's Going To Get Worse Next Year
Race attendance is bad and getting worse this year. How many blimp shots of empty grandstands (like last week at TMS; that was a real shame) do we have to be subjected to before the cementheads admit that there is a real problem? Every time one of these morons talks it always "yes, things are great for NASCAR right now". Um, no they're not. And with the economy potentially falling off a cliff next year, be prepared to see Cup races where the attendance approaches that of a high school football game...in Alaska. Daytona, a few years back, decided to close off the backstretch grandstands for the July race because of poor ticket sales. More tracks should start thinking of doing that. Just close down the backstretch and fill up the frontstretch. Use the principle of supply and demand; it does work.
Why Do They Do It?
Sometimes it appears that the TV networks covering NASCAR deliberately try to enrage their viewers. Most viewers despise DW, so what does FOX do? Why, they give him a contract extension. Rusty, universally acknowledged to be a great race car driver, is also universally acknowledged to absolutely suck in the broadcast booth. ESPN's solution? Why yes, it would be a contract extension as well. The FOX booth bozos drool over Mini Douche, and the ESPN Chase race coverage, especially this year, is more like an on-air meeting of the Bent Sh!tcan Fan Club. And sponsors can't be happy with this, either. They're not getting a decent return on their investment, which is why so many are leaving the sport. No butts in the seats at the track, and horrific TV coverage, leading to dismal ratings. Yep, sounds like a recipe for success...
Curtis Turner for 2016 HOF
Showing posts with label NASCAR on Fox. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NASCAR on Fox. Show all posts
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Monday, July 9, 2012
Loose Lug Nuts
Loose Lug Nuts by Mike Sanders
Let's Start With A Rant, Shall We?
I am not a journalist or member of the media. That's obvious from what I write and how I write. What I am is a schmoe with an opinion and a platform from which to give it. I speak only for myself; I don't pretend to speak for anybody else. That would be extremely presumptuous on my part. What I hate is when the sports media, either local or national, DOES take it upon itself to speak for me, and also to tell me who I should like and who I should dislike. According to the national sports media (and a certain four letter network in particular) if you don't worship Tiger Woods, the Los Angeles Lakers, and Notre Dame football, you're un-American (personally, I despise all three, so I guess that makes me a hardcore Commie or something). Hey, sports media: I don't remember signing a power of attorney document giving you the right to speak for me, so QUIT DOING IT!!! This bubbled to the surface a couple of weeks ago when I was reading the blog of a person (who shall remain nameless) who works as the news editor of a Michigan newspaper and who also writes a NASCAR blog (his profile says he "knows a ridiculous amount about...NASCAR..." umm...okay). The partial title of that particular blog was "Danica Patrick is tied in the points with Tayler Malsam, so where's his coverage?" Promising title...maybe this guy gets it. Ummm...no, he doesn't get it. It was a bait-and-switch. A couple of doozies from the blog:
1. "Maybe I should give him (Tayler Malsam) a call? But then again, how many of you would want to read about it?" Hey dirtbag, maybe a lot of us would like to read about him. Have you actually spoken to any real race fans about this, or are you just going to take it upon yourself to speak for us?
2. "We in the media know Danica is really not that much more special of a driver than many of her lesser-know competitors. But, and this is a really big but, they are lesser-known, and most people don't care about them." Again, who the hell are you to speak for race fans? If you want to speak for yourself, fine; don't say "most people" because you AREN'T MOST PEOPLE!!! And the reason they're lesser-known is because you and your brethren in the media are too damned lazy to cover them, and instead would rather shower undeserved praise on some low-talent semi-good looking (at best) publicity whore.
The Bimbo And The Un-Bimbo
Yes, Danica shall forever be The Bimbo, and Johanna Long is The Un-Bimbo, in that she drives under the media radar, and gets the best out of her underfunded car. I was hoping she was going to win at Daytona this past Friday night; she was in the top 10 with a handful of laps left, but alas, she ended up wrecked on the final lap and finished in 12th. Still, not bad. One thing I'm noticing the last few weeks as I read through NASCAR blogs and news articles is that Johanna is picking up quite a following. Some of the writers and commentors are saying that the main reason for this is that they're tired of The Bimbo being shoved down their throats, and instead of following someone who underperforms in the best equipment around, they would prefer to follow someone who is over achieving. I couldn't have said it better myself. Of course, The Bimbo still has her apologists out there. I had a little back-and-forth with one on Saturday. My point was that The Bimbo was receiving media coverage that was way out of proportion to her achievements on the track. This guy came back with "check the facts, she's 9th in the standings". So, I checked the facts and came back with "the facts are that only 16 drivers have run all 16 NNS races this year, so that puts her in the lower half of the full-time teams, along with such guys as Jeff Green, T.J. Bell, and Mike Wallace. I wouldn't be bragging about that". His retort was the oft-used and very tiresome "well, you think you could do any better?" Oy...and my answer to that, which ended our little internet conversation was "well, if I had been racing competitively since the age of 10 or so, and now had the best equipment money could by, then yes, I would be doing a hell of a lot better".
Junior's Win
When Junior finally won at Michigan, you would have thought world peace had broken out and that cancer had been cured. Alas, no, it was only one win. But the long national nightmare was finally over...or something. I did think it would finally give rest to those incessant "is this the week Junior finally wins?" articles that were increasing in quantity over the last couple of months. But no. The day after his win, I actually saw an article that asked "when will Junior win again"? Jeez, give the guy a break. If he's consistent, his next win will be at Michigan in 2016. As I was watching the end of the race, two things came to mind: first, the TNT booth bozos (who are just about as bad as the FOX booth bozos) spent so much time talking about how great this win was going to be for NASCAR, blah blah...that they completely lost focus on the other cars on the track. So much so that when the 55 car, which had been in the top 10 for literally the entire race, and most of that in the top 5, blew an engine with 5 laps to go (eventually finishing 29th), it was never mentioned, even after the race. The only reason I knew something was wrong was on that the crawler showing the running order and intervals the 5's distance behind the 88 suddenly grew at a very fast rate, and in one cycle he went from 5th to 29th. I kinda figured it was another blown engine for the 55 (the third in 7 races) and I was right, with no help from the guys in the booth. The second thing that came to mind with a handful of laps to go, was that this was the week that there would be no phantom debris caution to bunch up the field at the end of the race. I think the NASCAR officials figured that if they threw a bogus caution with three laps left and Junior leading by 5 seconds or so, the members of Junior Nation that were present at the race would have stormed the booth the officials were operating out of like the villagers storming Frankenstein's castle... torches, pitchforks and all. Anything short of a 50 megaton thermonuclear detonation in turn 3 wasn't going to be flagged, and even that would have been debated.
Longing For FOX?
As bad as the FOX broadcasts were for mangled camera angles and excessive booth stupidity, TNT seems to be trying out do them when it comes to horrific race coverage. Yes, their camera work is infinitely better than FOX, but the guys in the booth are getting worse instead of better, constantly talking over each other and sometimes not paying attention to the action on the track (which is what I thought they were being paid to do...silly me). And of course, the biggest concern for race fans: the gazillion commercials each race. There have been times when the race coverage is 3 minutes and the commercial time following it is 4-5 minutes. And it's happened more than once. When commercial time exceeds race coverage time, you've got a BIG problem. I know, I know, the bills have to be paid, and the rights fees have to be recouped from ad dollars, but enough is enough. And we're stuck with this TV contract until after the 2014 season. Maybe then we'll get a break. Or maybe not...
Time To Take The Wins Away?
After his dominating performance in the NNS race at Kentucky, Austin Dillon's 3 car failed post-race inspection. The win stood, and there were slap-on-the-wrist point penalties and fines. After winning the pole for the NNS race at Daytona last Friday, the 3 car again failed inspection. His time was disallowed and he was sent to the back of the field for the race; further penalties are forthcoming. In my very humble opinion, if a car wins a race and then fails post-race inspection, the win should be vacated. Everybody else in the field moves up one spot; the car that finished second is now declared the winner, and the original winning car goes to 43rd place. The argument against that is "the car that finished 2nd originally didn't cross the start-finish line first, so he can't be declared the winner". The counter-argument is "how do we know the original 2nd place car wouldn't have won if the original winning car wasn't cheating"? The discussion can go back and forth forever, depending on your point of view, but if wins that were gained because the winning car wasn't legit aren't taken away, what is to keep teams (*cough* 48 *cough*) from cheating every week? Something's got to be done, and that's the easiest and most direct thing. Instead of winners' points, you get 43rd place points for the race. That'll get drivers' and CC's attention, and quickly. Keep the win and only get docked 6 points (such as the 3 car last week)? BFD. Seriously, BFD. Six points can be made up in one week. 46-47 points (which include the bonus for winning the race and the bonus for leading one lap or the most laps)? That'll take a bit longer.
Let's Start With A Rant, Shall We?
I am not a journalist or member of the media. That's obvious from what I write and how I write. What I am is a schmoe with an opinion and a platform from which to give it. I speak only for myself; I don't pretend to speak for anybody else. That would be extremely presumptuous on my part. What I hate is when the sports media, either local or national, DOES take it upon itself to speak for me, and also to tell me who I should like and who I should dislike. According to the national sports media (and a certain four letter network in particular) if you don't worship Tiger Woods, the Los Angeles Lakers, and Notre Dame football, you're un-American (personally, I despise all three, so I guess that makes me a hardcore Commie or something). Hey, sports media: I don't remember signing a power of attorney document giving you the right to speak for me, so QUIT DOING IT!!! This bubbled to the surface a couple of weeks ago when I was reading the blog of a person (who shall remain nameless) who works as the news editor of a Michigan newspaper and who also writes a NASCAR blog (his profile says he "knows a ridiculous amount about...NASCAR..." umm...okay). The partial title of that particular blog was "Danica Patrick is tied in the points with Tayler Malsam, so where's his coverage?" Promising title...maybe this guy gets it. Ummm...no, he doesn't get it. It was a bait-and-switch. A couple of doozies from the blog:
1. "Maybe I should give him (Tayler Malsam) a call? But then again, how many of you would want to read about it?" Hey dirtbag, maybe a lot of us would like to read about him. Have you actually spoken to any real race fans about this, or are you just going to take it upon yourself to speak for us?
2. "We in the media know Danica is really not that much more special of a driver than many of her lesser-know competitors. But, and this is a really big but, they are lesser-known, and most people don't care about them." Again, who the hell are you to speak for race fans? If you want to speak for yourself, fine; don't say "most people" because you AREN'T MOST PEOPLE!!! And the reason they're lesser-known is because you and your brethren in the media are too damned lazy to cover them, and instead would rather shower undeserved praise on some low-talent semi-good looking (at best) publicity whore.
The Bimbo And The Un-Bimbo
Yes, Danica shall forever be The Bimbo, and Johanna Long is The Un-Bimbo, in that she drives under the media radar, and gets the best out of her underfunded car. I was hoping she was going to win at Daytona this past Friday night; she was in the top 10 with a handful of laps left, but alas, she ended up wrecked on the final lap and finished in 12th. Still, not bad. One thing I'm noticing the last few weeks as I read through NASCAR blogs and news articles is that Johanna is picking up quite a following. Some of the writers and commentors are saying that the main reason for this is that they're tired of The Bimbo being shoved down their throats, and instead of following someone who underperforms in the best equipment around, they would prefer to follow someone who is over achieving. I couldn't have said it better myself. Of course, The Bimbo still has her apologists out there. I had a little back-and-forth with one on Saturday. My point was that The Bimbo was receiving media coverage that was way out of proportion to her achievements on the track. This guy came back with "check the facts, she's 9th in the standings". So, I checked the facts and came back with "the facts are that only 16 drivers have run all 16 NNS races this year, so that puts her in the lower half of the full-time teams, along with such guys as Jeff Green, T.J. Bell, and Mike Wallace. I wouldn't be bragging about that". His retort was the oft-used and very tiresome "well, you think you could do any better?" Oy...and my answer to that, which ended our little internet conversation was "well, if I had been racing competitively since the age of 10 or so, and now had the best equipment money could by, then yes, I would be doing a hell of a lot better".
Junior's Win
When Junior finally won at Michigan, you would have thought world peace had broken out and that cancer had been cured. Alas, no, it was only one win. But the long national nightmare was finally over...or something. I did think it would finally give rest to those incessant "is this the week Junior finally wins?" articles that were increasing in quantity over the last couple of months. But no. The day after his win, I actually saw an article that asked "when will Junior win again"? Jeez, give the guy a break. If he's consistent, his next win will be at Michigan in 2016. As I was watching the end of the race, two things came to mind: first, the TNT booth bozos (who are just about as bad as the FOX booth bozos) spent so much time talking about how great this win was going to be for NASCAR, blah blah...that they completely lost focus on the other cars on the track. So much so that when the 55 car, which had been in the top 10 for literally the entire race, and most of that in the top 5, blew an engine with 5 laps to go (eventually finishing 29th), it was never mentioned, even after the race. The only reason I knew something was wrong was on that the crawler showing the running order and intervals the 5's distance behind the 88 suddenly grew at a very fast rate, and in one cycle he went from 5th to 29th. I kinda figured it was another blown engine for the 55 (the third in 7 races) and I was right, with no help from the guys in the booth. The second thing that came to mind with a handful of laps to go, was that this was the week that there would be no phantom debris caution to bunch up the field at the end of the race. I think the NASCAR officials figured that if they threw a bogus caution with three laps left and Junior leading by 5 seconds or so, the members of Junior Nation that were present at the race would have stormed the booth the officials were operating out of like the villagers storming Frankenstein's castle... torches, pitchforks and all. Anything short of a 50 megaton thermonuclear detonation in turn 3 wasn't going to be flagged, and even that would have been debated.
Longing For FOX?
As bad as the FOX broadcasts were for mangled camera angles and excessive booth stupidity, TNT seems to be trying out do them when it comes to horrific race coverage. Yes, their camera work is infinitely better than FOX, but the guys in the booth are getting worse instead of better, constantly talking over each other and sometimes not paying attention to the action on the track (which is what I thought they were being paid to do...silly me). And of course, the biggest concern for race fans: the gazillion commercials each race. There have been times when the race coverage is 3 minutes and the commercial time following it is 4-5 minutes. And it's happened more than once. When commercial time exceeds race coverage time, you've got a BIG problem. I know, I know, the bills have to be paid, and the rights fees have to be recouped from ad dollars, but enough is enough. And we're stuck with this TV contract until after the 2014 season. Maybe then we'll get a break. Or maybe not...
Time To Take The Wins Away?
After his dominating performance in the NNS race at Kentucky, Austin Dillon's 3 car failed post-race inspection. The win stood, and there were slap-on-the-wrist point penalties and fines. After winning the pole for the NNS race at Daytona last Friday, the 3 car again failed inspection. His time was disallowed and he was sent to the back of the field for the race; further penalties are forthcoming. In my very humble opinion, if a car wins a race and then fails post-race inspection, the win should be vacated. Everybody else in the field moves up one spot; the car that finished second is now declared the winner, and the original winning car goes to 43rd place. The argument against that is "the car that finished 2nd originally didn't cross the start-finish line first, so he can't be declared the winner". The counter-argument is "how do we know the original 2nd place car wouldn't have won if the original winning car wasn't cheating"? The discussion can go back and forth forever, depending on your point of view, but if wins that were gained because the winning car wasn't legit aren't taken away, what is to keep teams (*cough* 48 *cough*) from cheating every week? Something's got to be done, and that's the easiest and most direct thing. Instead of winners' points, you get 43rd place points for the race. That'll get drivers' and CC's attention, and quickly. Keep the win and only get docked 6 points (such as the 3 car last week)? BFD. Seriously, BFD. Six points can be made up in one week. 46-47 points (which include the bonus for winning the race and the bonus for leading one lap or the most laps)? That'll take a bit longer.
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Mad Mikie's Laidback Lounge: Mike's Loose Lugnuts
By Mike Sanders
Drunk, Lazy, And Stupid Is No Way To Go Through Life, Son...
Especially if you're the chairman and CEO of a major sports organization. But Brain Dead manages to pull it off. On May 19th, just before the Sprint All-Star Race, he stated that he's pleased with the 2012 season: "It's been a good, solid year". Really? For whom? Maybe for you, because you're making a boat-load of cash, and The Felon is keeping your liquor cabinet fully-stocked with his weekly "donations", but what about the fans? It doesn't appears to have been such a great year for most of them, if you go by TV ratings and race attendence. Almost every track now has several sections covered by flags, tarps, or sponsor banners to attempt to hide all of the empty seats. Blimp shots of the stands get cut off abruptly once the large sections of uncovered empty seats come into view. There are no official race attendence numbers; everything is fudged. That's why you'll see numbers like "100,000" or "80,000" for race attendence. Most are completely bogus and insult the intelligence of most of the fans at the race or those watching (in decreasing numbers) at home on TV. Speaking of the All-Star Race...
The All-Star Debacle
This season, the Sprint All-Star Race was advertised as the only major sport All-Star contest in which the participants are actually trying. Considering what the NFL Pro Bowl has degraded to lately, that wouldn't be a difficult statement to make. And it has that potential: no points are on the line, and the winner gets a cool million bucks. There won't be any "points racing", so everybody can just go for it. Well, that's not quite what happened this year. The winners of the first three segments played possum at the back of the field after they won their segment, and then raced hard during the final 10 lap segment that decided the race. It was a monumental pile of horse dung. I don't want to hear about how those three drivers were "employing strategy by not using their cars up". Bull crap! After Bent Sh!tcan won the first segment then started the second segment a full straightaway behind the field, driving about as fast as my 82 year old mother, the whole thing went to hell. Someone from NASCAR should have been on the phone to the 48 team and told them that if the 48 didn't move up to the pack and race like he had a pair, he would be parked for the remainder of the race. "Sorry...no balls, no million bucks. If we wanted to see someone drive like that, we'd have put your wife behind the wheel." My solution for this mess is a simple one: make it a 100 lap race with no segments. Period. No mandatory pit stops. Stop when you need to or under caution. Determining the participants would also be simple: anybody who won a race between last year's ASR and this year's ASR gets in, as do past ASR winners. That's it. No bogus fan vote, no heat races. I can dream, can't I?
An Update On The Best Female Driver In NASCAR
And of course, it's not The Bimbo. It's Johanna Long. I wrote about her after Daytona, and, after being prodded by a couple of readers after my last article, I'll do it again now, and I'll continue to do it later in the year. The recently-turned 20 year old from Pensacola, driving for the under-funded ML Motorsports in the number 70 car, has now run 8 races this year, with an average starting position of 21.0 and an average finish of 23.8 (skewed by a 37th place finish at Talladega in which she ran only 18 laps due to overheating). The Talladega race is her only DNF of the year. She's doing great considering the lack of funding she has to deal with. By contrast, The Bimbo, in just about the best equipment money can buy, has stats of 15.4-21.0 and 3 DNF's. The Bimbo also leads Johanna in excuses for non-performance by about 23 quadrillion to zero. And speaking of The Bimbo...
Payback Is A ... Well, You Know
Good for Sam Hornish, Jr. for not putting up with The Bimbo's crap. The Bimbo puts him into the wall on the cooldown lap at Talladega, Sam retaliates with a well-timed (and COMPLETELY UNINTENTIONAL *cough, cough*) tap at Dover that basically ends her day. Good going, Sam! Unfortunately, there was a bit of collateral damage, as Brad Sweet got caught up in it. Wrong place, wrong time, etc.
NASCAR Sends Another Message
NASCAR probation has been universally scoffed at and mocked. It is (or was) completely toothless; it was their way of saying "stop...or I'll say 'stop' again". It meant nothing. Well, their suspension of Maxi Douche after his incident with writer Bob Pockrass after the Dover Nationwide race was a message to all drivers: when you're on probation, don't piss us off, or we WILL do something about it. Message received (I think). BTW, if the NASCAR media were polled off the record, I'm sure most of them would rather interview Maxi or even Mini Douche (as long as they had taken their meds) than interview Bent Sh!tcan, whose grating monotone drives everybody up the wall.
A Job Lost, A Job Saved?
I think this might have been Maxi Douche's last chance. It's a good thing that the contract between him and car owner James Finch was a handshake deal and not in writing. Finch was already having a hard time finding sponsors for the 51, but now (with the possible exception of Jerry Springer's offer, which I think is just a publicity stunt...but what a fitting driver to sponsor) I doubt any top-tier or even mid-tier sponsor would touch the 51 with a 10 foot pole as long as Maxi is behind the wheel. On the other side of things, did the win at Pocono save Burnt Toast's job in the 20 car? As much as I'd like to say that it's The Coach's call on that one, sadly the call will probably be made by Home Depot. Yep, sponsors run NASCAR these days, especially big name sponsors like HD. If they want somebody else behind the wheel of the 20 next year (this is the final year of BT's contract), then The Coach will be forced to make a change. Gotta keep the big money guys happy.
Could It Happen?
We all know that the dreaded disease know as "The Chase for the Sprint Cup" was the kneejerk reaction to Matt Kenseth winning the 2003 championship going away despite only winning one race all year. Thus far in 2012, the most consistent driver in the Cup series is also one of the drivers who hasn't won this year: that's right, it's June Bug. Wouldn't it be a nice thumb in the eye of Brain Dead and the other chuckleheads-in-charge if June Bug won the championship this year and didn't win a race? You'd be able to hear the cementheads exploding all the way here in Orlando.
TNT Takes Charge
TNT telecasted the Pocono race and has the next five races before ESPN takes over. For the first time all year I could actually see more than two cars on the track at the same time. What a concept! And while the guys in the booth aren't as bad as FOX's crew, they've got some improving to do. Still, nothing beats a "boogity"-less green flag to start a race.
Drunk, Lazy, And Stupid Is No Way To Go Through Life, Son...
Especially if you're the chairman and CEO of a major sports organization. But Brain Dead manages to pull it off. On May 19th, just before the Sprint All-Star Race, he stated that he's pleased with the 2012 season: "It's been a good, solid year". Really? For whom? Maybe for you, because you're making a boat-load of cash, and The Felon is keeping your liquor cabinet fully-stocked with his weekly "donations", but what about the fans? It doesn't appears to have been such a great year for most of them, if you go by TV ratings and race attendence. Almost every track now has several sections covered by flags, tarps, or sponsor banners to attempt to hide all of the empty seats. Blimp shots of the stands get cut off abruptly once the large sections of uncovered empty seats come into view. There are no official race attendence numbers; everything is fudged. That's why you'll see numbers like "100,000" or "80,000" for race attendence. Most are completely bogus and insult the intelligence of most of the fans at the race or those watching (in decreasing numbers) at home on TV. Speaking of the All-Star Race...
The All-Star Debacle
This season, the Sprint All-Star Race was advertised as the only major sport All-Star contest in which the participants are actually trying. Considering what the NFL Pro Bowl has degraded to lately, that wouldn't be a difficult statement to make. And it has that potential: no points are on the line, and the winner gets a cool million bucks. There won't be any "points racing", so everybody can just go for it. Well, that's not quite what happened this year. The winners of the first three segments played possum at the back of the field after they won their segment, and then raced hard during the final 10 lap segment that decided the race. It was a monumental pile of horse dung. I don't want to hear about how those three drivers were "employing strategy by not using their cars up". Bull crap! After Bent Sh!tcan won the first segment then started the second segment a full straightaway behind the field, driving about as fast as my 82 year old mother, the whole thing went to hell. Someone from NASCAR should have been on the phone to the 48 team and told them that if the 48 didn't move up to the pack and race like he had a pair, he would be parked for the remainder of the race. "Sorry...no balls, no million bucks. If we wanted to see someone drive like that, we'd have put your wife behind the wheel." My solution for this mess is a simple one: make it a 100 lap race with no segments. Period. No mandatory pit stops. Stop when you need to or under caution. Determining the participants would also be simple: anybody who won a race between last year's ASR and this year's ASR gets in, as do past ASR winners. That's it. No bogus fan vote, no heat races. I can dream, can't I?
An Update On The Best Female Driver In NASCAR
And of course, it's not The Bimbo. It's Johanna Long. I wrote about her after Daytona, and, after being prodded by a couple of readers after my last article, I'll do it again now, and I'll continue to do it later in the year. The recently-turned 20 year old from Pensacola, driving for the under-funded ML Motorsports in the number 70 car, has now run 8 races this year, with an average starting position of 21.0 and an average finish of 23.8 (skewed by a 37th place finish at Talladega in which she ran only 18 laps due to overheating). The Talladega race is her only DNF of the year. She's doing great considering the lack of funding she has to deal with. By contrast, The Bimbo, in just about the best equipment money can buy, has stats of 15.4-21.0 and 3 DNF's. The Bimbo also leads Johanna in excuses for non-performance by about 23 quadrillion to zero. And speaking of The Bimbo...
Payback Is A ... Well, You Know
Good for Sam Hornish, Jr. for not putting up with The Bimbo's crap. The Bimbo puts him into the wall on the cooldown lap at Talladega, Sam retaliates with a well-timed (and COMPLETELY UNINTENTIONAL *cough, cough*) tap at Dover that basically ends her day. Good going, Sam! Unfortunately, there was a bit of collateral damage, as Brad Sweet got caught up in it. Wrong place, wrong time, etc.
NASCAR Sends Another Message
NASCAR probation has been universally scoffed at and mocked. It is (or was) completely toothless; it was their way of saying "stop...or I'll say 'stop' again". It meant nothing. Well, their suspension of Maxi Douche after his incident with writer Bob Pockrass after the Dover Nationwide race was a message to all drivers: when you're on probation, don't piss us off, or we WILL do something about it. Message received (I think). BTW, if the NASCAR media were polled off the record, I'm sure most of them would rather interview Maxi or even Mini Douche (as long as they had taken their meds) than interview Bent Sh!tcan, whose grating monotone drives everybody up the wall.
A Job Lost, A Job Saved?
I think this might have been Maxi Douche's last chance. It's a good thing that the contract between him and car owner James Finch was a handshake deal and not in writing. Finch was already having a hard time finding sponsors for the 51, but now (with the possible exception of Jerry Springer's offer, which I think is just a publicity stunt...but what a fitting driver to sponsor) I doubt any top-tier or even mid-tier sponsor would touch the 51 with a 10 foot pole as long as Maxi is behind the wheel. On the other side of things, did the win at Pocono save Burnt Toast's job in the 20 car? As much as I'd like to say that it's The Coach's call on that one, sadly the call will probably be made by Home Depot. Yep, sponsors run NASCAR these days, especially big name sponsors like HD. If they want somebody else behind the wheel of the 20 next year (this is the final year of BT's contract), then The Coach will be forced to make a change. Gotta keep the big money guys happy.
Could It Happen?
We all know that the dreaded disease know as "The Chase for the Sprint Cup" was the kneejerk reaction to Matt Kenseth winning the 2003 championship going away despite only winning one race all year. Thus far in 2012, the most consistent driver in the Cup series is also one of the drivers who hasn't won this year: that's right, it's June Bug. Wouldn't it be a nice thumb in the eye of Brain Dead and the other chuckleheads-in-charge if June Bug won the championship this year and didn't win a race? You'd be able to hear the cementheads exploding all the way here in Orlando.
TNT Takes Charge
TNT telecasted the Pocono race and has the next five races before ESPN takes over. For the first time all year I could actually see more than two cars on the track at the same time. What a concept! And while the guys in the booth aren't as bad as FOX's crew, they've got some improving to do. Still, nothing beats a "boogity"-less green flag to start a race.
Mike's Loose Lugnuts
By Mike Sanders
Drunk, Lazy, And Stupid Is No Way To Go Through Life, Son...
Especially if you're the chairman and CEO of a major sports organization. But Brain Dead manages to pull it off. On May 19th, just before the Sprint All-Star Race, he stated that he's pleased with the 2012 season: "It's been a good, solid year". Really? For whom? Maybe for you, because you're making a boat-load of cash, and The Felon is keeping your liquor cabinet fully-stocked with his weekly "donations", but what about the fans? It doesn't appears to have been such a great year for most of them, if you go by TV ratings and race attendence. Almost every track now has several sections covered by flags, tarps, or sponsor banners to attempt to hide all of the empty seats. Blimp shots of the stands get cut off abruptly once the large sections of uncovered empty seats come into view. There are no official race attendence numbers; everything is fudged. That's why you'll see numbers like "100,000" or "80,000" for race attendence. Most are completely bogus and insult the intelligence of most of the fans at the race or those watching (in decreasing numbers) at home on TV. Speaking of the All-Star Race...
The All-Star Debacle
This season, the Sprint All-Star Race was advertised as the only major sport All-Star contest in which the participants are actually trying. Considering what the NFL Pro Bowl has degraded to lately, that wouldn't be a difficult statement to make. And it has that potential: no points are on the line, and the winner gets a cool million bucks. There won't be any "points racing", so everybody can just go for it. Well, that's not quite what happened this year. The winners of the first three segments played possum at the back of the field after they won their segment, and then raced hard during the final 10 lap segment that decided the race. It was a monumental pile of horse dung. I don't want to hear about how those three drivers were "employing strategy by not using their cars up". Bull crap! After Bent Sh!tcan won the first segment then started the second segment a full straightaway behind the field, driving about as fast as my 82 year old mother, the whole thing went to hell. Someone from NASCAR should have been on the phone to the 48 team and told them that if the 48 didn't move up to the pack and race like he had a pair, he would be parked for the remainder of the race. "Sorry...no balls, no million bucks. If we wanted to see someone drive like that, we'd have put your wife behind the wheel." My solution for this mess is a simple one: make it a 100 lap race with no segments. Period. No mandatory pit stops. Stop when you need to or under caution. Determining the participants would also be simple: anybody who won a race between last year's ASR and this year's ASR gets in, as do past ASR winners. That's it. No bogus fan vote, no heat races. I can dream, can't I?
An Update On The Best Female Driver In NASCAR
And of course, it's not The Bimbo. It's Johanna Long. I wrote about her after Daytona, and, after being prodded by a couple of readers after my last article, I'll do it again now, and I'll continue to do it later in the year. The recently-turned 20 year old from Pensacola, driving for the under-funded ML Motorsports in the number 70 car, has now run 8 races this year, with an average starting position of 21.0 and an average finish of 23.8 (skewed by a 37th place finish at Talladega in which she ran only 18 laps due to overheating). The Talladega race is her only DNF of the year. She's doing great considering the lack of funding she has to deal with. By contrast, The Bimbo, in just about the best equipment money can buy, has stats of 15.4-21.0 and 3 DNF's. The Bimbo also leads Johanna in excuses for non-performance by about 23 quadrillion to zero. And speaking of The Bimbo...
Payback Is A ... Well, You Know
Good for Sam Hornish, Jr. for not putting up with The Bimbo's crap. The Bimbo puts him into the wall on the cooldown lap at Talladega, Sam retaliates with a well-timed (and COMPLETELY UNINTENTIONAL *cough, cough*) tap at Dover that basically ends her day. Good going, Sam! Unfortunately, there was a bit of collateral damage, as Brad Sweet got caught up in it. Wrong place, wrong time, etc.
NASCAR Sends Another Message
NASCAR probation has been universally scoffed at and mocked. It is (or was) completely toothless; it was their way of saying "stop...or I'll say 'stop' again". It meant nothing. Well, their suspension of Maxi Douche after his incident with writer Bob Pockrass after the Dover Nationwide race was a message to all drivers: when you're on probation, don't piss us off, or we WILL do something about it. Message received (I think). BTW, if the NASCAR media were polled off the record, I'm sure most of them would rather interview Maxi or even Mini Douche (as long as they had taken their meds) than interview Bent Sh!tcan, whose grating monotone drives everybody up the wall.
A Job Lost, A Job Saved?
I think this might have been Maxi Douche's last chance. It's a good thing that the contract between him and car owner James Finch was a handshake deal and not in writing. Finch was already having a hard time finding sponsors for the 51, but now (with the possible exception of Jerry Springer's offer, which I think is just a publicity stunt...but what a fitting driver to sponsor) I doubt any top-tier or even mid-tier sponsor would touch the 51 with a 10 foot pole as long as Maxi is behind the wheel. On the other side of things, did the win at Pocono save Burnt Toast's job in the 20 car? As much as I'd like to say that it's The Coach's call on that one, sadly the call will probably be made by Home Depot. Yep, sponsors run NASCAR these days, especially big name sponsors like HD. If they want somebody else behind the wheel of the 20 next year (this is the final year of BT's contract), then The Coach will be forced to make a change. Gotta keep the big money guys happy.
Could It Happen?
We all know that the dreaded disease know as "The Chase for the Sprint Cup" was the kneejerk reaction to Matt Kenseth winning the 2003 championship going away despite only winning one race all year. Thus far in 2012, the most consistent driver in the Cup series is also one of the drivers who hasn't won this year: that's right, it's June Bug. Wouldn't it be a nice thumb in the eye of Brain Dead and the other chuckleheads-in-charge if June Bug won the championship this year and didn't win a race? You'd be able to hear the cementheads exploding all the way here in Orlando.
TNT Takes Charge
TNT telecasted the Pocono race and has the next five races before ESPN takes over. For the first time all year I could actually see more than two cars on the track at the same time. What a concept! And while the guys in the booth aren't as bad as FOX's crew, they've got some improving to do. Still, nothing beats a "boogity"-less green flag to start a race.
Drunk, Lazy, And Stupid Is No Way To Go Through Life, Son...
Especially if you're the chairman and CEO of a major sports organization. But Brain Dead manages to pull it off. On May 19th, just before the Sprint All-Star Race, he stated that he's pleased with the 2012 season: "It's been a good, solid year". Really? For whom? Maybe for you, because you're making a boat-load of cash, and The Felon is keeping your liquor cabinet fully-stocked with his weekly "donations", but what about the fans? It doesn't appears to have been such a great year for most of them, if you go by TV ratings and race attendence. Almost every track now has several sections covered by flags, tarps, or sponsor banners to attempt to hide all of the empty seats. Blimp shots of the stands get cut off abruptly once the large sections of uncovered empty seats come into view. There are no official race attendence numbers; everything is fudged. That's why you'll see numbers like "100,000" or "80,000" for race attendence. Most are completely bogus and insult the intelligence of most of the fans at the race or those watching (in decreasing numbers) at home on TV. Speaking of the All-Star Race...
The All-Star Debacle
This season, the Sprint All-Star Race was advertised as the only major sport All-Star contest in which the participants are actually trying. Considering what the NFL Pro Bowl has degraded to lately, that wouldn't be a difficult statement to make. And it has that potential: no points are on the line, and the winner gets a cool million bucks. There won't be any "points racing", so everybody can just go for it. Well, that's not quite what happened this year. The winners of the first three segments played possum at the back of the field after they won their segment, and then raced hard during the final 10 lap segment that decided the race. It was a monumental pile of horse dung. I don't want to hear about how those three drivers were "employing strategy by not using their cars up". Bull crap! After Bent Sh!tcan won the first segment then started the second segment a full straightaway behind the field, driving about as fast as my 82 year old mother, the whole thing went to hell. Someone from NASCAR should have been on the phone to the 48 team and told them that if the 48 didn't move up to the pack and race like he had a pair, he would be parked for the remainder of the race. "Sorry...no balls, no million bucks. If we wanted to see someone drive like that, we'd have put your wife behind the wheel." My solution for this mess is a simple one: make it a 100 lap race with no segments. Period. No mandatory pit stops. Stop when you need to or under caution. Determining the participants would also be simple: anybody who won a race between last year's ASR and this year's ASR gets in, as do past ASR winners. That's it. No bogus fan vote, no heat races. I can dream, can't I?
An Update On The Best Female Driver In NASCAR
And of course, it's not The Bimbo. It's Johanna Long. I wrote about her after Daytona, and, after being prodded by a couple of readers after my last article, I'll do it again now, and I'll continue to do it later in the year. The recently-turned 20 year old from Pensacola, driving for the under-funded ML Motorsports in the number 70 car, has now run 8 races this year, with an average starting position of 21.0 and an average finish of 23.8 (skewed by a 37th place finish at Talladega in which she ran only 18 laps due to overheating). The Talladega race is her only DNF of the year. She's doing great considering the lack of funding she has to deal with. By contrast, The Bimbo, in just about the best equipment money can buy, has stats of 15.4-21.0 and 3 DNF's. The Bimbo also leads Johanna in excuses for non-performance by about 23 quadrillion to zero. And speaking of The Bimbo...
Payback Is A ... Well, You Know
Good for Sam Hornish, Jr. for not putting up with The Bimbo's crap. The Bimbo puts him into the wall on the cooldown lap at Talladega, Sam retaliates with a well-timed (and COMPLETELY UNINTENTIONAL *cough, cough*) tap at Dover that basically ends her day. Good going, Sam! Unfortunately, there was a bit of collateral damage, as Brad Sweet got caught up in it. Wrong place, wrong time, etc.
NASCAR Sends Another Message
NASCAR probation has been universally scoffed at and mocked. It is (or was) completely toothless; it was their way of saying "stop...or I'll say 'stop' again". It meant nothing. Well, their suspension of Maxi Douche after his incident with writer Bob Pockrass after the Dover Nationwide race was a message to all drivers: when you're on probation, don't piss us off, or we WILL do something about it. Message received (I think). BTW, if the NASCAR media were polled off the record, I'm sure most of them would rather interview Maxi or even Mini Douche (as long as they had taken their meds) than interview Bent Sh!tcan, whose grating monotone drives everybody up the wall.
A Job Lost, A Job Saved?
I think this might have been Maxi Douche's last chance. It's a good thing that the contract between him and car owner James Finch was a handshake deal and not in writing. Finch was already having a hard time finding sponsors for the 51, but now (with the possible exception of Jerry Springer's offer, which I think is just a publicity stunt...but what a fitting driver to sponsor) I doubt any top-tier or even mid-tier sponsor would touch the 51 with a 10 foot pole as long as Maxi is behind the wheel. On the other side of things, did the win at Pocono save Burnt Toast's job in the 20 car? As much as I'd like to say that it's The Coach's call on that one, sadly the call will probably be made by Home Depot. Yep, sponsors run NASCAR these days, especially big name sponsors like HD. If they want somebody else behind the wheel of the 20 next year (this is the final year of BT's contract), then The Coach will be forced to make a change. Gotta keep the big money guys happy.
Could It Happen?
We all know that the dreaded disease know as "The Chase for the Sprint Cup" was the kneejerk reaction to Matt Kenseth winning the 2003 championship going away despite only winning one race all year. Thus far in 2012, the most consistent driver in the Cup series is also one of the drivers who hasn't won this year: that's right, it's June Bug. Wouldn't it be a nice thumb in the eye of Brain Dead and the other chuckleheads-in-charge if June Bug won the championship this year and didn't win a race? You'd be able to hear the cementheads exploding all the way here in Orlando.
TNT Takes Charge
TNT telecasted the Pocono race and has the next five races before ESPN takes over. For the first time all year I could actually see more than two cars on the track at the same time. What a concept! And while the guys in the booth aren't as bad as FOX's crew, they've got some improving to do. Still, nothing beats a "boogity"-less green flag to start a race.
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Hocus Pocus or Now You See It, Now You Don't
By "Dawg" Chapman
Lately NASCAR Cup broadcasts, on Faux, seem to be a lot more hocus, than pocus. A lot of this, I attribute to the presence of two, count‘en two Waltrips in the booth, but that’s another story, for another time. We’re subjected to a constant barrage of Mikie, shilling for his sponsors, DW, shilling for Mikie, & both shilling for Toyota.
While the Waltrips may be the worst example of the conflict of interest, it’s by no means the only one. We’ve had RAY Evernham, Rusty Wallace, (that had to have been tough for Rusty, at times,) Brad Daugherty. Sort of a special case, is Kyle Petty, aside from the family connection, Kyle is pretty much separated from RPM. Does a very good job in the booth, & I don’t think we can count him.
With all the people to choose from, I’m surprised that the TV partners continue to allow this.
While I’m thinking about it, what’s up with Jeff Hammond? They don’t seem to have a clue, what to do with him this year. So he goes to different spots around the track, big deal. What does this add to the broadcast? It’s kind of like a Where’s Waldo segment. With as little time allotted to actually showing the race, between commercials, I find this a total waste of time.
I love to go to races. I love the sounds, & the smells, my absolute favorite being the smell of methanol. There’s no experience quite like being there. My personal “bucket list” includes some tracks that will involve some long distance travel. That having been said, I just don’t go to Cup races. There, I’ve said it. I want to drive in find a parking spot. Walk up to the ticket window, buy my ticket. Walk in, find a seat, (I prefer high up at the entrance to the number one turn) plop down my cushion, & enjoy the show.
I don’t enjoy sitting in traffic 2 hours to get in, then doing it again for 4 hours, to get out. Not to mention, paying 350. a night, with a 3 night minimum, for a 75. room. I strongly suspect that I’m not alone in this.
That’s why I satisfy my NASCAR jones, in front of the TV. There is, however one pretty serious fly in this ointment.
We can only watch what the TV producer chooses to show us. When I’m at a track, it’s a very rare race that hasn’t got something interesting to watch. It might be two guys racing each other hard for tenth place. Whatever it is, it’s there, if you look for it. As a TV fan we just don’t have that option. We can mute the sound, & go with MRN, or Serious, I know many people do. We can use Hot Pass if it’s available, but the vast majority of fans can only watch what the TV chooses to show us.
I’m a fan of the split screen, during commercials, but I remember one race earlier this year. When the split screen mostly showed us the wall, while the camera searched around for something to show. About the time they finally locked on a car, they changed to another camera,& it started all over again. A small glitch, to be sure but these guys are supposed to be professionals. What the TV cameras mostly show is the leader. Makes no difference if he’s being challenged, or cruising around with a 20 car lead.
When Faux first came onboard, they tried the heavy handed method of hi-jacking the sponsors, by blocking out the hood logo if the sponsor hadn’t paid them “mention money.” They caught so much flak, that they backed off almost immediately. They still lean toward showing cars, whose sponsors are buying adv. space but it’s not so blatant.
It’s not that every race doesn’t have elements of interest; it’s just that the TV producers don’t allow us to find them.
The Truck races, on Speed should be mandatory viewing for anyone associated with the Cup broadcasts. Another series that they should watch is F1. Not so much for the TV coverage, but to listen to the announcing crew. Week in, week out, they’re the best in the business. David Hobbs,Is a particular favorite of mine.
I’m not going to stop being critical of NASCAR, when I think they have it coming.
But I think that NASCAR could be much better served by its TV partners.
If the coverage were better, NASCAR would come off, looking better.
A great race, could overcome lackluster coverage, but pair that coverage with a below average race, & they tend to highlight the flaws in each other.
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Loose Lug Nuts
Race Mama has been busy for the last month and is still busy. So the articles you normally find at Laidbackracing.com will be here for the next few weeks until the work backlog is cleared up.
By Mike Sanders
First Of All
It was good to meet Jo Ann and Jimmy and the gang at Darlington. I
already can't wait for next year.
Catching Up
Thoughts on a couple of older subjects:
1. Everybody remembers Reuty Tooty limping around Martinsville until
his car died and he brought out a caution just as Jeffy had passed
Bent Sh!tcan for the lead with just 3 laps to go. Reuty claims he
kept his car on track in an attempt to stay inside the top 35 in
owner's points (okay, we get that), but for his benefit and not the
benefit of The Bimbo. Sure Reuty, sure...we believe you. Or not.
2. Speaking of late race cautions: the late race phantom debris
caution at Richmond that probably cost Smokeless a win wasn't what
some people thought it was. More than a few observers thought that
caution was payback for the earlier penalty against Flipper, when he
jumped a restart due in part to bad communications by everybody
involved. I think what that caution really was, was NASCAR telling
the fans to STFU. If you remember, the two races immediately
preceding Richmond (Texas and Kansas) were relatively
boring...alright, they were DAMNED boring! Long green flag runs with
the cars spread out and not a whole lot of passing or even
side-by-side racing. Fans had started complaining again about boring
racing. To be honest, most of the Richmond race was less than
exhilarating as well. So I think the NASCAR chuckleheads-in-charge
said "okay, you think the racing is boring because there aren't
enough caution flags, well we're gonna throw one at the end of this
race that'll be so dubious that it'll have WWE fans shaking their
heads. Now shut up and just enjoy the racing". To make it worse,
NASCAR chucklehead-in-charge of competition Robin Pemberton said
"Sometimes, some people are a little more needy than others and they
want to see that (the debris) for whatever reason". Gee, Robin, ya
think? Richmond is a 3/4 mile short track, and FOX Sports has about 3
gazillion cameras stationed around the track (give or take a
gazillion). They should be able to see a mosquito's butthole. But
they can't see the debris that brings out a caution flag that
influences the outcome of a race? Yeah, we "needy" people want to see
the debris to see if the caution is on the level. A lot of people see
NASCAR as nothing more than the WWE on four wheels. You'd think that
as a high-level muckity muck in the organization you'd be more
concerned with the integrity of the sport, or the lack thereof. I
guess not.
R.I.P. Carroll Shelby
He passed away last week at the age of 89. He will be missed by
those of us who like to drive fast. He was quite the innovator.
Speaking of FOX's Camera Work At Richmond...
One other aspect of the coverage of the Richmond race: how is it
that you have 43 cars (until the start-and-park guys head for the
garage) on a 3/4 mile short track and the camera work is so atrocious
that you'd swear it was a qualifying session instead of a race because
all you see is one car at a time? It takes real talent to screw up the
production like that. If we were real lucky, we got to see two cars at
one time instead of just one. Part of it was an obvious attempt to
camouflage the fact that there were a lot of empty seats, but come
on. A six-year-old with a red crayon and five spare minutes could
have designed a better race coverage.
Did You Notice?
Aside from good camera work, did you notice the one other thing that
is missing from FOX's coverage this year? The Rodent is gone! Yes,
they killed Digger and the rest of the resident rodents. I guess FOX
finally gave up trying to pursue that all-important 6-8 year old
demographic.
Say It Ain't So
When you talk about races at Talladega and Darlington, one word that
is never (or at least rarely) used is "boring". Well, NASCAR has
outdone itself by making these two races boring. The pack racing was
back at Talladega, but the cars were usually spread out a bit, with a
car length or so between them. No bump drafting. The attempt to break
up the tandem drafting went too far, and cars were overheating after
the slightest bit of contact drafting. Until the last 45 laps or so,
it just wasn't the same as the old pack racing days. Darlington
started out with over 170 laps of green flag racing. Sitting in the
Tyler Tower, I kept scanning the track to see if there was any
side-by-side racing going on outside of the top 10 cars. None...well,
maybe not none, but very little. Much less than you'd usually see at
The Lady in Black. There weren't many drivers willing to take any
chances. Points racing, instead of going for the win, has brought us
to this point. And things are going to get worse as we get nearer to
The Chase.
For The Second Year In A Row...
The most excitement at Darlington occurred on pit road after the
race was over, and it involved one of the Douche brothers. Last year
it was Mini Douche and Kevin Harvick getting into it, this year it
was Maxi Douche mixing it up with Ryan Newman. Or at least their pit
crews were involved in most of it. I look at Mama Douche when she
accompanies her sons across the stage during driver intros and I
think she must be so proud to have raised two weapons grade d-bags
like her sons. Good going there, Mom.
200 For The Felon? BFD
Yeah yeah, Bent Sh!tcan gave The Felon his 200th win in NASCAR. How
many of them are tainted? Hard to tell, just as it's hard to tell how
many of Barry Bonds' home runs are tainted. You just know that all of
them aren't legit. But hey, The Felon's not doing too bad for a liar,
cheat, and crook.
Notes On The Bimbo
1. I've been to both of the Cup races that The Bimbo has
participated in. I have made it a point to peruse the crowd before,
during, and after the races to see how many fans are wearing her
gear, in order to gauge her (supposed) popularity. At the Daytona
500, I saw one lonely Bimbo fan wearing her gear. Out of thousands
and thousands of fans I saw. Underwhelming, of course. At Darlington,
her popularity had exploded! I mean it was an exponential increase!
There were actually four Bimbo fans in Bimbo t-shirts. Yep, she's
having a real impact...
2. Evidently, D.W. gave The Bimbo a grade of A+ for her 31st place,
6 laps down effort at Darlington, because it is a tough track and it
was only her second Cup Series start. I wonder what kind of grade
D.W. would give Trevor Bayne for HIS second Cup Series start: the
2011 Daytona 500. I've been led to believe that the Daytona 500 is
important or something, and the kid won the race. Maybe that earns
him a grade of A+++++++++. Nah, he drives a partial schedule for a
small, underfunded team. I guess he earns a C-.
3. One more piece of evidence that NASCAR is now all about style
over substance: 2003 Cup champion Matt Kenseth, who is still one of
the ten best drivers in the sport, has to fight for every sponsorship
dollar he can get; yet The Bimbo, who has accomplished nothing in
NASCAR, doesn't have a sponsor-related care in the world.
Military Sponsorships Under Fire Again
Remember early last year when Representative Betty McCollum
(Dirtbag-Minn.) tried (unsuccessfully) to get military sponsorship of
motorsports events done away with? Well, since every other fiscal
problem facing the country has evidently been solved, she's at it
again. This time she has help...Republican Jack Kingston of Georgia.
And the ban would be expanded to include not only motorsports but
fishing tournaments and wrestling events. Let's hope this attempt
gets shot down as well. Rep. Kingston should be ashamed of himself.
There are a lot of military bases in Georgia. You don't want to piss
off those guys and gals.
By Mike Sanders
First Of All
It was good to meet Jo Ann and Jimmy and the gang at Darlington. I
already can't wait for next year.
Catching Up
Thoughts on a couple of older subjects:
1. Everybody remembers Reuty Tooty limping around Martinsville until
his car died and he brought out a caution just as Jeffy had passed
Bent Sh!tcan for the lead with just 3 laps to go. Reuty claims he
kept his car on track in an attempt to stay inside the top 35 in
owner's points (okay, we get that), but for his benefit and not the
benefit of The Bimbo. Sure Reuty, sure...we believe you. Or not.
2. Speaking of late race cautions: the late race phantom debris
caution at Richmond that probably cost Smokeless a win wasn't what
some people thought it was. More than a few observers thought that
caution was payback for the earlier penalty against Flipper, when he
jumped a restart due in part to bad communications by everybody
involved. I think what that caution really was, was NASCAR telling
the fans to STFU. If you remember, the two races immediately
preceding Richmond (Texas and Kansas) were relatively
boring...alright, they were DAMNED boring! Long green flag runs with
the cars spread out and not a whole lot of passing or even
side-by-side racing. Fans had started complaining again about boring
racing. To be honest, most of the Richmond race was less than
exhilarating as well. So I think the NASCAR chuckleheads-in-charge
said "okay, you think the racing is boring because there aren't
enough caution flags, well we're gonna throw one at the end of this
race that'll be so dubious that it'll have WWE fans shaking their
heads. Now shut up and just enjoy the racing". To make it worse,
NASCAR chucklehead-in-charge of competition Robin Pemberton said
"Sometimes, some people are a little more needy than others and they
want to see that (the debris) for whatever reason". Gee, Robin, ya
think? Richmond is a 3/4 mile short track, and FOX Sports has about 3
gazillion cameras stationed around the track (give or take a
gazillion). They should be able to see a mosquito's butthole. But
they can't see the debris that brings out a caution flag that
influences the outcome of a race? Yeah, we "needy" people want to see
the debris to see if the caution is on the level. A lot of people see
NASCAR as nothing more than the WWE on four wheels. You'd think that
as a high-level muckity muck in the organization you'd be more
concerned with the integrity of the sport, or the lack thereof. I
guess not.
R.I.P. Carroll Shelby
He passed away last week at the age of 89. He will be missed by
those of us who like to drive fast. He was quite the innovator.
Speaking of FOX's Camera Work At Richmond...
One other aspect of the coverage of the Richmond race: how is it
that you have 43 cars (until the start-and-park guys head for the
garage) on a 3/4 mile short track and the camera work is so atrocious
that you'd swear it was a qualifying session instead of a race because
all you see is one car at a time? It takes real talent to screw up the
production like that. If we were real lucky, we got to see two cars at
one time instead of just one. Part of it was an obvious attempt to
camouflage the fact that there were a lot of empty seats, but come
on. A six-year-old with a red crayon and five spare minutes could
have designed a better race coverage.
Did You Notice?
Aside from good camera work, did you notice the one other thing that
is missing from FOX's coverage this year? The Rodent is gone! Yes,
they killed Digger and the rest of the resident rodents. I guess FOX
finally gave up trying to pursue that all-important 6-8 year old
demographic.
Say It Ain't So
When you talk about races at Talladega and Darlington, one word that
is never (or at least rarely) used is "boring". Well, NASCAR has
outdone itself by making these two races boring. The pack racing was
back at Talladega, but the cars were usually spread out a bit, with a
car length or so between them. No bump drafting. The attempt to break
up the tandem drafting went too far, and cars were overheating after
the slightest bit of contact drafting. Until the last 45 laps or so,
it just wasn't the same as the old pack racing days. Darlington
started out with over 170 laps of green flag racing. Sitting in the
Tyler Tower, I kept scanning the track to see if there was any
side-by-side racing going on outside of the top 10 cars. None...well,
maybe not none, but very little. Much less than you'd usually see at
The Lady in Black. There weren't many drivers willing to take any
chances. Points racing, instead of going for the win, has brought us
to this point. And things are going to get worse as we get nearer to
The Chase.
For The Second Year In A Row...
The most excitement at Darlington occurred on pit road after the
race was over, and it involved one of the Douche brothers. Last year
it was Mini Douche and Kevin Harvick getting into it, this year it
was Maxi Douche mixing it up with Ryan Newman. Or at least their pit
crews were involved in most of it. I look at Mama Douche when she
accompanies her sons across the stage during driver intros and I
think she must be so proud to have raised two weapons grade d-bags
like her sons. Good going there, Mom.
200 For The Felon? BFD
Yeah yeah, Bent Sh!tcan gave The Felon his 200th win in NASCAR. How
many of them are tainted? Hard to tell, just as it's hard to tell how
many of Barry Bonds' home runs are tainted. You just know that all of
them aren't legit. But hey, The Felon's not doing too bad for a liar,
cheat, and crook.
Notes On The Bimbo
1. I've been to both of the Cup races that The Bimbo has
participated in. I have made it a point to peruse the crowd before,
during, and after the races to see how many fans are wearing her
gear, in order to gauge her (supposed) popularity. At the Daytona
500, I saw one lonely Bimbo fan wearing her gear. Out of thousands
and thousands of fans I saw. Underwhelming, of course. At Darlington,
her popularity had exploded! I mean it was an exponential increase!
There were actually four Bimbo fans in Bimbo t-shirts. Yep, she's
having a real impact...
2. Evidently, D.W. gave The Bimbo a grade of A+ for her 31st place,
6 laps down effort at Darlington, because it is a tough track and it
was only her second Cup Series start. I wonder what kind of grade
D.W. would give Trevor Bayne for HIS second Cup Series start: the
2011 Daytona 500. I've been led to believe that the Daytona 500 is
important or something, and the kid won the race. Maybe that earns
him a grade of A+++++++++. Nah, he drives a partial schedule for a
small, underfunded team. I guess he earns a C-.
3. One more piece of evidence that NASCAR is now all about style
over substance: 2003 Cup champion Matt Kenseth, who is still one of
the ten best drivers in the sport, has to fight for every sponsorship
dollar he can get; yet The Bimbo, who has accomplished nothing in
NASCAR, doesn't have a sponsor-related care in the world.
Military Sponsorships Under Fire Again
Remember early last year when Representative Betty McCollum
(Dirtbag-Minn.) tried (unsuccessfully) to get military sponsorship of
motorsports events done away with? Well, since every other fiscal
problem facing the country has evidently been solved, she's at it
again. This time she has help...Republican Jack Kingston of Georgia.
And the ban would be expanded to include not only motorsports but
fishing tournaments and wrestling events. Let's hope this attempt
gets shot down as well. Rep. Kingston should be ashamed of himself.
There are a lot of military bases in Georgia. You don't want to piss
off those guys and gals.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Sam Ard Trophy For Sale, TMS Coverage, & Things
Sam Ard’s 1982 Dogwood 500 Trophy For Sale
Since the France family still refuses to do the right thing, Sam is having to sell off another of his trophies. This is the last time this trophy will be seen on E-Bay. Even though Dave Moody wrote a piece about Sam and Jo Ard’s situation, he’s the only person in the NA$CAR media to do so. Where are all these writers who talk about remembering the history of the sport and those that made it? Where’s the outrage for a man who helped build this sport that has to resort to selling off his memories to help pay for his medical bills that are a result of an accident under the guise, supervison, and sanctioning of NA$CAR? Where is the conscience of those that helped contribute to this situation? It’s pathetic really. There’s no morals or conscience when it comes to helping out the former greats of NA$CAR unless it directly puts a buck into the France family pocket.
If you want to help Sam out and do what the France family won’t, here’s the link for the trophy:
http://cgi.ebay.com/380331040573
UPDATE THE TROPHY WAS SOLD
UPDATE 2: LOTS OF TWITTER TRAFFIC RETWEETING DAVE MOODY'S ARTICLE WHICH INCLUDES IT BEING SENT TO 2 NA$CAR HONCHOS, NA$CAR'S HOF HONCHO, AND BEING RETWEETED BY KYLE PETTY, HERMIE SADLER, AND SOME OTHER MEDIA FOLKS.
Why Versus is Better than Focks
During the IndyCar race, Versus used the split-screen coverage to show the racing and run commercials. Focks preferred to show 5-8 laps of commercials before interrupting them for a few laps of racing. Versus commentators don’t make up excuses when Danica or the sanctioning body messes up. Focks commentators makes up excuses for everything. Bad tires, bad officiating, and poor performance of the Chosen Ones and cheerleads for one make of vehicle and certain drivers.. Focks uses all sorts of gimmick shots that can cause even sailors to get seasick. Versus keeps the gimmick shots to a minimum preferring to show the action on the track of groups of competitors. When Will Power had pretty much run away with the lead in the closing laps, Versus showed the racing that was going on in the back of the pack. Focks preferred to show single car coverage of Matt Kenseth running away with the lead. Is it any wonder why race fans voice their concerns and dissatisfaction with the poor coverage and commentary of Focks at The Daly Planet week after week during race season?
The National Anthem at TMS
For everything that was wrong at TMS this past weekend, the one thing that Eddie Gossage did get right was bringing in a US Army band to play the National Anthem. And Dale Jr, smack your crew chief upside the head for not paying the proper respects to the flag every time he doesn’t do it. Which so far has been every race this season.
Captain Thunder Interview of Jeremy Mayfield
Jeremy Mayfield did two interviews with John Nevins aka Captain Thunder in which Mayfield was able to give his side of the story without being interrupted or censored. There are some folks who wish Mayfield would just go away, which they’re entitled to. One very striking thing Mayfield pointed out during his interview had to do with one of the drug tests that were done by NA$CAR. He had a test run by an independent lab before he submitted his urine sample to NA$CAR for testing and had another test done afterwards by the same independent lab. Perhaps folks have heard of Lab Corp? They’re one of the top testing labs in the country. NA$CAR’s results came back positive while the Lab Corps results came back negative. So how could that be? Lab Corps has no horse in this race. They couldn’t care one way or the other just so long as their reputation remains intact. They don’t care about the results just so long as they followed the established guidelines and protocols called for by SAMHSA regarding drug testing. Aegis Labs on the other hand is contracted by NA$CAR so they definitely have a vested interest in showing that their “results” are consistent. Especially after they’ve already lost at least one false positive lawsuit using their questionable techniques. I’ve also proven that NA$CAR has fibbed on at least one occasion when their official spokesman stated unequivocally that there were no witnesses to Mayfield’s independent tests and yet Mayfield did have a witness that is known to me as well as a camera crew documenting everything Mayfield was doing.
I know folks have already made up their minds about Mayfield, even though under the basic premise of our laws that you’re innocent until proven guilty and it probably won’t change their minds, give a listen to the interviews and get Mayfield’s side on some of the issues that were brought up by Captain Thunder and his sidekick.
http://captainthunderracing.com/
How About Those Ratings for Texas?
According to USA Today, coming in at #32 in the weekly ratings was a repeat of “The Big Bang Theory” with 7.3 million viewers. Coming in at #33 in the ratings was the race at TMS with 7 million viewers just beating out #34 Family Guy and #35 a repeat of America’s Funniest Home Videos at about 6.5 million viewers. What happened to those 75 million fans that NA$CAR is supposed to have? Also, there’s a big disparity between the numbers being reported showing the numbers being up and what they truly were versus last season. Unfortunately I can’t find the article right now but it showed how the numbers were being jumbled around on this year versus last year and how the ratings were actually down.
Gimmick Shots From Focks at TMS
There were 160 gimmick shots for the Cup race .
In-Car Shots 22
Ground Camera Shots 6
Roof Cam Shots 60
Rear Cam Shots 24
Wall Cam Shots 48
The majority of roof cam, rear cam, and in-car cam shots were from the #18, #22, #29, #48, & #88.
Ms Terry DeBris at TMS
When Matt Kenseth had an 8 second lead at Lap 209, Ms Terry DeBris, dressed up as a Texas Longhorn, was found to be grazing along the back straight thus causing Caution #4. But due to the poor lighting on the back of the track and lack of fans there, she wasn’t shown. Apparently she’s been taken away to the Ft Worth Stockyards by Eddie Gossage and is currently waiting to be bid upon.
Focks Faux Pas
During the 1st Caution, Jabber Jaws said “You’re over 200 mph going into that turn”. Later during the race a roof cam shot of the #18 car with telemetry showed the car didn’t get above 195 mph.
On Lap 173, Mike Joy said “They’re NA$CAR’s two winningest drivers” in reference to Mr. Happy and Hambone Hamlin. NA$CAR’s winningest drivers are The King and The Silver Fox with 200 wins and 105 respectively.
Lap 192, Mike Joy said “Seating down the front stretch and back stretch sections are nearly full but for some sections down past pit road towards Turn #1”. An overhead shot from the blimp/helicopter clearly showed empty seats at Lap 11Lap 19, Lap 29, Lap 30, & Lap 114.
On Lap 211, Mike Joy said, “Hope that clears things up with 211 laps to go”.
How Come?
As easy as it was to show the computer screen which covers speeding on pit road during the race at TMS, how come NA$CAR won’t allow a camera in race control showing the pit road speeds during the pit stops or hook it into a direct feed of some sort to Focks so they could put it on a scroll on the bottom of the screen? That would end some fan complaints regarding the drivers who are perceived to be speeding and if it can be sent via wifi to the teams, they wouldn’t have any grounds to complain when they do get nailed for speeding.
The Race
Pretty simple really. Matt Kenseth got up front and ran away with it. Outside of the cautions, not a heck of a lot of action was shown on the track outside of some of the pack shots shown from the wall cams. One or two of the Chosen ones passing each other. Most of the race coverage revolved around Kenseth, Johnson, Shrubbery, Mr. Happy, and Busch the Elder with an occasional appearance by Dale Jr and Trevor Bayne. Unlike Versus, as mentioned earlier, Focks decided to show Kenseth all by himself during the closing laps of the race so if there was any mid-pack racing going on the home audience never saw it. A McRace at a McTrack with a McCar. With Fords sweeping the weekend and really running away with the Cup race, you can almost bet there will be some whining from at least one car manufacturer.
Up Next
The plate disaster called Talladega. Will we have a repeat of the boredom that was Daytona or will there finally be a plate race that doesn’t call for 2 pots of coffee like a McTrack? Guess we’ll have to watch and see.
Since the France family still refuses to do the right thing, Sam is having to sell off another of his trophies. This is the last time this trophy will be seen on E-Bay. Even though Dave Moody wrote a piece about Sam and Jo Ard’s situation, he’s the only person in the NA$CAR media to do so. Where are all these writers who talk about remembering the history of the sport and those that made it? Where’s the outrage for a man who helped build this sport that has to resort to selling off his memories to help pay for his medical bills that are a result of an accident under the guise, supervison, and sanctioning of NA$CAR? Where is the conscience of those that helped contribute to this situation? It’s pathetic really. There’s no morals or conscience when it comes to helping out the former greats of NA$CAR unless it directly puts a buck into the France family pocket.
If you want to help Sam out and do what the France family won’t, here’s the link for the trophy:
http://cgi.ebay.com/380331040573
UPDATE THE TROPHY WAS SOLD
UPDATE 2: LOTS OF TWITTER TRAFFIC RETWEETING DAVE MOODY'S ARTICLE WHICH INCLUDES IT BEING SENT TO 2 NA$CAR HONCHOS, NA$CAR'S HOF HONCHO, AND BEING RETWEETED BY KYLE PETTY, HERMIE SADLER, AND SOME OTHER MEDIA FOLKS.
Why Versus is Better than Focks
During the IndyCar race, Versus used the split-screen coverage to show the racing and run commercials. Focks preferred to show 5-8 laps of commercials before interrupting them for a few laps of racing. Versus commentators don’t make up excuses when Danica or the sanctioning body messes up. Focks commentators makes up excuses for everything. Bad tires, bad officiating, and poor performance of the Chosen Ones and cheerleads for one make of vehicle and certain drivers.. Focks uses all sorts of gimmick shots that can cause even sailors to get seasick. Versus keeps the gimmick shots to a minimum preferring to show the action on the track of groups of competitors. When Will Power had pretty much run away with the lead in the closing laps, Versus showed the racing that was going on in the back of the pack. Focks preferred to show single car coverage of Matt Kenseth running away with the lead. Is it any wonder why race fans voice their concerns and dissatisfaction with the poor coverage and commentary of Focks at The Daly Planet week after week during race season?
The National Anthem at TMS
For everything that was wrong at TMS this past weekend, the one thing that Eddie Gossage did get right was bringing in a US Army band to play the National Anthem. And Dale Jr, smack your crew chief upside the head for not paying the proper respects to the flag every time he doesn’t do it. Which so far has been every race this season.
Captain Thunder Interview of Jeremy Mayfield
Jeremy Mayfield did two interviews with John Nevins aka Captain Thunder in which Mayfield was able to give his side of the story without being interrupted or censored. There are some folks who wish Mayfield would just go away, which they’re entitled to. One very striking thing Mayfield pointed out during his interview had to do with one of the drug tests that were done by NA$CAR. He had a test run by an independent lab before he submitted his urine sample to NA$CAR for testing and had another test done afterwards by the same independent lab. Perhaps folks have heard of Lab Corp? They’re one of the top testing labs in the country. NA$CAR’s results came back positive while the Lab Corps results came back negative. So how could that be? Lab Corps has no horse in this race. They couldn’t care one way or the other just so long as their reputation remains intact. They don’t care about the results just so long as they followed the established guidelines and protocols called for by SAMHSA regarding drug testing. Aegis Labs on the other hand is contracted by NA$CAR so they definitely have a vested interest in showing that their “results” are consistent. Especially after they’ve already lost at least one false positive lawsuit using their questionable techniques. I’ve also proven that NA$CAR has fibbed on at least one occasion when their official spokesman stated unequivocally that there were no witnesses to Mayfield’s independent tests and yet Mayfield did have a witness that is known to me as well as a camera crew documenting everything Mayfield was doing.
I know folks have already made up their minds about Mayfield, even though under the basic premise of our laws that you’re innocent until proven guilty and it probably won’t change their minds, give a listen to the interviews and get Mayfield’s side on some of the issues that were brought up by Captain Thunder and his sidekick.
http://captainthunderracing.com/
How About Those Ratings for Texas?
According to USA Today, coming in at #32 in the weekly ratings was a repeat of “The Big Bang Theory” with 7.3 million viewers. Coming in at #33 in the ratings was the race at TMS with 7 million viewers just beating out #34 Family Guy and #35 a repeat of America’s Funniest Home Videos at about 6.5 million viewers. What happened to those 75 million fans that NA$CAR is supposed to have? Also, there’s a big disparity between the numbers being reported showing the numbers being up and what they truly were versus last season. Unfortunately I can’t find the article right now but it showed how the numbers were being jumbled around on this year versus last year and how the ratings were actually down.
Gimmick Shots From Focks at TMS
There were 160 gimmick shots for the Cup race .
In-Car Shots 22
Ground Camera Shots 6
Roof Cam Shots 60
Rear Cam Shots 24
Wall Cam Shots 48
The majority of roof cam, rear cam, and in-car cam shots were from the #18, #22, #29, #48, & #88.
Ms Terry DeBris at TMS
When Matt Kenseth had an 8 second lead at Lap 209, Ms Terry DeBris, dressed up as a Texas Longhorn, was found to be grazing along the back straight thus causing Caution #4. But due to the poor lighting on the back of the track and lack of fans there, she wasn’t shown. Apparently she’s been taken away to the Ft Worth Stockyards by Eddie Gossage and is currently waiting to be bid upon.
Focks Faux Pas
During the 1st Caution, Jabber Jaws said “You’re over 200 mph going into that turn”. Later during the race a roof cam shot of the #18 car with telemetry showed the car didn’t get above 195 mph.
On Lap 173, Mike Joy said “They’re NA$CAR’s two winningest drivers” in reference to Mr. Happy and Hambone Hamlin. NA$CAR’s winningest drivers are The King and The Silver Fox with 200 wins and 105 respectively.
Lap 192, Mike Joy said “Seating down the front stretch and back stretch sections are nearly full but for some sections down past pit road towards Turn #1”. An overhead shot from the blimp/helicopter clearly showed empty seats at Lap 11Lap 19, Lap 29, Lap 30, & Lap 114.
On Lap 211, Mike Joy said, “Hope that clears things up with 211 laps to go”.
How Come?
As easy as it was to show the computer screen which covers speeding on pit road during the race at TMS, how come NA$CAR won’t allow a camera in race control showing the pit road speeds during the pit stops or hook it into a direct feed of some sort to Focks so they could put it on a scroll on the bottom of the screen? That would end some fan complaints regarding the drivers who are perceived to be speeding and if it can be sent via wifi to the teams, they wouldn’t have any grounds to complain when they do get nailed for speeding.
The Race
Pretty simple really. Matt Kenseth got up front and ran away with it. Outside of the cautions, not a heck of a lot of action was shown on the track outside of some of the pack shots shown from the wall cams. One or two of the Chosen ones passing each other. Most of the race coverage revolved around Kenseth, Johnson, Shrubbery, Mr. Happy, and Busch the Elder with an occasional appearance by Dale Jr and Trevor Bayne. Unlike Versus, as mentioned earlier, Focks decided to show Kenseth all by himself during the closing laps of the race so if there was any mid-pack racing going on the home audience never saw it. A McRace at a McTrack with a McCar. With Fords sweeping the weekend and really running away with the Cup race, you can almost bet there will be some whining from at least one car manufacturer.
Up Next
The plate disaster called Talladega. Will we have a repeat of the boredom that was Daytona or will there finally be a plate race that doesn’t call for 2 pots of coffee like a McTrack? Guess we’ll have to watch and see.
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