Nascar Swings at 'wide Whacking; Kills Series Instead

Complaints about Bush-whacking or 'wide Whacking as it is now known (at least in my lexicon) have been legion for years.

According to the complaints, every year, Sprint Cup racers win the series championships in the Nationwide series.  Sprint Cup racers cherry pick the biggest purses in the Nationwide series and win them, starving the smaller teams.  Cup racers take driving jobs from other drivers in the lower series.

While some of the complaints are legitimate, Nascar has benefited greatly from the practice of Cup drivers racing in the Nationwide and truck series.  But Nascar has determined to change this starting immediately.  This year, drivers must select which series they accrue points in:  in other words, if a driver runs both Cup and Nationwide, point will only be awarded in one series.

{It remains to be seen how this affects the rookie rule - which says a driver cannot have more than 6 starts in the Cup series to remain eligible for rookie status the next year.  If you don't get points in Cup, it shouldn't matter if you run 20 Cup races, right?}

The new rule has problems, as far as I can tell.  First, while it doesn't remove the monetary incentive to Cup drivers, it does remove some of it.  Money collected from points fund payouts in lower series do subsidize driver's, owner's and team's coffers.  The extra money for wins still will apply, so that will lure a few Cup drivers in.

Second, the rule will have severe implications in sponsorship deals.  If Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, or Brad Keselowski do not have the option to win a championship, will they run?  If they don't run, will their sponsors leave the sport?  Sponsors select drivers and teams to get the most bang for their buck.  Kyle Busch can practically guarantee that he will get TV coverage - regardless whether he wins or finishes last.  Can Shelby Howard, Jennifer Cobb or Kelly Bires deliver that?  There are sponsors who are willing to sponsor Matt Kenseth, Greg Biffle, Joey Logano, Kyle Busch, Mark Martin or Kevin Harvick who will not sponsors a driver named Trevor Bayne, Ricky Stenhouse, Danny O'Quinn or Brett Moffitt.

If Dale Earnhardt Jr, the most popular driver in Nascar, has sponsorship woes with his teams, what hope do the rest of the teams have??

Third, the tracks will suffer.  If the Cup drivers aren't at the track, will the fans show up?  While this may not matter at tracks where the race is paired with a Cup race, it will impact tracks like Iowa Speedway, Nashville, Montreal, Road America, Memphis, etc.  Will drivers make the cross-country trip to the Nationwide race from a Cup race?  Why bother if a championship isn't on the line?

More importantly, if the fans think Carl Edwards, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch and Joey Logano are not coming, will the fans bother going to the race?

I suspect the rule has a bit more sinister purpose: kill the tracks without a Cup race.  A look at those tracks reveals that those tracks are largely owned by Non-ISC corporations.  Remember that ISC is owned by the France family.  If the Non-ISC owned tracks have to close (a la Gateway or Memphis), then those races can go to other tracks, say ones ISC owns.

The simple math is: France family money from Nascar + France family money from ISC = $$$$$$

The problem is that this rule will affect more than tracks, as it will likely drive out sponsors, teams and fans in addition to the Cup drivers.

The Hub-Bub Over Busch-Keselowski

Kyle Busch dumped Brad Keselowski on his way to a Nationwide series win last night.

And Busch even admitted it in post-race interviews.  Now, some are claiming Busch was too aggressive and should be penalized.  And maybe he should.  I'd guess Nascar flipped a coin in the trailer and it came up roses for Busch.  On the other hand, Keselowski drives like he owns the place at nearly every track - maybe the powers that be decided he deserved what he got.

So much for consistency in policing the on-track retaliation.  That, of course, is Nascar.

What I am most impressed with is that Busch felt comfortable enough to admit he dumped Keselowski.  And that Keselowski felt comfortable enough to say he was planning retaliation.  The truth is, anyone watching the tape can see it was retaliation and anyone with half a brain knows there will be payback by Keselowski on Busch.

The bigger issue is whether Nascar really wants to go this way.  Is it OK if the retaliation happens at Bristol as it is a short track with lower speeds than a speedway?  What happens if, a couple weeks from the Chase cut off, the two get into someone trying to make the Chase?  Or if someone in the Chase already is injured to the degree he can't drive?

Smacking down their talk won't really prevent these things from happening, just the drivers from talking about them.  Perhaps having it out in the open is enough to alert everyone involved to watch out for these two on the track.

I'd like to propose another option.  Why couldn't the fans decide who is at fault?  Put it to a vote using email addresses, so 1 vote per person - vote for the person who is at fault.  Driver at fault (the Loser) pays $100,000 to a charity of the Winner's choice.  Heck, let the fan vote account for 40% of the vote, give another 40% to the other drivers and owners and 20% to Nascar.  This way, the score is settled and everyone can move on without feeling that the other guy got away with something.  And, a few charities would be made a lot richer.

Nascar's New Silence Policy

Nascar announced last week it had fined two undisclosed drivers for remarks they made disparaging the sport.  Nascar wants to develop this policy to keep up with the NBA, NFL, and other major sports.

The "small" problem is that Nascar is not like other major sports.  The NBA, NFL and MLB are all unionized sports that provide a variety of helps to their players.  All three major sports have contracting helps for players coming into the league, minimum salary requirements, health insurance and retirement benefits.

Nascar does not allow a players' union, does not provide health insurance and does not require or provide retirement benefits.  Using the argument that each driver/crew chief/ crew member is an independent contractor, Nascar has strenuously rebuffed unionization.

Curtis Turner, a man who should be in the Nascar Hall of Fame for his driving skills, if not for his part in developing Charlotte Motor Speedway with Bruton Smith, tried to unionize Nascar back in the 1960's.  Big Bill France responded by banning him for life from the sport (this was eventually lifted several years later).

More recently, the issue of standardized retirement contributions reared its head when Sam Ard, a Busch series champion, had no retirement, and fell on hard times as he aged.  Despite the rallying of drivers and the media, Nascar basically said, "Sorry, we aren't responsible for drivers retirement and we won't provide a retirement plan for drivers as they are independent contractors."

Now Nascar wants to have its cake and eat it too.  It wants to punish "independent contractors" for saying things against the sport while at the same time not providing the benefits the other major sports do.

If Nascar wants to have drivers tow the line, then it needs to pony up some of the benefits of the other major sports' unionization - particularly retirement benefits, open disclosure of contracts (like the others), provide health care insurance, and help young drivers moving into the sport.

Shame on them for taking and without giving.

Flag It: A Look at the Language of Racing Flags

I had originally posted this information on Foxsports a couple years ago.  However, as I was at the track a couple weeks ago, I realized again how often people do not know what the flags mean.  So, here is a refresher for you.  Remember that local tracks and sanctioning bodies may have different rules for each flag (or may not even use some of these flags).



One of my favorite things to do during a race is watch the flagman.  Regardless if it is a six lap heat race or a 400 mile race, the flagman is conversing with all the drivers during the whole event.


Knowing what the flags mean helps the spectator understand what is going on during the race.  Most race fans know the basics, but are unable to explain what the black flag with white cross means.  Be forewarned, however, that different series have different rules pertaining to the flags they display.




Green Flag:  Shown to start the race.  Will typically be shown when no other flag is appropriate.  Some sanctioning bodies (USAC, WoO, IMCA) will only count laps run under green flag conditions, others (Nascar, IRL, F1) will count laps run under other flags.  An Interesting note, Formula One now uses a green light system to start the race, but before that used the National Flag of the country to start the race.






Yellow Flag:  Slow and maintain position as there is a hazard on the track.  Universal.  In Formula One, the location and movement of the flag or flags indicate where the hazard is on the track or off the track.  This flag is also used by Nascar to indicate during a practice session that cars should pit immediately.









Yellow & Red Stripped Flag:  Varies slightly by sancationing body:  In Nascar,  used on road courses only to indicate debris or slippery condition. 
 In F1, it means a "deterioration of adhesion" due to oil or water on the track ahead.   In IRL, means oil or slippery condition.






Red Flag:  Stop immediately.  Usually indicates the track is unsafe or blocked.  In F1, it indicates the cars should immediately go to pit road.









Red with Yellow Cross:  Pits are closed.  Used primarily in the IRL.  Not used in F1.  Nascar may have used in the past, but does not use currently. 









Black Flag:  Shown to individual car.  Means penalty of some sort, and consultation in the pits is required.  Some sanctioning bodies use to indicate mechanical problems as well as driving problems.  If shown for consecutive laps (usually between 2-4) , with driver ignoring the flag, will eventually mean the car is no longer scored.  Formula One uses two other black flags, one which is be half white with diagnoal stripe, which means car has committed unsportsmanlike conduct.  And the other is black with an orange disk, indicating mechanical problems, pull into pits immediately.







Black Flag with White Cross:  Car no longer scored.  Shown after car ignored Black Flag.  Also indicates whatever you did wrong is now more serious as you just disregarded race officials request for a consultation.









Blue with Yellow Stripe:  Faster car approaching.  In Nascar, does not mean you must give way.  In F1, this flag is solid blue.










White Flag:  One lap left in race.













Checkered Flag:  Race is complete.  Car who finishes laps first, wins.














White with Red Stripe or Cross:  In IRL, with Red Cross means ambulance on course.  


  


Information from Nascar.com, IndyCar.com, FIA.com, champcarworldseries.com, and wikipedia.  Flag artwork from Nascar.com, IndyCar.com, and Champcarworldseries.com

Instant Messages from Hendrick Motorsports

Monday, April 19, 2010 at 5:04 p.m.

JG#24: Rick, I'm a bit frustrated with Jimmie.

RH: Jeff, I watched the race. I don't think he did anything wrong.

JG#24: Maybe not technically, but I think he is racing too hard. It's gonna lead to a crash sometime. Can't he at least be less aggressive when it doesn't matter about position?

RH: I'll talk with him. But the two of you need to work this out.

RH: And when exactly is position not important?

JG#24: I'll call him tomorrow. I think he's pressing too hard since he may miss a race for the baby's birth. Of all people, I know how important that is, but luck is going to run out. He cost me this race.

RH: I thought Stewart and Edwards caused the crash?!?

JG#24: I still think Jimmie was in the wrong. He's in on this. Maybe through Knaus.

RH: You think Jimmie paid Tony & Carl to crash you out???

JG#24: It is possible.

RH: Did you hit your head in that crash or something?

JG#24: Knaus is always up to something. And he seems to have all this information. Stewart has a few bad things in his closet. I'm sure Knaus knows how to use them.

RH: Knaus and Jimmie had nothing to do with your crash. Crashes happen in racing.

RH: As far as I'm concerned, this issue is closed. You boys can work it out.

JG#24: Fine. But if it continues, I'll be back to talk about it again. And I'll deal with it on track too.

RH: Give Ingrid my best. And give Ella a kiss for me.

JG#24: I will.

CK#48: Rick, we need to talk about the 24 team.

RH: Chad, what could you possibly be worrying about the 24 team for?

CK#48: Tomorrow I'll come and talk with you.

RH: I guess.

Sunday, April 25, 2010 at 7:10 p.m.

JG#24: DID YOU SEE WHAT JJ DID TO ME??!??!?!?!?!?!!!!!!

RH: Jeff, I'm sure that Jimmie has a reason.

JG#24: Rick, he's trying to take me out. He's trying to be the next driver to 5 Championships.

RH: And what's

JG#24: He plans to do it by crashing me every week so I can't get any points.

RH: I don't think that h

JG#24: You need to do something.

RH: Like

JG#24: As 48.48% owner, I think we should fire him.

RH: You're kidding right?

JG#24: No. He's pushed me too far this time.

RH: He's the reigning champion

JG#24: No one is above firing.

RH: Even you.

JG#24: I have a lifetime contract. So I am above that.

RH: We gave Jimmie one too.

DE#88: Mr. Hendrick, I was hoping we'd pull off the win, but maybe next week.

RH: Dale, I thought you looked great out there. I'm sure Lance will have some ideas for next time. A win is definitely on your horizon. Soon.

DE#88: Thanks. I think Lance and I are working well. But I'd still like to work with Chad, if that is ever a possibility.

RH: Keep working at it. I doubt Chad will be working with anyone else anytime soon.

JG#24: Well

RH: I don't think that Jimmie

JG#24: We need a spot for Kasey next year, let's give him the 48.

RH: So you want to fire Jimmie at the end of the Year????

JG#24: No, I want him fired right now.

RH: I'm not firing him now. Or later. We'll work out something for Kasey.

JG#24: Then let's fine him.

RH: Since when have we fined anyone for anything???

JG#24: We should have fined Knaus for all that cheating.

JG#24: See you let them get by with EVERYTHING.

RH: We didn't fine Ray when he was tinkering with things.

RH: To your benefit, I might add

JG#24: Ray never did half the stuff Chad has gotten by with, let alone what he's been caught doing.

RH: I don't think Chad cheats.

JG#24: And I KNOW Knaus has bugged our garage or something. He knows EVERYTHING

RH: Jeff, we share information across the teams.

JG#24: But he knows stuff we've never shared.

RH: You're keeping stuff from the team?!?

JG#24: I mean that Steve and I have secrets that no one else could know. Chad knows them. How could he do that?

RH: Chad does not have time to try to find out your secrets. Are you getting paranoid on me? Knaus is too busy innovating.

JG#24: I think he does more blackmailing and that hides the lack of innovation - and he steals from other teams.

RH: What are you talking about?

JG#24: The only way he didn't get a longer suspension last time was that he has something on either France or Helton. Maybe both.

RH: You think Chad is blackmailing Nascar????

JG#24: I'm not so sure that he isn't blackmailing you!

RH: Jeff, why don't you get some sleep an we'll talk about this in the morning?

JG#24: So you haven't ruled out firing Jimmie?

RH: I have ruled it out. You are going to have to suck it up and deal. Man up a little.

JG#24: I'm having the garage swept for bugs tomorrow. And I don't mean cockroaches.

RH: I'm sure you won't find anything.

RH: I'll talk to Jimmie again.

RH: I'm sure this will all smooth over soon.

JG#24: Whatever.

CK#48: Has Gordo come whining yet?

RH: What do you want Chad.

CK#48: We're still on the same page, right? Nothing happens to Jimmie & I. Or else.

RH: Chad, first off, you and Jimmie are great together. Why would I change things?

CK#48: But we are still on the same page.

RH: Yes, Chad, we are.

Carl vs. Brad: As the Wheel Turns

By now, the majority of the American public has heard about the dust-up between Carl Edwards and Brad Keselowski. In fact, I heard about it again this morning on a radio station that has Never played a Nascar report. The host's clear unfamiliarity was apparent to anyone who had ever watched a race.

But, the fact that this station was discussing Nascar was significant. If Nascar's no-holds barred approach was designed to get finishes and races that the general public would talk about, it worked. Brilliantly.

Does anyone doubt that next week a few more eyeballs will be on the TV as the series heads to Bristol? Hopefully, Keselowski and Edwards will be pitted near each other and will have to ride in the same truck for introductions. That would be Nascar's dream scenario.

So, what should Nascar do to Edwards for deliberately dumping Keselowski?

First, I think there are two villains in this situation. Both Edwards and Keselowski were wrong. Keselowski has been a repeat aggressive driver in both the Cup series and the Nationwide series, including prior to the Atlanta race. He reaped what he sowed.

Edwards is also a repeat offender. His passive aggressive possibly-roid rage has involved several Cup drivers. It's time to crack down on his behavior.

So, what to do. First, Keselowski should be put on probation. Let him know if there are any further aggressive driving incidents, he will be "parked." Second, give him to Mark Martin as a student. Make him spend time learning how to be a gentleman driver from the best.

Edwards should be "parked" for six races. However, I would modify the traditional method to this: After missing completely the first race, Edwards would start the next five races and at the first pit stop, would be pulled out of the car. That way, Edwards gets the points, but doesn't actually race. The other driver would also qualify the car, so Edwards would start at the back of the pack for each race.

Otherwise, I would suggest Nascar let these two settle it the old fashioned way - jello pool on the front stretch of Charlotte. Tickets would cost extra, and imagine the TV rights...

Vegas Odds & Ends

Weird Happenings: Daytona had potholes; Vegas now has phantom caution lights. First, the lights did not go out when the race was ready to restart, then the lights came on without a caution being thrown by Nascar. What's up next week? Floods? Deer jumping the fence? The Pace Car stalling out on the track? More potholes?

Pit Row Shenanigans: Did Jeff Gordon's crew start gassing before the car was in the box? Was Nascar correct in ruling he did? Let the conspiracy theories begin...

Inter-company feuds: Jamie McMurray crashed into his new teammate Juan Pablo Montoya. Apparently McMurray didn't get the memo that JPM will carry a grudge. Montoya voiced his displeasure about the incident to the media immediately after it happened. Love to by a fly on the wall tomorrow at Earnhardt-Ganassi.

Don't drink the water: Do you think Dale Jr is worried about Danica in the garage? As a married woman, she shouldn't drink the water as a rash of pregnancies is going around. At this point in her career, a nine-month hiatus would likely be detrimental.

Jimmie Johnson: Jimmie is back to his winning ways. He usually does well at the beginning and the end of the year. Who is going to step up and challenge him?

Daytona 500 Predictions

I'm not big on predictions, because, well, generally, I'm not great at it. However, with a new season, I thought I'd give a shot at picking Daytona 500 winner and up the odds by choosing a new contenders.

1. Kurt Busch - Kurt runs well at both Talladega and Daytona. He regularly runs in the top 10 and has an average finish at Daytona of 17. The question is whether the Penske camp has made changes that will help Busch run more consistently. More importantly: How is Dodge helping (if at all) . If he can avoid a wreck, he may be able to pull it off. On the flip side, Busch's temper and impatience could get the best of him. And if things don't go well this year, I predict there could be a new driver in the Penske #2.

2. Tony Stewart - Stewart is a master at the plate tracks. This does not always translate to a win. If he doesn't win at Daytona soon, that monkey will have jumped off Dale Earnhardt's back onto Stewart's. Don't despair, Tony will comfort himself with his two Brickyard trophies. (It makes him crabby to mention the loses at THE 500 - Indianapolis, so don't. No _really_, don't).

3. Greg Biffle - Biffle's teammate Matt Kenseth won last year, and the Fords have really made strides at the plate tracks. Biffle has won at Daytona during the July race, so he knows how to run and win at Daytona. Biffle needs to pull off a win to keep his boss happy.

4. Pick a first time Daytona 500 winner. Face it; anything goes at a plate track. Sometimes being a strong contender at plate tracks works against you, as drivers look to help some (sucker) they think they can ultimately get around. This means someone like Juan Pablo Montoya, AJ Allmendinger, Reagan Smith, or Brad Keselowski.

5. Worse case scenario, pick a Chevy. They have won five of the last seven Daytona 500. For an even better shot, pick one owned or helped by Rick Hendrick. I.e. 5, 88, 24, 48, 14, 39.

A Welcome Change

New signage has been put up at Bruton Smith's track in Charlotte. Lowe's will no longer pay to have its name on the track, thus the track has reverted to "Charlotte Motor Speedway."

When Lowe's purchased the name several years ago, I hated the idea. It isn't that I dislike Lowe's, I dislike all corporate names on sporting stadiums or tracks.

Why? Well, there are several reasons.

One reason is that Nascar tends to rename every event from the inception of the sport with the corporate name. All Champions are now Sprint Cup Champions, even if they never raced under the Sprint sponsorship. Granted there is difficulty in referring to a name that no longer exists or that has evolved over the years, but the way to fix this is to keep the same name for the long term.

After the sponsorship is over, the public has to learn a new name for the event or venue. Why not just name it permanently and leave it alone. If venues are named after local heros or after people who contribute to have it built, great. But the name should not change with every market crash or upswing.

In any event, I am delighted to welcome back Charlotte Motor Speedway, which is exactly what I've tried to call it during its brief turn as "Lowe's." Curtis Turner must be smiling.

Things to Watch in the New Season

We're almost one month from the Daytona 500, so it is time to look at what the 2010 season could bring.

Sponsorship - With the down turn in the economy, funds for advertising and sponsorship has dried up. The true test will be this year. Will Nascar have trouble finding race sponsors? Will mid-pack teams have sponsorship? What about back of the packers? Without adequate sponsorship, Nascar may be facing smaller fields by the end of the year - which already struck the Truck series and the Nationwide series. Teams can't scrape by without sponsorship for long. Look for Cup teams to have similar problems. Maybe we're entering the era where drivers have multiple sponsors and no primary sponsor.

Race Attendance - Face it, attending a race is expensive. The only time hotels charge the amount listed on the back of the room door is during a Nascar weekend. Couple it with the now typically high gas prices during the spring and summer, unemployment, and the trend of staycations, race attendance could fall. Again. The end of the 2009 season featured empty stands in nearly every TV shot. Look for it to continue unless prices go down for tickets, hotels, airfare etc.

TV Viewership - As race attendance fell, TV viewership fell too. If Nascar TV viewing continues to trend downward, Nascar will lose the ability to draw advertisers and potentially lose out when the next TV contract comes up for bid. The new car may be safer, but people don't like watching it.

Schedule Re-alignment - Nascar needs to fix the schedule. Do we need two Poconos? Two Californias? Should the Chase races be the same every year? I recommend a hard look at the races, when they are held (seasonally), and attendance. Why not rotate the schedule - odd years Pocono has 2 races while Cali has 1, even years Cali has 2 while Pocono has 1? My other recommendation is to add a road course to the Chase.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. - Will Junior win or even contend for a win in 2010? Like him or not, Junior is the most popular driver, and as his season goes, so goes Nascar's popularity (to some degree). If Junior can make a comeback, it will fuel both the lovers and the haters. Nascar needs him to do well.

Jimmie Johnson -Johnson's 2010 could be interesting as he will become a father sometime in 2010. Jeff Gordon's perspective changed with the birth of his daughter, and I expect Johnson's view will change too - Baby will need a ring too! Johnson needs a serious rival - and Nascar needs the rivalry. Without anyone to challenge him, non-fans yawn and turn the channel.

Jeff Gordon - Each year, I wonder how many more years Gordon is going to race. His much publicized back problems and his apparently serene home life are taking a toll on his fierce competitive spirit. If he'd win the 5th championship, I think we'd be seeing the last of Jeff Gordon.

Tony Stewart - Can he repeat with another good season? Or will he hit a sophomore slump in ownership?

Juan Pablo Montoya - Montoya has made a few more friends in the Nascar garage than in the Formula One garage (due to the different cultures more than anything else). But, he is still an aggressive driver who ticks people off. Will this lead to on-track problems this year? Or will he continue to get a pass? Will Earnhardt Ganassi be able to support him? Or will Montoya be looking to leave? Will Ganassi try to leave?

Kasey Kahne - Will Kahne stay with Richard Petty or will he bolt at the end of his contract? Kahne made a lot of stinging comments last year about the team. He's always admitted to admiring Tony Stewart. And remember that contract battle with Ford when he left to go to Dodge? I doubt Kahne has forgotten it.

Kevin Harvick - Harvick and Richard Childress have admitted that things haven't gone well with Harvick's team. The question is whether Childress can appease Harvick enough to keep him in the fold.

Doubtless, there will be other issues that pop up during the year (the rear spoiler, no double line at Daytona/Talladega etc), but these should be enough to keep in mind for the first half of the year.

My Thoughts on Why Nascar TV Viewership is Down

Nascar race TV viewership is down for the whole year. A brief review of Nascar history shows that the Chase was created to generate more TV viewership, more at track attendance and to generate excitement for the sport. Brian France instituted the Chase after Matt Kenseth won the Championship with a runaway points lead.

This year it does not appear to be working. In theory, home viewership should be up: with the economy the way it is, at track attendance should be down as more people stay home to watch the races.

So why are the numbers falling? There are several reasons, some which Nascar cannot fix, but others that could be tweaked to gain back viewers.

Things Nascar Can Fix:

1. Overhype of the Chase. Starting with the Daytona 500, all we hear about is the Chase. The NFL does not hype the Super Bowl this way throughout the year, MLB doesn't hype the World Series this way, and neither should Nascar. We all know it is coming. And we all know that it is too early to talk about in the first couple races. Knock it off. In fact, it should not be hyped until we are within 3 races of the Chase's start, and then only sparingly. Save the PR until we have a field set.

2. Overhype during the Chase. Watching the first race in the Chase, the announcers act like every lap is vitally important in the Chase. "If Gordon doesn't pass Stewart soon, he'll drop all the way to third in the Chase." And it's lap #3! When something catastrophic happens, then let us know how it impacts the Chase.

3. Ignoring Non-Chase drivers. While the drivers having the best year are in the Chase and are likely to be up front, there still are 30 other guys out there. Talk about them, and not just when they (nearly) crash into a Chaser.

4. Tweak the Rules to get into the Chase. I'm fine with an arbitrary number of drivers, but let's look at the line. Change the rule to top 12 plus any race winning drivers within 100 points of #12. Some years this may be no one, and others it may be a couple guys. But if a team pulled it together enough to be within 100 points of the top 12 AND won a race, let them in.

5. Uniform Start times: I applaud Nascar for deciding on uniform start times. I think they may actually listen to the fans once in a while.

6. Fix the schedule: We have too many races. Trim a few by adding a rotation of tracks - instead of 2 races per year, Track #1 gets one race plus one race in odd years. Track #2 gets the other race in even numbered years. The Chase races should include a bigger variety of tracks. Why not Sonoma? Bristol? Richmond?

Things Nascar Can't Fix:

1. Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s past few seasons have not gone well. Despite the high hopes after his signing at Hendrick Motorsports, Dale Jr. has failed to deliver consistent finishes and wins. That hurts viewership when your most popular driver isn't in the Championship. Do you think Michael Jordan would have been as legendary if he had never played in the Championship games? The same applies here.

2. Jimmie Johnson's domination. Johnson has schooled the field each of the past three years. Before that, he was in contention up until the last race. Frankly, many long time fans I know are bored with the Chase because they expect Johnson to win it all. They are not excited about the Chase. Maybe when Johnson retires they will be back.

3. Football: Probably the biggest thief of viewers is football. College and NFL games lure away marginal & dedicated fans.

Nascar needs to look at its product and make a few changes. Otherwise, the decline of viewers will lead to a decrease in revenue as the TV package will not be worth as much as it did a few years ago.

California Proves It Knows Chasers Early in Season

Back in February, I posted a blog about a theory that Dustin Long, a nascar beat writer for Southern newspapers, proposed.  Basically, Long pointed out that for the past four years, on average, seven of the top ten finishers at California advance to the Chase.

How did California do this year? Well the track got 8 of the 12 correct.  Here is the Top Ten list from this year's 1st race at Fontana, California (I still can't bear to call it by its sponsored name).

1.  Matt Kenseth

2.  Jeff Gordon

3.  Kyle Busch

4.  Greg Biffle

5.  Kurt Busch

6.  Denny Hamlin

7.  Carl Edwards

8.  Tony Stewart

9.  Jimmie Johnson

10. Brian Vickers

Sponsorship Deals We're Unlikely to See Anytime Soon

The economy is tough right now and teams are scrambling to line up sponsorship for next year. Roush Fenway Racing announced that DeWalt would be leaving Matt Kenseth's #17, but Crown Royal will shift from the #26 to the #17.  However, with even more changes looming in the future, these are a few sponsorship deals I think we're unlikely to see.

Elliott Sadler &  PETA.  Sadler is an avid hunter, and I doubt he will give up his winter pastime so easily.  Equally unlikely is Ryan Newman - PETA, as he is an avid fisherman.

Kyle Busch & Self Tanning Lotion.  Kyle is nearly so fair that he is translucent.  As a hard-core sunscreen wearer myself, I sympathize.  But Kyle's complexion will not lend itself well to self-tanning.

Jimmie Johnson/Tony Stewart & Gillette.  Jimmie recently shaved his stubble, igniting news coverage.   Whether he remains clean-shaven the rest of the year remains to be seen.  Stewart has demonstrated his shaving laziness during his whole career. Can you imagine how long the the PR flack assigned to tell Smoke to shave everyday would live?

Jeff Gordon & Budweiser.  Somehow Gordon's suave aura doesn't bring to mind the partying ways of Budweiser.  Red Wine? Sure.  But Bud?!?

Kasey Kahne & A Dance School.  Commercial to the contrary, I doubt Kasey will be endorsed for his dancing skills. 

Greg Biffle & Whiffle Ball.  Although the slogan is catchy, I don't see "Biffle Whiffle" catching on.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. & Ford.  Junior's father would come back and spank him.  Although Senior may prefer it to Toyota/Honda/Hyundai...

Roush Fenway Racing & Toyota.  A sure sign of the end of the world.

Iowa Speedway's First Nascar Nationwide Race

This weekend, Iowa Speedway hosts its first Nationwide race. The track that Rusty Wallace helped build has generated a lot of buzz in recent years, but the anticipated Nascar arrival is finally here.

The track is a 7/8 mile track modeled after Richmond with a few Wallace tweaks. Drivers report the corners are "big" enough to allow racing through them, and the smooth surface allows maximum speed. Iowans have supported the Speedway with large crowds at events that don't traditionally draw crowds. USAC fans were heard to exclaim the crowd for a qualifying day was unlike anything they had ever seen at a track, while the IRL and Nascar Camping World East-West races boast capacity crowds for their events. Tomorrow, nearly 57,000 are expected, with the Speedway building temporary stands to accommodate the crowd. If the crowd is that large, it will be the largest crowd for a racing event in Iowa (which is saying something when the Knoxville Nationals at its height clocked in around 40,000 and the Boone SuperNationals have several thousand each year as well).

During a press conference, Kyle Busch pointed out that this Nationwide race would potentially have more people at it than attended the Cup race a couple weeks ago at Chicago.

Iowa Speedway has hosted many events including IRL races, USAC races, Nascar's Camping World East-West series race, ARCA races, Hooter's Pro Cup races, Grand Am road races and motorcycle events. Nascar Sprint Cup stars who have tried out the track include: Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Kasey Kahne, and Juan Pablo Montoya. Montoya ran one of his first stock car races at the track several years ago when he was transitioning from Formula One to stock cars. Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Carl Edwards have both tested at the track. Earnhardt drew a crowd of a few hundred for a test session.

The track is ready to go and fans are urged to arrive early to avoid the typical rae traffic backup.

"I Never Understood the Utility of That Particular Appendage"

Originally Posted on May 2, 2006 on foxsports.com

Before Danica-mania, there was Janet Guthrie.  Guthrie was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame late last week for her contributions to the sport.  It is Guthrie's contributions to the sport that opened doors for Danica, Sarah Fisher and other women to enter motorsports.

Guthrie was the first woman to earn a starting position in both the Indianapolis 500 and the Daytona 500.  And she accomplished it in the same year, 1977.  She ran races in both the Indy car series and Winston Cup in the late 1970's.

It was not easy going for Guthrie, and she had to endure the trash-talking by a large number of the men she raced against.  Guthrie kept her sense of humor and won many of them over by her fearlessness, speed, and her car handling abilities. 

One of the stories Guthrie told during her acceptance speech was about a French driver who was asked what he thought about (professional) women drivers. The driver replied "I think they'd be missing something between the legs." 

"I never understood the utility of that particular appendage" retorted Guthrie to the laughs of the crowd.  She continued by telling another story about out qualifying three time Indy 500 winner Johnny Rutherford.  After her qualification run, David Pearson commented "She's got to have them somewhere."

Guthrie was a racers racer - she's raced a variety of cars and has had success doing it.  Like many of her contemporaries, she drove both the nascar circuit and the indy car circuit along with other series and car types.

Sports Cars

Prior to her success in Indy cars or Nascar, Guthrie spent 13 years in sports car road racing where she built and maintained her own cars.   This was only natural given her physics degree and experience as an aerospace engineer and flight instructer.  During her sports car days, Guthrie had two class victories at the 12 Hours at Sebring.

Indy Cars

In 1976, Guthrie attempted to make the field at Indy, but was not fast enough.  The next year, she showed up and set the fastest time of the day at Indy on May 7th and May 22, 1977.  At the Indianapolis 50, Guthrie had the best finish by a woman until last year - she finished 9th in 1978.  To put this in perspective, in 1978, there were 92 entrants for the Indy 500 with 33 awarded starting spots.

She finished fifth in a race at Milwaukee in 1979, which was the best finish by a woman for 21 years.  That same year, she qualified fourth at Pocono to A.J. Foyt, Danny Ongais and Johnny Parsons.

Nascar

Guthrie is the only woman to lead a Cup race.  Her 6th place finish at Bristol in 1977 is the best finish by a woman in the superspeedway era.

She out qualified and/or finished better than Bill Elliott, Ricky Rudd, Richard Petty, David Pearson, Bobby Allison, Neil Bonnett and Johnny Rutherford at Talladega in 1977.

Guthrie out qualified and/or finished better than Elliott in 7 out of 10 races in which both ran.  She out qualified and/or finished better than Dale Earnhardt in 2 of 3 races in which both ran.  She out qualified and/or finished better than Johnny Rutherford in all 3 races both ran.

Given these statistics, the induction into the Hall of Fame was well deserved.

 Information from janetguthrie.com, nascar.com, indianapolis motorspeedway, indy racing league.

From Senna to Earnhardt: The Development of the HANS device

Originally Posted on Foxsports on April 25, 2006.

I am in the process of migrating many of my blogs to an archieve.  This is one I wrote three years ago about the HANS device.  I am still amazed that we had to lose two legendary drivers to implement a device that had been around for years before their accidents.

May 1st marks twelve years since Ayrton Senna was killed during the San Marino Grand Prix at Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola, Italy.   While leading the race, Senna slid off the track causing his right front tire to break off with its suspension.  The tire and suspension hit Senna in the head, causing  his death.  Senna's death followed by one day the death of another Formula One driver, Roland Ratzenberger, at the same track.

Senna was and is regarded as one of (if not the) best Formula One drivers ever.  Last weekend, another great driver, Michael Schumacher, captured his 66th pole - breaking a tie he held for most poles with Senna.  Ironically, the race last weekend was at Imola.

The race following Senna's death was marred by a serious accident involving another Formula One driver.  While this accident did not result in death, the press and public were disenchanted with the dangers of Formula One racing and began demanding new safety measures. In a twist of fate, Senna had been leading the charge for safety the morning of his death during an informal meeting with other drivers. 

February 18th marked five years since Dale Earnhardt was killed during the Daytona 500.  Earnhardt was and is regarded as one of (if not the) best stock car drivers ever.  Earnhardt was on the final lap of the race when he crashed, ultimately dying from the head injuries he sustained.  Earnhardt's death followed the deaths of Kenny Irwin, Adam Petty and Tony Roper.   

Following Earnhardt's death, the public and the drivers were unhappy with driver safety and demanded that something be done to prevent any further racing deaths.

Fast forwarding to today, most race sanctioning bodies mandate the use of a HANS device (Head And Neck Support) for drivers.  The device is to prevent the violent and often fatal head injuries sustained in high speed / high impact crashes.  The HANS device was brought to the forefront in most American's minds after the death of Earnhardt, however, the device was available well before that. 

And perhaps the tragedy is that the device was available to drivers before the death of Earnhardt and even before the death of Senna.

The HANS Device was developed by Dr. Robert Hubbard , a professor at Michigan State and his brother-in-law, Jim Downing, to prevent head injuries from racing accidents.  After testing, the device was marketed in 1991 - a decade before Earnhardt's fatal crash. 

In October of 1996, (after Senna's death), FIA, Mercedes-Benz, and McClaren contacted Hubbard and formed an agreement to adapt the device to Forumla One use. 

Why mandate HANS?  According to "Helping Hans" by Ross Stonefeld in Atlas F1:

Below are average strengths of the head and neck. The force withstood is dependent on location of impact, strike object size, and bone tissue density amongst other factors.

• Frontal bone (forehead): 1,000 to 1,600lbs of force
• Temporal-parietal (sides of head): 700 - 1900lbs of force.
• Rear skull: 1,440
• Facial: 280 - 520
• Neck (under forward movement): 140

In a full human form crash test simulating a 40mph dead stop impact utilising the HANS device, neck loading was kept under 130lbs whilst the unrestrained head endured over 1,000lbs

"As soon as your head - which weighs, with the helmet, 13 or 14 pounds - has a sudden acceleration, it stretches your neck," (Jim) Downing explains. "If it stretches a little too far, you get a neck fracture or a skull fracture at the base of the skull where your head connects to your spine. With HANS on, the head sort of goes forward then back and looks OK. At the same speed with a fully belted dummy, the head smashes into the steering wheel and it's just appalling. The drivers say, 'Wow. That can't be.' In layman terms, keeping your head close to your body is what it's all about with HANS."

Racing will never be an entirely safe sport.  Hopefully the HANS device, or devices similar to it, can cut down on the number of deaths and the severity of the injuries sustained. 

We will never know if Senna or Earnhardt could have been saved by a HANS device.  But we all know drivers who's lives were saved by it - whether we know it or not.

 

Information gathered from Stonefeld, Wikipedia, Formula One, Jayski, and Wind Tunnel with Dave Despain.

Confessions of a Racing Junkie Part II

Originally Posted on December 15, 2005 on Foxsports.com

I realized I had a problem when I watched the 1999 Daytona 500 _Qualifications_ on TV.  I was craving a racing fix, and the winter without a race had been tough.

Tony Stewart was a rookie in 1999.  He earned lots of money racing; I spent lots of time watching racing. 

It was a small addiction then.  Missing a race didn't bother me (especially in the summer stretch).  Sometimes I wouldn't even know who won until a week later.  Nascar racing was available most of the year - no worries on missing a race.

Eventually, that changed when I moved and didn't have cable or satellite TV.  As the weeks went by, I missed racing again.  I needed the high of seeing stock cars race.  So, like any junkie, I found a new "dealer" = the radio.  It got me through the part of the schedule when I couldn't get the race on TV.

Years had gone by since I discovered this euphoria called racing, and I thought I had been hiding my racing problem well.  I didn't discuss racing because no one knew or cared anything about it.  I realized I had failed at hiding the amount of time I was spending on  racing when my brother bought me tickets to a race for Christmas.  "You should probably see one live sometime." he said.

My persistant- yet almost manageable - addiction was about to get a lot worse.

Confessions of a Racing Junkie Part I

Originally Posted on Foxsports.com on December 14, 2005.

It started innocently enough.  After I finally finished my education, I was traveling across country with my Dad, and we stopped in Indianapolis (where else) to visit my aunt & uncle.  My uncle offered me the first seductive hit of racing by "forcing" us to watch a nascar race.  I don't recall seeing stock cars race before.  I suppose I knew it existed, but it had never registered on my radar.  Traditional stick & ball sports were my experience - both watching and playing.  However, my uncle's enthusiasm for this motor sport thing was catching.  And after that first hit, I remember thinking "I could learn to really like that."

Several months later I had my first memorable encounter with a nascar junkie.  He had all the trappings of a true nascar fan.  He owed numerous die cast cars, T-shirts, neon signs and other assorted junk.  I don't think he could decide which beer company to support, so he bought racing stuff from them all.  To top it off, he couldn't stop explaining the Daytona 500 qualification process to me and my co-worker.  We thought he was a scary  - so we set a new land speed record cleaning his house and bolted.

Shortly thereafter, I moved to a new town.  And, in the secret confines of my apartment, I began regularly taking hits of nascar races.  On Saturdays, I watched Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Matt Kenseth battle it out for the Busch series championship.  But on Sundays, I avoided the racing scene - everyone would be talking football, basketball or baseball  - and I didn't want them to know about this new habit I had picked up.

Tragedy Barely Avoided at Georgia Aquarium

Originally Posted on March 6, 2009 on foxsports.com.

ATLANTA, GA.  Quick thinking by Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds saved the life of one of Fox Sports' broadcast team.

Last night, the Fox Sports broadcasting team visited the Georgia Aquarium to gather footage for the broadcast on Sunday.  During the visit, Digger, Darrell Waltrip, Jeff Hammond, Steve Byrnes, Matt Yocum, Chris Myers and Larry McReynolds all stopped atop the Hammerhead shark tank to watch the after-hours feeding.    Something horribly went wrong as Digger was tossed into the tank as the shark feeding frenzy began.

"I don't know what happened," said Byrnes.  "He was standing beside me, and suddenly launched into the tank.  I don't know if he jumped or was pushed."

"All I heard was Yocum yelling about how he couldnt' ruin his hair getting into the water, while Hammond was complaining about his tan running," remarked Myers.  "I was worried my expensive Italian loafers would get wet, so I couldn't jump in.  No, I'm not kidding and I don't care."

"It was then that Darrell just jumped right in there.  I think he said 'bogity, bogity, bogity, get outta my way, boys!' as he dived in," explained Yocum.  "Larry tossed a wrench at one of the sharks who didn't acknowledge Darrell.  It bounced off his snout.  But overall, I've never seen such professional courtesy.  The sharks knew him and let him take Digger out.  I guess that 'Jaws' nickname was legit!"

Digger is expected to fully recover, although he has put off several appearances in the Atlanta area today and tomorrow.   One source close to Digger said that Digger wasn't sure what happened, but he swore he was pushed and didn't slip into the tank.

Officials have begun an investigation into who may have pushed Digger in.  "Digger isn't as well loved as Fox would lead us to believe.  There have been credible threats by several people.  Namely FoxSports bloggers and Nascar fans," added Detective P. Columbo.  Columbo noted that several blogs, email accounts and twitter accounts had subpoenas issued for them today.

"And we haven't ruled out the crew either.  Byrnes had been heard complaining that Digger got more air time than he did just last week.  Yocum grumbled to friends that he thought Digger was stealing the cute fans away from his fan club.  Don't forget Miles Monster, of Dover, Delaware.  He issued a challenge last week that Digger had not better show his face in Dover or there would be serious consequences." 

The Nascar on Fox representative brushed aside all concerns, and commented that, "We are confident that this was an accident.  Fortunately no one was hurt."

Uniform Sparks Sponsorship Furor

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -  DeLana Harvick ignited a sponsorship war by doing what she does every Nascar Sprint Cup Race: wear a replica of her husband's firesuit.

"We saw DeLana wearing the firesuit, and it started a conversation that ultimately led to Chandra's new contract with Cover Girl," said Cherie Silver, Cover Girl's public relations vice president during the contract's unveiling.  "We wanted our logo out there in the photographs of pit lane and in victory lane.  Chandi will be wearing a T-Shirt emblazened with the Cover Girl logo at every race."  According to Hendrick Motorsports officials, Chandra will be featured in magazine ads, TV ads during the race, and at special events around the track.

"Jimmie and Chandi are excited to be involved with Cover Girl, and believe that Nascar's increasing female fan base will really support Cover Girl's entry into the sport," said Silver.  Silver noted that Johnson's car would only have a Cover Girl logo at three select races during the year.  "In general, it is all about Chandi, not the car."

Not to be outdone, Jeff Gordon''s  wife, Ingrid van de Bosch, was rumored the "Victoria's Secret Nascar Spokes Model."  

"Ingrid will be wearing the newest bras and underwear at the track.  Victoria's Secret will have a merchandise trailer for all those Nascar fans.  We think that this will be a way men who attend the races can find something for their wives and girlfriends at the track that they wouldn't see otherwise," remarked an anonymous HMS insider.

The insider could not explain how Ingrid could model the fashions without violating Nascar's garage clothing policy, which require pants,  sleeves, and toed shoes.  "I've heard rumors about sheer long sleeved T-shirts, that's all I can say," said the insider.

"I can't wait to see Ingrid," exclaimed Dale Earnhardt Jr, who declined to confirm the Victoria's Secret contract. "And Chandi too.  I think it will be a great combination."

Roush-Fenway Racing scrambled to catch up on the wives' sponsorship bandwagon, with rumors of a Katie Kenseth maternity line floating through the garage.  "We can't confirm the pregnancy, let alone the sponsorship," said Jack Roush.  "Obviously, we'd be delighted if Graco or Gerber wanted to join Roush Fenway Racing."

Greg Biffle noted that his wife, Nicole, would be sticking to her non-profit roots.  "Nicole is passionate about animal shelters and we will continue to focus on that, not money making oppportunities."

When asked if the WAG (Wives and Girlfriends) sponsorships meant that potential dates needed to bring a list of sponsorships to the table, Tony Stewart rolled his eyes and stormed off.  Dale Jr was more outspoken. "I think I have enough sponsorships right now.  It's not anything I'd worry about.  Although it would be nice," he added.

Two WAG sponsorships are still on the table:  Kotex and Always.  "So far, no one wants our sponsorship dollars.  It's silly - all women need feminine hygiene products.  We'd love to be involved in Nascar." said a Kotex representative. 

"None of the wives or girlfriends we approached were interested, but we're hopeful that someone will want to support our product." said an Always marketing representative, speaking anonymously.  "It's not like we want our logo on the car or anything."

Meanwhile, DeLana Harvick is baffled about the sponsorship furor her firesuit has set off. "I just wear it because I'm a teammember, and I was tired of ruining my clothes every week.  It wasn't for advertising." 

That said, Harvick noted that next weekend she might break down and advertise: for her favorite college basketball team, the North Carolina Tarheels.