NBC -- NASCAR on Saturday -- NO RACING SUNDAYS

NBC shows ONLY Chase Drivers

NBC NASCAR broadcasts are very good for their Saturday coverage of Xfinity Series races.  They actually feature most of the cars and drivers in the race and interview any driver that has a highlight/lowlight to cover.

NBC NASCAR Chase broadcasts of the Sprint Cup Series races on Sunday are basically terrible when it comes to showing the race action and participants.  Each Sprint Cup race has 43 participants of which at least 20 have very competitive cars/drivers.

This time of year the NASCAR season is working toward determining a champion for the season.  The new NASCAR Chase format for the Sprint Cup is an elimination process beginning with 16 cars.  Every 3 races causes the elimination of 4 cars.  After 9 races the field is down to 4 cars for the final race of the season to determine the Sprint Cup Champion.

The eliminator style Chase format puts a bit of spice into determining a champion and has shown to be very good for the NASCAR business model.

On Sundays NBC spends 90% of the air time showing the cars of Chase participants.  Today's race will have 8 Chase vehicles.  Today's NBC telecast from Texas Motor Speedway will feature 8 cars and drivers and the other 35 can go to hell because they will  not be visible on the NBC broadcast. 

Even if a non-Chase driver wins the race, NBC will spend a minimal amount of time showing Victory Lane and dote on Chase drivers that didn't win.

During the Chase NBC shows actual racing on Saturdays and CRAP on Sundays.

JD, feeling pissed at NBC here in The Big Town of Savage

Last Day of The Month

KOUPON KAREN

I ran across the note above while perusing some websites today.  Then it dawned on me that, indeed, today is the last day of the month.  My life isn't such that I have things that need to be done by the end of the month; but, there are a few important things that occur at the end of the month or the first of the month.

When I worked I'd get paid every 2 weeks and never thought twice about when the money was deposited because there was no way to know without looking at the calendar and payday schedule.  As a retired fella, now I get funds deposited once a month, either the last day of the month or the first of the month; seems to depend on the whimsical nature of the big machine that sends the funds along.

After seeing the reminder above, I decided to check my blog and see when my last post was dated.  The date on it is March 31, 2014.  Yep, it's been a month since I last posted anything here and I can't say much for what I came up with for today's post.  But at least I'll have one dated April 30, 2014 to keep up the pace.

April has been an eventful month with several personal family items of interest that I won't delve into today, but more importantly the racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide series has been superb.  I've been a NASCAR fan since back in the '60s when they ran down at a local track in Beltsville, Maryland on a little half-mile asphalt oval on one Wednesday night each year.  I didn't get to go to a real large NASCAR track until the early '70s when me and a bunch of buds made a visit to Charlotte for the World 600 race over Memorial Day weekend.

I was truly excited by the environment around the track with all the people camping in the area for the weekend and folks that were just as nice as you could want 'em to be.  The World 600 was a long race and fun to watch back then but I didn't know I was tired until I had helped drive us all the way home to the Big Town of Savage in the middle of the night.  We had a great time that weekend and I became a NASCAR regular whenever the opportunity presented itself.

Back in those days the winner of the race made considerable money and the points awarded toward a yearly champion didn't mean much to most drivers.  The race generally paid much more than the yearly champion got along with the big trophy.  That all changed over the years as NASCAR brought more sponsorship into the racing game and TV discovered NASCAR live and the yearly champion.

Up until this season NASCAR racing degenerated each season with the yearly championship being the most important thing going because of the TV money and the publicity for the team sponsors.  Each race provided little for the winner other than the trophy, a few bucks and publicity; but most important more points than anyone else in the race toward the yearly championship.

Yes sir, drivers had no incentive to win a particular race, the most important thing was to get a 'GOOD POINTS' finish to boost you higher in the yearly point standings.  Wasn't unusual at all to see a driver settle for 2nd or 3rd rather than risk crashing out of the race and losing points just to win against a faster car.  Drivers with no will to win equals dull racing...dull racing equals poor TV product and loss of fans.

The season NASCAR has changed their points system and made it almost essential to win a race if you want to win the championship.  Without getting into details, I'll just say that winning a race in 2014 almost guarantees you a spot in the final competition for the 2014 Sprint Cup Championship.  

Racing is once again exciting for NASCAR fans, there's competition on the track to WIN and altercations in the pits after the race.  When drivers are mad at another driver after a race, that typically means you, the fan, have seen some good 'RUBBIN AND RACIN'.  

JD, here in the BToS waiting for the excitement at Talladega in the new month; this weekend.

NASCAR Chase - ESPN Killing Weekly Race TV

This is a repeat of a post from this blog back in 2010.  My thots today are stronger than they were when I wrote the original post.  Watching Chase races on ESPN consists of watching cars with drivers that are in the Chase.  Granted those 12 drivers are the best of the year and qualified for the Chase, but the TV coverage of the race should focus on action on the track, not necessarily a single car focus detailing the performance of the current leader of the Chase, or other Chase members.  There are 43 drivers on the track each week and the racing should be the focus of NASCAR race TV, not the final champion for the year.  I'll guarantee you that if I'm sitting in the stands for the race, my last thot is of a Chase contender; my thots are about my favorite driver, who may not even be in the CHASE for the SPRINT CUP!

JD, here in the BToS ranting about TV coverage of weekly racing.

Below is Post from 2010:

Sounds a bit stupid to use that line as a subject, doesn't it. NASCAR made a decision a few years back that in order to give the NASCAR CUP racing season a bit of fizz, it would glamorize the points championship. Thus; they created a 10 race Chase.

Originally 10, and now 12, drivers qualified for the Chase based on their point standings at the close of the first 26 races. That group of Chase drivers are isolated on points from the other NASCAR race drivers for the remaining 10 races of the season and have their own points subset to determine the winner of the NASCAR (your favorite sponsor goes here) CUP Championship.

The goal in glamorizing the end of season Chase was to enhance TV ratings and NASCAR Inc. profit margins by focusing the public's interest on 'The Chase'.

NASCAR has been successful in directing TV coverage from weekly races on to The Chase. Any time you look for some NASCAR news, the focus is on 'The Chase' and remaining challengers for the NASCAR CUP trophy.

Now the opinion from the Big Town of Savage begins. Tailoring publicity to The Chase leaves little emphasis on the race of the week and the track that's hosting the event. It's 'ALL CHASE ALL THE TIME'.

Unfortunately, the NASCAR fan base wasn't built on 'racing for the chase'. The NASCAR fan base was built on weekly races and race venues. Any true NASCAR fan loves to visit their favorite track to be part of the race. NASCAR's inherent excitement is on the track on raceday; not TV hoopla about a contrived competition for points to win a points trophy at the end of the year.

There's a wonderful trophy and payoff for each of the 36 races on the NASCAR CUP schedule. There is nothing more exciting than the Winner's Circle after a grueling Sunday afternoon race with the driver, owner and team excited beyond belief at their victory. This is the ultimate NASCAR Race experience; winning this week's race at Richmond, Bristol or Charlotte in front of great fans.

If you're watching TV coverage of the race the first thing you hear out of the announcer's mouth isn't necessarily excitement over the race winner, who gets little TV time, it's the point standings for The Chase.

NASCAR needs to eliminate 'The Chase' and return weekly focus to the race and the race winner's family of team members. True NASCAR fans love racing; they don't love 'The Chase'.

Contrary to NASCAR's original intent of adding fizz to the NASCAR season, what NASCAR has actually done with The Chase is remove emphasis from weekly racing; thus diminishing the importance of their core product, RACING. The Chase is a loser...

Ponder it and let NASCAR know what you think of 'The Chase',

JD

PS - Weekly racing is the backbone of NASCAR. Over the many, many years I've followed auto racing of all types, it's always been the racing that was exciting. The reason I tune in each week is to see rubbin' and racin' and the post race excitement as the drivers get in each other's face to let 'em know they'll be the one wrecked next time...

Postseason Playoffs - NASCAR Doesn't Fit TV's Terminology

The last few months of the 2013 NASCAR season, I've noticed SPEED TV announcers and other TV sports announcers began using the term 'Playoff' in referring to the NASCAR Sprint CUP Chase.  I noticed also they've started referencing the 10-race Chase as the Postseason.  In the few days since SPEED TV converted to FOX Sports 1, the announcers that came over from SPEED TV to FOX Sports 1 have made these two terms basic to their NASCAR Chase discussions.

If you've read my blog in the past, you know that being an old fart, I'm adverse to change, especially change that doesn't fit my paradigm of what the world should be like to make me happy.  I've been a NASCAR fan since I first discovered NASCAR racing as a teenager back in the late '50s.  That was a time that racing attention was focused on the winner of the race and not on a Championship, which paid little money and wasn't really important at the time.

Over the years things have changed significantly, especially with the advent of TV coverage of NASCAR races.  Then early in the 21st century, NASCAR leadership decided they needed a late season competition among the top point earners of the season for the NASCAR championship; thus, the Chase for the CUP (my terminology, not theirs) was born.  The goal was to hype the NASCAR championship and provide a vehicle to boost interest in NASCAR after the NFL began its season.

Since then, all discussion among TV announcers at races is about qualifying for the 'Chase'.  The most exciting racing of the year is typically the last 2-3 races before the Chase to see who's going to qualify for the championship.  As of today, there are 3 races left until the Chase begins with races at Bristol, Atlanta and Richmond.  Once the Chase begins all TV shots of on-track action highlight the 12 Chase participants, even though there are still 43 cars in each NASCAR CUP race.

I guess the real question for me here in the BToS is, can I adapt to TV once again changing terminology used to describe NASCAR racing.  TV will insure it changes to fit their 'SPORTS TV' paradigm and I'll have to live with it as I have no option.

However, I will state my opinion that the NASCAR Chase is not a 'playoff during the postseason'.  After all, the teams that didn't qualify for the Chase don't quit racing and go home for the season like happens in stick and ball sports.  They continue to race for victory lane each race for 10 more weeks.

The difference is that you will only see 'Chase Contestants' featured on TV; ESPN will ignore the other competitors as if they don't exist.

JD, here in the BToS, missing the old SPEED TV channel, following the Chase and cringing while TV sports announcers refer to it as Playoffs and Postseason.

PS - I can also tell you after 3 days of FOX Sports 1 coverage of NASCAR, I don't care much for their hyped up, high speed announcing and short discussions.  The previous Race Hub show was kinda laid back with no rush because they had to fill an hour of TV time.  Now the screen is full of graphics boxes below and to the right and announcers hardly have any time to discuss and reflect on subjects.  I've seen changes come to SPEED channel live shows during the past year knowing things were moving in this direction; less racing coverage and more pizazz.  Life is change and whether I like these changes or not, I'll have to live with it.

PPS - Image above is a SNIP of a Google page after I did a Google Image Search for 'playoffs postseason'.  Notice there is no image of anything to do with NASCAR, nor were there any throughout the multiple pages of search results.

Firecracker 400 - Daytona on July 4th

Richard Petty 200th win - Firecracker 400 - July 4th, 1984

As I age my memory fades on details but generally major events and activities tend to remain.  One such memory is of the Firecracker 400 (I think that was the name) Daytona NASCAR race on July 4th each year.

The weather is typically very hot in Daytona on July 4th, so NASCAR scheduled the race to run at 10 am and it would be completed about 3 hours later.  Neat thing was that viewers then had the rest of the holiday to enjoy as they wished.

Think about that for a minute, you've watched a 3-hour stock car race and it's only 1 pm.  The rest of the day is free.  Think about the few fans that NASCAR has on the west coast, the race begins at 7 am and is over by 10 am.  Talk about having the rest of the day free.

I think NASCAR should move the summer Daytona race back to the 4th of July.  Of course they have lights at Daytona now, so they would likely make it a night race followed by a tremendous fireworks display.

In either case, NASCAR should be celebrating the 4th of July on the 4th of July along with the rest of the country.

JD, here in the BToS waiting for Saturday night so I can watch the Daytona summer race on TNT (don't get me off on their TV NASCAR coverage).

PS - July 6, 2013 11:21 pm.  It took me 1 hour to watch this 3 hour race.  It was the most boring race I have watched this season.  All races at Daytona and Talladega (both RP (Restrictor Plate) tracks) should be removed from the schedule and replaced with more short track and road course races.  Just too boring to be on TV.

NASCAR - Drivers Little Incentive to Win

2011 NASCAR Chase Drivers

Are you a NASCAR fan? Do you remember the exciting racing of the late '90s. Some say the excitement left NASCAR when Dale Earnhardt died at the 2001 Daytona 500. Others say that today's super-wide cookie cutter tracks eliminate the need to fight for position.

As far as the cookie-cutter tracks go, I think they have a lot to do with the limited excitement. Didja ever listen to a driver interview at a track like Michigan or California and hear the comment, "This track has plenty of room to race." Any time a driver makes a comment like that, it basically means that the driver will likely have an easy day and that he'll finish the race and depend on his equipment to provide a good finishing position. Most drivers tend to like tracks that don't make 'em work physically and don't require a lot of interaction with other cars for position. Basically, they like to win but don't like to work for it.

Does the Dale Earnhardt death affect NASCAR racing. Only to the point that everyone misses Dale. I still have a Dale Earnhardt "3" decal on the back window of my pickup. What Dale Earnhardt's death marks is the end of NASCAR race drivers that had to work hard every week to make money. During Earnhardt's day, drivers had to scrimp and work their ass off to be successful in NASCAR racing.

Today's drivers have tremendous base salaries and get a cut of the winnings and are primarily interested in keeping their team's sponsors happy. I think they are somewhat analogous to NBA players. Why work too hard all the time when you don't have to?

My opinion is that today's hugely successful race shops like Hendrick, Roush, Gibbs, etc. put drivers in superb equipment. Look at JGR, Gibbs signed a 16 year-old driver, Joey Logano now 22, and put him in top notch equipment based on nothing but potential. Why should Joey Logano or any other successful driver work hard each week when their base salary is in the millions each year.

Sure, everyone wants to win, but at what cost? They don't have to win today to get paid...they just have to show up and drive a good race. Tonite's Bristol race and the following two races at Atlanta and Richmond will be exciting only because a win is necessary for a group of 10 drivers that are shooting for a wild-card position in the chase and can only make it with another win or more.

The next 3 races will be fun to watch...once the Chase begins the season of excitement will be over for 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Racing.

JD, here in the BToS gearing up for Bristol tonite and looking forward to Atlanta and Richmond.

What's a Derecho storm - I found out Friday Nite

I don't know what a Derecho storm is, but it sure tore the hell out of the area around the Big Town of Savage Friday night.  Around 11 p.m. JD's power died and was gone for the next 26 hours, coming back around 1:15 a.m. Sunday.

Power loss affects us all in different ways. As you can imagine, my greatest loss, after the air conditioning, is my computer's internet access.  It's not my whole life, but I do use it for about 80% of my life actions, especially banking, shopping, etc.

My biggest disappointment was missing the NASCAR race from Kentucky on Saturday nite.  I've seen reviews since and read articles, but I won't get to scan the race until Weds around noon when they show a shortened version on SPEED channel.  I'll DVR it and view when I have some time. 

Now I have to figure something for dinner tonite.  Most restaurants seem crowded with so many folks out of power.  I also noticed Saturday nite when I went out for a ride around the area that every motel parking lot was just PACKED!!!  I can't imagine they had any empty rooms...

JD, glad to have some electricity here in the BToS

PS - This is just one option for some folks to get into their house.

PPS - Managed an early dinner visit to Famous Dave's up in Columbia.  I must say that it's the best dinner we've ever had a Famous Dave's.  Seems like things just hit the spot.  I'll have to raise it a bit higher on my restaurant list.

Gotta pass the 2 truck

I was out for a ride in my Toy Truck this afternoon up by BWI Airport when I came down an off ramp just behind a fairly new Ford Ranger pickup with a cap on the bed.  I was a bit too close and needed to back off some, but I noticed a decal on the rear window similar to this one.

 

The first thing I thought of was "Rusty Wallace" and his number two Miller Beer NASCAR racer.  My first inclination was to pass the rascal 'cause Dale Earnhardt would never allow Wallace to stay in front of him for very long and my Toy Truck is most definitely an Earnhardt vehicle as you can see from this hitch cover.

About the time I was ready to pass the rascal, it dawned on me that the decal on the back of his truck was probably a decal for the current Penske Miller Lite car driven by Brad Keselowski.

I backed off the throttle and rode along relishing in the thought that I likely wouldn't be seeing too many Rusty Wallace decals from now on since Bad Brad is making a new name for Penske's number two.  Now if I could only get Rusty off the NASCAR TV broadcasts (the rascal just rattles on about nothing thru the whole show).

JD, here in the BToS

PS - Later it dawned on me that I was thinking about racing back in the '90s like us old farts are prone to do from time to time.

PPS - Image from the past

NASCAR at Bristol This Week

It's Bristol Baby. Sunday, 500 laps at Bristol Motor Speedway, NASCAR returns to real racing in the hub of NASCAR action. Personally, it's my kinda racing.

Daytona's always fun because it's the first action for the new NASCAR season. But, let's face it, Daytona (and Talladega) ain't 'real racin'. Phoenix and Vegas provided good racing, but let's be serious, who wants to watch a race on Sunday afternoon that doesn't start until almost 4 PM on the other side of the country!

No, real racing is in the southeast; the hub of NASCAR.

JD, patiently waiting for some real Bristol Racin' here in the BToS

PS - Here's a post from March '09 that provides a bit more on Bristol - real racing.

NASCAR Back On Track in The Bud Shootout

Not all NASCAR fans sit in front of the Big Screen with a beer in their hand waiting for 180 MPH crashes to happen on the track at Daytona. I will admit however, that most of us do enjoy the occasional pile-up on the track and the resultant excitement of the unexpected.

Personally, I'm glad to see cars back on the track and the weekly media coverage of the NASCAR scene. You may have gleaned from these blog posts that I no longer relate to stick and ball sports and delight in the exit of the Super Bowl leading in to the NASCAR season, my time of year for sports.

NASCAR's primary series runs 36 points-paying races during the season that runs from February up until just before Thanksgiving in November. The Budweiser Shootout tonight is an exhibition race paying beaucoup bucks to the winner and hopefully putting on a show for the fans.

Will we see a crash like the one that occurred during practice Friday? It's likely we will. Daytona racing always produces crashes. I've already programmed the ol' TiVo to chronicle the event tonight. Bring on the racin'...

JD, back to racin' here in the BToS

NASCAR Texas - No Kyle Busch - What will JGR do?

Kyle Busch and Joe Gibbs in a happier moment.

If you're a NASCAR fan you're aware that NASCAR decided to suspend Kyle Busch for the Nationwide and Sprint Cup races at Texas following his actions during the truck race when he completely wiped out Ron Hornaday's truck under caution; thus killing any chance Hornaday had of winning the 2011 Camping World Truck championship.

Kyle has shown considerable temperament improvement this season compared with the past, some of which I've discussed in previous blog posts; one was after Kyle killed the Nashville guitar trophy and another when I provided my take on Kyle Busch.

I stated after the 2009 guitar trophy incident that Joe Gibbs had to show some responsibility for Kyle Busch's actions. We already know what NASCAR has done this weekend to punish Kyle Busch, more may follow after the racing weekend is over when they review possible infractions and announce their penalties on Tuesday.

I wonder if Joe Gibbs and Joe Gibbs Racing will take a step up to the plate and provide some in-house punishment for Kyle Busch, possibly sitting out the remainder of the season. Certainly his sponsors can't be too happy about the incident.

As we all know, money (spelled $$) drives sports, including NASCAR racing teams. Will there be any pressure on Joe Gibbs to take a bolder step on Kyle Busch, or will Joe Gibbs actually determine that action needs to be taken on his own to correct Kyle's behavior on the track.

I suspect little more will occur, but I've certainly been wrong in my assessment of NASCAR and NASCAR racing teams' behavior in this type situation in the past. Following the weekend, we will know for sure.

JD, keeping an eye on things here in the BToS

PS - Kyle is a great driver, now if he will only get his head out of his butt he might be a true NASCAR role model as well.

Martinsville still has what Bristol lost - EXCITEMENT

The beatin' n bangin' and rubbin' n racin' we saw at Martinsville Sunday is a sample of the racing we lost at Bristol when they redid the track surface and went to variable banking.

Prior to the new track, racers would have to boot someone out of the way to pass them, mainly because like Martinsville the fastest way around the track was on the bottom. With variable banking now at Bristol cars can actually run side by side in a monotonous parade that will likely put you to sleep.

Basically, variable banking sucks for providing exciting racing. More details in my earlier post on Bristol Variable Banking.

Track owners are caught up in variable banking, the flavor of the day, and unfortunately we'll likely see more of it rather than less. Side by side racing on variable banking generally SUCKS!

JD, here in the BToS lamenting the old days of rubbin' n racin'.

PS - Practically no snow here in the BToS Saturday...just a wet, rainy day with a little snow/rain mix late in the afternoon.

Chilly Friday Morning in the BToS

Friday morning here in the BToS. Morning temperature was only 37 degrees, which felt kind of cold for these old bones of mine. One of the things I notice about this aging business since I've turned 70 is that my body typically wants to be a bit warmer than it used to.

I find that I need more covers on the bed and that I keep the thermostat set a bit higher at night too. I'm sure there's medical info that explains what I'm experiencing, but for me it's just happening.

Weather forecast for Saturday is for a chance of an inch of wet snow. Now if we have to have snow, that's the kind of snowfall that I can enjoy. When it's finished the grass will be white and the driveway will still be black. No driving hassles.

As I've mentioned in earlier posts, I relish the autumnal season with the wonderful colors, the warm days followed by cool evenings. What troubles me is the occasional little days of excitement when the temperature is down in the 30s and the precipitation is the white flaky stuff.

Being the NASCAR fan that I am, one of my favorite tracks is scheduled for a 500 lapper Sunday afternoon; that would be Martinsville. It's just great "rubbin' n racin'" and "beatin' n bangin'" for 500 laps around the half-mile track. Let's just hope they don't get snow on the paperclip shaped track that is Martinsville Speedway

If it's too chilly in your neck of the woods Sunday afternoon, check out the Martinsville race on ESPN. As you know, the NFL ain't for everybody, some of us ol' rednecks jes natchuly luv NASCAR.

JD, here in the BToS

Martinsville Speedway (home of "rubbin' n racin'" and "beatin' n bangin'")

Pastor Joe Nelms for your Sunday Pleasure

In case you missed your Sunday morning visit to the local Southern Baptist gathering, here's Pastor Joe Nelms giving the Invocation for last evening's NASCAR Nationwide Race from Nashville.

I don't recall Rev Neimiller being quite so fired up back in the '50s at the Savage Baptist Church.

JD



PS - A Google Image search on "pastor joe nelms wife" will show images of his wife and family. I found this one. Click image for larger version.

Martinsville NASCAR - Rubbin' n Racin'

NASCAR racing at Martinsville is today's incarnation of what old timers call 'real racing'. As you can see from the foto above cars get scraped, bruised and banged up for 500 laps on this half-mile paperclip shaped oval.

Drivers are forced to work extremely hard just to get a decent finish at this track. The drivers that come out on top know they've performed at the top of their game with a well set up car.

NASCAR should take a really hard look at the racing product from Martinsville and use that as a contrast with other less interesting forms of race tracks that they've migrated short track races to over the past 25 years.

Any new tracks should be less than a mile in length and somewhat flat, like Martinsville. Bristol used to have similarly good racing until they reconfigured the track to variable banking a few years ago.

No, Martinsville is a small town with BIG TIME racin' the way it ought to be.

Obviously, this is just my opinion,
JD

PS - Virginia has two of the best tracks in NASCAR, Martinsville and Richmond.

Liz Taylor at Martinsville for some NASCAR

Ran across this earlier and thot you racin' fans might enjoy it a bit.
JD

Variable Banking Kills Bristol NASCAR TV

I'm an old time NASCAR CUP Racing fan. After a few years of watching races at the newly paved and reconfigured Bristol Motor Speedway, I've come to the conclusion that the variable banking that exists there now has taken the RACIN' SHOW out of Bristol.

I say that because today's racing at Bristol features two cars racing side by side for multiple laps and neither car is able to pass..."B-O-R-I-N-G". It was thought that side by side racing would be good for competition. It's not if one car can't pass the other. Continuous side by side racing is "B-O-R-I-N-G".

The old Bristol banking featured the fastest line right around the bottom of the track. The faster car overtook a slower one in the bottom lane and would nudge him out of the way to pass. That 'nudging' usually caused the lead car to suffer a momentary loss of grip and it would slide up the track in the corner and the 'nudger' would pass the rascal.

This always led to good TV that was much fun to watch. it also led to scrapes on the track between cars and sometimes in the pits between drivers and crews. Bristol was all about 'doing what you need to do' to win.

Today it's all HAPPY all the time. Drivers ride around for 500 laps, collect their money and go home. Terrible TV. Terrible racing.

Get the grinders out on that track and make the variable banking go away. Bristol is suffering in attendance and the TV ratings are down (of course part of that could be from FOX's 'tight shot' never show more than 2 cars coverage). Bristol track needs to go RETRO BRISTOL to AMP UP the FUN FOR THE FANS.

Sadly, next week's race at Fontana, CA will be even more BORING. Fortunately, the Fontana race has been reduced to only 400 miles and is the sole race at Fontana for the year; vice the previous 2 races each season.

Bored with Bristol,
JD

Rainy Day - Late Hour NASCAR

I've always thought that NASCAR races should start early Sunday afternoon, preferably 12:30. Las Vegas is evidently in a later time zone than the Big Town of Savage here on the east coast.

Tomorrow's race from Las Vegas is set for around 3:15 here in the BToS; about 3 hours later than I think it should start. Tomorrow is forecast to be a rainy day for the BToS with moderate temps.

So the real question becomes, "What do I do until I begin to watch the TiVo'd race around 4:15?" I can busy myself until noontime with daily crappola, but 4:15 is a long, long time and very late in the afternoon.

Personally I think west coast races should begin around 12:30 eastern time...what's that, maybe 9:30 out there. That's good, they can all get up early, go to the race and still get home in time for a leisurely dinner. I could still watch it at my normal time, 12:30.

I don't think I'm being selfish here. If you live on the west coast, you could finish watching the race by 1:00 in the afternoon and still have the rest of the day to have a second batch of fun.

I think I'm on to something good here, is NASCAR listening? I doubt it!!!

Ponder it and enjoy the race late, late tomorrow afternoon,
JD

Update - Sunday nite. It's amazing how quickly a good book can get you thru a rainy afternoon. I managed to read from 1 until almost 4, then started watching the race on my TiVo. Fine book, good race. I kinda like that Cousin Carl won at Vegas for Ford.
PS - Rubbin' n Racin' next. After taking a week off, Bristol is on the calendar Sunday afternoon Mar 20. Rubbin' n Racin' is 'old school' racin'. Bristol isn't as much fun to watch as it was before they installed variable banking a few years ago, but it's just so much better than most other NASCAR tracks over a mile.

NASCAR Daytona 500 - Writers Saved by Bayne

Think of all those NASCAR beat writers as they were watching yesterday's Daytona 500. I'm sure they were thinking about what to lead their stories with. A record million caution flags, two restarts at the end, and most major name-value drivers were out of contention; but what's the lead.

They had almost finished their basic story line. Then it happened -Trevor Bayne, driving the Wood Brothers Ford with the iconic '21' paint job won in a close finish. They likely sat in amazement for a few minutes relishing in the fresh face of Trevor Bayne and the excited delight of everyone from the fans to the members of all the teams. They were all excited for the Wood Brothers and the Rookie, Trevor Bayne.

Most stories today are about Bayne and the Wood Brothers and their history. The writers didn't have to belabor the million cautions and obvious safety issues raised by the new paired-up racing paradigm; nor the fact that typical major NASCAR drivers were out of contention. Nope, 20-year old Trevor Bayne, driving for Wood Brothers Racing, was and is the story.

All the cautions caused it to be a long, drawn out race, and not at all typical of Daytona rolling-parking lot races. It actually became a bit boring at times for me. Even 200 mph tandem, paired-up teams became boring after they got strung out.

What does NASCAR do about RP (restrictor plate) races at Daytona and Talladega after this last week of racing at Daytona? Talk about being torn between euphoria brought on by the excitement of Bayne's 21 winning and the more serious issues concerning safety of bumpers tied up at 200 mph, I'm sure NASCAR will let the good feelings roll on for a while.

NASCAR competition leaders might be debating the tandem racing teams at 200 mph during their conferences the next couple of weeks, but they definitely will NOT look a gift horse in the mouth after the excitement of the 2011 NASCAR Daytona 500 finish.

Nope, the NASCAR writers had a fine day...

JD

PS - Trevor Bayne video below
PPS - I hope you don't think you can save gas with that bumper-bumper deal out on the road; the other driver just may not understand!!!

NASCAR Daytona - Two Man Racing - Twin Trophies?

The Bud Shootout Saturday nite was a strange race, even for a restrictor plate track. Typically, in order to win at Daytona and Talladega you need another car that will get into a draft with you and help you get to the front.

Last nite's race was the first I've seen where late in the race, virtually every car was hooked up with a drafting mate. As the image above shows, the two-car draft with Kurt Busch and Jamie McMurray won the race after the race-leading two-car draft of Ryan Newman and Denny Hamlin broke apart when Hamlin split off the rear of Newman and attempted to pass him for the win.

As they split apart, thus slowing, the 22-1 express rolled on by, helped in part by the 11 dropping below the double yellow line, out of bounds, while passing the 39. The 11 of Hamlin appeared to cross the finish line first, but was black-flagged.

It's a complete change in the race car paradigm when it takes two to tango. Racin' is always ME against YOU, each in a different car. This two-car deal isn't real racing, but for one night it definitely put on a different show than we've seen in the past. It sure kept my attention and I had no reason to pause the TiVo to go pee pee!

NASCAR doesn't usually like for drivers to go beyond the NASCAR vision for competition. So, we'll have to see what happens between now and the two Daytona 500 qualifying races on Thursday and for the Daytona 500 next Sunday.

My perception is that the RP (restrictor plate) tracks of Daytona and Talladega privide a TV SHOW and typically do not constitute a true race. This two-car deal certainly makes it a race again, while at the same time causes NASCAR to pull what few hairs they have left out of their swelled heads.

My opinion is that the TV Shows will be done once NASCAR leaves Daytona and shows up at Bristol and Martinsville come spring. Then it'll be back to 'boys have at it' and some real rubbin' and racin' short track fun.

Just my opinion,
JD

PS - NASCAR did NOT award twin trophies to win!!!