Turn 3

Martinsville and Stuff

By Keith Ott

 
There’s a difference between empty seats due to weather with a great race, and empty seats due to apathy and poor racing. Those fans braving the weather Sunday, true racing fans, were treated to a great event. Those staying home probably wished they’d thrown on that extra sweater and sucked it up. This may have been one of the most entertaining events of the season thus far.  Here are my thoughts.

- Lack of idiot notes tells me I found the broadcast relatively painless. DW does tend to extol his short track prowess a bit much, but I didn’t see many miscues. Why haven’t they dumped the damn rat yet? Is this rat Tee-shirt thing for a charity? I’ll get one for VJG, or the Autism Speaks campaign, or even for another good charity, if they promise to lose the rat. Field coverage was generally good, but could be better. For one thing, I never heard Edwards even mentioned until there was 108 LTG. Maybe I missed it, but I don’t think so. Overall I’m saying B+/A-

 
- Hendricks cars won the battle, but Gibbs/Hamlin won the war. Typical Martinsville. It doesn’t matter how many laps you lead, only the last one counts. If I’m the owner, I think I’d rather have the Hendrick stable over the Gibbs stable just for the fact that the Gibbs group is so volatile. I see ego issues later on. Overall the racing was A+

- Glowing rotor shots are kewl! ‘Nuff said.
 

-  Almost 20 cautions (I lost count at 17), and all deserved. NASCAR’s non-call for the light sprinkles was the right one. That’s an “Atta Boy” for you NASCAR, but remember, as we say in the Navy, “One, oh shite, wipes out 20 atta boys,” so stay on your toes.
 

- WTF were drivers thinking racing for laps back? Gilliland was like that mosquito, you can hear, but not see at a picnic all day, until Kenseth put the fly swatter to him. I’m not saying that the loss of the splitter couldn’t have aerodynamically made Matt loose, it takes a lot to make the 17 mad, but I think Gilliland pushed one button too many.
 

- Kudos to Kyle Busch for his non-block to protect his teammate. The booth expected it, but you didn’t give in. You had an interesting day.
 

Other notes:

- If MW wants to steal a secret part to enhance performance, he should steal a driver.
 

- If Penske can swap points from a champion’s car to an open-wheel rookie, then why couldn’t Waltrip let Reutimann take his points to the #44? He’s the driver that earned them. Hornish gets a free pass to the T35 and hasn’t earned squat. I think that those decisions should be reversed.
 

- I hope they spent a lot on these open wheelers. I’m not impressed.
 

- Danica made SI’s Swimsuit issue. What, Stewart or Jr. weren’t available? Danica may as well cash in on her, hmm, wares. The novelty is wearing off, and like it or not, Indy teams like victories. Btw, real NASCAR women have more curves in the right places. 

 

I have errands to run. Your thoughts are welcome.

Thou shalt not steal

By DAVID GREEN

At least in the Formula One espionage case, we can be pretty sure it was no accident, no misunderstanding, no mistaken identification of several thousand megabytes of technical data. Regarding the Roush-Fenway-Michael Waltrip Racing brouhaha, we still don't know for sure what happened.

Those on the Roush side will think I'm naive to think this could have been anything but deliberate, opportunistic or premeditated theft of intellectual property (not to mention a piece of metal called a sway bar). Defenders of Michael Waltrip will suggest, "Hey -- it was a mistake. They gave it back."

Both sides may sincerely believe what they're saying in public. One or both may be putting a spin on their comments. Bottom line: We don't know.

Those on one side can point out the dismal season MWR suffered through last year, and the embarrassment Toyota suffered as a consequence of it. They can point out that it was Waltrip's team that was busted for cheating in their first race in a Camry, the 2007 Daytona 500, and make a presumption that anybody who would cheat might also steal.

Those on the other side can point out equally obvious things, not the least of which has been Jack Roush's well-documented and unrestrained toward animosity toward the entry of the Japanese manufacturer into NASCAR racing, and make the presumption that Roush is blowing a harmless incident out of proportion just to further distract and hinder Toyota.

Bottom line: We don't know.

Here's what I do know:

1. Stealing is wrong. If somebody appropriated the chassis part in question, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is absolutely right -- that somebody should be out of racing, permanently and forever, no ifs, ands or buts. We had an incident at my high school recently in which an expensive camera was taken from the office of a student services provider. These folks do everything they can to help students in need, and as payment, somebody lifts the personal property of one of them.

My students were subjected to a harangue about how despicable I thought that action was, and how anyone who knows something about it and does not provide that information is equally guilty of the crime. I told them the stigma on "ratting somebody out" is ludicrous, and that civilized society is based on "ratting." Such people are not "rats," they are "witnesses."

2. I remember a time in racing when your competitors would do anything they could to help you, and then try like crazy to beat you on the track. That was one of the things about this sport that appealed most strongly to me. Sure, there were some proprietary secrets and there were some exceptions to the "help thy opponent" mentality, and there were plenty of angry confrontations about this or that.

Big-time racing seems to have evolved beyond that time, to Ferrari v. McLaren and Nigel Stepney, to Jack Roush v. Toyota. That's a darned shame, but I guess it was inevitable.

Robin Pemberton's observation as quoted by David Poole ("You're still responsible for what you do with your parts and pieces at the end of the day") is good advice, but alarming in that it seems to excuse the personal responsibility of other parties. They are responsible, too, for what THEY do with your parts and pieces, and we should never let that fact be obscured.

We don't know, and we may never know, what happened here.

Jeff Gordon may joke about calling in the FBI, but perhaps we should make noise about this, if only to foster an environment in which it is clear that stealing other people's property, whether it's a sway bar or an external hard drive with aerodynamic data or just a helmet bag, is wrong and will not be tolerated by decent people.

A Return To Old School Racing

By Mark Young

NASCAR's premier racing series is fresh from a week off and ready to go at it again.  Although it seems odd to have an off weekend so close to the beginning of the season the teams needed it.  In fact I think we all needed it just to catch our breath.  Although there were tons of sporting opportunities available for fans to partake during the Easter Holiday I am glad that NASCAR was not one of them.  Thankfully not racing on Easter Sunday and again on Mother's Day in May have been a constant on the Sprint Cup schedule and I hope it remains that way.  It is a little taste of old school that we dearly need once in a while.....thank goodness for Martinsville.

Martinsville is the oldest track on the schedule having hosted it's first race in 1949.  It is also the smallest measuring out at .525 miles.  Martinsville is also the slowest track on the circuit  but that is part of what makes this place special.  It isn't a track that depends on aerodynamics but rather the talents of the driver to manipulate his machine and make it last 500 grueling laps.

The trophy at Martinsville is arguably the coolest trophy in NASCAR if not all of racing.  The winner receives a 6-foot tall Grandfather Clock.  Jeff Gordon has eight of those bad boys though I doubt they are all in the same house because talk about a racket every hour!!  I am not sure how long the clock has been given away, but if they were doing it in 1960 Richard Petty has 22 of those things likely spread out all over Level Cross.

Hot Dogs are not my favorite food but when I go to baseball games whether the Chicago Cubs, our local minor league team the South Bend Silver-hawks, or my kid's little league games I have at least one.  From what I understand the same holds true when attending Martinsville.  The beauties have a pink tint to them that makes them look like something from Pet-co.  From what I understand the only true way to have one is covered in chili and cole-slaw.  At any place other than a race track that would send my stomach into convulsions.

Someday I am going to make it to Martinsville to see a race at the smallest, oldest, slowest race track in NASCAR.  While I am there I want to see that clock, watch a train go by close enough to the grandstands that you could seemingly jump right off the stands and onto the cars.  All the while not dropping my Martin Dog.

Fascination with violence

By DAVID GREEN

Not surprisingly, the top-rated story on TR.com this morning is the one about the New Hampshire stock car racer who was convicted on a charge stemming from an on-track incident in which he intentionally slammed into another driver's car.

We are all fascinated with violence. When we were kids, most of us gathered to watch when there was a schoolyard fight. Most of the the ones who didn't watch were probably involved in the fight.

Much of the attention on sports violence has been focused on hockey. The joke "I went to a fight last night and a hockey game broke out" is probably a lot older than I am. This is the sport that leads the way in the dubious history of criminal charges that resulted from incidents that occurred during games.

But it isn't only morbid curiousity that causes those of us who love racing to read the New Hampshire news item. In recent years, auto racing has seen a number of incidents that have brought the wrong kind of attention to the sport.

One incident that stands out is the one at Michigan in which an angry Carl Edwards roared off pit road and pretty violently sideswiped Dale Earnhardt Jr. during a caution-flag period. But there have been plenty of other occurrences, the most alarming being the pit-road demolition derbies. In those incidents, the drivers are pretty well protected, but there are unprotected innocent bystanders in harm's way.

And, yes -- despite the safety measures incorporated into modern racing cars, a deliberate ramming of somebody else's car could result in an injury. The one in New Hampshire did not, and the very brief story posted on TR.com offers almost no context. It doesn't state whether the offended driver preferred charges, or if track management initiated criminal action, or if someone in the law enforcement or legal professions might have been trying to make political hay.

It's well documented what a violent society we live in, and as standards of civil behavior continue to slide downward, it stands to reason that the level of violence and the number of incidents will rise. Of course there will always be those who insist that we should "do something about it" when these things happen.

So, competitors at all levels, be advised: Use your racecar as a battering ram at your own risk.

A Podium Finish for RCR

By Keith Ott

It’s too bad NASCAR doesn’t implement a podium style awards ceremony for the top 3 finishers.  Then again, as I type that, I have to consider that sometimes it’s better if 1, 2, and 3 don’t see each other before a cooling down period, lest they find something else to do with those champagne bottles.  But, if they did a podium, it certainly would have been a great picture to hang over the RCR mantelpiece.  Well done, RCR!

I have a bunch of opinions on the race coverage.  I enjoyed not hearing Waltrip yapping the whole event, but I also noticed something missing.  He may be annoying, but he annoyingly covers pretty much the whole field.  Edwards, Kahne, Biffle, or anyone not named Earnhardt, Busch, Johnson or Gordon, and everyone else not driving a Toyota, were pretty much invisible most of the day.  So, while Boogity is on my shite list, and I will cringe every time he makes up a new word, I guess being annoyed is better than missing out.

Miscellaneous coverage notes:  Oh no, you did not try to sneak in that ridiculous FOX3d crap in, did you?  I don’t care how many freakin’ military grade GPS units you have in the damn car, it’s still a gimmick.  How can you not have full coverage at Bristol?  Lose the GPS and buy more damn cameras.  While you’re at it, lose the “Digger” cartoon.  Keep the camera; lose the cartoon.  I know your “New” target demographic has let you down, but, face it, the 6 and under crowd isn’t known for their disposable income yet.  Disposable diapers, yes, income, no.

I thought the “progressive banking” was working well.  At one point, I had a race note saying maybe it was working too well.  The race was pretty tame at that time, and certainly did not have the character of a Bristol event.  But, as every man knows, and yes ladies, this is passed down through our DNA, even the tamest of ladies is one miscue away from b-slapping you with a frying pan.  True to its DNA, Bristol managed to get in a few good licks.

Speaking of “Good Licks,” is the CON too tough?  I guess the answer is no, if you’re the official Tape and Adhesive supplier of NASCAR (Do they have one?), but I wonder about all these wounded cars having an effect on the racing.  It was showing up at Bristol, but, maybe that’s just because it’s Bristol.

Will we be seeing a new TV show, “My Name is Rick,” where he lists all his unpardoned sins and corrects them to assuage his Karma?  It’s doubtful.  Hendrick cars aren’t running that bad.  They’re just running bad if you compare them to themselves last season.  It’s not karma, but competition that is steering this ship.  Other teams have simply caught up on the CON.  We won’t be seeing 17 wins this season, but they’ll get their share.

Now it’s on to Martinsville.  It’s not my favorite track, but they do indeed have a pink hotdog.

Thanks Dale

By Mark Young

The other day I watched the 1995 Goody's 500 from Bristol, Tennessee on ESPN Classic. That was the race where Dale Earnhardt chased down Terry Labonte and wrecked him sending Terry to victory lane with a smashed up car. It was very cool to see the old cars race, the familiar names next to also familiar numbers but there was one car out there that was quite familiar but the driver behind the wheel was not who I thought it was. The car was the #28 Havoline Ford fielded by Robert Yates and the driver was Dale Jarrett. I had completely forgotten that after Davey Allison died Dale drove the #28. That race had me thinking about the teams Dale Jarrett had driven for in his career and it dawned on me that this is Dale's last points race in NASCAR as a driver.

I spent all week trying to figure out what to write about and I had my mind made up to tell Tony Stewart to Just Shut Up. Not because of what he said about the tires at Atlanta but how he said it. Then after watching that race and pondering Dale Jarret's past as well as his future I changed my mind. Dale Jarrett has been a driver that has done it all. He won the 1999 Winston Cup, he has won Daytona, but I think more importantly he was won the respect of his peers and the allegiance of thousands of fans.

You couldn't ask for a better person to put in the television booth to explain the happenings during a race weekend than Dale Jarrett.  He is intelligent, well spoken, and respected in the garage area.  His father Ned was a fantastic TV announcer for a very long time and I am sure Dale is going to do just as well.

I could have sworn while watching the pre-race coverage on FOX yesterday that Darrell Waltrip was retiring after the race instead of Dale.  I think it was super cool for Mountain Dew to give Darrell his old race car, in fact that is REALLY cool.  However, why couldn't that have taken place in two weeks at Martinsville?  I would have rather watched Dale receive all of the farewell gifts and awards that he received instead of dealing with more Darrell.

Thanks Dale for being a gentleman, thanks for racing clean, thanks for showing people that nice guys don't always finish last.  You may have finished your final points race four laps down but that doesn't mean we didn't notice you or appreciate all you have done.

Hendrick angst

By DAVID GREEN

It's fashionable now to overreact and exaggerate, so let's just go with the flow and indulge in some of that. Let's wring our hands (or clap them, as emotions may dictate) and ask impatiently, "What's wrong with Hendrick Motorsports?!?"

This is the juggernaut, you may remember, that won exactly half of last year's 36 Cup Series races. Each of four drivers contributed to the onslaught as Hendrick dominated in a way that only Kiekhaefer (1955-56), Petty Enterprises (1967) and the Wood Brothers (1973, 1976) have ever done.

And, after starting the season with Daytona Speedweeks preliminary victories by Dale Earnhardt Jr. in his first two competitive events in Hendrick equipment and a Daytona 500 pole by two-time defending Cup champ Jimmie Johnson, it looked as if the Hendrick beat was just going to go on.

Alas, it has not.

Dale Jr. finished ninth at Daytona, and he was the only Hendrick driver in the top 10. Johnson was 27th, Casey Mears 35th and Jeff Gordon 39th.

Sure, Johnson and Gordon were second and third at Fontana and Dale Jr. was third last week at Atlanta. Top threes are pretty strong, something to be elated about -- unless you're Hendrick Motorsports.

And there's the matter of Kyle Busch, who left Hendrick for a ride at Joe Gibbs Racing. Busch got the first Cup Series victory for Toyota last Sunday, and is generally acknowledged as one of the sport's top talents. Did Hendrick stumble by losing Busch?

OK, enough indulging. It's early -- way early. There's still plenty of time for the Hendrick team to get rolling. There are still 32 races for them to flex their muscles and make everybody forget about their "underachieving" in the season's first four events.

Earnhardt is arguably the best performer of the quartet now, and whether he is a better or worse driver than Busch is an argument that can be spun at least two ways. But the assessment here is that, all factors considered, the driver switch was good for both drivers and both teams.

We'll see later today (weather permitting, of course) whether the Hendrick team returns to its 2007 form -- or if its "slump" continues into a fifth weekend.

Well, Wasn't That Boring?

By Mark Young

Just last week I was sitting at home recording my weekly radio show U Want Some? complimenting NASCAR and the Las Vegas Motor Speedway for, what I believe, was one of the best races I had seen in a long time.  I went on to say how excited I was for Atlanta with her high banked turns and super-wide racing groove to welcome the new era of NASCAR and the COT.  Atlanta, I went on to say, is one of my favorite tracks and should surely garnish another thrilling victory.  I was never so wrong in my life!!

That was the WORST race I have seen at Atlanta since they reconfigured the track into it's current form back in 1997.  Then there was only one groove because the pavement was new, and the racing resembled a parade.  Speeds were blistering and so were the tires, causing several very hard impacts to the wall, Steve Park in particular if I recall.

Now choosing a tire compound to fit certain situations has got to be like trying to tell a person's fortune while reading their e-mail.......impossible.  But isn't that what test sessions are for?  Didn't NASCAR have a mandatory COT test last fall?  Didn't Good Year have another test after that to get another look at tire data?  To Good Year's credit they brought a very durable tire to Atlanta, we didn't have any blown tires going into the corners ala Tony Stewart or Kurt Bush in Vegas, but it is hard to blow a tire when it came off of Fred Flintstone's car......rocks.

It was "damned if you do, damned if you don't" situation for Good Year.  If they brought a tire similar to that used in Vegas the speeds would have been much higher, the racing much closer, and the fabricators in the race shops would be busier than heck building new cars after blown tires totaled several new cars.  BUT ISN'T THAT WHY THESE GUYS RACE?  To go fast, pass people, take risks........I thought so at least.

One thing that I am glad happened at Atlanta on Sunday was simple......nobody got hurt, I don't want to see anyone get messed up in an accident.  However, I think Good Year was not prepared for Atlanta and we the fans were forced to suffer.  Perhaps the tires would have reacted better if it weren't 40 degrees out.  Perhaps they could have chosen a softer compound to let these do what they do best......race.

I am glad I don't work for Good Year.  I don't envy the decisions they have to make regarding the safety of their product either.  But I can guarantee you that if I were Competition Director for NASCAR I would be on the phone to my "exclusive" tire provider and tell them that if they have another issue like that they had better get their resume polished because I would be looking elsewhere to get tires for my sport.

Truth will out -- or will it?

By DAVID GREEN

Lancelot, in Shakespeare's "The Merchant of Venice," says this: "...truth will come to light; murder cannot be hid long; a man's son may, but at the length truth will out."

Will it?

David Poole blogs about a radio listener taking him to task for not getting the real story behind rumored horsepower advantages enjoyed by Toyota Camry drivers this season. He might have quoted Johnny Cash, who in 1970 wrote, "And the lonely voice of youth cries, what is truth?" or Jack Nicholson in the character of Nathan Jessep in "A Few Good Men," who says, "...you can't handle the truth!"

Don't misunderstand this as a cop-out, but "the truth" is all too often not only difficult, but impossible, to pin down.

Poole explains the difficulty of reporting "the truth" about the Carl Edwards oil tank cover controversy. Each of his sources offers a version of the story, dramatically different from the others. Does each source sincerely believe the absolute literal truth of each statement he or she makes? Is one of them, or are several or all of them, being just a little bit disingenuous? Is one of them, or are several or all of them, outright lying through their teeth?

A reporter is supposed to confirm those questions? Not in my reality.

Perhaps "truth will out" in the notion of a judgment by a supreme being. Perhaps it is true that, in every controversial incident, there is some individual or perhaps several individuals who know "the truth" of the matter.

However, the older I get, the more convinced I am that the legal term "provably true" is not, as some journalists idealistically believe, a redundancy. "Provably true" is the best summation of the question. If you can prove an assertion beyond the shadow of a reasonable doubt, it can be accepted as truth.

If you can't prove it, it's merely your theory -- or your opinion.

Let the debates rage!

Is Justice Served?

By Mark Young

Word came down on high last evening from the NASCAR appeals people following Robby Gordon's penalty from Daytona.  The points were given back, his crew chief is no longer suspended, but the fine was increased from $100,000 to $150,000.  Many people are saying it is BS, others are saying it is justice served, and others are still whining about it all being wrong.  I think that this is the best thing that could have come out of it all.  I predicted a reduction in all three areas but not an elimination all together.  So now Robby has jumped back up to 21st in points and is now safely within the top 35 so all in all he is sitting better than he was yesterday, just a little lighter in the wallet.

U Want Some?