Archive for May, 2008
Submitted by NASCAR Eclectic
Dover always delivers and last nights NCTS race was proof.
Seeing Kyle Busch lose his Tranny turned my whole attitude around…. for the simple reason of redundancy. Unless of course you want to refer to the past 3 Truck races having first time winners…that being redundant, but not a boring one. Shrub’s name in the news is very old.
Congratulations to Scott Speed.
Greg Biffle is high up on my Fave Driver’s list……….GO GREG!!!!!
He won the Coors Light Pole Award, but can his Roush equipment hold up? He has had a winning car several times this season only to lose due to equipment failure. It’ll be interesting to see what happens at Sunday’ race.
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Submitted by NASCAR Ranting and Raving Blog
I am quite certain that the pressure to perform for sponsors, get into the top 35 in Owner’s Points, and stay there led to the penalties that were handed out this week by NASCAR.
Penalties, fines and suspensions were issued to the No. 66, driven by Scott Riggs, and the No. 70, driven by Johnny Sauter, on Wednesday. Both the 66 and 70 cars are from the same racing shop, CNC/Haas, even though they list different owners for each. In addition to monetary fines, and crew chief suspensions each car lost 150 Owner and Driver points.
The penalties also include NASCAR’s confiscation of both cars. Man, talk about setting a precedent. Keeping both cars, now that’s harsh. There’s a lot of money tied up into those machines and for NASCAR to keep them hurts those teams financially for sure. Unless, of course, NASCAR is keeping them for ‘further testing’ to see if ther are any more engineering ‘tricks’ and then eventually give them back to the teams when they are done.
What these cars were doing was building the trunk lids in such a way that when it was closed it pushed the rear wing brackets, and essentially the rear wing, up higher in the air so that it would create more down force on the rear of the car which would allow them to turn better in the corners.
Apparently they have been doing it for a while and had not been caught, until someone else on another team pointed it out to NASCAR. The reason why someone would do that is pretty obvious: they wanted to knock those two teams out of contention of the top 35 in Owner Points.
The loss of 150 points is almost as many points as winning a race.
Don’t be fooled, those teams fighting to stay in the top 35 are just as serious as those who are fighting to get into the Chase. And there are some big name teams fighting to stay in the top 35 like Penske, Ganassi, DEI, and MWR.
Photo Credit: John Harrelson, Getty Images (Cars on trucks), and the Canadian Press (Wing Bracket)
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Filed Under ( NASCAR) by admin on May-28-2008
Submitted by NASCAR Ranting and Raving Blog
There is a pretty good article on nascar.com about the ’separation’ between Humpy Wheeler and Bruton Smith.
You know, something happens to people when they get older, they seem to revert back to pre-adolescent behaviour. I’ve seen this happen time and time again. My grandparents on both sides of the family ‘reverted’ once they entered into their late 60’s and early 70’s. They became more stubborn and set in their ways and no one was going to tell them otherwise - they became the masters of ‘grudges’.
It would appear that Smith and Wheeler are not immune to this phenomena. It is a shame that this duo ‘tour de force’ of NASCAR promotions couldn’t have lasted a while longer and ended more amicably, it would have been more fitting for everyone involved - fans included.
What I hope for is that someone, like California Motorspeedway, hires Wheeler to become their director of promotions. If anyone can get those empty seats filled at the Auto Club Speedway in Fontana it is Wheeler.
Wouldn’t it be great if Wheeler somehow got the All-Star race moved to California?
I can’t think of a better way for Wheeler to say, “Take that Bruton” than by doing that, can you?
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Submitted by NASCAR Ranting and Raving Blog
During a late caution in Saturday’s Nationwide race Denny Hamlin deliberately drove up the track into Brad Keselowski’s car crushing in the front left corner of Brad’s car and wrecked the car’s aerodynamics in the process.
Just before Denny did this move Brad did bump him from behind to let him know he didn’t like the way he was racing him just before the caution flag. There was no damage done to Denny’s car as a result of the bump though, it was more of a “Hey, smarten up” kind of bump.
The two drivers had been racing each other pretty hard for the position before the caution and I guess they didn’t like the way the other one was racing them.
This all eventually led to a confrontation on pit road between crews after the race.
As far as I’m concerned Denny’s arrogant display of unearned self-entitlement on the track lacks respect for the sport and his fellow competitors.
Denny’s “I’m a Cup driver, and you’re not” attitude shows just how big his self-inflated head really is.
Hey Goodyear, need another blimp?
Denny has to remember Brad is competing for the Nationwide Championship and he is going to race anyone hard that late in the race to get the points. Being a Cup driver does not give Denny the sense of entitlement that he feels he deserves, in fact, it should be the opposite as he is a poacher on the series regulars. That position he occupied not only represented 3 - 5 points, but also a larger paycheck. Cup drivers are both point poachers as well as purse poachers.
Now sure Denny can come back and say that he is racing for the Owner’s Championship and that is fine but so is Brad.
My message to Denny is that you are on the track to race your fellow competitors not pull some prima donna crap because they are actually challenging you for the position you are only entitled too if you can keep it, not because you are a Cup driver.
Your actions on the track, and in your post race interview Saturday were arrogant and selfish.
As my son says, “Why don’t you act your age and not your shoe size?”
If you want to earn the respect you think you greatly deserve for being ‘a Cup driver’ then you need to start showing some of it too.
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Filed Under ( NASCAR) by admin on May-27-2008
Submitted by NASCAR Ranting and Raving Blog
Jeff Gordon and Kyle Busch had a bit of a heated discussion after the race on Sunday. Apparently Busch didn’t like the way Gordon was racing him and flipped him the bird. Gordon took offence to it and told him so after the race.
Remarkably, when Busch was asked by a reporter about his conversation with Gordon he declined to talk about it. Whoa, what just happened here?
Gordon on the other hand had this to say,
“I don’t know. I guess he doesn’t like people to race him. You know, Kyle and I never had any issues. But I raced him hard tonight just like I did everybody. And when track position is as important as it is here, you’ve got to race every single car for every single position. And I wasn’t going to give anybody an inch and I was racing for position. He’s got an issue because he gave me the finger and you know what? That’s not necessary for a guy he just didn’t like racing him the way I did.”
There is an excellent picture over at scenedaily.com of Gordon pointing his finger at Busch in an ‘aggressive’ manner. Check it out.
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Submitted by NASCAR Eclectic
Fonda Speedway, Fonda NY
Photo by Me!
Pattyjo and I took our 10 year old’s son and nephew to one of our local dirt tracks last night. The boys had a blast…but I think Patty and I had more fun. It was our first…why? Good question because we have 5 of these tracks within an hour and a half from our house. We now plan on going to more. Lebanon Valley Speedway in Western Mass. is next on our list. Tony Stewart has raced there and The World of Outlaws are regulars.
Coca-Cola 600!!…Shrub again?? Getting old!!
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Submitted by NASCAR Ranting and Raving Blog
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series
Awesome finish with rookie driver Donny Lia not being afraid to use his bumper to notch his first victory.
NASCAR Nationwide Series
Some pretty good drama near the end between Hamlin and Keselowski and their crews. I’ll be writing more about this tomorrow, and let me tell you its gonna be a rant!
Kudos to Kyle Busch with yet another NASCAR victory. Man this guy has won in all 3 of NASCAR’s top series with 4 different teams for 3 different team owners (JGR has both Cup and Nationwide teams that Kyle drives for).
NASCAR Canadian Tire Series
Scott Steckly (No. 22 Tow Truck In A Box/Erb Group Dodge) started this season off t he same way as he ended last year’s season, in Victory Lane.
Series Champ Andrew Ranger couldn’t get it dialed in and spent most of the race mired in the middle of the field. He eventually finished the series opener in 17th place.
The F1 Race in Moneco
Great job by Lewis Hamilton’s team to keep him where he was on the track with ex cellent pit strategy regarding tires and the weather. That great pit work eventually earned Hamilton the victory and the points lead.
Hey F1, here is some advice for you; get rid of the 2 hour time limit because it sucks!
The Indy 500
Scott Dixon is the 19th driver in the race’s 92 year history to win from the pole, and it w asn’t as easy as it sounds either. When the eighth and final yellow came out Dixon was in 2nd to Vitor Meira but Dixon was able to leave ahead of Meira upon exiting. Dixon then had to hold off the rest of the field for the final 15 laps - in lapped traffic for the last hand-full of laps no less - to claim the victory and the bottle of milk.
Notice I didn’t write about a certain driver of a blue and black car? Why you ask? Simple. She is a race car driver and did exactly what any competitor would have done after an incident like that, regardless of gender. With that being said there really is no story.
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Kasey Kahne pulls out the win tonight in a race that seemed to jinx anyone who led the race.
After leading 64 laps early Kurt Busch hit the wall while running second, after leading 61 laps Brian Vickers lost a wheel while in 3rd place, Dale Jr hit the wall while leading, Jimmie Johnson ‘done blowed up’ while leading, and Tony Stewart blew a tire while leading with just 3 laps left.
Kahne became the first driver since Jimmie Johnson in 2003 to win both the All-Star Race and the 600.
Great ending for Jeff Gordon who took a 10 to 15th place car and finished solidly in 4th place using great pit strategy and fuel conservation techniques (driving slower).
Who would have thought that Dale Jr could even be in the top 10 after hitting the wall, yet he managed to finish in 5th. Wow.
More tomorrow.
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Filed Under ( NASCAR) by admin on May-26-2008
Submitted by NASCAR Ranting and Raving Blog
Wow, 2 years.
A lot has happened in NASCAR in those 2 years, and a lot has happened with this blog site. I’ve moved from having just 5 visitors a day to about 250 daily visitors. Not too bad. I have on occasion topped over 1000 visitors a day.
This blog has also been recognized as being one of the most influential NASCAR Blogs out there, and the list collected by Sports Media Challenge has some pretty good sites on it too, including Jerry Wilson’s site called ‘Restrictor Plate This’.
Jerry is the one who got me started on this whole journey. When Jerry switched from AOL to Blogger I accidentally signed up for a blog instead as a user - all because I wanted to leave comments at his site. After that I just ran with it.
I now get press releases, and promo offers almost daily. I’ve even been given tickets to go to a race from one of the race’s sponsors - that was cool.
This blog has given me opportunities that I never would have had before, like interviewing current NCTS Champion Andrew Ranger, and being a guest on ‘On Pit Row‘ with Steve and Charlie.
Now, almost two years to the day I started this blog, I’m headed into another chapter of my NASCAR writing experience and it too all started by accident (sort of).
One day I checked my site email and there was an email from the the sports editor of the local newspaper. Apparently he got an email from a fan asking him why I didn’t write for his newspaper, so he decided to check out my site. He liked what he saw and invited me down to his office to talk about it. So I went thinking he wanted to do a story about my site or something like that.
We met for about an hour and discussed various things about blogging and the newspaper’s desire to have more NASCAR coverage. We talked about ways that we could work together that would be beneficial to us both and left it kind of up in the air while we both sorted out the logistics of our teaming up.
Well he sorted things out on his end a week or two later, he then called me and we reached a mutual understanding. He then put his proposal together and approached his bosses with the idea. They listened and they monitored my site for almost 5 weeks (I’m assuming this of course, why else would it take 5 weeks to get back to me?) before letting the sports editor know that they would support his idea.
Another phone call later (last Friday to be exact), and we end up at this moment.
In addition to it being in print form, the column is also on their website with links back to here.
It has certainly been an interesting journey. When I started this whole deal, I never imagined that it would go this far, this fast. But it is NASCAR that I’m writing about, they strive to go far and do it fast, so why should it be any different here?
Thanks for reading this blog everyone and for being a part of the journey.
A special thanks also goes out to the person who took it upon themselves to email the newspaper and let them know about me, I am grateful for the opportunity you’ve provided.
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Filed Under ( NASCAR) by admin on May-26-2008
Submitted by NASCAR Ranting and Raving Blog
I’ve got 4 of these toddler-friendly educational DVD’s to give away (follow this link for my review) and all you have to do is follow these instructions:
- Looking at the picture below tell me who these drivers are, what race this is that they finished 1st and 2nd in, and from what year?
- Please use Team Baby Contest as the subject heading in the email.
- The contest will run for 7 days. Contest closes at midnight on Friday May 23, 2008.
- Winners will be randomly selected from all accurately completed entries.- You may enter more than once, but your are limited to 2 entries per day per email address.
- Chances of winning are based on number of entrants.
- For more info about Team Baby products, including ‘NASCAR Baby’, go here.Good Luck!
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Filed Under ( NASCAR) by admin on May-22-2008
Submitted by NASCAR Eclectic
H.A. “Humpy” Wheeler
With the media abuzz with Wheeler’s announcement, I felt it appropriate to wish him a farewell. His retirement from Lowes Motor Speedway may indeed be a gift to the NASCAR World as a whole. Perhaps his passion and genius for Stock Car Racing Marketing can be shared at the helm with Helton and others. Lord knows they need all the help they can get and Humpy is the man that can make drastic positive changes. Afterall… this is the guy who had a dead chicken placed in a large shark’s mouth and driven around the track on a flatbed…. all this to honor D.W.’s new nickname, “Jaws”. I truly enjoyed the movie “Cars” and in fact I own a diecast collection of the entire cast. Humpy played the voice of “Tex”, the Cadillac, a voice heard by millions around the world, a voice that many look up to and a voice that I’m sure will continued to be listened to. So will he still cast his All-Star Race winner predictions? He’ll be missed at Lowes, but his presence will not dwindle in the racing world.
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Filed Under ( NASCAR) by admin on May-22-2008
Submitted by NASCAR Ranting and Raving Blog
Over the past few months fellow NASCAR blogger Mike Maruska at ‘Trouble in Turn 2‘ has been running a weekly series called “Get To Know Your NASCAR Bloggers: (your name here)”, which I was honoured to be part of. Actually, if I’m not mistaken, I think I was the first NASCAR blogger to be interviewed for Mike’s weekly column.
Anyway, Mike is a fanatical NASCAR fan and statistician, and if you haven’t had a chance to read his blog then get on over there and read it, you won’t be sorry. Since Mike is as humble as he is talented I’ve decided to turn the tables on him. It is now his turn to be the featured NASCAR blogger (heh, heh).
So read on and find out more about Mike and his passion for NASCAR blogging:
How long have you blogged?
My first blogging foray was three years ago with a friend where we blogged about Minnesota sports. Since I don’t live in Minnesota, it became tough and ultimately died. Then in 2006 I needed an outlet to write my thoughts and started Turn 2. I was posting maybe four to five times a month and now I post every weekday.
What made you start blogging? Why do you blog?
When I first started reading about NASCAR online I would go to places like NASCAR.com or ThatsRacin, but a lot of it was just regurgitated press releases or groupthink without any real critical thought. I also tried a few forums, but since the capslock was broken on everyone’s keyboards I quickly exited. I finally made my way to the DieCast Dude’s original site and in turn your blog, ‘NASCAR Ranting and Raving’ and some others like Full Throttle (if you don’t mention him he throws a tantrum) and One Bad Wheel.
I love writing and being creative and the blog could be my creative outlet. Long term I hope to have my writing turn into at least a freelance gig, so the blog forces me to write regularly. Being the sole creator and editor also allows me to try different things. I have tried a few things that were disaster, but was also lucky to find a few things that have worked well.
The other thing I’ve discovered is that the people I have “met” from other bloggers and commenters is this really cool community that I totally enjoy. Plus blogging beats shouting at the TV.
I’ve noticed your blog uses a lot of statistical analysis, do you do this yourself or do you get your stats from other sources and do you see this as a vital component to your blog?
I am certainly a sucker for numbers. Not all stats are equally useful, but the important thing is to use the right context. The thing I enjoy about stats is they take at least some of the subjectivity out of an opinion. Anyone can say driver A is the best, but it’s not worth much if you can’t back it up. Some people can rely on a motorsports background, a vast knowledge of the history of the sport or even personal inside connections. I don’t have any of these, so statistics is the tool I have available to use. Obviously stats aren’t perfect, especially in a sport with as many variables as NASCAR, but they are a start.
I spend a lot of time at Racing Reference, NASCAR’s Media Site and One Bad Wheel. NASCAR media has even queried some custom stats for me, which blew me away. I have also gathered and created a few stats from different sources. Long term I have a few stats that I am hoping to create that will hopefully lead to a tool that could compare drivers of different generations (or so I hope).
Where do you blog from? The city bus! I commute to work and lug my laptop pretty much wherever I go. Sadly I have never blogged in my mother’s basement, to the chagrin of crusty newspaper reporters.
How long have you been a NASCAR fan? I have been a casual fan that knew most of the drivers for a long time, but the passion/borderline obsession was stoked in 2004.
Do you go to any races, and if so which ones? Where was your first race? I have been to Phoenix for the spring race twice (’06, ‘07). My uncle works for GM and got us pit passes which was really fun. Attending races is so much different than on TV. Living in Oregon makes it hard with the closest track 543 miles away. So I sit here waiting for ISC to build me a racetrack in the Northwest.
What do you enjoy about your blog and the NASCAR blogging community? I love researching, writing and discussing about something I enjoy. The fact that people stop by on a regular basis to see what I have to say is a little humbling. My current job pays the bills and takes care of my family, but blogging and all it entails is my creative outlet and what I truly enjoy.
The community is amazing. When I blogged about other sports, there was always this strange tension that everyone was competing. The people that blog about NASCAR are all incredibly friendly, supportive and willing to share and collaborate on things. It’s also so much better than the garbage found in most forums in every facet.
Is there anything you don’t enjoy about blogging, or the NASCAR online community? Sometimes the maintenance can get a bit much. I know a bit of coding, but it’s still sometimes frustrating to change something like a plugin or the layout and it screws everything up. The occasional bout of writer’s block is never fun either, especially when I have the self-imposed expectation to post something of substance and length everyday(I’m almost obsessive with the word count). Long term I probably won’t like the certain case of brain damage I develop from my blogging, but for now it’s a blast.
How much time per day do you spend blogging? It can be as much as 4 hours, but since most of it happens on my commute or at lunch, it doesn’t really cut into too much of my normal life. Although my wife would probably object to that answer.
Do you have a favorite driver? Before I “got it bad” as a NASCAR fan, strangers would sometimes come up to me and tell me I looked like Junior. Not the worst comparison in the world, so I ran with it. Discovering how funny and laid back he was sealed it. I definitely cheer for him, but try to keep that out of my writing in order to stay objective.
I also root for Boris Said just because he’s funny and it blows me away that an enterprising owner wouldn’t give him a shot at a full time ride. I mean, really, would he do any worse than the Jeff Greens of the world (said with only a little offense to Jeff Green)?
Is there one thing that was key to your blog’s success? A lot of cool people helping me at every turn. Gvav1 and TheStewartFan were the first two people to comment on my blog and they have no idea how encouraging that was that someone found my little corner. Another has been Darren Fauth, who was duped into letting me write on his site. Beyond that, almost all of the people I have interviewed in my Know your NASCAR bloggers series have helped me in some way.
I think the key to any successful blog comes down to consistent, quality content. Which I think is true for my stuff (or at least the majority of the time), although I’m loath to call it a success yet.
Name something cool that has come as a result of your blog. This whole deal is cool. I had no idea that companies would give me things to give away or NASCAR would approach me about media access. As I said before, I think the coolest thing is the tight NASCAR community that features a lot of really cool people without some of the typical chest bumping that is found elsewhere online.
Do you have any strange or funny stories about your blog (funny or outrageous comments or emails from people, etc.)? A few years ago when Jeremy Mayfield had the big falling out with Evernham, I wrote that I didn’t think Mayfield was a very good driver in 2005 and 2006 and was responsible for the way it ended. Suddenly I got like three or four comments from members of the Jeremy Mayfield fan club telling me I was wrong and not to cheer for Mayfield. I tried to be polite and feared they would hound me everytime I posted about Mayfield. Well, two teams later and no Cup ride I feel better about that. And the Mayfield fans haven’t returned.
If you could change one thing about NASCAR what would it be? More Consistency with the rules. I don’t think the organization intends to favor teams or drivers, but that’s not the way it comes across sometimes. If I could change two things I would allow Robby Gordon to throw his helmet at a car once a year.
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Submitted by NASCAR Ranting and Raving Blog
That is what I have for Dale Jarrett. Respect.
It never used to be that way, maybe because I was an Earnhardt fan … I don’t know. What I do know now is that I have respect for the man and his accomplishments.
I also have respect for the way he is retiring, he is not coming back as a driver ever.
He isn’t going to be a Ricky Rudd, Bill Elliott, Terry Labonte, etc. and come back because the price is right or to use the Past Champion’s Provisional (excluding Rudd of course). Or worse yet, a Morgan Shepherd who just barely makes certain races driving a car put together on donated funds just to run a lap or two to collect the prize money and not wreck the only car they have.
I know MWR used and abused his Past Champion’s Provisional these last few years, and I didn’t like it, but at least he was still a full-time driver while it was happening and a ‘Provisional For Hire’ occasional driver.
I didn’t like Dale until after he won his Championship in 1999. He seemed to change after winning the Championship, he became less arrogant. He appeared to be more humble, and that is when I started to like him, and respect him, more.
When faced with a room full of reporters after the All-Star race on Saturday night Jarrett kept his composure and stuck to his guns:
Q: Are you absolutely certain there is no chance somewhere down the road where you might climb back into a car and drive for a race or two?
Jarrett: No, I’m not getting back in. That is my plan right now and I just don’t see anything changing that. I’ve told this to my family and I’ve told it to the fans. I think whenever you tell them things like this that you need to hold to that. … Not to mention that I have a huge commitment to ESPN and that is probably as much as anything. The commitment that I’ve made to them was that [after driving in the All-Star Race] my focus then would turn to being the best announcer that I can be.
Q: Why is it difficult for some of these other drivers to stay retired from driving?
Jarrett: I’m not sure that I can answer for them. We’re competitors and this is what we’ve always done. Just cutting off is difficult and I know that there are going to be times when I’m going to look back and think that I should have kept going at this — but again, I know in the long run that it’s the right decision for me and we’re all different as to what drives us.
If he is anything like his father he will stay out of the seat of a Cup level stock car and you’ve got to respect that whether you are a fan of his or not.
Best wishes and good luck in the booth Dale!
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Submitted by NASCAR Ranting and Raving Blog
Whew, what a tremendously busy weekend.
Anyway, here is a breakdown of what I thought of the All-Star race.
The Burn Out Contest
- good idea, poorly executed - too many rules
- Jimmie Johnson’s burnout was the best out of them all
- they should have selected a panel of fans as judges to rate the burnouts on a scale of 1-10, or 1-5 and then average them together like they do with the Monster Trucks
The Last Chance Qualifier
- I liked the race.
- Elliott Sadler has a short memory, didn’t he just wreck Stewart the week before at Darlington the same way in a points race no less?
- Go AJ and Sam!
- Too bad Vickers wasn’t there in the end.
The Driver Introductions
- I used those to get a snack and go to the washroom as I had not gone since before the 2 hour pre-race show.
- Kasey Kahne was voted in and not Dale Jr endorsed Elliott Sadler? Whoa, those girls from the All State commercials must have been behind this somehow.
The Big Brown Truck
- Did you see the problems Dale had in getting the truck moving? Now I know that was not him driving the truck in the commercials. I feel so duped.
Segment One
- Kyle Busch is driving a rocket launcher.
- Where are the Hendrick cars? This is killing me in my fantasy league.
Segment Two
- Correction: Kyle Busch is driving a super-charged Toyota powered rocket launcher.
- This is getting boring.
- Wait! Busch has ‘done blowed up’ or something.
- OK, where are those Hendrick cars now?
Segment Three
- Missed, because I fell asleep during the mandatory 10 minute Pit Stop.
- Here’s an idea, get rid of the two hour pre-race show and hold the All-Star events so that those of us who have little kids who get up at 6 am can actually stay awake and watch the damn thing. If NASCAR prides itself on being family orientated then why do their Saturday night races all end well after my kid’s much later weekend bed time?
Segment Four
- Still asleep, but I later heard Jr led for a bit.
- Speaking of Jr, that was one cool paint job. I hope he brings that back and runs it more.
- Woke up just in time to see Kahne take the checkers. I thought the Biff was going to have the field covered once Busch was out of it, what did I miss?
- Where were the Hendrick cars? I’m dead in fantasy land for sure now.
Victory Lane Celebrations
- Couldn’t tell you what I think as I turned the TV off once Kahne took the checkers and went straight to bed. My kids got me up at 6:30 am the next morning. I got to sleep an extra 30 minutes, lucky me.
Don’t forget to enter in my NASCAR Baby give away.
Photo Credits:
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Submitted by NASCAR Ranting and Raving Blog
Sorry I haven’t posted about the All-Star race, but I’ve been busy - its a long weekend here in Canada.
I’ll be back at it tonight with my regular post-race report (2 days late though)!
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Filed Under ( NASCAR) by admin on May-18-2008
Submitted by NASCAR Ranting and Raving Blog
After I got the kids to bed tonight I went downstairs, got my bag of BBQ Doritoes, my can of Pepsi, and went and sat down to catch the end of the truck race.
In a ballet of movement only mastered by the best of sport fan couch-potatos I get comfortable, start chowing down, and turn my attention to the TV screen all at the same time. Just as I’m about half way through my second handful of chips I hear a little noise. I ignore it and finish off the handful of chips and reach for a gulp of Jeff Gordon endorsed beverage when I hear the noise again.
My keen sense of hearing is no longer impaired by the TV as I turn the volume down and listen more astutely. I quickly ascertain that the noise is from the top of stairs.
I get up from the couch and go to investigate.
It’s my daughter. “Daddy I saw a shadow in my room,” she says. Clearly kidspeak for, “I don’t want to go to bed yet and I’ll pull out the ‘I’m scared card’”. Classic, my daughter is a master in daddy-manipulation.
What to do? My options are quickly narrowed down to two; 1) be the hard ass that I’m not and send her to bed and fight with her about shadows in her room until one of eventually ends up in tears - usually me, I’m a softy - and miss the last 17 laps of the Truck race, or 2) pick her up, bring her downstairs, sit her on my lap with her ever-present blanket, and listen to her complain about how she hates NASCAR, but I at least still get to watch the end of the race.
Clearly there is only one choice: 2. So I bring her with me to the couch with the comfort of knowing that I’ll at least get to watch the race while listening to her tell me why she does not like NASCAR.
But the oddest thing happens, she is quiet and she is watching the race. I think, “Does this kid feel well?” and “What have the aliens done with my child?”
I then hesitantly ask her, “Which truck do you think will win?” knowing all to well that this is going into a “I hate NASCAR” rant.
“The yellow one,” is her reply.
“Which yellow one?” I ask dumbfounded.
… a pause in the conversation while she watches the TV …
“That one!” she says pointing to the TV as Matt Crafton’s yellow #88 Menard’s machine rolls by on the screen.
“You think?” I ask, forgetting about the alien thing for a moment.
“Yep,” she retorts with a certainty that is only possessed by 3 year olds and stereotypical used car salesmen.
“Well, I don’t know Baby-Luv, I don’t think that guy has ever won a race and the two trucks in front of him look to be a little better,” I say to her to soften the blow for when the truck she picks doesn’t win the race.
… another pause while she watches the TV …
I then ask, “Why did you pick that one Princess?
“Because its yeeellooow,” she coos.
“Whoa!” I think. This is coming from a kid who only wears pink and who’s nickname at daycare is ‘Pinkerella’. If she had went for the red truck I’d at least understand, that is about as close to pink as you could get on the track, but yellow?
Then she unexpectedly asks, “Which truck are you going for?”
“Damn, I wasn’t expecting that,” I think, still caught up in the ‘yellowness’ of it all.
Clearly I’m caught off-guard here, but I am quick on my feet and reply, “The yellow one too honey.”
This way I can share the loss with her when either Darnell or Benson win the race. Crafton would be lucky if he held off McCumbee, Bodine, and Hornaday for crying out loud.
And then all hell breaks loose on the track. Darnell spins his tires and lost several positions on a restart. Benson gets black flagged, Bodine wrecks Hornaday and gets sent back to the longest line, and Crafton holds off McCumbee in the green, white, checkers finish.
“Hey we won,” I distantly hear myself say in amazement.
“Yep,” she quips with that 3 year old certainty again, “because it’s yeeelloow”.
You can’t argue with that, she picked the winner after all.
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