Random NASCAR Musings

Testing is over at Daytona, and the teams have hurried back to the shops to analyze and prepare for the next test in Vegas.

1) As a fan, I am beginning to hear the drivers repeat themselves over and over. It seems they are saying the same thing they said last year, and the year before, and the year before that. I wanted to comment on it....but one of my favorite writers, Monte Dutton, said it far better than I could. Check it out HERE! Thanks Monte!
2) David 'Pablo' Poole is another favorite, and who could resist this article:
Juan Pablo THIS!

3) Surprises in Daytona testing? Not really! The Yates team mates of Ricky Rudd and David Gilliland ran well, but then, the Yates restrictor plate program has been hot for a few years. Montoya? Of course that team is running well....but was there any mention of his team mates? Umm...David 'Pablo' Stremme or Reed 'Pablo' Sorenson? Stars DO shine brighter in Florida! As far as the rest of testing, I still don't trust the speeds as being a sign of the future. I will wait until Vegas testing to get a better idea!

4) It has been a sad beginning to our year. The loss of Bobby Hamilton and Benny Parsons will be felt for a long time.

5) There is some rumbling in Las Vegas that the Las Vegas Motor Speedway will not have the garages done in time for the March race. Granted the original article states they think the garages will be done in time for the race, but Vegas is notorious for not having construction done on time. I am not sure if that means the parts that the teams use, or the upper level for the fan veiwing area. I am sure the teams will have something to say if their areas are not done...but will the fans who spent the $$ on the Neon Garage, and then not have full access, get a refund of some kind? AND, how will the teams react if the garages are not done for testing next week, and the weather turns crappy?

6) Speaking of LVMS, the sight lines are being greatly reduced. When attending the truck race, last September, I saw the infleild buildings cut the view of the entire track unless you sat in row 40 or above. One could hope that the track will have MORE big screens installed, instead of just the ones facing the main grandstand. There are a whole bunch of folks on Turn 3 and Turn 4 that won't be able to see about a third of the track. Granted, they are not paying the bigger bucks, but that is still not the way to enamour the fans to a track that most of the TV viewing audience considers to be boring.

7) Robby Gordon finished 8th in the Dakar rally. Way to go, Robby! (I find myself to be totally entranced by this challenging event, every year!)

8) Vegas testing is the 29th and 30th of this month. I will be there with my NASCAR buds, scanners in hand, trying to glean whatever information I can possible figure out.

9) If you are a rabid fan of any driver, you may have noticed that many of the fan clubs are in renewal mode right now! I am impatiently waiting for Denny Hamlin's club to open for orders for 2007. I also hope to see David Gilliland have a club start up soon! It would be great for Ricky Rudd to restart his fan club. You have to wonder though, when certain "Southern Gentleman" is taking orders for fan club membership, but is not offering a list of what is being included in exchange for the $20 or $25 smackaroos. But then again, the fan club package has been one of the most erratic ever, as no two members ever get the same thing. One could hope they take a lesson from the Harvick Fan Club, which in my opinion is one of the most FAN-centered Fan Clubs in NASCAR.

That is all for today!

Benny, I hardly knew ye!

Pacific time zone, Sirius radio, and the news came early (for us.) Benny Parsons had passed away.

I found myself to be strangly, deeply lost. I had no idea why, I just felt as if a small part of my life was missing.

Then, as I left for work, I plugged in my Sirius radio, and listened to countless testimonials about Benny. At first, I was sure that I would get tired of all of the tributes, but hours and hours later, I was still tuned in.

There was something captivating when listening to the countless descriptions of how Benny impacted the lives of drivers, owners, NASCAR officials, and fans. I heard countless tales of Benny taking the time to talk, really talk, to fans. I heard how he bought tickets for fans to let them into their first race. I heard how he doted on a young, ill child visiting the track on his last adventure.

One common thread among all of the conversations was that Benny was real, Benny cared, Benny never forgot a face, and Benny went out of his way to help, but never asked for recognition.

Late this afternoon, I heard NASCAR drivers at Fanfest talking about Benny. Those drivers all need to work really hard to take in Benny's lessons. They especially should take the lesson of how Benny's fans all walked away from meeting Benny thrilled, and proud to have Benny as an idol. Those drivers all have a long way to go to walk in Benny's shadow.


As we all travel on life's journey, we hope that we have a positive impact on someone, somewhere. Benny had a huge impact. He will be missed by so many folks, at so many levels.


Rest in Peace, Benny, I sorrow that I did not know how much I would miss you.

NASCAR and the Computer Age

Lately, there is much gnashing of teeth and beating of chest over how NASCAR has changed, and how it is no longer treating its fans well. The internet is filled with opinions that ranged from “NASCAR is doing it right” to “NASCAR has lost me forever!” with all shades of opinion in between.

One conversation on Sirius Speedway brought it to light. A caller was saying that when Mark Martin was winning in the Busch series a few years ago, no one complained. Moody and Bagley responded there was indeed complaining, but Bagley pointed out that when it was happening, there was no internet to blast out the opinions. In fact, they pointed out that Sirius has 12 hours of new programming each day, and then we have MySpace, Blogs, Message Board, and every newspaper has an internet presence.

It makes one wonder... Was NASCAR prepared for the computer age?

One could speculate that today’s NASCAR fan is more knowledgeable and informed than most previous generations. We currently use the computer to read the news, track the results and statistics, watch live scoring, and to check in on the life and times of our favorite drivers. In fact, many fans can now set up virtual cars and race in virtual racing leagues. NASCAR fans can now join online communities that devote time and energy to the lives and doings and racing of drivers, team owners and even select members of the teams. The latest news is available via a variety of news sites, drivers' websites, fan sites and blogs.

I often speculate that NASCAR uses the internet to float trial balloons of new ideas. There are many articles that start with 'sources at NASCAR say that....' with whatever the new idea will be. Then the 'net comes alive with a variety of opinions. I can almost visualize the room of computers with folks manning the search engines to find the latest opinions and rush their reports to Brian France and Mike Helton.

There is a downside to the information availability. There is nothing private in the internet age. Quite often what appears to be good information can be researched and examined until flaws are found. The apparant charity efforts of a group of fans (see One Lugnut Short and Random Musings)has brought out the research capabilities of two former fans of a Southern Gentleman driver. While it may seem there is an attack of the charity efforts, in reality it is exposing some holes in the thinking of the group. My understanding is that the group is now taking steps to register with the Commonwealth of Virginia. Good for them, and good for the researchers.

Rest in Peace, Bobby Hamilton!

My condolences to the Hamilton family.

Bobby will be sorely missed.