My husband said it best yesterday when describing next week 2007 season finale for Nascar; “It’s like the Dallas Cowboys going to the Superbowl by themselves and having their offensive team playing against their defensive team.” Now would you buy a ticket to see that? I sure wouldn’t. Next week in Homestead, Florida you will have teammate against teammate going for the Nextel cup with Jeff Gordon and Jimmy Johnson. After last nights race it is more than certain that Jimmy Johnson is going to win the title, that is if he can finish 18 or better next week and chances are he will. As a fan of Nascar I feel at this point why even watch the race next week because there will be no excitement to the season’s end. Sure I could watch and only hope that Jimmy will have some kind of mechanical failure and get a DNF but chances of that are slim to none.
Most the drivers I am sure are more than ready for this season to end so they can get a break and prepare for next season in hopes that they can break the monopoly that Hendricks has on wins and the COT. I sure hope they can as well, this season has proven to be a real bore with Hendricks stinking up the wins this year. I am also in hopes for next year that every time I turn the race on I don’t have to hear about what a powerhouses Jimmy and Jeff are. Lets face it we need competition and excitement with the races something that was very much lacking with this season. This year watching the races I felt like I was watching the Jimmy and Jeff Nextel cup races. The announcers were always focusing on them to the point you even knew what type of underwear they were wearing sicken to say the least. One can only hope that next season we will get a variety as far as winning goes, thus making the chase one you would want to watch.
Another thing that was a real bore this year was the constant focus on Juan Montoya, there was no doubt he was going to win rookie of the year with the way Nascar carried on about him as if he was the only rookie out there. I felt bad for the other rookies because they didn’t have a hope to win that title. Next season we have more formula drivers coming over to Nextel, how much you want to bet that Dario Franchitti will be rookie of the year next season. I have always been a firm believer when it comes to driving in the cup series that a driver needs to pay their dues and work their up to being in the Nextel series. To me it is just maddening how some owners are grabbing up formula drivers and plopping them into the big league stock cars without having them start out in ARCA or the Busch series first so they can learn how to handle the stock cars. Having these formula drivers coming over and right into the Nextel series to me is a real danger to the other drivers. I also think about all of those drivers that have started out on dirt tracks and have worked their way up and paid their dues that are being over looked by these owners for formula drivers, to me that is a crying shame. The Nextel series is suppose to be the best of the best when it comes to stock car racing but instead has become whom from formula driving can we bring over now. I have never driven a stock car or a formula car but I do know there is a BIG difference between the cars and you can’t tell me these formula drivers are pros driving stock cars, to me having them come over and not proving themselves first takes away from the whole prestige of being in the Nextel series.
So let us all hope that next season will bring some excitement, some hope that there is more to 2008 then Jimmy or Jeff. I want to see a variety of different winners not just Hendrick drivers. To me and I am sure a lot of other fans out there it would be nice to see the excitement brought back to Nascar instead of having “who is going to win this weekend, Jimmy or Jeff?” Let us all hope that next year we don’t have to hear about how wonderful the formula drivers coming over are, because to me they haven’t proved themselves and have no business being in the Nextel series. Let us all hope for that matter that Nascar officials put an end to them coming over to the Nextel series without proving themselves first in other series and end the danger to the other drivers. Lets just hope 2008 will bring Nascar back to the way it was, good ole real racing.
Showing posts with label NASCAR. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NASCAR. Show all posts
Monday, November 12, 2007
Saturday, October 20, 2007
STOP THE PRESSES!
NEW FLASH! My brother-in-law will be going to Martinsville this weekend to see a Nascar race! I believe this is MAJOR headline news here! Why you asked? Well because he couldn’t give a rat’s a*s about Nascar. I find him going to be oh so humorous. If you asked him about Nascar, he would tell you it is nothing but a bunch of cars going around in circles. HA! Wonder what his opinion will be after he sees the race. To bad I am not going with him because I see a really good scrapbook page on this whole event.
Ok, I know the next question, if he hates Nascar so much, then why is he going? The answer to that is because he got stuck! His ex-wife had planned on taking his sons to the race but something came up and she couldn’t, so now he has to take the kids kicking and screaming all the way down to Martinsville. So if this weekend in the wee hours of Sunday morning you hear a loud an ear-piercing scream that sounds like a hyena in its throes of death, don’t worry it is only my brother-in-law going to the race.
To give you a picture of my brother-in-law, he is one of the most hardheaded people I know (a trait that his mother and I know only to be inbreeded into men of our family). I bet you any amount of money he will go to this race and most likely really enjoy himself but will he admit it, now that is the question. Studies have shown that most hardheaded people will NEVER admit to wrongs, just like my brother-in-law. I could tell him the sky is blue and he will tell me that it is purple and he is right because that is the way he is. It is almost like arguing with a liberal and anyone who has done that will know what I mean (there is just no arguing with them).
So tomorrow he will go (kicking and screaming like I said) and I know deep down he will love it. I at one time thought like he did and became a true believer/fan of Nascar after I went to a race. You just can’t help but get addicted to it once you see it for yourself, there is nothing like going to a race and seeing, smelling, and feeling the excitement of it all. Even if he doesn’t admit to loving it after he goes I do hold out for a bit of hope with his sons. If they (his sons) come back from the whole event loving it then the payback for me will be them wanting to watch Nascar every week and wanting to make dear ole dad take them to another race! I would laugh if that happened. Then my brother-in-law in all of his hardheadness will have Nascar fill every crevice of his being until he admits to liking it (boy, I know that would be a hard cup of Joe for him to swallow).
Gee… I wonder if he is updated on his shots? If he isn’t he just might catch Nascar fever!! Ha Ha!
Ok, I know the next question, if he hates Nascar so much, then why is he going? The answer to that is because he got stuck! His ex-wife had planned on taking his sons to the race but something came up and she couldn’t, so now he has to take the kids kicking and screaming all the way down to Martinsville. So if this weekend in the wee hours of Sunday morning you hear a loud an ear-piercing scream that sounds like a hyena in its throes of death, don’t worry it is only my brother-in-law going to the race.
To give you a picture of my brother-in-law, he is one of the most hardheaded people I know (a trait that his mother and I know only to be inbreeded into men of our family). I bet you any amount of money he will go to this race and most likely really enjoy himself but will he admit it, now that is the question. Studies have shown that most hardheaded people will NEVER admit to wrongs, just like my brother-in-law. I could tell him the sky is blue and he will tell me that it is purple and he is right because that is the way he is. It is almost like arguing with a liberal and anyone who has done that will know what I mean (there is just no arguing with them).
So tomorrow he will go (kicking and screaming like I said) and I know deep down he will love it. I at one time thought like he did and became a true believer/fan of Nascar after I went to a race. You just can’t help but get addicted to it once you see it for yourself, there is nothing like going to a race and seeing, smelling, and feeling the excitement of it all. Even if he doesn’t admit to loving it after he goes I do hold out for a bit of hope with his sons. If they (his sons) come back from the whole event loving it then the payback for me will be them wanting to watch Nascar every week and wanting to make dear ole dad take them to another race! I would laugh if that happened. Then my brother-in-law in all of his hardheadness will have Nascar fill every crevice of his being until he admits to liking it (boy, I know that would be a hard cup of Joe for him to swallow).
Gee… I wonder if he is updated on his shots? If he isn’t he just might catch Nascar fever!! Ha Ha!
Sunday, September 23, 2007
HOW I SEE NASCAR TODAY
What can I say I love Nascar! I was introduced to the sport years ago by my husband, Jeff, before Jeff had shown me what the sport was all about I was like most people and thought the sport was only about cars going around in a big circle real fast. Boy was I wrong, there is a lot more to Nascar then cars going real fast in a big circle. I was hooked or you can say addicted after I was educated on the sport and became one of the league of many fans that are drawn to the tracks or televisions every weekend to see who was going to get the checkered flag or the point lead. My wardrobe became a testament to my favorite driver who in the beginning was Rusty Wallace. I lived, ate, and breathe the sport; I guess you can say I became a Nascar junkie.
A lot of things have happened to the sport since I became the junkie that I am. “The Intimidator”, Dale Earnhardt is gone, no matter whether if you like him or not he was someone who made the sport great. I myself can’t believe to this day he is gone and I feel the sport still has a very big hole in it without Dale. I often wonder if Dale was still alive what he would think about the direction the sport has taken? Would he agree with the way Teresa is running DEI, Jr. signing with Hendricks, or the new point system? One will never know but I believe he would have not been too happy about it.
The introduction of formula drivers to the sport such as Montoya and next year with Franchitti makes me wonder who will be joining the ranks of drivers in the future. The formula drivers coming to the sport in a way sickens me. In the past you had to earn your way to the cup series, prove that you can hang with the big guys so to speak. Thanks to Ganassi we now have to deal with drivers that haven’t proven themselves in stock car racing. I am not saying that these drivers shouldn’t be allowed in the sport, I believe they need to prove themselves first by starting in ARCA or the Busch series first after all driving stock cars is a hell of a big difference then driving a canoe on wheels. Montoya has proven this year he is a danger to the other drivers with his “I am going to win at any cost attitude”. I wonder if next year if Franchitti will be the same way? I hope for the sake of the sport he won’t be.
I have my doubts on the car of tomorrow. Now I totally agree with Nascar on making a safer car for the drivers and even out the playing field but so far I really haven’t seen that this year with the introduction of the new car. This year all I have seen is Hendricks’s team stinking up the wins with the new car, how is that evening up the playing field? Is it because he has more money then God and has figured out the new car? Who knows but I for one would like to see more than just someone from Hendricks winning the race, where is the excitement in that? As for being safe, well look at what happened to Harvick in Martinsville when the foam of his door caught on fire, to me when it comes to a car setting on fire like that makes me wonder if all appropriate testing was done before the car hit the track? True, not all the kinks have been worked out in the car and in time I am sure Nascar will get them worked out but as far as the playing field be even, I have very serious doubts on that. I hope that next year will prove to be one where we do see some real competitive racing, one where you never know who might win the race.
Nascar also seems to be trying to take the sport and turn it into what I call Hollywood. They took the Darlington Labor Day race away and replaced it with another California race and nix Rockingham altogether. Nascar stated they had to make the changes due to faltering tickets sells in North Carolina and that weather played a factor in their decision. So now we have races where we have Hollywood’s finest flocking to the tracks in hopes that Nascar’s popularity will boost them into superstardom and trying to turn the sport into a red carpet event. Most of these celebrities have never even seen a race or even understand the sport but there they are. Whatever happened to the whole aspect of Nascar being a sport built on southern tradition? How did all these posers as I call them get into the sport that all us die-hard fans love so much? I wonder if you ask any of these posers who the king is, if they would answer back with Elvis? I don’t mind if celebrities are true fans coming to a race and supporting their driver but I do object to the posers coming to the sport in hopes that by riding the coat tails of Nascar they gain stardom and free press off the popularity of the sport.
True, these are just my opinions and maybe you agree or disagree with me but the bottom line is I hate to see the sport I fell in love with turn into just another commercial vehicle like the NFL, NBA, or MLB. Bootleggers, dirt tracks, and a good ole handshake built Nascar not Hollywood, contracts, and formula drivers. Nascar is the working mans sport, a sport where you can take your whole family to and have a good time. Where you have drivers that have values and you can be proud to be a fan. I hope Bill France Jr. and the other board members never forget that as they continue to build the future of Nascar, because really like the old saying goes, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it!
A lot of things have happened to the sport since I became the junkie that I am. “The Intimidator”, Dale Earnhardt is gone, no matter whether if you like him or not he was someone who made the sport great. I myself can’t believe to this day he is gone and I feel the sport still has a very big hole in it without Dale. I often wonder if Dale was still alive what he would think about the direction the sport has taken? Would he agree with the way Teresa is running DEI, Jr. signing with Hendricks, or the new point system? One will never know but I believe he would have not been too happy about it.
The introduction of formula drivers to the sport such as Montoya and next year with Franchitti makes me wonder who will be joining the ranks of drivers in the future. The formula drivers coming to the sport in a way sickens me. In the past you had to earn your way to the cup series, prove that you can hang with the big guys so to speak. Thanks to Ganassi we now have to deal with drivers that haven’t proven themselves in stock car racing. I am not saying that these drivers shouldn’t be allowed in the sport, I believe they need to prove themselves first by starting in ARCA or the Busch series first after all driving stock cars is a hell of a big difference then driving a canoe on wheels. Montoya has proven this year he is a danger to the other drivers with his “I am going to win at any cost attitude”. I wonder if next year if Franchitti will be the same way? I hope for the sake of the sport he won’t be.
I have my doubts on the car of tomorrow. Now I totally agree with Nascar on making a safer car for the drivers and even out the playing field but so far I really haven’t seen that this year with the introduction of the new car. This year all I have seen is Hendricks’s team stinking up the wins with the new car, how is that evening up the playing field? Is it because he has more money then God and has figured out the new car? Who knows but I for one would like to see more than just someone from Hendricks winning the race, where is the excitement in that? As for being safe, well look at what happened to Harvick in Martinsville when the foam of his door caught on fire, to me when it comes to a car setting on fire like that makes me wonder if all appropriate testing was done before the car hit the track? True, not all the kinks have been worked out in the car and in time I am sure Nascar will get them worked out but as far as the playing field be even, I have very serious doubts on that. I hope that next year will prove to be one where we do see some real competitive racing, one where you never know who might win the race.
Nascar also seems to be trying to take the sport and turn it into what I call Hollywood. They took the Darlington Labor Day race away and replaced it with another California race and nix Rockingham altogether. Nascar stated they had to make the changes due to faltering tickets sells in North Carolina and that weather played a factor in their decision. So now we have races where we have Hollywood’s finest flocking to the tracks in hopes that Nascar’s popularity will boost them into superstardom and trying to turn the sport into a red carpet event. Most of these celebrities have never even seen a race or even understand the sport but there they are. Whatever happened to the whole aspect of Nascar being a sport built on southern tradition? How did all these posers as I call them get into the sport that all us die-hard fans love so much? I wonder if you ask any of these posers who the king is, if they would answer back with Elvis? I don’t mind if celebrities are true fans coming to a race and supporting their driver but I do object to the posers coming to the sport in hopes that by riding the coat tails of Nascar they gain stardom and free press off the popularity of the sport.
True, these are just my opinions and maybe you agree or disagree with me but the bottom line is I hate to see the sport I fell in love with turn into just another commercial vehicle like the NFL, NBA, or MLB. Bootleggers, dirt tracks, and a good ole handshake built Nascar not Hollywood, contracts, and formula drivers. Nascar is the working mans sport, a sport where you can take your whole family to and have a good time. Where you have drivers that have values and you can be proud to be a fan. I hope Bill France Jr. and the other board members never forget that as they continue to build the future of Nascar, because really like the old saying goes, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it!
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