Road Trip!

Its here! Its finally here! Martinsville race weekend, my favorite date on the Sprint Cup schedule. My daughter and I started out this morning from our New Hampshire home at 5am with a typical late March, New England-style snowstorm. The first 30 or so miles were heavy wet snow which then changed to rain until we hit New York City, at which point the sky cleared and we both watched the thermometer gradually creep up from its original starting point of 30 to the low 70s by the time we hit Delaware. Twelve hours after we started, we cruised into Norfolk, Virginia with temperatures in the low 80s and not a cloud in the sky. Yes, Norfolk is on the complete opposite side of Virginia as Martinsville, but there was a little matter of some hockey – AHL style! You see, my other sports love – my Manchester Monarchs – are in town for two games and then head to Hershey to play the dreaded Bears Sunday afternoon. Being the loyal fan I am, and knowing just how important each point is in their quest for the playoffs, I knew that me being there might be the difference between winning and losing. We had the pleasure of sitting with about 20 other Monarchs fans who had also braved the open road to support the team, they were in it for all 3 games while my daughter and I just helped out tonight… and yes, I am aware its my fault if they lose the next two, but deep in my heart I know that our being there was the reason that they came away with an impressive 4-0 win.

We are planning on leaving around 9am tomorrow, its about a 4 hour drive on VA 58, so it will be up at 8am and a trip to the nearest Bojangles for breakfast (Thanks David Poole!). Of course I won’t be filling up too much, there is a matter of the famous Martinsville Jessie Jones Hotdog. I figure 2 for lunch when we get there at 1, and then 2 more for later in the race; with a few more set for Sunday.

Of course, there’s a lot for me to comment on today; from the continued saga of Jack Rousch/Toyota, an injured Elliot Sadler, Kyle Petty missing the race (When was the last time a Petty didnt race Martinsville?) and point swapping… but that will all have to wait, as I have been awake since 4am and need to hit the sack… but I promise plenty of blogging over the next few days!

Grumpy Old Men

Jack Rousch is a stubborn old coot. In fact, one doesn’t get to be one of the most powerful and successful men in NASCAR without doing things your way. Like him or hate him, he will always give you his opinion about the state of affairs in the sport. Not surprisingly, Rousch – who once paid an employee in Yen whose personal vehicle was a Toyota – was less than supportive when the Japanese manufacturer announced that they would be entering the world of NASCAR stock car racing. One can only imagine just how steamed – and feel free to insert a much harsher adverb if you wish – Jack must have been a few weeks ago in the wake of the Carl Edwards cheating accusations after the Las Vegas race. Lee White, Vice President of Toyota Racing Development, and a former Rousch employee, took a shot at Rousch in an interview with USA Today’s Nate Ryan. White, in the interview, quantified the advantage the 99 car would have gained by removing the oil cover during a race:

‘Lee White, GM for Toyota Racing Development, said the manufacturer's testing at wind tunnels in Germany revealed removing the cover on the oil tank (located in a steel box behind the driver's seat) resulted in 170 extra pounds of downforce, the aerodynamic measurement of keeping a car glued to the track.

White also said video of a pit stop showed a member of Edwards' pit crew pulling on a right rear fender to open a 3-inch gap to an inner panel. Toyota testing showed that would create about 70 pounds of downforce, White said. NASCAR said the only issue with the car during inspection was the lid.

White said Edwards, who has won the last two Cup races, "was eating cars getting onto the straightaways anywhere he wanted to go" because of the extra 240 pounds of downforce, a roughly 20% increase to the 1,200 pounds of downforce typically generated by a Cup car.

"If you have 21% more downforce, that's like having 50 (extra) horsepower," White said. "There's absolutely something going on there where someone knew what they were doing.”

War had been declared, and you knew it wouldn’t be long before Jack struck back. Well, it happened and it didn’t take long at all. Reported by ESPN the Magazine and Sirius Speedway; the following week at Atlanta, Rousch was quoted as saying “We had a proprietary Roush Fenway part go missing from one of my race teams, and we recovered it from a Toyota team. I’m not going to say which team it is, but we are considering legal action, or getting NASCAR involved.”

This is certainly going to turn really nasty really fast and has the makings to become one of the top stories of the year. Now I’m not going to say old Jack is making this up because he’s ticked off, but since he decided to go public with his accusations, it would have been nice had he been a little more specific. Which team took the part? When did this happen? What was the part? (I’m trying so hard to resist the urge to suggest that it was the ‘special’ oil tank cover) He has made some pretty serious allegations against Toyota racing, and with the forum he chose to utilize (the media); he owes it to everyone to give us the complete story. Otherwise, I’m afraid his statements will be viewed as nothing more than the bitter ramblings of an angry old man.

Spring Fever and Dead Gophers...

Spring Fever

Yesterday was an interesting day at my house. This past Wednesday was my 39th birthday, and my wife decided to celebrate with a surprise party for me. She had broken into my email account and had stolen all of the names from my address book, then emailed just about every name she recognized. The result? A steady stream of people that I hadn’t seen in person for years. Of course, she whipped up a homemade Italian buffet, complete with her specialty – sausage & mushrooms. I was in culinary heaven, all with Bristol racing in the background.

I bring this up because of the wide variety of reactions from the folks who dropped in and out throughout the day. Some, those who know me best, were not surprised that racing was on and a few even spent a good long time talking about various NASCAR topics – the new car, Juniors new team, Toyota, and more. Others continued with the old stand by comments – drive fast and turn left.

What was most telling though was the difference between NASCAR fans and non-NASCAR fans. Here in New England, the first sign of spring is when the equipment truck packs up and leaves for Ft Myers. By mid March, Red Sox nation has come out of their hibernation and is practically in a wild frenzy. Of course, for myself and my NASCAR brothers and sisters living in New England, the first sign of spring is the start of speed weeks in Daytona, and yesterday Bristol put me into full blown spring fever. The snow, which is now nothing more than small chunks of black and brown ice, is still present as we enter mud season – the few weeks of warm days and major thawing. It’s been a long winter that saw my personal snow removal budget drained by early January. Now with Bristol done, I am in the final planning stages of our annual spring trip to Martinsville. After that, Talladega, Richmond and Darlington are only a few weeks away, and then Memorial Day Weekend and summer will have begun! I am secretly planning to grab one ticket to Dover and drive down for the cup race, and then a few weeks later, New Hampshire – less than 30 minutes from my home, if you know the shortcuts. My wife and I are discussing summer vacation this year, and we are planning August 3rd – 10th. I have been pushing for the Poconos or upstate New York; I’m sure any true fan can figure out why (shhhh… a 2 for 1 special!). Ahhhh, I cant wait…

Bristol is back!

Remember the night Bristol race last year, with all the whaling and gnashing of teeth after the Cup race? “They ruined Bristol!” screamed one. “I’m giving up my tickets” yelled another. They came to see a demolition derby and instead saw a pretty damn good stock car race. The new pave job seems to have done its job, and what I saw yesterday was a great multi-groove short track with plenty of tight passing which resulted in a damn good race. By the way, I never did get any Bristol tickets from those who swore they were giving them up.

Drano and the late, great Johnny Most

A few words on Fox. I’m not one to complain much about the coverage, as NASCAR is probably the most difficult sport to broadcast (and I will confess that on most days I just turn the TV down and put on MRN/PRN, but with all my fans dropping by yesterday, I just had the television on low), but I do have to wonder whose decision it was to keep DW in the booth all afternoon. Clearly, the man was sick as a dog, and each comment he made was grating on the ears… kind of reminded me of listening to the late Celtics broadcaster Johnny Most who used to joke that he gargled with Drano before each broadcast. Of course, Johnny’s voice was music to Celtics fans back when he was broadcasting high above courtside, as we all turned down the TV broadcast just to listen to ‘fiddling and diddling’. RIP Johnny!

Kill Digger!

Am I the only one who is sick of ‘Digger’, the FOX ‘in ground’ TV camera? When it first came out years ago, I thought it was kind of cool – giving you the perspective of what someone was seeing just prior to being run over and killed by a line of cars. But the novelty wore off after the first few shots and that was a few seasons ago. The shot adds nothing to the broadcast, and the more they push this non-existent character, the more it gives people reason to complain about the quality of the broadcast. And, no, I don’t want a Digger t-shirt.

Ouch!

One thing for sure is that I will be listening to Tony Stewart Live! tonight on Sirius. Tony is usually pretty entertaining, especially after wrecking the day before, but tonight should be extra fun. Seems he is getting his back hair waxed for charity by none other than… Kevin Harvick! By the way, am I the only one who thought I saw tears in Smokes eyes when he was being interviewed by Fox after the race yesterday? Maybe he was just practicing for tonight…

Thanks again Dale!

Yesterday was Dale Jarrett’s last ‘points’ race, and it was sad to see him finish 37th, 10 laps down. Of course, with him racing for a struggling Michael Waltrip Racing team and a rapidly fading from significance Yates Racing team, yesterdays finish was par for the course for him over the past few seasons. I have to wonder how well he would have done had he spent his last few years with HMS, JGR or RFR. Conversely, I wonder how well Jimmy Johnson would have done had he been racing in the same equipment as Jarrett recently. Regardless of where he finished, however, he went out a champion in the eyes of most.

Pressure…

Now that the first five races are done, it’s interesting to see who is outside the top 35. Most names aren’t too surprising, but there are a few that are feeling the heat, most notably Jamie McMurray, 4 points out of 35th and Dave Blaney, 18 out. Meanwhile, Casey Mears is barely hanging in at 33rd after a terrible start that has seen him swept up in several wrecks.

Kudos!

Finally, nice job by DEI driver Aric Almirola. Almirola took over the wheel of the US Army Chevrolet and managed to stay out of trouble yesterday, bringing the Chevrolet in to an 8th place finish. David Gilliland, driver of the Yates racing Free Credit Report Ford Fusion finished an impressive 9th as well. Richard Childress racing also deserves mention for their 1-2-3 finish yesterday – looks like Chevy isn’t dead yet!

Happy St Patrick’s Day everybody!

When you sit down to watch the Food City 500 in Bristol tomorrow afternoon, take a moment to reflect on the great career of Dale Jarrett. After 23 years, 32 cup wins, including 3 Daytona 500s, and the 1999 Winston Cup Championship, Dale will hand over the keys to the number 44 UPS Toyota to David Reutimann.

Let me be one of the many to say ‘Thanks Dale!’. Dale Jarrett has always been a class act and a leader in the garage and he will be missed. Racings loss, however, is ABC/ESPNs gain, and watching the 'Sharpie 170' today reminded me that we have a lot to look forward to.

Best of luck Dale!

Just what the doctor ordered...

Admit it, you’ve been there.

Christmas ends and your thoughts start to drift south towards the beaches – and asphalt – that is Daytona Beach. Each car you pass with a drivers sticker attached to it makes it worse, and when FOX starts with the previews for the Daytona 500, you are as anxious as a kid waiting for summer vacation.

The two weeks of Daytona went off without a hitch with most of the stories centering on the action on the track, as opposed to last years debacle with Michael Waltrip Racing. There were a lot of great stories, none of which centered on cheating or other off track controversies. It all ended with a great ending to the 500, with another first time winner in Ryan Newman taking the checkered flag. We were left with the hopes of a great season of stories, from the resurgence of Dodge, to the new guy driving the 88, as well as the new car coming on full time.

Then there was California, the race that would never end. Weepers and empty seats were the topic of the week following – should NASCAR have started the race as early as they did, should they have waited that long to postpone, was California fit to host racing? And in all of this, the actual race was lost somewhere.

Robbie Gordon was the main story though – did he cheat, or was it accidental? Should he be penalized? Was NASCAR being consistent like everyone claims they want? And in all of this, the actual race was lost somewhere.

Las Vegas was next with stories filling the airwaves and blogs about a possible second date, will they get it and if so, from who? Then there was Carl Edwards. The pit road incident as well as the oil cover controversy, the years first ‘real’ cheating scandal. And in all of this, the actual race was lost somewhere.

Atlanta was next, with the weather again being a top story. First the rain, then the snow, then cold, then more snow, then warm. And with that were the empty seats, something that seems acceptable in Atlanta but not in California. The race itself? With so few cars finishing on the lead lap, it reminded me of the ‘good old days’ of NASCAR that everyone seems to want back. But before any of us could digest the race, there was Tony Stewart, live on FOX moments after the race, ripping into Goodyear and the quality tire that they provided. Other drivers echoed his concerns, but not nearly as loudly. But what Smoke managed to do was again give everyone plenty of off track controversy to talk about. Again, another lost race.

What started as an exciting season of racing has quickly turned into three weeks of ‘off track’ controversy; as opposed to talking about the actual action on the track.

But there is light on the horizon – back to back short track racing! First there’s Bristol this weekend, and despite shaky weather, 160000 rabid fans will pack the track looking for the best NASCAR can offer. Despite all the complaining about the new car and the new paved surface, I think we are in for a heck of a treat Sunday.

Then, after a week off for Easter, NASCAR stops at my favorite track – Martinsville Speedway for the Goody’s Cool Orange 500. This is short track racing at its finest, and where the ‘new’ NASCAR hasn’t quite made its presence known. It’s truly a throwback to NASCARs roots, and if you haven’t had a chance to visit, it’s certainly a track worth putting on your list of places to go.

I’ll be making the 13 hour car ride in my ’04 Monte Carlo with my 12 year old daughter to both the truck race Saturday and the cup race Sunday. You can look for us about 30 rows up from the start finish line, she will be the one decked out in Kasey Kahne garb, while I’ll be the guy with a couple of Jessie Jones hotdogs in my hand and an ear to ear smile.

You gotta believe us...

Rousch-Fenway racing announced today that they were not going to appeal the Carl Edwards penalty for the oil tank violation that took place in Las Vegas a few weeks ago. President Geoff Smith explained why in a statement:

"We realize in the NASCAR system of penalty administration that simple negligence, by itself, is never sufficient grounds to overturn or reduce a penalty. Consequently, no appeal will be made."

If he had made that statement as recently as two weeks ago, I might have bought it. But the whole Robbie Gordon incident changed that entirely for me. I have been blogging all along that the NASCAR Commission had set a new precedent, where intent was now very much part of the formula. His 'oops, we didn't mean to' defense gave him back the 100 points as well as the six race suspension of crew chief Frank Kerr overturned.

In fact, the commission, which many have accused as being merely a 'rubber stamp' for NASCAR, has faced 102 appeals since 1999 and only upheld 68 of them. 24 had the penalties reduced, while 8 had them completely overturned.Two were actually increased, by the way.

So with Robbie Gordon successfully having his penalty decreased (despite the increase in the fine, its the points and crew chief suspension that really mattered), wouldn't it have made sense for Rousch Fenway to appeal? I mean, if it really was just a matter of negligence, like it was with Robbie Gordon, wouldn't it have made sense to appeal? Not to mention the multiple similar violations in the Nationwide series that had the penalties decreased, appealing would have just made sense. Unless of course... you just happen to be guilty!

Based on the smoke and mirror show put on by Smith and Jack Rousch, the data from Toyota, and the general consensus in the garage that it was indeed intentional, it would seem that they know they dont stand much of a chance in an appeal. In fact, they have taken the route than many husbands caught cheating take - deny deny deny and just hope that your wife will eventually believe you.

Tire Wars

The list of drivers upset over the tire Goodyear brought to Atlanta this past weekend keeps getting longer. Tony Stewart certainly has given us all lots to talk about, and the majority of fans I have heard from through blogs and Sirius radio have been extremely supportive of Smoke and the other drivers. It’s no secret that Goodyear has dropped the ball more than once over the past few seasons, but from the sound of it, this weekend in Atlanta was worse than usual.

Even after a cooling off period, Smoke continued his criticism on his radio show, Tony Stewart Live on Sirius last night. Stewart has opened a can of worms that have slithered all the way to Daytona Beach, and the controversy should compel NASCAR and Goodyear to address the issues.

There have been many calls for Goodyear to be thrown out of the sport in place of a new vendor, such as Hoosier or Firestone. Others want to allow teams to choose their own tires. I say bad idea. Understand that I am the biggest fan of capitalism; however in matters of driver safety, it’s usually best that economics are not a part of the equation. Given the choice between a fast but less safe tire or a slower, safer tire, teams will always go with the tire that gives them the best chance of winning. With multiple vendors all vying to be the tire on the Daytona 500 winning car, safety will inevitably take a back seat.

Tire production is not an exact science. Tracks change yearly because of new paving as well as wear and tear, weather conditions (such as those in Atlanta this weekend – snow, rain, heat, cold), and a new, heavier car with a brand new aero package all add to the challenge of one company. Imagine adding a second, or third to the mix. One miscalculation and there will be cars into the wall all day, add multiple vendors and you increase your risk of an error substantially – especially with the pressure of getting the fastest tire to the track.

Jet Dryer NASCAR pics...

3 weeks til Martinsville and the famous Jessie Jones Hot Dog!

Blowing Smoke?

A few observations on Atlanta this weekend…

Tony Stewart, by all rights, had a great day for himself. Smoke started 32nd and managed to work his way all the way up to a second place finish behind teammate Kyle Busch. While most drivers would be ecstatic about this, Stewart lambasted Goodyear for the quality of tire that was supplied for this weekends races.

"That was the most pathetic racing tire I've ever been on in my professional career. They exited out of Forumla 1, IRL, CART, World of Outlaws ... and there is a reason for that. Goodyear can't build a tire that is worth a crap... It was ridiculous to have to race on a tire like this. Not at this level of racing. If they can't do anything better than that, they should just pull out of this sport and save us a bunch of headaches. I guarantee you Hoosier or Firestone or somebody can come in and do a better job that what they are doing right now."

Ouch.

And live on FOX immediately after the race finished, with similar remarks to PRN radio. I can just imagine the next episode of Tony Stewart Live on Sirius. One can only imagine the series of phone calls and e-mails that were made in the Goodyear offices shortly after.

To make matters even worse, NASCARs most popular driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr echoed similar complaints.

"No amount of time would have prepared us for that," he said. "There was no way you weren't going to hook that tire up."

Its not the first time Stewart has complained about Goodyear either, he was just as upset after last years Las Vegas race.

Now I’m not a driver and won’t pretend to understand what its like to drive at 180 mph on sub par tires, but I do see what kind of challenges Goodyear is up against. Aside from ever changing weather conditions this weekend, from heavy rain, to bitter cold, to snow and then to temperatures in the 60s, any tire maker would be challenged to provide the perfect tire. Each track on the circuit is very different, and they all change over time, be it due to repaving or just natural wear and tear. But consider this – there were three races this weekend with over 650 laps run totaling 1000 miles between 118 vehicles and there were very few cut tires. Under the demanding circumstances that the weather presented, that doesn’t seem so bad to me. Would dumping Goodyear in favor of another tire company help the situation? I’m not so sure…but I will say this: when a two time series champion and NASCARs most popular driver are complaining, someone should probably pay attention.

Something special happened in Atlanta this weekend, and it wasn’t anywhere near Atlanta Motor Speedway. The NBA did something right and hopefully NASCAR will take notice. For those not paying attention to professional basketball, on December 19 the Atlanta Hawks and Miami Heat played a game in Atlanta where Shaquille O’Neil was erroneously given a sixth personal foul and fouled out with 51.9 seconds remaining in overtime. The Atlanta Hawks went on to ‘win’ the game, however after the NBA reviewed the game, they determined that Shaq had only 5 fouls and should have been allowed to play the remainder of the game. The NBA ordered a ‘do over’ and had the two teams resume the game on Saturday night with 51.9 seconds remaining in overtime with Miami in possession and down by 3, 114-111. Of course the rosters have changed significantly over the past two months; most notably Shaq is no longer with the Heat after being traded. The Hawks went on to win the game, as well as the full regulation game played after the make up; which was critical in their attempt to secure the eighth and final eastern conference playoff position. What should be noted here though is that the NBA decided to right a wrong after the fact, an observation that did not escape me after the Carl Edwards cheating scandal in Las Vegas.

I have to admit I am still a bit confused about what all the fuss is over Toyota not only being in NASCAR, but winning its first race today. Yes, they have their roots in Japan, but they also employ thousands of Americans here in the United States. Nobody who screams about Toyota seems as upset that Fords are manufactured largely in Mexico now, nor does anyone seem to care that Dodge is owned by a German company.

Welcome to Jet Dryer!

Ok, its official - I'm a blogging geek! Here on Jet Dryer you will find all of my opinions on NASCAR and anything else that may come to mind... and yes, I am indeed nh_nascarfan from Life in the Turn Lane. Thanks for dropping by and sharing your thoughts with me!