Charter or Franchise, It's All Good

I bid you welcome gentle readers, and of course that welcome is extended to our assigned reader for today, wherever he or she might be found. Before we get to the meat of today’s article, I’ve one small thought I’d like to share. In our headlong rush to become as much of an NFL clone as possible, we now have adopted “Overtime” as the term of choice, replacing the time-honored racing term of “Green-white-checkers.” Well, OK Brian, but here’s a word of warning. “Sudden Death” is not a term well received in racing circles.

 

Now, back to our regular column, already in progress. What will we be discussing today? Why, that elephant that’s been sitting in the living room for several months, that’s what. Call it a Charter system (Brian does) or a Franchise system, which I prefer, but in the end, it’s all the same thing. Still, with all the talk and opinions swirling about with unbridled abandon, it’s more of the same old, same old with a whole lot of race fans. Complain, complain, complain, from break of dawn ‘til dark of night, and then complain some more in your dreams.

 

Please, hear me out. Do you realize how long team owners and drivers have dreamed of and prayed for this day? Did anyone hear Richard Petty, even before the official announcement was made, say that this was the second best thing that ever happened in NASCAR racing? The first best thing, gentle readers, would be the birth of the sanctioning body, which occurred in a room at the Streamline Hotel in Daytona Beach on December 14, 1947. The next best thing has been one helluva long time coming!

 

For weeks on end, as the off-season plodded along, we heard report after report that the two sides were “close to an agreement” and were just ironing out the fine details of a major shift in policy and structure after 60-plus years of doing it “the way we’ve always done it.” That phrase has been used and overused until you can read through it, as the sworn to policy of NASCAR. Nothing changes under our rule! NASCAR is supreme and rules supremely! Well something did change last week, and it changed infinitely for the better.

 

Yes, I’ve heard a lot of the “old guard” among NASCAR fandom expressing their total displeasure that things will never be the same as when “they” were young. Well, let me tell you, I was there; I’m about as old as it gets and still on the green side of the grass, and I remember how it was. It wasn’t all that sweet and rose-scented. Just for some quick examples, I’ve watched teams with great longevity fold, and the owners walk away with nothing but whatever they could sell hardware for at auction.

 

Junie Donlavey and Bud Moore are at the top of the list. Each owned a team and competed in NASCAR for 50 years or more, yet left the sport to retire with nothing of value but their memories. That just isn’t right! That doesn’t happen in any of those stick and ball sports we’re supposed to pattern racing after these days. The New York Yankees, the Denver Broncos, the L.A. Clippers… go ahead, pick your sport… those teams are Franchised. When the sport grows, so too does the net worth of their teams. Why ever should that not be the case in NASCAR? It’s not Brian France that fans come to see; it’s the skill and talent of the drivers, each of which owes his spot in the sport to the man (or woman) that spends all the money… the team owner.

 

In other articles, I’ve taken time to explain to you that in the end, the ONLY people that have money on the line in our sport are those owners. NASCAR never spends a plug nickel, and drivers and crews are on a payroll system. Oh yes, in many cases it’s a very high pay scale, but it’s still a payroll. All of the funding comes from the owners. What’s that you say? What about sponsors? Sponsorship is a payment made for a service rendered. Advertising in NASCAR has always been viewed as a good investment, with much of the credit for that going to the most brand-loyal fans in sports. Most sponsors get back what they pay for and more. Until last week, the only folks in the entire system that actually spent money, with no guarantee whatsoever of a return, were the team owners.

 

This idea of Franchising teams is far from new. Heck, it’s almost as old as I am. Unfortunately, back in the “good ol’ days” that so many pine for, Big Bill, despite anything you might hear from Brian, would have pulled a gun and shot the man that pushed the proposal we saw culminate into a binding agreement last week. Benevolent dictator was the term most often associated with Bill. I’ve no doubt he loved the sport, but remember, he started it in an effort to do away with most or all of the smarmy characters that filled the early days of racing. He felt that if you win a race, there should be money at the pay window for you, and you shouldn’t find out that the promoter had pocketed the gate money and bolted out of town for parts unknown. Yes, he loved the sport and wanted the best for it, but at the same time, he wasn’t about to part with two-cents that he didn’t have to.

 

It was pretty much a ditto under the regime of Bill Jr., who might never have owned a gun, but still reigned supreme, accompanied almost all of the way by R.J. Reynolds, which had a marketing expertise second to none. NASCAR continued to grow under Billy in almost exponential numbers. Then, with the new millennium, the wheels fell off the bandwagon, and there was a huge downhill slide following the death of Dale Earnhardt Sr., the departure of R.J. Reynolds and the death of Bill Jr.

 

We are constantly told that Brian Z. France is an astute businessman, and he may be, but he is not infallible. Remember when he slapped a limit on the number of cars a team could field? Team owners saw something not quite “kosher” in that, and teams began to amalgamate, merge and consolidate, working through “alliances” between big and small teams, which essentially just bypassed that “limit” and the big teams grew bigger… and bigger. Somewhere, a few years ago, I began to caution that if a small handful… perhaps 5 or 6 of the major team owners ever decided to unite and mean it, they now held the power to wrest NASCAR away from the France family, should they ever decide to do so.

 

Enter Rob Kauffman… a self-made $billionaire so I’m told. I know he deals with numbers in which I can’t count the zeros. He picked up a part of Michael Waltrip Racing, which at the time kept that entity from folding. When he left, it did fold, and he took everything he could with him. Last year, we heard about the RTA (Race Team Alliance) being formed and that the head of the Alliance was Rob Kauffman. Then, we heard nothing, and more nothing, and still more nothing. Folks began to laugh and scoff that this Alliance would be just a newer version of the PDA (Professional Drivers Assn.) of Richard Petty’s day. Does anyone recall my warning? “Do not underestimate this group or the man in charge!”

 

The nuts and bolts of the Charter System have been all over the news and printed on every site worth being called a racing site, so I don’t think you need to read them over again here. I will include the list of those issued the initial Charters, just for your convenience.

 

 

NASCAR CHARTER TEAMS

2015 CAR #

2016 CAR #

ORGANIZATION

43

43

Richard Petty Motorsports

9

44

Richard Petty Motorsports

3

3

Richard Childress Racing

27

27

Richard Childress Racing

31

31

Richard Childress Racing

2

2

Team Penske

22

22

Team Penske

5

5

Hendrick Motorsports

24

24

Hendrick Motorsports

48

48

Hendrick Motorsports

88

88

Hendrick Motorsports

6

6

Roush Fenway Racing

16

16

Roush Fenway Racing

17

17

Roush Fenway Racing

1

1

Chip Ganassi Racing

42

42

Chip Ganassi Racing

11

11

Joe Gibbs Racing

18

18

Joe Gibbs Racing

20

20

Joe Gibbs Racing

15

TBD

Michael Waltrip Racing

55

TBD

Michael Waltrip Racing

4

4

Stewart-Haas Racing

10

10

Stewart-Haas Racing

14

14

Stewart-Haas Racing

78

78

Furniture Row Racing

35

34

Front Row Motorsports

38

38

Front Row Motorsports

47

47

JTG Daugherty Racing

7

7

Tommy Baldwin Racing

13

13

Germain Racing

32

32

Go Fas Racing

23

23

BK Racing

83

83

BK Racing

62

62

Premium Motorsports

33

95

Circle Sport Racing

51

15

HScott Motorsports

 

Yes, I know there are names missing from that list. Please understand that the criteria for a charter had to come from somewhere. I wish I could have been that fly on the wall for the entire proceedings, but they had a large can of Raid and I didn’t like my odds of survival. The model on which all parties agreed was to award the charters on a performance basis, which equates here to participation. Teams were judged on participation over the past 3 years, 2013, 2014, 2015. Notably missing the cut were #41 – SHR, #19 – JGR (Both teams were created within the timeframe) #46 – HSR and #21 – Wood Bros. Racing. (Neither of the latter two teams raced a full schedule)

 

By far the biggest gripe I’ve heard is that the Wood Brothers were left without a charter. I understand the sentiment, but I also understand the criteria for earning a charter, and the Woods haven’t fielded a full-time team in several years. Yes, I would have been for a “grandfather” charter for that team, but if one exception is made, it’s almost impossible to keep that genie in the bottle. One would create a landslide of exceptions and the whole thing would have gone to Hell in a hand-basket.

 

Having said that, those charters can be leased or sold outright. It was pretty much an accepted fact that the two held by Rob Kauffman would be sold to Stewart-Haas Racing for the #41 of Kurt Busch and to Joe Gibbs Racing for the #19 of Carl Edwards, and since I started constructing this article, that has happened. The only unknown there is the price, and they have promised “transparency”, so this will be the first test of just how transparent things might actually be.

 

Harry Scott found himself with only one charter for two cars, really through no fault of his own. He is baby-sitting Clint Bowyer until Tony Stewart retires at the end of this season and Clint can move over to SHR and take over driver duties in the #14. I’ve no clue who approached whom, but he has now “leased” a charter from Premium Motorsports for the 2016 season. (#98, Jay Robinson) The rumored price on that was thought to be circa $1.6 million, but that is not confirmed. With that said, there probably are others that would lease or sell a charter if the price is right. (Are you listening Wood Brothers? Team Penske? Surely you don’t plan on making that talented young rookie fear rain on race day forever, do you?)

 

The fans have come out very vocally and very loudly in favor of the Wood Brothers, but then, it’s not their money they’re spending. The Woods issued a statement of thanks to their fans a few day back:

 

"We can't express enough how proud and thankful we are for the overwhelming expression of support for our team. NASCAR has pressed the reset button on the ownership structure and we hope it takes the sport in a positive direction. We have endured challenges throughout our 66 years and will undoubtedly face more in the future, but that's what makes our team unique. We take great pride in our organization's reputation and our loyal fans are nothing short of amazing. The main focus right now is to be the best team we can possibly be. Motorcraft and Ford Performance have put tremendous faith in us and our objective is to make the most of this 2016 season and beyond. We know there are numerous questions and as a result, Eddie, Len and Jon Wood will be addressing any available media at the speedway on Friday, February 12, at 1:00 pm/ET behind their hauler in the Sprint Cup garage.

 

I wasn’t there for the Q & A session, but I have been told since that the team has withdrawn from membership in the RTA. Given the climate of the moment, I don’t think I would have done that, but that’s just the thought process of one old lady.

 

I know this article hasn’t answered all of your questions, but at some point I have to stop writing so that it can be published. This is a huge subject, but keep in mind… not all change is bad. This change, achievement of which has been sought for decades, bodes very well for the sport, and especially for the team owners that now can retire holding something of value for their years of service. Happy owners tend to cooperate more willingly with the sanctioning body, and also feel freer to set a better pay scale for folks such as drivers, crews, engineers, janitors… well, you get it. When the boss is happy, everybody’s happy.

 

We’re going to close this for today, but I’ll do more if requested, and I’m always here to answer any questions that I can. However… if you feel like writing just to tell me that I’m all wrong and don’t know my backside from a chipmunk’s hole in the ground, save your fingers the trouble. I do, and on this one, I am right. I am in full agreement with King Richard Petty. This is at least the second best thing ever to happen in NASCAR. It might even be the best overall!

Time now for our Classic Country Closeout, and we have a request from last week for a few numbers from Hank Williams Sr., in his sadder and sager persona, Luke the Drifter. I’ve always loved this particular collection of Hank’s songs, as he wrote many of them himself and gave us a sort of living presence of Hank that still lingers today though he’s been gone over 60 years. If you listen, you’ll find some sage advice scattered among the songs that follow.

 

First up is one called “Be Careful of Stones that You Throw.”

The next one hits one right in the heart. Hank always wrote a message into his songs, but this one carries several, all at once. Please enjoy Hank as he sings “Pictures from Life’s Other Side.”

This song holds a message that still rings so true today. Please think about that as you hear Hank aka Luke offer up the prayers of a small child in “Help Me Understand.” (As noted, this Demo version has an added verse that did not appear on the final recorded version. I think it’s the best verse.)

Ah, but neither Hank no Luke were sad all the time. Here’s one in a more upbeat mood, and one of so many of my Hank favorites. Please enjoy “Everything’s OK.”

This last offering for today pretty much describes life as many of us know it. If you listen, you’ll hear the wisdom of Hank Williams in “Just Waitin’.”

 

Be well gentle readers, and remember to keep smiling. It looks so good on you!


~PattyKay