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Observations from the Atlanta Races 03/08/2017
Vivian Simons |
Authors Note: My articles
are based solely on my thoughts and observations.
Normally, I do not offer
statistics.
Racing
at Atlanta was interesting to say the least. The minute I realized Kyle Busch
and 7 other Cup drivers were entered to run the Xfinity race, I felt it would
be a race dominated by the Cup drivers. I was not wrong in that speculation.
Keep in mind that NASCAR drivers are only allowed to compete for the
Championship in one series and can only obtain points in their chosen series.
Regular series winners of each stage and other regulars finishing the stage in
the top 10 are awarded additional points after the stages. There were less than
10 regular Xfinity drivers in the top 10 at the end of all stages. The question
is: even if they were not in the top 10, will they still get points until they
reach 10 of the regular drivers regardless of what position they were in at the
end of each stage? Same question for the second stage as 5 Cup drivers finished
in the top 10. At the black and white checkered flag, Cup drivers finished in
the top 4 positions. So how were the points awarded to the regular drivers?
On
another note, I want to mention that during the broadcast, I noticed that
Michael Waltrip was not quite as hyper as he normally is. In fact, he was
unusually calm, imo.
NASCAR
wonders why interest in their racing is fading. I think the first paragraph
explains why some fans have stopped watching the Xfinity series and why the
stands have less fans in the seats. It is because of Cup driver domination,
just in case I wasn't too clear in the way I wrote it above.
Next
came the truck race at Atlanta. Even though very little time had passed between
the two races, one of the first things I noticed was that Michael Waltrip had
become his normal super hyper self for this broadcast. There were only 4 Cup
drivers entered in this race and only 2 of those finished in the top 10.
Regulars took the top 4 spots at the final finish. Because of the Cup drivers
in the race, I did not watch the whole race. Again, interest is fading, not
only for me but for other fans as well. I am not sure how to get the fans back.
NASCAR,
are you reading and listening? Attendance and television viewing is down and
changing some of the rules may not help improve those areas although you may
gain some temporary casual fans. There are many reasons both are down sometimes
nothing will bring it back to where it once was.
On
to the Cup race at Atlanta. For the most part, everything went well. The
National Anthem was good and very reverent, and I thank Atlanta for that. I am
sure other fans are happy as well about the way it was performed and they thank
you also.
One
of the first things I noticed before the race started was when Mike Joy
mentioned specifically to Jeff Gordon about Richard Petty's last race which was
Jeff's first race. Jeff commented on how great a memory that was. Then of
course, the other party in the booth who thinks everything is about him had to
mention he was also in that race and that just ruined the memory moment. It was
also mentioned that there was a good size crowd in the stands and that the walk
up ticket buyers at the track that day was very strong indeed. Gosh, I remember
when one could not purchase a ticket at all, even before different tracks
started removing seats to make the stands look fuller.
In
reference to their new rules, I do have to say the stages did not bother me in
this race. After a few laps, I realized
there were only 39 entries rather than the normal 40. That was never mentioned
by any of the broadcast team and I haven't read or heard why there was a short
field. There are fewer and fewer races where they have more than 40 try to
qualify, and they normally do have a full field.
Something
else that was interesting was the news that they had shortened the distance
between the timing lines on pit road. It seems that change caused quite a few
drivers to get speeding penalties at Atlanta. I am not sure how many were
caught speeding, but there was a record number and I think the one who suffered
most was Kevin Harvick on the last caution. Perhaps he is just jinxed at
Atlanta. He did say he pushed it a bit, but others must have also pushed it a
bit considering how many were caught speeding. No one seems to know why they
shortened them but I wonder if it was to try artificially heighten the drama.
Another member of our site mentioned possibly for complete control and yet
another suggested it was to take away the advantage some of the pit stalls had.
Thanks, PattyKay and Dennis.
The
final thing I want to mention is that I noticed more and more cars and drivers
are without full time sponsors and some are sponsor free at this time. I am not
sure if it is the economy or the way NASCAR has changed in the past few years.
There are so many good drivers/racers out there and it is very sad that this
down turn in NASCAR is occurring. It seems the generations of yesteryear who are
long time and pure race fans are no longer as important as the casual fan is.
Many years ago I saw a commercial but can't remember what company it was for. I
clearly remember the person in charge was stressing how important it was to get
the core customers back. That being said, he closed out his speech saying he
was going to visit one them in person and was sending all the reps out to visit
other customers.
Remembering
what made you great as an entity is always best, and NASCAR needs to get back
to that, so the older generation can pass along memories to the younger fans
and they in turn can pass them along to the next generation.
Thank
you for reading and comments will be welcome, or you may email me with remarks
or questions.
