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Showdowns, Trucks, A Starlit NIght, And A Couple Guys Named Smith
05/19/2015 |
I bid you welcome gentle readers, and a warm welcome as well to our assigned reader of all things NASCAR today. Things are rather busy in the Queen’s City of Charlotte this week, are they not? “Ten days of Thunder” I believe is how it’s being billed. After thinking that over for at least 12 seconds, it was decided that it sounds more like the local weather forecast in summer than having anything much to do with racing… but it’s cute, and may appeal to children, so we’ll go with it.
It is Saturday morning as I station myself behind this keyboard another time. Last night was the Showdown race that ushered Greg Biffle and Clint Bowyer into tonight’s All-Star race. The fans gave Danica Patrick a free pass into the show as well. Dani-Sue, I hope you make us proud, as a whole lot of fans think it would have made more sense had that free pass been given to Martin Truex, Jr., who sits second in the points after 11 races. Instead, we’ve entrusted you my dear, to represent all of us that sit and watch from our homes.
Last night was also the truck race at Charlotte and what a great race it was… only to be ended by NASCAR’s ever-present “late caution” that forces a green/white/checker run to the finish. Start to finish, the race was pretty much between two trucks, the #4 truck from Kyle Busch Motorsports, driven by 18-year old Erik Jones, and the #00 truck from JR Motorsports, driven by 35-year old Cup driver, Kasey Kahne. The two comprised the front row of the race, qualifying 1-2, but each was sent to the rear for some violation of the NASCAR code of ethics or whatever. Kahne had to replace a broken shock, and I failed to catch of what sin Jones was guilty, but neither cast a shadow on the driver nor the team. Just the rules.
It took young Jones only 20 laps to overtake the field and assume the lead. He would go on to lead 88 of the 139 laps run on the night. Kahne arrived at the front of the pack a bit later than Jones, but the two made a race of it on every restart. Each eventually ended the same, with Jones reassuming the lead and pulling away from the rest of the trucks. In any other racing venue, a truck with a flat tire that drove directly into the pits to fix that offending Goodyear would not cause a caution flag to fly, but for reasons unknown to this scribe, NASCAR has developed a fixation for late-race cautions and this race was no different.
A brush with the wall by Daniel Hemric that left the #14 truck with a flat tire was cited as the reason for the caution, though Hemric, as mentioned, drove straight to the pits, the tire was replaced and he finished on the lead lap, albeit 17th, last of the leaders. One can fairly assume that he received a pit road penalty for coming in before the pits were “open.”
The ending seemed to please some folks and disgust others, as before the late-race caution, Jones had held over a 4-second lead on Kahne and the rest of the field. The yellow flew as Jones was within spittin’ distance of the white flag. Had he gotten to the white before the yellow waved, he would have been declared the winner. Had the yellow not waved, only the most bizarre of circumstances could have wrested from Erik Jones a victory in the second race in a row he dominated from start to finish. But the yellow did wave… needlessly, but still, it waved, and NASCAR had yet another G/W/C that they can claim makes their races so exciting. Here’s a hint: that race was exciting all on its own. It had all the elements of a great race… until NASCAR had to dip its finger in the bowl just one more time… and screw up the ending to one of the best races we’ve watched in years.
Now, with that in the rear view mirror, the All-Star race coming tonight and the World 600, sponsored by Atlanta based Coca-Cola coming next Sunday, after a warm-up race called the Indy 500 in Indianapolis (Just kidding folks! I love ‘em both) it’s time for these pages to take a look at the SAFER barrier situation at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
It is Saturday morning as I station myself behind this keyboard another time. Last night was the Showdown race that ushered Greg Biffle and Clint Bowyer into tonight’s All-Star race. The fans gave Danica Patrick a free pass into the show as well. Dani-Sue, I hope you make us proud, as a whole lot of fans think it would have made more sense had that free pass been given to Martin Truex, Jr., who sits second in the points after 11 races. Instead, we’ve entrusted you my dear, to represent all of us that sit and watch from our homes.
Last night was also the truck race at Charlotte and what a great race it was… only to be ended by NASCAR’s ever-present “late caution” that forces a green/white/checker run to the finish. Start to finish, the race was pretty much between two trucks, the #4 truck from Kyle Busch Motorsports, driven by 18-year old Erik Jones, and the #00 truck from JR Motorsports, driven by 35-year old Cup driver, Kasey Kahne. The two comprised the front row of the race, qualifying 1-2, but each was sent to the rear for some violation of the NASCAR code of ethics or whatever. Kahne had to replace a broken shock, and I failed to catch of what sin Jones was guilty, but neither cast a shadow on the driver nor the team. Just the rules.
It took young Jones only 20 laps to overtake the field and assume the lead. He would go on to lead 88 of the 139 laps run on the night. Kahne arrived at the front of the pack a bit later than Jones, but the two made a race of it on every restart. Each eventually ended the same, with Jones reassuming the lead and pulling away from the rest of the trucks. In any other racing venue, a truck with a flat tire that drove directly into the pits to fix that offending Goodyear would not cause a caution flag to fly, but for reasons unknown to this scribe, NASCAR has developed a fixation for late-race cautions and this race was no different.
A brush with the wall by Daniel Hemric that left the #14 truck with a flat tire was cited as the reason for the caution, though Hemric, as mentioned, drove straight to the pits, the tire was replaced and he finished on the lead lap, albeit 17th, last of the leaders. One can fairly assume that he received a pit road penalty for coming in before the pits were “open.”
The ending seemed to please some folks and disgust others, as before the late-race caution, Jones had held over a 4-second lead on Kahne and the rest of the field. The yellow flew as Jones was within spittin’ distance of the white flag. Had he gotten to the white before the yellow waved, he would have been declared the winner. Had the yellow not waved, only the most bizarre of circumstances could have wrested from Erik Jones a victory in the second race in a row he dominated from start to finish. But the yellow did wave… needlessly, but still, it waved, and NASCAR had yet another G/W/C that they can claim makes their races so exciting. Here’s a hint: that race was exciting all on its own. It had all the elements of a great race… until NASCAR had to dip its finger in the bowl just one more time… and screw up the ending to one of the best races we’ve watched in years.
Now, with that in the rear view mirror, the All-Star race coming tonight and the World 600, sponsored by Atlanta based Coca-Cola coming next Sunday, after a warm-up race called the Indy 500 in Indianapolis (Just kidding folks! I love ‘em both) it’s time for these pages to take a look at the SAFER barrier situation at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
After the original installation of SAFER barriers in 2004, Charlotte (Humpy Wheeler) added more in 2008 after hard crashes into unprotected walls by Michael McDowell and Jeff Gordon.
"After all the wall whacks we've had this year, the soft walls continue to do for racing what the nose guard on a helmet did for football, but competitor safety is like a moving target, and we've got to continue trying to improve our aim. We've always got to be looking at what we can do” Wheeler said.
The addition in 2008 was the last update. Charlotte, like almost all the others, just rode on the side of luck from then until now. I personally checked every inch that Jim has indicated here, and it is spot-on correct. This image on Google Earth comes with an imagery date, which not all of them have. The date of this image was October 4, 2014. I can find nothing in print indicating that anything has been added since then, on the Charlotte Motor Speedway website or on Jayski.com, where Jay Adamczyk diligently updates any additions of SAFER to every track as it happens.
Marcus Smith, you are running the show at Charlotte now, with Humpy gone from the scene and your Dad retired. Please, try to be the leader each of those men were in their time. Set an example for some of the others. We, the fans that care, are watching closely for cooperation from each and every track where the barriers are feasible. It might not be fashionable or comfortable to speak of deaths in racing, but in my time I have seen too many… far too many… to rest easily knowing that so many unprotected walls are still accessible to our drivers.
SAFER barriers save lives. That cannot be contested. At Daytona this year, we came inches from losing another driver. That driver, Kyle Busch from Joe Gibbs Racing, will make his first Cup racing start of the year in the All-Star race at your track tonight. My prayers will be with him as they are with every driver in every race. I can do little to change the safety of the racing environment except to keep banging on these keys and hoping to make sense to folks such as you… those that are in charge and can make things happen. Let’s make things happen at Charlotte Mr. Smith. It’s not just time; it is past time. SAFER barriers belong everywhere feasible, at every track on the circuit. All walls at Charlotte are feasible.
"After all the wall whacks we've had this year, the soft walls continue to do for racing what the nose guard on a helmet did for football, but competitor safety is like a moving target, and we've got to continue trying to improve our aim. We've always got to be looking at what we can do” Wheeler said.
The addition in 2008 was the last update. Charlotte, like almost all the others, just rode on the side of luck from then until now. I personally checked every inch that Jim has indicated here, and it is spot-on correct. This image on Google Earth comes with an imagery date, which not all of them have. The date of this image was October 4, 2014. I can find nothing in print indicating that anything has been added since then, on the Charlotte Motor Speedway website or on Jayski.com, where Jay Adamczyk diligently updates any additions of SAFER to every track as it happens.
Marcus Smith, you are running the show at Charlotte now, with Humpy gone from the scene and your Dad retired. Please, try to be the leader each of those men were in their time. Set an example for some of the others. We, the fans that care, are watching closely for cooperation from each and every track where the barriers are feasible. It might not be fashionable or comfortable to speak of deaths in racing, but in my time I have seen too many… far too many… to rest easily knowing that so many unprotected walls are still accessible to our drivers.
SAFER barriers save lives. That cannot be contested. At Daytona this year, we came inches from losing another driver. That driver, Kyle Busch from Joe Gibbs Racing, will make his first Cup racing start of the year in the All-Star race at your track tonight. My prayers will be with him as they are with every driver in every race. I can do little to change the safety of the racing environment except to keep banging on these keys and hoping to make sense to folks such as you… those that are in charge and can make things happen. Let’s make things happen at Charlotte Mr. Smith. It’s not just time; it is past time. SAFER barriers belong everywhere feasible, at every track on the circuit. All walls at Charlotte are feasible.
Time now gentle readers, for our Classic Country Closeout. If anyone ever wonders how I pick the songs for this segment, this week is a great example of “However!” I admit to being hooked on “American Pickers” on the History Channel. Mike and Frank are my kind of guys. I love to go “junkin” as we’ve always called it. Fortunately, I have one Angel Baby that shares that love, and Belle and I do the “antique” shops together frequently. We even get a kick out of pawing through Good Will, and aren’t ashamed to be seen there. She’s a crafter, as I used to be, and you’d be amazed how many things considered junk can be repurposed with just a bit of imagination.
Anyway, on last week’s program, the boys uncovered some old records… 78 rpms and 45 rpms, the vinyl of my youth. Mike held up one record, read the name and the artist and made a statement about loving to find stuff from obscure and unknown singers of the past. Oh Mike, you should never have said that because you couldn’t be more wrong. Past? Yes, Carl Smith is gone now. He left us in 2010, but he was not unknown or obscure, but one of the biggest stars on the Country and Western charts in the 1950s and beyond. The song on the “obscure” record Mike held up was “My Lonely Heart’s Running Wild.” I have that one I think in three different collections by Carl Smith. It’s one of those songs that hold special meaning for me, and in this case, not from when I was a teenager, but as recently as 2 years ago. Here it is, for my “#1 Fan.”
Anyway, on last week’s program, the boys uncovered some old records… 78 rpms and 45 rpms, the vinyl of my youth. Mike held up one record, read the name and the artist and made a statement about loving to find stuff from obscure and unknown singers of the past. Oh Mike, you should never have said that because you couldn’t be more wrong. Past? Yes, Carl Smith is gone now. He left us in 2010, but he was not unknown or obscure, but one of the biggest stars on the Country and Western charts in the 1950s and beyond. The song on the “obscure” record Mike held up was “My Lonely Heart’s Running Wild.” I have that one I think in three different collections by Carl Smith. It’s one of those songs that hold special meaning for me, and in this case, not from when I was a teenager, but as recently as 2 years ago. Here it is, for my “#1 Fan.”
Let’s stay with Carl today, as I truly love his singing and he had so many great songs. This one definitely goes back to the 50s and is one of the top songs on my personal chart! I hope you all enjoy “Let Old Mother Nature Have Her Way.”
Next up was a huge hit for Carl in 1953, when Mama was just a freshman in high school. This one is called “Hey Joe” and the lilting tune just makes one want to tap toes and smile a lot.
This one, if memory isn’t twisted all inside out, was “sort of” a follow-up to “Mother Nature.” This is “It’s a Lovely, Lovely World” and another of my favorites. Please enjoy.
One last one, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t include one here by Carl with his first wife, June Carter. Here they are back in the early 50s with “Time’s a’Wastin’.”
Be well gentle readers, and remember to keep smiling. It looks so good on you!
~
PattyKay