RaceBud

My father spent most of my childhood trying to be sure that I (and my siblings) would do the right thing. “Two wrongs don’t make a right,” was one of his more familiar quotes. The saying has been around for a long time and has stood the test of time in teaching ethical behavior.

NASCAR fans are currently wrangling over two “wrongs” – in this case, two rules that simply should no longer be on the books. That a team should use both these wrong rules together sure enough doesn’t make a “right.” Continue Reading »

When it comes to “spins” in NASCAR – the media has it ALL over the drivers and their cars. Reporters have more “power” than the COT engine will ever have. And, depending upon the way a story is covered, a commentator can make a driver come out smelling like a rose…or like something off the bottom of your shoe.

Case in point: Kyle Petty said the “F” word on TV – clear as day – while serving as an in-car commentator for TNT Sports during the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway. The incident was pretty much ignored, with little or no mention anywhere in the media. I thought that was probably a wise choice on the part of the media. Mistakes happen. What’s done is done. No sense harping on it, right?

WRONG! Just a few weeks later, Tony Stewart said the “F” word on-air to a reporter who shoved a camera in his face, knowing full-well there was no delay on either the tape or Tony’s mouth. It was ALL you read or heard about. As a matter of fact, that incident is seldom left out of any Stewart-related article since. What’s with that?

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There’s an air of excitement at RaceBud’s home track these days. We are busy taking inventory of race shirts to pack, crossing items off the shopping list, brewing a pot of racetrack stew and charging the scanners. And we’re keeping a watchful eye on the north Texas weather forecast, which is looking to be exceptional.

It’s time to load the pickup truck and head off to the fall races at the Texas Motor Speedway. The Turn 3 Race Team is about to meet at the track!

I spent a little time reflecting on what makes the races such an important thing to us. It proved to be so much more than fast cars making left turns. 

1. Spending time with old friends. Some of the folks we get to share track time with have been friends for some 40 years. Others for a much shorter time. But it’s good to see all of them, telling the stories and sharing meals. Continue Reading »

What is it that makes the Busch brothers, Kurt and Kyle, such controversial figures in the world of NASCAR? Are they really bad, or do we fans have a need for someone to boo and blame?

They have a lot of good things going for them. For instance:

• they are both with top-tier teams, Penske and Gibbs;
• they are both good drivers, with a strong showings in the Win column;
• both are in the Chase;
• other drivers, their competitors, claim to be their friends; and,
• each has a reputation for charitable giving.

NASCAR brothers generally have good reputations and, over time, have been popular with the fans. Yet, the Busch boys regularly piss off fans, fellow drivers, sponsors and team owners with their ongoing black-hat antics.

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When he started the September 16 race, Clint Bowyer was a very likable guy who had never won a Cup race. He had a good enough season to make the last place in the Chase, but was not considered a viable championship contender. Vegas odds-makers had him finishing the season in 12^th place, last among the Chase contenders. And his fan base was definitely outside the top 12.

But he won the Loudon race. And four races later he is one of only three drivers still in the running for the series championship.

To be truthful, I wasn’t wearing my Clint Bowyer t-shirt that day.

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You like to watch, don’t you?

NASCAR wrecks, that is. Come on admit it. Wrecks add spice to the race and pepper the continuous laps with a shot of adrenaline. Wrecks are as much a part of the sport as bump drafting. And often one leads to the other.

What is it about a NASCAR race that makes it so exciting – or boring? Challenges for position, lead changes and door-banging, side-by-side racing contribute to the excitement level of a race, but the real thing we all want to see is the wrecks.

Show me a race with three hours of side-by-side racing and not much else, and I’ll show you a dozen journalistic thumbs-down reviews based on boredom. That same race with a fiery multi-car crash becomes a lot more exciting. Throw in an end-over-end barrel roll through the front stretch and that same boring race gets reviews full of exclamation points.

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Until I became a NASCAR fan, I hadn’t really noticed just how much – pardon my bluntness – CRAP is out there bearing some sort of driver name, image, number, and/or team sponsor.Literally, if you can think of it, someone’s slapped a number on it and it’s on eBay. One quick computer search confirms my suspicions. Tens of thousands of NASCAR items – from fishing lures to toilet paper – are for sale.

It made me wonder … why? What’s the reason behind fans buying all this stuff?

Does buying more driver merchandise make you a bigger or better fan? I mean, are those people walking Fido on a Jimmy Johnson dog leash or sporting a Robby Gordon doo-rag more dedicated to their driver than those who aren’t?

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In October 2002, Turn 3 Race Team members Nick, Barbie, Jeanette and I trekked to Charlotte, NC, for the fall race at Lowes Motor Speedway.

We made the trip in Nick and Barbie’s motor coach. He casually refers to it as the ‘moho,’ and his t-shirt declared him to be the moho-drivin-mofo-in-charge.

A day and a half after leaving the home track, we arrived and set up camp. Making camp with the moho was like no camp setting-up I’ve experienced before. Nick had to push a button to activate the auto-leveling device, and then push another to extend the giant awning. Whew, I was nearly exhausted! Barbie activated the champagne-pouring ritual and we toasted our arrival.

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By day, I’m a children’s book author, realtor, spouse, and parent. But, I have a secret even my family doesn‘t know. In the wee hours of the morning, when everyone’s asleep, I log onto my Infield Parking space and become…(drum roll)…“Saidhead60”…the rabid supporter of my favorite NASCAR driver, Boris Said.“Why,” you may ask, “Would a busy professional waste valuable time, updating a fan page for a driver most people feel has no chance of winning a NASCAR race?”

For the same reason I still get chills every time Rocky Balboa wins the fight, lifts his bloody boxing gloves into the air, and yells, “YO, ADRIAN – I DID IT!” Simply said, I believe in the underdog and all the exhilarating possibilities that come with being one. Continue Reading »

Jeanette, my wife, peeked into my office while I was setting it up for the RaceBud adventure. I was hanging a framed piece Jack Roush had signed. “You sure have a lot of autographs in here,” she observed.

Well, yes, there’s a few – and it took quite a bit of time to come by them.

Among NASCAR’s many claims is that its fans have better access to its stars (drivers, owners, crew chiefs and the like) than any other sport. While that’s probably true, the average fan should not expect to see drivers and owners roaming the stands looking for something to sign. But, there are ways to get that treasured autograph, if that’s the goal.

Just how easy, or difficult, is it to get the autographs you want? Here are eight ways: Continue Reading »