Cheekishly, I have to admit being relieved when Jim (McCoy) said he was a little
burned out on the '09 season. I didn't want to be the first to go on record
with it, but my friends, I am hard-broiled, well done, deep-fried, sauteed,
charcoal-type done. With that, I can honestly look myself in the mirror and say
it's not because my driver didn't make the chase. I knew THAT wasn't going to
happen about a quarter way through. Also, it's not because the usual suspects
performed to their usual high standards. Yet it would be nice to write another
name on my winner's board every once in a while at the pub. No longer is it
about Toyota winning races. That is a fact I have come to accept as part of the
game. What is it that has made my bottom side tired? I am glad you asked!



Bobby LaBonte is a high-caliber driver. He won a championship under the old
rules and dominated an entire season. It was more than consistency to me then.
More grit was involved. Racing had to be balls to the walls every time you put
rubber to track. Now, to watch him struggle is truly heartbreaking. My fear
now is that Bobby will be caught up in this latest NASCAR trend of old timers
being dropped like greased watermelons in July in lieu of the young studs. It
is shameful that we consider him an old timer merely in his early 40's while we
watch Mark Martin kick ass and take names at 50. Someone give Bobby a chance,
in good equipment, and I believe there is still a lot of fire in the furnace.



Ray Evernham has ESP! How could anyone dispute that the man HAS to be psychic?
In some strange way, I believe he saw the sinking ship known as Dodge when the
economy first started taking a dump and took on Gillette as a majority partner.
In turn, Gillette shot out of the cannon making promises that they had to know
they couldn't keep, at least until more research was done on their part. Petty
comes in, Ray steps out, cashes in, and is enjoying running his dirt track and
even finding his way back to the driver's seat again. He saw the writing on the
wall, took his money, and ran. Not to mention the fact he doesn't do a half-bad
job in the broadcast booth either! Dodge, which use to be absolutely feared in
the NASCAR community, is no more now than a fart in the wind, robbing good
drivers of showing their potential.



I also hope that Richard Childress finds "the stuff" during the off-season.
Something is amiss there and I don't know if it is in his engineering staff,
resources, or just general shop staff that is missing the boat. He gets good
stuff, but isn't producing, and the questions that needs to be answered is
"why?". Harvick is good, Burton is good, Bowyer is okay, but the "wtf" moment
for him is why would he put Casey Mears on the payroll? Proof that a last name
doesn't make you a good driver and I think Jack Daniels sent the message by
pulling sponsorship. Now there is a question whether RCR will field four teams
for 2010. Three or four, I just hope they find their mojo and get back to
producing what fans were use to seeing out of this organization.



In the NASCAR Bible, the "Top 35" rule should be referenced in the index as
"tool of the devil". Since its implementation, it has been obvious that the
quality of racing has gone down, qualifying is more or less a formality, and
some very good talent has been sent packing. What happened to racing your way
into a race? Makes sense to me and it might self-alleviate the awful "start and
park" situation we have going on at every event. Don't get me wrong, I use to
root for Joe Nemechek. He was always the underdog, yet always found a way to
produce a descent performance. Dave Blaney? Come on, he's from Ohio, so suck
or not, I have a special place in my heart for him. Tony Raines I have never
figured out, though. What is his deal and how is he still around? In the end,
how do any of these guys attract sponsorship potential when they only run 20
laps? These guys need to have a sit down with the powers and instructed in not
so nice terms that you either show up and attempt a whole race or don't bother
showing up next week. When they park it because of the "transmission" or
"brakes", let the inspectors take a look at their cars to verify instead of
letting it be an excuse to poop out. No one likes a quitter.



In the end, I beg of NASCAR to shorten the season. We are now getting too much
of a good thing and it is more like being force-fed chopped liver in the
morning. Could I change the channel? Sure! Yet it's like that bad auto
accident you pass on the interstate....you know you shouldn't look, but can't
help it. (Trust me, I know all about this) I also, am a fan, and suffer with
the rest of you. I'm talking about hacking the schedule, just knock five or six
off...breathe a little bit. If they still wanted championship weekend in
November at Homestead, issue more off-weekends in between, just don't use up too
much water before the well runs dry.



Concur if you wish, disagree by your own right. Racing has been about as
eventful as watching paint dry, or grass grow. In my heart, I believe NASCAR
has realized this and will find ways to tweak the car, make it right, make it
fun again, and dirty up racing just a smidge to get us back in the groove...and
the seats. After all, in the end, WE are what make racing go around.