Cheers to NASCAR For Acting... Now, let's see some Racin'!

Kudos to NASCAR for instituting the double file restarts this weekend at Pocono!

The end of the Dover race proved that the current car CAN show off some great racing, but it obviously also depends on not just a drivers' ability, but their teams ability to maximize the little bit of flexibility they get in the set up of the car.

There's a part of me that thinks the double file restarts actually showcases the CREW CHIEF'S abilities as much as it does the drivers. Without 'lap cars' to pass, EVERY RESTART will be a true showcase not juse of how a driver restarts but how their crew chief was able to tweak their car to get better over the last run.

Yeah, there's always a few laps of racing at the start of a race, but Pocono being such a long track will also show that they get stretched out pretty quick too...

NASCAR has always had top talent both in-car and on-box and now we'll really get a chance to see how well 'in-race changes' are able to be made to make cars better or worse.

And now that Digger's gone from the TV coverage, we won't be distracted by those darn cartoons either!

Cheers folks!

With NASCAR, No Action is as Powerful as The Wrong Action

First, let me say that I agree with Matt Kenseth who, at the end of the race in Dover commented that this car does allow for some great racing... keyword 'some'.

But, let's get to 2 issues where NASCAR's 'INACTION' is really giving fans a chance to assess what NASCAR's actual INTENT is in walking the walk instead of just talking the talk.

Issue #1:  Enacting Double File Restarts with lap cars IN THE BACK.. this has been avoided even though...

...  EVERYONE KNOWS from the experiences in the AllStar Race that 2x2 restarts are exciting.  

...  The Lucky Dog eliminates the need for lap cars to fight with leaders over track position

...  The great racing between Tony and Jimmie on Sunday COULD HAVE BEEN EVEN BETTER if a few in the latter half of the top 10 werent stuck behind drivers like Kevin Harvick who were a lap down and fighting over their 'lap down position' in front of drivers still trying to move up in the top 10!

Imagine if all of the top 10 had started double file with 30 laps left?  Would Jimmie have gotten up to the front so quickly?  The RACING would have been absolutely incredible instead of just great.

ISSUE #2:  Carl Long and his suspension/fine being upheld as originally announced.

Looking through comment boards at Yahoo and ESPN to articles on this, I don't think anything needs to be said about how 'wrong' it seems and how angry people are with NASCAR about seeming to not care about the little guy.. so I'm going to offer a different analysis.

NASCAR prides itself on enforcing rules with Black and White... this gives them the 'consistency' and 'by the book' excuse for ruling by the LETTER OF THE LAW.  Of course, their penalties lack the same consistency, but that's written about by too many already.

What I'm hoping is that NASCAR starts to appreciate the GREY area a little more... no, not by 'altering' or 'bending' the rules, but the grey area I'm talking about is the 'Grey Bleachers' showing through at more and more venues because they are unoccupied by fans.  That's the Grey Area they should really be concerned with and this latest Long fiasco seems to be the 'last straw' for many fans who are fed up with what appears to be a dictatorial approach.

So, there you have it... 2 instances where NASCAR could have chosen to NOT ACT.

The Competition folks could have instituted double file restarts long ago based on what they have been seeing for a while.... they have chosen NOT TO ACT for too long

The Appeals Commission could have chosen TO ACT in a way that not only abided by the LETTER OF THE LAW but also reinforced the SPIRIT OF THE LAW... They chose to NOT ACT to even reduce a penalty that seems ridiculous to most.

So, the single thing we hope NASCAR recognizes is this... NOT ACTING is as much of a choice as ACTING in a way that is proven to be 'detrimental to stock car racing'.

If you see another example of NASCAR's INACTION as the chosen action, CLICK HERE to add it to the list... let's see how long the list can get!

And, if you choose to spend your previously 'nascar-spent money' at your local track, then CLICK HERE to join your fellow Fans of Fast at their local tracks all over the United States!