New "Out of Bounds" Feature: "The Straightaway"

NASCAR is something that, frankly, I haven't been able to get my arms around. But I also recognize that it's followed by a bajillion people, which must make me in the minority in some given group.

To recognize the sport's popularity, I will begin running weekly NASCAR commentary from my good friend and colleague, Siddy Hall, who's been following the sport for nearly 15 years.

Siddy's commentaries will run every Tuesday here, but I debut him today.

Enjoy!

Feedback is always welcome.

**********************************************
The Straightaway
Weekly NASCAR commentary



by Siddy Hall

EXPECT CALIFORNIA LETDOWN AFTER DAYTONA

Like the NFL Pro Bowl following the Super Bowl, NASCAR now presents the Auto Club 500 from the California Speedway one week after an epic battle at Daytona. No doubt some first-time NASCAR viewers who saw the Daytona 500 will return to view this race with hopes of discovering more stock car racing excitement. They’ll probably be disappointed.

California is a track that reinforces an image held by many who haven’t warmed to auto racing. Cars go round and round with nothing really appearing to happen. And in this case they’re probably correct. Drivers like it there. They can mash the gas and the turns are really wide. While the speeds are fast, the danger is relatively low. So to keep things from getting too boring, cautions need to be brought out to bunch the cars back together.

During last year’s two California races, a total of 14 yellow flags were waved. Nine of these were for either debris or oil on the track. I can imagine a crew of people turning hot dog wrappers into greasy paper airplanes waiting for their instructions to hurl them onto the track to bring out a caution. Heck, last year’s February race had a 210-mile green flag stretch until, surprise, ”debris” was found on the track. Hey, you want some debris? How about rolling out a huge boulder onto the track for the cars to swerve around and avoid.

What hurts is that until recently NASCAR had a great race with which to follow up the high jinx of the Daytona 500. Rockingham, or “the Rock,” is arguably the best track on the circuit. It was slightly over one mile long with high banking in the corners. When the rubber began to wear, the cars were all over the place. No two races at the Rock were ever alike.

But, in the quest for bigger markets, like southern California, Rockingham was victimized. The races traded places. A great track was replaced by a clean, generic one. And like the old Los Angeles Rams of the NFL, LA just ain’t buying it. Maybe it’s the track. Can somebody please build another Rockingham? Why is this so hard?

Silly Boys: The wreck at Lap 153 between Tony Stewart and Kurt Busch during the Daytona 500 could lead off a DVD titled, “Daytona’s Biggest Blunders.” Earlier, near Lap 70, these two piloted machines that broke away from the vacuum of the Daytona draft. It was an impressive sight, one that you rarely see at that track. So why were they racing each other so hard at Lap 153? They could’ve continued to team up and then settled it at the end. Busch accepted the blame for the wreck but I blame the wreck more on Stewart than Busch. Tony came up through the field and should’ve settled in comfortably behind Busch like they had earlier. By passing Busch, Stewart brought out his hyper-competitive instincts and then the race - and the wreck - were on. These two drivers led 130 of the 202 laps but combined for about the same number of points as the 25th place car, Greg Biffle.


Stewart (left) and Busch: Ill-advised moves led to Daytona wreck

Thanks for the Help: Daytona 500 winner, Kevin Harvick, ought to give some of his points to 27th place finisher Matt Kenseth. It was Kenseth’s DeWalt Ford that helped Harvick slingshot around the outside of the lead line of cars that was led by Mark Martin. It’s amazing that Kenseth could have pushed Harvick so close to the finish line and then finish 26 spots back.

Common Sense for Rules: NASCAR was right by delaying their caution until after Kevin Harvick and Mark Martin crossed the finish line. If you’re being technical then Mark Martin had reason to complain. He was definitely leading when the sheet metal started crumpling behind him. But by waiting a few seconds, NASCAR let the cars and not the literal interpretation of the rules decide the outcome of a great race.