September 8th - September 12th, 2008
Tuesday: Subscribe to the Frontstretch Newsletter now for an honest View from the Stands on what, amidst all the complaints, is right and good about NASCAR 2008-and don't miss anouther action-packed issue!
Wednesday: Got questions about the weekend that was? The Frontstretch staff has answers and we aren't shy about sharing them with the world in another installment of Mirror Driving.
Thursday: Still got questions after Wednesday? Send them to Matt Taliaferro and he'll give all the skinny in this week's Fanning the Flames.
Friday: Excitement? Where? That's what Amy Henderson wants to know about the Chase and all its hype in the latest Holding A Pretty Wheel.
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There is no better way to keep up on the hottest topics facing NASCAR than checking in to your favorite racing message board. With all due respect to Dave Despain, I have not found a more thorough way of keeping current with the latest NASCAR news than checking in and seeing what my ‘cyber-friends’ have hunted down in the headlines and are discussing, debating, and, on occasion, fighting about.
The moment it was announced that the Busch series would be heading south of the border for a race, message boards everywhere lit up with folks expressing their surprise, their puzzlement, and, for some, their indignation.
The questions were asked and the debates began (“How hard will this be on the teams?”, “Is this economically feasible?”, and “What are they doing this for?”). It seemed to me that after all of the thoughts were aired, there was no general consensus of opinions, and no one was really sure if this was a really good or bad idea.
Sunday came, and everyone in our household was looking forward to the race. As my son, Joshua, and I enjoy watching Formula 1 racing, we were enthusiastic about seeing the Busch teams carrying on like ‘international racers’. How neat to see a foreign city closing off a main drag to let the racecars take over for an afternoon. The different countries’ anthems are played, and drivers with heavy foreign accents are interviewed and smile for the camera. It was delightful to see our Busch drivers in the midst of all of that. As the race began, we laughed as we expected to see the sleek pointed lines of Ferraris, Jaguars, or Renaults roaring through the streets, but instead it was our familiar Dodges, Chevys, and Fords.
Dare I say that it even occurred to me that this might put a dent in the redneck image our sport has to endure, with it behaving like ‘classy’ international motor sports, and stretching past its hometown borders?
Since the race I have heard various headlines, and have watched the message board participants discuss it back and forth. I have heard some of the bad (“This was a bad idea and a dangerous city to send our drivers to”; “The expenses to the teams to pull this off were too high”) and some of the good (“Over 100,000 spectators were present”; “This was a nice way to mingle with another country”). I still believe, though, that no one has yet decided whether it was a really great thing or not.
I hesitate to put forth my own opinion, because I am quite unaware of the burden this really put on the Busch teams, and whether our drivers really felt like this was a dangerous expectation put upon them. Ultimately I would probably say that if the NASCAR folks that put this together are satisfied with the results, and the drivers had fun, then I think it’s terrific.
I hear that Canada will be where the NASCAR pioneers will be headed next. And I am sure the debates will begin anew about whether we ought to or not.
Was Mexico your fiesta, or a bad case of indigestion? Let me know; I’m listening.
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