2022 NASCAR THREAD

It is increasingly rare for a race finish to elicit a jump & a clap from me but yesterday was a good one. It's always good to see a first-time winner, especially when it's a good guy who earned his way up.

 

Skittles car is back for COTA. A couple races forward but happy to see this paint scheme

 

This was how I learned lime was back in Skittles. I felt like I lost a part of myself when they replaced lime back in 2013 lol.

 

Guess it says how long it's been since I've had or paid attention when I have had skittles. What did the green become? Apple?

 

Yes, green apple. Seemed to be a fad back then

 

Just received the weekend schedule for AMS. Lots of meet & greet opportunities. Dale Murphy, Harrison Burton, Daniel Suarez, Chase Elliott at the fan zone. We renewed our tickets early so we got pre-race pit passes included. Kiddo is pumped to get up close to the cars & drivers again. We haven't had this opportunity since Darlington 2019. He's hoping to meet Chase Briscoe and get his cast signed (broke his arm last week).

We did some exploring last Sunday at a nearby race track that's about to be demolished. It hosted Cup races in '67 & '68. At the time, it was the world's fastest half-mile speedway. It actually prompted Bristol and Nashville Fairgrounds to increase their banking and facilities. Big Bill France wanted to make JefCo a long-term mainstay on the CUP circuit but he wanted a 20% ownership stake in the property. The track owners told him to kick rocks, which ultimately did the track in.
JefCo was popular with everyone who ran there; Pearson, Petty, Yarborough, Allison, Waltrip. The France's essentially black-listed the track. It survived for many decades as a late-model track, hosting the World Crown 300, which, at the time was the most prestigious American Late Model race. Dick Trickle won the first event and said for years that it was the crowning achievement of his racing career.

Adam Petty had his first stock car debut here. Chase Elliott (stuffing Jimmie Johnson's car in the wall), Danica Patrick, Kimi Raikonnen, and tons of others had their first tests in stock cars here. The track was a testing hotbed for the Cup teams, as they could work on Bristol, Martinsville, Phoenix, and Dover setups, get seat time for new drivers, all out of the eye of the media. This was the first place Dale Jr. tested while recovering from his head injury. The infield tech garage had a full NASCAR setup plate installed as well as a "Wall of Fame," where drivers signed a cinder block before departing. NASCAR banned testing several years back and effectively ended the speedway's lifeline.

The wall of fame and the rest of the track will meet a wrecking ball later this month. I got the news two weeks ago and made a phone call. We got to go into the track, tour the press box, spotter's stand, tech garage, the surrounding woods, and even took a few laps around the track; likely the last by anyone ever. We found an old race car fender in the woods along with mangled rear bumpers from a Nova and Falcon, as well as two Firestone slicks from the NASCAR races held there in 67 & 68.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CbMCGEBrpjy/

https://www.instagram.com/p/CbDnYQJvS2z/

 

This really sucks. That track still looks to be in good usable condition.

 

That's too bad. I never cared for the decision to ban testing. I get the aim was to help out the lower teams who couldn't afford to test, but all it really did was allow these big teams to put more investment into wind tunnels and simulators (the latter of which require real world data to be even remotely effective). In the end, I don't think it made any difference.

 

Yeah, so the track was sold about 12-13 years ago. The new owner completely overhauled the track with the intention of securing a CWTS race. However, at the time, the truck series sanctioning fee was $1 Million, and there was no way the track could even think of breaking even given the renovations cut capacity from 9,000 to 4,000 seats, albeit better grandstands. The new owner hired Dan Elliott (Bill's brother) to manage the project and track. Dan blew $7.5 million of the owner's money upgrading everything and wasting a ton of $ on stuff like painting parking lines on gravel. The new owner made his fortune in insurance and mandated a lot of safety measures that typically were not found at smaller, regional tracks. He included a lot of safety innovations and required all racers to use a HANS device, which is cost-prohibitive for late model & street stock guys. For 8 years, the owner looked for a buyer who would promise to operate the track. The rumor is FedEx or UPS came knocking because the land is next to a regional airport and near I-85, which would provide a good logistical hub for package transport.

 

Very good points!

 

Atlanta Ready!

 

nope

 

I'm heading to the track around 4. Absolutely downpour here right now. Expecting 3/4" rain at the track this evening. Hoping the ground soaks it up and our campsite is higher than the surrounding area. Atlanta's early events were absolute mud pits with cars, wreckers and haulers getting stuck in the infield and surrounding land. The track's relationship with weather events is long. Torrents of rain, tornadoes, smoke from forest fires, hurricane refuge, fog, even blizzards! I remember the '93 Spring event being postponed due to the great blizzard. I was so bummed but it was the first time we saw snow in South Georgia in a generation. Keeping my fingers crossed for good conditions upon arrival! Packed my recovery treads in case we get stuck in a soggy spot.


My hopes for the weekend:

• Good weather
• tight, fun, clean racing
• A close finish
• A first-time winner. Looking at the 8, 99, 21 (longshot)

 

good luck! praying the weather stays away!

 

Have fun! Looks like the weather should be clearing tomorrow and make for a great race weekend.

 

Haha! My first ever race was the firecracker back in '05?? My roommate made so much money & free beer pulling folks out of the sucker hole in front of our tailgate. Pretty sure he couldn't walk he was so hammered but he was having a blast

 

truck practice starts in 15 minutes

 

I love working from home.

 

Yeah, that's a hard no I believe. I think everything is canceled until tomorrow due to weather.

 

dont say that!!!!!!!!