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September 24, 2005
DEI, Michael Waltrip Appeals Penalities From Loudon
Here I am the morning of my wedding posting on my blog. Why? Because I'll go nuts if I don't do something to get my mind off the craziness of the day. So since accuracy and correcting misinformation as best as I can in this blog is important to me I figured I would mention that Michael Waltrip via DEI is appealing the penalties that Nascar gave him after the events at Loudon. On the forum on his official site Michael said that he didn't give the finger and that he "had no issues with his fingers last weekend." Which of course would make it ridiculous for Nascar to be penalizing him for giving the finger if he was only waving his hand out the window to get some air because his cooling system wasn't working too well as he said during an interview yesterday. The problem for Michael of course is that when you've got a whole bunch of people saying that they did see him give the finger even if he didn't so perhaps Nascar felt like they had to do something. The big question is will they overturn the penalty? How does one prove that there was no intention finger-giving when it looks like there might have been?
But Michael and Robby Gordon have seemingly made amends. I discussed in the entry prior how Michael offered to give Robby a new car from Michael Waltrip Racing to replace the wrecked one and they were both apparently on Trackside last night to discuss what happened between them. I think that really says something that after Robby threw such a huge temper tantrum and called Michael what he did that they seemed to have patched everything up. I'd guess that unless it's an on-going issue or the drivers really don't like each other that's probably what happens most of the time. Not that the drivers necessarily forget incidents, but they forgive each other a lot quicker than the fans who seem to hold grudges forever against drivers they feel have done their favorite drivers wrong.
Posted by silverdsl at 09:46 AM | Comments (0)
September 23, 2005
Michael Waltrip Makes His Brother Cry
Gee, Mikey, You Didn't Have to Do That
I feel compelled to do one other entry today because there are a lot of people out there who are under the impression that Michael Waltrip is selfish and self-centered but that couldn't be further from the truth. That should be obvious based on how hard he worked to raise $1 million through Operation Marathon for the Victory Junction Gang Camp as well as how incredibly much he does to be good to his fans. But two items the part few days really highlight to me what kind of a person Michael is. First is the above story in which he got his brother, Darrell, as a surprise, the #1 Pennzoil car he drove in 1998 for DEI when Steve Park was recovering from his accident. DW had some good runs in that car and it meant the world to him that Michael got it for him. Meant so much to him in fact that it made him cry. DW said in his column on Fox Sports,
"So I love you, brother, and I just want you to know how much I appreciate what you did. It was one of the sweetest things that anybody has ever done for me, and I'm just so blown away."
It brings tears to my eyes too because it wasn't always the case that Michael and DW were close. Over the years they have become as close as brothers should be but in the early days it definitely wasn't that way. So it warms my heart to hear DW say things like that about Michael and to hear that Michael did such an incredibly wonderful thing for his brother, not because he had to but because he knew that it would mean a lot to him to get that car. That's the thing about Michael - he does a lot of these things not because he has to or is forced to but because he wants to. Because he knows that it will make someone else smile or feel good. That's such an incredibly good quality that he has.
Here's the other thing that reflects what kind of a person Michael is: From Jayski's:
Waltrip and Gordon speak: on Speed Channel's new show, Back Seat Drivers, Robby Gordon said Michael Waltrip called him on Tuesday and apologized and even offered up a car from Michael Waltrip Motorsports if Gordon needs it, as Gordon said he is down on Intermediate Track cars [1 to 1.5 mile tracks]. But Gordon expects his team to have one ready for Kansas in a few weeks.(9-22-2005)
Robby Gordon called Michael "a piece of shit" but Michael was still willing to reach out to him to try to make things right. I think that's incredible that Michael called Robby in spite of the hard feelings and the nature of the incident between them and offered to give him a car from MWR if he needed it. And to those who say big deal, I say it is a big deal because cars don't just grow on trees. Even for Michael it's expensive to run MWR and I'm sure he doesn't have a huge amount of spare cars sitting around either. And Michael called Robby and made that offer with no fanfare, no public comment, no press release. No one would ever have known if Robby hadn't said anything. He did it not for damage control or good PR but because he thought it was the right thing to do.
Perhaps that's one big reason why I like Michael so much. Because through the years I've noticed him doing big and little things like this. Just reaching out to people and helping them when he can. Again not because he has to or for good PR but because he wants to. And that's something that I've always tried to do - help people when I can, do something nice for someone when I can. He sets a good example in that regard and it impresses me what he does big and small to make people happy or help them when he can. What Michael does inspires me to try to do even more to help people if I can.
Posted by silverdsl at 11:06 AM | Comments (2)
Done Deal: Michael Waltrip to Bill Davis Racing in 2006
So as I mentioned the only thing that would make me come out of blogging hiatus for the next two weeks is finding out where Michael is going for 2006 and beyond which has happened. Today it was announced that as widely rumored Michael would be joining with Bill Davis Racing in 2006. The best news is that his sponsor NAPA will be following him from DEI to BDR. First, I have to say that I am absolutely thrilled for Michael! I would be happy for him no matter where he signed but I truly believe that BDR is a diamond in the rough. I think I'm one of the few fans of his that was actually hoping that he would choose BDR over some other options because I think there are a few very really big positives about joining that organization. Though they may struggle in the short-term, I think that long-term BDR might offer Michael a really good chance at future success, depending on whether or not they do align themselves with Toyota in Cup in 2007. Michael is a lot more savvy than some give him credit for and he has a lot of good people around him so no matter how this all plays out I truly believe that this is the best possible choice for him.
There is so much that I want to say I'm not even sure where to begin so first I'll say why I'm so happy that Michael ended up at BDR. First and foremost, he's going to be "The Man" at BDR. Scott Wimmer will be his teammate, at least for now, since it's rumored that he may not remain with BDR, but I think Michael doesn't have to worry about getting overshadowed or getting secondary equipment like he did at DEI because of Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Especially since he brought a big-time sponsor with him. BDR is likely going to do all that they can in terms of offering Michael the best possible support and equipment that they can offer to help him succeed. Which in 2006 may not be as competitive as what some other teams are able to give but could get a whole lot better in 2007 and beyond if they join with Toyota. At Joe Gibbs Racing, the other organization it was rumored that he might join, Michael would be in the third tier car behind Tony Stewart and Bobby LaBonte and the #11 car has struggled mightily this season. So I don't think there would have been any guarantees that he would be racing any better in 2006 with Gibbs than with BDR.
Which brings me to the next reason why I'm so happy that Michael went to BDR - Toyota. I have no issues like some others do about Toyota coming to Cup. Yes, they're a foreign manufacturer but I've got news for everyone who has that complaint - better be throwing out that computer you're reading this with and quite a few other things in your house. Even American companies use a ton of parts and pieces from overseas manufacturers. But that's getting off the subject. Based on what I've seen from Toyota in the trucks, they do an exceptional job of taking care of their drivers and teams. That doesn't mean guaranteed success automatically but they do seem to give them quite a bit of support. And I do think that they will be competitive when they enter Cup. So I feel really good about the possiblity of Michael being one of their drivers! Why wouldn't they want him? If he represents them like he does NAPA, that would make them very happy indeed. He would be an outstanding ambassador for them in the sport.
I think some will be concerned that Michael only signed a one-year deal with BDR but I would guess that would relate to the possiblity of hooking up with Toyota. If I remember correctly in the trucks Toyota signs their drivers directly so if they enter Cup in 2007 Michael would likely sign a longer deal directly with them at that point. If they don't come Cup racing in 2007 or Michael doesn't like being at BDR or changes his mind about working with Toyota this gives him the ability to explore other options then. I think that it's a win-win situation for Michael, which doesn't lock him into BDR long-term if things don't work out with Toyota.
I have to laugh a little because not too long ago the BDR spokesperson was denying that they had even talked to Michael about 2006. But I was pretty sure at that time that was bullshit, maybe because they didn't want to show all their cards and potentially give another organization the opportunity to woo NAPA. It's funny how frequently in Nascar when there's a strong denial of something that's exactly what happens down the road, usually not too far in the future. That's one unfortunate thing in Nascar when that happens so often because it makes it hard to trust what anyone is saying. But I can save that rant for another day...
One thing that I am really thrilled about for Michael is that NAPA is staying with him! I think that relationship is an outstanding one! The president of NAPA, Bob Susor, said,
"It is no secret that our association with Michael has been a key ingredient of our marketing efforts. Race fans associate NAPA Auto Parts with Michael Waltrip and vice versa. Michael has promoted our brand in his own unique style."And he is so right about that. I know Michael likes to be acknowledged for his on-track accomplishments and abilities but there's no denying that he is the best out of all the drivers at taking care of his sponsors. No driver instinctively knows better, about interacting with fans, about handling his sponsors and getting them the most possible attention than Michael does. I'm not sure if people truly realize how outstanding Michael is in this area and all the people who think that NAPA is only known because they were associated with DEI and Junior are very mistaken about that. So it's no surprise to me in the least that NAPA is sticking with Michael. I mentioned interacting with fans because I think that's very key when it comes to promoting a sponsor - Michael does a ton of appearances and when fans have a positive experience with him, they think about his sponsors in a good light as well.
It's no small matter that NAPA is leaving DEI, no matter how much someJunior/DEI fans might like to play that down. NAPA is a $15-20 million sponsor and letting that kind of a sponsor walk out the door indicates that there are some huge failings at DEI. I discussed much of this back in June when Marty Smith wrote a column predicting exactly this and as I thought back then, I can only assume that someone was feeding him some very good information at that point. Some will say but they still have Budweiser, Bass Pro Shops and Menards once Paul Menard goes to Cup. However, if they still had NAPA that would mean that they might be able to have four cars instead of three in the future and certainly three cars full-time for 2006, something which I think is essential for DEI's future success. That they will likely only field two cars in 2006 may be a problem for them in terms of making advances from this season, considering one car will be fielded by a rookie. Martin Truex, Jr. is an exceptional driver but there will still be a period of adjustment when he comes to Cup full time. So that will put a lot of pressure on Junior. So NAPA leaving DEI is no small matter. Many are saying that NAPA will regret it but I highly doubt that's the case, particularly if they stay with Michael if he joins Toyota. That will be a high-profile arrangement and NAPA will have no regrets about that. Had they stayed with DEI the #15 would likely be what it is not, a second tier (and in the future third tier car) whereas at BDR the car they sponsor will likely be the focus of the operation.
What I'm wondering about is which other of Michael's sponsors will be following him to BDR? I'd guess that Domino's will since as I've noted on many occassions in this space, they do a huge amount of promotions with him and are a sponsor at Michael Waltrip Racing. Best Western is also a MWR sponsor and I'd guess that Klaussner Furniture having been involved with him for so long might also join him at BDR. So DEI really stands to lose a lot more than just NAPA. In the current environment in which Nascar operates losing sponsorship money is no small issue and despite the large sponsorship in the form of Budweiser I believe that if all these sponsors leave DEI with Michael then it will be costly. In the long-run they may be able to replace some of those sponsors but it's not as easy as it once was to aquire and keep sponsors.
The bottom line is that I have to applaud Michael for his forward thinking. The other day I wrote a long entry about Steve Park's future in racing, something I'm not feeling too optimistic about long-term. On the other hand, I feel extremely optimistic about Michael and his chances for continuing to race for several more years. Michael is actually doing worse in the points than Steve this season, but he's been able to show this season that with good cars he can race competitively up front against any other driver. I think Michael has really been able to open some eyes this season and that in combination with how well he represents his sponsors means that I think his future is very bright for him. He may race for Toyota for a few years in a partnership which I think would be outstanding or he might choose to do something else, including field a Cup car for himself full-time. But no matter what he does I very much think that he's going to do very well!
Regardless of how successful Michael is now or in the future, I believe in him and support him 110%. There could be some rough spots in 2006 but I will be just as much of a fan no matter what happens. Michael deserves all the success in the world and I hope that is on the horizon for him!
Posted by silverdsl at 10:09 AM | Comments (0)
September 21, 2005
Going on Hiatus...
For the next two and a half weeks this blog will be on hiatus, other than perhaps an entry when I find out who Michael Waltrip's new team is. I'm going to be getting married and going on my honeymoon. I will have internet access and my laptop in Aruba but I think it's highly unlikely that I'll be doing much blogging, though one never knows if I might be inclined to post a photo or two while we're away. As always when we go away we will still be keeping an eye on NYYFans. Hopefully when I return I'll be nice and relaxed - I'll definitely be happy since I'll be a newlywed! But hopefully I'll also have a little more time to blog about a more varied amount of topics other than Nascar when I get back.
Posted by silverdsl at 12:26 AM | Comments (0)
Win Steve Park's Chopper
Proceeds to Benefit the Victory Junction Gang Camp
Carolina Choppers is conducting an online raffle in which one lucky person will win Steve Park's chopper which is autographed by him. Tickets are $5 and all proceeds go towards the VJGC, a most worthy cause.
Posted by silverdsl at 12:21 AM | Comments (0)
September 20, 2005
Robby Gordon Does Damage Control
Proceeds to Benefit Hurricane Recovery Efforts
First up I have to applaud Robby Gordon for doing his part to help raise money to assist Hurricane Katrina victims by auctioning off the helmet he threw at Michael Waltrip during Sunday's race on Ebay. If all the bids are legitamite Robby will end up raising a significant amount of money for the Harrah’s Employee Relief Fund. But what amuses me is that aside from trying to help others, Robby is also trying to help himself. Doing an auction like this will redeem him in many people's eyes so naturally since many Nascar fans are thinking he has a few screws loose after his antics at Loudon, the press release about this auction was disseminated far and wide, seemingly to every possible media outlet considering how many mentions I've seen of it both on the web and in the mainstream media. That's not a bad thing of course because the more publicity the auction gets the higher the bids will likely go, hence the more money will go to the Harrah's employees effected by the hurricane. But Robby is not only doing this out of the goodness of his heart but also for self-serving reasons as well. Regardless of his reasons this really is a good thing and I hope that it's a huge success.
Posted by silverdsl at 11:42 PM | Comments (0)
Simon Wiesenthal Dead at 96
Dedicated His Life to Fighting Prejudice
I only wish my life could impact so many people in such a significant way.
"Justice for crimes against humanity must have no limitations."
"Survival is a privilege which entails obligations. I am forever asking myself what I can do for those who have not survived."
Those are a few of the principles by which he led his life. A Holocaust survivor, Wiesenthal tracked Nazi war criminals after the end of World War II, bringing over 1,100 of them to justice. Then he spent years fighting against anti-semitism and other forms of prejudice. Wiesenthal was someone who I looked up to and admired tremendously. R.I.P.
Posted by silverdsl at 11:20 PM | Comments (0)
What Does the Future Hold For Steve Park?
This entry is for all the people who have been intimidated out of openly discussing their thoughts about Steve Park and his future in racing. For those people, and you know who you are, I write this blog entry. And in case there's any confusion for those people who feel that this is a topic that should not be discussed - This is my blog.
While I've watched racing since I was a little girl the first driver that I ever became a die-hard fan of is Steve Park. I've discussed before how I became a fan of Steve's and some of the reasons why I like him so much previously so I won't go into here but it can pretty much be summed up by saying that Steve has a tremendous amount of qualities to admire both on and off the track. I believe with all my heart that Steve is a talented driver who can race up front and win when he's given the equipment and support that will allow him to do that. I will support Steve 110% no matter what he does, in racing or otherwise, and I will remain a fan of his long after he's raced his final race. What matters to me more than anything is that I want Steve to be happy, truly happy, because he's had to endure so many tough times in his life.
I say all this because I want it to be crystal clear that I have not now, nor will I ever stop believing in Steve, give up on him as a race car driver or think that he doesn't have the talent to race in Nascar. But increasingly this season I, and a number of other people, all die-hard fans of Steve, have started to wonder how much longer he'll be racing in Nascar. A few years ago I never would have thought that there would be any doubts that Steve would race well into his 40's. Sometimes this season I've worried that Steve won't be racing past this season, let alone several years in the future. That's not because I don't think Steve can race his way into Victory Lane - far from it. But I'm getting concerned that the direction that Nascar is going in combined with less than steller results this season may prematurely end Steve's racing career. And sometimes I'm not sure that Steve would be all that unhappy about that.
Of course I'm not privvy to Steve's mindset or how he thinks or feels about much of anything other than what he chooses to share publically which to be frank isn't much these days unless one encounters him at an appearance or at the track. But what I do know is that when you have a 39-year old driver who is 17th in points in the truck series and has done little of note on the track since February, it's not making a positive impression on the decision makers in this sport who hire and fire drivers. The worst part is that being 17th in points isn't because of anything that Steve is doing. It's because he's had to deal with countless engine problems and other mechanical failures, problems in the pits and trucks that just won't go or allow him to race up front. But the cold hard truth is that when it's all said and done many times it's only the fans who look deeper into the numbers and see that often Steve has been running up front only to have his day ruined when the electrical system goes or some other misfortune befalls him. I truly think that any driver could be put into the #62 and the results would be no better.
I would be surprised if things remain status quo at Orleans Racing next season. In fact I'd be disappointed if that's what happened. I have no doubt that everyone at Orleans Racing thinks very highly of Steve as a person and gives 100% percent effort towards doing their jobs the best that they can but the fact of the matter is that fielding two teams isn't working out too well. The #77 team with general manager and son of the owner, Brendan Gaughan has out performed the #62 team for quite some time now. That in spite of the fact that the #77 team was supposed to be the just-for-fun team and Steve's team was supposed to be the primary team that every resource would be put behind to make every effort to win Steve the Championship. Now despite missing two races, Brendan is only two spots behind Steve in the points and has finished better than Steve in more than half of the races that he's been in. Meanwhile, week after week the #62 seems to struggle to race better than mid-pack. And I can't see how that can continue into next season.
I've harped on the lack of a primary sponsor for the #62 on more than one occasion and I strongly feel that has contributed to some of the issues we've seen this season. Sponsors are what makes this sport go 'round - there is no two ways about that. Oh sure, The Orleans is on the truck but that is a family owned business. There is no primary outside sponsor to answer to, no outside sponsor to put pressure on the team for good results and no outside sponsor that gives Orleans Racing big money to have their logos on the truck. I have no idea why in two seasons Orleans Racing has been unable to find a full-time primary sponsor for that truck because one would think that with a driver who can win races, is incredibly fan-friendly and would represent any sponsor incredibly well there would be sponsors lining up for the chance to get on the #62 truck. But that's not happened. So Orleans Racing could easily eliminate the #62 team for next season and stick with just the #77 team which has a primary sponsor and has seemingly been getting top ten after ten, race after race. I'd love it if they went the other way and made the necessary changes to the team to make them a powerhouse with Steve behind the wheel but will they do that? If that didn't happen this season when they said that it would, why would it happen next season?
So that makes me wonder where Steve will be next season. Maybe still with Orleans Racing. Or maybe not. I highly doubt that Steve is happy racing this way. Especially when I'm starting to feel shades of what went on at Richard Childress Racing when Steve was in the #30 Cup car, an experience that Steve has since referred to as a "mistake." He was clearly miserable in 2003 in that ride and while I know he is a thousand times more happy in the truck series and at Orleans Racing, I can't help but wonder if he's starting to look at what his options might be with other teams. And there's always the possiblilty that when Orleans Racing makes changes for next season one of those changes will be to part ways with Steve.
So where does Steve go from there? That's what worries me. The push in Nascar, at least on the higher levels, is towards youth. As much as I'd love to see Steve in a quality Busch or Cup ride realistically I don't think that's going to happen. If he'd be willing to settle for a subpar ride maybe he could race on those levels but I don't think he'd want to settle, nor should he, considering how much I think his career has suffered from being in lousy rides that weren't competitive which led to people assuming that he was damaged goods when he wasn't. So if he leaves Orleans Racing it will probably be for another truck team and I hope there is one out there that sees past the points finish. There isn't as much pressure in the truck series for success as there is in Cup but there are still expectations. Teams want their trucks to race up front and I worry that when those that pay attention to these things see Brendan up front all the time but not Steve they will come to some conclusions that might not be very good ones about Steve.
What I've come to wonder about is whether Steve would be that broken-hearted if he didn't have a ride for 2006. Let me make it clear that I'm not doubting Steve's passion for racing. But other than last season he's had to deal with quite a few non-competitive cars and trucks the past few seasons and I think that would wear on anyone. His frustration has shown on several occasions this season and I highly doubt he's satisfied or happy with what his team has achieved thus far. So part of me wonders if he wouldn't be just as happy riding his Harley around the country with his girlfriend on the back as he is racing when he's stuck with trucks that aren't capable of doing much. Steve is a very strong person, that much is clear given how hard he worked to come back from his accident and race again. But even the strongest of people reach their breaking point eventually. And I'd guess that the older Steve gets the less and less appeal racing non-competitive trucks has.
Whatever Steve ends up doing in 2006 and beyond I hope that it's what will satisfy him and make him happy. Not what he thinks he has to do otherwise he will disappoint someone. Not what he thinks that his fans want. What he wants to do. I know full well that doing what he wants isn't always what happens but it's of utmost importance that Steve lives his life for himself and not for anyone else. The happiest I've ever seen Steve was when he won the truck race in Fontana earlier this season. I've never seen him smile so much or look so overjoyed. And seeing him that overwhelmingly happy has really made me want nothing more for him than for him to feel that good on a regular basis - I hope that no matter where his journey in life takes him that's what happens.
Posted by silverdsl at 09:21 PM | Comments (0)
Penalties Announced: No Drivers Parked
Robby Gordon, Michael Waltrip, Kasey Kahne, Brian Vickers Penalized After Loudon
Yesterday I was concerned that Michael Waltrip might get penalized by Nascar for the altercation with Robby Gordon even though I don't think that incident was much more than one of those racing deals. Well, he was penalized only it was for the other thing that I noted he might get in trouble for - that he apparently gave the finger to Robby during the helmet-throwing and that was caught on camera despite Michael's best efforts to be sly about it. While I think it's ridiculous that drivers are fined and get points taken away for giving the finger and even more so when it can barely be seen, which is the case with Michael, rules are rules. As much as I hate it for him, if he gave the finger on camera he has to deal with the consequences of that since he knows that's a big no-no. Michael of all drivers is extremely camera-aware and sometimes adjusts his behavior accordingly, hence why he probably tried to give the finger in a way that no one would notice. Nascar did notice but what did he really have to lose anyway? I'm sure he doesn't want to have to pay out $10,000 but to drivers who earn millions a year it's not like he can't afford it and the points don't mean too much considering where he is in the standings. Since he's not in the #15 next season the owner points certainly don't matter to him either. Though at this point Teresa Earnhardt is probably composing a memo to all employees forbidding the use of the middle finger for anything ever, since this is the second week in a row that a DEI driver has given the finger on camera and cost her owner points.
What amazes me is that a few fans are unwilling to believe that Michael would ever give the finger to anyone, ever. It would probably come as a shock to those fans to know that it's likely that there aren't many races that Michael and every other driver on the track isn't flipping off someone at least once. As was discussed previously on Inside Nextel Cup, hand signs are the only way that drivers have to communicate with each other and the finger is the way that one driver lets another driver "Hey you're an idiot!." It's not like they can cuss a guy out and have it be heard so they give the finger to let their displeasure be known. And I say freaking deal if Michael gave the finger! That doesn't make him or any other driver who expresses themselves in that way a bad person. Simply a man who wanted to let his fellow driver know that helmet throwing didn't sit too well with him.
Michael is a human being like anyone else - he experiences the full range of human emotions, he's not perfect and he has his flaws. Thanks to winning the Operation Marathon auction and being around Michael a year ago at Dover I got to see him in a different setting than some others have which I think has helped me see him not just as Michael Waltrip my favorite race car driver, but also as Michael Waltrip the human being. There are plenty of other fans who see the drivers as I do too but so many who have such rigid ways of looking at them. As I've complained about in this space before, some fans hold these folks to an impossibly high standard for how they should think, speak and act. Which means that sometimes they would be disappointed if their hero did something less than perfect and they have trouble accepting certain behaviors. Whereas I except that the drivers aren't always going to do what I would do in a particular situation, aren't always going to to what I want them to do and are going to do things that I don't like sometimes. Everyone, including the drivers, have different values, opinions and beliefs, and might lead their lives in a different way than I do. That's their right. Everyone has to lead their life to please themselves, not anyone else, not even the fans.
After Jim Hunter's comments to the media after Sunday's race in which he said,
"You're going to see some pretty stiff penalties coming out of this. [NASCAR President Mike Helton] said we are going to do whatever we need to whether it's park a guy a week or nine weeks.I think that Nascar completely wussed out by not parking any driver after the antics from Sunday's race. They sent a message all right - a message that using one's car as a weapon and trying to run over another driver in retaliation under caution only garners one a slap on the wrist. Oh sure, Kasey Kahne was fined and both he and his owner had points taken away. And Robby will also have to pay up for his actions. Robby was also docked 50 driver points and Jim Smith, 50 owner points. That will be very costly for Robby since it pretty much assures that he will not finish the season in the top 35 and won't be guaranteed a spot in the first three races next season. But I hardly think that those penalties will be much of a deterrent because they anything other than the usual penalities handed down for almost every infraction, which is ridiculous. Michael lost the same amount of points for giving the finger as Kasey did for retalitating against Kyle Busch!
Mike Helton said,
"There have been a growing number of incidents lately where drivers have taken matters into their own hands. Such unsafe and inappropriate behavior has to stop. NASCAR will use whatever means necessary to stop it."Parking a driver would have ensured that the drivers would think twice about using their cars to retaliate under caution. Fines, which almost every one of them can pay easily, and the loss of points isn't much of a deterrant, other than perhaps to drivers who are in the Chase. But by not taking a strong stance when they threatened to do so, Nascar comes off as weak, in my opinion. You've got two drivers who clearly did wrong, both of whom lost their ability to think straight and while Nascar has certainly not turned a blind eye they've not taken the strong steps that would ensure that this behavior wouldn't be repeated.
Maybe that's because in spite of what they're saying publically they aren't all that unhappy about the events during Sunday's race and don't really want to stop it. No race this season has gotten this much attention. The antics by the various involved drivers will be debated, talked about and remembered for quite some time to come. As much as Nascar might frown upon the behavior, they surely aren't diappointed by the attention. Not one bit. So my feeling is that they wanted to come down hard, but not so hard as to scare the drivers into complete submission. Helmet-throwing and cussing on-air, as well as the potential that it might happen again in the future, adds a level of excitement to the race that we unfortunately haven't been seeing all that much from the actual racing. That's the biggest shame of all in my opinion - with a few exceptions, much of the racing has got so boring that Nascar has to depend on the immature antics of a couple of drivers to compell fans to be excited.
Going back to the incident between Robby Gordon and Michael Waltrip, Michael said on Inside Nextel Cup last night that apparently Robby was upset with him even before Sunday's race. During the race weekend Robby confronted Michael and said that he was angry over a comment Michael said on the previous week's INC. I can't remember exactly what was said but I believe they were showing footage of an incident Robby was involved with and Michael made a comment to the effect of how Robby was driving over his head again. I have to say that while I don't remember the specifics of what was said it did catch my attention at the time and I was surprised by how candid Michael was in his opinion of Robby. I'm not so sure Michael was wrong in what he was saying - as talented of a driver as Robby is he puts himself into situations on the track that he might have trouble getting out of successfully without doing damage to his car of that of his competitors. But I can understand why Robby wasn't pleased with what Michael said. Given that they were friendly previously, if not friends, I can see where Robby's feelings might have been hurt. My feeling is that Robby's anger over that comment might have fueled his reaction to the incident on the track with Michael, maybe even contributed to that incident happening in the first place. That's unacceptable to me. On the race track personal feelings have to be set aside for everyone's sake.
I think Michael might not have made a wise decision in saying what he did about Robby on INC in the way that he did but my guess is that it just slipped out rather than that he had any kind of malicious intent to hurt Robby. And the appropriate way to handle it as Robby seemed to have done initially is discuss it with Michael. But to then freak out over an incident oin the track in the way that he did, culminating in calling Michael a "piece of shit" during his post-incident interview is excessive. Perhaps Robby was thinking that he would get back at Michael and give him a taste of his own medicine but that's childish. Two wrongs don't make a right. I would also guess that Michael probably felt guilty about the comment after the fact, certainly after hearing that it angered Robby, and maybe he even felt bad about it.
While he's made small comments here or there, it's never been Michael's style to flatout rip another driver publically. I have no doubt that there are some drivers that he doesn't like and some drivers who he thinks are less talented than others but for the most part Michael keeps the majority of those thoughts to himself, even about people he's tangled with like Jeff Green. It's always seemed to me that when Michael gives his thoughts on INC he simply discusses what he thinks of individual incidents or certain things that particular drivers have done during that race rather than passing judgement on them as people or drivers. Last night on INC Michael said that he hopes that everyone realizes that there are two people "in here," meaning inside himself, Michael the race car driver and Michael the guy who comes on INC to talk about the sport he loves. And I think that's a good point not only for his fellow drivers, but also for fans to remember. When Michael is on INC he is in a way playing a role and that doesn't necessarily fully reflect the person or the driver that he is or the totality of what he thinks. And what he says on the show certainly shouldn't have any impact on what happens at the racetrack.
Oh yeah, Brian Vickers and his team were penalized too. Nascar confiscated their primary car on Friday when it failed inspection because it didn't fit some of the templates. The team apparently tried to fix it but were unable to do so which meant that Nascar wasn't going to let them on the track with it the way that it was. The #25 team claims that they forfeited the car so that they could have time to get the back-up car ready for Brian to practice in, as opposed to Nascar confiscating it. But that's just semantics. They had no choice but to hand the car over to Nascar because it was in violation. Another week this might be big news but in light of everything else that happened, that the #25 team had a whole car taken from them, and whether they were deliberately trying to get away with something or just made a mistake will fly completely under the radar.
So the end result of all of this is that some money is going to change hands and some hard-earned points will be taken away but in the end all the drivers who normally race each weekend will be present at Dover. And who knows what might happen at the Monster Mile?
Posted by silverdsl at 09:24 AM | Comments (0)
September 19, 2005
Photo of the Day - Valley of Fire State Park
Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada. January, 2005. I wanna go back!!!
Posted by silverdsl at 11:16 PM | Comments (0)
So Michael got fined much to my amusement for giving the finger to Robby Gordon and there were other penalties handed down, though none of them as harsh as I thought they were going to be. Only I can't blog about any of it tonight! But tomorrow I'll have plenty to say for sure!
Posted by silverdsl at 11:12 PM | Comments (0)
Revisiting the Robby Gordon/Michael Waltrip Incident
I've been thinking about this incident today so naturally I have more to say. It's being said, and I have no idea how accurate it is because I didn't see it for myself, that when Robby Gordon lost his mind and threw his helmet at Michael Waltrip that Michael subtly gave Robby the finger, then quickly changed that into a wave knowing that he would be seen on his in-car camera and probably on the TNT broadcast. Frankly, while I have no idea if Michael actually did give the finger, that seems like exactly the sly kind of thing that he might do and it kind of amuses me.
Personally, I have no problem with drivers giving the finger to each other. I think it's ridiculous to think that Michael would never do such a thing - of course he does, every driver does. They get angry they give the finger. But every driver knows that giving the finger on camera is a big no-no so if Michael did in fact do that, as much as I adore him, he's going to have to face the music on that one. I really couldn't argue much with Nascar penalizing him for that - rules are rules and while I don't happen to think that Nascar should be handing out penalities for giving the finger, that's what they've decided that they're going to do and that's the rule the drivers need to abide by. But hopefully it will turn out that Michael didn't in fact give the finger and he will be in the all-clear in that regard.
Increasingly there's a lot of talk that Michael wrecked Robby under caution and I think that's pretty much a judgment call. If the caution was out I think it was out as the incident was unfolding when it was unlikely that anything could be done to avoid the incident. We're talking less than seconds here and I doubt that either party could extricate themselves in the fraction of an instant that the caution probably came out and then Robby was wrecked. In thinking about it further my feeling is that if blame absolutely has to be placed then it falls on both men's shoulders. Robby was racing Michael hard in a way that he had to know could get him in trouble - and did. And Michael choose to hold his ground and not give way to Robby. So I'm finding that I really can't find fault in either Robby or Michael for that incident. Sometimes cars come together on the track and things happen - that's racing.
It's what unfolded afterwards that I really have a problem with. Robby backing into traffic to try and hit Michael - can't be doing that under any circumstances no matter how angry he is. Robby throwing his helmet at Michael - in some ways it was pretty funny but he absolutely can't be walking onto the track while the cars are still going around, risking his own safety and putting the other drivers in a position where they have to worry about damaging their cars or injuring him if they can't stop in time. Calling Michael a "piece of shit" is ridiculously over the line, particularly given Nascar's rules about cursing during interviews. I think the drivers have the right to get angry with each other but they absolutely have to be keeping themselves under control and not throw temper tantrums.
There are a lot of fans who are viewing Robby as a hero and applauding the overall emotions and actions of those drivers who lost their heads. After all, it brought a certain amount of excitement to the proceedings that had been missing from many races recently. Well, I'd like that excitement to come in the form of good racing on the track, not because a few drivers decide to act like five-year olds. I've just never been one to celebrate bad behavior. Some feel that Nascar has become too restrictive and too buttoned down, that the drivers are forced to behave like emotionless robots. I'd agree with that - I have no problem with drivers showing emotion and speaking their minds. But I think what we saw yesterday was excessive, very excessive. And just because in the past drivers fought with each other and those kinds of displays were more acceptable then doesn't mean that it's okay now. Times change and rules change. The drivers have to abide by the rules that exist in the here and now, not the way things used to be.
A lot of people are using this incident to bash Michael as a person and as a racer. That's unfortunate because I really do think that this was one of those racing deals that comes with the territory. No driver is perfect, not Michael, not Robby, for those who are reading not your driver either. But to some fans any involvement with any kind of incident seems to indicate that a driver is a talentless racer and a horrible person. That's far from the truth. Fans need to show more tolerance and understand that this incident doesn't make Michael an awful person and frankly I don't think it makes Robby a horrible person either. Robby lost his mind and I fully disagree with his actions but is Robby a bad person? I can't say one way or another. He does a lot of charity work, like Michael and is extremely fan-friendly, like Michael. I do think that Robby has done other things on the track that have made me think he's an asshat as a racer but as a person I can't make that call.
If Michael gets penalized and I'm starting to think he will be, not necessarily because he did anything wrong but more because Nascar might want to make an example out of him, I will be very upset. But he will have to take his punishment, deal with it and move on. Right or wrong Nascar is going to do what they want, when they want.
Posted by silverdsl at 04:07 PM | Comments (0)
Interesting Comment By Jade Gurss on DEI
Jade Gurss, one of Dale Earnhardt, Jr.'s public relations people is candid in his blog, sometimes surprisingly so. During a recap of the oh, so exciting race at Loudon Jade talked about how good it was to hear Tony Eury, Jr. over the #8 radio working with Junior once more. However, Jade tempered his excitement over the reunion of the two Juniors by saying that it wasn't going to be the magic pill to immediately fix all of the problems that Junior has had to endure this season. Why does Jade think that way? Because he feels, much like many others that DEI still has some major issues to resolve. He said,
"While I don't think Tony Jr.'s return solves all of the problems (those go deep and to the top of DEI), it is a welcome relief to be quick from the start of the weekend and to remain competitve through the race."
On a couple of other occasions Jade has made subtle, veiled remarks about possibly disagreeing with the approach that DEI has on some matters. But this is the first time that I can remember that he's flatout said that DEI has "deep" problems that go right to the top. I can't even begin to speculate on what he means by that but one thing's for sure - Jade is certainly in a position to know if there are "deep" problems at DEI.
But Jade really isn't stating anything surprising. That DEI allowed the centerpiece of their entire operation, the #8 team to get into a position where they struggled so much this season and failed to make the Chase for the Championship signifies that there are problems. That it appears that a sponsor who spends perhaps as much as $20 million is about to walk out the door and spend that money with another organization speaks to those problems. That Michael Waltrip and Steve Park were treated as second-class citizens at DEI speaks to the issues that need to be resolved. That Richie Gilmore, who should be running the engine shop, something that he is very talented at, is forced into a position where he has to fill a role which I think he might not be suited for, speaks to those issues. That personnel such as Ty Norris and Slugger Labbe have left, also making reference to problems, well, it all adds up to a troubled organization where some changes need to be made.
The question is - will they make those changes in a substantial way? Reuniting the two Juniors only solves the issue of who Junior's crew chief is going to be in 2006. There has been talk of getting new blood in to take Richie Gilmore's job so he can go back to the engine shop. That would be a wise move. But I think there needs to be some changes in organizational philosophy that need to happen as well and until it does DEI may continue to experience problems.
Some may say how can Jade say something like that considering what his job is? Well, Jade doesn't work for DEI, nor does he work for Junior. Jade's company is Fingerprint, Inc. which handles the public relations for the #8 team for primary sponsor Budweiser and parent company, Anheuser-Busch. It gets kind of confusing but that's how it works with many of the teams - there's a public relations person who does PR for the sponsor via the team which also ends up being a lot of PR for the driver themselves. But then you might also have a PR person for the organization such as JR Rhodes at DEI and then the driver themselves might have a personal publicist like Brooke Hondros for Michael Waltrip. I'd guess that the larger the team and more visible the driver and sponsor the more PR people are in the mix. I have no idea how they all coordinate since while they generally all have a similar goal, there may be slight differences in what they're trying to achieve.
But in essence Jade doesn't answer to DEI so he's free to comment as he'd like. And he most certainly did in this case. It will be interesting to see what DEI's future is.
Posted by silverdsl at 09:54 AM | Comments (0)
September 18, 2005
Michael Waltrip Tangles With Robby Gordon; Ugliness Ensues
Racing is an emotional sport and I have no problem when drivers show some emotion. I completely understand that there are times when tempers flare and that drivers are going to get angry and upset when they get wrecked. But I still think that drivers need to keep themselves under control and act like adults, something that Robby Gordon was completely unable to do today. Kasey Kahne also showed a lack of good judgment today as well, but Robby really lost it after an incident with Michael Waltrip. Both incidents were highly frowned upon by Nascar and that could be extremely costly for the involved parties.
A lot of fans are focusing on the incident itself between Michael and Robby but I think it's the aftermath that was far uglier than when the two cars made contact. It's hard to say exactly what happenend because a wreck with Mike Bliss and Joe Nemechek happened at almost the same time and the TV cameras focused on that initially. But it appears that just as the caution was coming out Robby started moving up the track and Michael was left with a choice - either hold his ground or get planted into the wall. So he held his ground and Robby ended up in the wall with Michael going into the grass. Robby felt that Michael deliberately turned him into the wall and I think that's unlikely. Michael simply doesn't race that way. Is it possible that he got frustrated with Robby and didn't give way or turned when he couldn't have done something else? Yes. But I highly doubt that Michael decided that he was going to intentionally wreck Robby - why would he?
Some are claiming that the caution was already out and Michael wrecked Robby under caution. But it sure didn't seem that way to me based on what was being said over Michael's radio. Michael is one of the most safety conscious drivers out there and I'd be surprised if he didn't let up when the caution lights came out and deliberately wrecked Robby. That's just never been his style. Michael certainly gets angry like any other driver and he will retalitate if pushed hard enough such as
when he and Jeff Green tangled earlier in the season. But under caution? That strikes me as very unlikely. If in the unlikely event that Michael decided to punt Robby, and again I doubt that Michael deliberately decided to wreck Robby, then he likely didn't know that the caution had come out. But I don't think the caution had come out yet and in that case I see nothing wrong with Michael standing his ground and making sure that he didn't get wrecked, something that has happened to him quite a few times this season.
But given Michael's explanation over his radio to his team and also to Benny Parsons during the race it sure didn't sound like he was an angry driver who was looking for vengence for something. In fact I think he sounded a little shocked that it happened. Particularly after what happened next...
I didn't see this on the TV broadcast but it's being said that Robby then tried to back his car into Michael as he was getting back onto the track after the incident. That's a no-no right there, though I can't say much about it because I didn't see it. But everyone saw what happened next. Robby wanted to ensure that Michael knew exactly how upset he was. So after his car came to a stop he got out, took off his helmet, walked into the middle of race traffic, waited for Michael to come around and threw his helmet at him!
I can't imagine what was running through Robby's mind when he decided that it would be a good idea to go out on the track like that. Okay, yeah I do know what was going through Robby's head - he was seeing red and he wanted to make sure that he got a message across to Michael that he was pissed off. But to take it those extremes is ridiculous! He walked in front of several cars that had to stop for him - what if they weren't able to stop for some reason? What if, as unlikely as it might be, his helmet damaged another driver's car? Drivers walking into the middle of traffic, even if it's under caution, just can't be happening. Imagine the consequences if Robby had been hit by Tony Stewart or Bobby Hamilton, Jr. because they couldn't stop for him? I shutter to think about what might have happened.
The funny part was that listening to it unfold over Michael's radio, Joey, his spotter, "spotted" Robby throwing the helmet just like he would spot him through anything else happening on the track. I think the helmet throwing really caught Michael off-guard. He flinched and ducked in the car, even though there was no way he was going to get hit by the helmet and it was only then that he called Robby an idiot. In his interview with Benny, Michael said that no one had ever thrown their helmet at him before so I'm not sure he quite knew how to react. Really, what can he do? He can't take back the incident and he can't stop Robby from throwing the helmet.
However, the fireworks weren't over yet. Robby then preceeded to give an interview to TNT in which he said "Everyone thinks that Michael is a good guy, he isn't a good guy, he's a piece of shit." Now that just crosses all sorts of lines. First of all every single driver knows that they can't curse on TV otherwise it's an automatic fine and loss of points. Secondly, and more importantly in my mind is that drivers simply can't be insulting each other like that. Yes, they're going to get angry with each other and call each other idiots or say that something was stupid from time to time. But calling another driver a piece of shit? Sorry, that's totally uncalled for. Especially when Robby's referring to a driver who the vast majority of the time races his competitors extremely clean. And a driver that Robby knows full well is a good guy via his charity work and otherwise. I say full well because Robby was at the Hootie and the Blowfish concert that Michael had for Operation Marathon in Las Vegas. Robby on the other hand is a pest to many of his fellow competitors and I suspect that he's not getting much sympathy from the other drivers right about now.
I'm stunned that this incident turned into what it did. Stuff happens on the track and that's just a part of racing. I can understand that Robby is upset that he ended up wrecked, especially when he was running well and since he fields his own cars but it happens. And he of all drivers should understand this considering that he's caused his own share of wrecks through the years. Some by putting himself into positions on the track where he shouldn't put himself. I don't expect the drivers to be unfeeling robots but I do expect them to show some maturity. Throwing a temper tantrum and acting like a five-year old is unacceptable in my book. He's got to act like the adult that he is and realize that as angry as he might be he still needs to follow Nascar's rules which means that he can't be trying to get into Michael after the incident, he can't be throwing his helmet and he certainly can't be saying "shit" during a TV interview. He will certainly be at the very least fined and lose points for his childish behavior, maybe even have to sit out a race too especially since it comes on the heels of being parked for five laps last week for aggressive driving. That should have been a warning to him that he needs to chill out and keep a low profile.
Some fans are saying that Michael should be penalized too and I think that would be wrong. He was called to the big white hauler after the race but I hope that was to give his side of the story and because Nascar wants to make sure that nothing escalates between he and Robby. If Nascar really took issue with Michael's actions I think they would have penalized him during the race or at the very least given him a warning but nothing was ever said over Michael's radio about Nascar having a problem with him. But I don't think it's right for Michael to be punished for standing his ground and keeping himself from getting wrecked. It makes me sick to my stomach to think that Michael might get parked over this incident.
Robby wasn't the only driver to lose his mind. Kyle Busch got into Kasey Kahne which sent Kasey into the wall. But Kasey didn't just drive off the track and into the garage. Oh no, timid little Kasey suddenly wasn't so timid anymore. He waited until Kyle came back around under caution and then tried to get into him. And not just by giving him a little tap either. Kasey drove right across his front hood and that can't be happening either. I understand retaliation but I really don't like it. I don't think that drivers should be using their cars as a weapon. But I do understand that it's a part of the sport - drivers feel wronged and they want some payback. Same as the practice of pitchers seeking retalitation for when one of the own hitters gets hit by an opposing pitcher. However, if a driver is going to retaliate going it has to happen in an appropriate way - while there's actual racing going on. Kasey can't be trying to run drivers over during a caution no matter how much wrong Kyle did him. That is blatantly and deliberately seeking retaliation. Kasey will pay for that.
In addition, Kurt Busch was wrecked early on by Scott Riggs. I don't think Riggs didn't anything intentional, simply got loose but understandably Kurt was extremely displeased since he's racing for the Championship and suddenly the first race of the Chase he finds himself wrecked before lap ten. So Kurt took a stroll down pit road, numerous members of the media trailing behind him, and had a chat with Scott Rigg's crew chief. I have no problem with that. Kurt didn't throw any punches and didn't even yell. He simply wanted to make it known in a strong way that he was upset. Some say he should be penalized for that chat but I don't see a thing wrong with what he did. As long as a driver is behaving appropriately and is under control, and I think Kurt was, then I see no problem with him speaking his mind.
Oh yeah, Ryan Newman won this race. But no one's going to be talking about that and Nascar is sure to be extremely displeased that instead fans will be talking about the antics of Kasey Kahne and Robby Gordon as well as debating who was at fault in the incident between Robby and Michael. Which is something I think is ridiculous. At some point or another every single driver has made a mistake, shown poor judgement, or otherwise done something to cause a wreck. Things happen on the track, sometimes very unfortunate things and no driver is perfect. So I find the obsession with fault-finding, stringing some drivers up by the ankles and making them into villians a little excessive. Today's goat is tomorrow's hero and tomorrow's hero is next week's goat.
Punishments will come on Tuesday and I will have my fingers crossed that Michael isn't one of the drivers who will be penalized.
Posted by silverdsl at 07:59 PM | Comments (2)
Milwaukee Brewers Give Away Free Tickets to Last Game of Season
I think this is a pretty good idea by the Milwaukee Brewers to get fans into the stadium. For their September 29th game they did an "All Fans Free" promotion in which they gave away 25,000 free tickets to the game via the box office, the internet and by phone. Some may wonder why the Brewers would do something like that because it means that they are going to take a loss on the ticket sales. But in the long run they will end up making a lot of money on concessions which which could even end up surpassing what they might have made on tickets that they would normally have sold. As one of the worst teams in all of baseball the Brewers likely don't sellout many games. So now they have a sellout crowd the vast majority of whom will probably spend some money on refreshments. In addition, the Brewers have created a considerable amount of good will among fans which could pay off in future ticket sales.
Posted by silverdsl at 03:05 PM | Comments (0)
Payola Not a Thing of the Past
Ever wonder why some truly lousy songs seem to become big hits? It may not be due to a bunch of people calling radio stations and asking for their favorite song to be played or purchasing it in a store or online. It may be that the record company has paid radio stations to make sure that the song gets played in the form of cash, goods such as vacations and plasma TVs or radio station giveaways. Of course payola isn't a new practice but it is an illegal one. New York State attorney general Elliott Spitzer is conducting an investigation into the practices of record companies as it relates to payola and the results aren't pretty.
Artists such as Jennifer Lopez, Beyonce, Celine Dion, Jessica Simpson, Audioslave, Good Charlotte, Train and others may have benefited from payola. The funny thing is that the costs of payola are often paid by the artists themselves without them ever knowing because it comes out of their royalities, almost as a promotional cost. But at least in a vague sort of way I'd say that the artists probably have some idea that things like this are going on. But I doubt that they care much. As long as they don't get in trouble with the law about it, why would they complain if the record companies do something which is going to help them get a hit song?
And the more a record is played on the radio the more it encourages record sales because the song becomes more and more familiar to listeners the more they hear it. Not to mention they probably think that it truly is a popular song if it's getting played so often and they don't want to miss out on music that they think all their peers are listening to. So the end result is that record companies are trying to buy success for their artists and in some cases very definitely succeeding.
Of course this is the way things have always worked but it's frustrating for someone who loves good music by talented musicians. That's how I'd like to see radio plays be determined on the basis of what songs are truly good but I'm not holding my breath for that to happen anytime soon even if Spitzer forces some record companies to change some of their practices.
Posted by silverdsl at 02:28 PM | Comments (0)
Photo of the Day - Ogunquit
Marginal Way, Ogunquit, Maine, July, 2005. Something about the blue of the sky and of the water really caught my eye. It's high tide in this photo but at low tide I was walking in this cove where the water is quite high picking up wave smoothed stones. It's incredible how much Marginal Way changes during the day at high and low tide.
Posted by silverdsl at 12:37 AM | Comments (0)
Randy Johnson Thrown Out of Friday's Game
Luckily the Yankees went on to win last night's game 11-10 over the Blue Jays but Randy Johnson could have been a huge goat if the Yankees had lost. I have to say that I am extremely disappointed with RJ for getting thrown out in the second inning after arguing with the home plate umpire, Fieldin Culbreth. Yes, Culbreth probably instigated and yes, the umpires in general have more and more been getting into it with players. But when every game is so important for the Yankees considering they are battling for a spot in the post-season, RJ has got to keep his emotions under control.
Even if Culbreth is in the wrong, RJ has to suck it up. The Yankees have enough pitching problems and the last thing they need is to lose their starting pitcher, the man who is supposed to be the ace of the staff no less, in the second inning. That meant that the Yankees had to use five relievers to finish out the game. Which might account for why the Blue Jays were able to score so many runs to make this such a tight game. But in the end the Yankees were able to pervail which was a very good thing. I just hope that if RJ loses it again it's not in the post-season when the stakes are even higher.
Posted by silverdsl at 12:09 AM | Comments (0)
September 17, 2005
Kurt Busch to Be Released?
From Jayski's: Busch out BEFORE end of season? sources close to Jack Roush say that Roush may indeed be releasing #97-Kurt Busch to Penske before the end of the season, though it still isn't clear just who Roush might have in mind to take that seat. Roush has steadfastly insisted he has no plans to release Busch.(Winston Salem Journal)(9-17-2005)
I can't imagine how Roush could even be thinking of releasing Busch in the middle of the Chase for the Championship, considering there's a decent chance he could repeat as Champion. So I have to assume that what is being referred to is Roush releasing Busch for 2006. That makes sense. And there is a big sign that this is actually going to happen - all of Busch's merchandise at his hauler is 50% off. That's almost always a sign that the current driver or sponsor is on their way out and has signified that a change is in the works sometimes even before that change is officially announced.
I don't see how Roush could announce this until the end of the season though because of the turmoil that it could cause on Busch's team. Right now the #97 team is probably functioning pretty well since Busch sat down and talked with them about how he's committed to trying to win Championships with them now and in 2006. But if they learn that he's gone for sure after this season that could effect what they do because they will have to worry about who the next driver they will be working with will be as well as whether they will even have jobs.
It's been rumored that Jamie McMurray could end up in the #97 instead of the #6 and in some ways that makes sense. The #97 has a big-time sponsor in Rubbermaid, whereas after Viagra leaves when Mark Martin retires, Roush has to look for a new primary sponsor for McMurray and the #6. Surely, Roush doesn't want to lose Rubbermaid and McMurray probably fits a lot of the qualities that they are looking for in a driver. Either way Roush is going to need another driver and sponsor at some point unless they plan on reducing the cars that they have by one.
Posted by silverdsl at 11:56 PM | Comments (0)
In the News: Michael Waltrip (9/17)
I hesitate to say too much because it's still not official but thatsracin.com is reporting that their sources are telling them that as has been widely rumored, Michael Waltrip will be bringing NAPA with him to Bill Davis Racing starting in 2006. An announcement could apparently be made as soon as Wednesday, which I hope is the case so I can actually blog about it before I go away, but we might still have to wait longer to find out where Michael ends up. Personally, I don't mind waiting because I'd rather it takes longer if that means that Michael is going to end up with the best deal possible that will make him happy. I actually have a lot more positive thoughts than most fans about Michael signing with BDR so unlike some who seem to think that he'd be making a mistake I think that it could end up working out well for him. It's been rumored in several places that the reason for the holdup is that Joe Gibbs Racing is still possibly interested in signing Michael for the #11 but given that they have several candidates internally I'm not sure that they feel the urgency to sign him that BDR might.
Otherwise, it's race weekend at Loudon and qualifying was held today for tomorrow's Cup race. Unfortunately Michael qualified 36th so it appears that the Sylvania 300 might not be as good of a race as he might like. It will be the first race with Tony Gibson as crew chief now that Tony Eury, Jr. has gone back to work with the #8 and it will be interesting to see how Gibson does. A few years ago he was Steve Park's crew chief and I don't recall exactly how that worked out though I don't think they had a tremendous amount of success together. But Gibson has been Michael's car chief for a while now so they are familar with each other so hopefully they will work well together.
Michael will be taking part in yet another - surprise, surprise - golf event, this time the Dale Jarrett Shootout on October 4 at Rock Barn Golf and Spa in Conover, North Carolina. Other drivers scheduled to appear include Elliott Sadler, Rusty Wallace and Jamie McMurray as well as Jarrett. In addition players from the PGA's Champions Tour will also take part. I think Michael would probably golf every day if he could!
Best Western is going to be conducting a series of Ebay auctions to raise money for Red Cross hurricane relief and a few of the items they will be auctioning off include items signed by Michael. One is a Best Western pit crew shirt from a Busch race signed by Michael that I would love to bid on. But unfortunately the auction ends when I will be in Aruba so I won't be able to take part.
Posted by silverdsl at 10:26 PM | Comments (0)
Steve Park Finishes 12th at Loudon
I guess I should wait until I watch my recording of today's truck race before I comment but it's not often that Steve is actually mentioned on TV broadcasts these days so I'm not sure watching will shed any extra light on what went on during the race. But I will say that a 12th place finish is doing a nice job. They qualified mid-pack in 19th place so it appears they got all they could out of the truck and turned it into a decent finish. Unfortunately that didn't help Steve in the points standings any and he remains in 17th.
Yet again Brendan Gaughan in the "just-for-fun" #77 truck finished better than Steve. Brendan's 10th place finish is his seventh top ten and he has now finished better than Steve in ten of the seventeen races that Brendan has raced. On one hand I'm extremely impressed with the turn-around of the #77 team from where they were in the start of the season. Brendan is an excellent driver and he's getting to show that. But again, I wonder why it is that Steve's team which was supposed to be the priority at Orleans Racing and a Championship contender continues to underperform in comparison to the #77 team.
I guess it's too much to expect that there will be any changes this late in the season. So my question is will the #62 team be able to get at least one more top ten this season? I guess some might think I have a defeatist attitude and that I should be wishing for top fives and wins but at this point I don't have much confidence that the #62 team is that kind of team right now. Today's race shows that they are knocking on the door of another top ten but they've still got some work to do. I'd just like to see at least one more top ten to give some hope that they are a better team than they've shown this season.
I feel like I'm always writing the same thing over and over again about this team and I'm getting a little tired of it. I just hope that even if the results on the track aren't stellar overall Steve is still enjoying himself and is happy.
Posted by silverdsl at 08:40 PM | Comments (0)
September 16, 2005
Sweep! Sweep! Sweep!
Thanks to a grand slam by Robinson Cano the New York Yankees rallied to beat the Tampa Bay Devil Rays 9-5, thus allowing the Yankees to sweep the Devil Rays in this most recent series. Now why couldn't the Yankees play more like this against the D'Rays the other times the two teams have met? Aaron Small wasn't dominant - he gave up five runs in seven innings - but he was solid enough to keep the Yankees in the game and give them the chance to fight back. Which they did. Cano's grand glam tied the game at 5-5 and Alex Rodriguez broke the tie with a two-run home run. In the ninth Cano added another RBI on a triple, giving him five RBI on the night, a career high. Small has now won eight straight starts in a row for the Yankees and is the first Yankee since Doug Bird in 1980 and 1981 to win his first eight starts with the team. Who would ever have thought that a pitcher who hadn't done much of note in the majors would blossom like this so late in his career?
But more importantly the Yankees are just a game and a half behind the Boston Red Sox for the American League East division lead and just a half game in back of the Cleveland Indians for the wildcard lead. That's pretty incredible for a team that has floundered as much as the Yankees did at times earlier this season. They still have some work to do before they make the post-season but it is very much in reach.
Every single game they play now is important and the players realize it. A-Rod said that very thing after last night's game,
"The team is playing with a lot of urgency right now. We realize how important each game is, and we're taking this as our playoff."
The Yankees must battle in every single one of the games right down to the very last game of the season because it may very well be that them making the post-season does go to the last game. While it will be virtually impossible to win every game for the rest of the season they have to win as many as they can and they can't afford to lose any series. What helps the Yankees is that the Red Sox are battling injuries. Gabe Kapler has been lost for the remainder of the season with a bad achilles injury and Johnny Damon is battling shoulder problems. Of course the Yankees have their own issues to worry about such as Gary Sheffield's leg and Mike Mussina's elbow, though Sheffield has been playing and it appears that Mussina may be able to make a start next week.
All I know is that now that the Yankees are this close to making the post-season I'm getting excited. Maybe I shouldn't get my hopes up too high because they aren't there yet but it's starting to look good. I don't know how far they can make it in the post-season but I'd at least like to see them in the first round!
Posted by silverdsl at 02:06 PM | Comments (0)
Most Popular Not Necessarily Most Successful
I can't help but notice that the top three drivers in voting for the Chex Most Popular Driver Award, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Jeff Gordon and Kasey Kahne aren't in the Chase for the Championship. Three other drivers in the top ten, Kevin Harvick, Michael Waltrip and Dale Jarrett also didn't make the Chase. Now I don't put much into internet polls because cheating is rampant so it mostly reflects what driver's fans are able to vote the most for their driver rather than a true reflection of who is most popular, though I think the top three and most of the top ten is fairly accurate. However, if you take the poll results thus far at face value there are probably a lot of disappointed fans about who got into the Chase this season. So it's going to be very interesting to see what the ratings are like for the remaining ten races of this season.
Posted by silverdsl at 11:51 AM | Comments (0)
Debate Over Proposed .XXX Internet Domain Suffix
Apparently for the second time, ICANN, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, has deferred approval of the domain suffix .XXX, which would naturally be used for those websites that related to adult entertainment, particularly porn. The group that would run the domain, ICN, believes that it would help the online porn industry clean up their acts since they would have to abide by rules about things such as spamming and malicious scripts writting into their sites. However, there is opposition from conservative groups and from some in the porn industry themselves.
Some in anti-porn groups feel that an official .XXX domain suffix would legitimize the online porn industry. Well, I've got news for those folks. Whether you approve or disapprove of porn and other forms of adult entertainment many of them operate as businesses in the same way as any other "legitimate" business. In fact, considering how some non-adult businesses are run, I don't think being involved in another kind of industry is an automatic guarentee that a company is "legit." In addition, some critics feel that the .XXX domain would give porn sites additional exposure because they could still use their .com addresses as well. People are going to go to porn sites no matter how little or how many domain suffixes theses sites have. I think it's better that someone would be able to tell that a site is an X-rated site rather than click on something accidentally that they might not want to see.
Meanwhile, some in the porn industry are against the .XXX suffix because it would allow the government in this country or elsewhere or privates companies or individuals to filter or block their sites by domain suffix. From what I can tell in the article there is nothing that would force all porn sites to have the .XXX domain suffix or force them to give up their .com domains. Additionally, if their sites have content that some might want to block those people are going to find a way to block their site no matter what the domain suffix is. And personally I certainly don't see it as a problem if there's a way for parents to block all the sites in the .XXX domain from their young children.
Posted by silverdsl at 09:07 AM | Comments (0)
Surprise! It's a Local Politician!
Showing up unexpectantly at an event... And even better... surprise! You get to be in a photo with her!
Posted by silverdsl at 09:05 AM | Comments (0)
September 15, 2005
Photo of the Day - Sterling Marlin
Pocono, PA, July, 2005. In keeping with the Nascar theme today here's a photo of Sterling Marlin at Driver Introductions at Pocono. Not the greatest of all photos but it give me an opportunity to ponder Sterling and his new deal briefly. Apparently Sterling signed with MB2 to drive for them for the next couple of years. But there's not been an official announcement yet as they are still waiting on some sponsor-related issues such as who exactly that sponsor is going to be. That makes me a little nervous on Sterling's behalf. What happens if they can't find a sponsor? Probably nothing good so I hope that they have a few primary sponsors to choose from rather than they are still searching for one.
Posted by silverdsl at 10:31 PM | Comments (0)
Yeah, it was an all-Nascar day on ye ol' blog. I've got plenty that I'd like to blog about but between the conference today and tomorrow, working ultra hard at work on the big event we have coming up in November and most importantly my wedding next week my blogging time has been more limited than I might like. And it's going to get a whole lot more limited once I go to Aruba for my honeymoon. But hopefully after that I'll have more of a chance to blog about a more varied amount of topics.
Posted by silverdsl at 10:24 PM | Comments (0)
In the News: Michael Waltrip (9/15)
Despite the changes being made to his team which I'm sure he isn't thrilled with, Michael Waltrip is hoping to have a great race at New Hampshire International Speedway this weekend. In the spring he and the #15 team battled their way to a 17th place finish in a race that Michael apparently called "The Battle in New Hampshire." Well, one thing among many that I've come to appreciate about Michael's team this season is that they don't give up - in fact back a couple of races ago in Fontana I especially liked what I saw because even though a bad call in the pits caused Michael to slip back all the way to 30th at one point, Michael and the team continued to fight and eventually finished 13th. That's impressive because it would be easy to be discouraged considering Michael is leaving DEI and they probably already knew at that point that Tony Eury, Jr. might be going back to Dale, Jr. Some teams might not care about getting a good result for a driver who was on his way out but the #15 team takes pride in what they do. As Michael said in this week's pre-race report,
"That's just been my M.O. to never give up and work real hard. The guys on the NAPA team are the same way."
Which makes that this team is going to be broken up all the sadder. I'm so glad that Michael got the opportunity to work with Tony, Jr. and his crew this season. I just wish it was going to last a little longer! On another note from the pre-race report, I think it's funny that it's not mentioned at all that Michael will have a new crew chief this weekend. As if they're completely ignoring the turmoil at DEI. But then again DEI completely ignored Michael in their press release on the reunion of the two Juniors and simply referred to the #15 rather than Michael by name.
Lots of other articles mentioned Michael today in relation to Tony, Jr. rejoining the #8 team. Marty Smith at Nascar.com is always a good read and I'd say that he does a good job of summarizing the situation - "You Don't Know What You've Got 'Til It's Gone" indeed.
Posted by silverdsl at 10:00 PM | Comments (0)
Bill Davis Racing Announcement Soon
From Jayski's: Bill Davis Racing Announcement soon: Bill Davis hopes to improve that situation [one car team] by having his second [Cup] entry return to the tour full-time next year. He intends to announce details of the program this week. Garage speculation in recent weeks has targeted Michael Waltrip as the driver. "Like every one over here, we were looking at ways to get better," Davis said. "Going to a two-car team will help, with all the advantages that entails from testing and sharing information."(High Point Enterprise)(9-15-2005)
Word is that Michael Waltrip is going to announce his plans for 2006 and beyond this week and now comes word that Bill Davis is also planning on announcing this week who the driver of the #23 will be when it returns to the track full-time next season. Coincidence? Could be, but more likely this is another sign that Michael is in fact going to be racing for Bill Davis Racing after this season. Michael may still end up surprising us all but at this point I'd say that it's likely that he's going to end up at BDR with NAPA as his sponsor as has been widely rumored.
Posted by silverdsl at 02:32 PM | Comments (0)
Robbie Loomis Out as Jeff Gordon's Crew Chief
Will Join Petty Enterprises at Conclusion of the Season
Hendrick Motorsports certainly didn't waste any time. Thinking along the same lines as DEI, who yesterday confirmed that they are reuniting Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Tony Eury, Jr., Hendrick is also getting a head-start on next season by removing Robbie Loomis as Jeff Gordon's crew chief in favor of former car chief Steve Letarte, who is apparently a candidate to be Gordon's crew chief in 2006. Of course Loomis has a contract which goes through the end of this season so instead of releasing him completely like some other organizations might have done and have to pay him the remainder of the money owed to him to do nothing, Loomis will be a "consultant" to the #48 team of Jimmie Johnson to assist them with the Chase for the Championship. At the end of the season, Loomis will then re-join Petty Enterprises, an organization he was with for eleven years before joining Hendrick Motorsports in 2000.
I'm not surprised in the least that Loomis is leaving the #24 team. Aside from the fact that Gordon discussed it as a possiblity just last week, probably to prepare fans and the media for what was coming, it's been very obvious this season that something isn't clicking right for that team. I don't think that Loomis is entirely to blame for the struggles that the team has had but I do think that he bears some of the responsibility. I suspect that things have grown stale between Loomis and Gordon but perhaps Loomis's heart is no longer with crew chiefing, which is an incredibly pressure filled position.
What I am surprised about is that Loomis already has a position lined up at Petty Enterprises. That he's going back there is no surprise considering how long he was there previously and how highly he's always spoken of the Pettys. But that his new position was announced at the same time it was announced that he would no longer be Gordon's crew chief makes me think that this move has been in the works for some time. I believe the position is something along the lines of Vice President of Motorsports, over-seeing all race operations for Petty Enterprises, so I doubt that it was just created out of thin air within the past few days. If Gordon and the rest of the #24 team knew that Loomis was exploring opportunities elsewhere I can't help but wonder if that might have created some tension or uncertainty that might have contributed to the problems that the #24 team had this season.
Perhaps it's a done deal that Letarte will be the crew chief of the #24 in 2006. Or perhaps not. I'm sure Hendrick is going to get a lot of phone calls from those who are interested in the position. Whoever takes the job will be under a significant amount of pressure to turn things around for Gordon, just like Eury, Jr. is going to be under a huge amount of pressure to rack up the wins right away for Dale, Jr. My feeling is that Hendrick is stronger as an organization right now than DEI so I suspect that the #24 team may rebound quicker than the #8. But it will be very interesting to watch both teams and see how they fare in 2006.
Posted by silverdsl at 01:05 PM | Comments (0)
September 14, 2005
Photo of the Day - Outer Banks
Outer Banks, North Carolina, 2003. I hope the Outer Banks and the rest of the area is managing well with Hurricane Orphelia.
Posted by silverdsl at 10:08 PM | Comments (0)
New York Times and Washington Post Have Arrangement to Exchange Next Day's Front Pages
I think this is a pretty interesting item. Thanks to a secret arrangement that dates back ten years, every night The New York Times and The Washington Post electronically exhange their front pages from their next day's edition. The reason this started was because each paper would try to get the next day's edition as quickly as possible to begin with so they felt that this made things easier for both papers. However, the reason each paper wants to see their competitor's paper isn't just idle curiosity. It's because they want to see if there are any exclusive stories that the other paper has that they need to jump on for the next edition. And apparently getting the front page in this format has in fact helped both papers.
Posted by silverdsl at 04:01 PM | Comments (0)
Done Deal: Tony Eury, Jr. Back With Dale, Junior as Crew Chief
Starts in New (Old) Role This Weekend
Unless you've been living in a cave for the past few weeks it should come as no surprise that Tony Eury, Jr. was going to reunite with his cousin Dale Earnhardt, Jr. whom he had worked with for eight years on the #8 Budweiser Chevy at DEI before the big crew switch prior to this season which brought Tony, Jr. to the #15 NAPA Chevy. Some may not have expected it to happen until the start of next season but I had a feeling they weren't going to wait that long, once it became apparent that Michael Waltrip would be leaving DEI at the conclusion of this season and particularly once it appeared that NAPA would also be following him out the door.
Before I say anything else I have to say that I feel extremely sad for Michael that he's not getting to finish out the season with Tony, Jr. as his crew chief. Those two built such a strong relationship as driver and crew chief and the chemistry between them was second to none. If not for some really rotten bad luck in the form of blown engines, cut tires, other mechanical problems and getting caught in at least four or five wrecks caused by others, there is no question in my mind that Michael would have won a couple of races and have been in the Chase for the Championship. Yeah, yeah, it's easy to say "if only" but there haven't been many races that Tony, Jr. didn't give Michael a competitive car which allowed him to show that when he has a good car he has the ability to race his way to the front and stay there on any track, against any other driver. I think being partnered with Tony, Jr. was outstanding for Michael because not only did he have great cars and an awesome crew chief who made good calls but I think it gave him a little extra confidence behind the wheel because he knew that he had a strong team behind him, led by Tony, Jr., who believed in him and supported him 100%. Michael truly loved working with Tony, Jr. and based on what Tony, Jr. has said he also enjoyed working with Michael. Professionally they had an outstanding relationship but apparently they've grown quite close personally as well. So I feel absolutely terrible for Michael that he will not be able to finish out the season with Tony, Jr. It has to be a huge disappointment. I hope that wherever Michael ends up going in the future, he will have a crew chief as awesome as Tony, Jr. was.
However, despite how bad I feel for Michael, unlike many other fans I'm not angry at Tony, Jr. and while I'm disappointed overall with DEI and the way they've handled a lot of things I'm not too angry with them either. As much as some fans like to view DEI as nothing more than Junior's playground the reality is that it is a business just like any other. And the company has to make decisions that they feel are the right ones for their future. Since Junior is central not only to DEI's success but in some ways, Nascar's success as a sport as well considering he is one of the faces of the sport, it is essential that they get him back on track in 2006 and beyond. So I can fully understand why they would want to use the last ten races of the season to try to work on things for 2006, including the reunion between the two Juniors. Since at the conclusion of this season both Michael and apparently NAPA are leaving DEI doesn't have many obligations to either party. I've been afraid all this time that would mean that when they switched Tony, Jr. back to the #8 that they would release Michael and put either Martin Truex, Jr. or Paul Menard in the #15 for the remainder of the season so I'm extremely glad that thus far it appears that won't be happening.
Some fans think that Tony, Jr. is a horrible person for promising Michael that he was going to stick with him through the end of the season and now going back on that promise. Well, the decision isn't entirely his. I do think that Tony, Jr. probably also wanted to start working with Junior sooner rather than later but in an interview on XM that was done in the past few days Tony, Jr. said that he was committed to Michael but that he would do whatever the company wanted of him. So essentially, the choice is taken out of his hands. But more than that Junior is his cousin - family. I can't fault Tony, Jr. for putting family in front of everything else, particularly since family loyalty has always seemed very important to him hence why he signed a contract with DEI to stay for years to come when he could have gone to a number of other organizations. On top of that things change. I don't remember exactly when Tony, Jr. made that promise but it's possible that back then it wasn't a certainty that the two Juniors were going to reunite so at that point it's a lot easier to promise to stick with Michael. But beyond that the unfortunate thing about this business is that people say things they don't mean all the time. That is something that I've come to expect that just because someone says something doesn't mean that it's true or that the opposite isn't going to happen.
I'm not angry with Dale, Jr. either. I don't particularly like Junior but my reasons for disliking him at times really don't have much to do with Michael or what Junior does on the track, though I haven't cared for some of the comments Junior has made about Michael and I was extremely upset when Junior wrecked Michael at Charlotte. Some feel that Junior calls all the shots at DEI and that selfishly he wanted to steal Tony, Jr. from Michael for himself because he didn't want Michael to finish the season better than him. First of all, while I have no doubt that Junior is influential in the decision making process at DEI since it was his father's company and he is central to their efforts, I think that the powers-that-be including Richie Gilmore, Theresa Earnhardt, and others, make the final decision about what happens. In addition, if Junior really was so selfish and makes all the decisions at DEI he would have been reunited with Tony, Jr. a lot sooner than now. As for wanting to finish the season higher in the points than Michael - hello, the drivers compete against each other! Every driver wants to finish better in the points than the next guy! I can't fault Junior for wanting to finish the season as high in the points as he can because Michael and every other driver out there surely wants to do the same.
It's impossible to predict with any certainty if the two Juniors reuniting is going to turn the #8 team around. Many people seem to feel that it automatically means that Junior will go back to winning races regularly, he will be a Championship contender and everything will be rosy. I'm not so sure about that. First of all, whatever happens over the course of these last ten races is pretty meaningless in my opinion. What happens now when all they are racing for are wins is a lot different then what happens next season when there's a huge amount of pressure to ensure that they make the Chase and have a big amount of success almost immediately. Of course that won't stop the media and fans from making predictions about 2006 based on what they do to end the season. But 2006 may bring something entirely different once the conditions under which they are racing are somewhat different.
Junior has talked about how both he and his cousin have matured so the fighting and arguing of the past that led to the crew switch in the first place is a distant memory that won't be repeated. Maybe Junior is right but in my experience people simply don't change that much. Yes, they can change in small ways and I have no doubt that both Juniors will make an effort, particularly in the beginning, to avoid some of the behaviors that caused problems between them previously. But it's extremely hard not to revert to past patterns of behaviors and especially with close relationships. Both Juniors may get along even better than they ever did away from the track but on the race track I think they are going to have to do quite a bit of work to ensure that the past problems don't crop up again.
In addition, even if they manage to get along better than they did in the past, it may take more than a reunion of the Juniors to bring renewed success for the #8 team. I think DEI has some major problems internally that will need to be solved before they can be as successful of an organization as they should be. Junior has said that they intend on hiring someone else to do Richie Gilmore's job so he can go back to concentrating on the engine shop and that would be a start. But I think it's going to take more than that. I can't claim to be privy to the inner workings at DEI but as an outsider looking in, I think it's going to take a major shift in the organizational philosophy, for DEI to be the powerhouse they should be that can compete equally on a weekly basis with Roush and Hendrick. I have some more thoughts on this topic but I'm going to save it for when Michael makes his annoucement, expected to come in the next few days, about what team he will be with in 2006 and beyond.
In the meantime Tony Gibson, who was the car chief, takes over as crew chief of the #15 for the remainder of the season. I hope that with Gibson at the helm, Michael will be able to have some good races to finish out the season.
Posted by silverdsl at 01:48 PM | Comments (0)
September 13, 2005
Photo of the Day
Cape Porpoise, Maine, July, 2004.
Posted by silverdsl at 10:44 PM | Comments (0)
In the News: Michael Waltrip (9/13)
Many fans were left scratching their heads as to exactly what part failed on the #15 NAPA chevy during Saturday night's race that led to Michael finishing the race in 31st place, four laps down. Well, wonder no more. Apparently a piece of brake rotor from the #24 of Jeff Gordon bounced up into the engine and damaged a part in the cooling system. It was extremely difficult with all the yelling over the radio, which those of us fans heard via Trackpass, to figure out during the race what was going on and I still find it a bit confusing given that the post-race report seems to describe the damage in at least three different ways but at least now we know that as per usual for the #15 team they were bit once again by more bad luck that was completely out of their hands.
Otherwise there's been a significant amount of articles that mention the possiblity of Michael losing his crew chief, Tony Eury, Jr. because he will be reuniting with Dale Earnhardt, Jr. back on the #8 team. I think all the signs are pointing to this happening as soon as this weekend but nothing definite has been announced yet. I imagine the speculation will continue to get more intense until DEI announces what their plans are but I expect they will clarify what will happen later in the week a little closer to the race weekend. I will have plenty more to say about that situation but as I mentioned in an earlier entry I will withhold most of my thoughts until after it becomes clear what is actually happening.
Posted by silverdsl at 04:46 PM | Comments (0)
More on Steve Park at Richmond
Last week I said that I'd refrain from saying too much about the truck race at Richmond in relation to Steve Park because I wasn't sure what had actually happened to cause Steve to fade late in the race. Well, it's almost a week later and I'm still not sure what went on. The official Orleans Racing post-race report shed no light on the situation other than to mention a vibration and an ill-handling truck but gave no clue as to why either of those things happened. I thought that folks who were at the race might have a more complete race report but one person who was at the race said that very little was said over the radio between Steve and his team so that makes it hard for even people who were there to know. But the bottom line is that it appears that once again Steve didn't have a very good truck.
Not surprisingly yet again teammate Brendan Gaughan finished the race better than Steve in 11th place. To this point in the season Brendan has finished better than Steve in nine of the sixteen races he's been in. In addition he has six top ten's and three top five's to Steve's three top tens and one top five. While it's impossible to know what might fully have happened I think if the #77 team hadn't missed those two races early on Brendan would be higher than Steve in the points. So at this point I'd say that the #77 is a better team than the #62 team which is kind of perplexing considering they were supposed to be the team that was an after thought for Brendan to race for fun.
This weekend the trucks head to New Hampshire and I'd love to see Steve get at least a top ten. But will that happen? I'm starting to not have much faith in the #62 team. I still believe that Steve can race as well as any other driver on the track and that he can take a good truck into Victory Lane. But if he's not going to have a good truck or there are going to be constant mechanical problems there isn't much that he or any other driver can do with it. While I still love watching the truck races some of the excitement of watching Steve race isn't there because I feel like I'm always holding my breath waiting for what's going to go wrong to spoil the race for Steve. Of course these days Steve is rarely talked about during the race broadcasts so that doesn't help matters but that's not going to change until the #62 does something worth talking about and I hope in New Hampshire it is something positive!
There are still races left but the season is starting to wind down and as it does so I'm getting increasingly nervous about what the future might hold for Steve. Just like with Michael Waltrip I want Steve to be happy so I hope that things play out the way he would like as far as his future in racing goes.
Posted by silverdsl at 02:59 PM | Comments (0)
Belated Comments on the Yankees/Red Sox
I've been insanely busy lately so I've not been able to blog about everything that I would like and some of the things that I have been able to blog about are probably not as well thought out or as in depth as I might like. So finally I'm getting around to commenting on this past weekend's series between the Yankees and the Red Sox. All things considered I have to say that I'm pretty happy with the outcome. The Yankees took two out out of three and Randy Johnson was dominating in the final game of the series. Those are two things to be very happy about heading into the series against the Devil Rays which starts tonight.
Since the Yankees have put themselves in a position where virtually every game is important and every loss has the potential to be very costly to the Yankees chances of making the post-season, sweeping the Red Sox would have been even better but I think overall the Yankees played well this weekend. Both Aaron Small and Randy Johnson did exactly what they needed to do - be solid on the mound for the Yankees. In fact, RJ was more than solid. His pitching performance was vintage Big Unit - he completely dominated the Red Sox. Tim Wakefield brought his "A" game on Sunday as well so the Yankees only run was provided by a solo homerun by Jason Giambi. So that necessitated RJ pitching lights-out and he didn't disappoint. I think that's what I liked seeing best of all because that makes RJ's third outing in a row that he's been very good. That's exactly what the Yankees are going to need to get back to the post-season and have success there - outstanding starting pitching and at least once pitcher who can be counted on to provide ace-like performances on the mound. That hasn't been RJ very often this season but lately he's been much better.
Taking two out of three from the Red Sox means that the Yankees still have a very good chance that they could grab the American League East division lead away from the Red Sox. Particularly since there are games remaining between the two teams. So each team is going to have to play the best baseball that they've played all season. It could end up being an epic battle and I have to admit that as much as I'd like the Yankees return to the post-season to be a sure thing, I also enjoy the added excitement of knowing that every game is important and that the season for the Yankees might not be fully decided until the very end.
But in the more immediate future the Yankees face the Devil Rays tonight in Tampa. Unfortunately the D'Rays have been the Yankees achilles heel all season. In past seasons games against the D'Rays didn't matter too much but suddenly these games have to be approached like the Yankees were playing one of the better teams in baseball. Because there is no way that the Yankees can afford to play the poor kind of baseball that they've played against the D'Rays previously this season or lose this series.
Posted by silverdsl at 02:45 PM | Comments (0)
Inside Nextel Cup Changes Not For the Better
I've talked at length in this space about my displeasure with Speed, particularly as it relates to their proposed changes to Inside Nextel Cup previously my favorite show. I say previously because last night was the first night of the new version of INC and the changes were most definitely not for the better. I'd say that perhaps the new cast just needs to gel and get used to the new format but considering there's only nine shows left this season they don't have time on their side to make this back into the must-see that it used to be for Nascar fans. Admittedly I was against many of the proposed changes but I'd like to think that I can keep an open mind so I was willing to give the new INC a chance so I had no expectations good or bad for the way that it would be. Unfortunately I was extremely disappointed and disheartened with what I saw.
Let me discuss the one positive from last night's show because it was a pretty big positive - Brian Vickers. I still feel that Brian gives only the "right" opinions rather than speaking his mind openly. However, despite offering little more than safe answers he did hold his own for the most part with the other panelists. He seemed poised, talkative and displayed a nice sense of humor. I would have to say that he definitely contributed more than Johnny Benson was though I can't say that Brian said anything particularly memorable or earth-shattering. Nor did I feel that he added anything insightful from a young driver's point of view which was why Speed had indicated they wanted to replace Johnny. But Brian wasn't terrible - but then again with all the media training that I believe most young drivers get these days upon entry to Nascar I think Speed could probably put just about any young driver on INC and they'd do what Brian did. That's the thing - Brian is interchangeable with just about any other young driver in Cup. My guess would be that they would all say just about the same things that he did.
So that was what was good about INC, what was bad about it? Unfortunately just about everything else. Let's start with the set. Dark sums it up very nicely. The lighting was horrendous and I guess they're trying to make it seem more dramatic but it just made it hard to see the panel at some points. The panel now sits in high chairs and holds clipboards. First, the chairs look incredibly uncomfortable, which is probably an even bigger issue for 6'5" Michael Waltrip than it is for everyone else on the panel but everyone looked awkward in those seats. The clipboards are ridiculous - what purpose do they serve? The panel members are talking, not taking notes.
I didn't enjoy Dave Despain at all on INC but perhaps that's because I've always found him irritating even prior to when he joined the show. He opened the show and for a show that is always concerned with time, he droned on and on needlessly. Totally unnecessary and wasteful but that set the tone for the remainder of the show. Sure, Despain kept the show moving along at points, though it was often by interrupting panel members when they were talking about something interesting or making a joke. Yes, he did ask a few good questions of the panelists and of Robbie Reiser who appeared from the Roush shop but I'm not sure two or three good questions is worthy of him replacing Allen Bestwick, who was probably hysterically laughing last night as he watched how low the show had sunk in quality.
Right from the start Michael Waltrip and Ken Schrader looked uncomfortable and out of place. While they loosened up a little as the show went on it was very obvious that the very thing that made INC so wonderful, the easy banter, the fun, the teasing, the jokes and spontaneity would be serverly curtailed. Kenny and Michael are both intelligent men who are very capable of holding their own in a serious discussion, contrary to popular belief, and did so last night but I'm not tuning in because I want to see a serious dicussion or review of the races. I can get that anywhere. I'm tuning in because I want to see Michael's goofy antics, I want to see Kenny make fun of him, I want to see the wink-wink, nudge-nudge jokes and silliness. I want the insight from the driver's perspective but I'd like it to be done in a way that is different than what I can find on any other show.
In fact I'd go so far as to say the show was flatout boring, something which INC never was previously. In a particularly distressing sign it appeared that Michael was also bored as he spent half the show writing or drawing on his clipboard. I suppose that he could have been writing things down that he wanted to say so he wouldn't forget but he's never seemed to need to do that in the past so I tend to doubt that's a problem now. If panel members are bored that doesn't say much for the way the show is going to turn out.
What the show has evolved into is a serious, straighforward review of the weekend's Cup race and that kind of thing is done in countless other places, including on other Speed shows. One addition to INC is the use of team radio communications from the race. For many fans this is probably pretty interesting but for any fan with XM like myself the exact same radio communications were played during "Dialed In" with Claire B. Lang - you guessed it another show that reviews the events of the past race. So I really have no need to watch INC when I could tune in to "Victory Lane," listen to "Dialed In," watch the new show on ESPN or read countless websites.
So what Speed has managed to do is eliminate the very thing that made INC unique. It was a showcase for the driver's quirky personalities, where fans felt like they were sitting in with friends who happened to be drivers as they informally discussed the race and whatever else is going on in Nascar. There were guaranteed laughs, things that would make fans roll their eyes, stories told and all sorts of fun was had. But based on last night it appears that all of that are things of the past which is very unfortunate because Speed had a real gem. If only they knew how to take care of it. Make changes but know how to keep the essential elements that made the show so wonderful. Because Michael is on the show I'll keep watching but I'm certainly going to be a lot more likely to record it than I was in the past and I don't think I'm going to be too upset if I end up missing it. Many other fans seem to agree with me too. Speed will probably dismiss everyone who complains as no-nothing, negative-nellies who simply can't stand change but the reality is that when this many people are upset perhaps it would be wise for Speed to be paying attention. I highly doubt that's going to happen though.
Posted by silverdsl at 08:30 AM | Comments (0)
September 12, 2005
Photo of the Day - Rose
Elizabeth Park, West Hartford, Connecticut, June, 2002.
Posted by silverdsl at 10:47 PM | Comments (0)
Talk of Michael Waltrip to Bill Davis Racing Grows Louder
Michael might still announce something different but Lee Spencer is reporting in The Sporting News that Michael will be racing in the #23 for Bill Davis Racing with NAPA as the sponsor next season and in the future. I hesitate to say too much about this now because Spencer has reported rumor as fact previously that has turned out not to have a shred of truth to it. But contrary to popular belief she does get some things right so it's possible that this is one of those items. Personally, despite the denials issues by BDR, I've always thought that this is one rumored destination for Michael that makes some sense. While BDR is struggling now and will probably struggle next season I think there's potential for them to be a much stronger organization in the future and Michael could help them do that.
I was kind of hoping that somehow Michael might end up at Roush, and apparently he was under consideration for the #6 until Jamie McMurray was free to take over but ultimately Mark Martin agreed to return. It would be awesome if he somehow ended up in the #97 but I'm kind of doubting that was ever much of a possiblity since Rubbermaid probably wants a young gun to replace Kurt Busch. Not to mention based on all the hints Michael has been dropping plus all the rumors out of the garage area, NAPA is likely to be going with Michael so whatever team Michael ends up with has to be in need of a primary sponsor which the #97 is not in need of at the moment. That would leave some of the newly starting teams which would need drivers and sponsors. I think that will be very difficult for Michael with one of those teams. It could be hard enough as it is with the #23, it would be even harder with an organization brand-new to Cup racing. So yeah, I'm thinking being at BDR, in spite of the challenges that might be there short-term, might not be so bad. But then again, maybe Michael will surprise us all and end up going to a suprise team - maybe some established team will want to replace their current driver.
Spencer's article also talks about the possible reunion of the two Juniors this weekend in New Hampshire. If that happens apparently Steve Hmiel will head back to his regular duties at DEI and Tony Gibson, current car chief of the #15 would take over as crew chief. I hope that means that they intend on keeping Michael in the car through the remainder of the season. Unless, of course the car Michael will be in for 2006 and beyond has an opening. Just like the Juniors want to get started on working on things that might help them for next year, Michael might want to do the same with his new team. Though if NAPA is so tied in with Michael that they are following him to his new team they may block DEI from replacing Michael before the end of the season.
Regardless of where Michael does end up going I can only repeat what I've said a million times before and will surely say again - in the end while I'd love to see him with one of the better organizations in Cup, I don't really care where he ends up as long as he's happy. Michael knows what he's doing and he's going to make the best decisions that are right for himself, his career and his happiness. I just want to see him be surrounded by people who believe in him and who can help him succeed like Tony, Jr. has. In the end I will support him 110% no matter what team he ends up with, who his crew chief is or who his sponsors are.
Posted by silverdsl at 03:13 PM | Comments (0)
Mark Messier Retires
Sad news but definitely not unexpected - a 25-year NHL career in which he won six Stanley Cup Championships has come to an end as Mark Messier officially announced his retirement today. Messier said,
"I've had a long career and I've achieved a lot and there was nothing left for me to really achieve."
And he's right. In addition to the Championships which he won five with the Edmonton Oilers and one with the New York Rangers, Messier is second on the all-time NHL goal scoring list, just behind the legendary Wayne Gretzky, who he partnered with to win four of the five Championships with the Oilers. In fact, Messier is just six goals away from 700 for his career, something achieved by only six players, but Messier said that individual records never meant anything to him and that's not motivation enough to keep him playing.
Along with Gretzky and Brian Leetch, Messier was one of my favorite hockey players. There was a determination and a strong spirit about him that I admired. And he could play. I'm very glad that I got to see him play in person a few times. I don't know what his future plans are but I hope that he finds as much success in whatever he does as he did on the ice.
Posted by silverdsl at 01:57 PM | Comments (0)
September 11, 2005
Sometimes I'm amazed. If you complain about this or that and then do things that you know are going to result in this or that happening then what is one to think? That you really don't mind it when this or that happens, more than likely for the attention.
Posted by silverdsl at 10:57 PM | Comments (0)
Photo of the Day - Jorge Posada
Yankees vs. Red Sox, September 9, 2005. Jorge Posada gets ready to catch a pop-up.
Posted by silverdsl at 10:55 PM | Comments (0)
Who Do I Want to Win The Chase?
I don't dislike any of the drivers in the Chase for the Championship but I'm not a big fan of any of them either. So the question is who do I want to win the Chase? Frankly, I'm not going to be overly happy or overly upset no matter who wins. But I think there are a couple of drivers that I might pull for to win more than others.
The first is Jeremy Mayfield. I'm not a fan of his in the least but I did meet several of his crew members at the Tom Baldwin Memorial Golf Outing back in June. Those guys were extremely nice and I think it would be awesome for them to be a part of a Championship team. In addition, Mayfield is so underrated and unnoticed it's incredible. No one seems to think he's a contender for the Championship. But hello, he's in for the second year in a row and I think that shows that Mayfield has the ability to be Champion. But I think it would be interesting to see how Nascar would handle it if a driver wins who doesn't have a strong fan base, probably less of a fan base than Kurt Busch even, and isn't really very visible in comparison to a lot of drivers. In addition, Slugger Labbe is Mayfield's crew chief. While I don't care for some of his recent comments about Michael Waltrip and I'm not sure what went down between Michael and Slugger that led to things going so bad when Slugger was Michael's crew chief, Slugger was very nice to us when we met him at the Fall Dover race. So that's another plus for Mayfield. But Mayfield is an underdog and I think it would be kind of cool for a guy who everyone thinks has no chance to win.
Kurt Busch has grown on me, particularly this season. I've been impressed by how much of an effort he's made as Cup Champion not only to be fan-friendly but also to represent the sport fairly well. There were one or two incidents this season where he lost his cool and acted out, which I didn't particularly like, but nothing like what he's done in the past. It's interesting that Tony Stewart can be as much of a bad boy as he wants and it's okay in most fan's eyes, but no one ever excuses or forgives the slightest mistake that Busch makes. In any event, the more that people talk about how much they hate Busch, the more that I want him to repeat as Champion because I think it's amusing how much it irks people when he succeeds. But he's got a lot of talent which many people don't like to acknowledge and I think the #97 team is a strong one.
Sometimes I like Carl Edwards and sometimes I don't like him. I think he's got a great attitude - very positive, very fan-friendly, very up-beat. He seems like a fun guy and of course the back-flips are pretty cool, though I always worry that he's going to land poorly and crack his head open by accident. But there are times that Edwards has seemed to run people right over on the track. He always seems to apologize afterwards but eventually that big smile might not save him from facing the wrath big time of some driver that he gets into it with on the track. Still, he would probably make a very good Champion in terms of representing the sport very well, saying all the right things and of course being extremely marketable.
It might also be cool for Rusty Wallace or Greg Biffle to win the Championship. Biffle has won championships in Busch and the Truck series so I think it would be pretty neat if he won the Championship in Cup as well. I think he would be the first driver to ever win on all three levels. But Biffle hasn't seemed as strong as he was early in the season. Rusty Wallace is retiring after this season so I think it would be awesome for him to win the Championship in his final year. However, just like Mark Martin and Ryan Newman, Wallace hasn't won any races this season, just been consistantly good. It may take a win or two to get that Championship.
So I've talked about who I might like to see win the Championship, how about who I think will win the Champsionship. I think it's going to be either Matt Kenseth or Tony Stewart. Kenseth and the #17 team made a huge rally to make it into the Chase. Really it's incredible what they've done because at one point it looked like their season was going to be pretty poor by their standards. But they gathered themselves and did what they had to do to get into the Chase. So I think they're locked in and have a lot of momentum right now. Stewart leds the points for good reason. He won five races and he has an incredibly strong team. Stewart is one of the top drivers in Cup right now and he's really on his game. So I think he's going to be extremely hard to beat.
The pressure on the teams in the Chase is incredible. They have to be almost perfect at all times. They might be able to manage with one bad race but more than that could doom their Championship hopes before they get started. So starting with race one of the Chase, next week in New Hampshire, the teams have to have everything go right from the set-up of the cars to the pit stops to what the driver does behind the wheel. What the teams can't control is bad luck - being the innocent victim of a wreck, getting flat tires, etc... So essentially anything can and will happen over the next ten races.
Posted by silverdsl at 09:43 PM | Comments (0)
Disappointing Night for Michael Waltrip at Richmond
A Busch Wins for the Second Race in a Row
After testing at Richmond two weeks ago I think that Michael Waltrip, Tony Eury, Jr. and the rest of the NAPA team had high hopes for the race at Richmond. For a while things seemed to be going fairly well for the #15 team with Michael gaining some positions as the race went along. Suddenly - disaster. On a pit stop a Nascar official noticed a puddle of water under where the car had just been on pit road so Michael came back in where upon the crew discovered some sort of leak which had to be repaired. There was a lot of confusion and yelling so it was hard to tell exactly what the problem was or what was going on. But Tony, Jr. was less than pleased with the chain of events with the crew which contributed to some of the yelling. Unfortunately the end result is that by the time everything was sorted out and fixed Michael was four laps down. So they spent the rest of the race experimenting with various different things, trying to learn for the future. I think Michael was making a big effort to stay in good spirits but it had to be hard to have his night ruined like that, yet another race ruined by bad luck completely out of the hands of him or the team.
I've seen it said in a few places by a couple of fans of Michael that they suspect sabatoge, that DEI didn't want Michael to finish better than Junior and I'd say that's ridiculous. Regardless of whether NAPA goes or stays they still have an obligation to them and the rest of the sponsors on that car. Not to mention I think that Michael's crew takes pride in what they're doing and I can't see them going along with a plan to sabatoge him which doesn't make them look too good either.
I'm not even sure what more there is to say about the race for Michael. It might or might not have been the last race where Tony, Jr. was his crew chief. That's still a big unknown. Whatever DEI is going to do I think both Michael and Tony, Jr. probably already know what the plan is. Whether that is having any effect on what has been happening on the track over the last few races is an interesting question. I've actually been wondering how much Tony, Jr. has been helping out the #8 team lately, particularly when there was still hope for Junior getting into the Chase. But we'll most likely never be privy to much about what's been going on behind-the-scenes at DEI to fully answer a lot of questions about what's gone on with both teams this season as well as how Michael truly has been treated.
Otherwise, the big story of last night's race was that the ten drivers for the Chase for the Championship were determined. Jeff Gordon had a chance heading into Richmond but it was another lousy night for him and he didn't make it. Frankly, in spite of his three wins and despite how much I like Jeff, I don't think the #24 team deserved to be in the Chase. The performance by that team has been disappointing and subpar since fairly early in the season and I don't think a team that performs that badly should be in the Chase. Yes, they had some bad luck in the form of mechanical problems and wrecks but there were also bad decisions and cars that weren't set up right. Even if by some miracle Jeff had made it into the Chase I don't think he would have been a serious contender which is incredible to say about a driver as talented as he is. There will surely be changes to his team in 2006.
Three other drivers I would have liked to have seen in the Chase - Elliott Sadler, Jamie McMurray and Kevin Harvick - didn't make it either. I was really pulling for Kevin in particular. But the #29 is another team who has underperformed not only this season but last as well. Kevin won once this season which made me think that he might rebound from a so-so year in 2004 but that didn't happen. In fact Kevin's complaints about RCR and the necessity for changes only grew louder as the season went on and race after race was mediocre for the #29 team. Kevin won the Busch race on Friday night, won the pole for Cup race and led a bunch of laps early on Saturday night so I was feeling optimistic even though he was a pretty big longshot to make the Chase unless he won and others experienced bad luck. But the car eventually faded and Kevin finished 10th which is good but not good enough to get him into the Chase. Elliott was never a player last night and his team has really not looked good for a while now in comparison to how well they raced early on.
On the other hand Jamie seemed like a good bet to make the Chase until he was wrecked by Tony Raines. It would have been completely understandable for Jamie to go off on Tony when he got out of his car and be incredibly disappointed at not making the Chase. Instead he seemed to be in surprisingly good spirits but perhaps that's because he was able to keep things in perspective. Jamie said,
"There's a lot worse things going on right now than me not making the Chase. Everybody needs to think about those people and not me right now."
I was impressed by that comment by Jamie and I think it showed a lot of maturity. It would be nice if a few more people were able to think like he did and realize that in the grand scheme of things sometimes there are worse things that not making the Chase for the Championship. Jamie is still very wealthy, still has a ride (in fact has two of them), his friends and family are still alive, he has a house, he has lots of fans, essentially he has a lot going for him whereas some of the victims of Hurricane Katrina will be struggling to put their lives back together for months to come.
Kurt Busch was the eventual race winner and he's going to donate all his race winnings to hurricane relief in addition to some of the profits from merchandise sales if I understood him correctly. I heard an interview with Kurt earlier in the weekend in which he said that he very much wanted to win on Saturday night because they've had some problems at that track in the past. So good for the #97 team for making it happen.
Posted by silverdsl at 07:51 PM | Comments (0)
Baseball Players vs. Nascar Drivers: Fan Interaction
Friday night I went to the game between the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. My cousin had won a charity auction for unbelievably good seats, about eight rows behind first base. Since those seats are mostly corporate seats that are impossible for the average fan to get I've never sat in seats that good before. It was awesome to see the game from that close as you can hear so much such as the ball landing in the first baseman's glove. One other benefit to those seats besides being able to see the game from so close-up is that during batting practice you can get right down to the field to try to get some autographs. I'm not big on collecting autographs but I do like to take photos from up-close and the way that the Yankees work it is that unless you have field box seats you can't stand in that area during batting practice. So it was cool to have the opportunity to be in an area that I've never been in before in all my visits to Yankee Stadium.
Try to get autographs is mostly all that it is. Unlike in Nascar where the drivers sign, sign and then sign some more for fans everywhere that they go, baseball players are not as willing to sign or even indicate that they see that there are fans standing there at all. I've previously discussed that I don't think that athletes owe the fans much but I do think that they owe fans respect enough to acknowledge their existance. Fans are the lifeblood of any sport and while it's impossible for players or drivers to be perfect or acknowledge every body all the time, it was extremely disheartening to see how many of the players who literally walked past us ten feet away couldn't even look up, wave or even smile to fans in their home stadium.
There were two exceptions and those were Al Leiter and Alan Embree, both of whom signed a baseball for my cousin. I think that's interesting because both of those players are relative newcomers to the Yankees. Leiter has always had a good reputation as someone who is fan-friendly so it didn't surprise me that he stopped to sign. Though gosh, doesn't he look just thrilled in the photo above to be doing it? It also didn't really surprise me that Embree stopped to sign. One, because he's probably trying to court good will with Yankee fans who haven't taken to him too well and two, because he came from the Red Sox where it sometimes seems like the team reaches out to fans more than the Yankees do.
Of course there are big differences between Nascar and Major League Baseball. In MLB there are no sponsors to please and if there were no sponsors in Nascar I imagine the drivers might be less inclined to be so fan-friendly. After all, there is a part of what they do in relation to the fans that is to gain visibility and promote their sponsors. Making appearances on behalf of sponsors is a huge part of what the drivers do. Even the players who endorse various products usually don't have to do more than appear in commercials or ads. But traditionally a big draw of Nascar is how accessible the drivers are to the fans regardless of what their obligations are to their sponsors or to their team in relation to appearances. So any driver coming into Nascar has to expect and learn to deal with the fans in a much more extensive way than the players in other sports who know that they have to deal with fans, but know that it will be in a more limited way for the most part than the drivers.
I think there's some other differences in attitude as well. For one in baseball many players seem to think that many fans simply want their autograph to sell, which makes them less likely to sign. While there are plenty of fans like that, there are also many fans who are extremely excited to get an autograph for themselves. In Nascar while autographs of drivers like Jeff Gordon or Dale Earnhardt, Jr. probably could be used to make a profit, there isn't that much of a market for autographs for drivers such as Sterling Marlin or Steve Park beyond with their own fans. So most of the drivers know that unless someone is collecting autographs of every driver it's likely that it's for their own purposes, though some fans seem to simply collect autographs for the sake of getting an autograph rather than because that driver's autograph has any meaning to them.
In addition, as Jim pointed out, when it comes to team sports, for the most part fans will be fans of the team no matter who the players are. Yes, there are fans who are die-hard fans of individual players but most fans are loyal to a team rather than shift their allegiance from team to team as their player goes from team to team, though there are certainly fans like that. But in Nascar usually fans are fans of specific drivers rather than organizations and will follow their driver from ride to ride. With so many drivers there is also pressure to do things to win over fans to ensure that they are fans of one's self rather than of the next guy. So drivers have to go the extra mile to ensure that their fans stay with them.
Of course there is also the issue of fans who behave inappropriately which probably makes a lot of players leery of interacting too much with fans. But the same problems exist in Nascar and the driver still stop to sign when they can or at the very least often wave to fans as they pass by. That was too much for many of the players on Friday night, even the ones who were addressed by name. I understand why it's difficult because if they acknowledge or sign for one person, then they have to do it for everyone and it becomes difficult, though at the time there were only four of us standing there. And of course there are probably things that they have to do to get ready for the game. But I couldn't help but be bothered by how many of the players ignored the fans. Where is the appreciation? Drivers in Nascar very much appreciate their fans - why does it seem so different for the baseball players?
Posted by silverdsl at 06:50 PM | Comments (0)
9/11
Never forget.
Posted by silverdsl at 06:19 PM | Comments (0)
September 10, 2005
Oh yeah, and I can't bring myself to discuss the Yankees loss today either. I think I'll wait until I see what happens in tomorrow's game before I say anything more. I did have a great time at the game on Friday and maybe tomorrow I'll post a photo or two as well as tell the story of the night's events.
Yeah, it's just one of those nights when I have plenty to talk about but I just can't seem to find the words.
And as always there's those things that must not be discussed...
Posted by silverdsl at 11:23 PM | Comments (0)
On Possible Changes With the #8 and #15
Obviously I've heard what everyone else has that it's possible that next week Tony Eury, Jr. will leave the #15 to go back to crew chief Dale Earnhardt, Jr. to start working on things for next season. I think it's almost certain that this is going to happen. I'm not going to say too much about this right now because I'd like to see how it's all going to play out in terms of who ends up as crew chief for Michael, what DEI's full plan for the next ten races is, etc... But I will say that I'm terribly disappointed for Michael because I know that he has loved working with Tony, Jr. this season. Working with Tony, Jr. has been wonderful for Michael in terms of the awesome cars that he's gotten, great decisions from the pitbox and I think Michael has had a bit of extra confidence because he knows that Tony, Jr. believes in him and has been giving him cars that he can race anyone with. So it really makes me sad that his partnership with Tony, Jr. is likely coming to an end prematurely because I know no matter what he might say publically he can't be happy about it.
Posted by silverdsl at 09:52 PM | Comments (0)
September 09, 2005
In the News: Michael Waltrip (9/9)
This will probably be my only entry today because I've got a pretty busy day but for all the Michael Waltrip fans who might visit I had to mention that I was listening to XM this afternoon and Claire B. Lang played a short excerpt from an interview with Michael. In that piece all he talked about was DEI but afterwards she said that Michael had also said that he thought he would be making an annoucement about his plans for 2006 and beyond next week. Apparently he knows where he's going but not everything is 100% finalized. So if all goes well and things do get finalized we will know where he's going next week. Yay! That would be awesome! Claire B. said that he didn't let on what organization he would be signing with only that it is something long-term and that he has a long-term plan in mind. Sounds like good news to me no matter what ride he ends up in!
Otherwise Michael and the NAPA team are looking for a strong finish at Richmond. They tested Richmond last week so hopefully that will pay big dividends during tomorrow night's race! Michael also says it's one of his favorite tracks so that probably also works in a driver's favor when they enjoy racing on a particular track. I would love for Michael to get a win or have a really strong finish at Richmond - I think most people are counting him out for the rest of the year, but I'm not - with that team he is capable of winning at any track. But before the Cup race he's racing the Busch race at Richmond tonight in the Domino's car. I won't be able to watch since I'm going to the Yankees/Red Sox game but hopefully he will do well in that race as well.
For those people who have been looking for more information about Waltrip Racing World, the pre-race notes includes these comments from Michael,
"It will be a fully interactive race shop. That's where our Busch cars will be housed initially, with hopes to grow it down the road. What it is going to amount to, is a fans chance to do more than just come to a race shop and look through a window. We will have TV monitors throughout the whole place showing you what crew members are doing. We will have a tractor trailer setup to where you can go in there and see what goes on. We will have different areas where people will tell things like how a gear is built or maybe how a shock is put together. There will be a movie theatre where fans can come and watch the weekend races and a restaurant, motorhome facilities where you can park as you come to visit all of the shops, and stadium style seating where you can grab a box of popcorn and watch our pit crew practice. It's going to be a really unique and interactive experience and I know with the amount of people that come to North Carolina to tour the shops, this will definitely be at the top of their list."
Sounds really cool to me and I'd love to pay a visit once it's done. I hope he will eventually have fan club meetings there because I think that would be really awesome! Another cool thing, and I wonder if any other race teams do this, is if they were to rent out space for organizations to hold events and stuff at night. Can you imagine going to a party at a race shop?
Posted by silverdsl at 01:36 PM | Comments (0)
September 08, 2005
Steve Park Finishes 18th at Richmond
I won't comment too much now because I have no idea what the latest problem for the #62 team was but yet again this was another disappointing race for Steve Park. 18th doesn't sound too bad but the only reason he finished that well was because there were several late wrecks that took other drivers out. Steve was as high as 13th until he suddenly went backwards, way backwards for unknown reasons. At one point he was 25th, one lap down but luckily gained a few positions at the end. Meanwhile, teammate Brendan Gaughan started 32nd and finished 11th. No surprise there - the #77 team is locked in and they have a good race almost every week. I'll have more to say once I see what the points are and what this week's issue was.
Posted by silverdsl at 11:13 PM | Comments (0)
Photo of the Day - Viaduct
Paulinskill Viaduct, Hainsburg, New Jersey, 2004. I haven't gotten to go to the Viaduct at all this year so far and I miss it. Maybe in the fall when the leaves are turning color it would be neat to go there. I just want to make sure that I get at least one more visit to the viaduct before NJ Transit makes it impossible to go up top.
Posted by silverdsl at 11:05 PM | Comments (0)
"Nascar Nation" Undergoes More Changes
(Another) Rebirth of a 'Nation'
What a surprise - not! Despite Speed insisting that everything was rosy with the new version of Nascar Nation fans almost universally hated the revamped show and it's host, Leeann Tweeden. So now comes the news that NN is going to only be on one night a week, Mondays, and that Tweeden is out as host. I'd say this has to be a little embarassing to Speed because the first version of the show apparently wasn't too successful because they made big changes to it fairly quickly. Looks like those changes didn't work out too well either. Maybe Speed shouldn't have told all those fans to just change the channel if they didn't like NN or other shows - perhaps a few too many people changed the channel to justify having it on four nights a week. I wonder if it will disappear all together after this season?
Speed says that NN will be on Mondays because that's when ratings were strongest. Gee, I wonder why that is? Could it be that's because on Mondays NN was one of the lead-ins to Inside Nextel Cup? That should tell Speed something about the popularity of that show if it might draw viewers to other shows. And that should make Speed extremely cautious when it comes to making too many changes to INC. Oops! They already made massive changes!
I think it's especially interesting that Tweeden is out as host. She was brought in to much fanfare and Speed spent a lot of time promoting her virtues. However, even before she came to NN she had a bad reputation with fans so she was doomed even before day one of the show. Personally my biggest problem with her was her credibility and ability to be objective. But she really just rubbed a lot of fans the wrong way, even young male fans who she should have appealed to because of her past as a pinup model.
I'm just wondering if this means the end of the "Mikey Mic'd" segments that Michael Waltrip has been doing for NN. That was the only thing that I watched on NN, though once they became available on Michael's site I stopped watching NN, even on Tuesdays when that segment was on. I'll be disappointed if there are no more "Mikey Mic'd" because they were absolutely hysterical - "I fell off my duck!" is a classic line of Michael's from one of those segments. I just about peed my pants during that one and there are many others that laughed my ass off after I saw them.
But the rest of the show - bleech! An occasional fluff lifestyles piece is interesting but an entire show is flatout boring and it appears that a lot of other fans might have agreed with me. Now if only Speed will listen to the fans about INC.
Posted by silverdsl at 09:24 PM | Comments (0)
Steve Park to Race Modified Race in Strafford, Connecticut
Steve Park Returns to Strafford
I really wish I could go to this since it's only about three hours from where I live but I'll be on my honeymoon at that point. But Steve is going to be taking part in an autograph session and racing in a modified race at the Stafford Motor Speedway on October 2. He'll probably be in Connecticut all weekend since I'm sure he'll be taking part in practices and all too. Steve used to live in the area when he was a regular on the modified series so I'm sure he will be doing a lot of catching up with old friends and visiting old haunts. I think it would be really cool to see him race a modified race, especially since it's just fun for him. No pressure to worry about points or much of anything other than just racing.
The article reminds us of a neat little fact about Steve - he is the only driver to win SK Modified, Tour modified, NCS Truck Series, Busch Series and Cup races.
Posted by silverdsl at 04:40 PM | Comments (0)
I'm Far From Conservative But...
Maybe I should say "I'm far from conservative butt..." The reason being that today while I was in line to get a slice of pizza for lunch there was a woman in front of me, probably 19 or 20, who was wearing shorts so short that half her ass was literally hanging out for all the world to see. Now I didn't find this particularly offensive and I think that everyone has the right to wear whatever they feel comfortable in - but(t) come on! Half your ass hanging out? She may as well have been wearing her underwear. I show some skin myself sometimes depending on what I'm wearing and where I'm going but my ass is definitely covered at all times! When she put those shorts on she had to realize how short they were and how much of her ass she was showing and I guess either she doesn't care, likes the way it looks or wants the attention she's surely going to get. So I guess she's wearing what she wants but I couldn't help but feel the slightest bit embarassed for her.
Posted by silverdsl at 03:46 PM | Comments (0)
Journalists Just as Livid as American Public Over Hurricane Katrina
Journalists Outrage Visible in Coverage
Last week I briefly mentioned how two of CNN's reporters Anderson Cooper and Soledad O'Brien were barely able to contain their emotions when talking with government officials about the ineffective and inadequate (at that time) response by the federal goverment to the Hurricane Katrina disaster. Usually reporters attempt to be as objective as possible, particularly on hard news shows, but those reporters who are actually on the scene are seeing things that make it almost impossible to maintain that objectivity. In fact, as one of the articles above points out they are living under many of the same conditions as the hurricane survivors in the area and see first-hand the effects of both the hurricane itself and the failures of the various government agencies.
I found Soledad O'Brien's interview with Michael Brown, the director of FEMA, who claimed he didn't know until the day before that there were massive amounts of survivors who needed food and water at the convention center, particularly striking. After Brown said he was unaware of the situation until he saw news reports about it O'Brien said as relayed in the article,
"How is it possible we’re getting better intel than you’re getting?" O’Brien snapped. "I don’t understand how FEMA cannot have this information.... In Banda Aceh in Indonesia, they got food dropped two days after the tsunami struck."
It's absolutely shocking that kind of claim was made in the face of the overwhelming amount of news reports showing exactly what was going on in New Orleans. How could FEMA not be aware of that? Yes, communication in, out and around the area was difficult but it seems hard to believe that no one at FEMA or the federal government knew the true magnitude of what was happening. That not one person had heard anything from anyone in that area or hadn't seen a news report until Brown did. And after hearing stories from her colleagues, some of which were heart-breaking, I'm sure O'Brien was astonished by Brown's remarks and in no mood to let them go without being challenged.
Which was only one of the many times that Brown was challenged and criticized along with several of his colleages. For instance Tim Russert from Meet the Press began an interview with Homeland Security secretary Michael Chertoff by saying
"Are you, or anyone who reports to you, contemplating resignation?"
I'm sure the answer was a resounding "no" and Chertoff probably tried to engage in a significant amount of damage control. Which is a lot of what appears to be happening which is serving to further fuel the media who feel that someone, anyone should be taking some responsiblity and offering some answers about what went wrong, how they will respond better in the future and what they are doing now.
Tom Rosenstiel, director of the Project for Excellence in Journalism says in the St. Petersburg Times in response to concerns about objectivity,
"But (after Katrina) you had street reporting suggesting that the official, whitewashed version of some things were untrue. And that changed the tone of coverage."
In addition, Paul Clark a crisis managment specialist from crisis management for the Hill & Knowlton public relations firm said in the same article,
"One of the first concepts is to accept blame if it applies ... people forgive mistakes, but they don't forgive excuses. Make full disclosure of the facts, but don't speculate on things you don't know like death estimates."
People often know when someone in authority is trying to sell them a false bill of goods. Some people will accept whatever is said at face value and aren't interested in the real facts of a particular situation. But many people aren't like that, particularly those in the media who are trained to ask questions and get answers. And when presented with the harsh reality of what the extent of the effects of the hurricane were which were almost certainly made worse by the lack of a timely response by the government, the media was ready for blood much like a good portion of the American public.
Posted by silverdsl at 11:04 AM | Comments (0)
Good Response So Far
I don't usually talk about work related things in this space and for the most part I will continue not to do that. But we do have a major event coming up here at work which I might make mention of from time to time. A press release was sent out yesterday which ended up on the Associated Press then today on various media outlets. So we're getting deluged with phone calls and emails. I'm responsible for answering all the emails and I have to keep checking every few minutes just so they don't build up too much. Every person has to be responded to so that's been pretty time-consuming. But it's incredible how much interest there is in this event. Some people just draw a crowd even if no one really knows the specifics of what they're doing. There are a lot of people who just want to be in this person's presence and no, I'm not talking about Dale Earnhardt, Jr. or Derek Jeter. If all goes according to plan we will have almost 5,000 people at the event in November which is probably more than we've had for any other event that we've done in this office.
Posted by silverdsl at 10:38 AM | Comments (0)
September 07, 2005
Hideki Matsui and Jason Giambi Heroes For the Yankees
Last night I was terribly disappointed with the Yankees for losing to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays but tonight it's a different story though it didn't look good for a while. Jaret Wright was shakey to start the game and that put the Yankees in an early 4-0 hole but thanks to Hideki Matsui's solo homerun in the fourth and a two-run double in the sixth the Yankees trailed the D'Rays by just one run in the eighth inning when Alex Rodriguez hit a single. Jason Giambi followed with a two-run homerun to give the Yankees the lead. Mariano Rivera then pitched a perfect ninth inning to earn his 36th save to preserve the win for the Yankees.
This is the kind of game that I like to see from the Yankees. One where they rally to overcome poor pitching and come from behind to win. That's the kind of effort that teams that are destined for the playoffs have to show. What I'd like to see from the Yankees tomorrow is a crisply played game where if they don't win at least they play well. Chien-Ming Wang pitches for the Yankees, fresh off a long stint on the disabled list so there's no telling how he's going to pitch. But I'd really love to see the Yankees win tomorrow which would mean that they would take the series from the D'Rays and give them a positive feeling for the series against the Red Sox this weekend.
Posted by silverdsl at 10:05 PM | Comments (0)
Whoo-Hoo!
I just found out that I'm going to go to the Yankees/Red Sox game on Friday at Yankee Stadium in unbelievably awesome seats - probably just eight rows from the field, right next to the Yankees dugout! *thud* We're going to go to batting practice too so hopefully I'll return with some good photos. This is all thanks to my cousin and his wife who were supposed to go with another couple but they backed out at the last minute. Wow! Yay!
Posted by silverdsl at 09:45 PM | Comments (0)
More On Inside Nextel Cup
Brian Vickers Signed for Remainder of This Season Only
A few days ago I was pondering the future of Inside Nextel Cup and I continue to wonder after reading that Brian Vickers wasn't signed to any kind of a long-term deal to do INC, just for the last ten shows of the season. Perhaps that's just to try him out as a panelist or he didn't want to commit for longer. Or maybe Speed isn't sure where the show is going to go after this season.
I hadn't said it in my previous entry on this topic in case it was just my imagination but in addition to there seemingly being a lot of tension on the set for Allen's last show my feeling was that Michael Waltrip was deliberately saying and doing things that he might have been told by the "big boss" not to do. Such as rambling, singing, being more goofy and less serious - all the things that reflect his off-beat personality that many fans enjoy so much. Of course there's also bringing up the lack of hot seat guests - that was most certainly to make a point no doubt about that. Most other fans of Michael's seem to agree - he seemed to be deliberately acting out in a willful way.
Unfortunately the prevailing feeling is that Michael is unhappy with all the changes to INC and I'd have to agree that might very well be the case especially if he has in fact been told to keep himself more under control and stop being the Michael that so many tune in to see on INC. Even more reason for him to be unhappy if they had tried to unsuccessfully get rid of him from the show and if the impression that many have that Speed doesn't really like him is also correct. So the question is whether Michael will stay with the show past the end of this season. Seeing him on INC has always been something I've very much looked forward to each week but if he's going to have to be forced to play a role on the new INC that he's not comfortable with or he's not going to enjoy doing the show anymore than I'd say he should opt out. With so many other responsibilies to his Cup team, Busch team, sponsors and family I'm sure he could find plenty of other ways to fill the time.
And unless Speed finds another dynamic personality to take his place, and that's probably a lot harder than Michael's detractors might think, then I'd say the show is done for. Ken Schrader is fond of joking that INC is Michael's show and the reality is that it is. Even the people who dislike Michael seem to hang on his every word and tune in to see and hear his antics. And as much as I like the other panelists, it's just not the same show without Michael. Without the banter between the panelists and the goofy way that they act INC is simply another race review show and as I've noted before Speed already has one of those. Of course the ratings will tell the tale but Speed might just be surprised at what happens.
Of course adding Vickers and Dave Despain could end up revitalizing INC completely. Perhaps the dynamics of the panel will be even better than they were before. Perhaps Michael will be allowed to do and say anything he wants and will have a great time doing the show. That will all become clear over the remainder of the season. But right now it's feeling like a really entertaining show is about to jump the shark.
Posted by silverdsl at 08:34 PM | Comments (0)
Is Ken Griffey, Jr. Made Out of Glass or What?
Griffey Might Miss Rest of Season
Yet again Ken Griffey, Jr. has suffered an injury which might end his season prematurely. Once one of the biggest superstars in baseball, Griffey has suffered any number of injuries that has caused his star to fall since he signed with the Reds. This season is the first season since 2001 that he's played over 100 games and it was starting to look like the Griffey of old was back. But that may have come to a premature halt.
Just about every year it's rumored that the Yankees are going to explore a trade for Griffey. If there was ever any truth to the last round of rumors from this season, it's a good thing that the Yankees never acted on it.
Posted by silverdsl at 04:26 PM | Comments (0)
September 06, 2005
Photo of the Day - Polar Bear
Bronx Zoo, Bronx, NY, 2002. I'm really anxious to get back to the Bronx Zoo and take some photos sometime. But for now I think I'm going to make like this polar bear and get some sleep before I fall over.
Posted by silverdsl at 10:40 PM | Comments (0)
I'm just too tired to talk about my disappointment that the Yankees lost tonight, yet again, to the freaking Devil Rays. Argh! Maybe tomorrow.
Posted by silverdsl at 10:37 PM | Comments (0)
In the News: Michael Waltrip (9/6)
Suddenly I'm hungry for steak and pizza so it's very opportune that Domino's is introducing a new Steak Fanatic Pizza at an invitation only event on Thursday with Michael Waltrip that two lucky winners of the "America's Biggest Pizza Fanatic" contest will be able to attend. My only issue with Domino's is that there are woman who a)are sports fans, b) like steak and c) would love to win a tricked-out Domino's Steak Fanatic Pizza Couch with a bunch of gadgets. Oh and if they're putting together something that features most male's must-have's, why not one for the ladies too though I suspect that I would much prefer the male version!
As I mentioned in this space yesterday Michael finished 13th at Fontana. The post-race report reminds us that it's Michael's second top fifteen in a row and also about how well the crew did during yesterday's race. It's hard to tell from the TV broadcast which didn't show the #15 much but it did seem like they were on their game in the pits.
In other brief mentions today Mike Mulhurn reminds fans of how the Nascar community is pitching in to help Hurricane Katrina victims and that Michael (and Buffy) is one of many drivers who are making contributions. The events at Fontana were apparently a big success for the California Speedway, and one of the highlights was the ride Michael gave to the Mayor of Los Angeles from the Staples Center to City Hall.
Posted by silverdsl at 04:56 PM | Comments (0)
Robbie Loomis May Not Return in 2006 as Jeff Gordon's Crew Chief
Jeff Gordon says that it has nothing to do with the performance of the #24 team but it appears that the question of whether Robbie Loomis will return as his crew chief in 2006 is up in the air. In a teleconference today Gordon said,
"Well, I mean, we talked before this season even started about Robbie's future and what he wanted to do. If it's up to me, yeah, I'd love to have him as, you know, my crew chief. Robbie, with his mom and some of the illnesses she's gone through, you know, he's trying to decide right now what his plans are and has nothing to do with our performance this year,"
Gordon and Loomis have been an outstanding team for quite some time now including for one championship. But after a strong start to the season things have seemed to fall apart for the #24 team. Gordon has been careful not to place any of the blame on Loomis, including during today's press conference but I think that it's unavoidable that some of the issues that the #24 are experiencing are on Loomis' shoulders. The reality is that despite the fact that there are plenty of races that have gone bad for the #24 team due to bad luck Loomis is the crew chief and he is the one that calls the shots for the team so a few of the races when the car wasn't very good he is one of the responsible parties for that.
I have to wonder if the uncertainty about what Loomis' plans are for the future might be having an effect on the team. Good chemistry and a good relationship, something that Loomis and Gordon have always had to this point is extremely important to the success of a team. However, if other members of the crew, Loomis or Gordon himself aren't sure what 2006 will bring that might be putting extra pressure on the team or distracting them from fully being able to focus on getting Gordon into the Chase. I also wonder if Loomis' worries about his mother are also an issue - he absolutely can't be faulted for that since family needs to come before just about everything. But personal issues can be a distraction in the workplace so as professional and as great as Loomis is at his job perhaps his mind isn't always on what's going on at the track when it needs to be.
Regardless of what the issues might or might not be it will be interesting to see what happens with the #24 team in 2006. If they make the Chase and race well over the last ten races then a lot of the issues of this season might be forgotten. But if they don't make the Chase via next week's race in Richmond there will surely be changes with the #24 team in 2006. Since it won't be with the driver for sure the likliest place in my opinion will be with the crew chief, whether Loomis wants to stay or not, as well as potentially with other members of the crew. I just can't see Rick Hendrick standing by idly when his primary team who is a superstar of the sport has a subpar season. Of course if a vacancy opens up with the crew chief position for the #24 team there will be many who will surely want that job. I wonder if Tony Eury, Jr. would have any regrets about re-signing with DEI if a position were to open with the #24 team?
Posted by silverdsl at 04:37 PM | Comments (0)
Hurrincane Katrina Coverage Will Continue Where Similar Stories Have Died
Katrina May Unleash a Media Storm
Peter Johnson in USA Today writes that unlike with other similar stories such as Hurricane Andrew in 1992 which faded from the media's attention in about two weeks, it's likely that the media will continue to focus on the impact of Hurricane Katrina not only on the Gulf Coast region but on the entire country. I have to agree. You have an entire city that was demolished, all of it's residents displaced, perhaps as many as 10,000 people in one city alone dead, any number of other places up and down the Gulf Coast destroyed, some possible failures by local, state and federal agencies in getting people help, the efforts to help all the people who were left with nothing after the hurricane and all the ways that the hurricane impacted people in other parts of the country, such as the high price of gas which will in turn could make other goods more expensive. This isn't a story that will go away soon, nor should it in my opinion though I'm sure there are many that will soon wish that the media will find something else to focus on. Changes have to be made so that when, and I do mean when not if, another category five storm hits the United States the response and the results are different.
Posted by silverdsl at 10:43 AM | Comments (0)
Peter Gammons on Red Sox Team Unity Angers Some
The latest column by Peter Gammons on ESPN (available to insiders only) set off a firestorm among some fans on NYYFans.com and I don't get what's so horrible about what Gammons wrote. The column is a very positive piece on the Red Sox which discusses how unified they are as a team and that they have a mindset that they can overcome anything. I understand that bothers some who feel that Gammons isn't objective and is too pro-Red Sox which translates into being anti-Yankees. Personally I rarely see the anti-Yankee bias that many see in the media in general but from that point of view I can understand why it's irritating to see a column which talks about how wonderful the Red Sox are. But what I don't understand is why some of the specific quotes from the column that are the most upsetting to some Yankee fans.
Kevin Millar who many Yankee fans don't like to begin with said the following,
"I talked to one of our former teammates who's now on the Yankees, and he couldn't believe how different it is, how everyone goes his own way as soon as the game is over. I know this team is crazy and all that, but we're all in the clubhouse at 2:30 every day, getting on one another, and we hang out long after the game is over. You hear stuff about teams that have each other's backs, but it's real here."
Yankee fans read that quote as a diss of the Yankees and maybe in some ways it is. An argument can be made that Millar shouldn't have repeated what his former teammate told him and used it to compare the two teams to each other but he did - and what's the big deal about that? He plays for the Red Sox so of course he's going to see their clubhouse and their way of doing things as the best out of all the teams. In addition, both Derek Jeter and Gary Sheffield, as well as numerous members of the media have acknowledged that the Yankees pretty much go their separate ways after games and aren't as buddy-buddy in the clubhouse as some other teams are. That there is a much more business-like atmosphere than what you might find elsewhere. Should Jeter and Sheffield be run out of town because they acknowledged the same things that the unnamed former Red Sox player did?
Not to mention I think it's a bit much to expect that every player coming to the Yankees is going to love everything about the team. Why is it so suprising that a player might talk to a former teammate and tell that person about some of the differences about playing in the Bronx and maybe even talk about some of the things that they miss about their former team? Playing for the Yankees can be different than playing for other teams and I see nothing wrong with players acknowledging that to each other.
Then there's an observation from Gammons which many felt was anti-semetic but I think is perhaps just not fully explained.
"This is a team with a large, strong group of Christians, yet there is no preaching, no separation. Jason Varitek stood up for Millar when he was getting booed, the way Millar and Ortiz talked Ramirez off the cliff at the trading deadline and a number of players stood up for Mike Timlin when he was bypassed as closer. No one disparages any of Millar's stunts. Oh, by the way, this is also a team with three Jewish players (Gabe Kapler, Kevin Youkilis, Adam Stern), and Kapler may well be the most popular player on the team."
Fact - there aren't many Jewish players in major league baseball. Therefore it is unusual for there to be three Jewish players on one team. Another fact - there is a significant percentage of Christian players, some of whom are evangelistic and may be inclined to "witness" to some of their teammates. Yankee fans surely remember Chad Curtis who was prone to trying to force some of his beliefs on his teammates. That doesn't mean that every player is trying to convert every other player nor does it mean that non-Christian players are harassed. But I think that Gammons is acknowledging something that is a reality not just in sports but everywhere - religion can play a role in personal relationships as well as work related relationships and religion can make people both comfortable and uncomfortable.
What I think Gammons is attempting to get at with his comment about the Jewish players as well as the article overall is that the Red Sox are a cohesive unit, that everyone gets along in spite of there being different religions, different personalities, different ways of approaching the game of baseball, etc... All of those are things that can divide but in spite of all those differences the Red Sox are united with a common goal of winning games even when the odds are stacked against them. Personally, I fail to see how that's a negative thing except if you look at it in terms of Gammons writing about the Red Sox instead of the Yankees.
I've been made to feel uncomfortable in quite a few situations either subtly or overtly for any number of reasons - sometimes it's because I'm Jewish, sometimes it's because I'm a woman, sometimes it's because I have different opinions than the majority does but it happens. And I think most others have had similar experiences. And it can create a lot of tension and make it difficult for people to work, live or go to school together. I have to applaud the Red Sox for not letting any of those things get in the way of how they function as a team or their outlook towards the game of baseball.
I'm pretty sure that during the magical 1998 season for the Yankees similar stories were being written then about the cohesiveness of that team. Now that the Red Sox are the reigning World Series champions it's simply their time to shine so-to-speak in the media spotlight and have people write about how wonderful they are, especially since they continue to be in first place in the American League East. I just can't find myself getting too worked up about positive stories about the Red Sox. I'm more concerned with the way the Yankees are playing and whether they're going to be able to make it back to the post-season.
Posted by silverdsl at 09:55 AM | Comments (0)
September 05, 2005
Photo of the Day - Michael on Nascar This Morning
Nascar This Morning taping, Pocono, PA, July, 2005. I really like how the photos I took at this taping came out. I just got really lucky that I was able to stand in a spot where I had a great view of Michael as they were taping. Most fans wanted to stand right behind Michael and John Roberts but I was more interested in taking photos than being on TV.
Posted by silverdsl at 11:15 PM | Comments (0)
NYYFans.com Mentioned in Today's "Newsday"
He'll Manage, But Will Joe Do It Well?
This is pretty cool - today's column by Ken Davidoff mentions NYYFans.com and a particular thread about Joe Torre and his in-game decision-making, a topic of much debate this season among fans. I've always thought that a lot of members of the media cruise fan forums to gauge the "voice of the fan" but it's not often that we know for sure, other than in the case of Mike Vaccaro of the New York Post who interviewed a few members of the site for his book. But it's awesome that Davidoff mentioned the site and even though it's Labor Day which isn't a big newspaper reading day hopefully it will get a few new users over to the site!
Posted by silverdsl at 10:14 PM | Comments (0)
Tension on "Inside Nextel Cup"
Tonight was Allen Bestwick's last night on Inside Nextel Cup and he will be dearly missed by most viewers. Allen has done an outstanding job on Inside Nextel Cup since it's inception and it's very unfortunate that he's being shoved out the door along with Johnny Benson. And it's very obvious that the panelists on INC are not pleased with the changes that are being made. And if they have any idea of the veiled digs that Chris Long and Eric Arneson have made about them then they're probably even more unhappy with the direction that things are going in. The latest is that Long apparently called a fan who wrote a letter of complaint and tried to justify the decision to replace Allen by saying that he's hated in the garage area. Even if it's true, and I've heard nothing to support that, it's an incredibly inappropriate remark. In addition, Long apparently made some remarks that indicates he doesn't like Michael Waltrip, which is the feeling that I've gotten from both him and Arneson previously based on Long's interview on XM and Arneson's comments on the Speed message boards.
What really gets me is that apparently a decision was made by the "big boss" to eliminate the hot seat guests on INC. I, along with plenty of other people, have been wondering about why there haven't been any hot seat guests lately because it is a popular feature. So Michael on his own brings it up and Allen says that they "made us stop doing it," to which Michael responded "I wonder why, I guess the big boss stopped it." Now, I'm sure he knows full well why there are no longer any hot seat guests. This is total speculation about his motivation but I think he was making a deliberate point to fans about who is responsible for the changes to INC. I can only hope that fans will pick up on Michael's possible hint and let the folks at Speed know just how unhappy they are with the direction that INC and Speed overall is going in. I sure did.
In my opinion, eliminating the hot seat guest takes away one of the best parts of the show other than the banter between the panel members. Which based on what's being said might be curtailed as well. But the hot seat guest gave fans the opportunity to hear the perspectives and opinions of a variety of drivers, crew chiefs and others in the Nascar community. Many fans looked forward to the times when their favorite drivers were on the hot seat - I know Steve Park fans certainly watched in droves when he was on earlier in the season. Stories were told, races were discussed, a ton of interesting things were said. I think the segment they did with Kyle Petty as hot seat guest about the VJCG and Operation Marathon is what drew me into supporting that cause. So what we're left with now is essentially just a straight review of the race unless they plan on adding things that I don't know about starting next week which is possible. But if it's just a review of each week's Cup race, well, that's just not too interesting. There are other shows such as Speed's own Victory Lane where I can get that as well as countless online sources.
Sometimes I wonder what the long-term plans are for INC. I was under the impression that it was one of Speed's biggest hits. But while these changes could end up working out well for them in the long run it appears based on the fan reaction, which I don't think they quite anticipated, that it might also crash and burn making this many changes to such a well-loved show. So if they drive away a significant percentage of viewers, and that is what it's all about despite Speed's seeming disinterest in whether people watch their shows or not, how long will the show continue? INC has always been one of my favorite shows and I've looked forward each week to laughing at and learning from the expert panel. I fear that even with Michael remaining on the show it's just not going to be the same.
At the end of the show Allen said his goodbyes and Jimmy Spencer was sure to tell it like it is for Allen. I don't always agree with Jimmy but he sure does speak his mind. It will be interesting if there will be any reprocussions for him or Michael for that matter since as far as Speed's concerned since I'm sure they're not thrilled with some of what was said on INC tonight. But then again Arneson has said he's just being honest on the Speed boards when he's negative about the shows that it's his job to promote so surely Speed understands if the INC panel is negative about them. Somehow though I doubt that it works both ways.
Posted by silverdsl at 09:20 PM | Comments (0)
Rafael Palmeiro Heads Home Because of "Injuries"
Mutual Decision by Palmeiro, Orioles
Rafael Palmeiro is going home to Texas to rehab knee and ankle injuries by mutual decision of himself and the Orioles but I think that's just a convienent excuse. Palmeiro has been getting booed unmercifully to the point where he was wearing earplugs during some games and on top of that since his return from his suspension due to testing positive for steroids, he's been pretty dreadful at the plate. So I think it was decided by all parties that it would be best for him to get out of the spotlight and take some time to think about his options for the future. The Orioles say he might be back before the end of the season but I wouldn't be surprised if that didn't happen. Because of his injuries of course - yeah, right. Palmeiro is considering playing in 2006 but I'm not sure how realistic that is. I don't know how long his contract with the Orioles goes for but I'm not sure too many other teams would be interested in him at this point, especially since it appears that his renewed presence at the plate this season might be due to his use of performance enhancers. It might be best for Palmeiro to just fade away quietly.
One quote by Palmeiro really sticks out.
"I've always been a type of person that does it the right way and follows the rules and does the right thing for the most part."
Um, hello, what about the afore-mentioned postitive test for steroids? Maybe Palmeiro is in deep denial or he is trying to protect his legecy but if it's true that he took Winstrol, which is hard to ingest accidentally as Palmeiro claims is the case with the substance he tested positive for, then he certainly didn't follow the rules nor did he do things the right way. Unless he can give a full explanation for why he tested positive, which he says that he can't do at this time, then Palmeiro just needs to stop saying anything at all because he's doing himself no favors. And if he's truly an innocent man then what's stopping him from speaking out anyway?
Posted by silverdsl at 09:03 PM | Comments (0)
Michael Waltrip Finishes 13th at Fontana
Kyle Busch Becomes Youngest Cup Winner Ever
I was really impressed with Michael and the #15 team last night. Maybe it sounds ridiculous to some because he only finished 13th but it seemed to me like the whole team worked really hard to get that finish. Michael was able to race in the top ten for varous parts of the race but for the most part a loose-handling race car gave him problems all race long. But Michael really hung in there and got the most out of the car. There was one apparent miscue by Tony Eury, Jr. and that was the decision to take only two tires during a pit stop on lap 119. That gave Michael great track position - in fact he was leading the race which made him happy - but everyone else had taken four tires and Michael quickly slipped back, way back. Another team might have gotten down on themselves considering how far back he was but the #15 team didn't.
Within 50 laps to the end Michael had made his way back into the top ten. Earlier in the race, his teammate Dale Earnhardt, Jr., upon finding out that Michael had taken the lead on lap 119 remarked that Michael had surely not raced his way to the lead. I have no idea if that was meant as commentary on what he thinks of Michael's racing ability of the lack of horsepower in the DEI cars at Fontana but Michael most certainly did race his way through the field later in the race. A pit stop put him into the top ten but that wouldn't have been possible without what Michael was doing behind the wheel. Unfortunately Michael wasn't able to stick in the top ten but 13th is still pretty good considering. That was a real team effort by the entire #15 team and it really shows how awesome that team is from top to bottom. I feel disappointed for Michael that he won't be with them next season because I think they are capable of great things but I hope that his next team is just as good.
It was not a good race for the other DEI team. Junior struggled from start to finish and complained throughout the race about how bad the car was, seemingly because of a lack of horsepower in the engine. That engine blew up big around lap 211 and that eliminated Junior's hopes of making the Chase for the Championship. It's pretty incredible that neither DEI car made the Chase this season. I had really thought at one point that Michael would do it until he ran into a string of very bad luck, including one wreck at Junior's hands. I will be very interested to see what happens next season at DEI, whether they will rebound from some of their struggles in 2005 or not. Personally I'm not convinced that reuniting the two Juniors will automatically bring the huge benefits and instant wins that everyone seems to think that it will.
The big story of this race was Kyle Busch becoming the youngest Cup winner ever. Kyle is strongly disliked by most fans so I think this win was very unpoplar. But personally I love seeing a driver win for the first time. I really enjoy seeing how happy and excited first time winners are. There is always much celebration when a driver wins but some guys have won so many times and things are so choreographed in Victory Lane that sometimes things feel forced. But it's never forced with a first win. I'm not a big fan of his but I was really pulling for him to win at the end and I'm glad that he did - he will remember that moment for the rest of his life.
There is now only one more race to the Chase for the Championship and there's a heated battle for the last two spots. Right now Matt Kenseth and Jamie McMurray are in but Jeff Gordon and Ryan Newman could capitalize on any miscues for those teams next week at Richmond and put themselves in the Chase. It's really going to be a very exciting race - it would be anyway since it's a night race at Richmond but with so much on the line for those teams not locked into the Chase things could get very interesting in a hurry.
There are a lot of fans who hate the Chase format but I've really come to like it. I was against it at first and thought it was a ridiculous idea. But gradually I got swept up in the excitement last season of seeing who would make it and who wouldn't. Michael was one of the only ones who supported the idea right from the start and I have to give him a lot of credit for that. Because he saw something that others didn't and at least to me he was 100% right. It adds an extra dimension to the races that is extra thrilling, at least to me. Unless Jeff Gordon makes it there won't even be a driver I really love in the Chase but it will still have my attention because anything can and will happen for those teams over the last ten races.
Posted by silverdsl at 07:34 PM | Comments (0)
September 04, 2005
Photo of the Day - Statue
New Jersey Botanical Gardens, Ringwood, New Jersey, May, 2005. I always love taking photos of statues. Sometimes the faces show so much. This one is pretty well worn though and if it wasn't I'm not sure it would make for as good of a photo.
Posted by silverdsl at 09:41 PM | Comments (0)
What Makes a "Good" Race Team?
Missing Ingredient Added to Orleans Racing Mix
The above article is on the Orleans Racing website, presumably written by the PR staff there and it's an interesting article about how the fortunes of Brendan Gaughan and the #77 changed when Tony "Rambo" Liberati came aboard as crew chief. A lot of that is attributed to good chemistry between Rambo, Brendan and the rest of the crew. But there's a few other interesting items in this article other than Orleans Racing patting themselves on the back for getting Brendan and the #77 team back on track.
The biggest thing that jumps out at me is this comment by Brendan, who is also the general manager at Orleans Racing about Steve Park and the #62 team.
"Steve Park and the 62 bunch has been the steady group. They’re running good. Steve has had that snakebite thing for awhile. But now we’ve got all the trucks at the shop to the point where everything is back where we think it needs to be. Now we think not only about consistency but we think we can go out and win."
I'd like to know how what the #62 team has done qualifies as running good lately? Yeah, Steve won at Fontana but that was the second race of the season and it's been a long time since then. Or steady for that matter unless Brendan means steadily having to deal with issues in almost every race. Yeah, there was definitely some bad luck that Steve experienced but it's seemed to me that he's also had to deal with trucks that aren't stellar and pit problems. That is not bad luck. I believe the #77 team is capable of winning but the #62 team? Steve is definitely a driver capable of taking a good truck to victory lane and he proved that earlier this season but I'm not convinced that the #62 team is capable as a team of getting back to victory lane. Winning teams simply can't make mistakes on pit road, winning teams have outstanding trucks and winning teams do not have parts breaking on the truck on a seemingly regular basis.
I would also be extremely disappointed if Brendan and Orleans Racing are truly satisfied with how the #62 team is performing this season. Because as far as I'm concerned being 17th in points isn't where I envisioned Steve being at this point in the season, particularly given how Steve, Brendan and everyone else was talking about how the #62 team would be contenders for the championship this season. That's quite far from the reality of how the season has turned out. A previously strong organization like Orleans Racing should not be satisfied if what is supposed to be their primary race team is not even in the top ten in points let alone contending for the Championship.
With others I'd say that I wouldn't expect them to say anything but the "right" things about how everything is rosy even if it's not. But this is Brendan Gaughan we're talking about who generally doesn't hold anything back and says exactly what he wants. He was pretty open about how they made major mistakes early on when it came to putting the trucks together and even in this article he refers to what a mess they were in to start the season. Of course Brendan isn't going to rip his employees, nor should he. But I would think if he truly felt that the performance of the #62 needed some work he might say something to that effect. But he didn't. And I think that's unfortunate because it means that there probably aren't too many changes on the horizon for the #62 team.
Brendan also said that soon there will be a link on the Orleans Racing website so that fans can listen in on the #77 team communications over the radio during races. I have no idea if that means live or not but that would be pretty cool. But will the #62 team's radio communications also be available on their site? That's what I'd really like to listen to so I can truly know what's happening with them each race. Though from what's been reported by those who have gone to races as of late perhaps they wouldn't want to let fans listen in to some of Steve's frustrations during some races which can take the form of lots of cursing! But I do hope that they have both feeds up there live. I love listening in to Michael Waltrip's radio communications via Trackpass and it really helps me have a better sense of what's going on with the #15 team as well as the race overall.
Another item of note is that Rambo is apparently growing his hair long so he can eventually cut it off and donate it to Locks of Love, an organization that takes donations of long human hair to make it into wigs for children who are fighting cancer and have lost their own hair due to treatment. Brendan is also mentioned but it's not clear as to whether he is also growing his hair long to eventually donate it. Either way it's awesome that Rambo (and maybe Brendan) is doing that! I should consider growing my hair super-long to do this too since my hair grows pretty fast...
Posted by silverdsl at 07:56 PM | Comments (0)
Mike Mussina Might Be Done For the Season
Says Missing the Season is a Possibility
At least the article on ESPN.com spins things in a much more positive light than the article in the New York Times today which made it seem as if the chances of Mike Mussina returning to the Yankees rotation are bleak. But the bottom line is that Mussina saw orthopedist Dr. Lewis Yocum yesterday and he confirmed the diagnosis that Mussina has tendinitis in his right elbow. In some ways that's good news because Yocum found no additional problems that might require surgury. But the bad news is that Yocum told Mussina that he can't pitch again until the pain is gone and it's anyone's guess as to when that will be.
Both Joe Torre and Mussina said all the right things about how they think he will be back soon, perhaps as soon as two weeks from now but in reality no one really knows when or if he'll be back since no one knows how long it might take for the pain to go away. And then once the pain is gone Mussina will have to rehab so it's not like he will immediately be able to join the Yankees rotation as soon as he stops feeling pain. Given that it's September time may not be on Mussina's side for returning to the Yankees this season.
If Mussina can't pitch for the Yankees for the rest of the season I think their post-season hopes just took a huge hit. Yes, Aaron Small has been outstanding for the Yankees. He's a definite bright spot but in spite of how well he's pitched he's not Mike Mussina. And personally in a big game against the Red Sox that will make a difference in whether or not the Yankees make the post-season or when they are actually there battling to get to the World Series, I'd rather have Mussina on the mound than Small. Especially considering the Yankees other pitching woes.
I just can't get a handle on this team. I've admittedly been pretty down on the Yankees this season thanks to some periods earlier in the season when they looked dreadful. But they righted themselves and have played better. Still when it comes to whether they will be in the post-season or not every week, no, every game seems to bring a change in momentum. Once more I don't feel good about the Yankees chances to make the post-season and survive for long but that could change depending on how long Mussina is out for.
Posted by silverdsl at 12:50 AM | Comments (0)
September 03, 2005
Nascar Community Responds to Help Hurricane Katrina Victims
Michael and Buffy Waltrip to Donate $50,000
The Nascar community has stepped up big time to donate to the Red Cross and help raise funds to help the Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. From sponsors to fans to drivers countless organizations, companies and individuals have stepped up to make donations. There's no way to mention every donation that's being made but Michael and Buffy Waltrip are donating $50,000, Aaron's is donating $200,000, Jimmie and Chandra Johnson are donating $48,000, Tony Stewart is donating his earnings from this weekend, Joe Gibbs Racing has been making it's planes available to fly teams of doctors and others to the areas effected by the hurricane, Dupont is donating $1 million, Carl Edwards is donating his earnings from tonight's Busch win, Home Depot donated $1 million, UPS donated $1.5 million and there are many more who are pitching in to help as well. I applaud anyone who has given of their time and/or money to help with this cause.
There are thousands of people who have had their entires lives as they know it wiped out. Some of them could need assistance for months, especially when one considers that some of them didn't have much to begin with. In the article Michael asked race fans to join with him and Buffy in giving o the Red Cross. He said,
"If every single race fan in America gave just a $10 donation, can you imagine the impact we could have helping fellow Americans rebuild their lives? Give. Please."
I echo Michael's words and extend it beyond just race fans. If every person gives just $10 it will make a huge difference. Please donate and help people who need it dearly. More information about donating to the Red Cross or other charities that are helping in hurricane relief efforts can be found here.
Posted by silverdsl at 11:58 PM | Comments (0)
In the News: Michael Waltrip (9/3)
Tomorrow is the Sony HD 500 at California Speedway and Michael Waltrip will be starting 19th. I had been hoping that Michael might start even better given that during the second practice he was 5th but clearly he has a good car so hopefully that means that regardless of where he is starting it will translate into an excellent race for the #15 team.
Which will hopefully take some of the sting out of failing to qualify for the Ameriquest Mortgage 300 Busch race tonight in his #99 Aaron's Dream Machine. Unfortunately I can't seem to find a link to the actual qualifying results now that the race is over but the car had issues and he couldn't make it in on time. I feel bad for Michael and his Busch team because hauling everything to California is probably very costly both financially and in terms of man power/effort due to how far it is from the shop. So I'm sure they were hoping for a much better result, especially since Michael's Busch team had been looking so much more improved since Butch Hylton came on board.
When he wasn't at the track Michael was busy giving Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa a ride from the Staples Center to city hall. Based on the photos it appears that all involved had a good time with this. I heard the Mayor's spokesman on XM on Thursday and he said that when they drove down the street to City Hall, Michael and the Mayor were getting plenty of stares. I bet! I'm not sure exactly what was being promoted with this other than the races this weekend but it seems like it was a fun event.
Anyone who is in the Charlotte area on September 12 might be able to catch Michael playing in the Humane Society of Catawba County's Fourth Annual No-Kill Animal Shelter Celebrity Golf Tournament
along with Ned Jarrett, Ryan Newman and Greg Biffle. A similar tournament last year raised $35,000 for the no-kill shelter and they hope to raise $50,000 this year. Michael loves to play golf and given that he has dogs he's an animal lover too but even if he wasn't I don't think Michael turns down too many opportunities to play golf!
Posted by silverdsl at 11:13 PM | Comments (0)
September 02, 2005
So Many Things to Say, So Little Time...
I've actually got more to blog about today that isn't so depressing and doesn't relate to Hurricane Katrina but I just haven't had time thus far. Hopefully tonight or tomorrow night I'll have a few entries on the Yankees, Michael Waltrip, Steve Park and a few other things. It just seems like I'm always running out of time to talk about things as fully as I'd like.
Posted by silverdsl at 04:57 PM | Comments (0)
Political Talk vs. Reality: New Orleans
The Big Disconnect on New Orleans
Increasingly it's appears that some journalistic objectivity has gone out the window the longer the media covers the disaster in the Gulf Coast and the response by the authorities to what the people in that region are suffering through. Perhaps that's a good thing in this case. CNN's coverage particularly has been highlighted by a sense of outrage. Both Anderson Cooper and Solidad O'Brien have confronted politicians on various issues. I still stand by my pledge to not talk politics in this space but I think it's an interesting read that CNN put together from transcripts of interviews they've done to see the vast difference between what the FEMA Director Michael Brown and Homeland Security Director Michael Chertoff say in comparision to the reality of the situation as told by others who are in New Orleans.
Posted by silverdsl at 03:39 PM | Comments (0)
Am I The Only One Who Isn't Panicing Over Gas Prices?
Just about everyone I encounter is hysterical over gas prices and in a panic that there's going to be a gas shortage. Yes, in some areas gas supplies could be stretched thin, particularly in the South, but in the Northeast as of yet that doesn't seem to be a problem. So why panic? On top of that in the face of thousands of people dead and dying in New Orleans, thousands of people who have had their entire way of life and every possession they own destroyed, people who wish that all they had to worry about was the high price of gas I can't find myself able to complain too much about paying over $3 for gas. And this is coming from someone who commutes over an hour each way to and from work and has to take several long trips upcoming for various wedding related things.
If someone is already earning a limited amount of money I can understand how an increase in the price of gas is a serious problem. But many of the people complaining about it have no such concerns. And some of the people complaining in other parts of the country about how expensive gas is aren't even paying $3 a gallon yet. So when I find myself getting aggrivated about the price of gas I just think about the people of the Gulf Coast region and feel grateful that I have a car to fill with gas, a house to go back to each night, my friends and family are all accounted for and I have a job. Because there are quite a few people right now who don't even have their basic needs taken care of.
Posted by silverdsl at 02:19 PM | Comments (0)
Appalling
I refuse to discuss politics on this blog. However, I'm in complete disbelief that the Director of FEMA, Michael Brown, gave an interview to CNN this morning in which he said that FEMA had no idea that there were thousands of people gathered in the one area they were all told to go for help by local authorities in New Orleans until yesterday. He said that people keep turning up that they had no idea existed. How is it possible that they don't know about the existance of thousands of people who have been all over every news channel in America? There's definitely communication problems throughout the entire Gulf Coast area that make it hard to have a full picture of what's going on but to not know that there are thousands of people gathered in one area who are there because there were told to go there for help? Surely the FEMA higher-ups have satellite phones - no one mentioned at any time the thousands of people without food, water or medical supplies who were waiting for help? It's great that they're (slowly) getting supplies to them now but what's been happening for the past four days?
Posted by silverdsl at 08:52 AM | Comments (0)
September 01, 2005
In the News: Michael Waltrip (9/1)
When Michael Waltrip last visited the California Speedway, he was on his way to an awesome finish in the #15 NAPA Chevy before the engine expired less than fifty laps from the end of the race. So naturally Michael and the NAPA team are looking to finish what they started in California last time they were at that track. Given that there are only two more races to determine who will be in the Chase for the Championship, the level of competition is going to be even more intense than usual. But I have full confidence that Michael and his team will be able to finish great in Fontana this weekend!
But prior to that Michael will apparently be hob-nobbing with the Mayor of Los Angeles. From Jayski's:
Mikey gives LA Mayor a ride: Los Angles, CA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa will ride to work in a NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series race car with #15-Michael Waltrip on Thursday, September 1, 2005 at 9:00am from the Staples Center, 1111 S. Figueroa Street, Los Angeles, CA 90015. Mayor Villaraigosa will be joined by Michael Waltrip, the two-time Daytona 500 winner who is in town in preparation for this weekend's Sony HD 500 race at the California Speedway. Waltrip will pick up the Mayor at Staples Center and give him a ride to City Hall in a NEXTEL Cup race car.(PR)(9-1-2005)
Unfortunately I can't find the source of that item but this morning Michael gave Mayor Villaraigosa a ride to city hall. I have no idea how this came about but surely there's some sponsor or another that is involved somewhere. Given that there was a political type involved I'm sure photos will show up somewhere eventually!
Posted by silverdsl at 04:24 PM | Comments (0)
Beyond Desperate
Photo credit: David J. Phillip, Associated Press
Again I hate to use someone else's photo without permission but I felt that it's important to post another photo that illustrates the nature of the destruction in the Gulf Coast region of Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi. This photo was taken in Long Beach, Mississippi and where an apartment complex once stood. As one can see the entire complex was completely washed away, apparently by a storm surge that was estimated to be at least 25 feet high. And scenes like this can be found all across the region as far as two miles inland.
And then there's the situation in New Orleans which is desperate beyond words. There are thousands of people who survived the hurricane and the flooding that followed but now they face an additional battle to survive. There is a lack of food, water, shelter and medical attention. There are people who are still trapped in their houses. There is looting and lawlessness. Even people who want to evacuate the city in many cases have no way to get out. The death toll which is already great in New Orleans is sure to get even higher because there will be people who will die because they don't get what they need to survive, whether it's medication they need, medical help or food and water. The situation is unbelievably bad and I fear that it will only get worse before it gets better.
My heart absolutely breaks for the people in the entire Gulf Coast region.
Posted by silverdsl at 04:00 PM | Comments (0)
The Mussina Photos
Yesterday I talked about the increase in photos that are popping up on Webshots and other similar sites of baseball players, Nascar drivers and others in the public eye partying. One set of photos that I discussed were those of Yankees pitcher Mike Mussina. The photos showed him and someone who was identified in a caption as an employee of the Yankees drinking in a bar with some female fans. In a few of the photos the female fans are drapped over Mussina in a way that is extremely "friendly" for lack of a better way to describe it. I have no idea what the specifics are of what might or might not have happened that night with Mussina and these women but the photos definitely depict a side of Mussina that isn't usually seen publically and may be upsetting to some fans.
What I didn't anticipate was that some fans would be so upset by these photos that they would choose not to be fans of Mussina anymore. I had seen in various places a few fans of Michael Waltrip say they would stop being fans of his if he was sponsored by a liquor company and much of that was tied either to strong moral values or religious beliefs. I had no idea that would be the case with Mussina fans because it's never seemed that either of those things was a huge factor in why fans liked Mussina so much. Of course many Mussina fans admire him as a person and are understandably disappointed by what they see in these photos but it just surprises me that these photos have created such angst for some Mussina fans.
I've heard rumors and stories about every single one of the players and drivers that I like. Every single one. Now quite a few of those rumors are utter bullshit but I think some of them are on the mark and true. If I stopped being a fan of player X or driver Y because they like to party or might get some on the side from a woman who isn't their significant other there would probably be no one left for me to be a fan of. That's an unfortunately reality, particularly in baseball, where cheating is rampant and I'm not sure that Nascar is any better. In no way do I think that behavior is appropriate and I wouldn't want my significant other to do things like that but it's just something that I've come to accept.
Not everyone chooses to live their lives the way I do or in the way that I wish everyone would. Everyone has to decide for themselves how to live their lives in the way that makes them the most comfortable. No one is perfect and since the players and drivers are human beings just like anyone else they are going to make mistakes, say things and do things, sometimes even serious things, that I wouldn't do myself or don't agree with. I accept that they may sometimes disappoint me and a good example of that is Jason Giambi. He used performance enhancers and I strongly disagree with that choice. I believe that Giambi has to face any and all consequences of those actions, no matter what that might be. However, I'm still a fan of his. I accept that he made some decisions that were very poor ones and he is going to have to deal with that for quite some time to come.
As for the Mussina photos as I said yesterday regardless of what the true story is behind what happened that night I think that Mussina made a poor decision in allowing photos of that nature to be taken. Not because he's not entitled to have some fun and enjoy himself - he most certainly is - but because I think out of respect for his wife he shouldn't be putting himself into a situation where photos of him with strange women all over him are posted on the internet and being distributed widely. I understand after someone has a few drinks it might be hard to think things through and he might have assumed the photos would never end up on the internet but they most certainly have. Is the answer that Mussina can never go out to a bar or never take photos with any female fans? No, of course not. But allowing a woman to put her hand on his upper thigh or press herself against him in the way that one of those women was? Yes, I think he should be avoiding that.
I have no idea what his wife might think if she saw them. For all I know she would think they're funny. Or there might be some sort of "agreement" between herself and Mike about what he can do. If there was nothing but innocent fun going on that night then I do feel bad for him and think it's unfortunate that he's going to lose some fans over this. But if Mussina did behave in an inappropriate way that night which his wife would disapprove of then I don't have a lot of sympathy for him for these photos being distributed widely and he's going to have to deal with the consequences of his actions.
Posted by silverdsl at 03:22 PM | Comments (0)