2011 NASCAR Thread

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I'll set some simple guidelines for this one so nobody gets sad/mad.

  1. No, absolutely no driver/team/general NASCAR bashing, that's cool you're not a fan but please keep it out of here!
  2. Do not go off-topic, if you want to discuss something other than current NASCAR races/events/news start another thread or take it to PM.

Today's Discussion - Thoughts about today's Daytona 500 or 2011 speedweeks in general.
 
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I am so glad I could watch it through a stream on the net, because NASCAR isn't broadcasted here. Loved the new way of racing there in Daytona and oh boy it was exciting. Can't express how happy I am about Bayne's win. :)
 
To all of you thinking Bayne might run full season he already chose to run for the Nationwide title, and I don't think the Wood Bros want to.
 
Cale
To all of you thinking Bayne might run full season he already chose to run for the Nationwide title, and I don't think the Wood Bros want to.
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That is probably going to be true. I would love to see him run both and run the Rookie of The Year in Cup, but I think he's just trying to get some experience for a full run at it next year. I can't think of a better way than having the Wood Brothers to help him out at all. :D :dopey: Randy
 
Edit: Wrong Thread, sorry...

On Trevor Bayne:

Even if he does not run any more than the 5 scheduled races he already had in cup, he will be an attractive pick for teams to sign for next year. It's kind of weird, I mean, he's so new, even in Nationwide he's not had much of a chance to do anything great. But, this is his first win in any Nascar sanctioned series since 2008, which was K&N Pro series, also, other than today, that was his only win.

if nothing else, he will have a spot in the Shootout for next year as well, his car in Daytona USA, his handprints in the walk of fame. All in all, pretty good day to be Trevor Bayne.

Also, good to see Ford staying on track, this is the 3rd race in a row for Ford, it's about time :D! 👍
 
I can't wait to see what he can do in the 17 races he has planned this year.
 
Toronado
I thought this year's race was the best one in quite a few years.
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That's funny. A long-time NASCAR fan buddy keeps complaining about how terrible it was. I personally hate NASCAR but watched it just because it's the Daytona 500, and a non-NASCAR friend and my non-NASCAR wife also watched it with me, though my wife only watched the last 20 laps or so, but we spent the whole time falling asleep and amused ourselves by making jokes at NASCAR's expense.

The only thing any of us got out of it was that we ended up wanting Bayne to win just because he was the rookie and we were tickled that he did it.
 
It's hard to get into NASCAR if you don't really follow/know any of the teams and drivers.
 
You see, I keep hearing people say how it is ruining NASCAR or whatever, but I haven't gotten a straight answer out of anybody as to why.
Being perfectly honest, this is the first restrictor plate race since they switched to the CoT that hasn't bored me to sleep. There were constant lead changes. Everyone on the lead lap had a chance to win. There was constant strategy between drivers and pit crews. The cars were running freely, usually going three wide all the way around the track. And, most importantly of all, the cars were actually racing rather than just running single file lap after lap after lap as has been the case at every restrictor plate race of the past 3 years or so.
And, assuming NASCAR doesn't go out of their way to intentionally neuter the cars, this is the first time I have been looking forward to Talladega in a good few years. And Atlanta? Oh lordy, that will be insane.


Perhaps I am missing some tangible thing that makes the race so much worse, but simply repeating over and over how "it was better before" is not a valid reason to make me believe that.
 
I didn't mind the 2 car draft, sure it made starts/restarts a tad less exciting but it reduced the period where the cars just form 1 line for 50 or so laps like normally happens.

Phoenix will be the real test to see who the contenders are, hopefully Newman can repeat.
 
Yeah, I'm also surprised by how polarizing the two-car thing has been. People seem either to love it or to despise it, with little in the way of middle ground. I'm in the "I loved it" camp; it seemed to introduce more unpredictability than the old trains of cars did, which in turn made it more exciting to watch. Toronado's description of the phenomenon as "they were actually racing" also captures it nicely for me. I guess the whole spectacle was much more "active" in some way than in years past.
 
Keep in mind Bayne is automactically added into the Shootout at Charlotte this year too :)

I was saying to my dad when Jack Roush was congratulating him, how long before he's in the 6 of Ragans. Ragan, Biffle and Kenseth contracts with Roush expires at the end of this season so I honestly think T.Bayne may have found himself a brilliant ride and a pretty speical sponsor.

Edit: As for the 2 car draft, I honeslty thought that it would ruin the 500. But I was completly wrong, it made it much edgier awaiting the car swap and knowing that 12+ cars could freight train them all paired up. It was good, but still not as satisfying as having a bigger pack race. When you've seen the Red Arrows perform so often, you understnad how much harder it is to run in a pack for loads of laps without slowing. Ok your pushing someone pretty much blind with this new drafting, but I think its giving drivers an excuse to be much more rougher and wrecking more cars. I was praying for Regan Smith to get a good result until DW's "Accordian" effect came in and he got annilated.
 
I was watching the whole raec till 11pm at night here! WOW!

Easily one of the feel-good stories in motor racing for a long while. I thought that perhaps the race was going to be a little dull after that melee (Waltrip= Accident Zone), but I was proved wrong. Amazing stuff!
 
The Race:

I'm glad I took control of the Tv and watched it last night. Great finale, Trevor Bayne was perfect. He moved at the exact perfect time to block Edwards right after getting a push from Labonte who then didn't have the momentum to pass him.

He also deserved it, he pushed all the way, never got in the way, was very subtle, careful and... also fast.


About the restrictor plate:

As a principle I am against it. In Nascar, I understand the need.

As a result we had "trains" side by side trying to squeeze as much speed as possible, which was spectacular. But we also had a lot of front right blow outs. Which I believe is the ultimate reason to limit these cars on fast ovals. I mean, it's kinda working... speed is reduced, and tire wear is reduced, and when/if they crash after a blow out, it's at lower speeds. But it still happens...

So, mixed feeling about those plates. Maybe mandatory stops or a yellow flag after X (insert maximum number of laps a tire would normally hold before blowing) laps would be better.

Please correct me if I'm wrong in any way, I just follow some races, I'm not 100% in the game 👍
 
Wanted this Daytona 500 to be the first where I would be able to watch it start to finish. I had to record it, due to time-zone differences. Got right through the race just fine, really enjoyed it... 5 laps to go and the recording stops! :ouch: Maybe next year! I'm glad that I actually had the chance to watch it, this year is the first time that each race in the Sprint Cup will be broadcast live in Australia on free-to-air TV.
 
Jackington
Wanted this Daytona 500 to be the first where I would be able to watch it start to finish. I had to record it, due to time-zone differences. Got right through the race just fine, really enjoyed it... 5 laps to go and the recording stops! :ouch: Maybe next year! I'm glad that I actually had the chance to watch it, this year is the first time that each race in the Sprint Cup will be broadcast live in Australia on free-to-air TV.
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Tip for next time, set the recording (if you can) to finish a bit later than the scheduled finish time. I was watching a stream on Justin.tv and the guy that was broadcasting the race did the same thing as I watched him go through the Tivo menus. :p
 
R1600Turbo
Just went on a search for a 1:24 scale Regan Smith diecast and can't seem to find one. :(
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Because I'm a diecast whore...

Preordered Baynes Daytona 500 Race win fusion last night. Free shipping, display case, and card. I like the livery anyway, and it will look cool with all the bump drafting scars :D.

Edit...

Nevermind, I thought you mean David Ragen. You're right. There is nothing for him out there... In 1:24 anyway, 1:64 I've found stuff. Sorry.

Edit 2: His 01 US ARMY car?
 
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Yea yea, I know, I'd get one too. It's a cool looking car, not to mention, it always seems to be fighting well above what most single car teams can do. If Menard didn't bring all his loot to RCR, I think Smith would have been a good candidate for a seat there. But as it is, he's got good support. I think he'd obviously do better driving for one of the big teams though. I found Newman's 2010 PIR raced win car, that's close to home for him, he probably went to that race. :lol:
 
Something about the all black and red Furnature Row makes it really stand out. Then again the old Halvoline / Texaco livery was beautiful.

FYI, I always thought Halvoline and Valvoline where the same thing. Just different labels, but there are different suppliers. :)
 

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