2013 NASCAR Thread

[The Bman]

Congrats to Jimmie, a great run for him. I was a little pissed since he won, but I got over it. You have to give him credit though, he knows how to drive a race car. 👍

Next week we go to my personal favorite track, Phoenix. Will be very interesting to see how that turns out.

 

[RVDNuT374]

If that's all it takes to push you away, then I question the legitimacy of your liking to NASCAR in the first place.

But anywho, bye bye. Or see you next week.

I've watched the "Sprint Cup Series" since I was a baby *I'm 25 by the way, *, so I believe that qualifies me as a lifelong fan. For my reasoning to finally quit watching the top "series", over the past five or six years, I've watched them steadily decline from drivers who actually use to battle for position and go for wins, to nothing but a bunch of 🤬 who seem to forget what "racing" is all about, battling side-by-side and in close quarters lap after lap without resorting to dumping your rival. The new definition is, well, not AUP-friendly in my words. Even so, I still watched it through the beginning of 2012 because of hope that the on-track action would get better after dull periods, as it had in the past.

About halfway through the 2012 season of never-ending boredom, I really started thinking about following another series, which is why I jumped ship to F1 and the IZOD IndyCars. I started only watching until the first commercial break, then changing the channel to something more interesting, only tuning in on occasion to see who was leading. The final nail in the coffin was Speedweeks 2013, in particular the Duels and the Daytona 500. Never in all my years of watching the top series have I seen so many drivers just be content to ride for 150/500 miles without attempting to go for the victory. I thought everybody driver's dream was to try and win the Daytona 500, not "points race" as what I and many real NASCAR fans saw today.

 

[Ganon83]

According to Twitter, Clint Bowyer and Hamlin aren't happy about Logano (They say he was clogging the bottom lane)

 

[Furinkazen]

According to Twitter, Clint Bowyer and Hamlin aren't happy about Logano (They say he was clogging the bottom lane)

Logano was forcing the middle trying to get up to BK.

 

[JohnBM01]

To answer my own question, this is only a small sample size on the Gen-6 cars. Either passing was tough, or this car isn't that good on tracks like Daytona and Talledega. Need to see this car on shorter ovals as well as road courses. We only have seen what this car can do at Daytona. Try this thing at Bristol and Martinsville. Same for Phoenix, California, and even Pocono.

I do like the new cars as a whole. Always room for improvement, though.

 

[Ganon83]

I hope this doesn't ruin Pocono. We finally have great races at Pocono last two years and it would be a shame if it goes back to old Pocono.

 

[Anathema]

I hope this doesn't ruin Pocono. We finally have great races at Pocono last two years and it would be a shame if it goes back to old Pocono.

I'd much rather have Nazareth than Pocono. And, if you're talking about the debacle where the only remotely interesting thing was when David Stremme hit the pit road entrance barricade and sent up a spray of water... that's the old Pocono.

I should know, I suffered through that race, actually went to see it in person. The last time they ran the IndyCars at Nazareth... was actually very good.

 

[RACECAR]

For anyone interested(not sure if already mentioned), Micheal Annett has been released from the infield care center.

 

[Earth]

Plate racing is a lost cause...

Plate racing also only represents 4/36 races

The race today was the worse at Daytona since 2000, but not as bad as that awful race where one driver led the whole thing and it was impossible to pass. But that doesnt mean the other 32 races wont be good and it also doesnt mean NASCAR wont make adjustments to the cars so they race better at the plate tracks.

What really concerned me was the frequency of commercials. When 1/3 of the broadcast is commercials, its gone too far. I dont care if they do the split screen. Its impossible to get a feel for a race when theres a commercial after every 5 minutes of racing.

 

[Tornado]

They also didn't do the split screen properly either. In IRL it's a 50:50 split, but on the race 3/4ths of the screen were ads and the race was shoved into a small box in the corner. It's like the worst of both worlds; and I'd rather have less commercials where I don't see anything than more commercials where I can barely see anything.

 

[OutlawQuadrnt]

Plate racing also only represents 4/36 races

The race today was the worse at Daytona since 2000, but not as bad as that awful race where one driver led the whole thing and it was impossible to pass. But that doesnt mean the other 32 races wont be good and it also doesnt mean NASCAR wont make adjustments to the cars so they race better at the plate tracks.

Less power and less aero, and by a bunch. Just not sure how far much they can dial back both areas without forcing the teams to essentially build new cars. I know after the 2000 race, they added the metal strip on top of the roof, but I doubt they're going to try something like that again.

What really concerned me was the frequency of commercials. When 1/3 of the broadcast is commercials, its gone too far. I dont care if they do the split screen. Its impossible to get a feel for a race when theres a commercial after every 5 minutes of racing.

We'll be right back to the NASCAR 2013 thread after this commercial break...

 

[Doth1s]

What really concerned me was the frequency of commercials. When 1/3 of the broadcast is commercials, its gone too far. I dont care if they do the split screen. Its impossible to get a feel for a race when theres a commercial after every 5 minutes of racing.

More like three and a half minutes of watching them discuss various aspects of cars in the booth or out in the the garages, three laps of racing then commercials.

 

[rap129]

I listened to most of the race because of all the commercials. I thought the race was boring but hope Phoenix is good. Oh, and I think Nazareth was demolished?

 

[ICEYOU]

Plate racing also only represents 4/36 races

Thank God. I say take the plate off and put a chicane on the back stretch. Problem solved. Slow em down and spread em out. It would be the best race of the year for sure.

 

[Müle]

I've said it before, but if there was a way to get the cars to go 210-215 down the straights and have to slow to 180ish in the turns, that would be perfect.

 

[ICEYOU]

I've said it before, but if there was a way to get the cars to go 210-215 down the straights and have to slow to 180ish in the turns, that would be perfect.

Or the could put a chicane on the backstretch!

 

[Its Vanilla]

I've said it before, but if there was a way to get the cars to go 210-215 down the straights and have to slow to 180ish in the turns, that would be perfect.

Less grippy tires and a smaller restrictor plate.

To make these races good, the drivers need to come back into play. Right now it's about who can hold their foot down the longest and not wreck. If these cars required more skill to hold in the turns and drivers actually needed to slow down slightly things would probably be better.

Give them less grippy tires so they can't just hold it wide open through the corners and give them a smaller plate for more speed on the straightaways.

 

[Bopop4]

Thank God. I say take the plate off and put a chicane on the back stretch. Problem solved. Slow em down and spread em out. It would be the best race of the year for sure.

I don't know why they don't run a race on the road course already, it would be perfect for those cars.

 

[Müle]

Less grippy tires and a smaller restrictor plate.

To make these races good, the drivers need to come back into play. Right now it's about who can hold their foot down the longest and not wreck. If these cars required more skill to hold in the turns and drivers actually needed to slow down slightly things would probably be better.

Give them less grippy tires so they can't just hold it wide open through the corners and give them a smaller plate for more speed on the straightaways.

I know what they'd have to do. They just wont do it.

 

[Earth]

Not sure about other countries but in the United States a 100 minute movie fits in a 120 minute time slot when shown on cable.

That means 8 out of every 10 minutes the movie is on. A lap at Datyona takes 45 seconds. So going by the amount of commercials you see during a movie we should have got 10-11 laps of racing followed by just 2 minutes of commercials. I know for certain today they had a commercial at lap 14 and another at lap 21. Just 7 laps, or roughly 5 minutes of racing. And the commercials felt terribly long. In total they felt like they lasted at least 3 minutes each time.

I'll definitely have a stop watch on them next week. If they substantially exceed the 100 minutes of movie for a 120 minute time slot standard of cable movies I'm probably out.

NASCAR really needs to wake up an understand this is the year 2013. People can watch the last 5 laps of races on youtube with a few clicks. If you want your fans to sit through a 3-4 hour broadcast do not make it a chore. I dont have to watch the race in its entirety to know what happened, I can watch highlights instantly on the internet without even waiting for sportscenter.

Watching a race live has its perks though, but may not be worth it anymore if Im going to be torchered with endless and extended ads.

 

[Dolph Drago]

Less power and less aero, and by a bunch. Just not sure how far much they can dial back both areas without forcing the teams to essentially build new cars. I know after the 2000 race, they added the metal strip on top of the roof, but I doubt they're going to try something like that again.

That metal strip on the roof they used from the fall Talladega race in 2000 (which at the time set a record for lead changes) through the 2001 season provided great racing. Still had the usual big wrecks, but there was a lot of passing. In general, though, Talladega has more competitive racing. Handling is much less important there than at Daytona. The drivers with ill handling cars tend to lift off the throttle at Daytona, while they can still run wide open at Talladega. I have a feeling Nascar won't change anything, though.

I am also getting very annoyed by the commercials. It gets worse every year. I've gone back and watched some older races, and they'd go 30 laps to the finish without a commercial. And they'd make it a hell of a lot further than under 10 laps into a race before taking a break. Jayski always posts commercial information after each race. It's interesting to see just how much of the race you're missing.

 

[Northstar]

I am also getting very annoyed by the commercials. It gets worse every year. I've gone back and watched some older races, and they'd go 30 laps to the finish without a commercial. And they'd make it a hell of a lot further than under 10 laps into a race before taking a break. Jayski always posts commercial information after each race. It's interesting to see just how much of the race you're missing.

I share this sentiment as well, I also blame NASCAR more than the networks. The recently signed Fox deal is 2.4billion over 8 years, that averages to 20,000,000 per race, they have to make it back some how.

At this rate it's more entertaining to just look at the results after the race.

 

[Ganon83]

Not sure about other countries but in the United States a 100 minute movie fits in a 120 minute time slot when shown on cable.

That means 8 out of every 10 minutes the movie is on. A lap at Datyona takes 45 seconds. So going by the amount of commercials you see during a movie we should have got 10-11 laps of racing followed by just 2 minutes of commercials. I know for certain today they had a commercial at lap 14 and another at lap 21. Just 7 laps, or roughly 5 minutes of racing. And the commercials felt terribly long. In total they felt like they lasted at least 3 minutes each time.

I'll definitely have a stop watch on them next week. If they substantially exceed the 100 minutes of movie for a 120 minute time slot standard of cable movies I'm probably out.

NASCAR really needs to wake up an understand this is the year 2013. People can watch the last 5 laps of races on youtube with a few clicks. If you want your fans to sit through a 3-4 hour broadcast do not make it a chore. I dont have to watch the race in its entirety to know what happened, I can watch highlights instantly on the internet without even waiting for sportscenter.

Watching a race live has its perks though, but may not be worth it anymore if Im going to be torchered with endless and extended ads.

Just wait for the Jayski TV report to come out on Tuesday
Although anybody complaining about Daytona must not of saw the infamous "Mashed Potatoes and Gravy! Mac and Cheese!" debacle last year at Kentucky. That was much, much worse (At least FOX had side by side, TNT went to full screen commercial like 7 laps to go).
Also, hearing rumors on some forums that Leicht is out of the 33 most of the time (AKA when Dillon doesn't race) and Landon Cassill is in.

 

[Tornado]

Can I see a picture of this 2000 car? I don't recall it.

 

[Northstar]

Can I see a picture of this 2000 car? I don't recall it.

I think this is what he means, across the number.

 

[OutlawQuadrnt]

I think this is what he means, across the number.

Yep. That's the one.

It did make the racing more exciting, but I recall that the cars were a handful to drive. In fact, I had read somewhere that Dale himself complained the package was so dangerous, it was going to get someone killed.

Unfortunately, he was right.

 

[GTPorsche]

I listened to most of the race because of all the commercials. I thought the race was boring but hope Phoenix is good. Oh, and I think Nazareth was demolished?

Source? Last I heard they were trying to revive the place, and this was back in Dec. 2012.

 

[IceMan PJN]

Yep. That's the one.

It did make the racing more exciting, but I recall that the cars were a handful to drive. In fact, I had read somewhere that Dale himself complained the package was so dangerous, it was going to get someone killed.

Unfortunately, he was right.

I'm not particularly knowledgeable regarding NASCAR since I don't follow it all that closely, but I'm guessing you refer to Dale's fatal crash. If so, it wasn't a flaw in the car that killed him. Had his car at the time been magically swapped with a current one or one of probably any other generation, he still would have been killed. His accident could've been experienced in any form of NASCAR and would have killed him just the same.

 

[Wilbur]

I'm not particularly knowledgeable regarding NASCAR since I don't follow it all that closely, but I'm guessing you refer to Dale's fatal crash. If so, it wasn't a flaw in the car that killed him. Had his car at the time been magically swapped with a current one or one of probably any other generation, he still would have been killed. His accident could've been experienced in any form of NASCAR and would have killed him just the same.

Dale was not known for being exactly comfortable with full face helmets or tight belts, and did not want to wear a neck restraint.

I know we will never please nascar fans with how racing is but no matter what type you liked, this was NOT pack racing. It has moments in the past that were single file but this was because you rarely could pull out and make a move. I honestly feel last year they actually had a really good setup to allow passing if one wanted but still semi pack and I was never against the 2 car tango. It provided anyone with a chance aka Ragan/Bayne to be upfront or even win but this was boring. It also seemed alot wanted to think the duels were like that because everyone was holding back alot, but it looks like it was pretty darn close to what we saw today.

Here is last year at Dega with the hated COT, looks like pack racing to me.

 

[GTPorsche]

Didn't realize it until I saw Victory Lane on SPEED. This was Chad Knaus's first Daytona 500 win as Jimmie Johnson's crew chief as he had been suspended when Johnson won in 2006.

Next week is Pheonix, aka Danica's hometown.