oldsoldier's Blog

Now that some of the tire dust has settled, let me add my two cents worth to the great debate.NASCAR screwed up when, after tire test revealed a wear problem, they just assumed the track would "rubber in" and the track would be okay. Well we all know what happens when we assume something. During the race, they did the only thing they could do, the race had started, the stands were (mostly) full, and the tires looked like they were running on a cheese grater. All in all, they did their best in a bad situation, but when Mike Helton goes on screen during a race, you know things are going down the toilet, but they kept anyone from getting injured. So now what?

Ray Evernham wants NASCAR to remove some restrictions from Goodyear, saying they may need to make a slightly bigger tire for the new car. Apparently, Goodyear is in the same boat as the teams as far as the new car is concerned, no changes to the body, no matter what. Anyone who has stood on the observaton deck at Penske South, and looked down on the race shop and last years cars, knows the reason for this. The teams had pulled and stretched the bodies so much they were more "Frankencars" than "stock cars". The left front fender was more than twice as wide as the right, just to give you an idea. Still race teams have some of the best mechanics and engineers in the country, and if NASCAR would give them just a little room to adjust the body, within limits of course, they can make the COT into a very good race car. NASCAR needs to let the teams and Goodyear experiment a little, and work together, and I'm betting NASCAR"s big problem will be solved. As much as NASCAR thinks it knows about the COT, the race teams know more.

And one last note, Tony George, the big boss at Indy was acting all high and mighty, saying it was NASCAR's problem and the track was not at fault in anyway. Well, as a fan of all types of racing, I seem to remember, 3, maybe 4 years ago, a Formula 1 race at Indy, that saw only 6 cars on the track when the green flag fell. Seems one of the two tire makers for F1, felt their tires would wear too much to be safe on Indy's abrasive surface, so they advised all teams running their tires to withdraw, and they did. There was such an uproar about the so called race, that a lot of free tickets were given out to get the fans to return the next year. So Mr Tony need not act so sanctimonious, as his track does have a history of being abrasive, almost as abrasive as he was in his statement to the press.

Okay, I've had my say, now I'm going to Jayski's to see who will drive what next year, bye now.