The Final Lap with Kerry Murphey

Dwight Drum, reporter/photographer for Racetake.com, Examiner.com, Bleacher Report.com and FYI WIRZ needs your NASCAR input.

In a question to Jeff Gordon in Homestead before the final 2010 race, I said to Jeff, NASCAR listens to fans. Fans have opinions about changes. What changes would you make to NASCAR? He said, “You tell me what fans say and I tell you if I agree.”

Okay fans. Jeff Gordon wants to know. What changes would you make to NASCAR?

Changes can be retro or going forward — that’s reversed or added. What rules would you like changed, if any?

After collecting opinions I will create a list of changes that fans want. Then that fan generated list of changes will be presented to Jeff Gordon during a press conference early next year, probably January before the season starts.

Gordon’s reaction will be the story that will go out to many Internet outlets. Fans can remain anonymous, have their first name mentioned or have both names mentioned in these articles. Request name mention, if desired. That’s first come, first served. Obviously there will be duplication of opinions.

The important thing is that fans get to have their opinion voiced to Jeff Gordon and he will comment.

E-mail
W-Drum7 -AT- aol.com

Social Media
Facebook.com/Dwight Drum
Twitter.com/racetake

U.S. Mail
Dwight Drum
Racetake.com
P.O. Box 694
Valrico, FL 33595-694

Guest Column by Cathy Elliott

When Jimmie Johnson accepted his 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winner’s trophy in Las Vegas on Dec. 3, it seemed that all of our champions had received their just rewards; NASCAR Nationwide Series victor Brad Keselowski and Todd Bodine, who took home the NASCAR Camping World Series title, celebrated their victories back in November.

But we are not quite finished. On Dec. 10 and 11, NASCAR will celebrate six more of its hard-charging champions. The NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Awards Banquet will be held Friday, Dec. 10 and the NASCAR Touring Series Awards Gala will be held on Saturday, Dec. 11. Both events are hosted by the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

The honorees include:

NASCAR Whelen All-American Series champion Keith Rocco. NASCAR’s touring series don’t use a Chase format to determine their champions. It is strictly points-based, and Rocco racked ‘em up, clinching the title — his first — with more than a month remaining in the season, racing at places like South Boston Speedway and Bowman-Gray Stadium.
NASCAR K&N Pro Series West champion Eric Holmes. Holmes is three-time winner in this series, which competes at a couple of venues that also host annual Cup Series weekends, including Infineon Raceway and Phoenix International Raceway.
NASCAR K&N Pro Series East champion Ryan Truex. The younger brother of Martin Truex Jr. won five races in 2010 on the way to his second consecutive championship in this series and will compete in the NASCAR Nationwide Series full-time in 2011. Can the kid brothers of successful NASCAR drivers hope to find success when moving up the ranks? Let me call Kyle Busch and get back to you on that.
NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour champion Burt Myers, another champion from an influential racing family, if you take the time to sort through the family tree, you will discover that Burt is a relative of Chocolate Myers, former fueler for Dale Earnhardt. Apparently getting on the gas runs in the family.
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Bobby Santos III. At 25, Santos, a third-generation racer, is the youngest champion in the history of the Modified Tour. He also has a golden opportunity to be the guy with coolest nickname — B3, which sounds like a cross between a BINGO game and a character from Star Wars.
NASCAR Canadian Tire Series presented by Mobil 1 champion D.J. Kennington. Racing is extremely popular in Canada, and Kennington has done our neighbors to the north proud, winning his first championship and giving them something a little more exciting to watch than those guys pushing rocks around on the ice with brooms.

The median age of drivers in NASCAR’s top series seems to be trending younger all the time. Although Mark Martin continues to do his best to blow the curve, the sight of guys strapping themselves in and maneuvering their way around the world’s most famous speedways when other kids their age are still trying to figure how they’re going to maneuver themselves through high school algebra has now become routine.

The result is that many of us are starting to think that drivers practically go straight from sippy cups to stock cars.

A big part of the reason for this is media coverage. Until a driver makes his way to the top of the totem pole, we just don’t hear or read that much about him (or her). Unless, of course, you live in the vicinity of one of North America’s short tracks, and there are a lot of them. In fact, if you believe everything you read on the Internet — and who doesn’t? — there are upwards of 1.500 short tracks in North America. They host competitors ranging from future superstar material with serious sponsorship and quality equipment to drivers who work all day at their ‘regular’ jobs and all night in their backyards and garages, just to be able to go racing on the weekend.

Like the racers themselves, NASCAR started small and worked its way up.

A research project I worked on recently involved gathering media coverage of racing events in South Carolina from the early 1960s. Here’s a sample, from the Columbia Record in June 1961:

“A 100-mile race at the Piedmont Interstate Fairgrounds track at Spartanburg, S.C. Friday night launches the week’s stock car program in the Carolinas. A field of at least 20 cars will be on hand for warm-ups and trials at 6:30 with the race starting at 8:30. David Pearson tops the drivers. Others entered include Joe Weatherly, Junior Johnson, Cotton Owens, Rex White and Ned Jarrett.”

That’s the end of that particular story, but it was only the beginning of NASCAR’s story. These drivers who went out and ran the 100-milers on summer nights ultimately became the foundation of the sport, the names on which it built its popularity and reputation. In the final two lines of that four-sentence sports brief, there are three NASCAR Hall of Famers. And I wouldn’t bet against the other three.

To end up in NASCAR’s Hall of Fame, you have to start somewhere, and in the vast majority of cases, that ‘somewhere’ is the short tracks of America. They stretch from the Carolinas to California, from Texas to Iowa. They are dirt, and they are asphalt; some are rustic, while others are surprisingly high-tech. They generally run five or six races per evening, in various classes, and if you’re wondering where the ubiquitous phrase “Boys, have at it” came from, look no further. These guys would take one look at the Cup Series antics of drivers like Carl Edwards, Brad Keselowski and Kyle Busch, sniff and say, “Amateurs.”

On this weekend, there are no amateurs. There are six new NASCAR champions.

If you visit http://hometracks.nascar.com, you can find a series of photos of all six touring series champions, each taken with a legend of the sport — Bobby Allison, David Pearson, Richard Petty. Lloyd Dane, Junior Johnson and Jerry Cook.

As you admire these wonderful shots of the heroes of NASCAR’s past, it is interesting to note that you may well be getting a look at its future at the same time.

The opinions expressed in this articles are solely those of the author and not this website.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – On Friday, the checkered flag waved for the paving crew of Lane Construction as they finished the final paving of Daytona International Speedway.

The paving crew wrapped up the final pass on the apron in Turns 1 and 2 in the late afternoon, following some inclement weather in the morning. While all the paving is complete on the racing surface, skid pad, pit road and the apron, there’s still a punch-list of items being worked on during the 23rd week of repaving of Daytona International Speedway:

Installation of the lights is complete but finishing touches such as connectivity and adjustments of the lights still need to be made

The striping of the track has begun and is ongoing.

The process of hanging the eight caution lights around the track is ongoing

Installation of the scoring loops is ongoing

Finishes touches are being put on the catch fence in Turns 1, 2, 3 and 4

At least 18 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers are expected to participate in a Goodyear tire test on Wednesday, Dec. 15 and Thursday, Dec. 16

[nggallery id=44]

About the Daytona Repave: Lane Construction, which repaved other ISC race tracks including Talladega Superspeedway, Homestead-Miami Speedway, Richmond International Raceway and Darlington Raceway, used an estimated 50,000 tons of asphalt to repave more than 1.4 million square feet of Daytona International Speedway.

Speedweeks 2011 will kick off with the 49th annual Rolex 24 At Daytona GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series race on Jan. 29-30 and conclude with the 53rd annual Daytona 500 on Sunday, Feb. 20, the prestigious season-opening event to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

POCONO RACEWAY SOLAR FARM HITS MILESTONE
One Million Kilowatt Hours of Electricity Produced

Long Pond, PA….December 9, 2010…. Today, less than four months since energy production began at Pocono Raceway’s solar farm, the total amount of electricity produced by the 25 acre facility reached the 1,000,000 kilowatt hour (kWh) mark. The solar installation consists of 39,960 American made photovoltaic modules that will produce more than 72 million kilowatt hours (kWh) of energy over the next 20 years. The environmental attributes associated with the system will offset more than 3,100 Metric Tons of carbon dioxide annually and will generate enough power to provide the electricity needs for over 1,000 homes beyond the power needs of Pocono Raceway.
“This is an important milestone for Pocono Raceway,” said Brandon Igdalsky, Raceway President. “Pocono Raceway strongly believes in the commitment to operate in a more environmentally responsible way and is proud to be the first race track to power our sport with clean, renewable sunlight making it the world’s largest solar-powered sports facility. This solar power system, built with timber, steel and solar panels made in the U.S., satisfies all the Raceway’s energy needs, while helping to power local homes. This project demonstrates real sustainability and proves that any business that truly wants to go green, can do it.”
The 1,000,000 (kWh) produced has already impacted the environment. The total energy generated equals the use of 5,705 light bulbs (60W) for one year at eight hours per day and represents a savings of 80,984 gallons of gasoline with a carbon dioxide (CO2) offset equaling that of 18,010 trees. The Raceway has been awarded a number of environmental awards for its sustainable energy efforts. To see what the Pocono Raceway solar farm is producing real-time go to www.poconoraceway.com .

There certainly were some outstanding performances – both from a competition and racing standpoint – that took place during the recently completed 2010 NASCAR season. In fact, from a statistical standpoint, the 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season goes down as the most competitive in the history of NASCAR. The following is a look back at some of those standout performers and memorable races, as selected from discussions with the national series director, competition department and NASCAR PR managers.

Top Drivers (in alphabetical order)

· Denny Hamlin – Finished a career-best second in the point standings and was the championship points leader heading into the season finale at Homestead-Miami … Posted a series-high eight victories on the season, including seven that came after early season knee surgery … Had 14 top-five and 18 top-10 finishes.

· Kevin Harvick – Turned in a resurgent season to finish a career-best third in the point standings after missing the Chase in 2009 … Was the points leader for 20 weeks … Won three times on the year … Had a series-best 26 top-10 finishes, which included 16 top fives … His average finish of 8.7 was the best in the series.

· Jimmie Johnson – Won an unprecedented fifth straight NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship in come-from-behind fashion, overcoming a 15-point deficit heading into the season finale … Relied upon a solid second-place finish at Homestead-Miami to win the title by 39 points over Denny Hamlin … Was a six-time winner on the season … Posted 23 top-10 and a series-best 17 top-five finishes … Led a series-high 1,315 laps and also tallied a series-best 107.7 Driver Rating … His five championships now trail only NASCAR Hall of Famers Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt – both of whom won seven titles.

Top Team Owners (in alphabetical order)

· Richard Childress – The owner of Richard Childress Racing saw all three of his drivers – Clint Bowyer, Jeff Burton and Kevin Harvick – advance to the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup after being shut out of the playoff competition in 2009 … Harvick may have been the series’ most consistent performer on the season, notching 16 top-five and 26 top-10 finishes … Harvick was the points leader for 20 weeks, compiled three wins and finished a career-best third in the final standings … Bowyer finished 10th, while winning twice, and Burton finished 12th.

· Rick Hendrick – The leader of Hendrick Motorsports continued his assault on the NASCAR record books and further reinforced the fact that his organization is one of the most dominant and successful in all of sports … Johnson’s fifth straight NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship gives Hendrick Motorsports a record 13th national series owner title and a record 10th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series owner crown … The No. 48 team’s recent dominance in the sport can be likened to the great dynasties of the New York Yankees, Green Bay Packers and Boston Celtics.

Raybestos Rookie of the Year

· Kevin Conway – In 28 starts, he finished 35th in the point standings … His best finish was 14th at the July race at Daytona International Speedway.

Top Breakthrough Performer

· Jamie McMurray – After being out of a ride following the 2009 season, McMurray made the most of his opportunity driving for Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing in 2010 … His three wins included two of the sport’s most prestigious races – the Daytona 500 and the Brickyard 400 … His third victory came at the October Charlotte race … McMurray finished 14th in points and posted nine top-five and 12 top-10 finishes to go along with his three victories.

Comeback Driver of the Year

· Kevin Harvick – After finishing a disappointing 19th in the point standings in 2009, Harvick rebounded to turn in the best season of his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career, finishing a career-best third in the point standings … Harvick led the points for 20 weeks … He recorded 16 top-five and 26 top-10 finishes in 2010, which tripled his showing of five top fives and nine top 10s in 2009 … After going winless in 2009, Harvick won three times in 2010 – at Talladega (1), Daytona (2), and Michigan (2).

Top Races of the Year (in chronological order)

· Goody’s Fast Pain Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway (March 29) – Denny Hamlin plowed through traffic after a green-white-checkered restart to post his second consecutive win at Martinsville Speedway. It was Hamlin’s first win and first top-10 finish in 2010. On fresh tires, thanks to a pit stop under caution on Lap 493, Hamlin powered past Ryan Newman, Matt Kenseth and Jeff Gordon on Lap 507 of 508 after Kenseth and Gordon traded shots earlier on the same lap. Hamlin cleared Gordon through Turns 3 and 4 and finished the race on a cut tire, .670 seconds ahead of teammate Joey Logano, who weaved his way through the melee to give Joe Gibbs Racing a 1-2 finish at the .526-mile short track. Later that week, Hamlin underwent knee surgery, and then proceeded to win seven more times and finish second in the point standings.

· Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Superspeedway (April 25) – In a race that set NASCAR Sprint Cup Series records for the number of leaders (29) and lead changes (88) – and fanned the flames of the increasingly combustible rivalry between teammates Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon – Kevin Harvick broke a 115-race winless streak to win at Talladega. It was Harvick’s first points race victory in the series since the 2007 Daytona 500. In the third and final attempt at a green-white-checkered finish, Harvick pushed 2010 Daytona 500 winner Jamie McMurray for all but the final quarter-mile before surging past McMurray to the inside and beating the No. 1 Chevrolet to the line by .011 seconds.

· Emory Healthcare 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway (September 5) – Tony Stewart won for the third time at Atlanta and for the 38th time of his career when he beat Carl Edwards to the checkered flag by 1.316 seconds. The victory broke a 31-race winless streak for the two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion. Edwards led Stewart coming out of the pits after the seventh caution of the race on Lap 295 of 325. Stewart surged to the lead after a restart on Lap 301, but a quick caution for debris on Lap 302 set up a restart on Lap 308. Stewart proved to be too strong the remainder of the way and drove the No. 14 Chevrolet to Victory Lane.

· KOBALT Tools 500 at Phoenix International Raceway (November 14) – Polesitter Carl Edwards snapped a 70-race winless streak by winning at Phoenix, as the three Chase contenders – Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick – were caught up in a fuel mileage battle. Hamlin, who was the points leader, led a race-high 190 laps but had to short-pit on Lap 298 of 312 to get fuel. Meanwhile, Edwards, Johnson and Harvick were conserving fuel after pit stops under caution on Lap 224. All three won their gambles and Hamlin, who finished 12th in the race, saw his lead over second-place Johnson shrink from 33 points to 15.

· Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway (November 21) – For the first time in his championship run, Jimmie Johnson had to come from behind to win his fifth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series title. Johnson entered the race trailing Denny Hamlin by 15 points, but ran an aggressive and smart race to finish second and post yet another championship – this time by 39 points over Hamlin. Carl Edwards won for the second week in a row and in doing so, recorded a perfect Driver Rating of 150.0. Edwards led 190 of 267 laps, but it was the drama that was unfolding behind him with Johnson, Hamlin and Kevin Harvick all battling hard down the stretch for the coveted title.