Observations on NASCAR and my other passion

The Sprint Cup is taking a week off. There is still something to get excited about this weekend, and that would be the Truck Series race at Kentucky this weekend. Randy Moss Motorsports will be making its debut in the series with the #81 Chevrolet, driven by last year's Truck Series Rookie of the Year, Willie Allen.

Moss is playing it smart, having purchased an established team that has had some success in the series. Morgan-Dollar, the team in which Randy Moss bought controlling interest, has proven itself competitive with the likes of Kevin Harvick Incorporated, Roush-Fenway Racing, and Bill Davis Racing. Moss plans to eventially move the team to the Cup level, but he acknowledges that it will be a hard road. Still, citing his passion for the sport, and for winning, he is optimistic, and confident that he will reach his goals with his new team. We wish him success in his endeavors.

Yesterday, Ryan Newman reportedly announced that he and Penske South Racing will be parting ways after the end of the current season. We expect him to be joining Tony Stewart next year in the newly-formed Stewart-Haas Motorsports organization, which would make it the Team from Indiana. However, there are rumors that he may be the driver for RCR's fourth car next year. Since we were left embarrassed by our insistance that Smoke would not be leaving JGR before 2010,. we have decided to believe any and all rumors we hear or read about. However, we will offer our opinion that Casey Mears would probably be a better fit in the RCR car. Mediocre record aside, Mears is a driving talent looking for the right surroundings. RCR did just that for Jeff Burton, and it stands to reason they could do it for Mears.

With the NASCAR Sprint Cup series being off for the week, we can explore our other passion, and that would be music. For me, amazing musical feats in concert are every bit as exciting of the sound of the engines fireing up after the command to "start your engines."

We understand that not many NASCAR fans are fans of what we call "Jam Music," but there are similarities that should be explored. At a NASCAR event, the crowd is generally happy, friendly,. helpful, excited about what they are seeing and hearing on the track, and drinks a lot of beer. At the Grateful Dead events we attended, and at other concerts we have attended since then, the crowd is generally happy, friendly, helpful, excited about what they are seeing and hearing on the stage, and drinks a lot of beer.

To me, hearing a band go off in different directions during a jam, then pulling it back together for a reprise of a song they began earlier is just as exciting as watching Dale Earnhardt, Jr threading the needle to advance through traffic, Kyle Busch beating a block and going hard into a turn and making it stick, or Tony Stewart outsmarting Jeff Gordon on exiting a turn.

Some of the music we listen to is an acquired taste. You won't hear much of it on the radio, as it isn't music that is meant for radio. But NASCAR is an acquired taste as well. But the truth is, a Redneck can be a Deadhead and live a balanced, well-ordered life.

To celebrate and share my passion for Jam Music, I have started a social network called "Eclectic Jammys" That is a pun, but "Jammy" is meant as a title for a person who loves to listen to Jam Music. It doesn't have to be a Deadhead--a Jammy could be a fan of Phish, Widespread Panic, String Cheese Incident, or countless other bands that are ignored by radio but fill theatres, arenas, ampitheatres, and stadiums with their amazing musical acrobatics.

"Eclectic Jammys" features a built in music player on every profile page that allows loading from either your computer or from another site. It also features forums, blogs, photo and video uploaders that every member can use. It is a MySpace lite, for a specific group of people. Those who join the group will be able to share and enjoy their favorite music. There will be conversations about our favorite bands and memories of our favorite concerts.

I have just begun building the site, but it can't be a social network without people, so, if you think you may be a Jammy, or are interested or curious about Jam Music, please visit and join us at Eclectic Jammys

More on NASCAR and diversity

Mauricia Grant lawsuit update:

Many bloggers of the stick and ball sports, some mainstream media journalists, and even a few NASCAR bloggers have written of their assumption that NASCAR would try to settle the discrimination and harassment lawsuit out of court. They reason that NASCAR has an image of being racist, citing the organization's Southern roots and the lack of African-Americans racing full time in the upper tiers of the sport. They say that, even if the charges brought by Ms. Grant's attorneys are false, NASCAR should settle quickly out of court, to hush up any hint that there may be trouble in the organization.

That doesn't seem to be the case. According to NASCAR officials, Ms Grant never reported any instances of harassment or discrimination to the Human Resources department of NASCAR. Not only that, but she has said herself that she was happy with her job. These statements, if they are in fact true, are enough in themselves to have the case thrown out of court. NASCAR doesn't want to seem as though it is covering anything up. An out of court settlement would make it seem like that is true, and would even be seen as an admission of guilt by many. In fact, NASCAR would rather clear itself in court.

NASCAR is investigating the allegations, and will publicly take action in any of them that are true. From what has been said by some of the individuals named in the suit, some of the alleged comments were made as workplace banter, encouraged by Mauricia Grant's participation in the banter. That is, if a person jokes around in a certain way, those around that person are going to be encouraged to joke in the same way. And, if that person goes along with that type of banter, even laughing along with the others, there is no indication that something might be amiss. We could safely assume that Grant never felt harassed or discriminated against until her attorneys told her she was.

In my opinion, it seems to me that the attorneys thought they had an easy money deal going on. They probably felt the same as many of the aforementioned journalists, that NASCAR was certain to settle such a suit out of court, to prevent negative publicity. Since the usual attorney fees amount to around sixty percent of the settlement, they were expecting about $150 million of the $250 million asked for in the suit. Since NASCAR is willing to appear in court over the issue, Ms. Grant's attorneys may find themselves hoping for a $25 million out-of-court settlement. That may be possible if NASCAR does indeed take action against any employees that have violated its human relations policies. Demonstrating that they are proactive in human relations matters would only help NASCAR's defense in court.

NASCAR's Drive for Diversity program is the most aggressive equal opportunity program in any major sport. The goal of that program goes beyond attracting minorities who are already involved in racing--it's purpose is to get more members of minorities interested in racing. The program includes a youth racing program, and active recruiting of non-Caucasian and Latino individuals, as well as women. In fact, the "flagman" for the Craftsman Truck Series, in NASCAR's top tier, is actually a woman.

For those who talk about the lack of African-Americans currently racing full time in NASCAR's upper tier, it is a matter of numbers. There are thousands of drivers every year attempting to get into the upper tier--the Craftsman Truck Series, the Nationwide Series, and the Cup Series--and a very small percentage of those even get chosen for consideration. It is a very competitive and very difficult level of racing to attain. Racers begin at a very young age, and to support a life long racing career takes large amounts of money. There is the matter of interest in the sport, often generated at a young age by role models in a particular sport. This is why we not only lack African-Americans in auto racing, but in tennis and hockey, as well. It could also be noted for the same reason that there are no women quarterbacks in the NFL. Very few young female athletes dream of being an NFL quarterback when they grow up. The interest, historically speaking, has just never been there.

The late, great tennis superstar Arthur Ashe, or Venus and Serena Williams did not get into professional tennis because they are Black, but because they were good at the sport. The same can be said of Warren Moon, or Kareem Abdul Jabbar. They were successful in their respective sports professions because they happened to be exceptionally good at what they did.

Give NASCAR's Drive for Diversity a little time and there will be results. Former NBA star Brad Daugherty has been a team owner in NASCAR's Truck and Nationwide series, and plans to be co-owner of a Truck Series team next year. Randy Moss has also announced plans for ownership of a Truck Series team. Marc Davis is a very competitive young African-American driver who will soon find his way into one of the top tier NASCAR series. Chase Austin, another promising young Black American driver is slated to drive some Nationwide Series races in Rusty Wallace's number 64 car later this year, beginning at New Hampshire on the 28 of this month.

In view of the policies and programs within NASCAR, it seems that it would be very difficult for a judge or jury to find discrimination in NASCAR at a corporate level.

More "pure speculation" on my part, this time.

In spite of all my initial pessimism, skepticism, and cynicism toward the early attention given Tony Stewart's racing or non-racing future, Rev'Jim's RantsnRaves finds itself sucked into the speculation game, hip waders and all.
The blame for this can be put squarely on Randy Moss' entry into the business of NASCAR Truck Series team ownership.
Moss isn't just a NASCAR fan with a lot of money. According to the article he is already somewhat involved in racing:

The interest in racing isn't new to Moss, a 1998 first-round draft pick out of Marshall. He sponsors a local dirt track program in his native West Virginia and serves as a goodwill ambassador for the Urban Youth Racing School headquartered in Philadelphia.

Moss seems to know what he is doing, contracting with Integrety Sports Marketing Group to help him kick start the team and find sponsors, team members, and a manufacturer.

He also told ESPN's NASCAR Now that he has talked to Joe Gibbs for advice and guidance.

Building a successful team means "putting the right people in the right place doing the right things."

If that sounds like Tony Stewart talking about his management at Eldora Speedway ot his Tony Stewart Racing team's success in World of Outlaws and USAC, it is. But, it is also the exact words Randy Moss used on NASCAR Now, Wednesday afternoon while discussing his chances for success as a truck series owner.

Tony Stewart has been listening to offers from other teams, some of which include a partial team ownership, and has described these offers as "exciting."

In statements to the press last week, Joe and JD Gibbs made it clear that such an offer was not in the works for Stewart, if he were to stay with JGR. However, "Our [ownership] deal is set the way it is," Gibbs said. "But we could do some stuff to help him get started with his own team if that's what he really wanted."

Until 2003, JGR fielded a Truck Series team for Coy Gibbs, who gave racing a try then decided he wasn't cut out for it. It is logical to assume that "some stuff" may include supporting a Tony Stewart team in the Truck Series. To those of us who have paid attention to Smoke over the years, it is unlikely that he would be involved in team ownership on the Cup level while racing full time. But if he were to have ownership in the Truck Series, that may be a different story.

If Tony Stewart decides to stay with Gibbs, to race full time until he turns forty, there seems to be an opportunity here for a possible "Stewart-Moss" Toyota team in the Truck Series in 2009. Can you see it?

Maybe not, but the speculation is fun, even without "unnamed sources." And if it actually comes to pass, remember you read it here first.