And this is only the beginning

It is about this time of the year that the Rev' starts raving about the truck series, and this year is no exception. In spite of the new pit rules in the Camping World Truck Series (CWTS)--as well as the economic situation that is leaving some of the best teams and drivers unsponsored--the trucks continue to offer us some of the best racing on television.

Atlanta is always a good race, no matter which series is racing there, and the trucks lived up to the reputation. As was the case at California, Kyle Busch held the pole position, but, contrary to the California race, he did not dominate from the start.

Kevin Harvick was feeling quite racey from the start, and he quickly took the lead. From then on, the racing for the lead never stopped. In fact, from the lead all the way back to fifteenth, the racing never stopped, and we certainly got our share of the beatin' and bangin' we expect from the Truck Series.

The new NASCAR requirement for the double pit stops receives a B- from Rev' Jim. We do have to admit, that it does add some drama during long green runs, as strategy comes into play. A stop for tires early in the fuel run, for example, may produce an advantage for a team that is looking to improve handling, and to be able to make one stop for fuel only during the caution, when and if it comes. Most teams will wait until the almost inevitable caution, and pit twice during that period.

The problem we see in this is that it takes a factor away from the racing and gives it to pit strategy. Pit strategy is fine for the longer Sprint Cup races, but, during the relatively short Truck races, it just doesn't seem to fit. Pit strategy in the Truck races should only be about who can get four tires and fuel the fastest.

However, when the racing on track is as good as it was at Atlanta, Saturday afternoon, we can forget what the pit road rules put into play.

They mixed it up for the entire 200 miles. Newcomers Ricky Carmichael, JR Fitzpatrick, and Max Papis, along with relatively new drivers like Colin Braun, Brian Scott, and Timothy Peters, race fender to fender with former champions like Hornaday, Todd Bodine, Johnny Benson, and Mike Skinner. Grizzled veterans like Terry Cook and Matt Crafton are out to show the world that their racing days aren't over, and they mix it up throughout the race as well. Still, after every restart--even though other drivers get a chance to lead for a little while--it always seems to come down to Harvick and Busch fighting for the lead.

Late in the race, with eight laps to go, Kyle Busch fell back to ninth place at the restart, having lost second and third gear. It looked like the race to the checkers would be between Harvick and Bodine.

But Kyle Busch wasn't out of the race. Lugging his engine in fourth gear, he slowly built up speed, and was challenging Harvick for second with four laps to go. Not letting off the gas for anything, Busch soon passed Harvick and raced Bodine, passing him with three to go and with Harvick on his rear bumper.

Harvick momentarily took the lead, but Busch got it back almost immediately, keeping his accelerator floored even as he was turned nearly sideways. The battle for first never let up, going into the final turn and all the way to the finish line. For the first time this year, we got the kind of finish we like to see in the truck series.

And Kyle Busch won his second Truck Series race in a row, by less than a half a second. Once again, we have to appreciate the driving ability of this young man from Las Vegas, Nevada. We could be seeing greatness in the making. Most of the fans in the stands at Atlanta Motor Speedway could have been thinking the same thing as they gave Busch a rousing and enthusiastic ovation. We couldn't see any beer cans or seat cushions being thrown. Times have changed.

The truck series season is only now beginning. Daytona didn't really count, because superspeedway racing really doesn't fit well with the trucks, and California, well, enough has been said about that. In two weeks, things will really heat up at Martinsville. Short track racing is what the Truck Series is all about.

Nothing boring about this weekend at Indy

Until 2006, this was always an exciting weekend for me because it meant it was time for the NASCAR Busch (Nationwide) Series race at PPIR. That excitement stays with me to this day, as a matter of habit, for there is no more race at PPIR*.

There is, however, still reason to get excited, because it is now Indianapolis weekend. With the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, and the Nationwide and Craftsman Truck Series races at O'Reilly Raceway Park, there is plenty of exciting racing in store.

O'RP is a 0.687 mile oval that is home to some of the most exciting short track racing we have seen in the Nationwide and Truck series. It seems to breed a lot of cautions, because the drivers feel like they have to go for broke here, maybe because it's near Indianapolis, or because it is just that kind of track. That kind of track is the classic Saturday night circle burner, where it's every man, or woman, for him or herself. With a tight championsip points competition between the CTS drivers, we can expect Friday night's race to feature plenty of action and drama.

Last year's Busch (Nationwide) Series race was an absolute wreckfest, to the point of frustration for both the fans and the drivers. If we want to see a demolition derby, as that "race" was, we would go to a demolition derby. But many of the drivers in the race last year had little experience at O'RP. Most of those drivers are back this year, and, hopefully, they remember from last year what not to do. If you want parity, there will be parity here, because on a short track like this, horsepower doesn't matter.

Every driver has had a period in their career racing at tracks similar to O'RP, but there are some who are masters at such racing. Joey Logano comes to mind, as do Denny Hamilton, Jason Keller, and Clint Bowyer. Kyle Busch will also be on hand, which will likely mean plenty of action and drama for Saturday's Nationwide Series race as well. July isn't over yet, and there should be plenty of fireworks on the track.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway is arguably the most well-known American racing venue in the world. The 2.5 mile rectangular speedway provides a special challenge for the Sprint Cup cars. Only for teams tested at IMS earlier this year, other than that the new car has not seen the track.

Even in the older car, the track was a challenge for stock cars. Nearly twice as heavy as the open wheel cars, and not nearly as responsive in handling, NASCAR's machines do not seem fit for the for separate ninety degree turns on the track. To this day, drivers and crew chiefs alike wonder how it is even possible for the heavy cars to make the turns. And that is the challenge of the track. If a driver and car negotiate the corners as near perfectly as possible, they can hit the long straightaways at speed. A missed set up, a bad pit stop, or taking the wrong line through a turn can spell the end of the day for a team, or, at least, a very long day.

That is why there is so much preparation for this one race. Most of the teams build a special car for the Brickyard. This has never been a race known for a lot of passing and position changes--old car or new car, it is very difficult for the stock cars to pass one another. This is a race about pit stops and adjustments, as well as perfection of the driver in hitting his marks. That by no means indicates a boring race. The competition is stepped up for the Brickyard, because of the sheer prestige of winning at IMS. The broadcast crew at Speed TV brought up an interesting statistic indicating what it takes in talent to win a race at IMS--every winner, with the exception of Kevin Harvick in 2003 and Ricky Rudd in 1997, has been a NASCAR Cup series champion. That says a lot.

Tony Stewart is by no means a "lame duck." In spite of what we have written here previously--for which we apologize, because that was a purely emotional reaction--the #20 team has had a winning attitude all season long. The races at Daytona, Las Vegas, Bristol, Lowe's, Loudon, and Talledega were all wins for Tony Stewart had it not been for misfortune. We also apologize for forgetting about Jimmie Johnson's 2006 Brickyard win, but if Smoke can pull off a victory it will be three out of the last four, not three in a row as previously written here. This blogger has never claimed to be perfect, but mistakes make us seem human. We only regret that we are so darn human.

The competition at an especially high level here this year, because some of the drivers who have performed the best at IMS have yet to win a race in 2008. Jeff Gordon's team has been improving all year, and he is every bit as poised to win at the Brickyard as are Stewart and Ryan Newman. Newman, who did win the first points race of the season at the Daytona, is an Indiana native who has yet to win at the famed speedway.

However, and please don't shoot the messenger, since this is the first race at IMS for the Sprint Cup car, don't rule out a win by Kyle Busch. He seems to be the one driver who can consistantly take the car to its first win at any venue. It would not be surprising if he were to win Sunday. We hope the fans can remember that it is very wrong to throw beer at the Hallowed Grounds of Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

*As I was getting ready to post this, I received news that PPIR will be reopening, and will be running a National Automobile Sports Association (NASA) event on Labor Day weekend. ISC decided to relax the requirement that the buyer not use the facility to host automobile racing, and reworded that stipulation to mean no NASCAR events. However that doesn't mean we won't see ARCA/Remax back here in the future. Why ISC is so certain that they will be able to build a track near Denver, and why I think they are wrong is subject for a whole new post, but for right now, I am doing a happy dance at the news that PPIR will have racing again.

The Longest Mile

You could say that it was Johnny's turn. He was on the high road going into Milwaukee, and he wasn't about to let anybody knock him off of it. There were the young guns who always brought guts and determination to the field.

Old Mike, tough as nails, was ready to turn over his turf to his kid, Chrissy, Cute kid, not gorgeous, but on this battleground, looks don't matter. She was smart, and as tough, maybe even tougher than, her old man. She was ready to prove something. But someone put the brakes on her charge early in the battle, or rather, took the brakes off, and she fell by the wayside early.

Young Colin, already a veteran of many a battle in other territory, and a winner at that, was also out to prove something. Colin had come on strong, and but his ambition was dampened in a tangle with the Newcomer, Mr. Annett.

Then there was Eric, the kid who had challenged Johnny in the most recent battle, and had beaten him. Barely. Johnny wasn't really sure he had been beat. It certainly didn't feel like he had been beaten. But Eric was a contender, and Johnny knew he had to watch him.

The Desperado, the one man monkey wrench gang who had knocked The Horn off of the same high road Johnny was on, was occupied elsewhere, but there was still the Onion to contend with. The Onion could be a friend or a foe, one would never know which until something happened. And when something happens, all eyes are on the Onion, who always shrugs it off with "I din't mean to do nothin'!"

That always gets the Onion off the hook. They call him the Onion because he really knows how to make a grown man cry.

Early in the race, a real threat, Rigid Rick Crawford, seemed ready to take it all. Rigid Rick was one of the Founding Fathers of the Order, but as others turned toward newfangled and fancy gadgets to help them reach towards the top, Rigid Rick became one of the have nots. Even as a have-not, though, Rick is Rigid, and always a threat, as well as a sentimental favorite for the bystanders and onlookers. But even this battlefield has rules, and Rick got caught, so his threat was greatly diminished.

Then there was The Horn himself. The Horn had been on top of the heap until the Desperado had taken him down, but not by much. The Horn wasn't about to stay off the top for long, and would do anything to get back there. He got caught in the crossfire between the young guns, but that didn't keep him down, as he is one of the best at a quick recovery. But the Onion put an end to that recovery, as he can almost always be counted on to do. As we mentioned before, they call him the Onion because he can make a grown man cry.

So, it was Johnny's turn, and where Johnny has been the winner before, he was the winner again. And he is still, for now at least, on top of the hill.

Thrills! Spills! Chills! Action Packed!

While those of us among my generation were growing up, a phrase sure to make us want to watch a TV show or a movie, or to read a comic or adventure book, was "action-packed." "Non-stop action," also sent us in droves to the movie theatre for the Saturday Matinee. Those phrases could also be used to describe almost any race in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

The Sam's Town 400 at Texas Motor Speedway was no exception, and was action packed from the start to the finish. From the second lap to more than halfway through the race, Kevin Harvick Incorporated teammates Ron Hornaday and Jack Sprague raced each other hard, often door panel to door panel, trading the lead often. That in itself was thrill packed, and likely too thrilling for team owners Kevin and DeLana, who where probably watching in horror from Pocono, as two of the most aggressive drivers in the series fought hard for the lead way too early in the race.

But, if they are two of the most aggressive drivers in the series, Sprague and Hornaday are also two of the most experienced, and the Harvicks knew what they were doing when they put these two on the same team. They performed as expected, not as team mates, but as competitive drivers. They made the race exciting.

Of course, they weren't alone. Kyle Busch flew in from Pocono, on the first leg of his attempt to win three different races at three different venues in three different series on the same weekend. He started in the back of the field in a truck that he described as "a piece of c**p, " in which he had had no practice time. Indeed, the truck did seem like it had a missed set-up, as it performed very poorly for the Schrub in the early part of the race. But, as the laps wound down, his team worked on the truck and got it so it became something "the Desperado" could use. Busch used the entire track, including the apron to move up through the field, until, by the last twenty laps, he had made his way to fourth position. There was a caution with around ten laps to go, and on the restart, bad truck or not, Kyle Busch became Kyle "Rowdy" Busch and made a series of brilliant moves to pass Jack Sprague for third, and Johnny Benson for second, and was close on Hornaday's tail.

Perhaps it was better equipment, or, perhaps, it was a demonstration of experience vs raw talent, but Hornaday held off the charging Busch until the performance of Busch's truck fell off, and Hornaday once again pulled ahead of the rest of the field. The only way Kyle would have a chance for the win would be if there was another caution.

There was. With four laps to go, Scott Speed, Mark Mitchell, and Mike Skinner were racing for the eleventh position. Mitchell and Skinner made contact, and Skinner brushed the wall. Scott Speed, the former Formula 1 star from California, took advantage of the mishap to try to gain position from the two other trucks that were forced to slow down. Unfortunately for Speed, whose pre-race pedicure last week made more news than his first win, Mitchell didn't see him make his move to the inside, and barely clipped the front right fender of Speed's truck. "Barely" was enough to send Speed's truck spinning into the outer wall, which brought out a caution.

What would a truck race be without a green/white/checker finish, especially if four of the best drivers in the series are up front? As the drivers lined their trucks up for the final restart, several possible scenarios passed through our minds. Hornaday and Busch could race each other side by side, or one of them could make a mistake, either case giving Benson the opportunity he needed to win the race. Anybody in the field could make a serious error on the restart, bringing out another caution and "giving" the victory to Hornaday. Or, Hornaday, the widely proclaimed "Master of the Restart," could check out on the rest of the field and win the race uncontested.

The latter scenario is actually what happened. It was Hornaday's thirty-fifth career win, and his first ever at TMS. The Craftsman Truck Series once again gave us the "Action Packed" thrills we have been seeking ever since we were children.

Mansfield Truck Series Race brings plenty of excitement

In a sort of continuation of the discussion on what makes a race exciting, the Craftsman Truck Series Ohio 250 from Mansfield, OH, had to be among the most exciting races so far this year.

Short tracks provide much of what makes a race exciting, as does the Truck Series itself. The relatively short distance of the truck races guarantee that the drivers will be racing for the win from the start of the race, and short track racing, by its very nature, provides close contact and plenty of beatin' and bangin.'

Mansfield had all of that, practically from the very start. Thirty-six drivers in thirty-six trucks surged toward the front at the drop of the green flag. The first caution came only nine laps into the race, when and there would be many more to follow. So intense was the racing that there was no give and take, but that is not unusual in Truck Series racing.

On lap 49, Ron Hornaday tried to move aggressively toward the front, but, in making the move, got tangled up with Colin Braun, and then got hit by Rick Crawford. Then for the second week in a row, NASCAR officials issued an unjust "rough driving" penalty, sending Crawford to the back of the longest line. Crawford seemed to be no more than an innocent bystander, who got caught in the accident because he had nowhere to go, as did Johnny Benson last week during the race at Lowe's Motor Speedway, who was penalized then for rough driving.

In a series that lives up to its motto "These trucks don't play nice," such penalties under those circumstances seem incongruous. In fact, after the restart following the Hornaday incident, one commentator felt the need to say, "They'll have to send everybody to the back of the longest line."

Around this time last year, Scott Speed had the highlight of his short Formula One career, finishing ninth at Monaco, and earning his first top ten in that series. During Saturday's truck race, he felt more like a pinball, getting hit by nearly everyone on the track, but he did manage to finish on the lead lap in fifteenth place. Brendan Gaughan wasn't as lucky. After running well the first part of the race, he was hit even more often than Speed, and ended up one lap down in thirtieth.

In fact, with so much beatin' and bangin' happening the entire race, it is almost surprising that twenty-nine trucks finished on the lead lap, only two trucks did not finish, due to overheating. Hornaday finished thirty fifth, one-hundred-and-five laps down.

But it is the guys who finished up front in who we should be interested. David Starr led 170 laps, but with one lap to go he felt pressure from Donny Lia, the 2007 Whelan Modified Series Champion. In fact, Starr felt the kind of pressure that got him lose, and allowed Lia to pass. Still, he managed to stay in the battle as the trucks went three-wide, with Lia, Starr, and Todd Bodine all trying to reach the finish line first. As Lia prevailed and took the checkers, Starr and Bodine went nose to nose across the finish line, with Starr finishing in second. Lia's win marks the first time in five years a rookie in the series has won a race. Carl Edwards was the last to do so in 2003

Of course Bodine, who moved into the lead in Championship, had to complain about Lia's aggressive driving, even though Starr, who was the one who had fallen victim to Lia's bump, referred to it as good racing. But Bodine knew what he was talking about, because he had blatantly wrecked Ron Hornaday last week.

There may come a day when racing means a bunch of racing machines following each other in an orderly fashion, but I hope that it is a long time before that day comes to Truck racing. In fact, I hope that day doesn't come as long as I walk this earth. It just felt way too good to watch a race like the one we saw Saturday.