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.

Live on Type Delay: The Shelby 427

Due to technical difficulties, and the fact that we were nowhere near a race track, television, radio, or a computer at the start of the race, we were unable to report directly the first 64 laps of the Shelby 427, from Las Vegas Nevada. It could have been worse--we could have been in Las Vegas, New Mexico, where none of the above exists.

KKKX., the local station that carries the race broadcasts for Colorado Springs, does not have a contract with SMI's Performance Radio Network this year. Perhaps a sign of the times, but it taught us the important lesson that one can be anywhere and still be able to catch a NASCAR Sprint Cup race broadcast anywhere.

So the Rev thanked his friend for the wonderful morning and the enjoyable excursion, apologized for having to get home so abrubtly, fumbled for his keys, and finally got inside his apartment and got the television on.

It seems that, by lap 64, Jimmie Johnson--who had started in first position after the Pole winner, Kyle Busch had to start in the back--pretty much dominated the race. Matt Kenseth, a contender to make history as the first driver to win the first three races of the season, lost his engine after only seven laps. It was there one moment, then it was gone. A careful search found the engine, but it had blown up.

Around lap 74, another Roush-Fenway Ford, driven by David Ragan, loses its engine, and Ragan is out of the race. This brings out the fourth caution of the race. Greg Biffle takes the lead on the restart, and begins to check out on the field, while Jeff Gordon moves up through the field and takes a commanding second.

Engine woes continue as Mark Martin's Hendrick Motorsports car slips out of gear, and the engine over-revs and expires. This brings out another caution, around lap 124, and we wonder if maybe everyone should have changed their engines and started in the back of the field. Jimmie Johnson once again leads at the restart, then, seven laps later, Regan Smith spins out, bringing out another caution.

The restart on lap 142 has Jimmie Johnson on in the lead, Jeff Gordon second, Before we can type another word, Aric Almirola hits the wall and is out of the race. We have another caution.

At the restart on lap 149, It's Johnson, Gordon, Biffle, Stewart, and Kyle Busch. Jeff Gordon takes the lead in turn four, and it begins to look like a race. We have mentioned this before--racing seems to get more exciting overall when The Gordon is on top of his game.

Lap 160 puts Gordon at the 20,000 mark for laps led. What an amazing career.

The race has a relatively long green flag run--a full seven laps, before another caution comes out when Michael Waltrip gets up in the marbles on the outer edge of the track and spins. All the lead cars pit. Restarting in the lead, after pit road strategies will be Jeff Burton. He is followed by Bobby Labonte, and Brian Vickers. Burton holds the lead for one lap, and Denny Hamlin spins out in turn two after getting too high up the track.

At the restart, it's Burton, Labonte, Vickers, Biffle, and Gordon. Johnson, restarting in sixth, moves up quickly and takes third before the lap is over. He doesn't stop there, and passes Labonte for second. At the commercial break, it's Burton, Johnson, Labonte, Biffle, and Jeff Gordon in the top five.

Does the light go off when the refrigerator door is closed? Does the race continue during the commercials? We have no way of knowing for certain.

With 84 laps to go, we begin to see the pit strategies for finishing races come into play, as Ryan Newman pits, reporting a vibration. Two laps later, Tony Stewart pits for two tires and fuel, giving up tenth place, and also reporting a vibration. With 71 laps to go, the other cars on the lead lap have yet to pit.

Hey, isn't it cool to see the Cat car leading the race? It's number 31, rather than 22, but it still gives us a nostalgic feeling. We wonder what Ward Burton, who made the Cat car famous, is doing now? Enlightenment! We just realized that it isn't just the Cat car, it is another Burton driving it.

Stewart has to pit again with 65 laps to go, as his earlier vibration problem had not been repaired. Jeff Gordon has to abort his pit stop, as Jimmie Johnson pits and skids through his pit box. A caution flies as Gordon's left front tire blows. Stewart gets a penalty for pit road speed. All kinds of doo-doo is happening all at once. Wow!

Burton comes off of the pit road first, Carl Edwards is second, Bobbie Labonte is third, but Edwards had to come back to the pits because of a missing lug nut. So, at the restart, it will be Burton, Labonte, Kyle Busch, Brian Vickers, and David Reutimann in the top five with 58 laps to go. Kyle Busch and Jeff Burton race hard, but cleanly for the lead, and with 57 laps to go, the younger Busch takes the lead.

Busch wisely lets Johnson race his way back to the lead lap. The 48 car seems like it is the fastest on the track. Just as we were beginning to think that Joey Logano might need fender whiskers on his car, after consistantly brushing the wall in practice, we realize that the young rookie is doing very well this race and is now in the top ten. How many people out there remember fender whiskers? That was one of my childhood obsessions, for some reason.

38 laps to go, and we know that every crew chief on pit row is figuring out fuel mileage numbers at this point. Some of the leaders are going to have to stop for fuel before the race is over.

Jeff Gordon, who brought out the most recent caution with a cut tire, had to make several pit stops during that caution. He is now back in the top ten. Carl Edwards is now in fifth, with 30 laps to go. He came back from having to pit twice.

Debris in the backstretch brings out a caution. There will be no fuel strategy now, as everyone will fuel. There will be tire strategy.

Clint Bowyer didn't pit, so now the #33 car is in the lead. Kyle Busch, who is never happy with his car--something his Crew Chief, Steve Addington has credited to that team's success--takes two tires, fuel, and a chassis adjustment, and exits the pits third, after being beaten out by Jeff Burton and Jeff Gordon. Restart with 21 laps to go.

Bowyer holds the lead, Kyle Busch makes a risky move and gets by Jeff Gordon. It isn't long before he is challenging Burton for second, but Burton hasn't given up the race. This is the kind of racing for which we watch NASCAR--three cars racing for the lead.

Making a very Earnhardt-like bumper tap, Busch takes the lead, keys his mike, and quotes the words made famous by Burns and Allen, "Say good-night Gracie."

The proper response from Bowyer should have been "Good-night Gracie," but, if he did say something, we don't think those were the words he used. Now we get another caution as Paul Menard finally wrecks.

Why do TV commentators keep on talking even when they have nothing to say? Why does Rev' Jim keep typing when he has nothing to write? More mysteries of Nature.

We are anticipating a big finish here. And it is being delayed as NASCAR decides to make sure the sta-dri, which isn't really sta-dri these days, is swept off of the track.

The restart will be with seven laps to go. Kyle is first, Burton is second, and Bowyer is third. If Kyle Busch makes this restart stick the race is his. He makes it stick, but the race isn't his yet. Jimmie Johnson has gotten up into the absorbant formally known as sta-dri and gets rear-ended by the wall. The green flag comes with three laps to go.

Busch makes the restart stick. Bowyer and Burton are racing hard for second. One lap to go and Carl Edwards, runnning in fifth, sees his engine blow up. Bowyer passes Burton for second.

Kyle Busch has been the first driver to win the pole position and the race in a Cup race at Las Vegas. He now holds the record for winning the race from the highest numbered starting position. If that sounds like a paradox, it is, but it actually happened, which justifies the rumors that Kyle is from Area 51. Most importantly, he has won at home, in front of a very supportive crowd.

It wasn't a great race--too many accidents, penalties and wierd things happening, but it was a good race. It did have its great moments, with some great racing, which is something we haven't seen at the so-called Cookie Cutter tracks and the Sprint Cup car. It was at least as good as we had anticipated. If we don't stop writing, we might even convince ourselves that it was a great race after all. It was certainly entertaining, which is a good thing for most race fans.

Say good-night, Gracie.

How not to win at NASCAR fantasy games

The Rev loves NASCAR racing and loves to play as many NASCAR fantasy games as he can remember to enter each week, but he is not very good at it. We offer this item as a general "What not to do" guide for fantasy racing, compiled from personal failure experience.

Our reader may have noticed that Rev' Jim's RantsnRaves discontinued posting our weekly race previews during last season. This wasn't because we were lazy, but because we were so disappointed in how consistently wrong we were it was becoming embarrassing. Here are some of the methods of picking drivers for our weekly pick five/six/ten games that we have used (or not) to achieve such great mediocrity:

The Favorite Driver Method: Certainly our favorite driver has to be a good driver. If we keep picking him every week, he has to win and pay off sometime, right? Using this method, our pick five picks for the Shelby 427 at Las Vega Motor Speedway this weekend would be as follows:

Tony Stewart
Matt Kenseth
Elliott Sadler
David Stremme
Kyle Busch

Considering the track, this may actually be a good pick, if we are lucky.

The He Looks Good Method: This is similar to the "Favorite Driver" method, except it is based on the driver's appearance. It utilizes the same principle as "Dierks Bentley is a country music singer" or "Bruce Springsteen kicked a$$ at the Super Bowl Half-time." For example, Bentley sings a mixed style of Southern Rock/Popular Rock music with a barely discernible twang.But he looks good and we like country music, so he must be a country music singer. Or, as in the other example, Bruce Springsteen's half-time show consisted of him shouting out the lyrics to some of his greatest hits in a flat monotone--which, frankly, was very depressing to some of us who remembered seeing him perform when he was at his peak. But, he looked good, so his show was a smashing success.

Using this principle, the top five (for some fans) should be:

Kasey Kahne
Dale Earnhardt, Jr
Jeff Gordon
Elliott Sadler
Bobby Labonte

The Reverse Jinx Method:

This one always works for The Rev when he wants to score very low for a certain week. It is based on the premise that whoever you pick in your pick five, will have some kind of mechanical failure, accident, or penalty that will put him out of the race. This method should only be used if you want to see one or more of your favorite drivers have a better chance at winning, due to the fact that the least favorite drivers you picked didn't finish the race, and you really don't care about your fantasy racing results. Using this method, Rev' Jim's picks this week would be:

Carl Edwards
Paul Menard
Jimmie Johnson
Michael Waltrip
Joe Nemecheck

Of course, as always, when you expect the reverse jinx factor to come into play, it doesn't, so this could be exactly the way the top five turns out Sunday.

The Thinking Man's Method:

This is the most widely used method. You read what the "experts" think (Rev' Jim is a fanatical fan, not an expert), study the stats for each driver at the particular venue; find a trend in a driver's luck and experience that may prove favorable to his at the track in question; and try to form your own opinion based on what everybody else is saying. Using this method, The Rev's picks would be:

Jimmie Johnson
Matt Kenseth
Tony Stewart
Kyle Busch
Carl Edwards.

Note, this method hardly ever works for The Rev, and is the method he was using last year before he quit featuring the weekly race previews.

Last, but not least, The Astrological Predictions Method:
Clance' McClannahan makes astrological predictions on her blog "The Church of the Great Oval. Whether you believe Astrology or not, her predictions are often eerily accurate. Rev' Jim has not, however, posted his picks based on Clance's predictions for fear of the reverse jinx factor setting in and really screwing up the Multiverse. Instead we will follow the advice she gives, as quoted from this post at COTGO:

"Fantasy players, just close your eyes and pick a driver this week
It's anyone's dance in Vegas"

Here are some fun free weekly NASCAR fantasy games in which The Rev participates:

Driving Cash Racing--pays the winners at the end of the season. Not a big purse, but what do you want for free? Pick one driver in each of the top three series--Sprint Cup, Nationwide, and Camping World Truck Series--who you think will win each race. Even if your driver doesn't win but leads the most laps, you will get a good score.

One and Done Pick one driver to win each week, and score the driver's points for that race. Once you pick a driver, you may not use him for the rest of the game segment. Simple and fun, just like Steve and Charlie, the owners of the blog. Great prizes, especially for a free game. Heck, the prizes are better than some games you have to pay to join.

NASCAR Challenge (Facebook url, but also available on Myspace) A pick five game. Choose your line-up. You may keep the same line-up or change it every week. No declared prizes, for bragging rights and fun.

NASCAR Tipping A pick 6 game on Facebook. For bragging rights only, but lots of fun.

Whether you play or not, this weekend should give us some great racing. The track is fast, the tires are good, for once, and there are 43 drivers who are out to win. Enjoy the races and good luck!

Live on Type Delay: 2009 Auto Club 500

Nine miles from the famed Irwindale Speedway, near Los Angeles California, is the Auto Club Raceway in Panoma. Realizing you are at the wrong track, you continue east on I 210 until for another nineteen miles, and you find Auto Club Speedway. That is where today's NASCAR Sprint Cup race takes place.

The Star Spangled Banner was not sung by an Adam Sandler impersonater, as was the case at Daytona, and everyone agrees that we must put Daytona behind us and move forward. It is green flag time in California, and that flag is waved by an enthusiastic and pretty young Brunette woman.

Pole winner Brian Vickers had to go to the back of the field due to an engine change after qualifying, so Jamie McMurray starts on the pole. He doesn't stay there long, as Jimmie Johnson leaps into the lead. Five laps later Johnson has gained one second on the rest of the field, Kyle Busch has moved from tenth to fifth position, Brian Vickers has moved up to thirty-fourth, and it is raining, so the caution flag flies.

Ryan Newman, who was Rev' Jim's pick to win this race, has to pit to replace the transponder he uses for team communications, then has to pit again because the end plate for his spoiler has fallen off. The light sprinkle, and the caution, continues until twenty-two laps are complete.

At the restart, Johnson does not get away so easily, as McMurray stays on his tail. Kyle Busch takes fourth place from his brother, Kurt, but Kurt gets it back. Now Greg Biffle takes fifth from Kyle Busch, and the top five now runs with Johnson in the lead, McMurray second, Jeff Gordon third, Kurt Busch fourth and Biffle fifth. On the next lap, Kurt Busch challenges Gordon for third, then takes that spot and gets second place from McMurray.

Thank you Darrell Waltrip for giving us a very good explanation as to why restrictor plates would be not good for racing at California. He saw the truck and Nationwide series races yesterday, too.

But the cars are pretty much spread out now, anyway, as the drivers and crew chiefs figure out what they need to do to make their cars more competitive.

Ask.com, sponsor for Bobby Labonte is making their driver the new Kasey Kahne, featuring a desparate housewife who seems to have quite a bit of a "thing" for Labonte. We even get a glimpse into the blonde's filthy mind as she admits to having a "dream about a seven post machine and Bobby Labonte."

It doesn't seem as though Ask.com offers links to porn sites, as their commercial suggests they might. That will have to be investigated in the near future.

The top five remain Johnson, Kurt Busch, Jeff Gordon, Greg Biffle, and Jamie McMurray. Kyle Busch lurks in sixth, and we get another sprinkle caution on lap 43.

Kurt Busch takes the lead from the pit stops, and restarts in first on lap 48. Johnson is second, Jeff Gordon is third, Greg Biffle fourth, and McMurray fifth. Johnson retakes the lead before the lap is over. David Ragan has moved up to sixth, and Tony Stewart to seventh.

Jeff Gordon is racing Kurt Busch hard for second, going into the turns low while Busch goes high. This race for position will continue for a while. There is excitement further back in the field as Vickers is steadily making his way to the front. Matt Kenseth has made is way to the front and is now in fifth place. Four Roush cars--Biffle, Kenseth, McMurray, and Ragan--in the top ten at California. Why doesn't that seem unusual?

On lap 71, Jeff Gordon's persistence pays off, and he finally gets by Kurt Busch, while Johnson, the leader seems to be falling off some. Gordon gains on Johnson and cuts the two second lead in half. As they negotiate lapped traffic, Gordon is right behind Johnson and challenging for the lead. Jeff is using the entire track now, and literally runs between the wall and the grass. This is the wild driving Jeff Gordon of the good ol' days, and it is exciting. He takes the lead on lap 79.

Now all five of the Roush-Fenway cars are in the top ten, as Carl Edwards joins the party. Edwards has been moving up steadily through the field, from his starting spot of thirty-fifth. Again, no surprise.

Tony Stewart is happy with his car and is running steadily in sixth place.

Green flag pit stops begin on lap 83. Johnson pits on lap 85, and Gordon gives up the lead to pit on lap 86 and asked for no adjustments. He knows his car the way it is, and loves it. Biffle gets five bonus points for leading a lap and pits on lap 88. Edwards leads a lap and pits, so, with 90 laps gone, Jeff Gordon retakes the lead.

After the pit stops cycle through, its Jeff Gordon ahead of Jimmie Johnson by two seconds. Greg Biffle is third, Kurt Busch is fourth, and Matt Kenseth is fifth. Tony Stewart is still hangin' in sixth, enjoying the ride. Biffle passes Johnson for second, and Kenseth takes fourth from Dirty Kurty Busch. Meanwhile, we are still having visions of that woman and a seven post shaker rig.

Digger is multiplying, as we now see several animated gophers at the same time. Don't look, kids, bad things could happen.

Those of us who watch South Park know that cute animated wild animals can be much more dangerous than they appear.

Lap 111 and Jeff Gordon is more than two seconds ahead of Biffle. Johnson is still holding third, unchallenged. Kenseth is fourth, and Kurt Busch is fifth. Tony Stewart, in sixth is more than five seconds behind that group, followed by the other Busch, Carl Edwards, Jamie McMurray, and Mark Martin.

At lap 126, as the time for pit stops approaches, Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch are battling for seventh. They are racing as racers, something that is always exciting to see, especially among racers of this quality. They are racing cleanly, but with no sign of giving the other an inch.

Carl prevails on lap 129 and takes seventh, as many more cars begin to pit under the green flag. Jeff Gordon gives up the lead with 123 laps to go, and Biffle pits with him this time. Biffle takes the lead out of the pits, and holds the lead while the pit stops cycle through. It's a whole new ballgame, but the same old Jack Roush show at California.

116 laps to go, and Jeff Gordon is catching Biffle, as Biffle works his way through lapped traffic, and that lapped traffic is fighting hard to stay on the lead lap. Johnson is still in third, but way back, Matt Kenseth is fourth, Kurt Busch is fifth, and the other Busch has made it back to sixth, past Stewart, who is in seventh. We believe that Carl Edwards must have lost some time in the pits.

Now we get a caution for rain and the back runners on the lead lap--Juan Pablo Montoya, David Stremme, and Dale Earnhardt, Jr breathe sighs of relief as they are now able to stay on the lead lap. All the leaders pit. Now Matt Kenseth is the first off of the pit lane.

Blogger's note. There are probably some fans out there who think this race is "boring." Writing the play by play as the race unfolds makes it fun, and the race is anything but "boring." The lesson here is to get as involved in the race as you can, just as many of you would watching the Super Bowl or the college basketball playoffs that pre-empt so many of our favorite programs.

148 laps into the race, we are still under caution. There has been some attrition due to mechanical problems, but all the cars that started are still on the track. There have been no accidents, and it's been a clean race so far.

Matt Kenseth leads the field to the restart, Greg Biffle is second, Jeff Gordon is third, Kurt Busch fourth, and Jimmie Johnson is fifth. Kasey Kahne drives the first car one lap down and is in front of the inside lane. As the green flag waves, Kenseth drops to the bottom and maintains the lead, while Gordon makes a move on Biffle, and takes second place. Johnson is now back in form, and quickly makes his way up to challenge Biffle for third, takes it, and is now racing his team mate and mentor, Darth, er, Jeff Gordon. Jeff races him hard, and maintains second for a lap or two, then on the next lap, with 94 to go, Johson goes high and passes Gordon.

Now Kyle Busch is still lurking in sixth, and is stealthfully sneaking up on the top five. Tony Stewart has fallen back to tenth.

As the predictable engine problems begin for some of the teams, another caution flies for rain, and the leaders pit again. Tony Stewart stays out and takes the lead. Here we go with the fuel strategy again, coupled with the uncertainty of finishing the 500 miles due to rain. Kenseth is, once again the first off of pit road.

Juan Pablo Montoya and Mark Martin also stayed out during the pit stops. Earnhardt, Jr was one of the cars reporting engine problems, and changing the spark plug wires didn't seem to fix anything.

Now, with two to go until restart, Stewart, Montoya, Martin, and the other cars that stayed out earlier pit, and Kenseth gets the lead back.

At the restart with 71 laps to go, it's Kenseth, Johnson, Gordon, Kurt Busch and Greg Biffle. Kyle Busch restarts in sixth and quickly takes fifth place form Biffle, but Da Biff just as quickly takes that position back, then grabs fourth place from Kurt Busch for good measure.

62 laps to go, and Biffle is about to take third from Johnson. The Busch brothers are racing for fifth, and the younger Busch takes it. Fun stuff there.

With 55 laps to go, Jeff Gordon is seriously racing Kenseth for the lead, and Biffle is in their as well. With 54 to go, Gordon takes the lead on the inside,but Kenseth doesn't give it up that easily, and passes Gordon high. Then Gordon goes high and retakes the lead, and holds it, while Biffle takes second from Kenseth. Three seconds back, Kyle Busch is racing Jimmie Johnson hard, and this is some great racing. Johnson is driving the heck out of his car, nearly going sideways in the turns and holding his spot. Busch goes low, then high, and takes fourth.

Meanwhile, Mark Martin's engine finally gives out. Bad luck for other drivers, too, as Kevin Harvick's streak of finishing races is ended when the right front tire on the 29 car blows, and he hits the wall, bringing out a caution. Dale Jr takes his car to the garage as his engine has expired.

Kenseth takes the lead again coming out of the pits. David Stremme leads a lap while the others pit. With one lap to restart, Stremme pits.

With 33 laps to go, Kenseth restarts in the lead, with Jeff Gordon second, Kyle Busch third, Denny Hamlin fourth, and Kurt Busch fifth. Matt gets another great restart, but Gordon is right on his tail. If Kenseth wins the race, it will be attributed to his pit stops and restarts, as well as his overall driving expertise. Or because Gordon couldn't pass him.

With 19 laps to go, Gordon is making a move. He pulls up along side Kenseth, but Kenseth holds on for the lap. Gordon tries again, going high, but coming out of turn four, he gives up ground, and Kenseth increases his lead to nearly a second. Nobody else in this race matters--third placed Kyle Busch is four seconds behind them, and everyone else is way behind Busch.

We have to remark that it was great watching Gordon and Kenseth racing for the lead. We also have to admit that Auto Club California Speedway is for the experienced driver, because that is who has performed the best today.

Gordon isn't finished yet. With six laps to go he is gaining on Kenseth. This could be a very exciting finish. With four to go, lapped cars may make it more interesting. But now it looks as though Gordon has used up his tires, as he is falling back again.

Matt Kenseth takes the white flag, and it looks like he will make it two in a row. Great work for the Daytona 500 driver. This is one way to prove that he wasn't just lucky to win the 500.

Jeff Gordon finished second, Kyle Busch third, Greg Biffle fourth. Kurt Busch finished fifth, followed by Denny Hamlin, Carl Edwards, Tony Stewart, Jimmy Johnson, and Brian Vickers.

California doesn't feature the greatest racing in the world, but it does offer a challenge to the drivers, and when there is racing, it is good racing. We had fun covering this race today, and it was anything but boring.

Even though they don't sponsor us, we would like to thank Ask.com and Budweiser for some very entertaining commercials.

Anything but that

Kyle Busch has achieved what no other driver in the upper tier of NASCAR has done--that is to win two races in the same day. He didn't just win them, he dominated, leading ninety-five of 100 laps in the Camping World Truck Series (CWTS) race, and most of the laps in the Nationwide Series race as well, leading all but seven of the 150 laps around the 2 mile long "D"-oval.

The Nationwide race featured plenty of racing behind the leader, so there was some action in racing for position. The only threat to Busch's lead, however came at the restart with sixteen laps to go. Carl Edwards had beaten Kyle Busch out of the pits, and restarted in the lead. Busch, however had the faster car, and before the lap was over, he had given Edwards a sound of his chrome horn and retaken the lead. It was bye bye Busch after that, and Carl, fell all the way back to sixth place. As Kyle extended his lead, Kevin Harvick took second, and Carl Edwards made his way back to fourth. That is as far as he got. Joey Logano was running in third, and wasn't about to give that spot up. That race for third was one of the most exciting battles of the race, with Edwards making a move, and Logano countering it like a professional with many more years of experience than he has. Logano was soon able to put Edwards behind him and focus his sights on Harvick, providing us with even more racing excitement. Kevin Harvick held his spot, though, as Kyle Busch crossed the finish line nearly four seconds ahead of the combatants.

The truck race, earlier in the day did not have much to offer as far as excitement. Kyle Busch took a huge lead from the start and never lost it. Driving a truck that was set up so perfectly that Gabi DeCarlo--competing in her first truck race--could have won in it, the race was a Sunday drive for Busch, while the field became strung out so far that nobody was challenged for position by anyone.

Which brings us to our rant. If NASCAR has to make changes in the series that usually features the most exciting racing among the top three divisions, why do they want to change it to make it less exciting. The tapered spacers that have been required in all trucks in all races since last year, may make the racing safer and save fuel, but on long tracks like the Auto Club (California) Speedway, it limits what drivers can do during the race. To make matters worse, the rear end gear required by NASCAR for the race was high enough to hamper the ability of the trucks to close on other trucks and be able to race them properly. Racing should be about racing, not how long the trucks can go around the track without crashing.

The effect of the spacer is hardly noticeable in short track races, but not good at all on a long track like California. It is hard enough for the Sprint Cup cars to keep up with each other, so making the trucks so that they can't race is a very bad idea.

One suggestion would be to not have the trucks race at Auto Club. Nobody was there to watch the race, anyway, so why not move it to a smaller venue, nearby. Perhaps nearby Irwindale would be an idea date for the trucks for the second race of the year. After all, the series got its start on the short tracks, and the series seems to race best on short tracks. It may even be easier to sell tickets to the smaller venue, while the truck series as it should be promoted.

Another suggestion would be to allow lower gearing while switching to a smaller engine, without the spacers. The speeds would be below the danger limit for the trucks, as NASCAR sees it, and they would have a better ability to close on each other, and thus, race each other. The problem with this would be that none of the manufacturers want to admit to having a smaller engine that would be appropriate for NASCAR style racing, and the switch could mean added expenses for some teams.

But why has NASCAR turned away from competition in the truck series? With the economic downturn of late, the organization is worried that the field of entrants would be too small, because of expenses, so, they decided to forget about competition, forget about promoting the series as "racing the way it ought to be," and try to "help" the teams to better afford the costs of racing.

One way they saw fit to do so was to limit the number of over-the-wall pit crew members to five, and to limit each pit stop to be for either tires or fuel, but not both. In practice, as seen during the Stater Brothers 200 truck race, Saturday, it is hard to see how this saves teams much money at all. In fact, as we have seen in many of NASCAR's money saving schemes, it may end up costing the teams more money.

When faced with a "tires or fuel" situation at a point in the race where position is crucial, most teams will go with fuel only. The tires could be worn, and ready to blow, but it is better to take that chance, in the mind of the competitive racer, than to run out of fuel while leading the second-to-last lap. We could easily see an increase in late race accidents, thus creating added costs to the teams in repairing wrecked equipment.

The pit rule also creates a situation in which added opportunities for pit road accidents occur. We saw this during Saturday's race, as three trucks got tangled up on the second stop of a caution period. To increase the number of pit stops for each team during a single caution increases the risks of having pit road incidents.

In response to the announcement of the new rules, veteran truck racer/team principal Rick Crawford had this to say, "If it doesn't save me $250,000 there is no point to the rule."

He is right, there is no point to the new pit stop rule. The teams are already limited to three sets of tires--including practice, qualifying, and the race--per event. That was a money saving scheme. Furthermore, the amount of fuel a team uses during each event is going to remain the same, even if the number of fuel pit stops are limited. Although there may be some fans who would find a gigantic crash near the end of the race due to bad tires exciting, it really doesn't mean that the racing would be better.

What NASCAR does need to do is promote the Truck Series as a unique series featuring the best in short track racing. They should limit the venues to tracks that are 1.25 miles or less in length, with the exception, perhaps, of Darlington. A way could be found to bring in more fans, and thus, more revenue. They could also bring in some more sponsors for a higher purse--admittedly difficult in these times, but possible--to make the race more attractive to more participants. They could do anything but what they have done to make the racing less exciting. It would probably be better for the teams in the long run.

Live on Type Delay: The Daytona 500

The Daytona 500 is touted as the biggest race of the year for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Indeed, it kicks off the season, it shows us what the teams have, and what they've been doing during the off-season, and it does have a prestigious history. And after two weeks of preliminaries and media hype, it's Day has arrived.

A few unimportant questions about the pre-race programming, first. Do we really need a "Digger" weekly animated series? What is "country" about "country music" these days? Was the guy singing the "Star Spangled Banner" trying to sound like Adam Sandler?

Anyway, it hasn't rained yet, the cars are rolling off of pit road, and the crowd is going wild. So is Rev Jim. The thrills are about to begin.

One more question before the start, though. Does anybody get the impression that they are going to "let" Mark Martin win? I would certainly hate to be the Kyle Busch who takes away the win if Mark is leading in turn four of lap 199.

Martin Truex, Jr, from the pole, led the first lap, with Jeff Gordon in second, running around the track in the inside lane. On lap 2, Mark Martin takes the lead, passing on the outside with help from Kyle Busch. By Lap 5, Kevin Harvick and Matt Kenseth have both moved up nearly twenty positions, after starting in the back of the field, and Kyle Busch soon takes the lead.

On lap 8, Aric Almirola spins out, and the first caution of the day flies. On the restart, it's Kyle Busch, Mark Martin, Bobby Labonte, Dale Earnhardt, Jr, and Carl Edwards in the top 5. The green flag flies on lap eleven.

Since we are stuck with TV only this week, it's commercial break time. The AFLAC commercial wasn't too bad, but the UPS ad with David Regan driving the car into the building and riding the elevator, in the car, was awesome.

Two minutes of racing and another commercial break.

Competition caution on lap 25 to check tires. The restart is on lap 30 with Kyle Busch, Dale Jr, Carl Edwards, Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon in the top five. Edwards falters at the restart, Gordon moves all the way up to third, and Johnson moves into the top five. The field splits into two rows, with Tony Stewart, who had restarted in ninth, after starting the race in the rear of the field, leading Carl Edwards on the inside, and everyone else on the outside, with Kyle Busch still leading.

Wow lap 35 and we have already had a lot of racing. Earnhardt is now leading the outside line, but drops back a little. The inside line consists of race leader Kyle Busch, and the rest of the top three Jeff Burton, and Matt Kenseth. Earnhardt is in fourth place, racing on the outside with help from Jeff Gordon.

Lap 39 now, and Earnhardt and Busch are racing wheel to wheel, with Kenseth behind Busch, and Denny Hamlin behind Junior. Exciting stuff going on. Does Dale Jr have the lead for lap 40? It was close, but Kyle Busch is scored with the lead. Now on lap 41, Busch moves up in front of Earnhardt, Jr, to give the outside line a try, but Kenseth is moving up, so Busch moves back down.

Busch is the wild one, so far. He moves up the track and down, switching lanes as each line becomes faster than the other. This is crazy, but it sure is fun to watch.

Finally, on lap 45, Kyle Busch and Dale Jr pull away from the rest of the pack, with Busch in first, and Jr in second. A few car lengths behind them, Tony Stewart has taken third place, leading the rest of the pack.

With Stewart in the lead of the rest of the pack, they catch Jr and Kyle on lap 50 and fall into single file. On lap 52 it's Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr, Carl Edwards, and Jeff Gordon. Now things seem to have settled down a bit. Lap 54, and the front four have checked out on the rest of the field, and Tony Stewart follows Jr on the outside, as he takes the lead from Busch, and then Stewart drops down to the bottom in front of Busch and takes the lead from Jr. Caution, as Travis Kvapil hits the wall. It looks like Kvapil is going to the garage. Sam Hornish pits, his car is overheating and tajpe and debris are removed. Pit stops on lap 56, and the cleanup crew is on the track.

The running order has changed in the pits. Jr missed his pit stall on the first try, and had to take another lap and return to the pit lane. Hornish takes the lead, having exited the pits while the rest of the field was entering. Stewart is second, being the first one out of the pits after Hornish, Kyle Busch is third, followed by Jeff Gordon and Carl Edwards. Hornish had to drop back, and Stewart takes the lead, running on the outside. Kyle Busch is threatening on the inside line. Allmendinger moves up to third, behind Gordon. Allmendinger falls back. Jamie McMurray and Denny Hamlin have hooked up on the outside, and McMurray moves into third.

Lap 56 and everybody is two by two. Gordon leads the outside line, while Stewart maintains the lead on the inside. Gordon makes a move on the outside in turn four, with help from Kyle Busch, but Stewart, with Hamlin right behind him, maintains the lead. The next lap features nearly identical action, and neither Gordon not Stewart show any sign of giving up the race for the lead. Now both the radio and television have simultanious commercial breaks.

Normally, we would expect the race to be tame at this point. If the action continues the way it has been, this could be a long post. When the commercial is over, Gordon has the lead, Kyle Busch is second, Jamie McMurray is third, Denny Hamlin in fourth, and Stewart fifth, in single file. Then Stewart tries to lead a charge in the inside lane, but doesn't have enough drafting help, and falls back to seventh. These guys are racing as though it was only three laps to go, and we are still 25 laps away from the halfway point. Ryan Newman had to pit for a loose wheel. Good idea to pit before something bad happened.

The front four have moved ahead of the rest of the field, with Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, and Jamie McMurray in the top four. Caution, as Joey Logano and Scott Speed contact each other on lap 88, just beyond the exit of turn four. It has been a horrible week for Joey, but we cut him slack, as this is his first superspeedway race in a Sprint Cup car. For that matter, it's Speed's first superspeedway race in a Sprint Cup car. Now, as they return from the commercial and show the replay, it looks like Scott Speed had brushed the wall and rebounded into Logano, which shot the kid down the track and into the inside wall.

Simultaneous commercials again, and the radio broadcast seems to be fading, which is why we were TV only at the beginning of the race.

Kyle Busch left the pits first, and takes the lead. Jeff Gordon, Denny Hamlin, Jamie McMurray, and Matt Kenseth will follow him to the restart at lap 86.

Busch and Gordon momentarily step out by a few lengths, and the top five are single file, as Stewart tries to lead a charge on the inside lane, further back. Three wide now, and it is hard to tell who is where.

By lap 89, Gordon has fallen back to fourth, and they are going three wide for that position. That's nothing, around Jimmie Johnson, back around twelfth place, they are going four wide through the trioval. They settle down a bit, then four wide again coming out of turn 2. Johnson almost loses it, and makes a great save.

After everything gets somewhat sorted out, on lap 92, the top five are Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, AJ Allmendinger, Matt Kenseth, and Martin Truex, Jr.

Lap 95, and Gordon has led a charge to second place. We have to be wondering now, if this race is so wild before half way, what will the last lap be like? Lap 97 is when Gordon tries to take the lead, but Busch blocks him and maintains the lead, followed by Gordon, Hamlin, Edwards, and Stewart.

Stewart takes fourth from Edwards at the halfway mark. Things still haven't settled down behind them. On lap 102, that wild bunch is now racing for fifth. Simultanious commercials again, so we miss whatever action ensues from that.

On lap 109, the front twelve are in single file. Kyle Busch is still leading, followed by Denny Hamlin, Carl Edwards, Jamie McMurray, and Jeff Gordon. Dale Earnhardt, Jr is challenging Gordon for fifth. Now the top four make some distance ahead of the field. Jr and Gordon are still racing, Gordon gets hung out, and Earnhardt, Jr takes his position. Gordon continues to fall back. Gordon seems to be having problems, and takes to the pits on lap 114. Jimmie Johnson also pits, so if Gordon needs drafting help, it is on its way. Both the 24 and the 48 cars seem to be having handling problems.

Hornish, Jr pits with steam issuing heavily from under the hood. Juan Pablo Montoya, and Brian Vickers also make green flag pit stops, now.

David Stremme's right rear tire went flat, and his right rear quarter panel has been destroyed, and the fifth caution comes out, on lap 118. The tire exploded while Stremme was in front of a very heavily populated group of cars, and, miracalously, everybody gets by him without incident.

Oh, man, Dale Earnhardt, Jr has to take a penalty for working on the car while the tires were outside the box. At Daytona, all four wheels have to be inside the line of the pit box, before the car can be serviced, and Junior had the front right tire barely over the line. They are being held in the pits by NASCAR. It wasn't Kyle Busch's fault. Just thought that should be mentioned.

After the pits, Elliott Sadler is first, his teammate Reed Sorenson is second, Kyle Busch is third, Matt Kenseth is fourth. After the restart, Vickers falls in line on the inside lane, in front of Dale Jr, because both of them are trying to race back to the lead lap. Jr has to drop down below the yellow line to avoid Vickers, then, as he comes onto the track, he runs into the back of Vickers, Vickers shoots up the track, and IT'S THE BIG ONE, ELIZABETH!

Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Scott Speed, Jamie McMurray, and Carl Edwards all take damage. There are cars spinning in the infield everywhere. Kurt Busch, Jimmie Johnson, and Robby Gordon were also involved in the carnage. .

Hamlin's, Johnson's, Junior's, and Edward's teams are able to effect repairs in the pits, so they are still in the race, so to speak. Just watch, this will probably turn into a victory for the #48 team.

Now it looks as though there will be a rain delay. Only a short delay, and restart after 132 laps. Sadler in the lead, Sorenson is second, then Kenseth, Burton and Allmendinger. Dale Earnhardt, Jr starts in 31st place, the first car one lap down.

On lap 139, Paul Menard (surprised?) makes contact with Jeff Burton, and then richochet's off of several cars like a pinball caught between bumpers, and another caution comes out. Hey, Dale Jr fans, Junior gets the free pass. McMurray's team has completed repairs, and the #26 car is back on the track.

Elliott Sadler is in the lead and wishing for rain. Matt Kenseth is second. While the caution is still out, however, more cars pit.

Restart with 58 cars to go, and the top five are now Sadler, Kenseth, Sorenson, Allmendinger, and Stewart. I believe, with one more pit stop neccessary, they should be setting up for the finish. I was wrong. Matt "Kensiss" Kenseth hooks up with Kevin "Out of Nowhere" Harvick to challenge for the lead. Kensiss takes the lead with Harvick right behind him, and another caution flies as Almirola and Hornish make contact further back in the field, and Almirola careens into the infield. Those cars were packed close, and it could have been much worse, but somehow, mass carnage was avoided. Johnson gets the free pass.

It is irritating when DW says "Kensiss" for "Kenseth." It is just as bad as Rusty saying "Kennifs."

52 laps is still outside the pit window, barely, so nobody on the lead lap pits. The Fox crew is attributing that strategy to the possibility of rain, as well, and now it is raining. The top five are now Matt Kenseth, Kevin Harvick, AJ Allmendinger, Clint Bowyer, and Elliott Sadler. If the race restarts, it is still anybody's race.

The red flag is being displayed. Rain delay. It is still early, we may get to see the race continue.

Dale Earnhardt, Jr, interview. He is not happy. He has had a very bad day. Even Jeff Burton is mad at him.

The race has been called, and Matt Kenseth is the winner! It is always good to see another first time winner at the 500. We would have liked to see a shootout to the end, but Nature didn't agree.

It was an adrenaline-pumping race anyway, and perhaps we couldn't have taken any more excitement, so Nature was just looking after us. The Daytona 500 has always had some very wild moments, but this was one of the wildest.

Somehow, because the race was called early, we still feel robbed. Congratulations to Matt Kenseth, and his crew. We should also offer congratulations to AJ Allmendinger for his third place finish, and to Tony Stewart for getting a top ten finish (eighth) in his first points race as an owner/driver.

A fallen Star

Matt Hawkins lost his life Friday after an incident involving the accidental discharge of a firearm. He was a true rising star, with a loving family, friends, and the respect of racers much older than he. He was 21 years of age.

The following is republished from April 19, 2008, in tribute to this young man who was lost to this world way too soon.

That Kid From Canton, Georgia
Imagine you're a young racecar driver, earning your way up through the stock car ranks.
You began your racing career at the age of four, riding four-wheeler atvs in competition on the dirt tracks of Georgia. From there, you worked your way up through very successful seasons in go-cart racing, winning the Kart-World National championship. At the age of fourteen, you were the Legends cars champion. From there it was on to super late models, again making your mark on the regional level, and winning the Southern All Stars Championship. In the nineteenth year of your life, you are starting to get national attention, as you finish your rookie year in the USAR Hooters Pro Cup series in the top ten in points.
Now you've made it to what is arguably the "make or break" series, the ARCA/Remax. Your competition includes nine time series champion Frank Kimmel, the near-legendary Bobby Gerhart, and several drivers around to your own age whose resumes are as impressive and lengthy as your own. Michael Annet, who saw victory lane in what was only his second ARCA race, less than a year ago, was the winner at Daytona earlier this year, and has yet to finish a race outside the top ten. Scott Speed, being carefully developed on his way to being a NASCAR Sprint Cup star, has big money backing him and is a former Formula One driver. Justin Allgaier has won two of the first three races of the season and is the series leader, and the favorite to win this race. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr, comes from a prestigious racing family, and has the talent and strong backing to carry on the family tradition.
But you are not daunted by any of this. Your name is Matt Hawkins, and you came to win.
Hawkins did exactly what he needed to do in his very first ARCA/Remax Series race, which took place today in Iowa. He stayed on the lead lap and took care of his car. Matt Carter led most of the race at the 7/8 mile oval (which made me melancholy for PPIR, by the way), but his car was used up by the time the race reached its closing laps, and Matt Hawkins overtook him for the lead, after racing fender to fender with him for several laps. Polesitter Justin Allgaier was breathing down his neck in the final three laps, after coming back twice from pit stop mishaps in the last part of the race, but Hawkins held the lead and took the checkers by less than one second.
He was emotional about winning his very first ARCA race, but he held his composure like a pro.
To put things in perspective, at the age of 20 he has sixteen years of racing experience, one more year than Jeff Gordon had when he was 20. Would anyone disagree with me if I predicted that the Kid from Canton will soon be Cup material?
Photo Credit: Matt Hawkins Web Site.