Live on Type Delay: The Subway Fresh Fit race at Phoenix

The Digger cartoons are already running repeats. Perhaps they need a sponsor. We would suggest Riddex. Digger would be a great spokesrodent for a pest control company.

The guy who doesn't need a sponsor now is AJ Allmendinger. His ride is now sponsored to the Fall Richmond race. We have confidence that if Allmendinger makes it into the top twelve by then, sponsorship will be no problem.

Things are tough for up and coming drivers these days. Drivers like Joey Logano and Aric Almirola do not have the luxury of testing at NASCAR sanctioned tracks, as have others before them. Almirola's Earnhardt/Ganassi Incorporated ride has been suspended indefinitely, due to lack of sponsorship. Rumors are flying that Joey Logano may not finish the season in the JGR #20 car. Both of these drivers have a lot of potential--they just need a chance to get acclimated to the Sprint Cup level of competition.

JGR has insisted that they are sticking with Logano, and that his ride is safe. In fact, things are looking up for "Sliced Bread," as he gained his second career Nationwide Series race last week at Nashville, in impressive fashion.

Today's economic atmosphere in NASCAR would be a great reason to advocate that the Nationwide Series regulars stay in that series for a minimum of four years. Of course, that would be up to the teams owners, and not NASCAR. NASCAR's official description of the NNS is "A series in which up and coming NASCAR stars of the future match up against veteran NASCAR stars from the Sprint Cup Series."

Oh yeah, the race has started.

Mark Martin starts on the pole, with Kyle Busch on the outside. Right behind them are Kurt Busch in third, and Jeff Gordon in fourth, while Brian Vickers and Tony Stewart are in row three. Martin gets a good jump on the start and holds the lead.

By lap 37 Kyle Busch has fallen back to eighth place, while Mark Martin has led every lap. On lap 42, Tony Stewart threads the needle between the lapped Elliott Sadler and the third placed #24 car. This move requires a lot of trust, and this time it pays off, as Sadler moves up the track to give him room, and Gordon lets him by. DW remarks that Jeff Gordon wouldn't put a bumper into Stewart at this point of the race, forgetting that he said, during the Martinsville race three weeks ago, "Gordon doesn't race other drivers that way."

Caution on lap 54, as Sterling Marlin hits the wall and damages the right side of his car. Everybody pits, except Michael Waltrip stays out to lead a lap and get five points.

The restart is on lap 61, with Martin in first, Kurt Busch second, Denny Hamlin in third, Tony Stewart fourth, and Jeff Gordon is fifth. Stewart gets third from Hamlin a few laps later, but almost loses control of his car in doing so. He saves it, and pulls in line in front of his former team mate. Jimmie Johnson enters the top ten on lap 66, and is on the move. Six laps later, he is in eighth place. Martin Truex, Jr, who started in the 26th position, moves into ninth place on lap 78.

Kurt Busch is creeping up on the race leader, Mark Martin, on lap 92, and Tony Stewart joins the fray. Martin does some great blocking, forgetting that his fans believe that he doesn't race that way, and holds the lead, while Stewart takes second on lap 95. Kurt Busch takes second back on lap 102, and there is a caution for debris. Bobby Labonte stays out to gain 5 ponts for leading a lap, and Kurt Busch gets out of the pits first to take the lead. Martin will restart in second. Greg Biffle moves up to third, Denny Hamlin is fourth, and Jimmie Johnson is fifth, and Jeff Gordon is sixth. Tony Stewart will restart in seventh, having had a little trouble during the tire change in the pits. Restart is on lap 109.

The graphics going into the commercial, with Kurt Busch in the lead, plays up the "class clown" image Dirty Kurty has made for himself. Whether that is the real Kyle Busch or not, we really don't know. It just seems forced sometimes. It seems forced most of the time. But it's okay for one to reinvent one's self, and more power to him.

On lap 112, we have some wild stuff going on in a race for eleventh position, with Martin Truex, Jr, Kasey Kahne, and Johnny Montoya going three wide through lapped traffic. Exciting stuff there. Meanwhile Dale Earnhardt, Jr is having handling problems with his car and is losing positions. But the sun is setting, and handling characteristics are going to change. We will not give up on Jr, yet.

Stewart moves back into the top five on lap 124, and the top five are now Kurt Busch first, Mark Martin second, Greg Biffle third, Jimmie Johnson fourth, and Tony Stewart fifth.

Mark Martin is closing in on race leader Kurt Busch, but then, on lap 138, we get a caution as David Stremme loses it in turn two, and spins into the infield. Some drivers, especially the ones with the initials "D E J" really needed this caution.

Jimmie Johnson loses eight positions in the pits. That is uncharacteristic for the 48 team, but we are certain they will recover.

Kurt Busch and Mark Martin want no changes, Tony Stewart gets air pressure adjustments, Martin Truex Jr takes two tires only and gets off the pit road in second. Restart on lap 144 with Kurt Busch in first, Truex, second, Mark Martin third, David Reutimann fourth, and Tony Stewart fifth.

On lap 150, Jeff Gordon's car has developed a tire rub under the left front fender, after contact with Denny Hamlin. His prayers are answered on lap 152, as AJ Allmendinger spins and hits the wall.

Restart on lap 156, with Kurt Busch first, Mark Martin second, Martin Truex, Jr third, Tony Stewart fourth, and David Reutimann in fifth. Stewart takes third from Truex on lap 165. Kyle Busch has moved into the top 5, and takes fourth. On lap 167, Michael Waltrip gets loose in turn four, and collects Robby Gordon, who hits the wall and brings out a caution. Dale Earnhardt, Jr stays out and takes the lead. He will restart in the lead. Of the cars that pit, Mark Martin takes four tires, most of the others take two.

Green flag on lap 171, with Dale Earnhardt, Jr in the lead, Marcos Ambrose second, Jeff Gordon third, David Stremme fourth, and Bobby Labonte fifth. These cars stayed out during the caution. Lots of action going on. Kyle Busch takes third from Jeff Gordon, then second from Ambrose. Gordon takes third from Ambrose, and Earnhardt, Jr increases his lead to three seconds. Tony Stewart has the fastest lap time on lap 189 and has moved into fourth. On lap 212, Stewart battles Kyle Busch for second, and takes that position after a short, but exciting contest. Mark Martin takes third on lap 214. The Booth Bunnies say this is because Stewart and Martin have fresher tires than Kyle does. I thought Stewart only took two that last pit stop, but what do I or the NASCAR.com lap by lap reporter know?

The "Toyota Driver Seeker" commercial still makes me laugh, no matter how many times I have seen it. So does the Tony Stewart Old Spice commercial. My mind must be turning to mush. The aliens are winning.

Wow the live leaderboard on NASCAR.com has finally loaded. Those of you who may, like Rev' Jim, be stuck with a dial up connection know what an accomplishment this is. I started loading it at the beginning of the race. I had to refresh the page several times, and finally, two hours and one minute later, it is updating. Yaaaaaay!

Meanwhile Tony Stewart has been cutting steadily into Dale Jr's lead, and is about to become NASCAR's most hated driver, at least for now. The fans will get over it and go back to hating Kyle Busch before the race is over. By lap 219, Stewart is three-tenths of a second behind the leader, and Driver 88 is reporting that he has used up his tires.

Still we finally get to see some of Junior's ability as he holds off the hard-charging Stewart for several laps. Stewart begins the pass for the lead on lap 218, and finally closes the deal on lap 220. Mark Martin takes second right after that, and Jr begins the green flag pit cycle by pitting on lap 226.

On lap 230, it is Stewart first, Martin second, Kurt Busch third, Reutimann fourth, and Biffle fifth.

Greg Biffle gives up fifth to pit with 76 laps to go, and Jeff Gordon has to enter the pits again because of a penalty due to missing lug nut. Again, this is something very uncharacteristic for that crew.

Oh fun, just before they pit, Martin is racing Stewart for the lead. We know this is for funsies, as both cars will pit soon, but we know these guys have a mutual admiration for each other, and it is fun to watch them race, even though both cars are wildly loose.

Stewart and Martin both pit on lap 242. Johnson takes the lead, then pits on the next lap, letting Vickers lead a lap. With the green flag pit stops completed, on lap 246, it is Earnhardt, Jr, back in the lead, but with not enough fuel to make it to the end of the race. Don't worry, there will likely be a caution.

Greg Biffle is four seconds behind Jr in second, Mark Martin third, Tony Stewart fourth, and Kyle Busch is fifth, with Kurty The Klown, his brother, right behind him. On lap 251, Martin takes second, then takes the lead on lap 257. Tony Stewart has moved into third. Greg Biffle is fourth, and Kurty The Klown has moved into fifth, while Kyle, the other Busch, is in sixth. In the seventh position, Jimmie Johnson is running identical in time with the leader. Dale Jr has developed handling trouble, and is now running in eighth.

Tony Stewart has moved into second by lap 267, Kurt Busch is third, Kyle is fourth, and Da Biff is fifth. It still sounds funny when it is spoken out loud.No one can say "Da Biff is Fifth" twice real fast, let alone three times. The Rev' says "Da Biff ith fifth" on the first try.

Talk about being good on long runs, Mark Martin has posted the fastest times on laps 275, 276, and 277. He was two seconds ahead of Stewart on lap 274, and is now three and a half seconds ahead.

On lap 280, Reutimann has the fastest car, and has passed Da Biff for fifth. This is shaping up to be a great finish. Lap 282 and Jimmie Johnson is on the move in sixth.

If either Mark Martin or Tony Stewart wins this race, we will have tears in our eyes. It would be Mark's first win since 2005, or it would be Stewart's first win as an owner/driver, at the same track Alan Kulwicki got his first win as an owner/driver.

Caution with twelve laps to go, while Martin had a four second lead over Sterwart. Dale Jr, having been lapped by the leader on lap 297, loses control with the help of Casey Mears. I can't wait to hear the conspiracy rumors on this one.

All the leaders pit, and Mark Martin exits the pit road barely ahead of Kyle Busch, but the younger Busch got caught speeding exiting the pits, and has to serve a penalty.

Ryan Newman stayed out and will lead at the restart. There is some controversy about why he didn't pit. Did he have radio problems, or did he pretend to have radio problems? Anyway, restart with six laps to go is Newman first, Martin second, Stewart third. What a great restart by Martin. He passes Newman as if he is standing still, and immediately gains five car lengths on Stewart. Johnson moves into the top five, and takes fourth with three laps to go. Tony Stewart and Mark Martin are running at the exact same speed as Martin takes the white flag. Stewart will not catch Martin. I am crying, Martin wins, Stewart second, Mark Martin is third, Jimmie Johnson, who almost caught third place, and Da Biff ith Fifth.

Wow, a historic moment, and a great race for the old man. For some, life begins at fifty. Or maybe The Kid is only twenty five years old for the second time around.

Live on Type Delay: The Samsung 500

Texas Motor Speedway is a fast track with wide progressively banked turns, a long, sweeping frontstretch, and a shorter backstretch. It has been both loved and loathed by racers, and has a history of surprises. It is one of only two tracks on the NASCAR Sprint Cup circuit at which Jeff Gordon has never won. There just seems to be some kind of jinx for him. If he starts well he ends up poorly. If he starts poorly, he ends up poorly. This is not a Cup car characteristic, because Gordon had the same problem at Texas with the aero-car.

It should be noted that TMS is also where Dale Earnhardt, Jr got both his first Nationwide Series win and his first Cup Series win. That wasn't last year, though, because Carl Edwards won both Sprint Cup TMS races in 2008.

Jeff Gordon starts on the front row, outside of David Reutimann. They both get a good start and race for the lead all the way around the first lap. Gordon gets the edge on the first lap, but only leads for about ten laps until Reutimann passes him back. Jeff's car seems to be fading. Reutimann leads all the way to the time green flag pit stops begin on lap 51.

After the pit stops cycle through, Matt Kenseth has the lead, with Reutimann in second and Tony Stewart in third. Stewart battles hard with Reutinann, and takes second place, but Reutimann doesn't give up easily and races him back. But Stewart races him back again, and gets second place back. By lap 75, he is gaining on Kenseth, who had stretched his lead to almost three seconds, while lapping a lot of cars. By lap 83, Stewart has closed that gap to seven-tenths of a second. During the commercial, Stewart takes the lead, which proves this isn't the WWE, where the action seems to pause during the commercials. There is a caution on lap 98 for debris blown on to the racing surface by the high winds that are prevailing in Texas.

Matt Kenseth retakes the lead during the pit stops, Greg Biffle comes out second, and Tony Stewart is third. David Reutimann stays in the top five and will restart in fourth on lap 105, while last year's broom man at TMS, Carl Edwards comes out fifth. Just behind him is another Roush-Fenway driver, David Ragan, and Jeff Gordon has hung in there in seventh.

At the restart, Kenseth, Biffle, and Stewart all get on a good start, but only Kenseth gets away, as the other two get boxed in by the lapped traffic, where the drivers are racing to hold their positions. Kyle Busch shows that he still has a lot to learn as he bumps another driver in retaliation for something or other, and puts himself against the wall, cutting a tire. He makes it around, without bringing out a caution, but goes nearly two laps down, having to pit because of his own bad judgement.

Greg Biffle takes the lead during a commercial, around lap 117 or 118. By lap 122, Jeff Gordon has moved up into fourth. He takes third from Stewart during yet another commercial, somewhere around lap 138. During that last commercial, we noticed that Mom and Dad Ask.com have reconciled and are back together closer than ever. You may have noticed that Mom was nowhere around the family, after Las Vegas, when Dad, the Kid, and Gramps took off in an RV. It turns out that Mom had traveled to Atlanta alone, where she was seern on television in the background while Bobby Labonte was conducting a post race interview. She had a small part in the commercials during Bristol and Martinsville, but seemed to still be in the background. We are happy, for the sake of Gramps and the Kid, to see Mom and Dad Ask.com together again. We really miss having the MRN/PRN radio broadcasts here.

Green flag pit stops begin during another commercial, around lap 152, and Da Biff pits on lap 154. Oh my, speeding penalty for Kyle Busch during green flag stops. This could be bad, but it isn't, because Elliott Sadler spins out right in front of him, bringing out a caution. And David Reutimann picked up a penalty, as well, for pitting outside of the pit box, and taking that penalty puts him a lap down.

On lap 161, it's Biffle, Kenseth, Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, and David Ragan in the top five. Kurt Busch has moved into sixth. By lap 179, Da Biff has a lead of three and a half seconds over second place, Matt Kenseth.

Tony Stewart takes second from Kenseth with about 135 laps to go, and the green flag pit stops begin with Kenseth with 130 laps to go. After the pit stops cycle through, Da Biff is back in the lead, Kenseth is second, Stewart third, and Jeff Gordon is fourth. Then there is another caution during another commercial, as the engine in the car of Marcos Ambrose gives up the ghost, or oil, as it is.

Jeff Gordon stayed out during the caution, while the leaders pitted again, and so did Mark Martin, so they hold positions one and two at the restart. Kenseth and Ragan are third and fourth, and Tony Stewart is fifth, being the first three out of the pits during the caution. Gordon gets a good restart and broadens his lead.

Sam Hornish spins with 101 laps to go and brings out the caution, and it was not during the commercial. The 96 car gets caught up in the action and forces Bobby Labonte to take that car to the garage. The leaders stay out this time, but several cars, from eighth on back, pit.

You know what there is not to like about high definition television broadcasts? When the signal power drops for any reason, we get a message that says, "Bad Signal" and a blue screen, instead of a fuzzy picture of the action. Or, in this case, a Fox Television Network logo. Speaking of which, Foxes do burrow, at least to dig a den. Why couldn't they have a fox ground cam instead of a gopher cam. Foxes are the foxes of the animal kingdom. Gophers aren't cute, they are ugly little rats.

There was an interesting effect of the sun reflecting off the windshields of the cars from one camera angle. It really looked like all the cars had the old fashioned radio antennas cars used to have, except they were on the drivers' side.

Caution again during the commercial, with 83 laps to go. Robby Gordon's engine blew up, the second Toyota to do so. Dale Earnhardt, Jr, who was in eleventh place, takes the lead by taking two tires during the caution. It is still early to say if this will become a fuel strategy race, as there will be too many laps to go without a fuel stop, unless you are Carl Edwards, who last year went 94 laps without a stop for fuel. It doesn't matter, "Jooooooonyer!" will restart in the lead!

The restart is with 76 laps to go. Brian Vickers is second, also having taken only two tires, Jeff Gordon is third, Edwards fourth, and Stewart is fifth. On turn one, Kyle busch on the inside lane is trying to get one of his laps back, gets into the sta-dri, and into Jr, probably endangering himself to the possibility of being hated to death, but he does get one of his laps back. This gives Gordon the lead, and Jr drops back to seventh before he recovers. With 67 laps to go, Edwards has moved into second, and Tony Stewart is third.

Great racing between the 48 and the 88 for sixth place with 61 laps to go. Jr and Johnson keep changing positions racing each other high and low. Johnson seems to have the advantage on the straightaways, but Jr beats him in the corners. This is fun, the two drivers have two completely different styles, and they are battling hard.

With 51 laps to go, it's Jeff Gordon, Carl Edwards, Tony Stewart, Mark Martin, and David Ragan in the top five. Johnson is now in sixth, and Dale Earnhardt, Jr is seventh, but Da Biff is on the run and overtakes the most popular driver. Biffle likely won't be hated to death for that, but we do remember when "the Bug-eyed Monster" was one of the least popular drivers.

Now, with 42 laps to go, Ragan has to make a green flag pit stop with an over-heated engine. Also, bad news for Junior Nation as Dale Earnhardt, Jr gets too close to the wall while trying to make a run on Da Biff. He has to pit for repairs, losing a lap.

Meanwhile, Carl Edwards has taken the lead from Jeff Gordon with 40 laps to go. With 36 laps to go, Stewart takes second from Gordon. With 31 laps to go, David Stremme, running in twelfth spins in turn four while trying to get to the pits with a flat tire, and brings out the caution. Still, we get to see some of Stremme's oft overlooked skill as he makes a great save.

Jeff Gordon gets out of the pits first, Tony Stewart second, and Jimmie Johnson third, while Carl Edwards apparently had some trouble and does not exit the pits among the top ten. This should be one heck of a restart with 26 laps to go. Gordon gets a clean start and keeps the lead, while Johnson is racing Stewart for second. Matt Kenseth is fourth, and Da Biff is fifth. Da Biff is fifth. Say that out loud, it sounds wierd. Now try it without lisping the "s" in "is"

With seven laps to go, Jeff Gordon is far enough ahead of Johnson that it is almost safe to say he might win this race. The Booth Bunnies have already given him the race. But with four laps to go, lapped traffic named Max Papis, who really is lovable, has slowed Gordon down, and Johnson has closed the gap to half a second. Biffle is still charging and passes Stewart for third. White flag, Gordon holds the lead through more lapped traffic, and wins his first ever victory at TMS, and his first points race win since October of 2007. What a special moment. Seriously.

In spite of all the side trips we took during our recounting of this event, this was one of the better races we have seen on a 1.5 mile track. That was a big difference from the first Texas race last year, which was a 500 mile snooze fest because no one could pass anybody. We hope to see the racing keep getting better as the teams finally grow into the Sprint Cup car. Jeff Gordon was one of the last of the top drivers to get the hang of this car, but it was worth the wait.

A Capitalist Pig's View on Why NASCAR Sponsorship is a Good Thing

It is disturbing that there are some good teams with good drivers in NASCAR that are still unsponsored for the season. Disturbing because it seems to be due to a reluctance to invest money in what is an efficient, and effective, marketing system. The reason for such reluctance is that, in this day and age, investing money in a form of entertainment is looked down upon by the mob mentality that our society has acquired which makes us think that we know best how to run and market a business. Money is now evil, and making money is even worse. Now we have the equivalent of Hitler's Brown Shirters storming AIG shouting "Death to the Rich"

Granted, there should never have been a bailout, but isn't it silly to complain about 18 million dollars when we should be worried about getting back the 180 billion that we shouldn't have had to pay in the first place? Put that in perspective--18 million dollars to 180 billion is the same as one penny to 1000 dollars. If you can't pay the people who are capable of rebuilding the business to a point where it can pay us back, how do you expect to get the money back? Bear with me, I will tie this into NASCAR eventually.

Before you call me a "NASCAR shill" or a "Capitalist pig," you must first understand that, due to a debilitating condition, I am unable to work, and make less than $15,000 a year. Ironically, this has helped me to understand the importance of having a job and making money in the overall view of the economy. It also helps me to understand the importance of those who sign the paychecks, and do the marketing.

So, yes, you may call me a "Capitalist pig." It is true that con artists like Bernie Madoff, and bad players in the banking and financial industries who ran their businesses into the ground for their own personal gain, play a big role in the current economic crisis, but they make up a very small percentage of the people who keep the capital flowing. The person who makes over $500,000 a year is at least as important as the person who makes $9.00 an hour in making and keeping the economy healthy.

There was some backlash over GM's participation in motor sports, particularly in NASCAR, while they were accepting a bailout of taxpayer money. Why should taxpayers' money go to supporting the already wealthy Brian France, when there are over a hundred thousand North American jobs at stake? First of all, the premise that the money, between six and seven million dollars per car, goes to NASCAR is wrong. The money goes to the Chevrolet teams--Earnhardt/Ganassi Racing, Hendrick Motorsports, and Richard Childress Racing. Since GM is in the process of restructuring, the high return for a relatively low annual payout is a good idea. Ninety-eight million dollars buys hundreds of hours a year of brand publicity for nine months. It costs more than fifty million dollars for one thirty second commercial during the Super Bowl, and over $100,000 for each fifteen second spot during any prime time program on any given night. The NASCAR route is the most efficient way of getting the brand out to the public. Now that the Federal Government is in charge of General Motors, even they--who have yet to figure out that if they don't build the Camero, they have to pay back the tens of thousands of buyers who pre-ordered it--understand that.

Okay, I got a little off track. What I was trying to illustrate was the advantages per advertising dollar a sponsorship of AJ Allmendinger, for example, would present. Allmendinger gets mentioned several times during a race, and often during the NASCAR news and entertainment programs such as Trackside and NASCAR Now That is about seven hours a week of advertising for thirty-six weeks, reaching at least 50 million potential customers, a great bargain as advertising dollars go. Instead of "AJ Allmendinger, who needs a sponsor to compete for the entire season," the message could be "AJ Allmendinger, driving the Food City car..."

I am purposefully using Food City as an example, because if they can shell out the estimated $47 million it costs to sponsor one race, they can certainly afford $10 million for 26 weeks of sponsorship for a potential NASCAR champion. Especially when the team has the Petty name tacked to it.

It is not corporate greed that requires sponsorship, it is the need to pay the workers on the teams, and the workers who make the parts the teams need. When these workers get paid, they can go to Best Buy, or Target, or Walmart, or even The Gap, and pay money that eventually gets to the employees of those companies. With that money in their pockets, these employees can go to Safeway, Food City, Best Buy, or Walmart, or maybe even be able to buy tickets to go to a race. That's how the economy is supposed to work, and it has nothing to do with corporate greed or government interference.

I'm not pretending to be an economist, but this is just common sense. Surely there is a need to spend three million dollars in advertising for nine fifteen second spots on each of four networks every night, in order to reach a wider market, but to me, common sense says that it is a much more effective use of the money to sponsor a team in NASCAR.

NASCAR was founded as a marketing tool. If Bill France hadn't thought of it, someone else, like Bruton Smith, would have. It is still, today, an effective marketing tool, not only because it puts the best "tin top" drivers in the world in competition with each other, bringing the entire show on a nationwide tour, but it gives every sponsor the advantage of a partnership, of sorts, with every other sponsor. This is the "Business to Business (B2B)" model developed by Bill France, Jr. These businesses offer discounts and other perks to each other by association in NASCAR. They help each other out.

Then there is Action Sports, the collectable souvenir business owned jointly by ISC (NASCAR) and SMI (Bruton Smith). I know there are some who grumble that every retro paint scheme is just another deal to make and sell another diecast car. Even though these car models are made in China, the paint, detailing and packaging is done in the United States. This means more circulation of capital in the economy. But the real reason for special paint schemes is for the sponsor, and that is where the attention goes. That is the idea of the special paint--to draw attention to the sponsor. It doesn't hurt to have the sponsor's name on the diecast, though. .

Again, this is not corporate greed, it is running a business the smart way. Running business the smart way avoids loss of jobs, bankruptcy, and government interference. This is why it is so hard for me to understand, even in tough economic times, why more businesses do not take advantage of the benefits of sponsorship.

Tony Stewart is a smart man. Rather than trying to get one or two sponsors to cover the two cars in his team for the entire season, he offered joint sponsorship, which is less costly to the sponsor, while being more beneficial to the team. Perhaps this is what could work out for the teams that are hurting, such as Yates and Petty. Granted, they have probably already tried that, but just haven't had the offer accepted for a satisfactory arrangement.

I know I sound like a NASCAR shill, and I expect to be called that by some, but the point of this post is not so much to sell NASCAR as it is to note how strange it is that the smartest way to get the brand name out to the public is being ignored. I would, if I were in such a position, be trying to sell drivers such as Johnny Benson, the current reigning champion in the Truck Series, Todd Bodine, a former Trucks champion, and Allmendinger, the fastest rising star in the Sprint Cup Series, to the potential sponsors. There is no reason why these drivers shouldn't already have sponsorship for the entire season. Perhaps it is the way the teams are going about trying to get sponsors, or maybe potential sponsors just don't appreciate the value of a sponsorship, but either way somebody needs to think of something.

Postscript: There are exceptions to every rule, however, and GM wasn't running business the smart way. They were building cars they couldn't sell, and spending money they didn't have to spend. They offered outrageous legacy plans to their employees that couldn't be covered by any amount of money they could make. . The worst, and the least smartest thing they did was ask the government for money, rather than going the more traditional route of bankruptcy and restructuring. But that is a different subject for a different blog.

Live on Type Delay: The Goody's Fast Pain Relief 500

Martinsville is not only the shortest track on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Circuit, it is the oldest. Though NASCAR's premier series has been racing there since 1956, the track was built in 1947, and home to many a stock car race. And it has been home to only stock car and NASCAR racing. This is the little paper clip, as opposed to the big paper clip at New Hampshire, so called because of it's shape, with long straightaways and tight turns. The speeds vary from close to 120 mph at the end of the straightaway to a little under 40 mph in the center of the turn. This tells us a little about how the cars have to be set up for this track. Overall, we can see that Martinsville is proof that the cars don't have to be fast to give us good racing.

Jeff Gordon takes the point at the beginning, due to a rain-out for qualifying, and is just about to lap the field when Michael Waltrip spins and brings out the caution on lap 22 or so. Before that, although Gordon checked out on the field, there was plenty of racing for position among the cars second place and back. Enough to make us wonder if the drivers may be trying too hard, too soon.

Scott Speed and Robby Gordon are the only cars that stay out, while everyone else gets tires. Speed leads the restart, and Robby Gordon falls back. After a few laps Jeff Gordon, retakes the lead from Speed, and the scheduled competition caution flies at lap 40. Nothing much changes here, and Jeff Gordon continues to lead. The rest of the top five continues to change often, but it is mostly the drivers we expect to do well at Martinsville--Stewart, Johnson, and Hamlin--who are providing the most action.

Friends and readers, we have entered an alternate reality. According to whoever writes the Aflac trivia questions--and at the expense of Mike Joy, who had to read the information-- Brian Vickers' only win came at Martinsville in 2006. Those of us who believe that his first win came at Talladega in 2006 now have to adapt to the environs of a different universe.

Robby Gordon spins and brings out the caution on lap 76. Jimmie Johnson and Matt Kenseth incur penalties during the pit stops and have to restart at the back of the field. Only Matt doesn't fall back to the tail end by the time the green flag flies, and has to take a drive through penalty, which puts him a lap down. When Kyle Busch spins out and collects Scott Speed, on lap 122, "Kensiss," as Darrell Waltrip likes to call him, is no longer the first car a lap down, as Jeff Gordon has lapped David Stremme just before the caution flies.

When the lap count reaches the mid 130's, we get to see the first real racing for the lead. Denny Hamlin has caught Gordon and is letting him know he is there. In a superb show of driving skill, Hamlin drives into the turns harder, nearly hitting the rear of Gordon's car at every corner, while Gordon remains steadfast. He has rediscovered his ability to control what goes on on the track, and does not let Hamlin's harrassment unsettle him. It takes several laps before Hamlin finally takes the lead.

During this long run, several cars have had to pit for right-front tire problems. This isn't Goodyear's fault, but is due to the fact that the brakes get so hot at Martinsville, they melt the bead on the tires, and the air blows out through the broken bead.

During this long run, Stewart moves as far up as second place. Smoke has fun making contact with other cars, but Jeff doesn't, unless he is the one initiating the contact. In a great nostalgic moment, Gordon whines, "If he hits me one more time, I'll knock his head off."

Yes, the old Jeff Gordon is back, and it is good. It is good for the fans, and it is good for the bloggers, but it is especially good for the bloggers who are fans. We can make fun of Jeff, while at the same time admiring his very impressive ability as a driver.

Dale Earnhardt, Jr has moved into the top five during this long run. The much maligned Tony Eury, Jr, Earnardt's Crew Chief, has done an excellent job of changing the 88 car to match the conditions. The Juniors are definitely in this race.

We have had so much fun watching this race, we have forgotten to write about it, so we move ahead to lap 320-something. At Martinsville, lapped traffic plays a big role when the leaders catch it. Passing is not easy as it is, and the drivers of the lapped cars are not only fighting for position, they do not want to give up another lap all that easily. When there are two cars like Hamlin's and Jeff Gordon's battling for the lead, the lapped traffic provides a huge challenge. Jeff picks the traffic, bumps Hamlin and takes the lead. Hamlin returns the favor, and retakes the lead. While this racing has gone on, Johnson has made it up to third. The most recent Dominator of Martinsville challenges his team mate, Gordon, and takes second. Now a caution for debris flies.

The debris turns out to be a beer can. At track like Martinsville, where fans cherish the right to be able to bring in their own coolers and beer, it is not good to throw a beer can, especially while the race is in progress, and Kyle Busch is nowhere near the lead.

Even though Johnson has won six of the last eight races at Martinsville, this is really the House of Hamlin. Aside from the Dale Jr fans, the majority of the fans in the stands are more than likely there for Denny Hamlin. Martinsville is as much Hamlin's home turf as Las Vegas is home to the Busch brothers. So, whether the can was thrown by a disgruntled Gordon fan, or just someone who hates Toyotas, it was probably easy for security to feret out the can thrower and escort that person off the premises (Pssst, it's the guy wearing the #24 cap and the "Toyota" t-shirt).

The next caution is brought out by a car that has hit the wall and is unable to get in position to enter the pits by the time it gets to turn four. This takes the fuel mileage factor out of the equation, as everybody stops for tires and fuel. They are good to go for fuel until the end.

Jimmie Johnson takes the lead out of the pits, and Hamlin will restart in second. With less than fifty laps to go, the cream has risen to the top, as they say, and the top three are Johnson, Hamlin, and Stewart. Hamlin sticks right to Johnson's tail at the restart, and takes the lead in turns one and two, driving hard into the corner.

A few more cautions later, which happened so quickly we were unable to keep up with them, and we get another great restart with just a little over twenty laps to go. This time it's Hamlin, Johnson, and Stewart in the top three. Hamlin makes a clean restart, and gets away from Johnson, as Kyle Busch, laps down and aiding his team mate, stays on the inside of Johnson to prevent him from catching the leader on the inside.

But Johnson isn't finished. With fifteen laps to go, Johnson catches Hamlin and gives him the ol' chrome horn. Both cars get loose and go up the track, but third placed Stewart is just a little too far back to take advantage of the situation. Johnson strongarms his way to the lead. It was a bad day turned good for Johnson, and he easily runs the final laps to take his first checkered flag of the season, giving him wins in five of the last six races at Martinsville.

Hamlin holds on for second, Tony Stewart posts his best finish so far in third, Jeff Gordon is fourth, and Clint Bowyer is fifth. Ryan Newman makes his boss' day by finishing sixth, Mark Martin is seventh, and Dale Jr is eighth, putting all six Hendrick cars in the top eight.

Martinsville is fun for the race fan. We loved watching the cars battling for the top ten, and the great battles and passes for the lead. While the Sprint Cup car has yet to give us as exciting a race at the 1.5 mile venues, it seems to be made for the short tracks, where it has made the racing better than it was with the former car. Virginia is for lovers, they say, and we love Martinsville.

Meanwhile, as soon as I get on line and post this, I will look up the answer to the "Ask.com question of the day." The question was "Which Cup driver has had their only win at Martinsville?" I'm going to guess Casey Mears, but if the answer is "Brian Vickers," I'm going to check myself in to the nearest mental health facility for treatment and therapy.

Live on Type Delay: The Food City 500--after the fact

Bristol Motor Speedway has been a part of NASCAR history since 1961, and has been one of the biggest challenges for the drivers. Theoretically a short track, at a little more than a half mile in length, its high banks allow higher speeds than would be seen at a normal short track. Until its reconfiguration two years ago, those higher speeds would be at single file along the inside line, with the only method of passing being the fabled "chrome horn."

The reconfiguration was made on the theory that fans would rather see side by side racing, and the track became a multiple-grooved venue where the drivers could find a racing line either on the outside and the inside, or even in the middle. The prospect of three wide racing at the Roman Colosseum of NASCAR racing was exciting.

Now instead of one line of frustrated drivers having to spin other drivers and getting spun, we have two lines of such action. As the drivers and teams get a handle on the Sprint Cup car, which was reconfigured around the same time as Bristol, it actually makes the racing at the "World's Fastest Half-Mile" more difficult.

It is also difficult to write a play-by-play for Bristol, as things happen so quickly that there is no keeping up with the action while we are typing it. The laps roll by so quickly, at fifteen seconds, that we can mention a driver's name, and by the time we're finished typing it, something changes. Without help from the radio broadcast--PRN and MRN no longer have an on air venue in Colorado Springs--we are stuck with what we see on the television broadcast.

After Dave Blaney crashed early in the race, there was little for demolition derby fans to get excited about. Not to say there wasn't any beating and banging--there was plenty of that. At Bristol, as at any short track, the leaders often have to battle lapped traffic. So the air was filled with the cacophony of chrome horns.

Saturday, Kyle Busch looked like a sure winner in the Nationwide Series race, He dominated the race, never giving up the lead for more than a few laps. Late in the race, during what would be the final caution period, his pit crew let a tire roll out of the box as Busch was leaving his pit, incurring a penalty which gave the lead to Kevin Harvick and put Kyle at the end of the longest line. Harvick was Happy as he won his first race as an owner/driver, while Busch managed to work his way to a sixth place finish, and was very unhappy.

Today, in a different car with a different pit crew, Kyle Busch is, once again, dominating. As the laps wind down, there is little competition for him. Denny Hamlin is behind him, and behind him is Jimmie Johnson.

Although he is known as a short track ace, Jimmie Johnson has never won a race at Bristol. True to the form of a champion, a top ten finish isn't good enough. Today, Johnson looks good. If it was anybody else but Kyle Busch in the lead with less than ten laps left, Jimmie Johnson would be smelling victory.

Jeff Gordon's car doesn't look so good--it's bouncing and sliding all over the place, but he has skill, and he has been showing off that skill in every race so far this season. He has done the best he could with a car that obviously doesn't handle well, and that is pretty darn good as he is running in fourth at the end of the race.

Kasey Kahne has managed to fend off disaster, and will finish where he started--fifth place, while pole winner Mark Martin finishes in sixth.

So we get a GWC finish after Joey Logano's engine lets go. From similar situations in the past, we know that if Kyle is leading the race at this point, the only way to catch him is on the restart. Nothing doing, Kyle wins, mimes drinking a beer from a can thrown to--or at--him, and celebrates by doing a Polish victory lap the right way, without the clowning for which his brother is known.

Dale Jr performed well with a fourteenth place finish--well, because he went down a lap three times during the race, and managed to stay in position to get the free pass three times. Of course we are going to hear more criticism of his crew chief, Tony Eury, Jr, but Dale Earnhardt, Jr, as always straight spoken and honest, tells us that what the media reports (about Eury's suitability as crew chief) is nothing like reality.

Racing is never boring. If the fans don't like it, that probably means the race is a challenge, and therefore exciting, for the drivers. When we can imagine ourselves being in the driver's seat, we can get much more out of the race. We feel the urgency of Ryan Newman, Marcos Ambrose or Juan Pablo Montoya to finish high enough to ensure a starting spot in the next race, and we feel the relief as they did just that. We are in Denny Hamlin's head as he is planning on how to catch and pass his teammate to win a race that has become very important to him personally, and feel his disappointment as he sees the #18 car disappear into the distance with one lap to go.

Kyle Busch should make racing better overall, as the other drivers and teams figure out what they need to beat him. More drivers, Jeff Gordon in particular, and taking up his practice of never being happy with the car, to make his team perform better and work to make the car better. Whether the fans like Kyle Busch or not, he is good for the sport.

Rev' Jim's favorite races are at the short tracks, and this was no exception. It was short track racing, with side by side contests all around the track and all through the race. That's Bristol, and That's racing.

Waiting for more

Not long ago, the NASCAR season began with a bang for one week, a fizzle for the next, and then a week off. Now we get a bang, a fizzle, an "okay" race, and a race of uplifting competition before having the week off. Where the old schedule wouldn't even give us enough time in which to build anticipation, the new schedule lets the the anticipation for the next race build, and then lets us down. The big difference now is that we take the week off in anticipation of a race at one of the favorite venues of the NASCAR fan--Bristol Motor Speedway. Bristol seems to make waiting a week so much more worth it.

Another advantage to the schedule the way it is now, is that it gave the teams enough practical experience to see what they needed for the races that will follow, and to use the non-racing week for adjustments, repairs, testing, and promoting for sponsorship. All of these elements are important to each team in increasing their ability to be highly competitive for the rest of the season.

As fans of the sport we used the off week to take a retrospective look at the season so far.

Our assessment is "not bad."

Daytona Speed Weeks gave us our first look at what racing would be like without the testing. We also saw several new teams for the first time, as economic compression created the opportunity for legendary crew chief Tommy Baldwin and drivers Jeremy Mayfield and Joe Nemecheck to form their own teams.

Baldwin and his driver Scott Riggs thrilled us as they raced their way into the lineup for the Daytona 500. Jeremy Mayfield, with a team that was less than three weeks old, also raised some eyebrows. Then Matt Kenseth, who had not won a race all season last year, took the checkers and the trophy at the 500.

It wouldn't be the Daytona 500 if it didn't have controversy, and this year's was no different. We learned that the difference between controversy and a racing incident is the name of the driver involved. The name of the driver in this case was Dale Earnhardt, Jr.

That was a big enough name to overshadow whatever happened the next week at California. As always, the California race didn't do much to thrill the fans who were watching it on television. The Auto Club Speedway is a driver's track, and it takes a lot of skill and experience to come out on top. For much of the race, Jeff Gordon showed us that his skill and experience still counts for something, and Tony Stewart, with his new Stewart-Haas Racing #14 team, proved that he has enough skill and talent to make something out of a former back-marker team. But the driver who had the most skill and talent on this day was, once again, Matt Kenseth. He became the first driver in NASCAR's modern history to win each of the first two races of the season in one series.

Kyle Busch, who was born and raised in the Las Vegas, New Mexico area, had yet to win a NASCAR race at LVMS. He changed that in week three of the season by winning two, and becoming the first NASCAR driver in history to win two races in two different series at the same venue on the same weekend. This history making feat was largely ignored as everyone was still talking about Daytona and Dale Earnhardt, Jr.

However, even though Kyle Busch dominated at Las Vegas, we could still get a look at what the other teams were up to, as there was some very good racing behind the leader for the entire event.

And finally, an exciting race that had plenty of controversy at Atlanta, when a crew member from Marcos Ambrose's team chased a runaway tire to within seventy-five feet of the racing surface. Granted, NASCAR would have thrown a caution flag eventually, to pick up the tire, but the crewman put himself in a very dangerous place, where cars going 180 mph or more often make side trips. This caused a caution to fly while many of the competitors were making their green flag pit stops, thus putting all but six of them at least a lap behind the leaders.

In the long run, the incident didn't have an effect on the outcome of the race. Due to the free passes that occur due to cautions, there were about the same number of cars on the lead lap as the end of the race neared, as there would have been if the race had been run entirely under a green flag. And Busch won again, but this time it was Kyle's older brother, Kurt, who took the checkers. The new "class clown" of NASCAR, who has decided to do something different in celebration of every victory he claims, celebrated this time by driving around the track with his car in reverse gear.

So, that's the season so far. Jeff Gordon is looking strong, and we still feel this could be his year. Tony Stewart surprised many of us by making some strong showings with a team that seemed like it needed a lot of work to become competitive, and we can only assume that a lot of work was done.

Speaking of needing work, the rookies, Scott Speed and Joey Logano, both need some of that. However, we still feel they will both be quick learners,. though it might help Logano if his car had fender whiskers attached.

It is still too early to make an assessment of anything or anyone, but we do know that this season is going to keep getting better. Bristol is always unique and fun, and Martinsville, a favorite of short track fans like the Rev', follows. One thing we know for sure is that anything can, and probably will, happen

Live on Type Delay: The Kobalt Tools 500

After the thrill we saw at Atlanta Motor Speedway during the truck race, the Sprint Cup series Kobalt Tools 500 may be a let down. Long green flag periods, and varying track conditions may cause the field to become spread out, and diminish the number of cars that stay on the lead lap. But, even if it is half as good as the truck race was, it will still be racing, and it will still be good.

Mark Martin leads the field to the green flag, and then begins to gain some distance away from the field, then, on turn one of the third lap, a caution comes out because Reed Sorenson hits the wall.

At the restart, it's Martin, Kurt Busch, McMurray, and Biffle in the top four. Kurt Busch gains the advantage at the green, and takes the lead before the lap is over. Jamie McMurray is looking racey and also challenges for the lead, but he can't get past Martin, who prevails in second. Lap 12, and there is another caution as Bobby Labonte gets "so-o-o-o loose," and spins out.

Most of the leaders pit, and there are varying strategies. Ryan Newman's #39 team gets off of pit road first after taking two tires, while the rest of the field took four. After the restart on lap 15, Kurt Busch soon takes the lead and begins checking out on the field. Denny Hamlin has moved into second, but is a good five seconds back by lap 37. Dale Earnhardt, Jr and Carl Edwards are the two drivers on the move. Jr has moved up from his starting position in the twentieth spot, and is fighting Kyle Busch for tenth. Carl Edwards is in the top five, after starting twenty-ninth.

The Other Busch, Kurt, is lapping cars and seven seconds ahead of the field on lap 46. Out of the race at this early point are Travis Kvapil (#28--engine), Mike Bliss, and Reed Sorenson. By lap 51, there are only 21 cars on the lead lap.

The green flag pit stops begin around lap 60. The 66 car of Dave Blaney is now out of the race due to engine problems. Most of the drivers are still talking about loose, so there are plenty of adjustments. As Denny Hamlin and Carl Edwards pit, a crew member from Marcos Ambrose's team chases a tire to within seventy feet of the racing surface, and brings out a caution.

This changes things, as the only cars that are on the lead lap are the six leaders who have yet to pit. That includes the 99 car of Edwards, who is waved through pit road by his crew as the caution comes out. The restart is on lap 73, with Jimmie Johnson first, Bowyer second, Truex, Jr third, Edwards fourth, and The Other Busch formerly known as Dirty Kurty is fifth. There are eight cars--those that had been exiting the pits at the time of the caution--in front of the leaders at the tail end of the lead lap.

Oh well, it's early, things could change. With the "slick" track and tires, we could see some more cautions, which would put more cars on the lead lap. After the correction, there are actually eleven cars on the lead lap.

On lap 81, Carl Edwards goes high on the track and gets around Jimmie Johnson for the lead. Clint Bowyer runs up to second.

Lap 83 and the 87 car of Joe Nemecheck leaves the race. At lap 84, Kurt Busch gets around Jimmie Johnson for third.

Now we are getting some pretty good racing as Dale Earnhardt, Jr is fighting race leader Carl Edwards to stay on the lead lap. After some tough racing, Edwards completes the pass and now there are nine cars on the lead lap. Things don't look good for Stewart-Haas racing this week as the #14 car of Tony Stewart goes two laps down.

Caution on lap 104 as Bobby Labonte's engine lets go and he spins. Robby Gordon gets penalized for leaving the pit with equipment--the gas can--still attached. Kurt Busch took the lead just before the caution, but the leaders all pit. Dale Jr gets the free pass.

Rev' Jim is happy to be able to mention Dale Earnhardt, Jr often today. It is good for traffic. We offer a hearty "Welcome Back" to Jr Nation.

The restart on lap 128 almost looks like a Daytona restart, as Montoya gets stuck in the middle lane and falls back. Brian Vickers gets a pit road speeding penalty and has to start at the tail end of the longest line.

The restart order was Kurt Busch, Carl Edwards, Clint Bowyer, Jimmie Johnson, and Denny Hamlin. Kurt Busch checks out on the field, but Edwards gains some ground back.

Mike Bliss is listed as the only car out of the race. Apparently the engine problems of Labonte, Kvapil, and Nemecheck were not fatal. Sorenson's car was repaired after the early race wreck, and he is back in the race. As of lap 120, there are still ten cars on the lead lap.

Does this remind anybody of the "Good old days" when the leaders would be several laps ahead of the field at the halfway point?

By the way, Dale Earnhardt Jr is still on the lead lap in ninth position. Brian Vickers is at the tail end of the lead lap in tenth.

Now we are told that Nemecheck's problem was brake trouble, not engine trouble.

Speaking about trouble, Dale Earnhardt, Jr is reporting that he is feeling a vibration, possibly brake trouble, and has fallen back to tenth on lap 125. Kasey Kahne is the first car one lap down. AJ Allmendinger is running in eighteenth and is the first car two laps down.

A caution would be good right now. Maybe Sam Hornish, Jr will bring it out. He certainly has his hands full with a car that can only stay up to speed if it looks like it is wrecking. To use an old Tony Stewart phrase, Hornish is wrecking, he just hasn't hit anything yet.

By lap 142, lap times have fallen as the handling of all 42 cars has fallen off. Kurt Busch is leading the field by nine seconds. Montoya is the first car to pit in the upcoming green flag pit cycle, on lap 143. The top five on lap 145 are Kurt Busch, Carl Edwards, Jimmie Johnson, Clint Bowyer, and an alternating fifth position as Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon are battling it out. Dale Earnhardt Jr is still on the lead lap in tenth. But Kurt Busch puts him a lap down on lap 153.

The news has come in that the pit crew member who chased the tire almost all the way to the race track, and forced the caution that screwed up the race, has been suspended for the remainder of the race. We would like to see him fined, hung, crucified, drawn and quartered, and then shot, for being too stupid to exist. Sure, he meant well but we all know the old saying about good intentions.

Caution on lap 156 for fluid in turn 2. David Stremme and Robby Gordon get caught in the pits, and Dale Earnhardt, Jr gets the free pass.

The top five cars off of pit road are Kurt Busch, Clint Bowyer, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Carl Edwards. Dale Earnhardt, Jr is the last car on the lead lap in tenth.

Restart on lap 163 and look at Jeff Gordon go! He moves into second, and may be threatening Kurt The Other Busch for the lead. Dale Earnhardt, Jr is still on the lead lap in tenth.

Dave Blaney is now listed as the last car still in the race, 88 laps down in forty-first place.

And here comes The Gordon. Great stuff, he gets to the inside of Kurt The Other, and the lead is changing back in fourth. It seems as if the #2 Dodge has a little more power on the straightaways, but Gordon is catching him in the turns. But Gordon gets loose, and backs off, and Busch retains the lead.

On lap 177, the leaders are Kurt The Other Busch in first, followed by Jeff Gordon, Carl Edwards, Mark Martin, and Jimmie Johnson. Dale Earnhardt, Jr is still in tenth and on the lead lap, putting all four Hendrick drivers on the lead lap and in the top ten.

Lap 179 and the #47 car of Marcos Ambrose loses oil onto the track and brings out the sixth caution of the day. Kasey Kahne gets the free pass and there will now be eleven cars on the lead lap. The top five cars at the time of the caution are Busch, Gordon, Edwards, Martin, and Johnson.

Coming out of the pits, on lap 189, it is Martin Truex, Jr who comes out first, Kurt Busch is second, Jimmie Johnson third, Jeff Gordon fourth, Mark Martin is fifth. Then Truex pits, and that changes to Busch, Johnson, Gordon, Martin and Brian Vickers. Dale Earnhardt, Jr will restart in ninth, and Kasey Kahne once again got the free pass, and is restarting in eleventh.

Restart was on lap 192. Tony Stewart gains a lap back on lap 198 by racing his way back, and is now only one lap down. On lap 202, Sam Hornish cuts a tire and finally hits the wall. On his way down the track, he collects Bill Elliott, and the caution comes out. This answers the prayers of the #14 team, which was short on fuel, and proves that Tony's continuing friendship with Joe Gibbs could be a very good thing.

The leaders pit on lap 204, and Jeff Gordon barely wins the race off of the pit road. Kurt Busch is second, Jimmie Johnson third, Mark Martin fourth, and Clint Bowyer is fifth. Dale Earnhardt, Jr comes out in ninth, and Matt Kenseth gets the free pass and is now in twelfth at the back of the lead lap. Restart on lap 209.

Three and four wide in the front five rows at the restart. What a blast! It straightens out by turn three, without any wrecks. On lap 213, the top five are Gordon, Kurt Busch, Johnson, Martin, and Bowyer. In turn two, on lap 214, Mark Martin's right rear tire explodes, and the eighth caution comes out. Kevin Harvick gets the free pass. The restart on lap 222 will be with Jeff Gordon in first, followed by Johnson, Bowyer, Hamlin, and Kurt The Other. Biffle gets a one lap penalty due to pitting outside the box.

Dale Earnhardt, Jr is in tenth, and Ryan Newman is now the first car one lap down in thirteenth. He can't get by the 24 to gain a lap, because that car is looking very good right now. On lap 225, the running order is Gordon, Johnson, Hamlin, TOB (Kurt The Other Busch), and Bowyer. Kevin Harvick has moved up to eleventh, and Dale Earnhardt, Jr has fallen back to twelfth. Stewart has taken thirteenth place from his team mate, Ryan Newman, and is now the first car one lap down.

During the commercial, Kurt Busch raced his way into second place, and he is followed by Johnson, Hamlin and Edwards, 82 laps to go. The Gordon's lead has been stretched to over two seconds.

But with 75 to go, TOBusch has caught The Gordon and retaken the lead. On lap 251, as we break for yet another television commercial, the top five are Kurt Busch, Jeff Gordon, Carl Edwards, Jimmie Johnson, and Brian Vickers. Vickers takes fourth from Johnson on lap 254. Dale Earnhardt, Jr is the last car on the lead lap and is in twelfth. Ryan Newman reports that he has a cylinder down in his motor.

Vickers is now on the move, on lap 258, and we get a caution for debris in turn four, off of Robby Gordon's car as he scraped the wall. This puts Smoke back on the lead lap. Way to go #14 team! Yes, The Revvin Jim is biased. We can't help it, we are race fans.

The leaders pit on lap 260, and TOB comes off in first, Jimmie Johnson came out second, but gets caught for speeding on pit road, and will have to restart at the tail end of the longest line. This means Brian Vickers is second, Bowyer third, Jeff Gordon fourth, and Carl Edwards is fifth. Restart on lap 266.On lap 267 , there is a big wreck, as Ragan gets knocked into Scott Speed by Greg Biffle. Speed hits the wall and rebounds down the track, Biffle wrecks, and several cars have to mow the infield grass to avoid the carnage. Neither Dale Earnhardt, Jr, nor Tony Stewart were involved in the wreck, and we breathe a sigh of relief.

By the way, the leaders will refuel barely within the theoretical fuel window, though it may still be a stretch. This will make things interesting. Pit road is open with 54 laps to go. Apparently expecting everyone to have to pit again, Kurt "TOB" Busch, Brian Vickers, Clint Bowyer, Jeff Gordon, and Carl Edwards stay out. Kasey Kahne and Denny Hamlin also stay out, so Kevin Harvick and the rest of the lead lap behind him pit, and hold positions eight through fourteen. Jeff Burton got the free pass, and there are no more cars one lap down. There are a lot of cars two laps down and further back.

At the green on lap 276, the top five are Busch, Vickers, Gordon, Bowyer, and Edwards. Jr falls back to fourteenth after handling problems create a close call between him and Aric Almirola. Almirola is three laps down in twenty-fifth.

Dale Earnhardt, Jr is still okay and on the lead lap. We are now able to say that this race is better than the one at California, two weeks ago. The handling problems that everyone has experienced have made it exciting. At lap 285, there are no more or less cars on the lead lap than there would normally be at this point in any Atlanta Motor Speedway Sprint Cup race. Because The Other Busch, Brian Vickers, and Denny Hamlin have been running so well this race, it is not about the same ol' same ol'. In fact, on lap 296, Kasey Kahne has won his multi-lap battle with Matt Kenseth and has moved into fifth. Denny Hamlin has dropped back to fourteenth. Dale Earnhardt, Jr is in thirteenth.

If this race goes green to the finish, somebody is going to run out of fuel.

Jamie McMurray is the first car not on the lead lap, two laps down and in fifteenth. That doesn't matter now, there are only seventeen laps to go. There are no more lucky dogs.

Here comes Vickers again, as TOB, the race leader has to pick his way through lapped traffic. Vickers is gaining down the back stretch and in turn three. We will have a race to the finish.

With this race marking the end of the first four weeks of the new season, there will be a one week break, and the next race, the one determining the new top thirty-five owners points standings. will be at Bristol. This will give us plenty to anticipate. If we can get close finish at Atlanta, before the break, that one week break will seem too long.

There is lots of debris coming off of Robby Gordon's car on lap 322. I mean the car looks like it is falling to pieces. There is a caution. All the lead lap cars pit.

Carl Edwards comes off of pit road first, after taking two tires. There will two laps to go when the race restarts in overtime. The order is now Carl Edwards, Kurt Busch, Jeff Gordon, Truex, and Harvick. At the restart, Kurt Busch goes high and takes the lead foorm Edwards. Jeff Gordon makes a run on the leader, but it looks like the #2 car is too fast. Kurt "The Other Busch" Busch takes the checkers. Gordon is second, Edwards is third, Kevin Harvick raced his way to fourth, and Brian Vickers is fifth. They are followed by Clint Bowyer, Kasey Kahne, and Tony Stewart, who has now finished eighth in three of the first four races of the season. Jimmie Johnson was ninth, and Jr was tenth. Martin Truex, Jr, that is. Truex's kidney stone was eleventh. Just kidding, and that is not that funny, it is painful. A lot of credit should go to Truex Jr who has obviously gone through a lot of pain over the last few days.

Dale Earnhardt, Jr finished eleventh, and Matt Kenseth finished twelfth, the last position on the lead lap.

Always creative, sometimes not for the best, Kurt Busch makes his victory lap in reverse

So, we take a week off, and look forward to the next race. It's Bristol, Baby!

Interesting stats about this post: Dale Earnhardt, Jr was mentioned 19 times. The winner's brother was only mentioned once, and that was just now. Just thought that might be of note. It is our final note.