Thunder Road

Darlington offered it’s racing fans a lot of action at the end of the race with the .002 second finish between Ricky Craven and Kurt Busch, but from the sand paper surface of Darlington, NASCAR moves onto the high banks of a half mile track at Bristol.

Darlington may be “Too Tough to Tame,” but Bristol is a track where emotions have to be left at the gate. It’s a track where, if your car comes out looking like it went in, then you are one amazing driver. Bristol Motor Speedway always serves up a lot of close racing action with a lot of cautions.

How can a race fan forget the recent incidents at Bristol. The Dale Earnhardt spin move on Tery Labonte to win the race. Elliot Sadler throwing his helmet at another race car. Ward Burton throwing his heat shields at Dale Earnhardt Jr. Oh, and did I mention that the joint holds 160,000 people and is the loudest venue NASCAR goes to during a season? If there is any race that you can not miss besides the Daytona 500, it’s a race at Bristol. Noise + Collusion = ACTION!

By: Ed Beiner

I have been sitting on a rage that has been building up inside of me for the past few days. I recently watched a sports show in New York that briefly touched upon the Craven-Busch finish at Darlington. They talked about how it was the closet finish in NASCAR since they introduced electronic timing in 1993. After one of the host said this, the other host turned and said that the only lap that should be watched in a race is the last lap and that NASCAR is not a sport.

I have been wondering how someone could say that. Maybe it is because he didn’t realize that Kurt Busch’s car lost it’s power steering and Busch himself said that his car felt like 10,000 pounds when he turned it. I mean, I tip my cap to the guy, to have a car feel like that and have the finish that close, that deserves the ovation that Craven and Busch got after the finish. If you even look at Busch, you can easily tell that the guy probably weighs around 150 pounds and is not the world’s strongest guy.

To weigh the weight Busch does and be the size he is, to be able to turn a car that feels like it weighs tons and finish second, that tells you what type of driver Busch is, a determined driver. If I ever get the chance to meet the idiot that said NASCAR is not a sport, I would tell him point blank that it is possibly one of the toughest sports out there. These guys sit in 100 plus degree cars for three to five hours on end in the same position and you are going to tell me that NASCAR is not a sport and they are not athletes. You got to be out of your mind.

By: Ed Beiner

After a dismal year in the Richard Childress Racing stable, Kevin Harvick will return to a top ten contender. If not, at least a top twenty driver. After sporting a third team in 2002, all three teams will settle in and be competitive.

Dale Earnhardt Inc. could have two drivers in top ten contentions in 2003. Dale Earnhardt Jr has been in a race to finish in the top ten in 2001 and 2002. Dale Jr. did finish in the top ten in 2001. Michael Waltrip had possibly the best season in his career in 2002. Although finishing outside the top ten, Waltrip was able to finish in the top twenty. If Waltrip could better his 2002 run, he can be a contender for the top ten.

Rookie sensations Ryan Newman and Jimmie Johnson could fall like Kevin Harvick did in his second full season in NASCAR. Newman and Johnson could be riding a high getting the chance to race in the Winston Cup circuit and their adrenaline rush may come to an end.

Rousch Racing will see resurgence in Jeff Burton. Coming off a less than stellar performance in 2002, Burton will battle back to at least a top twenty finish in the points.

Sterling Marlin will return from his 2002 season ending injury and struggle minorly at the beginning, but will quickly settle right back into the driver seat.

Darrell Waltrip will finally get the chance to drive the Aaron’s Dream Machine in a Busch Series race. This will come off a deal where Michael will sport a second car at a short track for DW.

Dale Jarrett’s 2003 season could go either way. All efforts could go into the newest Robert Yates Racing driver, Elliot Sadler. Meaning that the UPS team will surrender equipment to the new M&Ms team to help them get started. DJ could also taken the 2002 season in stride and will become a contender for the Winston Cup Championship in 2003.

Ricky Rudd is going to fall victim to struggling with a new team. However with his struggles, he and the Wood Brothers will sport a top twenty finish in the standings.

Steve Park will recover fully from his season ending 2001 crash and his bad 2002 performance. He will win at least one race in 2003 and will run with his other two DEI teammates at restrictor plate tracks. This will prove that signing him on some more was a good idea. No restrictor plate wins however. Only shot could come at Daytona.

Joe Gibbs Racing will struggle for some of the first half as they adapt to the Chevrolets Monte Carlos. They will rebound in the second half and will sport a driver within the top fifteen.

Penske Racing will struggle to start the season in 2003, but will soon settle right in after talking to other Dodge teams.

Henderick Motorsports will see poster boy Jeff Gordon continue to have a top ten season. Terry Labonte may be looking for a new ride at the end of the season depending on Silly Season rumors.

Crew chiefs will not move around as much as they did in 2002. Teams that struggled in 2002 will look to their 2003 crew chiefs in a more long term what will the future of the team be like attitude.

By: Edward Beiner

On the last lap of the “Daytona 500,” it stood Michael Waltrip leading, Dale Earnhardt Jr in second and Dale Earnhardt in third. That all changed when Sterlin Marlin tapped the back bumper of Dale Earnhradt’s car, sending him face first into the wall at 200 mph. Shortly after, Dale Earnhardt was announced dead.

Ever since that faithful day, February 18, 2001, Dale Earnhardt Jr has been thrusted into NASCAR’s spotlight. Questions of, will he be able to follow in the shadow of a legend? Was his “Pepsi 400” victory legitimate? Is NASCAR too loose on safety requirements?

When NASCAR returned to Daytona in July, the sentimental favorite to win the “Pepsi 400” at Daytona was Dale Earnhardt Jr. All he had to do was, have a great running car and to avoid the “big one.” The “big one” is normally the five to fifteen car crash that happens at Daytona and Talladega because of the high speeds these races are run at. After Earnhardt Jr won the “Pepsi 400,” his victory was questioned.

It was believed that NASCAR allowed him to have a faster engine than everyone else. Earnhardt Jr respond to these allegations by saying, he had a great car; the team worked hard on it and they won. Does anyone remember February 18, 2001? Outside of Dale Earnhardt’s crash, Earnhardt Jr came in second place. Was his car fixed then too? That’s impossible because he didn’t win that race. He ran the same race he ran in February, only better this time and by using racing techniques his father taught him.

His teammate Michael Waltrip finished first in February and in July he finished second. Earnhardt Jr and Waltrip are apart of the team Dale Earnhardt started, Dale Earnhardt Inc. Before Dale Earnhardt Inc. went back to Daytona, they had to have talked about what the whole team can do to put up strong finishes and to win the race. To say that NASCAR gave Earnhardt Jr a better engine than everyone else is ludicrous. He more than likely had the same engine set up he did in February, but this time made some adjustments to it to match Waltrip’s engine.

Besides that, Earnhardt Jr has gone on to win two more races since July. He won the “MNBA Cal Ripken, Jr 400” at Dover on September 23. After that he won the “EA Sports 500” at Talladega on October 21. In total, Earnhardt Jr has won three races this year. If he had only won the “Pepsi 400,” then there would be reason to speculate and question NASCAR, but he has won three races.

There is no way NASCAR would go and fix one race for one person just because of a death in their family. For NASCAR to do that, they would ruin all the hard work that Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, Jeff Gordon and other great racers have done to bring NASCAR to the forefront of sports. NASCAR is now one of the biggest sports out there and for them to ruin what they worked hard for would be a travesty.

By: Ed Beiner