Sign of the times - NASCAR

[QC]

I fly out of Ontario, CA to Houston almost every week and usually fly home on Thursday nights. As a frequent flyer I am usually upgraded to First Class and board first, so I see everyone else board. Ontario is the closest Airport to California Speedway which hosts the race this weekend. Last night I was noticing quite a few NASCAR related people boarding and heading past me to the seats in coach. There were lots of Speed Channel shirts, NASCAR decals etc.​

Very late in the boarding process I look up and to my surprise I see NASCAR drivers Jeremy Mayfield and Scott Riggs. As the line was moving slowly and I had an aisle seat they were standing right next to me. I said to Jeremy, ?is this what it?s like to own your own team?? And he pointed to the back of the plane and said ?You mean sitting in the back? Way back?? I said ?Yeah?, and then Jeremy, ?Yup.? Then I mentioned to Scott Riggs that I was a Ward Burton fan and always followed Tommy Baldwin because of it. I said ?I?ll be pulling for you.? And he said ?thanks, I appreciate it?, as both of them headed to the back of the ?bus? . . .​

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

You know a "True NASCAR fan" would have swapped seats for as little as an autograph

 

[QC]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

I didn't have two seats or I would've. Thought about gettting tickets . . .

 

[aspeck]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

You know a "True NASCAR fan" would have swapped seats for as little as an autograph

Ain't that the truth ... if QC was really pulling for Riggs he would have left him ride in "the lap of luxury" so Riggs would be comfortable and well rested. If Riggs doesn't do well it will be QC's fault!

 

[QC]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

In hind sight . . . if I give Riggs the seat for tickets then I could've pestered Jeremy the whole three hours home

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

Did you at least send a few drinks back to them?

 

[Tyme2fish]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

I'm not 100 percent positive, but I believe I've watched my last NASCAR race. This thing is more crooked and phoney than pro wrestling.

If I do watch, I'll just tune in the last 10 laps because everything before that is only for the show.

NASCAR is nothing but a soap opera for men to watch.

And why oh why do they have that stupid gopher popping up all the time?? If I wanted to watch cartoons I'd switch to Cartoon Network.

 

[QC]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

I agree on the Gopher, but I still strongly believe that Sponsors keep it honest . . .

 

[triumphrick]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

I agree on the Gopher, but I still strongly believe that Sponsors keep it honest . . .

Sponsors AND manufacturers. I am surprised to see Dodge still racing....

Didn't Hyundai just introduce a v8 to their big flagship car??

Makes you wonder.....

Good story about Mayfield and Riggs. Baldwin has had the rookie of the year with Casey Kane and did win the '02 Daytona with Ward Burton. I watched for Riggs in the 500...wished he would have done a little better than 25th.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

If you turn the gopher into a drinking game you find it much less annoying. Last year I went to a party and watched the D500 with a bunch of other people and every time that thing came up we were like "GOPHER CAM!!!!" glug glug glug

 

[QC]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

If you turn the gopher into a drinking game you find it much less annoying. Last year I went to a party and watched the D500 with a bunch of other people and every time that thing came up we were like "GOPHER CAM!!!!" glug glug glug

If you watched the race this year, and applied the same rules, you'd've been on the floor before "green, green, green"

 

[JB]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

Gopher is a danged nuisance. So are the pre-race circus, crash crazy fans and celebrity-making media.

Those guys are immensely talented professionals in a very narrow set of skills with an insatiable lust to win. It is the media and sponsors who want the circus. Drivers just want to race. Real motor-heads just want to see good racing.

If you ever drove a racecar aroundy-round with a bunch of other guys who want to win there is no way you would insult them like that.

I greatly prefer racing that turns right and left using brakes and transmission as well as throttle, and where contact is a serious no-no and traffic jams are avoided.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

If you watched the race this year, and applied the same rules, you'd've been on the floor before "green, green, green"

You must have been at our party

 

[Don S]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

Gopher is a danged nuisance. So are the pre-race circus, crash crazy fans and celebrity-making media.

Oh come on JB, you never watched a SuperBowl before. Besides, if you didn't watch the Daytona 4 to 500 Whatever, how would you know about the Gopher or the rest of it.

I suspect you're just a closet NASCAR fan, and won't or can't admit it.

 

[eaglejim]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

Well I think the best racing was done in the 70's,find it hard to waste over half a day hearing the same stuff about the drivers and crew week after week.But I would go to Daytona and spend 2 weekends a year watching guys go round and round

 

[QC]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

Well both of my flying buddies made the show. No small task . . . I am soooooo pizzed at myself for not trying to trade my seat for some tix. Dumb, dumb, dumb!!!!!

 

[Don S]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

Hind Sight is always 20/20. Look at it this way, if they are flying coach, I doubt they have tickets to give away or swap. That would take away from the money guys.

 

[DJ]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

I greatly prefer racing that turns right and left using brakes and transmission as well as throttle, and where contact is a serious no-no and traffic jams are avoided.

You mean like a "commute".

QC knows all about that.

 

[TilliamWe]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

Hind Sight is always 20/20. Look at it this way, if they are flying coach, I doubt they have tickets to give away or swap. That would take away from the money guys.

That's exactly what I was thinking Don. If you did get a "ticket" QC, you might have been the guy assigned to wipe the car down before the race, or been stacking tires in the pits!

 

[QC]

Re: Sign of the times - NASCAR

Oh, and that woulda sucked? I remember something about each team getting a certain number of tickets each year, so that's what I was thinking. Both of these teams have a lot of volunteer workers this year, so you guys might be right. Hindsight is definitely a pesky biotch though . . . I usually don't let her bug me.

I used to go to this race as a guest of Caterpillar. We got the hospitality tent deal, breakfast, lunch, free beer, pit tour, the whole shebang. Did that for about four years. I could've finagled that this year too, but I started to take the boys etc and buy my own seats. Last year the wife went for the first time and low and behold, she liked it. A couple of years ago a friend called on the day before the race and had two extra tix, so maybe, just maybe the phone will ring. But I definitely have the itch to go now . . .