| | | | | | | | |  | | | |  Pocono employed the village idiots as fire crew for the weekend!" - Dennis Michelson
Sit down, strap in, and get ready to sound off as Doin’ Donuts radio show joins the blogosphere! Let Lori Munro and Dennis Michelson know your opinion on the topics below then tune in Monday night at 8pm ET on RaceTalkRadio.com for more “Doin’ Donuts.”
POCONO'S ENDLESS RACE
Dennis says...
NASCAR used to race 500 miles at Dover and came to their senses that those races were too long! After that poor excuse for a race we saw at Pocono that was never ending it is time to shorten those races also. Do we really need two races at Pocono? Just like the road courses I have no desire to see two races every year at Pocono either! TNT’s coverage was the worst I have seen in ages too. The director picked shots that made no sense and Bill Webber once again proved why he is the worst play-by-play announcer in the world! Thank goodness we only have to see six races of that train wreck masquerading as racing coverage. The best part of the broadcast was when the announcer’s microphones were not working!
Lori says...
Canadian race fans have it made, I’m totally convinced. The race coverage from Pocono was joined “in progress” at 3pm eastern due to the F1 race apparently being more important to Canada’s “TSN” network that carries NASCAR coverage when TNT takes over the reins from FOX. Maybe that’s the ticket; just tune in for the last 200 miles after actually having a life on Sunday when the Cup cars head to Pocono. Only 200 miles of Bill Weber...such a deal!
TRIPLE-CITY TRIPLE CROWN: GOOD, BAD OR...
Dennis says...
It was inevitable when Kyle Busch crashed on Sunday that everyone would criticize his three-city three-race excursion this week. How many drivers in any of the three series are out partying the night before the race? At least Joe Gibbs Racing knew what their superstar was doing. While this sort of a stunt could take away from his title chase if done later in the season, this was a cool thing to try at this time of the season. In no way, shape, or form did his three-city racing adventure affect his Cup race on Sunday!
Lori says...
Kyle Busch is a guy who will eternally be damned if he does, damned if he doesn’t. A perfect example is the hypocrisy shown during TNT’s pre-race show when Bobby Allison’s interview with Larry McReynolds was highlighted. The live conversation which followed between Bill Weber and Kyle Petty had them first state that Kyle’s triple header weekend was “no big deal” because guys like Allison did stuff like that all the time; and with no helicopters or small private jets. Then for the next 2 hours at least, all we heard was how amazing it was that Kyle Busch was competing in 3 different events in 3 days in 3 different states. It’s no wonder I’m ready to stab my eardrums with a blunt stick. Racers race. Kyle is a racer….. he races. Anywhere. Anytime. Its working and I can’t find argument in that fact.
SAFETY FIRST
Dennis says...
It was great to see that Pocono found a way to employ the village idiots as fire crew for the weekend! NASCAR was quick to spin the lack of response by those morons in fire suits saying that they were not responsible for putting fires out on cars. Those guys were in charge of protecting the drivers. How did that work out? NASCAR needs to hire a full time safety crew before someone gets burned to a crisp. Yes at tracks as big as Pocono they will still need volunteers but at least drivers will know there are professional workers at several stations around every track. That performance over the weekend was pathetic!
Lori says...
I really miss watching the Andy Griffith Show...Mayberry RFD... How pleasant it was to be reminded that there are still people out there who have equipment and don’t know how to use it, all for our television entertainment. What would happen if Montoya actually had some sort of medical issue whereby he couldn’t evacuate his car under his own power? Would Otis Campbell be released from his bland Mayberry jail cell so he could waddle over and help a buddy out? Give me a break! For the love of GOD NASCAR, step up to the level of most other forms of motorsports and put together a traveling band of safety and medical experts!!!
Changes to the CO2
Dennis says...
Does the car need some changes to give us better racing or does Goodyear just have to find the right tires? The more racing we see on hot, slick tracks the more I am concerned about the design of the car. We are hearing the phrase “Aero-Tight” more and more. NASCAR put the Crew Chiefs in a very tight box with the new car and maybe they need to allow a few more creative changes to get better racing. Also it appears that the drivers need some relief from the heat inside these cars more than ever with the protective foam also holding in the heat. We knew this new car would be a work in progress. The night races have given us the best racing and that is not a good sign as the dog days of summer arrive.
Lori says...
The modern day stock car driver has it made. Stuff Denny Hamlin’s now-slimmer-butt in David Pearson’s 21 car and transport him 35 years back in time and THEN tell me that the CO2 is hot. Don’t forget, Denny doesn’t get to wear his helmet with its ice-cube maker. I didn’t hear Kasey Kahne complain too much during his post-race interview from the NASCAR media center broadcast LIVE on Couch Potato Corner on RaceTalkRadio.com, but he did commend his crew chief and team for their work on insulating the floor and seating area that surrounds him to protect him from the heat. Sure, the CO2 is a work in progress and those who are innovative will be the ones leading the charge. I wonder if Goodyear is going to come out with a new tire called “The Crab Claw” because I’m not convinced that the tire OR the tracks are to be blamed when you see many of the cars driving sideways down a straightaway. Beadlocks perhaps could be implemented?
JIM McKAY AND NASCAR
Dennis says...
Over the weekend one of the best sports announcers of all time passed away. My generation grew up watching “Wide World of Sports.” For us Yankees this was our first look at stockcar racing and I wonder if the sport would have taken off as quick as it did without the great ABC coverage in those early days. It is hard to believe how many changes have occurred in the way sports have been covered since the days of “Wide World of Sports.” Jim McKay didn’t rely on any stupid clichés like so many sports reporters do today. He made every sport from cliff diving to NASCAR seem exciting and made sure we fell in love with the characters involved in these sports too. Maybe today’s announcers can learn from Jim McKay. He never tried to be the story; he let the athletes be the story!
Lori says...
With all due respect to the late Mr. McKay, modern day television commentary ain’t what it used to be. Pocono is a prime example of a race that is sooo long that in order to have something intelligent to say, the on-air-talent may just as well recite several chapters of "War And Peace." Granted, there’s lots going on to talk about on the track and in the garage area, but there’s a lot of competition on television so the shtick and puppetry used so far this year on the FOX broadcasts must appeal to a certain percentage of the viewership. I do have to hand it to TNT though, they don’t have stuffed toys to promote a fictitious rodent, there’s no “kid because we care”, and God love him, no DW with his boogity mantra. You can’t make 100% of your audience happy so in turn we have to pay attention to what we do like, and just ignore Bill Weber.
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