Another Viewpoint Archives
Debbi Willis, Daw613@bigfoot.com
Thinking It Through
Backing up your mouth with action can be pretty difficult in today's
politically correct world without thinking it through (unless you can weather
the consequences or don't give a darn about what folks think, much like Dale
Earnhardt). Consequences can run the gamut of unpopularity, controversy,
financial expenses, timing logistics or more restrictions, literally.
Instead of waiting to see if the drivers would back up their mouths with
action, Nascar has provided an interesting twist this week to the threats
issued by some of the top points drivers, namely: Bobby Labonte, Dale
Jarrett, Rusty Wallace and Jeff Gordon. Driving for some of the very best
team owners in racing today carries clout, so does being in the top ten in
points. These drivers spoke their minds and now they have results. Perhaps
not the results they desired. Spoiled-acting children don't often get
exactly what they want but often recieve less desirable results (like
spankings). Nascar is very much the parent here and are treating all the
drivers like the children these three behaved like.
By no means is safety an issue to be taken lightly, and in all my
recollection, NO division of racing anything has ever taken safety lightly.
However, 99% of the responsibility of safety lies within the hands of the
owners, crews and drivers. Rules are made to create a level playing field
for all with consistency for all participants. If something keeps a driver
safer in the event of an accident or mechanical problem, surely common sense
dictates safety should prevail? Isn't that how the Earnhardt bar came about?
This windshield bar further protects the driver during nasty accidents. I'm
not sure if it came about after Dale's worst accident at Talledega in '96 or
if it was considered after accidents other drivers suffered from the wrong
tap from Dale, but nonetheless it's a solid safety feature proving Nascar is
always looking out for safety of it's drivers. Death's such as Adam Petty and
Kenny Irwin this year have not been ignored but are an accepted risk of the
sport. In a dangerous sport like racing, safety must be a top priority.
Fortunately, the mechanics in Nascar race cars is still fairly simple, with
minimal computerization involved in this division of racing, unlike some
others, i.e. Formula One and Champ cars are incredibly computerized these
days. Anything mechanical is a multitude of peices linked together, lubed
together, put under pressure together, properly fitted together to work
together. Ultimately, all responsibility for these parts working together to
respond to the driver's directions is the teams, NOT Nascar's, however,
Nascar backs everyone up with their dreaded inspectors as well.
Expecting Nascar to dictate total safety to the teams is too much like Big
Brother Government. Nascar HAS taken greater strides of control in the
interest of parity, which is happening all too well this year. Fans and the
media take it upon themselves to jump on a bandwagon in the name of the noble
cause of safety without thinking it through. [Remember my caution in "Maximum
Safety"?]. Bobby Labonte obviously and justly scared himself with his stuck
throttle crash at Darlington. Comparing Darlington to Louden is downright
ludicrous, though. Had I been Bobby and realized that accident was a result
of the stuck throttle, I'd be in Joe Gibbs' and Jimmy Makar's faces about
making sure that never happened again. That's where the responsibility for
safety lies. Confidence and habit make it too easy to overlook a potential
problem. Having been a pit person on an open-wheeled modified in my early
years of racing on the short tracks of Wisconsin, I know the intense process
of checking a car from nose to tail and wing to underside for every nut and
bolt in place and every part properly working in good order. Assuming
anything is usually a formula for disaster. Drivers drive with more
confidence when they know every part of their racecar has been checked to be
properly working. Then if something breaks, it's defect or undue stress and
just racing. Anything else is human error.
The very thing we Nascar fans criticize other sports for has raised it's ugly
head in Nascar among these few select drivers. I'm very disappointed with the
"top dogs" in this matter. Though I understand their concerns, I don't
understand their means to communicate it and suspect they didn't really think
it through. Strong arm tactics usually fail and generally perturb the rules
makers. I'd like to ask them just what they thought they were getting into
when they chose to race? If they want guarantees that they'll come out of
every time on the track alive, they're in the wrong sport. Brutal as that
sounds, that's a fact everyone needs to remember. Racing can and has killed,
and it will again but every driver chooses to race. Blaming a track for
killing anyone is illogical, and threatening to boycott a track where two
deaths occured is equally illogical. Neil Bonnet and Rodney Orr died at
Daytona, JD McDuffie died at Watkins Glen, and Clifford Allison died at
Michigan where Ernie Irvan almost died, but miraculously survived. Everyone
still races those tracks because tracks don't kill. Circumstances,
mechanical failures (tires blow, throttles stick) and racing situations cause
the accidents that kill OR nearly kill these drivers. Remember Rusty's nasty
accident via Dale Earnhardt or Earnhardt's bad "big one" at Talledega via
Ernie or just this year, Geoffrey Bodine's truck accident at Daytona? Racing
is risky and full of split-second mistakes.
Comparisons run astray by noting that Richard Petty led a successful strike
in 1969 over a dangerous tire issue for the drivers at the first Talledega
500. Labonte, Jarrett, Gordon, and Wallace have taken up the stuck throttle
issue at Louden, but are blaming the track for the problem. Are these even
remotely related? A tire issue subjects all the drivers due to a mandated
supplier thus putting everyone at risk. Hence Goodyear's sensitivity to tire
issues over the years. A stuck throttle is a mechanical responsibility of
the whole crew on the drivers car and not EVERY driver has stuck throttle
problems. A few years ago, someone noted how Jeff Gordon under Ray Everham's
guidance, almost always used his secondary ignition system during a race
simply to insure a solid performance without glitches. This was often
credited to the level of excellence Ray demanded of the whole operation. It
is worthy to note that the extra effort paid off more often than not for them
when others experienced periodic failures. Commendably, the whole throttle
issue has been directly addressed by the Roush organization with a device
originally developed many years ago to detect the condition and shut the car
down before disaster strikes. Proactive solutions will always outweigh 20/20
hindsight and second-guessing.
Talk is cheap and easy to spout in the midst of emotions running high. Death
is so harsh and usually creates high emotions but melodrama is just
sensationalism. And no doubt the media will play anything up to the hilt.
Much as I like Bobby, DJ and Rusty, I am equally surprised by their
statements. Remembering that we have two ears and one mouth to listen more
than we speak may have served them better this week. And finally, after
several days of brouhaha over the strike/boycott threat and the resulting
restrictor plate decree, Dale Earnhardt spoke his mind and pretty much said
the same stuff many fans have pointed out: restrictors aren't the answer and
have messed up everyone's plans with expense and the unknown factors. Does
anyone not know how much Dale Earnhardt hates restrictor plates? In the
course of his recent dissertation, Dale says, "Everybody is responsible, not
just one man, not just one person, not just one race track." I couldn't say
it any better!
Another Viewpoint Home
Thinking It Through
Backing up your mouth with action can be pretty difficult in today's politically correct world without thinking it through (unless you can weather the consequences or don't give a darn about what folks think, much like Dale Earnhardt). Consequences can run the gamut of unpopularity, controversy, financial expenses, timing logistics or more restrictions, literally. Instead of waiting to see if the drivers would back up their mouths with action, Nascar has provided an interesting twist this week to the threats issued by some of the top points drivers, namely: Bobby Labonte, Dale Jarrett, Rusty Wallace and Jeff Gordon. Driving for some of the very best team owners in racing today carries clout, so does being in the top ten in points. These drivers spoke their minds and now they have results. Perhaps not the results they desired. Spoiled-acting children don't often get exactly what they want but often recieve less desirable results (like spankings). Nascar is very much the parent here and are treating all the drivers like the children these three behaved like.
By no means is safety an issue to be taken lightly, and in all my recollection, NO division of racing anything has ever taken safety lightly. However, 99% of the responsibility of safety lies within the hands of the owners, crews and drivers. Rules are made to create a level playing field for all with consistency for all participants. If something keeps a driver safer in the event of an accident or mechanical problem, surely common sense dictates safety should prevail? Isn't that how the Earnhardt bar came about? This windshield bar further protects the driver during nasty accidents. I'm not sure if it came about after Dale's worst accident at Talledega in '96 or if it was considered after accidents other drivers suffered from the wrong tap from Dale, but nonetheless it's a solid safety feature proving Nascar is always looking out for safety of it's drivers. Death's such as Adam Petty and Kenny Irwin this year have not been ignored but are an accepted risk of the sport. In a dangerous sport like racing, safety must be a top priority. Fortunately, the mechanics in Nascar race cars is still fairly simple, with minimal computerization involved in this division of racing, unlike some others, i.e. Formula One and Champ cars are incredibly computerized these days. Anything mechanical is a multitude of peices linked together, lubed together, put under pressure together, properly fitted together to work together. Ultimately, all responsibility for these parts working together to respond to the driver's directions is the teams, NOT Nascar's, however, Nascar backs everyone up with their dreaded inspectors as well.
Expecting Nascar to dictate total safety to the teams is too much like Big Brother Government. Nascar HAS taken greater strides of control in the interest of parity, which is happening all too well this year. Fans and the media take it upon themselves to jump on a bandwagon in the name of the noble cause of safety without thinking it through. [Remember my caution in "Maximum Safety"?]. Bobby Labonte obviously and justly scared himself with his stuck throttle crash at Darlington. Comparing Darlington to Louden is downright ludicrous, though. Had I been Bobby and realized that accident was a result of the stuck throttle, I'd be in Joe Gibbs' and Jimmy Makar's faces about making sure that never happened again. That's where the responsibility for safety lies. Confidence and habit make it too easy to overlook a potential problem. Having been a pit person on an open-wheeled modified in my early years of racing on the short tracks of Wisconsin, I know the intense process of checking a car from nose to tail and wing to underside for every nut and bolt in place and every part properly working in good order. Assuming anything is usually a formula for disaster. Drivers drive with more confidence when they know every part of their racecar has been checked to be properly working. Then if something breaks, it's defect or undue stress and just racing. Anything else is human error.
The very thing we Nascar fans criticize other sports for has raised it's ugly head in Nascar among these few select drivers. I'm very disappointed with the "top dogs" in this matter. Though I understand their concerns, I don't understand their means to communicate it and suspect they didn't really think it through. Strong arm tactics usually fail and generally perturb the rules makers. I'd like to ask them just what they thought they were getting into when they chose to race? If they want guarantees that they'll come out of every time on the track alive, they're in the wrong sport. Brutal as that sounds, that's a fact everyone needs to remember. Racing can and has killed, and it will again but every driver chooses to race. Blaming a track for killing anyone is illogical, and threatening to boycott a track where two deaths occured is equally illogical. Neil Bonnet and Rodney Orr died at Daytona, JD McDuffie died at Watkins Glen, and Clifford Allison died at Michigan where Ernie Irvan almost died, but miraculously survived. Everyone still races those tracks because tracks don't kill. Circumstances, mechanical failures (tires blow, throttles stick) and racing situations cause the accidents that kill OR nearly kill these drivers. Remember Rusty's nasty accident via Dale Earnhardt or Earnhardt's bad "big one" at Talledega via Ernie or just this year, Geoffrey Bodine's truck accident at Daytona? Racing is risky and full of split-second mistakes.
Comparisons run astray by noting that Richard Petty led a successful strike in 1969 over a dangerous tire issue for the drivers at the first Talledega 500. Labonte, Jarrett, Gordon, and Wallace have taken up the stuck throttle issue at Louden, but are blaming the track for the problem. Are these even remotely related? A tire issue subjects all the drivers due to a mandated supplier thus putting everyone at risk. Hence Goodyear's sensitivity to tire issues over the years. A stuck throttle is a mechanical responsibility of the whole crew on the drivers car and not EVERY driver has stuck throttle problems. A few years ago, someone noted how Jeff Gordon under Ray Everham's guidance, almost always used his secondary ignition system during a race simply to insure a solid performance without glitches. This was often credited to the level of excellence Ray demanded of the whole operation. It is worthy to note that the extra effort paid off more often than not for them when others experienced periodic failures. Commendably, the whole throttle issue has been directly addressed by the Roush organization with a device originally developed many years ago to detect the condition and shut the car down before disaster strikes. Proactive solutions will always outweigh 20/20 hindsight and second-guessing.
Talk is cheap and easy to spout in the midst of emotions running high. Death is so harsh and usually creates high emotions but melodrama is just sensationalism. And no doubt the media will play anything up to the hilt. Much as I like Bobby, DJ and Rusty, I am equally surprised by their statements. Remembering that we have two ears and one mouth to listen more than we speak may have served them better this week. And finally, after several days of brouhaha over the strike/boycott threat and the resulting restrictor plate decree, Dale Earnhardt spoke his mind and pretty much said the same stuff many fans have pointed out: restrictors aren't the answer and have messed up everyone's plans with expense and the unknown factors. Does anyone not know how much Dale Earnhardt hates restrictor plates? In the course of his recent dissertation, Dale says, "Everybody is responsible, not just one man, not just one person, not just one race track." I couldn't say it any better!
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