Two nights in a row middle of the pack cars destroyed be the Stars of USAC.
Bad enough equipment get wrecked someone is goining to get hurt. Lost a little respect for those two. JMO
Originally Posted by cornerthree:
Two nights in a row middle of the pack cars destroyed be the Stars of USAC.
Bad enough equipment get wrecked someone is goining to get hurt. Lost a little respect for those two. JMO
Originally Posted by wildman92:
Which 2 are you talking about?
I’m assuming he is talking about Bacon lastnight and Grant tonight. We cut a tire on the first lap so I didn’t see the Grant/Rogers deal but I heard it was bad.
40 to 50 drivers going at it for sometimes just making the show. Going to be some hard cut throat racing. It would be boring if they didn’t take chances.
It's a sad fact that the "slide job" has become vernacular.
When Carl Hungness Publishing wrote "The Illustrated History of USAC Sprint Car Racing" it mentions several drivers who were considered masters of the "slide job." This was frowned upon as it demonstrated a lack of sportsmanship or respect. One of the experts was basically black listed and is known in the annuls of history for being a perennial "rookie" at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
USAC now markets this style of racing in their own advertising. My how the worm has turned. I totally agree with the tactic from the Midget division spilling over into the Sprint. Midget racing is momentum. Sprint cars, while having insane power to weight, are being driven in the same manner. Grant mentioned in his interview, "maybe I started my slide to early and came up short?" Ya' think! Poor Rodgers was up as high as he could run, he was just a target! I think everyone involved in that one can consider themselves lucky. It looked really ugly.
I love the sport. I don't drive, sponsor or work on the them. There was a time when the Sport itself worked these types of situations out among themselves. Rides were lost, Respect was lost and yes some wheel hammers were used as weapons of retaliation.
I am hoping the powers at be will have a conversation on the matter. A few suspensions would go a long way. In the not to distant past a leading Midget driver was basically denied a Midget Championship for pulling a slide job on a pavement track.... it can be fixed.
Up until the early nineties there may have been five or six cars capable of winning most races, Now it goes deep into the B main at most races, Especially in sprint week. Now the cars are so even, If theres someone getting two tenths faster times than the the others, Thats driver. Going equal speeds, the only way to pass is a shorter route.|
Personally I see nothing wrong with a slide job, Provided it has a reasonable chance of *CLEARING* Like someone else posted, Midget culture. Hey, If I slide to the point my RR is at their Left NERF and they don['t lift, IT's' THEIR FAULT............Because I made the pass. *NO YOU DIDN'T* However I see the guys who race against each other all the time know thats whats happening and burp the throttle to let them pass, and cut back under em. Often several laps in a row.
It's not a cheap sport, Not by a long shot, I bet a competitive USAC winning car cost about a hundred grand now. Eats a couple grand in tire an motor wear every night and probably cost a grand in crew haul and lodging per night. Some owners say if they wad it up because they were going forward and racing hard. That's racing. MOST OWNERS say. Well its going to be awhile before we can hit the track again. *IF WE HIT THE TRACK AGAIN*
Don't know the answer, But the Knuckle sandwich used to be quite effective.
The thing that really bothers me is I’ve seen PLENTY of good clean racing. Some very very close racing where you hold your breath because it’s so close. So they clearly can race with out being like that.
