I was not there, and have not spoken with anyone who was. No insinuation was intended one way or the other. My comment was meant in general terms applicable at any track, any time.

In the past:

• I have seen an individual team/driver load up because they felt the track was unsafe. In person, and on TV.
• I was at a race where the track surface was not raceable due to rain. I believe there may have been other safety issues. Since "the race must go on" because this was new-to-us track, it was decided that no points would be awarded, but anybody that wanted to could race on the smaller inner track for the full purse. Several teams left. During the heat races, a car was destroyed when it hit an exposed I-beam. At that point, it was determined that the track was unsafe and the race was cancelled. It was later revealed that the officials hadn't actually inspected the track because they didn't deem it neccessary due to the issuance of an insurance policy to the track by a respected insurance company.
• At another new-to-us track, I found a couple of issues that I was uncomfortable with. After the officials told me "if a car gets that far out, he's gonna have other things to worry about" (or something very similar), I told our driver that if I were driving I'd load it up. He raced anyway. Our series has gone back every year since, and even though I have not gone back, it is my understanding that the row of cut down poles - 30-40 yards outside of turn 1 - is still there with nothing between them and the racing surface but a nice field of grass. NO wall. NO fence. NO hay bales.