Kurt Busch apparently has learned nothing. What a douchenozzle.
11-23-2011, 08:56 AM
#17
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11-23-2011, 09:18 AM
#18
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Needs More Cowbell
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Needs More Cowbell
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11-23-2011, 10:55 AM
#19
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11-25-2011, 09:48 PM
#20
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50k fine.
http://espn.go.com/racing/nascar/cup...ity-laced-rant
That might sting but probably doesn't hurt.
http://espn.go.com/racing/nascar/cup...ity-laced-rant
That might sting but probably doesn't hurt.
11-25-2011, 10:13 PM
#21
I'm in....
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11-25-2011, 11:25 PM
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Nothing will hurt short of a sponsor calling him to the carpet.
His antics are good for Nascar. They'll fine him as a gesture, but even bad press is good press. Nascar's business is wrecks, literal and figurative. The tracks are oval out of tradition, but ovals are very Machiavellian. Every fan has a good seat for a wreck, even when it's on the opposite side. Something happens on the other side of Laguna Seca, and not everybody sees it. And that's why Nascar fans watch, for the fireworks. Remember, Nascar isn't in the racing business, it's in the entertainment business. Entertainment means capturing eyeballs. Going in circles is boring unless something goes wrong.
So what about the off track antics? The NFL has mastered the art of being in the news 365 days a year, even in the offseason. Why? Story lines. The season is a story line. The draft is the spring's story line. The trade deadline is a story line. Rivalries, comebacks, and drama sell the game off the field.
Nascar cultivates personalities, good, bad, and otherwise, to capture minds. Where's the drama in 30 guys driving the same car, in the same circles, faces obscured by helmets, separated by 1/10th of a MPH? Its in developing story lines about rivalries, tempers, personalities, etc. In fact, the worse someone behaves, the more fans they win. Who's one of the most reviled racers? Clean cut model banging robo-racer Jeff Gordon. Dale lost his dad in the heat of battle, feuds with his stepmom, etc.
Nascar doesn't sell jerseys, sneakers, cars (c'mon, who's shopped a Lumina vs. Camry based on Sunday's finish?), or sports equipment, nor can people go to the nearby park and find a pick-up game of Nascar to emulate what they watched.
Nascar sells wrecks. It's a soap opera for the MGD set, watching to see what happens when a box of M&Ms collides with a box of Tide. Nascar will never want a field of milquetoast twitch-and-flinch racing savants, because something has to dress up the homogeny.
What's funny is Nascar indulges the images of these guys as hayseeds, but the young ones are anything but. Racing is expensive, and the competition starts so early and is so tough that only those whose parents can afford a 5 figure per year karting hobby climb the ranks. Despite the family drama, Dale isn't a redneck. He's been eating from a Sub-Zero his whole life. He's never wanted for equipment or track time.
Jimmy Johnson is a native Californian who raced motorcycles at age 5 and played varsity water polo.
The Busch brothers are from Vegas, born into a racing family.
The whole Cracker Barrel schtick is a put-on and part of the show. So wreck on you crazy cats, as long as people are paying for it.
His antics are good for Nascar. They'll fine him as a gesture, but even bad press is good press. Nascar's business is wrecks, literal and figurative. The tracks are oval out of tradition, but ovals are very Machiavellian. Every fan has a good seat for a wreck, even when it's on the opposite side. Something happens on the other side of Laguna Seca, and not everybody sees it. And that's why Nascar fans watch, for the fireworks. Remember, Nascar isn't in the racing business, it's in the entertainment business. Entertainment means capturing eyeballs. Going in circles is boring unless something goes wrong.
So what about the off track antics? The NFL has mastered the art of being in the news 365 days a year, even in the offseason. Why? Story lines. The season is a story line. The draft is the spring's story line. The trade deadline is a story line. Rivalries, comebacks, and drama sell the game off the field.
Nascar cultivates personalities, good, bad, and otherwise, to capture minds. Where's the drama in 30 guys driving the same car, in the same circles, faces obscured by helmets, separated by 1/10th of a MPH? Its in developing story lines about rivalries, tempers, personalities, etc. In fact, the worse someone behaves, the more fans they win. Who's one of the most reviled racers? Clean cut model banging robo-racer Jeff Gordon. Dale lost his dad in the heat of battle, feuds with his stepmom, etc.
Nascar doesn't sell jerseys, sneakers, cars (c'mon, who's shopped a Lumina vs. Camry based on Sunday's finish?), or sports equipment, nor can people go to the nearby park and find a pick-up game of Nascar to emulate what they watched.
Nascar sells wrecks. It's a soap opera for the MGD set, watching to see what happens when a box of M&Ms collides with a box of Tide. Nascar will never want a field of milquetoast twitch-and-flinch racing savants, because something has to dress up the homogeny.
What's funny is Nascar indulges the images of these guys as hayseeds, but the young ones are anything but. Racing is expensive, and the competition starts so early and is so tough that only those whose parents can afford a 5 figure per year karting hobby climb the ranks. Despite the family drama, Dale isn't a redneck. He's been eating from a Sub-Zero his whole life. He's never wanted for equipment or track time.
Jimmy Johnson is a native Californian who raced motorcycles at age 5 and played varsity water polo.
The Busch brothers are from Vegas, born into a racing family.
The whole Cracker Barrel schtick is a put-on and part of the show. So wreck on you crazy cats, as long as people are paying for it.
11-26-2011, 12:58 AM
#23
Late Porkchops
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Certainly there is an element of that. But it is not scripted. It's just stuff happens. And these prima donnas didnt come up on the dirt where stuff happens more. Even a lot more if you show your butt too much.
But this last Cup was more the old school race for the checkers, and not only in the last race. The Stewert vs Edwards was a modern version of David Peasron vs Richard Petty or Darrell Waltrip vs Cale Yarborough or something along that line
They have all had their hot minutes whether it be Richard Petty, Pearson, or Dale Earnhardt. These bozos like Busch carry it too far.
But this last Cup was more the old school race for the checkers, and not only in the last race. The Stewert vs Edwards was a modern version of David Peasron vs Richard Petty or Darrell Waltrip vs Cale Yarborough or something along that line
They have all had their hot minutes whether it be Richard Petty, Pearson, or Dale Earnhardt. These bozos like Busch carry it too far.
11-26-2011, 01:47 AM
#24
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Acao, you hit the nail on the head, well said. That's what makes the whole thing hard to watch. I hate the fact that they have one of the most highly engineered, sophisticated and researched spec series in North America but they dumb it down so the "race fan" here in the states can "understand" it.. NASCAR must have a very low opinion of it's fanbase's collective IQ... The real machevelian terror is the same formula being washed over other series they get their hands on: Grand Am and the US debut of V8 supercars, just look at the past few speed casts for evidence of that...
11-26-2011, 05:54 AM
#25
Drifting
Acao, you hit the nail on the head, well said. That's what makes the whole thing hard to watch. I hate the fact that they have one of the most highly engineered, sophisticated and researched spec series in North America but they dumb it down so the "race fan" here in the states can "understand" it.. NASCAR must have a very low opinion of it's fanbase's collective IQ... The real machevelian terror is the same formula being washed over other series they get their hands on: Grand Am and the US debut of V8 supercars, just look at the past few speed casts for evidence of that...
Acao, many truths spoken in your post IMHO.
I must say, I watched the ending of the Miami NASCAR race last week mainly due to the close championship race but also because I'm trying to get the last few drops out of this racing season before the winter shutdown.
My question is: was this race for real or was it scripted? You couldn't have written a better script if you tried. I mean really!!! Stewart starts from mid-pack(?) then works his way to the front of the field only to experience problems which cause him to fall to the back of the pack. Then, miraculously, he claws his way back to win the race and beat Edwards, making for the closest finish to the season possible. You'd be hard pressed to write this stuff if you tried.
I was sucked into this drama even though I am not a NASCAR fan, but a part of me can't help but think I'm being duped. Is this simply WWE on wheels?
11-26-2011, 09:12 AM
#26
Three Wheelin'
I watched a better part of the whole season. If not on the big TV in the garage while I was working on something or on the radio if in the car. When at home, there is a site where folks live blog about the coverage.
The problem is the TV. ESPN focuses on the "storylines" of the big name racers all the time at the expense of *anything else* going on. If you watched that Miami race, how many other cars were there for the last 40 laps? Who knows? You didn't see any of them until the #71 was in the way as lapped traffic.
The TV folks dumb it down. During the last race of the season. In a championship battle to end all...they went to the cutaway car to talk about some aspect of the car. That would be like explaining what a football was or grass during the superbowl.
For a real contrast, visit a race and listen on MRN or PRN. Those guys somehow paint the picture and keep the coverage over the whole field.
As a driver, I like watching it. Thinking about what it must be like to do 170 and dice with other cars. I can actually picture it (sorta). I'd like to see a little more emotion from the racers when warrented. I was at the Glen listening to Ruitemann qualify and hearing him bitch about how he doesn't do well at road courses. You can listen to Dale Jr bitch about the car, every time. I also like that it's a bit sanitized so I can watch it with my kids (except for the cialis, extenze, and viagra ads).
Re: Kurt Busch, I don't know what it must be like to keep all the bottled up with the cameras around all the time. They caught him with the finger on the in car, a fan caught him for that interview. Last season, he broke something, pulled in the garage and slammed his helmet into the car (caught on the in car). Later he had a #2 Miller Lite shirt on and was apologizing.
The problem is the TV. ESPN focuses on the "storylines" of the big name racers all the time at the expense of *anything else* going on. If you watched that Miami race, how many other cars were there for the last 40 laps? Who knows? You didn't see any of them until the #71 was in the way as lapped traffic.
The TV folks dumb it down. During the last race of the season. In a championship battle to end all...they went to the cutaway car to talk about some aspect of the car. That would be like explaining what a football was or grass during the superbowl.
For a real contrast, visit a race and listen on MRN or PRN. Those guys somehow paint the picture and keep the coverage over the whole field.
As a driver, I like watching it. Thinking about what it must be like to do 170 and dice with other cars. I can actually picture it (sorta). I'd like to see a little more emotion from the racers when warrented. I was at the Glen listening to Ruitemann qualify and hearing him bitch about how he doesn't do well at road courses. You can listen to Dale Jr bitch about the car, every time. I also like that it's a bit sanitized so I can watch it with my kids (except for the cialis, extenze, and viagra ads).
Re: Kurt Busch, I don't know what it must be like to keep all the bottled up with the cameras around all the time. They caught him with the finger on the in car, a fan caught him for that interview. Last season, he broke something, pulled in the garage and slammed his helmet into the car (caught on the in car). Later he had a #2 Miller Lite shirt on and was apologizing.
