H.B. Bailey, Bobby Johns, Wendell
Scott, Blackie Wangerin, James Hylton, Dave Marcis, Derrike Cope, Kirk Schelmerdine…
What do they have in common?
They are, of course, NASCAR “independents”, men that race with the big boys without the big bucks.
In the sixties, being an independent
meant running without factory sponsorship. The Petty’s, the Wood Brothers, Holman & Moody, and a few others were
the chosen few and the rest of the field was not hundredths, or tenths, but seconds off the pace, racing with leftover or
production based pieces of equipment under the hood.
Richard Petty, David Pearson,
Cale Yarborough, their statistics shine, and to be fair, those are some great drivers, three of the best if not the three
best, but they also where wheeling the latest factory pieces polished with plenty of factory money. They were great, but no
doubt if they were wheeling an Oldsmobile Cutlass in 1966 (as I believe Buck Baker did) instead of a Hemi powered Mopar or
Single Over Head Cam Ford they probably would have notched a few less wins.
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Find six of the 10 keywords (one a day for 10 days will be posted) and
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Along came the 1970’s
and a sad time for both the automotive industry and racing as well. As gasoline prices went up, we were lied to about worldwide
fuel shortages and driving a Pinto became a lot more politically correct than a big block Camaro. This period of time is largely
what led to most of America driving something that is about the same size of the trunk of their former Buick and ultimately
paying more for gasoline at the end of the week (and we chose to do it, although there have always been and will always be
V8’s parked in my yard, another choice, and I willingly pay the price at the pumps—but that is a sidebar).
That political pressure as
well as dropping sales and profits led to the factories (read Chrysler and Ford—GM had seen the writing on the wall
and dropped out years before) ultimately withdrawing support.
The Petty’s were first
to realize that the rear quarter panel was a good place for something other than the name of your buddy’s garage—it
was a rolling billboard. Hence, they signed up STP, and compromised with Andy Granatelli (of STP) and painted the Dodges in
a now-famous combination of “Petty Blue” and “STP Red”. The Woods Brothers followed suit with Purolator,
and Gatorade and others joined the fray.
The independents kept racing,
and occasionally, a Hylton, Scott, or a Marcis would actually win a race…
Those were, as they say, the
good old days, as far as the backyard mechanics chances went. Today, NASCAR has essentially handed out 35 temporary franchises—that
is, if you manage to stay in the top 35 in points by virtue of your finishes, you get to race next week—regardless of
whether there are 43 or more cars that qualified faster that you did. Is this “fair”? Well, fair in NASCAR seems
to mean “equal for all” and it is a necessary thing. Big Money Sponsorship does not like to not have their name
not on the track because of a bad setup for qualifying or an interloping road-course ace out qualified their car. NASCAR was
understandably trying to keep that Big Money happy.
Nevertheless, that leaves the
independent fighting for 8 spots on the grid, and… lets see, how many new Toyota Teams are entering the fray? Correct,
eight.
So, why do the Derrike Cope’s
of the world do it? Why does Kirk Schelmerdine not drive or crew chief someone else’s car? Why is James Hylton taking
a chance on his health at this point in his life?
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Because it is a choice they
make, understanding the odds against success. You will not hear these men complain about the system, or Toyota. They know they
could be more than successful at a short track or ARCA racing. But they choose to continue to race with the big boys and realize
that it is a victory just to make the field. Not only are the Rick Hendricks and Jeff Gordon’s heroes and role models,
these men are too.
In the history of the world,
we are blessed with a lifestyle that is richer than most royalty has had, and yet… our divorce rates are out of control
and, as you know from personal experience, it is a common experience to hear someone that is not only unhappy about something
(as they fire up their Lexus), but to blame someone else for the anger.
Virtually everything in life
is a choice. As did, and do, the brave NASCAR independents, follow your heart, own your choices, and win or lose, remind yourself
of your Blessings, and remind others of theirs.
Independent racers, more accurately,
the hope of the independent racer, will never die. And as you face something tough today, remember what James Hyton, Kirk
Schelmerdine, and Morgan Shepard are up against, and go back to your battle with the same joy that pushes your favorite underdog—the
joy that has always been within us if, ironically, we just slow down long enough to remember and live by it.
2006 StockCar Review.
