Certainly the same can be said of
life in general. It is far better to have timeless standards that do not change in your life, as opposed to being tossed like
reed in the wind with each passing fad or politically correct idea of the moment.
That said, after reviewing the tape
of the Gordon-Kenseth incident, Burton
commented on the no-brainer that the tape reveals: Gordon spun out Kenseth. Burton
continued that if NASCAR will not act, the drivers know how to take care of this deal. Understandable, but…
The trouble is, it soon deteriorates
into a Richard Petty-Bobby Allison like feud, with both parties believing that they are getting even, not unlike small children
arguing about who hit who first.
As a for instance, although Gordon
denies that dumping Kenseth was intentional, he also was quick to point out that he was on the losing, and similar end, of
Kenseth’s bumper earlier in the year at Bristol Motor Speedway. .
Rather than prattle on endlessly about
who hit who, who deserved it and who didn’t, and so forth, it would be nice if the driver’s collectively would
come out of denial.
Here
are the real rules of the ring, publicly unspoken by the drivers and sanctioning body or not:
With
ten or so laps to go all bets are off. Everyone knows when it is near the end of the race. Don’t expect the same
rules of courtesy to apply as they did at the halfway point. Don’t expect any favors out of a driver of a similar make
of car, your teammate, or your brother. This is a race, with one winner and thirty something losers.
“Respect”-
precisely the same rule as above—forget about it! The definition of respect seems to only favor the one demanding
it. The other party should either move over or not try to pass, depending on where the one insisting that they should be respected
is at the moment. Get over it, already. This is the toughest series on the planet. If you are on the track, whether by talent,
money, looks, or salesmanship, you have the same rights as everyone else and the same rules apply to all.
Mirror
driving or blocking is a talent and fun to watch. Many times I have seen a driver hold off a faster car on a short track
and take home the win. If you can accomplish that feat on a super speedway, more power to you. It not only is fair game, it
should be expected by the guy in second place. This is not chess. Win or lose your seat—and ten to twenty million or
so bucks a year. Of course, this brings us to the next rule…
If
you are mirror driving, expect to be spun out by a faster car! If you are faster,
drive off and you have absolutely no problem. We all have choices in life-- if you are leading and a car catches you with
ten laps to go, you may pull over, flash a big smile, and wave the other guy by. Not a good choice? Then understand-- it is
his job to move you out of the way--period.
There you have it. Simple, to the
point, works week after week, whether you are leading or chasing. If you are in front, you had better position your back bumper
to take a hit as opposed to offering up your left rear quarter. And take your lumps like a man if you get them (even if you
are a woman—and they have a place on the track as well—if they are there, they earned the right to be there).
The obvious question that this raises
is the following: “What in the world will stop them from hurting each other?” And it brings us back to what Jeff
Burton was alluding to—there are things larger than racing, and one of them is
our inherent sense of right and wrong, a sense that was born into us and could have come from only one place...
Interestingly, Matt would not be unhappy
with Jeff at Chicago if he did not use the yardstick of “right and wrong”
and of course, Jeff would not be bringing up the previous incident at Bristol
if he was not using that same yardstick.
The trick is to move the other guy
out of the way, or block him, depending on your position, without hurting or crashing him. This is racing, but all of these
guys live together and care for each other in a community. No one wants to see anyone hurt—not in a single car accident
and certainly not in a racing “incident”. That should be the ultimate guide, and again, it is above the rules—and
into inherently what is right.
NASCAR uses that same yardstick, the
timeless sense of right and wrong born into us all, to ride herd over the drivers, and make judgment calls to keep them in
line.
In this case, as they usually do,
they made the right call.
Questions, Comments;
Email Jay
The views and opinions in this article are that of the writer and not necessarily that of SCR
2006 StockCar Review.
