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Sunday, February 15. 2009
Great American Race
The Daytona 500 is the Great American Race. Started by bootleggers who learned about driving stock cars at incredibly high speed by eluding federal agents while carrying moonshine and whisky from county to another; whisky during prohibition and moonshine after, when distillers wanted to avoid paying taxes on their products.Characteristically, the drivers, arrogant and egotistical, always wanted to prove “they” were the best, the fastest, so they would race. Eventually, Bill France, Sr., who had moved to Daytona in 1935, decided that racing stock cars would never grow beyond a regional entertainment unless there was a governing body that had not only a championship, but rules and regulations to boot. Well there goes all the fun!
In 1948 the National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing was officially born at Daytona Beach. Since then, it has eclipsed all but NFL football as the most popular televised sport and is second only to Formula One as far as racing popularity. But I’m guessing, as NASCAR continues to spread throughout the world (the Daytona 500 is broadcast in 150 countries), it will soon surpass Formula One.The race itself sprung from the races that were once a staple on Daytona Beach; there are pictures and video of people racing up and down the sand on a 1.5 to 2 mile track that had a straightaway on the sand and another on Highway A1A.
It wasn’t until 1959 that the first Daytona 500 took place on the track we’ve become so familiar with. The high-banking turns, the grandstands and infield that can accommodate 100,000 fans and more, and the race has become a staple of television since it was first broadcast live in 1979.
In its 50 years, the Daytona 500 has gone from a premiere event for bootleggers to one of the most corporate-sponsored sporting events in America. NASCAR even has an official search engine: ask.com). Most of the drivers are still southern boys, in fact most of the NASCAR teams are located in North Carolina, so the heritage is still evident, but NASCAR has been moving away from being just a regional sporting event. We even have a NASCAR track in Southern California: the California Speedway in Fontana.
Not to mention, NASCAR has had exhibition races in Japan and Australia. And, for many years, NASCAR was a race for the Big Three American automakers only, but now you will see Japanese cars, like the Toyota Camry, in the races. There are now drivers from many different countries, as well as every corner of America. NASCAR has grown as fast as professional football did when it made its big debut over 50 years ago.One thing is certain; NASCAR fans are the most loyal of sporting fans. They pick their heroes and stick with them through thick and thin, good years and bad. One of the most beloved of all drivers in any racing series, Dale Earnhardt, Sr. — #3 — ironically lost his life on the last lap of the 2001 Daytona 500. He was racing balls-to-the-walls to win, had a chance along with his son, Dale, Jr., Darryl Waltrip and Sterling Martin. I remember watching that day, wondering, like everyone else if Dale Sr. was blocking Sterling Martin to ensure Dale, Jr. would win the race.
Then on the last lap, going into turn #3, Martin tapped Earnhardt’s back bumper, something that takes place numerous times during a NASCAR race, and Earnhardt slid to the bottom of the track and then went wildly up into the wall, catching Ken Schrader’s #36 Pontiac on the way. Earnhardt was killed instantly, Schrader walked away uninjured.Michael Waltrip went on to win the race that year, but his victory was, and will forever remain, in the shadow of the Dale Earnhardt, Sr.’s death. To this day Earnhardt fans still wear #3 gear and even out here in Sunny Southern California, you will see cars with #3 stickers adorning windows and bumpers.
It’s racing, an inherently dangerous sport, not for the weak. And to believe you can muscle one of these cars around a track for 500 miles and win, you need an ego some would consider rude, although with the fans, NASCAR drivers are anything but rude. Unlike many participants in other sports, NASCAR drivers appreciate their fans, making them the most loyal athletes of all professional sports.So, I’m watching the 51st running of the Daytona 500, wondering if Dale Earnhardt, Jr. will get his win. Doesn’t really matter to me actually, I have no favorite drivers, although I smile at Jeff Gordon in the #24 car: he married a model, Ingrid Vandebosch in 2006. People are still angry with Gordon due to the 2003 divorce from his first wife, Brooke Sealy who had also been a model and a “Miss Winston” in 1992.
But that’s all back-story. The real story is of course the racing and today we’re watching The Great American Race; it doesn’t get any better than this.
Matt Kenseth won his first Daytona 500 under a red flag finish when, after 152 laps, the race was called due to rain. It was a great race.
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