It’s second nature to second-guess.Almost from birth, we begin cultivating our own unique view of the world, with us at its geographical center. As young children, we are blessed with a degree of wisdom beyond that of our more knowledgeable, insightful and experienced elders. By the time adolescence hits, we have evolved into the most intelligent beings in the cosmos. And by young adulthood, most of us are thoroughly convinced that we could run the show much better than the people currently in charge.
Parents? Morons.
Politicians? Windbags.
Bosses? Don’t get me started.
We’re full-grown these days, but the passage of time has not dulled our inherent desire to second-guess. From the War in Iraq to the new “Chase For The Championship” points system, we’ve all got a better way of doing things. That’s why you can tune into Sirius NASCAR Radio at 7 a.m. for “The Morning Drive,” stay tuned through “The Driver’s Seat” at noon, and roll right through the 7 p.m. conclusion of “Sirius Speedway” without a single lull in the torrent of second-guessing, fine-tuning and better ideas.
Ed in Idaho thinks the five-point winner’s bonus should have been 10. Andy in Michigan says 20 would have been better.
Sean in Kentucky thinks 12 Chase drivers is too many, while Shirley in Connecticut thinks 13 sounds about right.
David Poole thinks the whole idea is crazy. Dave Moody thinks its great. Kernan? He’s somewhere in the middle. But one thing’s for sure; every one of us has devised a failsafe scenario that could have fixed this sport -- once and for all -- if only someone in Daytona Beach had cared enough to call and ask for our opinion.
I’m not complaining about the complaining. After all, if it weren’t for all the “better ideas” floating around out there, it would have been a long, cold and stultifyingly dull off-season. Second-guessing NASCAR’s every move serves an important purpose; giving millions of fans (and the occasional talkshow host) something to do until the season starts and we can get back to the real business at hand; second-guessing drivers and crewchiefs.
You know, Moody, I cannot believe all the whining going on about the points changes, especially from Marty and David on the Morning Drive! The number of people who are calling in and saying that the new points system takes away the consistency element must be totally blind.
ReplyDeleteFor example, this past season, how many drivers, outside of the top 12, won a race in the first 26 races? One. Kurt Busch at Bristol. And guess what? His extra 10 points would have gotten him nowhere close to the Top 12. So, not awarding those 10 until the end of the 26 races, not a big deal.
Then, on top of that, this whole re"seeding" the Top 12 before the chase. What is the big deal? So a driver who wins 5 or 6 races might be 60 points ahead of the driver in 12th? Is it going to make a big difference? If the drivers who were 1,2 and 3 going into the Chase before the points were reset, were so darn consistent, when they leave New Hampshire after Chase Race 1, they should be right back there at the top. The example used yesterday proved that Jimmie Johnson would have still won the championship if the rules were contested last season.
The point is, consistency is key. Consistency is the only way to get into the Chase. Winning races might help a little bit, but ask Kurt Busch if winning one race and sucking it up all summer gets you in the Chase. It doesn't. And consistency will win you the Chase, regardless of where you start New Hampshire, Race 1, at in the Top 12.
Of course, the only controversy will be, what if the #13 driver wins a race, and finishes 8 points behind 12th before the points are reset and bonus points are awarded? Oooh, let's let Marty and David stew on that one for a while!
Keep it up Moody! You're still the best Nascar show on Sirius!!
Dave, love the program. I agreed with your comments on The Morning Drive today. This new Chase format is going to be exciting and provides a very reasonable incentive for drivers to push for the top spot in ANY race, before or during the Chase.
ReplyDeleteI think that fans have to separate the Top 12 racing their way into the Chase from the win bonuses for those Chase qualifiers. The bonuses are for AFTER they qualify, based on their regular season performance. Poole and the other detractors are lumping those two actions together.
I'm hoping this will inject some much-needed excitement into these races, along with the COT. Now, if we can get NASCAR to work on shuffling the schedule, things can really get exciting. Time to start axing one of those Pocono races....
Dave has just pointed out the problem of having a "Nascar" channel.12 hours of the same complaining and cornball ideas only with different show hosts. It`s what we said would happen when they decided not to talk about anything but Nascar. There`s lots going on in other forms of motorsports but hosts aren`t supposed to bring it up.It wouldn`t be so bad if only it was broken up by discusion of NHRA or open wheel.
ReplyDeleteNascar is becoming like the old joke about the pretty woman,(Nascar= pretty woman). Show me the prettiest woman in the world and I`ll show you the guy who`s tired of sleeping with here.
12 hours of Nascar,we`re getting tired of sleeping with it.
I agree with Anonymous. I've been a loyal Speedway listener since the early days, 15 hours a week. I've found myself listening less since the show expanded an extra hour and the talk is only NASCAR. It was great to hear the Italian Meatball call in a couple of weeks ago for a minute. The reason I dialed in every day was for the talk about NHRA, IRL, F1, CART and even the occasional dirt talk. By the time Speedway comes on I've had it with NASCAR talk.
ReplyDeleteIt was fun while it lasted...
Dave, I'm a new listener to your program, but I'm hooked. Anonymous and bevo can switch to brand X and get what ever it is they are looking for. I have no complaints about new points system or chase format (since we don't get a vote it really doesn't matter), but I do have 1 question I hope you can clear up for me. If the race winner get 185 points for the win, does that driver get 5 bonus points, since he led the last last lap of the race, making the rcae winner automatically receive 190 points? Maybe there is something that I don't understand about the system, but I'm sure you can clear it up.
ReplyDeleteHey hostageman,
ReplyDeleteTune in at 7am. You`ll get nothing but people discusing the points,or busch wackers,or why so and so should be banned because he hit their favorite driver,etc. 12hours non stop of people who need it cleared up. I like Nascar too but JHC it doesnt need to be rehashed on every show. I`m with bevo,I like the shows but the moment a caller gets on about the above subjects again and I jump channels.
I think the reason why everyone is so focused on the Chase and how many points a driver gets for everything from winning a race to lacing his shoes is because...THERE'S NO RACING GOING ON! Once the first race begins, and the first time Kyle Busch throws a temper tantrum, or Tony Stewart complains about someone's driving, or "The Red Nation" or "The Red Sea" (whatever it is you call yourselves) throws a beer can (notice I didn't give that company a plug?), that will be talked about for 12 hours a day.
ReplyDeleteBe patient everyone! Daytona is almost here!
Love the show Moody!
There doesn't seem to be a posted e-mail address to send mail to you Dave.
ReplyDeleteYou can send email to speedway@sirius-radio.com
ReplyDelete