Little Stock in Stock Car Racing(For all you "Left-turners" LOL)

The Washington Times ^ | August 30, 2006 | Dave Fay

[kellynla]

HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. -- There is a story NASCAR insiders swear is true and claim is not an isolated case.

A few years back at a Ford dealership outside Harrisonburg, Va., two men in their late 20s walked in on a Monday morning and started asking about a certain model of Taurus. They were neatly dressed, appeared to be sober, sane and serious. And soon, their focus became clear: They found stock car racing exciting and thought they would buy a car to join the fun.

If only it were that easy.

Veteran driver Mark Martin once described the difference between a showroom vehicle and a stock-car racer as being like the difference between miniature golf and the PGA Tour.

The word "stock" in the title of the sanctioning body, the National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing, had some meaning when coupes raced around the sand and road course in Daytona Beach in the late 1940s. But today, that meaning has all but disappeared.

"There are still a few pieces that are stock," said Jimmy Makar, senior vice president of Joe Gibbs Racing, a mechanical engineering graduate of Maryland and longtime crew chief on NASCAR's top circuit.

"Chassis? No, nothing stock. Engine? We still use a stock block from the manufacturer, but after that, it's all after market," Mr. Makar said, using a term that in NASCAR garages means buying very expensive custom-made parts.

"Anything stock?" asked Brett Bodine, former NASCAR driver and car owner who now helps oversee the organization's Research and Development Center in Concord, N.C. "The hood, the roof, the rear deck lid. That's about all I can think of. Speed and safety; racing had to move on."

[cripplecreek]

Yeah they're still running the IROC series.

[Toby06]

Lime rock is cool for road track stuff. You are not too far from the old Danbury Fair Racearena, and Stafford. Middletown, NY runs dirt cars n Saturday nights, and Lebanon Valley is probably less than 1 1/2 hours from you with the best all around racing program in short track dirt I have ever been to, and that is hundreds of tracks across the country.

[Toby06]

There is ZERO stock stuff in a sprint car. Screw the purists.

[toddst]

Yes, IROC is still out there. The next race is October 28th in Atlanta on Speed TV. IROC has always been exciting IMO.

[Walkingfeather]

I don't get it. I will never get it. Guys get into cars and go in an oval for a couple hours. That's a sport? I would call it a pasttime. Now Lets say they raced with the same cars on open public freeways with cops and all, with innocent lives at stake... well that might be appealing

[cripplecreek]

One of the best IROC finishes was at Michigan between Earnhardt sr and Earnhardt jr. It was one of the closest IROC finishes ever. They crossed the finish line leaning on each other.

[kb2614]

There is nothing "stock" about NASCAR and hasn't been for decades.

Want to watch "stock" racing?? Watch Speed World Challenge. Speed World Challenge Its on the Speed Channel.

[stainlessbanner]

Dirt track bump!

[ltc8k6]

The best racing I have seen recently has been the Australian V8 super cars.

[IamConservative]

The local drag strip is also a good place to go to see what the one guy working at night out of his garage can do with a stock vehicle. Drag racing accommodates all ranges of budgets better than any form of racing. The more you spend, the faster you go. They have head to head elimination series and bracket series racing where you essentially race yourself.


If you have young wanna be racers, drag racing is also relatively safe in the sportsman and bracket classes compared to oval or road racing. I let my son race in the sportsman class and wouldn't consider letting him on the local dirt track in a stock car.

[NormsRevenge]

Racing was in muh family's blood and so were Saturday night races at the local half mile track. I never got into the racing myself, still have a nephew super stocking it at the same old track in Minnesota, all my brothers had a moment or two or doing real good, but it ain't a cheap hobby..

I wish I had a few of my brothers old cars,, watching the Barrett Auto auctions on cable almost makes me weep when I see what some old cars go for...

I never raced, myself.. I was the Marine of the group.. they were all army or farmers and truckers.. ;-)

[nascarnation]

even the bolts on those sprinters are hollowed out titanium

:-)

[GreenAccord]

It's always nice to meet a fellow F1-er. I really enjoyed last weekend's Turkey event. That track is now among my favorites, along with Spa.

[nascarnation]

there's serious money in Nascar these days
the top guy at Cosworth went to work for Richard Childress
another guy from DEI was being recruited by Toyota Formula 1

[Toby06]

Drags bore me, but I am never going to knock it for those who like it.

If my kids go racing, i am buying a purpose built chassis, built to spec. Last weekend, there were 3 nasty rollovers. the two purpose built guys were fine after wrecking at over 100 mph. The guy in the street car was fine, too, but then again I have never seen such a slow rollover.

[SJSAMPLE]

That's my company ("Delco Remy', now just "Remy Inc.", on the front of the car!

The last car I saw with that badge it was on the car owned by a fellow DR employee.

[Toby06]

Thank you for your service.

[kellynla]

I figured you would appreciate the article.

[Toby06]

Cool! It's a small world, but I'd hate to have to mow it all.

[herkbird]

My favorite racing was about 10-15 years ago at Dixie Speedway, at Woodstock, Georgia. At the end of the night they would have spectator racing. Junior would take mom's station Wagon on a one lap race against some other wannabe teenage driver in another family car. Sometimes they would wreck and start crying right there on the track as they new they were going to get theirs butts kicked when the parents found out. It was laugh a minute racing, they would sit there doing burnouts at the start line until the green flag dropped. It was most certainly the best racing of the night.

I guess because of lawsuits or something, they no longer allow some pimple faced kid to race the poor family's only car. Now of days they are using old beaters and the excitement is just not the same. People would even race rental cars during the spectator racing periods, it was so fun when they rolled them and then towed them off some where in the sticks and called them in as stolen. LOL.

Racing just isn't racing anymore, especially with stupid spectator wannabee's driving like fools.