Forgetting the 'Dad' in NASCAR pitch (Ellen Goodman Alert)

"...The NASCAR Dad may like risk-taking as a spectator sport, but these days he's the guy buckling the kids in the child seats. In the same vein, he believes in national defense but doesn't want anybody conning his sons and daughters into combat over missing weapons of mass destruction."

This lady has really got to stop trying to think. She's not that good at it. This "voting block" is right out there for all the world to see wearing their hearts on their sleeves and they STILL can't get it right! I guess we should take that as a good sign.

Ben Afleck was going to be the starter? How the hell did that happen in the first place?

I thought he was driving the pace car or something. Besides, Affleck talked nicely with W and Laura before the race -- it didn't look like he was annoyed in any way by seeing Bush, even though he's a Dem. The only anger Affleck showed that day was when reporters asked him about the A-Rod trade to the Yankees!

She wrote this article about like you'd expect a NASCAR track to be driven if it was completely vertical. She was slow as hell getting up the back stretch, then she came around the first and second curves and was moving along quick. Then, you could see she was about to crash, and she picked up speed as she slammed into the wall. I though she was doing a good job of analyzing the NASCAR Dad phenomenon. Then suddenly, it was a massive hit piece, and then she crashed. Wow.

What would have happened if Whoopi had dropped the flag? I've only been watching for a few years now (since Kevin Harvick won his first race, edging out one of the nastier drivers with a clean rep (kind of reminds me of Clinton) J. Gordon. (I know, I'll probably get death threats from 24 fans out there, but hey, I LIKE Happy)) so I don't know all the rules. What do they do if the celeb who's waving the starting flag drops it onto the track? Yellow and bring it around for a restart on lap 2? Ignore it? What?

I was watching TV with my oldest son (now 3 but 4 in less than 2 weeks) and he was right around 1. Dale Sr. had just passed and I had never watched a race. I enjoyed Days Of Thunder, but never actually turned on a race after. So, I was flipping through the channels with a grumpy little one reaching for the clicker. I hit a button to change the channel and tossed it to the other side of the sofa. It was on an ad. About 30 seconds later, little guy curled up on my shoulder and fell asleep. Every time I reached for the clicker, he's stir. So, I stopped reaching. I was stuck on what I had landed on. It was the race. My cheering for Kevin at the end was what woke my son from his 3 hour nap on my shoulder. I was hooked. I tape it each week now and watch as I can live. Then I watch the tape to see what I missed.

Paul

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