COMPETITION OR ENTERTAINMENT, THE SEQUEL

When NASCAR hears that their Winston Cup races have been
boring, they’re understandably upset. Mike Helton, NASCAR’s CEO, had this to say
about that: "Our records show that we’ve had 44 lead changes among 20
drivers in the first three races. We have more cars than ever finishing on the
lead lap, and people in the garage tell us that the competition is so close
today that it’s not as easy to blow by people as it once was." I assume he
said this with a straight face.

The majority of those lead changes happened at Rockingham
(which has really been the best race of the year so far), and most of the others
at Las Vegas and Daytona occurred during pit stops.

Speaking of cars on the lead lap, There were 19 cars on
the lead lap at Las Vegas, and they just barely made it over halfway. There were
only four cars who finished on the lead lap at Rockingham, and Daytona had 23.
Last year, Daytona had 15, Rockingham had 10, and Las Vegas had 10. So, yeah,
he’s right. More cars have finished on the lead lap in the first three races
this year (46) than the first three races last year (35). I guess I could go
back a few more years, but what’s the point?

As the saying goes, there’s lies, damn lies, and
statistics. Brushing off my algebra, I calculate that if Las Vegas had gone to
the full 267 laps, there would have been 5.5 cars on the lead lap (make up your
own joke about who the .5 represents). That would put it at 25 cars on the lead
lap this year.

The drivers have been taking offense at people calling the
races boring. Dale Jarrett, among others, says that from his perspective, the
races have been pretty exciting. Of course they have. I’ve had a couple of
opportunities to take fast laps around Nashville Speedway in a Craftsman Truck
and a Winston Cup car as a passenger. Andy Houston turned a 21 second lap time
with me last summer. Around the .596 mile track, that translates to about 102
miles per hour. I told my wife how fast that was and she said she’d been that
fast on the interstate. But on the interstate, you don’t turn left going that
fast. The point is, my 4 laps in the truck were probably one of the most
exciting things I’ve ever done. But I don’t think anyone would pay to see it.

As I wrote about in my previous article, NASCAR has to
find the balance between competition and entertainment. But first they have to
admit that there’s a problem.