April 9, 2008 - Will Racing Ever Go Green?

One cannot turn on the TV, open a paper or magazine, or log onto the Internet without seeing or hearing about the environmental movement for the world to “go green”. Even Hollywood stars and celebrities have jumped on board and have not only parked their private jets and are flying commercial, but are also trading in their Hummers and other SUVs for gas-friendly cars like the Toyota Prius and other hybrids for their everyday use in order to do their share for the environment.

So, since NASCAR drivers are enjoying new heights of celebrity themselves with television commercials, movie roles, and cameos in rock videos, when do you think they too will jump on the green bandwagon? Take veteran NASCAR driver Jeff Burton for example. The Monday after the Atlanta race he was spotted arriving at the Concord Regional Airport in a private plane with his family. Considering Atlanta is only a four-hour drive from Concord, N.C., it would have been almost as easy for him to use this chance to “go green” and drive the short distance home. However, for whatever unknown reasons (possibly time-consuming sponsorship or family commitments), he chose instead to fuel up the jet and fly home.

Yes, I realize private planes and jets are necessities for many teams and drivers who have to get from one state to another quickly to keep up with their hectic and demanding schedules. However, not all teams use exclusively private transportation, some utilize Racing Logistics which is a charter company that specializes in flying many race-day pit crews back and forth to the races in one or two large airplanes.

Now, not that I am picking on Burton, but the next time I happened to see him was at a Wendy’s after the Martinsville race as he and his wife were jumping into his huge black Cadillac Escalade, which we all know is not exactly known for its great gas mileage or eco-friendly status.

Other drivers, team owners and crew chiefs choice of ground transportation make them just as guilty of not being environmentally conscious. For example, on any given day you can drive down Speedway Boulevard in Concord, NC (home of many NASCAR teams) and see many gas-guzzling Lincoln Navigators driven by the higher-echelon employees for Roush-Fenway or Yates Racing who happen to enjoy Ford as a manufacturer sponsor.  It would be very simple for these well-admired men to set a good example and drive a Ford Escape Hybrid instead. OK, I know, what a hilarious idea and it will never happen since gas prices are not usually an issue for high-paid crew chiefs, but I am just saying it is an option.

While we are on the subject, is it necessary for drivers to have their own large, fuel-guzzling buses at every race? I understand buses make it more comfortable when they are away from home, but the crew members are away from home as well and they do just fine with hotel rooms and no soft couches to lounge on. Maybe a more eco-friendly solution would be to come up with some sort of VIP lounge, or pardon the pun “green room,” for the drivers and their families.

So, who will be the first team to stand up and lead by example like the other star-studded communities are doing? Or, to put it in terms team owners understand – who will help our environment while opening themselves up to numerous sponsorship possibilities! They could not only help raise awareness and pay their ever-increasing race-related bills at the same time. It is a win-win situation!

OK, now that I have single-handily saved the environment I better get back to my real job so I can make enough money to gas up my non-eco friendly crossover SUV!

April 1, 2008 - What Makes Today's Racer?

What does it take today to become a champion race-car driver?  Does it require top notch driving skills and hard work, or does it just take the ability to work the media and fans? Has all the new glitz and glamour in racing, such as Pro Stock Bike driver Angelle Sampey adding Swarovski crystals to her racing leathers and declaring herself “Queen of Bling” or Danica Patrick posing in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue detracted from the sport, or has it helped it to grow and enjoy greater popularity and profit than ever before? For the answer to this question I turned to veteran Top Fuel pilot Cory McClenathan.

What is the major change in racing today versus racing ten years ago? “You don’t have to be a champion to be treated like one anymore,” McClenathan says referring to the overwhelming popularity of some of the newer drivers on major racing circuits, “They haven’t had to earn their stripes and prove that they can win weekend in and out. All you have to do is drive the car, and work with media and fans.” 

Not that there is anything wrong with molding yourself into a commodity that is valuable to sponsors and that attracts fans. It actually a smart step for some racers. “A lot of the drivers now have done exactly what they should do media wise to attract sponsors and fans. The rest (winning races and championships) will come in time,” McClenathan agrees.

Nowadays, for up and coming drivers, packing your own chute and knowing how to help out changing your engine is no longer a must. However, you have to wonder if these made-to-order drivers actually have a performance disadvantage over the men and women who have grown up in the sport. “Drivers like Melanie Troxel, Brandon Bernstein and Larry Dixon all were good at a young age. They were brought up in the sport and know what they are feeling when they are driving because they are working, and have worked, on their cars. When you have learned about and worked on a race car you know better what is going on with it.”

In McClenathan’s opinion for any driver to achieve success on track a great crew chief is the key. “It is twice as hard to keep up nowadays. In the 90s if you had a good car and good driver you could be in the final round every other race, but now with a pretty good driver and great crew chief you are going to win a race.”

A lot of the changes in racing today that catapult drivers from everyday men and women to glamorous stars and personalities actually are a direct result of pressure from fans. There are reality shows with cameras that faithfully follow drivers through the good and bad times, appearances on national television talk shows, and even Internet voting popularity contests.

“People want to know more about your everyday life now, rather than just what happens at the race track,” said McClenathan.  “Years ago if you started any sort of controversy at the track you were put down for it. If I said anything about another driver I would receive hate mail. Now, they want that controversy and what used to be so serious has been turned into a show.  People want you to put on a good show for them.”

Even though he agrees the changes in popularity of drivers and the commercialism of it all has been good for the sport of racing, McClenathan still gets nostalgic for the old days. “I cherish the 90’s and early 2000 era where it was still a racer’s type of deal. But, if it wasn’t more commercialized than it used to be, it (racing) would not have evolved like it has.”

Despite it all, McClenathan doesn’t worry too much about what is going on around him. He concentrates on his job on and off the track with his dragster, fans and sponsors, but the main goal always remains clear for him.  “The older I get the more I realize that giving back is more what it all is to me. I give mostly to Speedway Children’s Charity which has a large presence with drag racing in Bristol and Sonoma.”

Although no one questions that times have changed, they do question loudly and constantly if it is for the best or not.  There is still a generation of holdouts that complain and grumble about the “new racers” and how series have constantly been the masters of their own destruction, yet they, like the rest of America, are fascinated and religiously tune in weekly.  For that reason only, I say that someone in these series is doing their job correctly.