Tuesday, July 27, 2010
NASCAR: Power-Ranking the Top 15 Candidates to Win the 2010 Sprint Cup
Article originally published 07/27/2010
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
What! Another Opinionated Edwards-Keselowski Article? Say It Isn't So
Complacent: "Pleased, especially with oneself or one’s merits, advantages, situation, etc., often without awareness of some potential danger or defect."
I recently heard this word in conversation and was disheartened by it’s connotation.
The definition alone breeds discontent in everyone else who is not feeling the same.
It suddenly becomes a dirty word; a word that devours the soul and disrupts the happy balance of things.
Sometimes life doesn’t give you what you want, nor does it say what you want to hear. That is OK, but when a level of complacency has been achieved, there adds a certain poisonous aspect to the mix that unless remedied, will ultimately lead to disaster.
By now we’ve all heard the outcome of NASCAR’s decision to penalize Edwards 60 points in the Nationwide Series championship standing, a fine of $25,000 and probation in all NASCAR series until the end of the year.
Edwards' car owner, Jack Rousch was penalized 60 owner championship points and Keselowski has also been put on probation until Dec. 31, 2010.
I am sure that NASCAR believes that it did the right thing. Kudos to them for following through with a penalty, but is it just another case of the punishment not fitting the crime?
Oh, I don’t know, let’s ask Carl Long, who was penalized 200 driver points, his wife and team owner Danielle Long was penalized 200 owner points and crew chief Charles Swing, being fined $200,000 – all for having an over sized engine in Long’s Sprint Cup car during last year’s All-Star race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Just sayin' is all.
Has NASCAR become complacent? Is it indeed pleased with itself given the current situation, despite knowing that there could be potential danger lurking around the corner?
Does their decision hurt or help the sport?
Fans can and will debate NASCAR's actions until collectively we are blue in the face.
It is an argument that none of us will truly be able to win. We each have our own differing opinions and nothing can be said that will ever really change them.
We are NASCAR fans. At the end of the day every single one of us is right. We are right to love a “good wreck.” It’s OK to admit that aggressive driving is exciting. Good times for NASCAR fans include fueling a heated rivalry, amongst drivers and each other.
If we all entered any given Sunday and the occasional Saturday night with the same train of thought, just how boring would our sport and we become?
We are damned if we do, damned if we don’t. It is a case of not being able to “live with or without you.”
This current penalty may not have been the right thing, but more so the safe thing for NASCAR to do.
Maybe that is the key. Perhaps we need a “safe word” to keep things sane and consensual between us all. A virtual cry for “Uncle” when things become a bit too turbulent.
No matter the outcome, let it be known that I personally appreciate being roughed up by you each and every week. I like the element of surprise and I await your decisions with baited breath. It fills me with a delicious uncertainty that I equate to stepping into a darkened room, unsure of what will be waiting for me when I click the lights on.
Sometimes nobody is home. At other times I am beaten about the face and shoulders with a sock filled with soap bars forcing me to lash out, and on occasion you are sitting there sweetly, greeting me with loving arms.
Ah NASCAR, what a complicated beast you be. You are a bewildering, disheveled, hot mess. You leave me tattered and torn but I want you to know, I wouldn’t have you any other way.
Damn you for being every catch phase in the book! You had me at hello and to this very day I just can't quit you.
I recently heard this word in conversation and was disheartened by it’s connotation.
The definition alone breeds discontent in everyone else who is not feeling the same.
It suddenly becomes a dirty word; a word that devours the soul and disrupts the happy balance of things.
Sometimes life doesn’t give you what you want, nor does it say what you want to hear. That is OK, but when a level of complacency has been achieved, there adds a certain poisonous aspect to the mix that unless remedied, will ultimately lead to disaster.
By now we’ve all heard the outcome of NASCAR’s decision to penalize Edwards 60 points in the Nationwide Series championship standing, a fine of $25,000 and probation in all NASCAR series until the end of the year.
Edwards' car owner, Jack Rousch was penalized 60 owner championship points and Keselowski has also been put on probation until Dec. 31, 2010.
I am sure that NASCAR believes that it did the right thing. Kudos to them for following through with a penalty, but is it just another case of the punishment not fitting the crime?
Oh, I don’t know, let’s ask Carl Long, who was penalized 200 driver points, his wife and team owner Danielle Long was penalized 200 owner points and crew chief Charles Swing, being fined $200,000 – all for having an over sized engine in Long’s Sprint Cup car during last year’s All-Star race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Just sayin' is all.
Has NASCAR become complacent? Is it indeed pleased with itself given the current situation, despite knowing that there could be potential danger lurking around the corner?
Does their decision hurt or help the sport?
Fans can and will debate NASCAR's actions until collectively we are blue in the face.
It is an argument that none of us will truly be able to win. We each have our own differing opinions and nothing can be said that will ever really change them.
We are NASCAR fans. At the end of the day every single one of us is right. We are right to love a “good wreck.” It’s OK to admit that aggressive driving is exciting. Good times for NASCAR fans include fueling a heated rivalry, amongst drivers and each other.
If we all entered any given Sunday and the occasional Saturday night with the same train of thought, just how boring would our sport and we become?
We are damned if we do, damned if we don’t. It is a case of not being able to “live with or without you.”
This current penalty may not have been the right thing, but more so the safe thing for NASCAR to do.
Maybe that is the key. Perhaps we need a “safe word” to keep things sane and consensual between us all. A virtual cry for “Uncle” when things become a bit too turbulent.
No matter the outcome, let it be known that I personally appreciate being roughed up by you each and every week. I like the element of surprise and I await your decisions with baited breath. It fills me with a delicious uncertainty that I equate to stepping into a darkened room, unsure of what will be waiting for me when I click the lights on.
Sometimes nobody is home. At other times I am beaten about the face and shoulders with a sock filled with soap bars forcing me to lash out, and on occasion you are sitting there sweetly, greeting me with loving arms.
Ah NASCAR, what a complicated beast you be. You are a bewildering, disheveled, hot mess. You leave me tattered and torn but I want you to know, I wouldn’t have you any other way.
Damn you for being every catch phase in the book! You had me at hello and to this very day I just can't quit you.
Article originally published 07/21/2010
Monday, July 19, 2010
The Tale of the Oracle Octopus: NASCAR Could Use Some Animal Instinct
Now that the 2010 World Cup is one for the books, we will fondly remember the soccer world's shining stars—their intense matches, thrilling victories, heartbreaking losses, and the Octopus that predicted some of the Cup's most talked about outcomes.
Paul, the German “Oracle” Octopus had the amazing ability to choose the winner of competing countries by opening one of two food containers lowered into his tank prior to each match.
The clear, plastic boxes filled with mussels and oysters, were each marked with the competing country's flags, and then lowered into Paul’s tank.
Octo-Paul would then make his way to the containers and the one that he chose to open and pluck a mollusk from, predicted the outcome of the match.
The clairvoyant cephalopod accurately predicted all seven of the games that Germany played as well as Spain’s triumph over the Netherlands in the final match.
Of the eight matches that Paul chose this year, he had a track record of 100%
Article originally published 07/19/2010
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Tony Stewart Races "Back-To-School" in Chicagoland
Be on the lookout for Tony Stewart's No. 14 Chevy Impala to sport a new "Back To School" paint scheme this weekend in Chicagoland.
In a partnership with sponsor Office Depot, Stewart's ride will feature a colorful version of the typical back-to-school shopping list, complete with every child's "must have" supplies— such as pens, pencils, crayons, markers, erasers, notebooks and more.
While most of us are busy having fun in the summer sun, going back to school is truly the last thing on the minds of kids and parents alike; but before NASCAR fans know it, we'll be turning our sights from flashy, fast cars to big yellow buses.
Think of this weekend's paint scheme as a gentle reminder that school really is cool!
“It’s always fun to switch up the look on our No. 14 Office Depot/Old Spice Chevy,” Stewart said. “The back-to-school paint scheme is a fun way to remind parents that they can pick up all of their children’s school supplies at any Office Depot store.”
Speaking of school, ever wondered what Tony Stewart's favorite subject was?
Math!
Stewart admits that before he knew that he was destined to become a world renowned race car driver, he wanted to be a math teacher.
I don't know about you, but this news gives the lyrics to Van Halen's 'Hot for Teacher' new meaning for me!
Stewart will start third in the LifeLock.com 400 on Saturday and being one of only two drivers to win multiple times at Chicagoland, expectations of him taking the checkered flag home for the third time are high.
In addition to promoting Office Depot's back-to-school event on the track, Stewart teamed up with the Office Depot Foundation on July 8 to present 4,200 backpacks to non-profit organizations and schools in the Chicago area.
"Stewart, who joined the Office Depot team in 2009 when the company became his co-primary sponsor in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, will partner with the Office Depot Foundation for the second year in a row and help the organization donate more than 300,000 backpacks throughout the 2010 back-to-school season. The Chicago “Back-to-School Backpack Celebration” event is the first of five events that Stewart is scheduled to host across the country this year."
“I am so proud to partner with the Office Depot Foundation again this year and distribute new backpacks to so many kids in need across the country,” Stewart said. “This is a big year for the Office Depot Foundation because it is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its National Backpack Program, and I can tell you from experience how rewarding it is to see the look on these kids’ faces when they get a new backpack—it’s an automatic boost of confidence for them and helps them feel ready to take on the new school year just like everybody else.”
Article originally published 07/10/2010
In a partnership with sponsor Office Depot, Stewart's ride will feature a colorful version of the typical back-to-school shopping list, complete with every child's "must have" supplies— such as pens, pencils, crayons, markers, erasers, notebooks and more.
While most of us are busy having fun in the summer sun, going back to school is truly the last thing on the minds of kids and parents alike; but before NASCAR fans know it, we'll be turning our sights from flashy, fast cars to big yellow buses.
Think of this weekend's paint scheme as a gentle reminder that school really is cool!
“It’s always fun to switch up the look on our No. 14 Office Depot/Old Spice Chevy,” Stewart said. “The back-to-school paint scheme is a fun way to remind parents that they can pick up all of their children’s school supplies at any Office Depot store.”
Speaking of school, ever wondered what Tony Stewart's favorite subject was?
Math!
Stewart admits that before he knew that he was destined to become a world renowned race car driver, he wanted to be a math teacher.
I don't know about you, but this news gives the lyrics to Van Halen's 'Hot for Teacher' new meaning for me!
Stewart will start third in the LifeLock.com 400 on Saturday and being one of only two drivers to win multiple times at Chicagoland, expectations of him taking the checkered flag home for the third time are high.
In addition to promoting Office Depot's back-to-school event on the track, Stewart teamed up with the Office Depot Foundation on July 8 to present 4,200 backpacks to non-profit organizations and schools in the Chicago area.
"Stewart, who joined the Office Depot team in 2009 when the company became his co-primary sponsor in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, will partner with the Office Depot Foundation for the second year in a row and help the organization donate more than 300,000 backpacks throughout the 2010 back-to-school season. The Chicago “Back-to-School Backpack Celebration” event is the first of five events that Stewart is scheduled to host across the country this year."
“I am so proud to partner with the Office Depot Foundation again this year and distribute new backpacks to so many kids in need across the country,” Stewart said. “This is a big year for the Office Depot Foundation because it is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its National Backpack Program, and I can tell you from experience how rewarding it is to see the look on these kids’ faces when they get a new backpack—it’s an automatic boost of confidence for them and helps them feel ready to take on the new school year just like everybody else.”
Article originally published 07/10/2010
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