Catch Can-The TSS Mailbox: COT Talk, Grant Enfinger, Old School Tactics, And The Next Big Thing
by PB on Oct.24, 2009, under Catch Can
Got a question, comment, or suggestion about the website or the blog? Still don’t know what a Bump Stop or a 7-Post Shaker is? Or maybe you just want to vent about your driver or the current state of the sport? Whatever the case may be, your Emails matter to us.
It’s why we’ve created Catch Can: The TSS Mailbox. The Catch Can is a place where you, the readers and fans, can send your questions, comments and rants for us to answer and/or address. Each week will take the best Emails from the previous week, respond to them and post them on the blog.
We may not be able to fix the economy, predict the future, or help you get a date with that blonde in your Sociology class, but we here at The Spotter Stand are here for you!
Back in the day when a guy yarded the competition like Jimmie Johnson is doing someone would turn him in to NASCAR every week until he got caught or flat spin him out on the track to send a message. Why are the other guys letting this go on? OldTimer43 from Florida
I don’t think the other drivers are “letting him” get away with anything I just think the 48 is that much better than everyone else right now; and they know it. Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus have become the best in the sport when it comes to the Chase and one would be hard pressed to find someone who would disagree. When that first Chase race starts at Loudon this team kicks it into another gear. As for turning someone in, I would assume NASCAR gets their fair share of complaints both formal and informal. If this were the 60’s, 70’s or 80’s I’d say there is a good chance a driver would “send a message” to another driver or his team that this kind of domination won’t be tolerated much longer. Lets’ face it, back then it was truly a situation where you raced to put food on the table. Now days, when drivers have salaries and big contracts, you’re not going to see that same type of passion because money isn’t that big of a factor. Don’t get me wrong money is a driving force for these guys but it’s not an issue of keeping food on the table like it was say 30 or 40 years ago. You’re more likely to hear drivers and teams use the “they simply beat us today” line more so than anything. Maybe that’s why most race fans don’t relate to the current state of the sport as they did back in the day.
All we heard about with this COT car is that it was cost efficient and could be used at each track from week-to-week; but it’s just now making its way to the Nationwide series. If it’s so cost effective why has it taken so long to get down the Nationwide teams? Sissy P from Whereabouts Unknown
Sissy, good question. With limited testing and cost being an issue, NASCAR most likely wanted to wait for the right time to debut a COT car in the Nationwide Series. I don’t think NASCAR wanted to throw a COT-style car at the Nationwide teams right off the bat because of fear they wouldnt’ have the money to switch to a COT thus causing a decline in the number of teams showing up to race. Money isn’t as plentiful at the Nationwide level as it is at the Sprint Cup level. Now that the COT has been around a while and teams have had time to perfect it on the big stage, not to mention figure out how to make the most of it, the time has come to move it down to the Nationwide level and help those teams get up to speed. Enter the Pony Cars.
What is Chevrolet, Toyota and Dodge going to use for its version of the Nationwide COT? MK from Paducah, KY
From what I can gather Chevrolet is on track, no pun intended, to run the Camaro. But if GM can’t afford to foot the bill for research and development due in part to their financial issues I wouldn’t be too surprised if they stick with the Impalla SS. The same could be said of Dodge. Dodge would love to throw its Challenger out there for Dodge teams to run, but with cost and financial issues in front of them rather than behind them you may see Dodge stick with their current lineup. As for Toyota, they don’t exactly have what one would call a Pony Car in their lineup so most likely they’ll stick with the Camry. You could make an argument for the Solara but I doubt they would put that kind of attention and focus on developing a new car given the success the Camry has had at the Nationwide level.
I read your piece on Grant Enfinger and was amazed at how much he does just to go racing in the ARCA series part-time. It was quite a story. Is he a developmental driver for any Cup teams? Or has he signed with anyone yet? Jake D from Whereabouts Unknown
Grant isn’t exactly what you would call ‘developmental driver material’ due to the fact that he is 24 years old. That community is made up of those in the 13-18 year old age bracket. One could even argue that Grant is “too old” when it comes to making the move up the NASCAR ladder. Grant is more of a diamond in the rough, so to speak. But age and labels aside, Grant Enfinger is as good as they come and is truly a throwback to the old days. Hopefully someone will see what he can do on the track rather than off of it and give this guy a chance. I assure you they won’t be disappointed.
What do you think about awarding flat rates to Start and Park teams so that they don’t show up and walk away with 80 or 90k each week for running 5 or 10 laps. BRG1975 from Ohio
I don’t think we will ever see a tweak to the Start and Park situation. As long as cars keep showing up and attempting to make the race I don’t think NASCAR will step in and do anything; at least not anytime soon. The Start and Park situation has been going on for years and will continue to go on until something is done to stop it or regulate. Trust me that won’t happen anytime soon.
Who is the next big thing? The next Joey Logano? Kelly from Argo, Alabama
If you ask me, race fans need to get familiar with drivers like Ryan Truex, Trevor Bayne, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Kelly Bires, Matt DiBenedetto, Justin Algaier and Parker Kligerman. Each has the ability to win races at the Nationwide level and become a superstar in the sport. Next year’s crop of Nationwide rookies could be the best the sport has seen in quite some time.
I went to the races this past weekend up in Charlotte and I was just curious to see if I was the only one who thought the walls at Lowe’s Motor Speedway looked dingy and like they hadn’t been painted since the All-Star race? That was horrible! DD from North Carolina
DD, you weren’t the only one who noticed the dingy-looking walls at Lowes’s Motor Speedway this past weekend. I wasn’t there in person so my opinion is based solely off of what I saw on TV, but I did see a number of comments about how the walls looked on message boards and various blogs after the race Saturday night. It appears we weren’t the only ones who noticed.
For more NASCAR news and notes visit us at www.thespotterstand.com
