[Ellison]

Hello everyone,

I'm new to NASCAR, just watched my first race this past weekend with the Coca Cola 600, and just had a few questions as I try to take this all in.

1) who are your favorite drivers and how'd that come to be? ( i don't have one just yet and would be interested to hear how some of you became fans of yours.)

2) why the hatred toward Jeff Gordon? I noticed alot of cheering when they towed his car away and have read some things on sports websites (Talladega incident).

3) are fantasy racing leagues big like with fantasy football? i'd be interested in joining or creating one and would like to find out how they are currently setup and the rules, etc.

i appreciate any responses, as i know "new guy" questions can be annoying. (i just want to learn and find out as much as i can.)

thank you

[simple simon]

hey Ellison welcome to the forum

im currently rooting for Montoya as my favorite ....... i like Earnhardt Sr but obviously had to find someone else so i went with the new guy

im sure many have their own reasons for not liking Gordon .... for many it may be jealousy

i dont think fantasy racing is as big as fantasy football just yet but it is growing ............ we have a thread for our GoTeamsGo league, not sure if it is now too late to join as it started already

[Lefty Noob]

Welcome aboard, Ellison, and thanks for joining us. I'm not the most die-hard NASCAR fan on the board, but I don't have a particular driver and I don't hate Jeff Gordon. Not sure how universally popular NASCAR fantasy leagues are but we're running a GoTeamsGo fantasy league out of Yahoo. Check out the NASCAR forum to find out more about it if you're interested!

[jks812]

Hi and welcome. You will find that this is a great forum. They don't mind the new guy questions and they will explain things to you.
I use not to like Gordon, but he has grown on me now. The reason I didn't like him was because he was such a cry baby. Nothing was ever his fault and he was always whining. But since Jimmie came along, he took that job away from Gordon and now he's not so bad.

[LSC9901]

Hi Ellison and welcome to the best NASCAR forum on the internet. Keep in mind the only foolish question is the one you DON'T ask. Fire away and we'll give you all the answers one way or another.

For myself I am a fan of racing. There are drivers I like and some that I don't but mostly I just enjoy the races for what they are and how much effort (and cheating) the teams put into it.

Check out our weekly predictions thread and join us this Sunday for our "Live Chat".

[JG24]

Hey Ellison

im new here aswell and this is the best nascar message board i have visited online so great choice. Some dont like gordon because he got to good to fast. Others dont like him because previously mentioned he used to be a cry baby. But now he has matured from his whinning days, and the reason i started rooting for jeff was because i started watching nascar when jeff entered in 1992, he was a new young kid, who had this swagger about him, and i respected the fact that he could drive up front with nascars best at the tender age of 21

[Racer Duck]

Hi Ellison, Welcome to NASCAR on GoTeamsGo.

I've been watching NASCAR for most of the last 40 or so years. My favorite driver was my brother, Clarence Lovell, who drove back in '72 & 73. Since then I've had a few other favorites, Bobby Allison, Bill Elliott, Jamie McMurray and now I like AJ Allmendinger the best, though I root for just about all of them from time to time (except I tend to shy away from Hendrick's 2 "STARS").

Jeffy has grown immensely in the past few years and I've grown to respect him as a driver, now I occasionally root for him (though rarely out loud). I don't hate him, but I don't love him either....

I'm hooked on Fantasy Racing. I'm in 3 leagues on Yahoo (maxed out), one on Fox and two on ESPN. Each has different rules and by the middle of the season you find yourself looking at a lot of different drivers each week. Check 'em all out .. If I had more ambition, I'd probably be in more leagues...

[BringBackWilkesboro]

Originally Posted by Ellison

Hello everyone,

I'm new to NASCAR, just watched my first race this past weekend with the Coca Cola 600, and just had a few questions as I try to take this all in.

First off, in my obsessively nostalgic mind, you watched the World 600. Most of us here have issues with corporate sponsorship, as you will find out.

Originally Posted by Ellison

1) who are your favorite drivers and how'd that come to be? ( i don't have one just yet and would be interested to hear how some of you became fans of yours.)

Since I became a full blown fan around '71, I liked (and pretty much still do) Cale Yarborough, and then Neil Bonnet when he came on to the scene.

Now, it's tough to say who my "favorite" is. I root for the vets who are pretty much washed up and on the way out, Like Kyle Petty, Sterling Marlin and Ricky Rudd. I also used to like a guy with a gritty dirt backround, but with some of the guys coming up from those roots recently, Dave Blaney and Ryan Newman are the only ones.

Originally Posted by Ellison

2) why the hatred toward Jeff Gordon? I noticed alot of cheering when they towed his car away and have read some things on sports websites (Talladega incident).

I don't really have an answer for that, other than the fact that alot of fans don't like the idea of a California hotshot coming in and taking the sport away from their good ole boy buddies, but that goes back a long way.

[SteelPhoenyx]

Originally Posted by Ellison

Hello everyone,

I'm new to NASCAR, just watched my first race this past weekend with the Coca Cola 600, and just had a few questions as I try to take this all in.

Welcome! I'm a fairly 'new' fan to the sport too... just got serious about watching it last year.

1) who are your favorite drivers and how'd that come to be? ( i don't have one just yet and would be interested to hear how some of you became fans of yours.)

I have two favorites, and its a dead-on tie. Matt Kenseth and Clint Bowyer. I didn't know much about any of the drivers (beyond Jeff G and Jr., just because they're so popular), and just started paying attention to the way the guys drove. I remember being distinctly impressed by the guy in the 17 car and the way he moved that car around the track. Didn't hurt that I happen to like DeWalt tools, and thats his main sponsor. I decided to find out more about him (Matt Kenseth), liked what I saw. Turned out he's the 2003 Winston Cup Champion... and I didn't know that before I started cheering for him.

As for Clint Bowyer... well... I saw the 07 riding around the track like Hell on wheels one night, and the 07 has a giant 'Jack' splashed across the hood. I happen to LOVE Jack Daniels. I noticed that the guy had a lot in common with the way that Matt Kenseth drives, so I started to pay attention to more than what was on the hood. Became a fan of the driver in rather short order.

I've noticed this year that they are often sharing the same space on the track, and Bowyer's beaten Kenseth twice in the Busch races this year (1st, 2nd both times). Kinda one of those 'YAY!!! ARRGH!) type of moments. Clint Bowyer just lost his Rookie stripes last year, so I'm really looking forward to watching him develop as a Cup driver.

2) why the hatred toward Jeff Gordon? I noticed alot of cheering when they towed his car away and have read some things on sports websites (Talladega incident).

I like Jeff Gordon. He's not one of my favorites, but I respect his skill as a driver. Sure he's done some things that can tick people off, but nobody is perfect. He's my husband's favorite driver, so I have learned a lot about the guy (read his book, which is actually pretty good), and actually felt myself getting emotional that he wrecked out on Sunday. Seriously. I guess I'm more of a fan of the 24 than I admit to myself, but that's ok. While I'd rather see the 17 or the 07 take the checkered flag, I don't feel like throwing things if the 24 takes it.

I think a lot of what people don't like about him is he's good looking, young to be so skilled and have so many championships, knows how to play the corporate game (the guy's a born natural in the sponsor appreciation department), and he's been known to whine.

Newsflash... they ALL whine at one point or another!

I save my vitriol for Kyle Busch and JPM... I can't stand either one of those guys. But I'm not going to hate on anybody for being fans of theirs.

3) are fantasy racing leagues big like with fantasy football? i'd be interested in joining or creating one and would like to find out how they are currently setup and the rules, etc.

i appreciate any responses, as i know "new guy" questions can be annoying. (i just want to learn and find out as much as i can.)

thank you

Can't help you with the fantasy league stuff. I don't have a lot of time to do one right now. Maybe next season I'll give it a shot.

Sorry I got a bit 'long winded' there.

[SpaceCadet]

Welcome, Ellison,

This is a great forum. I can honestly say there is not one person on this forum I don't like, regardless of our differing views. I truly believe there are many with whom I would be friends with outside in the real world.

I love racing, no matter who's doing it. I have certain drivers that I like more than others, but not an odds on favorite. For instance, I'm not fond of Kevin Harvick (#29), but he is admittedly a good driver. You can't win the Daytona 500 and the "All Star" race without having some talent. I don't like Tony Stewart (#20) because I don't like his aggressive driving style. However, I have a huge amount of admiration for his driving skill. He can drive a car. Love Kyle Petty (#45), almost couldn't contain myself when he came in 3rd. I'm even giving Kurt Busch (#2) a second chance. It seems he has matured quite a bit. We'll see. Cannot stand Kyle "the Shrub" Busch, (#5). Whiner, cry baby, spoiled brad, hot head - pick a negative description and it will fit. I like Dale Jr. (#. He is a decent driver who is bigger than life in this sport, as was his father. I'd like to see him get a win, and I'd like to see everybody just let the poor guy live his life. Jimmy Johnson (#4 is well, vanilla. Don't much care if he wins or loses. I respect his relationship with his crew chief, Chad Knause, or Knaus, (to "e" or not to "e"), and feel that has a lot to do with his success. ("Knausing" is another term for cheating on this board). And Jeff Burton (#31) is a good, clean driver.

As for Jeff Gordon, Gordo, JG, Jeffie Pooh - seems like he's everybody's hot button. I have always liked him. I think he will prove to be one of the best drivers in the history of motor sports, along with others like Dale Sr., Richard Petty, Peason, Mario Andretti (Indy cars), just to name a few. Now having said I like him, I will tell you that I like him even more since joining this forum. Why? Because so many people hate him that he's almost the underdog now. The more people trash him, and that's an understatement, the more I root him on. It's my rebelious side coming out.

Hope this gives you a little insight. As usual, I've nearly written a small novel that'll take you all day to read. And I put the car numbers next to the driver just to make it easier to put a face/driver with a car when you're watching the next race, not because I think you're clueless. Can't help you with the fantasy league. Bet you're glad about that because you won't have to read another five pages. Enjoy yourself!

[Ellison]

thanks for the replies, very interesting to read.

1) my favorite driver is Clint Bowyer 07

2) as for jeff gordon, i will tend to hope he does well, only because of the hatred/bias.

3) very interested in fantasy leagues, i'm making a site now, my only question now is what do most leagues do when they switch over to the Chase and can use only 12 drivers.

thanks

[Lefty Noob]

Originally Posted by Ellison

3) very interested in fantasy leagues, i'm making a site now, my only question now is what do most leagues do when they switch over to the Chase and can use only 12 drivers.

I can only imagine that its like NFL leagues; they end before it goes to the "playoffs".

[SteelPhoenyx]

Originally Posted by Ellison

thanks for the replies, very interesting to read.

1) my favorite driver is Clint Bowyer 07

2) as for jeff gordon, i will tend to hope he does well, only because of the hatred/bias.

3) very interested in fantasy leagues, i'm making a site now, my only question now is what do most leagues do when they switch over to the Chase and can use only 12 drivers.

thanks

Well, I'd say you have great taste in drivers! By the way... its his birthday today!

Funny you say that about Jeff Gordon... because the more the Jr. Nation idjits throw things at him the more I cheer for him. I like Dale Jr. but a lot of his fans freak me out.

[simple simon]

Originally Posted by SteelPhoenyx

the more the Jr. Nation idjits throw things at him the more I cheer for him.

now now SP it's not only Jr fans that hate Gordon

[Racer Duck]

Originally Posted by Ellison

3) very interested in fantasy leagues, i'm making a site now, my only question now is what do most leagues do when they switch over to the Chase and can use only 12 drivers.

nothing changes. it's just another segment (all the leagues have divided the season into segments, usually 2 prior to the chase plus the chase for a total of 3.) all rules apply just as with the previous segments. Dover is the last race for segment 1 for those with 2 segments prior to the chase.

In all leagues you're allowed to change drivers each week. There's also a cutoff on how late you can pick your drivers: Yahoo = before qualifying, ESPN & Fox = 5 mins before race starts. AOL also has a Fantasy Racing League, but I don't remember when their cutoff is. Those are the big ones, but there's probably a hundred more... Basically you earn points based on your team's finish. Some give points for qualifying. But none of the leagues give points for non-point races like the All-Star or Bud Shootout. Finally, they all allow you to form your own "league" and make it public or private. In Yahoo, you're allowed to join up to 3 leagues.

Yahoo has divided the drivers into groups: A, B & C. You pick 2 drivers each for A & C and 4 drivers for B. You may "activate" only 1 of the drivers in A & C and 2 in B. You get bonus points for qualifying whether the driver is activated or not, but only race points for the activated driver. You can "activate" a driver a maximum of 9 times in the season. This is the league GoTeamsGo uses.

ESPN assigns each driver a value. The value changes up or down depending on the driver's performance. You have 100 points to "spend" and must pick a team of 5 drivers. There's no limit on the number of races your drivers can participate in.

Fox allows a driver to be used 4 times. And you pick 4 drivers per race.

ESPN also has a head-to-head match race type thing where they select pairs of drivers (10 pairs, I think) and you choose which driver will finish ahead of the other. You get a point for each correct choice.

Hope this info helps you pick a place to start...