[LSC9901]

You Have the Right to Remain Silent

Darrell Waltrip


Folks, I was watching the Blue Collar Comedy guys on TV the other night, and one of them said something that every driver ought to be aware of, if they're not already.

"You have the right to remain silent, but you just don't have the ability."
That's the way drivers are. When you put a camera and a microphone in front of them, it's their opportunity to express themselves and tell you how they feel. Sometimes, they're excited and happy. Sometimes, they're upset and disappointed. But it's live TV, and I love live TV. That's why I love doing the races. I don't like to see anything taped or rehearsed. I want it in real time, as it's happening. If you want everything to be perfect, tape the races, edit out all of the bad stuff and show them on TV.
Our shows are live sporting events, and when you're covering something live, you just never know what you're going to get. If it's a concert or a politician's news conference, sometimes things come out, and after they come out, it takes a lot of 'splainin' for others to understand what you meant and why you said what you said.

After watching three really exciting events — the Craftsman Trucks, Busch cars and the Cup cars Ć last weekend from ORP and Indy, I was so excited about the racing. But just like the race before when Tony Stewart won and made a comment about going out and having a few cold ones, he made another comment in an interview after the Brickyard. In no way do I condone foul language. It's not appropriate. But I had to kind of laugh when Greg Biffle got fined for not talking after the Busch race, and Tony Stewart got fined for talking too much. That's hilarious.
After every great weekend of racing, you have to wait until Tuesday to find out who will be fined for what. It's always the same old thing: Actions detrimental to the sport. Well, a lot of actions by non-competitors are detrimental to the sport.
NASCAR has to control everything, but it's almost to the point that not only are they trying to control everything, they're looking for perfection. The tracks and the cars have to be safer. The cars all have to be alike, and the drivers have to say the right thing. They can't be outside the lines in any way, shape, form or fashion.
Sanitizing the sport is not what it's all about. A lot of people love, care about and watch our sport because they get to see raw emotion. Drivers get annoyed with each other. Cars fly into the wall and catch fire. There's an element of danger and sheer excitement. If you try to control it, you end up hurting the sport.
I understand that NASCAR must enforce the rules, but I just get tired of hearing about drivers and crew chiefs being fined for ridiculous things. It's always much ado about nothing. I just hate to see my driver and crew chief buddies always walking around in fear and wondering, "Am I the guy that's going to get fined this week? Am I the guy that's going to be made an example of this week?"
We just need to be thankful and grateful for great racing. People have crash but haven't been seriously hurt. People are watching on TV and going to the races. We just need to capitalize on the positives and quit trying to make everything perfect. Striving for perfection is hurting our sport and the people in it.

Ready to roval

This week, we're going to Pocono Raceway, and we're running 500 miles on a roval. We're going to do a little rovaling this weekend. Pocono is not an oval. It's not a short track. It's not a superspeedway. It's a 2 1/2-mile track that drives and acts like a road course so we named it a roval a long time ago, and it's certainly appropriate. Pocono and the tires that Goodyear runs there don't change a lot.
The same guys should run up front this week because Pocono and Indy are very similar so car setup is very similar. Both tracks have long straightaways. You have to have good horsepower, and you've got to be able to handle the Tunnel Turn at Pocono, probably the most difficult turn in racing. It's straight in, hard left and straight out on this flat, 90-degree turn. Drivers hold their breath when they go down the Long Pond Straightaway at 190-200 mph, looking at that turn.

Who to Watch at Pocono

Look for Denny Hamlin to be the guy to beat, just like he's been the guy to beat the last couple of races at Pocono. His teammate, Tony Stewart, will be right there with him. It's that part of the season when Tony's tough to beat every week. It's going to be a real battle between Stewart and Jeff Gordon for who will be the favorite to win the championship. If Kurt Busch has a good race, he could knock Dale Earnhardt Jr. out of the top 12 and put himself in there so that's another good battle to watch.

Three keys to winning

Five hundred miles at Pocono is always hard on engines, but watch out for brake problems, too. A number of guys have had brake issues there. Now that we don't shift gears anymore, you have to rely on brakes more than ever. The third biggest factor at Pocono is gas mileage. If you run out of gas going down the front straightaway at Pocono, you're done. Your goose is cooked. There's no way to coast back. You can't even come off of Turn 1 and head down the back straightaway without fuel because you won't make it back to pit road. You've always got to play on the safe side. If there's a chance that you're going to run out of gas with a lap to go, you're taking a bigger risk by running that lap at Pocono than you are at a lot of other places.

[Quality88]

Wow, There is alot there that I agree with.

[LSC9901]

Originally Posted by Quality88

Wow, There is alot there that I agree with.

Here's the part I agree with the most:

"You have the right to remain silent, but you just don't have the ability."

[Quality88]

Originally Posted by LSC9901

Here's the part I agree with the most:

"You have the right to remain silent, but you just don't have the ability."

I'm shocked

[LSC9901]

Originally Posted by Quality88

I'm shocked

Well first off it applies to the Wit Brothers !!!

[tkj24]

Originally Posted by LSC9901

Here's the part I agree with the most:

"You have the right to remain silent, but you just don't have the ability."

I think DW wuz talking about me when he said that. LOL

[Phils20]

Wow. That just might be the best stuff he has said since his driving days. I liked him as a driver, but I think it is just too much hearing him for 3-5 hours on Sundays.

Biggest problem with him, I'm thinking, is that it has gotten into his head that big ratings mean folks love all the crap they do, when we are really just there for the racing.

"You have the right to remain silent, but you just don't have the ability."

That line could also apply to the race calls, and all the extra BS that we have thrown at us. I listened to the MRN the other day, while having the TV on, and you have a ton less commercials there.

I realize that on the radio, they can't do the cutaway cars and the like, but it is just so much better just to hear the facts of the race!

Great post, thanks for shanring it!

[hacksaw]

Now the dim witts are posting

[I Flip For Carl]

Originally Posted by LSC9901

Here's the part I agree with the most:

"You have the right to remain silent, but you just don't have the ability."

I think DW needs to follow his own advice

[Bob Tanner]

Keep the guy away from a TV camera and he actually makes a lot of sense.

[hacksaw]

Originally Posted by hacksaw

Now the dim witts are posting

By dim witts i mean D.W. and M.W.

[LSC9901]

Originally Posted by Bob Tanner

Keep the guy away from a TV camera and he actually makes a lot of sense.

TV camera, radio, any microphone, newspaper reporters, tabloids. grade school newspapers ........

[hacksaw]

Originally Posted by LSC9901

TV camera, radio, any microphone, newspaper reporters, tabloids. grade school newspapers ........

Would a roll of duct tape help?

[LSC9901]

Originally Posted by hacksaw

Would a roll of duct tape help?

It would have to be a bog roll !!!

[oncea3fan]

that was actually a great read ,if you read it with out prejustice against DW before you even look at it.