No, I have not been threatened, sued, or otherwise harassed, other than the one young man in Charlotte who e-mailed me to say how much he used to like me until I complimented D.W. on being inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. In his 24 year old opinion, I went from “one of the best motorsports writers ever” to an “elderly idiot with no understanding of racing”.  Wow, all that in one 15 minute segment. If Jeff has given me 30 minutes that night, I would probably have been subject to deportation if that young man had his way.  While I will freely admit that what other folks think of me is important,  I am not nearly as concerned about that as I am about what I think about what I believe and what I stand for. Randy Myers showed me the error of my ways as to the Hall of Fame and I will forever be greatful to him and to the good choice I made in taking him up on the invitation to visit the Hall of Fame with him.  Now for a couple of observations and comments about what I’ve seen so far in Daytona, what we can expect  in my opinion between now and Sunday evening, and whatever else I want to say.  After all, unless Jeff cuts me off, this is my 15 minutes of fame every Tuesday night.

First as to Danica Patrick.  I got to see a great deal of her this week (and if you watched Speed Channel anytime since Friday for more than 10 minutes, so have you) and I would offer these observations.  Danica is an exceptional interview. She sat in for part of the Shootout telecast and was most pleasant, informed, and very well spoken.  Like me, she uses her hands to talk, so I think that is cool.  She doesn’t seem to dodge questions which is much more than I can say for some of the drivers.  My one problem was when she was being interviewed by D.W., a clip of which is being shown as a lead-in to the upcoming interview before the 500.  She talks about everyone always “wanting something” from her.  I certainly see her point up to when she said “your time” indicating that she is selfish with her time.  Think for minute if The King had that attitude.  Richard Petty was surely the first to finesse fan interaction to a fine art and thereby grow the sport.  Others were good, Fonty and Tim Flock, Joe Weatherly, Tiger Tom Pistone, but it was Richard who always had the time to share and still does to this day. The stories even his children tell of Richard’s dedication to the fans are legendary.  Wake up Danica. Yes, I know your schedule is always full, but think of the little kid wanting your autograph who may just happen to be my grandson, or the older woman who may have just been my mother.  Time you give to your fans will come back to you ten-fold so don’t brush that off as people wanting something from you.   I would point out to FOX, however, that it is NOT necessary to have a camera on Danica every single second you are on the air.  There are fans out here who care about other drivers too.

Second as to D.W.  I have already said I am kinder and gentler than I was last year. I don’t express an adversarial opinion to D.W. being in the Hall of Fame for to do so would disparage the significance of the induction of such worthy men as Junior Johnson, Ned Jarrett, Glenn Wood, Richard Petty, Cale Yarborough , Richie Evans, and Dale Inman, not to mention those yet to be named inductees who will also be deserving of the honor.  I listened to all he had to say during the many different FOX shows this weekend, but please, Dear Lord, don’t make me have to listen to him squeal like a stuck pig when Kyle Busch does something good, or when he wins like he did Saturday evening.  Go back and listen to the replay of the end of that race.  If old D.W. didn’t soil his pants, I would be very much surprised because the squealing he was doing about Kyle Busch was enough in invoke images of watching my uncle butchering hogs when I was a kid.  I freely admit that D.W.’s voice irritates me as I’m sure my voice irritates some of you listeners, but I am being more patient with him but please, D.W., no more of that squealing.  I hope FOX gets a clue that such noise is enough to make a person turn the channel to reruns of Bob Newhart.

As to Kyle Busch, I have never indicated he can’t drive a race car. Anyone, even his most severe detractors, admit he is a wheel man of the first echelon.  What he did in the Shootout was spectacular and he and the crew deserve the accolades for that win.  But please, Kyle, a couple of mentions of the M&M sponsorship in Victory Lane would have been enough.  To make every other word for 5 minutes include “M&Ms” was a clearly recognized effort on your part to kiss up to M&M Mars for your miserable display of character last year.  You are a great talent, young man, and you do accomplish good things on and off the track.  I sincerely hope you have matured and learned your lesson, but this is the beginning of a long season for you and there are bound to be incidents ahead which will test your mettle.  This year let your maturity match your talent.   And while we are on the subject of Busches, let’s not fail to mention the older brother, Kurt.  His smiles and comments to the press all throughout the weekend were those of a first class public relations effort.  I have to wonder if he had one of those collars around his neck like the dogs wear to keep them inside invisible fences that James Finch can activate when Kurt is about to commit another Busch incident.  He is another one with a long season ahead.

And, finally for tonight, a personal reflection on the Daytona 500.  My first in-person trip was 1962 and I was there every year until the late 80s. I saw Fireball win, I saw Tiny Lund win that miraculous race in 1963.  I saw the King unleash that hemi in 1964 and dominate the race.  I was there in 1966 when the King did it again to become the first two time winner.  I was there in 1972 to see A.J. Foyt win. I was there in 1975 and actually saw The King scream past Benny Parsons and motion for Benny to tag onto his bumper and Richard pulled him to the win as Richard was a few laps down.  I was there in 1976 for the famous Petty-Pearson last lap duel that ended in two crashed race cars and Pearson winning crawling through the grassy infield while Billy Biscoe was trying to push the King’s Dodge across the line.  I was there in 1979 when the Allisons and Cale Yarborough decided to play “Blockheads” in the third turn.  I was there for many more of those 500s.  I was NOT there 11 years ago when the Intimidator crashed on the last lap.   I was not there in 1988 but when I look back over all the past 53  500s,  that 1988 event is the one stands out in my mind.  The man I hated, and I told him that to his face, won that race with his snot-nosed son in second place.  I watched that race on tv and watched the in-car cameras as the last few laps saw Davey trying to win and Bobby trying just as hard to keep his young son in second place.   At the time, my sentiments just expressed prevailed.  I did not like Bobby Allison and I thought Davey to be even less likeable.  As the years have passed and after I had an opportunity to spend some time with Davey in 1992 while working on a tv special, I have realized that it is not only possible to be wrong in your judgments (imagine that), but it is wrong to use the word “hate” so easily.  Later that year, 1988, Bobby’s career ended at Pocono and he has no memory of that Hollywood finish with his son at Daytona.  Davey lost his life at Talladega in a helicopter crash of all things.  When I told Bobby Allison that I “hated” him, I had my arm around his shoulder and his surprised look quickly became a smile as I went on to say how much I had come to respect him and appreciate what he has done for the sport of stock car racing.  Over the past three years I’ve spent a lot of time with this guy I once hated and I treasure ever second of those times.

So, I doubt I’ll ever have exceptionally kind words to share about D.W., Mikey, or either of the Busch brothers, but you see now that opinions can be changed as time goes by.  Even old curmudgeons come to realize that opinions vary from one person to another and while I profess to being correct 99.8% of the time, there is that other two tenths of the time when I have to sit back and say “thank you” to all the folks who have made it possible for me to look forward to the Daytona 500 for yet another year!  My God grant us a save race and the beauty of a grateful winner who will represent the sport in the most positive way.

E-mail me at: legendtim83@yahoo.com  or follow me on Twitter at legendtim83