I never heard what went on, only what so many others had to say about the night I was not on the show.  Jeff and I discussed this at Hillsborough and we both agreed we would have a little fun, sort of like those celebrity roasts that Dean Martin used to do on television.  Based on that conversation, I unleashed a diatribe upon the boys worthy of an insult award.  Let it be known that the things I said in my Legendtorial on that night were definitely tongue –in-cheek and were, in no way, an actual insult to any of the other members of the Goat Rodeo.  So, to all the folks who called and wrote the show, it was all in fun, or at least intended to be in fun, and in no way reflects my true feelings towards the other members of The Rodeo for whom I have the highest respect.   I enjoy doing this show and in the four years it has been running, I have missed participation only three times IN SPITE OF the Bopper’s wishes that I take a long leave of absence!!!

Tonight I do want to address a couple issues which were topics of conversation Sunday at Memory Lane Museum during the event honoring Bud Moore. What an outstanding event!!!!  The line of folks was incredible; they started coming through just before 11:00 a.m. and didn't end until after 3:00 p.m.  Alex Beam and his staff put on an absolutely excellent event.  Of course Alex always does such a great job supporting the history of the sport as evidenced by that wonderful museum.  But, somehow, Sunday seemed even more special than usual.  I’m telling you, looking down that table of racing stars was a virtual “who’s who” of stock car racing.  Daytona 500 winners. Cup Champions.  Drivers from all divisions and all decades of the sport.  I heard many stories Sunday I had never heard before and, as always, those stories took me back to my early days as a race fan.  These events always transport me back to a time when racing WAS truly about the drivers and the cars built by men like Bud Moore.  When the builders could use their ingenuity and creativity and the drivers could, and would, drive their hearts out to win. Note I said WIN... not run for points.  In fact, as I was thinking of Rex White and Bobby Allison winning championships, I could not recall of one instance where either ran for “points”.  Those guys raced to win.  Oh, I’m sure some of the fans of today will support the argument that it is still about winning, but other than Brad Keselowski and Kyle Busch, I think the “winning” scenario is for pre-race press releases only.  It’s not the same.

I have no idea how many people came through that line Sunday and I didn’t ask Alex how many tickets were sold but I do know that I heard the remark, many times, how different it was to come to this event than going to a race.  Being in Mooresville the day AFTER the race at Charlotte, gave many fans the advantage of coming by to meet these icons of history.  I know I talked with at least four families from Canada who came for the Charlotte race as well as others from all over the country who came for the race.  I heard comments, over and over, how much more fun it was to be in Memory Lane talking to these guys than it was being at the race.  I talked to a man and his wife from Indiana that had been to every Charlotte race since 1983 and stated flatly, without reservation, that this trip would be their last.  He went on to say that racing has just “lost it” for him.  Some folks said the competition was no good, others said the cars are all so much alike it is no fun anymore to pull for a Ford, or Chevy, or Dodge, or whatever. But, resounding over and over, were comments about the difference in drivers today and the drivers sitting there in Memory Lane.  One guy told me he had asked a certain “big star” for an autograph Saturday afternoon when that driver was just standing there with a couple folks around.  The fan was told, very rudely he says, that “I don’t give autographs”.  That really shocked me, but, then again, with some of the other things I heard Sunday, I think I am about past being shocked by anything.

One older lady told me that it was so good to be with drivers who actually LOOKED at her when talking to her.  She said she has stopped asking for autographs at the track because of the way she has been treated.  She went on to relate several stories of several current drivers who were rude, almost to the point of being insulting, while scribbling something on whatever the fans put before them.  She told me that only TWO drivers have ever made eye contact with her at the track.  I found that astounding.  I either read it somewhere, or saw it in a video, when Richard Petty said he did autographs as a way of thanking the fans for supporting the sport.  He said he considers each autograph he signs as a “thank you”.  I like that thought.  I guess that means The King has “thanked me” some one million plus times over his career.

All in all, the bottom line of my interaction with all the fans at Memory Lane Sunday proved the following points:

1. Fans still come in all ages.  A little guy named Levi came to visit me, with his father, several times. I think he was six, not sure, but he was quite a gentleman and quite a race fan.  I enjoyed interacting with him very much. I also talked with a gentleman from Pennsylvania in his mid eighties who said he  had always been a race fan  but had never met Bobby Allison.  He was beside himself with having met Bobby.  He couldn’t stop talking about what a thrill it was to be at the event.  When I asked him how he enjoyed Saturday night’s race, he looked me squarely in the eyes and said “what race”, dripping with sarcasm.
2.  Fans want to see real racecars.  Fan after fan talked about all the cars on display there in the Museum and how beautiful they were and how much those cars were appreciated.  Several fans mentioned that they wish NASCAR would go back to running cars you could tell apart from each other.
3. Fans are really good with rumors.  Several said they have heard that Dale, Jr. is being punished by NASCAR for his comments after the Talladega race and is being punished secretly so as not to upset Junior Nation.  While I would not put such tactics beyond the realm of possibility for the boys in the black Suburbans, I don’t think that would happen.  The other part of the “rumor” is that Junior has been advised by his doctor to NEVER return to driving as his concussions have reached the point that the next could be fatal or, at the very least, life altering.  Not sure I buy into that either, but if that is the case, I do hope Junior listens to his doctor.
4. Fans are really tired of being paid lip-service only by NASCAR.  More than one mentioned, in one form or another, that NASCAR just takes their money now and gives nothing in return.  We won’t even get into the discussions I had about motel and hotel expenses for race weekends.

I am always very honored to be included in the group of folks paying tribute to the history of the sport we love.  Thanks to this site and Jeff Gilder, I have gotten to know so many fine folk I would never had encountered if we didn’t have such events.  Alex Beam and Memory Lane certainly take care of the fans who come there, as do The Historic Racing Group in Hillsborough, NC, or the Augusta International Raceway Preservation Society in Georgia, or The Georgia Racing Hall of Fame, or the Columbia Speedway Group.  RacersReunion represents fans who love the sport for what it was and we honor those who made it so.  I think, from what I heard this weekend and what I have heard over and over and over, NASCAR is losing its base, if not already lost it.  More than one comment was made to me Sunday that the individual had been to the NASCAR HOF in Charlotte and it couldn’t hold a candle to Memory Lane.  Many told stories of standing in line for hours to get a current driver’s autograph only to be disappointed with the lack of acknowledgement as the driver made lines with a Sharpie.  Sunday, folks stood in line, some for four hours, and everyone of them was in a good mood, laughing, making new friends, and really enjoying where they were and what they were doing.

NASCAR, you MUST know you are losing the fans.  How can you look at the stands at most any track and think that you are to remain a valid sport for much longer. Good Lord, Dudes, if Dale, Junior has to retire, what at you going to do?  Your franchise driver will be gone.  How many fans will leave with him?  You are in trouble, Brian, and I wish I could help.  But remember this:  You brought this all on yourself. You, young man, took a great sport and began to drive it in the ground with your careless and reckless manner.  You have no interest in preservation of the heritage.  You have no interest in tradition. You have no interest in the fan. You can give all the lip service you want to the fan, but make no mistake Mr. France, race fans are not stupid!  True race fans are not stupid!  Maybe many of this new demographic group you’re trying so hard to reach are not fully engaged in the sport yet so I’m not going to be so bold as to say they are ignorant of the facts, but I do hope they learn quickly that NASCAR has forsaken every virtue upon which it was built.  NASCAR has proved, in the last two weeks, that all the lip service to driver safety is only convenient if it is something that can be done without ending such debacles as the Talladega last lap.   Watch the movie “Grand Prix”, which is one of the few auto racing movies ever made that is worth the time to sit down and absorb.   Watch the end, when Jean Pierre Sarti is killed and his girlfriend, Eva Marie Saint, I believe, holds her bloody hands up and screams to the crowd “Is this what you want to see?” as Jean Pierre dies in her arms.   Junior was right to call it “bloodthirsty”.  Doubt that?  Look at the Forum Post where the NASCAR HOF boldly advertises the addition of the “wreck exhibit”.  If there is one among us tonight who watches races for the wrecks, please don’t admit it here.

Someone asked me Sunday if I really hated being “so old”.  The kid was probably 18.  My sincere answer was “not at all.  I was around for the very best of stock car racing.”  I’ll look forward to the next time I can sit between Gene Hobby and Rex White and sign autographs.  It is really great to have been a part of the growing of the sport.  Maybe that is why I have no patience for what is going on today.

Call me, Brian. We should talk.

-Tim

Email:  legendtim83@yahoo.com

Twitter: @legendtim83

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(Editor’s note: Tim Leeming is a member of the regular cast of the Tuesday evening racing show ” Racing Through History”, presented on Zeus Radio Network by RacersReunion®. Archives can be found by following the link. Live broadcasts can be heard from 7:00-9:00 PM every Tuesday. Please feel free to join us in the RacersReunion® Chat Room for the show.)