So, my friends, how many times have you been wished a "Happy New Year" in the past say 10 days? I am certainly guilty of using that phrase and I do it sincerely, but, as I mentioned in the last Legendtorial of 2013, we should embrace each and every day and a NEW DAY and another chance to be a little better than we were the day before. I do realize, and I researched this, that the tradition of New Years as a "new beginning" goes back at least 4,000 years. Not sure they had confetti back then but I'm sure they had fireworks, at least in China. Not sure they made "resolutions" back then either, but surely to mankind 4,000 years ago, it was probably resolved that if they could survive until the next day that would be a major achievement.
How many of you listening (or reading this later) made resolutions for the New Year? I used to do that, sometimes listing them on a page and many times totaling up to around 20. Oh, there were always the "lose weight, stop smoking, exercise more, be a nicer person, yada, yada, yada". I quit with the resolutions quite a number of years ago as I began to strive every day to be the kind of person my Mama would have wanted me to be. While I'm sure I still fall far short of that expectation, I think I have made huge strides. I have lost weigh, I haven't smoked in 15 years, I do exercise now. As for being a nicer person, I try, but those I meet and those who know me have to be the judge of that. As for the "yada, yada,yada", I'll have to ask Wally Bell how I've done with that.
Since last we met here on a Tuesday night, we have been through a Christmas which I hope was the very best for everyone. As I watched a plethora of Christmas movies, I once more made the wish that the spirit of the true Christmas could stay with us all throughout the year. Although I don't make resolutions anymore, it will be my constant goal to exhibit the spirit of Christmas for the next 353 days and then renew that promise once more. Feeling the warmth of a crackling fire on a very cold night equates to the feeling I hope to give to others throughout the coming year. I hope you all will join me in that endeavor. We certainly have enough of the cruel, nasty and selfish folks around to make a difference with our attitudes. We all know people for whom life is a series of misadventures, complaints, negatives, nasty comments, and know-it-all attitudes that promote a feeling of superiority when, in fact, it indicates that person is missing the point. You all have heard the comments, some from me, that indicate improvements are needed. Hopefully, I will continue to work on my improvements and I hope there are those who really need such attitude adjustments will pay heed to my suggestion.
Ok, enough of my attempt to express something philosophically meaningful. Time to talk about a NEW racing season and what may lie ahead for us in 2014. Testing starts for the Cup and Nationwide Cars later this week, on Thursday I believe, at Daytona, and it is expected that new rules implemented over the break will enhance competition. We will see how that goes as NASCAR seems to miss the boat with attempts to do something productive with these "plate" races. Maybe I am just not smart enough to understand this, but as I have worked on Racing History Minutes over the past nine months, I notice all the pictures of the cars back when Daytona and Talladega racing was truly racing and not a chess match, the cars were not scraping the track as they do now, and surely something as simple (as it appears to me) as raising the heights of the cars would produce better racing. But it is pointless for me to address that issue other than to put forth the suggestion of such action as a starting point for NASCAR.
After the testing sessions, Daytona will ready itself for the 24 Hours of Daytona. I have come to appreciate that event more than I did years ago. Maybe it's because some of our NASCAR guys compete, or maybe it's just because the racing gets quite exciting through the night when you would expect it to settle down. I'm sure I'll never truly understand how they keep up with all the different classes but they do, and the event showcases a number of car types from the world of motorsports. I am looking forward to that event.
Before you know it, pole qualifying and the showcase special event, whatever it's called these days, will be unfolding before us. But before we get that far along, let's think about the events that will unfold thanks to the efforts of Dargan Watts and Zetta Baker, among others, during the week leading up to the Daytona 500. . Check out the "Events" listing here on the site to get more information about all the activities to unfold during that week. There will be many honors handed out to the pioneers of the sport who gave so much to make stock car racing a viable sport in this country. During the week, many of our own vintage car folks will participate in another parade on the old beach course where racing in Daytona got its start. That, in itself, is of great historic significance and this site is about the historic significance of the sport.
NASCAR has, in the 65 plus years of its existence, has accomplished things not believed possible when the folks left that meeting in the Streamline Hotel in Daytona in December, 1947. While everyone knows I have issues with certain actions by the sanctioning body over the past few years, and a particular issue with the current France leadership, I do have to readily admit that I am not capable of running such an organization. Like him or not, Big Bill France was the driving force that made the sport work from the beginning. Bill, Jr. was able to make the sport a true marketing machine which moved it into the mainstream of the sporting world in the United States and, in my opinion, worldwide. I did not always agree with the actions and decisions of either of the Bills, but I have to admit that it was through their efforts the sport was able to move from a an unorganized group, or groups, of men racing cars to where it is today.
I also may not be in agreement with statements of the current NASCAR management that racing has never been better. I am not in the mood to get into a discussion this evening about whether racing was better in the 50s and 60s than it is today. For me, it was better back then. For others, not so much. But no matter on which side of that fence you may find yourself, without the 40s, 50s and 60s, there would be no show in 2014, at least not to the extent you will see unfold before your eyes this season.
I am looking forward to a great season. I expect all the action at Daytona to bring up the level of excitement to a fever pitch by the time the 500 takes the green flag. Whether or not the actual race will equal the anticipation remains to be seen, but I do think, from what I've read and what I heard at the NASCAR Technical Institute in December, that NASCAR is making a dedicated effort to address some of the major issues which made many of the 2013 events lackluster. There was the time, from 1959 through probably 1995 or so, when I anticipated the Daytona 500 more than you could believe. Back in the days when we would actually attend the race, 1962 through 1992, the day after Christmas started my countdown to the green flag long before we had computer programs to do that for us. Oh, speaking of which, if you haven't checked out the way Jerry Smith with S.T.A.R.S. Radio is counting down the days 'til the 500, check that out in the Forum Posts on the Stock Car page. Jerry is giving us a pictorial history of some great race cars.
So, my friends, we have testing coming up, the NASCAR Hall of Fame Induction and the 24 Hours of Daytona this month of January. The events scheduled in Daytona by Victory Lane Racing and other organizations involved in Historic Preservation of the sport are coming up in February. For the next 50 or so days, the eyes of the motorsports world, will focus on Daytona. The roar of the engines of so many types of cars will disrupt the peace and quiet of the area around Volusia Avenue as it has for so many years now. Things may be so different than they were in 1959 when that track opened for the first time, but the passion of those of us who love the sport is still there. My passion may not burn as brightly as once it did, but it is far from extinguished.
We are seven days into a New Year. That magical time when the turning of a calendar page gives us hope and desire for a new beginning. Not that this is a resolution, and I really don't believe that beginning a New Year is any different than beginning a new day, but I will make every effort to be a positive force in the lives of all I meet and all with whom I interact in any capacity. I have truly learned in my lifetime, that a kind word can work wonders. I have learned that a smile opens doors that may otherwise remained locked. I have learned that it is not as important to prove myself always right as it is to prove myself understanding of others. I have learned that there are those folks out there who exist only to antagonize other folks with their words and actions. Those folks are the ones whom I can do without. I hope we all will have a Happy New Year and as wonderful and safe racing season.
