Why Nascar destroyed a great division of racing ( Late Model Sportsman & Busch Grand National)
Thomas K. Craig
Monday November 9 2009, 10:51 PM
Im not and never will be a Kyle Busch fan. And you ask how he pertains to the heading of the blog. But its funny how they all play up to how great he is by this weekends media frenzy how nobody has won in 3 divisions at same track on same weekend. They pump his name up as, oh he won the truck race and the Busch race (I absolutely refuse to call it Nationwide). Heck he should win and be a front runner in those divisions. I mean he is a Cup driver for heavens sake. All Cup drivers shouldnt be allowed to run in that division or Trucks. You dont see Major Leaguers playing in Triple A in baseball do you. Oh I understand why Nascar has them running in them, its the only way those divisions can survive. Well guess what Nascar its your fault. Back in early 90's you took the Busch cars away from small tracks and made them a companion series to feed your greedy pockets at the big tracks. I went to many Busch races at Orange County Speedway, South Boston Speedway and Martinsville. And of course none of those races exist anymore. And dont get me started on the Truck series. My opinion it needs to be done away with if they continue to run it the way it has been run. That series is a short track series and thats all.But putting Kyle Busch's name up their with one of my heroes, Sam Ard, to me is shameful to Sam. I appreciate what Kyle did for Sam last year by giving him & his wife Jo a lump sum of money. Thats about the only respectable thing he has ever did, but maybe i'm wrong. But back to the matter at hand. To me when I was growing the Late Model Sportsman series was like my cup series. I loved those races and they were always competitive. I was fortunate enough to watch Sam Ard, Jack Ingram, Tommy Ellis, Dale Jarrett, Tommy Houston, Larry Pearson, etc. Those drivers and those races gave me some of my best times in life because I always went to those races with my father. Me and him going to the race almost every Saturday night was a treat for a young kid like myself. And those 5-6 races we would go to every year when the Busch guys came to town our memories that will stick in my mind forever. Their is nothing like having your ears ringing from hearing those V6 (Bumblebees) on a Sunday morning after a Saturday night watching those guys beat and bang for all its worth. I defintely contribute some of my hearing loss to that. But in the time of the early 90's those short tracks began losing their Busch series dates and more and more they would be take up the Saturday before the Winston Cup track dates.A very dissapointing moment was in the early 90's when Nascar took away the two triple headers that Martinsville would put on in March and October. You got your moneys worth in those races. 100 lap Late Model Stock, 200 laps Winston Modifieds at the time and 200 lap Busch Grand National, now that was racing my friend. Modifieds are another division that I love and Nascar wants to push out for some reason, but only one frustration at a time. In 1996 when North Wilkesboro lost its two dates and then the track was left dormant until this year. Why couldnt N. Wilkesboro be used as a track for Busch, Truck, Modified, ASA, and All-Pro tour at the time? And we all know that answer, money. In 1997 Nascar made such a big deal with the Busch series when it went west of the Mississippi for the first time at California. And from that moment on, that series has botttomed out. Ask yourself how many of the series championships have come to the last race. I remember one in 2003 and maybe there was a couple more. Now Cup drivers are winning that series championships but massive margins. Anybody see anything wrong with that. It tells me that this once exciting division is merely just another attempt to get your money on Saturday. The racing is pathetic and boring and it bears no resemblance of what a great division it once was.
Thomas K. Craig
@thomas-k-craig   15 years ago
You mention Robert Pressley, Robbie. He won his very first BGN race at Orange County Speedway in an unsponsored car. And I will always remember that towering guy that was in victory lane, you all know him he works for ESPN on Nascar broadcasts and was a former NBA player. Anybody remember 1988, Tommy Ellis won championship without a sponsor. Robert and "Terrible" Tommy winning without a sponsor. Sheer determination and driving skill, they won. Cant do it now, got to have big sponsor, lots of money to win. Its terrible and its really sad its that way. And Robbie, thank god for Bowman Gray its still surviving. Thank you race fans from Winston-Salem, Greensboro and the Triad area for attending this great historic track.
Thomas K. Craig
@thomas-k-craig   15 years ago
Another thing Robbie. I will be giving a commentary about the Modified division very soon. You are so right a very neglected series that was the first division of Nascar. Oh how quickly they forget.
Paul Zappardino
@paul-zappardino   15 years ago
You said it Tom! Let me add to that, Asmost if not all of you know I cut my teeth in the LMS division, I was going to Beltsville all the time and full time since I graduated high school in 73. I was involved with LMS till they went Busch. It was "GREAT" racing all short track except for the LMS big show at Daytona for the Permatex 300 till Charlotte had the World Service Life 300 in the fall of 77. GREAT racing, GREAT drivers, GREAT tracks, and GREAT memories Beltsville, Manansas,South Boston,Southside, Martinsville, the Cardianl and Dogwood classic was sort of our bi yearly "SUPER BOWL!!!!! Drivers like Hutchins, Hendricks, Lindley,Ingram,Ard,Glover,Ottinger,Sherherd,Lowe, Dion,Gant,Allison, Kagle,Bland,Boswell,Guthrie, Pressley, Dennis, Pond,Ivan Baldwin. So many memories, Yea we did have a problem in LMS that the cup guys would run in ex-cup iron and for the most part took many superspeedway events for example all the time at Daytons except for Dennis winning 3 in the early 70's and Ingram winning 2, it was either Earnhardt,Waltrip or Donnie Allison winning. And ASSCAR ( that is what i call them) could not control it, they went to commercial and I knew that after the 81 season short track LMS was gone forever. A bunch of us on this site are trying to get the records form the LMS division seems ASSCAR put them in a circular file!!!!!! THEY TRASHED EM!!!!!! WTH! I haqve always thought of writing a book called NASCAR Late Model Sportsman , "The FORGOTTEN"Series" ASSCAR does not care about their roots, When you forget your past, you have no future. I could go on and on with this but to sum it up NASCAR destroyed the LMS division with lack of vision and greed . And I get ticked when they compare Kyle Busch to my heroes from LMS these "PRETTY BOYS" could not handle a schedule like the LMS guys did! NEVER!!!!!!!!!!! there is no comparison, not even close, I also have a comentary on the modfied division another division ASSCAR put optu to rot. God forbid we have to take care of our top 3 touring divisions!!!! Far as I am concerned they can trash their "BIG 3" I could care less, hey took the grwatest thing in my life and threw it away, ASSCAR is a freaking circus and nothing like it should be , Sorry for venting , BUT this is soemthing that will always eat at me heart!
bert dew
@bert-dew   15 years ago
That was racing, I have been to many of the LMS races. If I could get there and back in a weekend I be there. (Tenn.,Va. South and North Carolina) Now I go to all Dirt LMS races. These Big Dirt races but me back in the days of my hero`s like Sam ,Jack, Dale Sr. Harry I was going to races in 1952 with Grannddaddy and car 169 from Goldsboro N.C. They call Grannddaddy John Boone.