Back-up car?

I actually took some time last night to watch about 40 minutes of Cup Practice from Daytona on Speed. I think I was just so physically and emotionally exhausted after the day of events, that I needed something to absorb my concentration and, I must admit, watching race cars, even in practice, does that for me.

By the time the practice was over, I lost count of the number of teams bringing out "back-up" cars. Seeing those shiny new cars being unloaded from those extremely expensive haulers, lowered on the fancy lifts, and then pushed to the garage for inspection. Something about all that made me want to go back to the day when a team would show up at the track with a "box" truck, maybe one with the crew cab so the four or five guys who would crew the car could ride together, with the car on an open trailer, with maybe a few "bumps" and "dings" and maybe even a scratch or two in the paint.

I guess I'm getting very old and nostalgic now. I never used LSD (although I did drive an LTD once) but I was sure having "flashbacks" last night. I'm very glad I grew up then. I'm very glad I found this place to hang out with other folks that did too. I'm glad there are young people coming here who want to know the history of where the big show in Daytona this week got its start. Let us never forget there was a Herb Thomas, a Joe Weatherly, a Paul Lewis, a Rex White, a Ned Jarrett, a Lee Petty, a Fireball Roberts and so many more that laid the foundation of what now has it's own television network. Let us never forget cars once raced ON the beach, not AT the beach. Let us never forget the dreamers who built the dirt tracks, the race cars, and the guy from Darlington, Harold Brasington who took stock car racing to a big track level. Being old is not that bad after all.

So, I'll settle down this afternoon to watch The Duels and I'm sure, more than once, I'll see a black and gold number 22 Pontiac, or maybe a white number 42 Oldsmobile, which will remind me that Daytona has a history. Some of us are proud of that!

God bless!

Tim

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What a change! It's been awhile since I've checked in and I'm quite surprised. It may take me awhile to figure it our but first look it's really great.


updated by @tim-leeming: 12/05/16 04:04:08PM

Back when the Pettys were the name on the billboard the guy who wrote the saga above of watching the practice and dreaming of old pettys and fireball cars was one of those die hard racers . Yes he pulled his fantastic Plymouth to the track each week,but not in a closed car carrier or a closed trailer pulled by a dually or pickup loaded with tools and tires. He pulled it first by towbar but that was labor intense because he had repairs to make at the track before he could race. He then graduated to a trailer,yup one with 4 wheels and pulled it with---------are you ready for this ? a borrowed car or whoever was handy,now thats a racer. But tires and tools,a western auto toolbox that held all you needed, were stuck in the racecar. Pit crew you say well if one or two guys wandered over they were it. But when the green flag fell he was a terror on the track. Dont let that smile behind those dark glasses fool you he was on a mission,I know because we butted heads on the track more than once and discussed it in depth in the pits afterwards.So when you see a driver on tv walk up to a camera looking like he just came from makeup,ha ha ha, think of ole Tim dusty and dirty from crawling under the car and fighting the car on the track,and think how that scrawney little brat could compare to the squeaky clean profile of todays drivers-- no comparison because Tim was an all around racer,nomedia or camera following him but was one of the real guys that was chisling out a small part for todays historyMy take on how it was in !970 at the track

Good story Tim i am going to do the same thing watch the twin`s i had to come of the road for cupple of hour`s to get a little work done on my truck i wish i could do like them Nascar boy`s just get a new one and keep going but it don`t work like that you and i live in the real world i will work Sat and Sun to make up for it watch a good race Tim