The Elephant in the Room
Current NASCAR
Tara Ragan's first name is clearly an acronym for Terrible At Representing Allmendinger . That much is true IMO.
AJ's story has more holes in it than a piece of swiss cheese. I don' t buy most of it. At best, he is dumb. At worst, he is a liar. Either way - hardly a recipe for success. But to make sure I understand his explanation - which by the way was confusingly given 'exclusively' to at least a couple of different sources I've seen so far: ESPN's Marty Smith and FOX's Lee Spencer. But I digress...
Hes tired. Whatever. It happens, sure.
- He has FUEL energy drink as a personal sponsor. Unlimited supply Im sure. And doesnt drink one? Nope.
- He was once sponsored by Red Bull. Hunch is he probably still sneaks one when cameras arent rolling. Drink one? Nope.
- 5 Hour Energy is EVERYWHERE around the track these days. Pound one? Nope.
- But when offered a pill with assurance from a 'friend' its an energy pill, sure let me at it. *Pop, swallow*
- And its the ONLY time hes ever done it.
- BS.
That lapse in judgment can't be smoothed over with words like 'innocent decision' or 'one bad decision' as Lee Spencer & Co. chose to write. At age 18-19? Perhaps I'd give him the mulligan. But this just in: A.J. ALLMENDINGER IS A 31 YEAR OLD ADULT PROFESSIONAL MULTIMILLIONAIRE HIGH PROFILE RACE CAR DRIVER.
I get how athletes often think they're invincible. But I'm tired of having their 'minor indiscretions' smoothed away. This isn't an 'innocent decision'. If it played out as he described, its a huge character flaw for someone of his age, profession, and stature.
Do I have empathy for him? Sure. Do I hope he can recover? Sure. Do I feel sorry for him and think he has been treated unfairly by fans, the media and Roger Penske? Hell freakin' no.
My rant to this point is predicated on his having told the truth. As I opened, being dumb is the BEST view of this story I think. I think I can read between the lines well enough that I smell a lot of 'untruths'. But assuming he is telling it as it happened, well that boy I tell ya is dumber than a ...
... dumber than an ...
... as sharp as a pound of ...
... and about as sharp as a ...
