Race Fans Pay the Price
General
Couple of weeks back Brian co-hosted a Mitt Romney fundraiser at the Duke Mansion in Charlotte.
Forum Activity for @dave-fulton
General
Race Fans Pay the Price
General
Oh, I now see that Mr. Romney will attend the Saturday night Richmond race. We are so happy to let my birth city have the politicians after suffering through a week with 'em here in Charlotte. Good luck up there.
Race Fans Pay the Price
General
The final motorcade has passed by our subdivision this morning and Air Forces One and Two have buzzed the house heading to New Hampshire and other points unknown.. The Democrats are leaving our little town of Charlotte today.
One of the things the Democratic National Convention delegates and media buzzed about this week in Charlotte was the exorbitant jump in hotel and motel room rates during the Democratic National Convention here. Seedy, roach infested rooms were commanding $400-$500/night.
They just think they have it bad. Your very first guess will be correct when you attempt to answer the question of who pays the highest hotel and motel rates of any group visiting Charlotte. The same answer is also the correct answer for most areas hosting a NASCAR race.
Recession?? " What recession ," ask the hotels and motels with their inflated rates? We race fans know we're gonna get robbed on race ticket prices ( but some of the seats are now wider ) and the price of gas. And we've always expected to be robbed at the hotels and motels.
If there was any question whatsoever that we NASCAR race fans pay the biggest rate increases, the president of our local Charlotte Better Business Bureau confirmed it to Reuters News Agency yesterday. So shut up convention delegates and media and quit moaning and groaning. You had it good compared to our NASCAR guests coming to Charlotte in October. I guess that'll teach Z to host an Elephant fundraiser here.
Hotel prices high? Come back race week
Posted: Thursday, Sep. 06, 2012
The Charlotte Observer
CHARLOTTE, N.C. Demand creates commerce and sometimes enough demand creates price-gouging.
Reuters news agency looked into whether the tens of thousands of visitors to Charlotte for the Democratic National Convention caused merchants to charge unreasonable prices for their wares and services. While everything from turkey bagels to campaign buttons to the most basic hotel room seems pricey this week, officials told Reuters they dont have evidence merchants are breaking North Carolina law.
Nothing that weve seen so far comes close to meeting our states law on price gouging, Tom Bartholomy, president of the Better Business Bureau of Charlotte told Reuters.
Bartholomy said his organization hasnt received any formal complaints during convention. That, despite various low-income families being pushed out of economy hotels this week, with some prices being jacked up five-fold or more.
Bartholomy told Reuters hotel prices rise higher during NASCAR race weeks than they have during the DNC.
Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/09/06/3509757/hotel-prices-high-come-back-for.html#storylink=cpy
updated by @dave-fulton: 12/05/16 04:02:07PM
NASCAR Rear Steer Rules
General
I always remember Bud Moore telling me that if he had a really good, new cheating deal, he made sure he had at least three other more obvious things for inspectors to find that he would then jump up and down about while what he really wanted to get through inspection slid by.
I also, like Slick, thought those were fan switches Jimmie was switching on and off.
NASCAR Rear Steer Rules
General
Poor ole Brad has really gained some notoriety over this deal, hasn't he?
Keselowski talks as well as he drives
By: Paul Woody | Richmond Times-Dispatch
Published: September 07, 2012
RICHMOND, Va. --
The only thing Brad Keselowski might do better than drive a Sprint Cup car is talk.
The young driver, 28, is affable, outgoing and unafraid to say what is on his mind.
Recently, he said some Sprint Cup cars were finding more speed than others. That was interpreted as Keselowski accusing Hendrick Motorsports of bending the rules.
"My comments were an observation on what was being seen and that was turned around into an accusation of cheating," Keselowski said. "There is a misconception that since we drive stock cars, they're all the same and anybody who drives a car that is different is cheating.
"That's baffling to me. I made it a point not to call out specific teams. I said half a dozen to a dozen cars ... I don't think there's anyone out there who doesn't believe Hendrick cars are one of those groups. But I respect them and their ability to be innovators."
Somehow, the HMS drivers didn't get the message. They must not follow Keselowski on Twitter.
"I think you need to have your facts straight and understand what's going on," said Hendrick driver Jimmie Johnson.
Keselowski once drove for the Nationwide team owned by another HMS driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr.
"Brad is a really good guy," Earnhardt said. "He has a pretty good heart. He's a really great race car driver, and I wish he would concentrate on that.
"I think he likes to talk a lot, but I think his true skills shine on the race track, not really behind the microphone."
Earnhardt offers thoughtful answers, and his insight is instructive.
But it's hard to agree with him on Keselowski.
NASCAR is a much tamer place than it once was. Drivers are more buttoned down, far more aware of sponsors and the corporate image they need to maintain.
Keselowski is with an owner, Roger Penske, and sponsor, Miller Lite, that have a tolerance for drivers who speak their minds.
Rusty Wallace, never shy with his opinions, won 55 races in the same car, the No. 2 Blue Deuce, for Penske and Miller Lite.
"He's doing it his way, and his way is similar to my way," Wallace said. "Brad is a fantastic driver. He's different. He's now. He's new age.
"He's fun to watch. He's confident. He's aggressive and can still bring the car home to victory lane. A lot of guys are aggressive, and they wreck the car."
Keselowski, who has qualified for the Chase for the Sprint Cup, caught on quickly that driving a race car would be an important part of his life.
"Racing excited me," he said. "It got me out of bed every morning when few things did. I respected it and wanted to do my best."
So far, so good. If you doubt that, just ask him. Thankfully, Keselowski isn't shy about answering.
Sadler Gone from RCR... Headed to Joe Gibbs?
Current NASCAR
Sep 7, 1:03 PM EDT
Sadler believes he can win Nationwide title at RCR
By JENNA FRYER
AP Auto Racing Writer
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- Elliott Sadler has confirmed he will not be returning to Richard Childress Racing next season.
The Nationwide Series points leader doesn't think his impending departure will hurt his chances at winning the championship.
Sadler goes into Friday night's Nationwide race at Richmond International Raceway with a 12-point lead over defending champion Ricky Stenhouse Jr. with nine races left in the season. He shed little insight into why he's leaving RCR except that "sometimes the stars just don't line up."
Sadler also said he has no deal locked up yet for next year, and is exploring both Sprint Cup Series and Nationwide Series rides. He's believed to be close to a deal to drive one of the Nationwide entries at Joe Gibbs Racing next season.
Sadler Gone from RCR... Headed to Joe Gibbs?
Current NASCAR
Guess that news actually broke Sunday, but I hadn't seen it.
Elliott Sadler leaving RCR, team owner Richard Childress says
Published Sunday, Sep 2, 2012 at 7:46 pm EDT
Bob Pockrass Sporting News
HAMPTON, Ga.Elliott Sadler, the Nationwide Series points leader, wont return to Richard Childress Racing next season.
Team owner Richard Childress told SiriusXMs NASCAR channel Sunday that Sadler has decided to leave the organization.
Elliott Sadler has won four Nationwide races this season.
I think hes done gone somewhere else, Childress said. Were disappointed. Hes had the best season. We dont know what else we could have done.
Joe Gibbs Racing, the most likely destination if Sadler wants to remain in a top-tier Nationwide ride, has no deal to announce with Sadler, a JGR spokesman said.
Sadler, who came to RCR after RCR absorbed the Kevin Harvick Inc. program after 2011, has four wins this season and leads defending series champion Ricky Stenhouse Jr. by 12 points with nine races left in the season.
Sadler, who has three career Sprint Cup victories, finished second in Nationwide points last season.
Sadlers RCR teammate is Austin Dillon, Childress grandson. Austins brother, Ty Dillon, is racing for RCR in the Camping World Truck Series and is expected to move to Nationwide.
Sadler Gone from RCR... Headed to Joe Gibbs?
Current NASCAR
I guess there is one Dillon too many at Richard Childress Racing.
According to the NBC television affiliate WWBT in Richmond, Childress has indicated that Elliott won't return. Speculation has Joe Gibbs Racing in his future.
Here's a link to the 25 second television clip out of Richmond.
http://www.nbc12.com/category/128878/sports
updated by @dave-fulton: 12/05/16 04:04:08PM
63 Years Since NASCAR's First Female Top-10
Stock Car Racing History
Thanks, David. For the life of me I could not remember.