The season wrap-up...

‘Gulp, gulp, and gulp…ahhhh’ the Kool-Aide tastes great. The end of the racing season has come and the checkers are waving. It’s time to sip the grape goodness and come up with more ‘season’s best’ in order to conform to the others who write in circles.

Foot in Mouth: The best quote of the season
Tony Stewart polishes off a case

"You have no idea how glad I am to have a week off," he said. "I'm taking this momentum on vacation. And I've got a case of Schlitz that I fully intend on getting to the bottom of the cardboard box on tonight, even if I have to do it by myself. I don't care, it's going to happen. That's if I don't pass out first."

Tony, don’t you think you can afford something a little better than ‘Schlitz’? In fact the quote got Tony in a bit of hot water with ESPN’s ‘Pardon the Interruption’ Tony Kornheiser commented that Tony was a poor role model, are you kidding me. If he’s such a bad role model then why is twelve-year-old Duncan giving all his Christmas present money to the Victory Junction Gang Camp because “Tony did it and I want to be nice like him.”

Girlie War: The best squabble or on track incident
Kevin and Juan ‘slap hands’ (photo)

It was the fight that made girl scouts everywhere laugh. Two grown men going at it like a couple of sissy schoolgirls. That’s what happened when Kevin Harvick and Juan Pablo Montoya exited their wrecked cars at Watkins Glen in August.

Kevin should know better, does Bristol…Ricky Rudd…Greg Biffle…any of those ring a bell?

Scandalous Scoundrels: The best scandal of the year
Chad and Stevie take one for the team

Hendrick Motorsports crew chiefs Chad Knaus and Steve Letarte got a slap on the wrists for ‘illegal modifications’ made to the 48 and 24 at Infineon Raceway. It didn’t take long for the media to suspect something was fishy. The four cars at Hendrick are split equally. The 5 and 25 share a shop, and the 24 and 48 share a shop. Coincidently the 5 and 25 made it safely through inspection. The 24 and 48, who were leading the point’s standings by a large margin, didn’t make it through tech.

It could have been a sacrifice of 100 points, a dock that kept Jeff Gordon atop the standings and moved Jimmie Johnson to a cushioned fifth place. The infractions also led to six week vacations for the two crew chiefs, Knaus gets a vacation annually. It was the first major infraction for Letarte. Perhaps and advantage was found and the ‘gray’ area it fell into need only be explored by teams able to take a gamble.

It brings an entire new definition to teamwork.

Best Support Group: Best rally around a driver
DEI Bud #8 – 9 DNF’s and still didn’t give up

Engines went left and right and the wall was often embedded into the quarter panel of the red Chevy. Rumors of sabotage floating around the Nextel garage in a haze that seemed to never lift. Regardless of what happened the Budweiser crew stuck with their driver. They made it through crew moves, a cloud of controversy that began smoking in February at Daytona, and then the media blitz with a driver leaving his family nest. Through it all blood is thicker than water and the crew of the 8 team stuck it out right until the end.

"I, uh, we didn't want to quit. So we kept going," Earnhardt said.

Hopefully 2008 looks up. If Hendrick continues to dominate, Jr. Nation should be rejoicing next November.

WTF: For the biggest head scratch of the year
Tony Stewart likens NASCAR to pro wrestling

When Tony Stewart was beat by Jeff Gordon in the final laps of the Subway 500 at Phoenix International Raceway, he took it - typically. He ditched his media obligations and then lashed out on his own Sirius Satellite Radio show.

“I guess NASCAR thinks ’Hey, wrestling worked, and it was for the most part staged, so I guess it’s going to work in racing, too,”’ he said. “I can’t understand how long the fans are going to let NASCAR treat them like they’re stupid before the fans finally turn on NASCAR."

Not only did it get him into hot water with fans, NASCAR thought it would be beneficial to discuss Tony’s thoughts, in person. At 6 a.m. Tony understands where NASCAR is coming from now.

Not Helping Promote a Better Image: To the most outback hillbilly move of the year
Carl honky-tonks Matt

The public has a perception that fans are rednecks, but the drivers seem to do little to curb that notion. Carl Edwards took a page out of “Earl’s guide to honky-tonk fighting” with this move on teammate Matt Kenseth. It blew the lid on the Roush-Fenway organization, proving that not everything is jolly and merry in Concord.

Although no blows were thrown the blow in the media was worse than the threat.

**

Can't wait for 08.

-MO-
Sarah