#LEFturn 

Has Left the Building

Nothing gives you such an ache in the pit of your stomach than hearing of the death of a racer during an event.  I experienced that punch this morning when I woke to the news of Jason Leffler losing his life during a dirt Sprint car heat race at Bridgeport Speedway in New Jersey.

Dirt Sprint cars can reach amazing speeds and with their open wheel set up, they often times can create some horrific tangled accidents, when things go awry.  That's exactly what happened last night for Leffler.  Sources indicate that perhaps something broke on his Sprint car, unleashing a horrific chain of events.  He had to be extricated from his machine, which flipped several times and hit the retaining wall at least twice.  A retaining wall that was not of the "safer barrier" style that we have become accustomed to with the NASCAR sanctioned events.  

I haven't seen any footage of the accident. It's probably for the best.  My heart goes out to the racer(s) who may have tangled with Leffler in the incident.  That has to be a tough thing to wrestle with in your mind, long after the accident.  

And obviously, thoughts and prayers are with Leffler's family--particularly his 5-year-old son, Charlie Dean who will likely have plenty of questions and struggle to understand why his daddy isn't going to celebrate Father's Day with him this weekend.  

That's heart-wrenching.  Leffler was only 37.  And he took his son to many races with him.  I hope that little Charlie doesn't grow to resent racing because it's ultimately what took his dad from him.  Life is short.  Hug your kids.  Appreciate all you have, rather than dwell on what you don't--as things can change in the blink of an eye.  

Bottom Feeders

I have stated plenty of times, that I'm not a driver, so any comments that I make should be taken with a grain of salt.  However, sometimes, I just can't help but continue to scratch my head--particularly when it comes to "Bottom Feeders."  

You know, drivers who, for whatever reason, fail to try the outside groove and instead will spend lap after lap--ramming another driver in the ass-end, trying to loosen them up to get under them.  Or they'll dive-bomb into a turn about a half-groove onto the apron, which totally messes up their exit out of the turn and they end up body-slamming the car they're trying to pass in the center.  Sometimes those are epic fails and both drivers end up getting wrecked.  

My point here is this: If everyone prefers that lower groove, wouldn't it stand to reason for a driver and team to set their car up for the outside groove?  Why not just roll around the outside of them and complete the pass coming off of the turns and shooting down the straightaways?  Maybe I'm over-simplifying things?

But at La Crosse Speedway, the first two cautions of a feature bring out the "laning cone," and if you have a rocket ship that can navigate the outside groove--I would think setting your car up for that outside groove would come in pretty dang handy?

Don't fear the outside groove.  It can make you look like a hero, instead of a zero who lacks the intestinal fortitude to do anything but whack a guy in the back end.  Or worse yet, be the guy who can't seem to stay on the racing surface and has his ass in the grass trying to pass on the bottom.

Common sense says to go where others are not.  Or was it Confucius who said that?

American Racing Legend

Impossible. There's no way that this could have happened. That is exactly what everyone was saying when the awful news spread like a heavy fog over a valley.  Not only was Dick Trickle no longer with us, but he had taken his own life.  

It's hard to wrap your mind around why a childhood hero would do that to himself.  But none of us really knew Dick now, did we? Sure, we all liked to hang around him, whenever he was in town.  We all enjoyed tipping a few "barley pops" with him, as he held court, telling tales of  his racing exploits.  Good times.  That's what Dick Trickle was all about.  He WAS the party.

Obviously though, on the morning of May 16th, something brought an overwhelming oppressive darkness onto Trickle.  It's hard to imagine just what could have had that kind of effect on a guy who was the MacGyver of racing.  Ask anyone, Dick was a handler.  Something's broken on the race car? He'd find a way to make it work with something else.  The set up is not perfect? He'd still drive the crap out of the car--AND save his tires.  But something seemed impossibly unsurmountable to him on this day. 

I have no idea what could have been so heavy in his heart that he would make the decision to end his own life.  My mind is tortured by the thoughts that this is how our hero left this world.  Although, in retrospect, I don't know exactly how I thought Trickle's life should have ended.  It's nothing that I ever considered.  I suppose in my mind, he was just going to live forever.  And thanks to all of the great memories he created for all of us, ultimately, he will do just that--live on forever.

There was and never will be another like him.    

Back from the Back Injury

Denny Hamlin has been cleared to race once again in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, after his horrific accident at the end of February, which left him with a lower back compression fracture.  I realize that when racing gets into a driver's blood, it's like an drug addict needing their fix.  They physically NEED to get back behind the wheel as soon as possible, but when it's a back injury, that changes the game--at least to me.

The spine is such a tricky thing.  Mere millimeters of something shifting can make the difference between paralysis and full functioning.  I'm not trying to be a negasaurus here, but if there is any question that he is not completely healed in his back, I think it's ridiculous to risk further damage.

He has a new baby girl--Taylor James Hamlin, with his girlfriend Jordan Fish.  By all accounts, his life is really starting to blossom.  I'd hate to think what his life could become if he is involved in another horrible crash so soon after this injury.

Perhaps I'd feel differently if the series wasn't racing at Talladega this weekend.  That track is notorious for big carnage-filled crashes.  Call me over-cautious, but I think Denny should've waited until next week.  Then again, race car drivers, by nature, are risk takers.  Hopefully the risk will be worth the reward for Denny this weekend.

The Power of Positivity

I'm not a hater of winter, but seriously--I've had enough now.  Can't we just enjoy the four seasons of the midwest?!  Winter, Construction, Outdoor Festival and Racing.

We're going to be flirting with 80º this week, but then if we are to believe the extended weather forecast, we'll be dipping back into the 30's for a HIGH late this week.  Mother Nature is obviously a passive-aggressive, angry drunk.

I'm convinced that she wants to give us a smack as soon as we get comfortable with the nice weather.  That being said--let's just all pretend to enjoy the cold snaps, then she might decide that it's not working and just let the nice weather roll for Racing season!

So, this week--IF that cold snap comes to fruition--everybody just rave about how enjoyable it is.  We'll see if the reverse psychology works on that Mother.

One of Those Racin' Deals'

When drivers are flying around a race track at break-neck speeds--mere inches apart, contact is likely to happen.  And carnage is bound to result at some point too.

Ask any driver and they'll tell you that wrecking is an inherent risk of racing.  Admittedly, sometimes wrecks happen out of pure stupidity, but often, it's just 'one of those racing deals.'  Talk to a driver after they've watched their ride come back to the pits on a hook and they'll likely not be as diplomatic with their word choices.  At least not immediately.

Emotions are the fabric of great racing.  Whether your a fan in the stands, a driver or a crew member, it's the passion that builds support and rivalries.  As someone who is all too familiar with the cost of rebuilding a destroyed car, I'm empathetic to those who end up on the short end of the stick of racing after 'one of those deals' goes down.  But like the phoenix rising from the ashes, it's incredibly satisfying to watch someone come back after a terrible mishap on the track and taste success once again.

I'm hoping that will be the case for Brad Powell at the La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway.  He's likely grateful the track has scheduled this weekend off, as it gives him the extra time to rebuild his machine, without having to burn the candle at both ends to get it done.  However, I know that funding can be a challenge for all drivers too.  

Time and money--in life AND racing, we never seem to have enough of either.  I'm hopeful that Powell will find the funding to piece things back together and be the competitive contender that he's been.  

If you viewed the "Wreck Reel" from opening night on the RacingNuggets.com website, you saw a constipated cluster of NASCAR Late Model drivers in turn three, that ended with Powell going driver-side into the outside retaining wall.  The photo above is the end result of the incident.  That shot is courtesy of Ultimate Lap Photo.

The Stress of Pursuing a Championship

It's tough to keep your cool when you're in the hunt for a championship. The pressure, I'm told, can be incredibly overwhelming. It takes a real cool head to maintain your balance and keep things in check to allow you to perform at your very best. Sometimes, words come out of your mouth without your brain kicking into gear first.

I've tried very hard to not name names when I do a blog entry like this, but it would be virtually impossible for anyone who's following the championship battle in the NASCAR Late Models at La Crosse to NOT know who I'm referring to in this one.

Todd Korish has professed that his friendship is "over" with Shawn Pfaff and Kevin Nuttleman, because the two teammates are, in his opinion, in cahoots with one another to stymie his charge to the front of the field. 

I don't necessarily fault Korish for making the comments he did after Saturday night's feature. He was mad. I just think his anger is misdirected. His car was not performing as well as he had hoped or expected it to do. That was fairly obvious if you watched the race or the video of it,  which I have on the RacingNuggets.com website. Korish was struggling to pass on the outside--as was everyone else.

Despite a notable "hiccup" in Nuttleman's forward progress at the start of the feature, Korish took five laps to decide to finally go to the outside groove and eventually roll around Tim Nelson.  When he got to Nuttleman, the elder racer actually moved to the upper groove and gave Korish the preferred lower lane as the two entered turn one.

If Korish still felt that he was cut short of time to improve his position, he could have chosen to move to the outside groove when the laning cone came out after the caution. But he didn't.

In a discussion with some people after the races, we all agreed that the collective jaw dropping was audible, when first, Pfaff, then Steve Carlson, Brent Kirchner and finally Korish all opted to stay in the low groove when the laning cone came out after the caution in Saturday night's feature. It wasn't until Cole Howland came from deep in the pack, that the outside pole was finally filled for the restart.

Astounding? Hell yes! So suffice it to say--Korish, Pfaff, Carlson and Kirchner were not feeling the love with their cars on Saturday night--at least when it came to the outside groove at the La Crosse Speedway.

But this point aside, there's another factor that has played a role in the tightening points battle. Qualifying. We've stated this countless times on our pre-race radio show. Championships are won with solid finishes, coupled with solid qualifying efforts. This season alone, Pfaff has made up 15 points on Korish, just in qualifying.

Mind you, I'm not trying to bash on Korish here, regardless of what you think. I'm just trying to illustrate that when a driver is in the heat of a points championship, they find all kinds of reasons why their success is not what they expected.  An "off night" can sometimes cause one to engage their comments before considering it thoroughly in their brain. It was incredibly obvious that Korish (and many of the racers for that matter) wanted nothing to do with the outside groove on Saturday night.

I'm a firm believer that Korish will reconsider his harsh comments toward his one-time friends, Pfaff and Nuttleman and realize that this is just stiff competition. Korish is a hard-nosed competitor and he has a great sense of humor. Just look to the whole "Insane Clown Posse" on the hoods of their team machines. Plus, I've witnessed him shuffling around a dance floor on occasion after having a few cocktails. He can be a fun guy. He's just embroiled in a very high pressure situation right now. 

We haven't seen a cooler head than Korish this season, since the years of Nuttleman's dominance in the division. Unfortunately, he slipped and lost his cool on Saturday night. He let the pressure get to him and went off like Yosemite Sam at his former friends and competitors. 

I'm hopeful he can gather up his emotions and get things realigned in his mind, so that he can be fully prepared for the championship battle that he has worked so hard to garner for so many years. Pfaff won't make it easy on him. No one should. What's the joy in earning a championship if you didn't have some blood, sweat and tears involved? Victory will taste even sweeter because of it.

Good luck to both drivers. I'm not pulling for either of you. I just want to enjoy the on-track battle as a fan and hope that friendships can stay solid off the track.