We all have wished we could change something about some of our NASCAR experiences. Of course we all wish we could change/reverse all of the tragedies associated with this sport…the deaths of drivers or announcers, health issues with their children and so forth. That goes without saying. I’m not asking about rule changes or personal disputes with NASCAR, either. What I am asking is if you could change where you were at a certain time or during a specific race occurrence what you would have done or said differently during those times? Or maybe you have another idea as to how you would have changed something at a specific race related time or event. I am betting the results will be amazing and vary greatly.
I’ll go first. Keep in mind these are not necessarily in any preferred or specific order:
—I wish I could have been in a position to rally support for George White’s head and neck restraint back in 1980. George was working with Bobby Allison at the time and after witnessing countless racing deaths due to what has become known as basilar skull fracture, George developed a restraint system that could have saved many, many lives. He was so convinced of it’s effectiveness that he personally crash tested his device at New Smyrna Speedway that same year and survived! I highly recommend viewing this footage. You can find it at www.speedwaysafetyequipment.com.
—I would have loved to have been at Daytona in 1998 to witness, live, the reaction of the fans in the grandstands, to hear their roars that must have been louder than any field of cars on any track when Dale Earnhardt won his only Daytona 500. I had always said if that man won the 500 I would dance in the street and that is exactly what I did. I am sure I looked like a fool, but, I didn’t care then and I don’t care now. I will forever wish I could have been there.
—I’m glad I was not at Daytona in 2001 when Dale, Sr. died, but, I do wish I had been able to say something truly comforting to my family and friends who were home with me and watching the race. Furthermore I wish I had been able to write some amazing words of comfort to all of Dale’s fans because I knew personally, and that probably isn’t appropriate to say as a writer, just how devastated they were because I was and still am a huge DE, Sr fan!. It was just such a devastating loss following the previous year with the death of young drivers Adam Petty, Kenny Irwin and Tony Roper.
—I do, however, wish I had been at the next race of 2001. Just one week later at Rockingham, on February 25th Dale Jr driver of the #8 Chevy for DEI was involved in a lap 1 wreck that looked very similar to his father’s fatal crash and Steve Park, Jr’s teammate and driver of the #2 Pennsoil Chevy for DEI won the race. It was just an amazing and exhilarating feeling and many racefans felt as if Dale was somehow up there orchestrating that event from start to finish, protecting his son and approving Steve’s win.
—Along with that year I wish I could have been at AMS on March 11th when Kevin Harvick snagged his first victory in the #29 Goodwrench Chevy. I will never forget the televised pictures of Chocolate Myers and that team. There wasn’t a dry eye in our home and probably across the entire NASCAR loving nation. Oh how heart warming and wonderful that footage was…such a deserved victory for Richard, Kevin and that entire crew. And what a wonderful way to honor Dale, acknowledge Kevin as his own driver/person and get the team back to competitive racing business.
—Additionally, later that same year Dale, Jr won the summer race, July 7th, at the very track where his father died. Talk about exhilarating! EVERYONE wished they could have been there. Then he went on to win the second races at Dover and Talladega. Yes, I would have loved to be at those events, as well. That was a devastating year of heartache with Sr’s and Blaise Alexander’s deaths. But the happiness, and there was plenty of it, was amazing wasn’t it? Do you remember?
—Also I will always regret not approaching Benny Parsons in the garage areas at the tracks we have worked. Aside from being a fan of Benny the driver, the reporter and the person, I have always wondered if Benny’s Parsons family and my Parsons family are connected. My Parsons roots are in the south including North and South Carolina, Virginia, W.VA, Kentucky and others. I have a distant cousin who actually looks a great deal like Benny. Sadly those chances are lost. Perhaps if I get the opportunity to meet Phil I will ask if there is a genealogist in his family.
And finally, on a lighter note and probably not appropriately, I wish I were at any or all of the “instances” between angry drivers, their crews and whoever. I know, those are deemed detrimental to the sport. One such instance was between Mr. Excitement and young(er) Kurt Busch at Michigan in 2003. Oh how I would like to have been there. I won’t say why, I’ll just say that incident still causes me a snicker or two. Do you remember that? And then there are the many Harvick feuds. There was Harvick and Johnson, Harvick and Edwards and Harvick and Scott Riggs crew member to name a few. I like Harvick. I always have and this “stuff”, within reason, is healthy in my opinion, but, I don’t have the clout or the responsibility to call them to the hauler. In many ways it seems to be some sort of right of passage or a tradition. Whatever, but admit it, we all love those things “within reason”. I know our phone rang off the wall following all of those “incidents”.
Of course I am like so many others who would have liked to have met many more of drivers and racing personalities that are no longer with us. These are just a few of the things I would have changed if I could have. There are so many more. Perhaps I will jot those down in another column at a later date.
One thing is for certain, NASCAR, ARCA and many other series’ drivers are very fortunate to be able to compete in a much safer environment than just 4 years ago. Soft walls, a choice of two approved head and neck restraints, safer race personnel and track practices, safer seats and body restraint systems, just the cars in general have offered exciting racing with added driver, team members and track personnel safety. Perhaps this column will serve to help you recall some of your most memorable racing moments…good and bad. I hope so.