See Atlanta, Keep On Driving To Texas

By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Published on Thunder Lounge.

If you’re new around here, you may want to subscribe to our RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

That’s right folks. It’s that time again. The time when Thunder Lounge goes from words to actions, fires up that Earnhardt Smoker, and hits the lights for yet another event at Texas Motor Speedway.

We’ll take a quick aside here and ask a quick question to Mr. Bruton Smith. Laid Back what? We’ve got the drop on that by miles, so where’s the love? Hey, we kid because we care, and we’ll keep a plate warm for ya.

Back to the topic at hand, once again Thunder Lounge will be in the infield at Texas Motor Speedway for another weekend of fun and entertainment.

You can only walk through the souvenir trailers so many times, and play so many games of cards. So grab your cooler, and come check out our live DJ, and live music featuring Texas’ own Randy Brown!

If you’ve been there, you know Mardi Gras can’t even compare to the crowd and fun to be had when Thunder Lounge takes over the entertainment duties. Come one, come all, and we’ll see you next weekend!

Share your thoughts!.

Filed Under: Busch Series, Craftsman Truck Series, Nascar, Network News, Nextel Cup, Texas, The Chase, Thunder Lounge, Tracks





Trackback URL for: See Atlanta, Keep On Driving To Texas

By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Wednesday October 3, 2007
3:41pm CDT
Published on Thunder Lounge.

Welcome to the first edition of WTF? Wednesday™.

A brief synopsis: Every Wednesday, we’re going to go the extra mile (and possibly throw “the flag”) to ask the all inevitable question that is lurking on everyone’s mind. WTF? If it’s smelling funny, and has to do with NASCAR, we’re going to ask it.

On to this weeks column.

Kyle Bush and his manifold of gold

As you may or may not have heard, NASCAR failed the #5 of Kyle Bush after he swept through (again) to Victory Lane in the Busch Race at Kansas.

They “deemed” his intake manifold to be “illegal”. Yet, here it is Wednesday already and there hasn’t been a word about it since Sunday. WTF?

Hendrick says it’s legit, and that it’s no different than other times. In fact, they even sent one into NASCAR and they inspected it for 2 days earlier last week.

So, what’s “good to go” this week may be “illegal” the next? WTF?

Late this afternoon, NASCAR announced a “fine” of $10,000 for Mike Bumgarner, the crew chief for Kyle Bush in the Busch Nationwide Series for violations found post-race at Kansas.

Bruton Smith “may” build a new “Charlotte”

Bruton wants a drag racing venue at his current location in the capital of NASCAR. Cool, he’s done it at Bristol and Texas to name a few. He gets the required zoning, and begins.

All of a sudden, the City Council (we’re talking Concord, not “technically Charlotte”) decided the other night to overturn the zoning for the area, leaving Mr. Smith in the middle of a project which (currently) can’t be used. WTF?

Supposedly the “City Council” wanted to pull the reins on all the “noise” in the area, as it’s building up around the track in terms of both business and residential neighbors. OK, whatever.

So, Bruton laid out the terms for all to see. If that’s the way it’s going to be, and “noise” is such a concern, I want my tracks together. If I need to relocate my venues to another part of town, I will.

Huh?

Mr. Bruton Smith went on to compare it to a stick/ball team building a new arena in town. It’s still there, just in a different location. This isn’t a ploy or a threat. It’s the facts. If he has to move it to another area of town, he will. He’s already scouting land around the Charlotte area, and I’d bet there’s a few communities welcoming the move with open arms.

So you’ll hear about Charlotte closing, but really it’s just moving to another side of town.

The question is, what would the track be like? Would it mirror the current configuration? Let’s hope not.

Bruton Smith has a few things at his disposal now. He’s got raw data from various sources, and I’d be willing to bet that if indeed a deal can’t be reached, and he does build a new facility, that it will be the best one on the circuit. He knows what is working, and where the future is headed. Expect the facilities to be top notch, and something viable for not only today, but for decades to come.

What about the track itself? Would it be the same thing, or could it be something unique? Here’s a chance to shine. Do something that hasn’t/isn’t being done. Make that track even more special than it already is. 1.5 miles in length? Nah. 2 miles? Maybe, but Michigan and Cali-bore-nia already do it. 1 mile? Dover, New Hampshire. 1.75 miles? 1.25 miles? Hmmm, 600 miles is divisible evenly at 1.25 miles, 1.75 is a tick off, but almost another full lap.

With all the data available, the chance to truly make a “Beast of the Southeast” exists. The fans would dig it (who wants another cookie?), the drivers would dig it, and most of all it would be something different.

We’ll see what happens on that front, but for now in terms of this “out of nowhere” deal, WTF?

Kansas

We aren’t in Kansas anymore, but thoughts sure haven’t left there.

Why was a race that had not a chance of ending before darkness resumed? WTF?

OK, if I had paid to be there, I’d want as much show as possible.

“Technically”, if all the remaining laps went green it could have made the distance. NASCAR isn’t that dumb, so they said we’re going to 225. WTF?

The thing is, when has there been an opportunity to restart a race at all? It would either:
a) go way into the night
b) not enough daylight left, and no lights available
c) wasn’t enough left for it to be worth it.

Kansas was what, 12 or so laps past halfway? NASCAR made the call to continue with as much of a show as possible, which was a good call for fans, just maybe not for your driver. Then again, maybe your driver came out better than if it had been stopped? Then again, the one who would have benefited most from not resuming, ended up with the bonehead move of the race. “Hey Smoke, there’s smoke coming out of your tire.” But, I digress.

Then you have the finish. Biffle cut the motor off coming out of 4 on the final lap, to make sure he had enough fuel to do a burn out. He had half a gallon left, by the way, but NASCAR made him walk over to Victory Lane. WTF? Why couldn’t the guy do a burnout? WTF?

“Da rules” state a reasonable speed, and NASCAR said it was. Some of the competitors didn’t think it was, so they passed under yellow. NASCAR said the field was frozen, so that was that. OK, but also if you pass under yellow, don’t you get a penalty? So if that’s true, and Biffle wasn’t maintaining a reasonable speed (almost half the pace car speed as he crossed the line), then wouldn’t Casey Mears have won with Jeff Gordon finishing second? But, the field was frozen and Biffle maintained a reasonable speed. WTF?

Not even the mighty scoring loops of NASCAR got it right. It had Bowyer listed at 1st, followed by Johnson. Talk about a Charlie Foxtrot drill. Anyone want to wager about a slight modification to the wording in “Da Rules” about this for next season? If there isn’t, we have our last WTF?

2 comments. Add your 2 cents!.

Filed Under: Busch Series, Casey Mears, Charlotte/Lowe's, Clint Bowyer, Drivers, Features, Greg Biffle, Hendrick Motorsports #24, Hendrick Motorsports #25, Hendrick Motorsports #48, Hendrick Motorsports #5, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Joe Gibbs Racing #20, Kansas, Kyle Busch, Nascar, Nextel Cup, Richard Childress Racing #07, Roush Racing #16, Teams, The Chase, Tony Stewart, Tracks, WTF? Wednesday's





Trackback URL for: WTF? Wednesday…

By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Thursday September 13, 2007
4:11pm CDT
Published on Thunder Lounge.

Yeah, we’re going to talk about Dale Earnhardt Jr. In response to this ESPN article by David Newton.

Mr. Newton pushes the “I believe” button on the matter of DEI and its engine program. Yes, they are now working with RCR in partnership on motors, but last I read those particular packages would not be in use until sometime in October.

This particular piece concludes that its DEI’s shop overall that is having issues with their motors, and that is why Dale Junior has subsequently blow up a whopping 5 times this summer.

Now, I’m not an engine expert. If I were, I wouldn’t be sitting here discussing it, I’d be building motors for one of the fine teams in this sport. However, I can read between the lines and see what’s in front of my face.

Through 26 events this season, here’s the scoop:

1. Both Dale Jr and Martin Truex blew up at Fontana in February.
2. Truex again had engine issues at Chicago. Exit Truex from this discussion.
3. Junior blew up at Texas (note, as things were definitely on their way out at DEI
4. Junior again blows up at Indy, Watkins Glen, and Richmond.

So since things started to really head south, you know they were in April and in May it was made public, Mr. Junior has consequently blown up 4 times as compared to a single failure for Truex.

Is there something wrong with this picture? I don’t think it’s exactly intentional, but hey, if you had 2 drivers and one of them wasn’t going to be around next season, would it be possible that just maybe you might push a little bit of the R&D envelope on their particular motors? Especially as the Chase tightens in, and you know that it’s pretty certain that the driver that’s sticking around is 9 times out of 10 going to make the Chase?

It leads one to wonder, no doubt.

Is it not also ironic that the troubles that have plagued the #8 team this season, comes back yet again to bite them in the butt with 3 laps to go at Richmond?

Could it be that maybe, just maybe, there was indeed some engine R&D rolling along, and knowing there was a chance of failure that the engines were passed to the #8 team to roll out with? More of a vindictive move to possible ensure that Dale Jr. didn’t make the Chase, and would lose some of the publicity that comes along with it?

I’m not going to tell you its true, as much as the Red Nation wants to hear it, but I will say that from the outside looking in on this situation that it’s leaving me scratching my head wondering what (if anything) could be going on here.

One can’t help but wonder if there might be a little bit of favoritism going on. If I were wearing a red t-shirt, I’d probably be more opinionated, but even keeping a neutral position on (most) drivers, this still has me scratching my head.

Share your thoughts!.

Filed Under: Dale Earnhardt Inc #8, Dale Earnhardt Junior, Drivers, Nascar, Nextel Cup, Teams, The Chase





Trackback URL for: David Newton Is Off His Rocker

By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Tuesday August 7, 2007
8:25am CDT
Published on Thunder Lounge.

Well, we’ve done it this time. After having to give up my season tickets to Richmond upon moving to Oklahoma after 2002, we’ve finally made it back on the list. Props to RIR, as it only took 18 months of waiting this time, and the tickets even kicked in a race early with the September event instead of waiting until May 2008.

Needless to say, we’re going out better prepared than last August’s adventure to the Sharpie 500. We’ve fully verified internet connectivity, which will be on Sprints network (the EVDO network, aka: the good stuff), and have a fully compatible router and all needed accessories in place. Also in tow will be a Canon Digital Rebel XT, with a few choice pieces of glass, so we’ll be able to pop some photos and have them on the site that evening. No, I’m not dragging a monster Dell laptop, or a router, around a race track for 14 or 15 hours. If the new MacBook Pro was in place, it might be a different story.

So, as long as the Gimp and Mepis don’t let me down, all will be well. We’ll probably wait to add the bulk of images once we’re back, but we’ll have some goodies on the site after both the Busch and Cup races.

Heck, I’m not quite sure what to do with myself. The Busch seats (reserved) are just before the start/finish line, and the Cup seats are split second before they’ll hit the brakes for Turn 1. Last go around all my tickets were on the back stretch just out of turn 2, as we never could get bumped up to the front stretch. They were good seats though, with a minor exception of a sliver of Turn 4 because of the garage(s). Thank you D-shaped oval.

Needless to say, I’m stoked about it. I love that place. I can’t put a finger on what it is exactly, but if I could only go to one track for the rest of my life, it would be Richmond. Bristol was incredible, so is Martinsville, and they would be a close second, but Richmond for some reason just takes the cake.

Anyway, back to the daily grind. I’ve got a lot of thoughts on this whole Robby vs NASCAR crap (they’re both to blame), the recent rumors that Kyle is headed to Gibbs (leaving JJ ass out), and some little miff about Gibbs jumping in bed with Toyota. However, it’s going to have to wait until after I can come up out of some code for a breath of air.

Share your thoughts!.

Filed Under: Busch Series, Nascar, Network News, Nextel Cup, Richmond, The Chase, Thunder Lounge, Tracks





Trackback URL for: Fans Come First: On-site Coverage From Richmond

By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Friday February 16, 2007
1:44am CST
Published on Thunder Lounge.

In what was an inspirational day at Daytona for some, it was a heart breaker for others as they loaded their trucks to head for the house. Also, not a day without it’s controversies, and the underdogs coming from the back to live a dream.

First up in the day was Tony Stewart who lead the field to the checkers in the first heat. Strong in the field were several cars, but in the end nothing was in the way of that orange machine and finding victory lane at Daytona for the second time in less than a week.

Kyle Bush had a pretty good run, as did Jeff Burton although his finishing position doesn’t really show what the car could (or was) doing. Ah, the comfort of knowing you’re in the show. Unfortunately, we can’t say the same for brother Ward.

This guy here, who’s had probably the worst 5 days in his life recently, maneuvered his way into one of the two available transfer spots in the 500, for a start just ahead of mid-pack. Granted the Red Army is going to be a little hot, when Waltrip spun Junior into the infield. Junior recovered for a top 5 in the heat. It wasn’t deliberate, and all was well between the two at the end of the event. A mistake was made, but all forgiven. Of course, had the outcome been different, who knows.

So now were on to the second heat. Duel #2, if you will.

With a winning dodge of Kurt Bush’s Dodge, who tried to block, Jeff Gordon again lead the field to the checkers at a Daytona event. In a less caution filled event than the first, the “controversies” were less, and although the racing wasn’t exactly boring, the drama was less than in the first. Up until the final few seconds, which saw Mike Wallace come out of almost nowhere to end up sliding into the 500 yet again.

With the factor between zero and hero being less than 3/10ths of a second in both heats, it was a nail biter.

Now we come back to Mr. Gordon, who will be starting the 500 from the 42nd position Sunday.

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, you ask? Well if you’ve been under a rock this evening since shortly after the conclusion of the second heat, or perhaps trying to figure out why there’s two characters on your screen when you know darn well you only pushed the button once, you missed the #24 failing post race inspection.

Ah, but it goes further. Before some of you get up on your high horses, let the neutral opinion of Thunder Lounge interject. It wasn’t due to an intentional circumvention of the rules, meaning it wasn’t intentional, says NASCAR Director of Competition Robin Pemberton.

During post race inspection, the 24 came through the height sticks about an inch too low. This obviously called for further analysis, and Robin was even under the car a few times.

Here’s what happened. NASCAR, as we all know, mandates rear shocks and hands them out for installation. Well, the bolt that secures it to the shock mount failed. It wasn’t an illegal bolt, it either got cross threaded or whatever, and started failing. Read that as coming apart.

So the reason, as deemed by NASCAR, for the 24 being too low was part failure. However Robin said that since it was a failure which could have lead to serious safety incidences, that the 24 would be starting from the 42nd spot (tail end of that line) instead of the 4th position behind Ricky Rudd. No further penalties will be handed down, and the matter is closed.

What I don’t get, personally, is why a penalty for a part failure? When someone gets their front end, or rear end for that matter, knocked around and the templates don’t fit in post race, isn’t that a part failure in a sense? I mean, deification occurs, so a penalty for a part failure which wasn’t intentional (which is what they said) makes no sense to me. But, OK. Whatever.

So what this comes down to is that now a team can be penalized for a part failure? This could have an impact somewhere down the road. We’ll just have to wait and see.

2 comments. Add your 2 cents!.

Filed Under: Atlanta, Daytona, Drivers, Evernham Motorsports #19, Frank Morrison, Guest Authors, Hendrick Motorsports #24, Jeff Gordon, Joe Gibbs Racing #20, Matt Kenseth, Michael Waltrip, Michael Waltrip Racing #55, Nascar, Nextel Cup, Press Releases, Scott Riggs, Teams, The Chase, Tony Stewart, Tracks





Trackback URL for: Dual Duel’s, And Misused Tools

By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Tuesday January 9, 2007
12:13pm CST
Published on Thunder Lounge.

While we can’t verify the accuracy of these leaks, they are interesting to say the least. It’s only logical that they surface around the first sanctioned events of 2007, namely Pre-Season Thunder, where so many people with something to say are surrounded by a massive wad of journalists who are ready to drink up any kool-aid offered.

Read more of this »

Share your thoughts!.

Filed Under: Nascar, Nextel Cup, The Chase





Trackback URL for: Leaks About The Chase Emerge

By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Sunday December 31, 2006
1:39pm CST
Published on Thunder Lounge.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thunder Lounge Uniting Fans With Free Blogs

Contact: Luke Poland
Email: http://thunderlounge.com/contact/
URL: http://thunderlounge.com/blogs/

Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX (December 31st, 2006) – Local racing attraction at Texas Motor Speedway expands online efforts to improve fan experience.

Thunder Lounge has been a staple of entertainment in the Texas Motor Speedway infield for years. Having been featured in many articles, including from the Star Telegram, fans of Thunder Lounge have been left with waiting between events to continue their experience.

Thunder Lounge revamped their website last May, http://thunderlounge.com, to begin to bring a continuation of that experience once fans depart from the track. Since the relaunch in May of 2006, their website is fast becoming a staple for fans to get an alternative opinion on today’s NASCAR topics.

“One of the neatest things about Thunder Lounge at the track is that it is purely one giant Mardi Gras style party”, says Luke Poland, the online content manager and one of the network administrators for Thunder Lounge. “The experience is something that can not be provided elsewhere, and sticks in the minds of fans once leaving the track.”

With that in mind Thunder Lounge will continue to expand in 2007 by forging an online peer to peer interactive sports community through the offering of free blogs which will run the infamous WordPress blogging software (http://wordpress.org).

“In an effort to keep the spirit of Thunder Lounge alive and well, we have devoted a lot of resources and time to bring that same spirit to our online activities as well. Offering NASCAR fans, racing fans, and sports fans in general the opportunity to tell their stories and voice their opinion will further enable us to give our fans the opportunity to interact away from the track, and give them the ability to keep the party going,” continued Luke.

The Thunder Lounge Network is a new online service founded by a group of passionate NASCAR fans. Members of the Thunder Lounge team have created and managed some other large communities on the Internet over the last eight years, with some of their team having been involved in writing and producing open-source software for the better part of the decade. With the collective experience and knowledge acquired running these sites, they set out to develop a next-generation Internet community and social networking service for racing and sports fans all over the world.

While Thunder Lounge is NASCAR at its roots and in its heart, that doesn’t mean only NASCAR fans should register and use the site. With users getting their own domain name ( UserName.thunderlounge.com ), almost anyone can theme their site to fit their agenda. Thunder Lounge is open to anyone wishing to blog, provided they are blogging responsibly. With the use of currently available technology, Thunder Lounge also provides their bloggers advanced protection from spammers. In addition, the Thunder Lounge Network is monitored for any bad neighbors who may be using the service with malicious intent (sploggers, etc).

Thunder Lounge can be reached on the World Wide Web at http://thunderlounge.com to learn more, or at http://thunderlounge.com/blogs/ for direct blog information.

# # #

4 comments. Add your 2 cents!.

Filed Under: Busch Series, Craftsman Truck Series, Features, Nascar, Nascar History, Nextel Cup, Press Releases, Teams, The Chase, The People Of Nascar, Thunder Lounge, Tracks





Trackback URL for: Free Blogs From Thunder Lounge

By Amy Spencer, Thunder Lounge
Thursday December 14, 2006
11:17am CST
Published on Thunder Lounge.

[thumb:389:l]

The news has me steamed and I mean steamed. From our local news here in Virginia Beach to the National News. Jimmy “Pretty Boy” Johnson is in no way similar to Tony Stewart. All of these comparisons are annoying. Yes, I’m a Stewart fan so deal with it and admit this is ridiculous.

Read more of this »

2 comments. Add your 2 cents!.

Filed Under: Amy Spencer, Features, Guest Authors, Nascar, Nextel Cup, The Chase





Trackback URL for: Golf Cart Surfing and the Championship

By Tim Spencer, Thunder Lounge
Wednesday December 6, 2006
9:02pm CST
Published on Thunder Lounge.

[thumb:364:l:s=1:l=x] Another year has closed out and the questions and concerns have been flying about if the chase is fair and should there be a different format. Complaints start with the usual that we are afraid to race the Chase contenders in the final ten races and should the points of the Chase contenders be kept separate. A new and improved Chase that would make it a shoot out until the end and a season to remember is what we all are looking for.

Read more of this »

Share your thoughts!.

Filed Under: Features, Nascar, Nextel Cup, The Chase, The Way I See It, Tim Spencer





Trackback URL for: A Chase With Excitement

By Tim Spencer, Thunder Lounge
Wednesday November 22, 2006
11:11am CST
Published on Thunder Lounge.

[thumb:364:l]What a disappointing end to a season that flew by. Jimmy Johnson who was at one point counted out of the race for the championship claimed the top honors on Sunday. For that his team is to be recognized and congratulated on. Not to take anything away from Johnson or Greg Biffle who won the race, but the TV coverage was the worst of all time. After all of NBC’s debacles with their coverage this season, we entered into Homestead wondering if it could get any worse.

Read more of this »

5 comments. Add your 2 cents!.

Filed Under: Features, Guest Authors, Nascar, Nextel Cup, The Chase, The Way I See It, Tim Spencer





Trackback URL for: Johnson’s Championship Coverage Stunk