Carl Edwards says “what problems” to new car critics

By Charlie Turner, Thunder Lounge
Published on Thunder Lounge.

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Forty two Sprint Cup drivers hated NASCAR’s experiment in stock car design after the Samsung 500 Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway.

Jeff Gordon actually parked his car early - after an inevitable spin and wall wack - and insisted that crew chief Steve Letarte “fix the dang thing”. Gordon later returned to the track to taste the results of Letarte’s efforts. The leftovers weren’t much better and after a few more laps Gordon called it a day. Jeff said that they tried every possible set-up. Nothing works for the team. That is not a good sign.

Gordon’s teammate Jimmy Johnson finished second and led sixty-some laps. All-in-all that is a big improvement from recent results, but Johnson says the new car needs help. You can’t drive it in traffic, it needs more down-force. And this is a team that has tested the new car nearly every non-race day for the last two weeks. Hell, Chad - can I hear a hallelujah - Knauss is the crew chief! If they can’t figure it out ……?

Maybe Joe Gibbs Racing can. Not according to third place finisher Kyle Busch who said;

“Was it fun to drive? No. Was it hard to drive? Yes,” Busch said. “Did it survive the day? Yes. So was it a good day? Sure.”

Kyle was asked to talk further about the car and said:

“I’m not going to answer that question. Ask NASCAR that question.”

Ryan Newman finished fourth, but flunked the post-race rectal and will undoubtedly lose points, cash and crew chief attendance for a while. Presumably because they exceeded legality in the effort to fix the problems with the car. So much for the cheating solution.

The race winner was Carl “flipper” Edwards - for the third time this year. Carl doesn’t see the problem. At all. It isn’t so much that Edwards thinks that his new cars handle any better than his competitor’s rides. He just thinks the way that they are is OK. The same for everybody, a challenge to drive for sure but rewarding to master. He likes it.

NASCAR says they have no intention of making big - or even small - changes to the former CoT. That fact may make Carl Edwards the eventual champion of the first Sprint CoT Cup Series.

Join the discussion.

Filed Under: Carl Edwards, Charlie Turner, Guest Authors, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch, Sprint Cup, Texas

Tagged As: Carl Edwards, Jeff Gordon, Jimmy Johnson, kyle busch, Nascar, Samsung 500, Texas Motor Speedway



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By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Monday March 31, 2008
4:15pm CDT
Published on Thunder Lounge.

Come one, come all, come often.

It’s that time of year again, and you can bet your boots that the infamous Thunder Lounge® is headed to the infield of Texas Motor Speedway.

When the sun goes down, the lights come up at Thunder Lounge. Bring your beverage of choice, and come on down. The party will rock into the night as always, as if you miss one minute, you’ll be regretting it.

Starting Friday, find me (Luke) and mention you read our site, and we’ll give you a FREE Thunder Lounge wristband. These aren’t some cheap little thing, they’re the real deal. 100% silicone, and screen printed with a fiery background and the Thunder Lounge logo in blue. A steal at $7, get yours FREE. (Quantities limited, while supplies last. Some will be reserved for both Friday and Saturday.)

For those needing a little assistance, here’s the map to the facility. If you’re not already in the infield, we recommend using the SOUTH tunnel, as it’s open for traffic 24/7 during the weekend. You will need an infield pass, which can be obtained when you walk through the tunnel gate.

The house will be rockin all weekend long, so come on out, relax, and enjoy yourself.

See you at the track!

6 comments. Add your 2 cents!.

Filed Under: Nascar, Nationwide Series, Network News, Sprint Cup, Texas, Thunder Lounge, Tracks

Tagged As: Texas Motor Speedway, Thunder Lounge, Track Events



Trackback URL for: Texas Two Step Time Again

By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Saturday March 8, 2008
12:04pm CST
Published on Thunder Lounge.

Tony Stewart may as well have been using one of my favorite Dave Chappelle quotes.

Goodyear is f**kin’ up!

Tony just doesn’t understand it. Why does Goodyear overcompensate on the tires?

In an actual praise of the weather, being thankful that it’s cold enough at Atlanta today to compensate for Goodyear’s incompetence with their tire selection, Tony commented that the garage is just trying to get through the weekend.

Goodyear has changed up the overall composition and construction of the left side tires to provide more grip, but at the same time they’ve increased the hardness of the right side tire compound which removes grip.

It was also explained, and something I was unaware of, that Goodyear is bringing the same tires (at least for the right side) for both the Nationwide Series and the Sprint Cup Series to use. In doing so, they went with a compromise where the right side tire is good for the Nationwide side, and something the Cup side “can live with”.

Tony Stewart made the remark that when you stroke a check big enough to NASCAR, you can have free reign with your product selection, even when that selection is junk.

Atlanta hasn’t been recently paved. It’s been 10 years, actually, so what is the deal here?

Bobby Labonte tested for Goodyear at Atlanta back in December, so what’s going on with this?

Are the engineers at Goodyear not competent enough to remember that during such a test the racetrack will be green, and therefore wear the tires a little harder than on a competition weekend? I’d like to think that’s not the case.

Are they overly paranoid of right side tire failures on the intermediate tracks?

Are they being cheap, and trying to get by with using the same thing all weekend?

Then again could it be that Tony’s lacking something in his car and laying out a case just in case his run at Atlanta, which happens to be the HQ of his sponsor Home Depot, is less than spectacular? Could it be a little bit of both circumstances? I will note that Tony Stewart typically runs quite well at Atlanta, and one could expect that whatever the circumstances he will adapt and overcome.

Tony Stewart has typically been the first driver to speak out about tires during a given weekend. Does the rest of the garage feel similar about the tire selection by Goodyear?

What bothers me most about these comments is this. These types of tracks make up the bulk of the NASCAR schedule. I’m also concerned because the next track of this type on the schedule is Texas Motor Speedway.

It’s been on again, off again for racing at the 1.5mile oval. At times the show is good, but at other times the show has been less than spectacular.

If you combine the elements of the new car, this apparent tire issue, and past history you’re heading into a big unknown for Texas Motor Speedway. If one were in the shoes of Eddie Gossage it would have to be at least a small concern in the back of your mind. It’s an SMI track, and the facilities are absolutely top notch. However, being the home track of Thunder Lounge, we can’t help but to be on pins and needles a little bit in regards to the show.

Last fall was a battle between Matt Kenseth and Jimmie Johnson late in the the goings, and highlighted the quality of racing capable at the track. On the other hand, they have been many a strung out parade as well.

With that all taken into consideration, flip a coin. Head it’ll be a show, tails it will be a parade. That’s about as close to a prediction as you’re going to get. With the new car, competition should be much closer. Thus you could conclude that the parade won’t necessarily be a factor. On the other hand, with the tire issue being complained about by Tony Stewart, it could turn into a conservative “make it through the weekend” type of race.

Whatever the case may be, we hope the issues being complained of this weekend won’t be an issue when NASCAR returns to The Great American Speedway, leaving the show in the competitors hands.

Share your thoughts!.

Filed Under: Atlanta, Drivers, Joe Gibbs Racing #20, Nascar, Sprint Cup, Teams, Texas, Tony Stewart, Tracks

Tagged As: Atlanta Motor Speedway, Goodyear, Hotlanta, Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, Texas Motor Speedway, The Great American Speedway, Tire Issues, Tony Stewart



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By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Thursday February 28, 2008
2:20pm CST
Published on Thunder Lounge.

With every advancement in dates for a NASCAR track, someone loses out. Las Vegas hosting two races per season would not be an exception to this. In order for the folks at Las Vegas Motor Speedway to benefit from a second date, someone will lose out. More than just one “someone” as well.

As it stands now, that potential loss lies at the feet of SMI’s recently purchased New Hampshire Motor Speedway, which is unfortunate.

Read more of this »

2 comments. Add your 2 cents!.

Filed Under: Las Vegas, Nascar, New Hampshire, Sprint Cup, Texas, Tracks

Tagged As: Bruton Smith, Las Vegas, New Hampshire, SMI, Texas



Trackback URL for: The Pitfalls Of A Second Date At Las Vegas

By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Wednesday November 7, 2007
8:53pm CST
Published on Thunder Lounge.

Menard To Get New Crew Chief

So it looks like Paul Menard is going to get a new Crew Chief for 2008, as Dave Charpentier moves up to become the Technical Director at DEI. Well, if the rumors are to be believed.

The only question I have, is how long will it take for the #15 to fall out of the Top-35? Lest we forget that if it weren’t for the Ginn Fiasco, they wouldn’t be in the Top 35 as they were the beneficiary of Sterling Marlin and his effort in the #14.

You know, there’s a reason that a lot of drivers/teams in the garage make comments over the radio about Paul Menard. To be honest, if you thought Tony Stewart was off his rocker or out of line on his Sirius show a couple weeks back, you’re sadly mistaken. He is far from the only one out there with those feelings. Nothing against you personally Paul, you’re a great guy, but could you be over your head a little bit here?

So, WTF is going to save the #15 from the Top-35 cut-off in 2008?

New Hampshire Gets A Facelift?

DW seems to think that New Hampshire could be ripped up and the resulting reconstruction could end up the product of Richmond and Bristol gettin’ it on.

That’s right, a 3/4 mile, high banked short track. Maybe not 36 degrees, but far from 12 or 14 we would imagine.

On top of that, expanding the current 100,000 or so capacity as the stadium builds around it.

While that would be pretty darn cool, is it really something that could happen?

New Hampshire has sold out 26 consecutive dates. Not many tracks can boast consecutive numbers like that. Richmond can, and I’m pretty sure Bristol is in the ballpark as well, but the question at hand is how fast will that number continue to increase?

Here’s the deal.

The majority of speculation is that one of the New Hampshire dates will be petitioned to be moved to Las Vegas for the 2009 season. Most likely the one in September. You know, the date that has kicked off the Chase since its inception in 2004.

However, we have another problem here. The fall date at Texas also coincides with the opening weekend of deer season in Texas. What’s a good ol’ boy to do?

Further speculation is that if the date is moved from New Hampshire to Las Vegas, then in turn Las Vegas and Texas could swap dates. Which would run the schedule out like Las Vegas, Phoenix, Homestead, with a Texas sized party to kick the whole Chase off.

Then again, maybe New Hampshire keeps both dates? While Las Vegas is a great facility, Bristol makes more revenue. If New Hampshire did get a facelift, while it would take some time to build up the capacity, it could generate more revenue than Vegas. Interesting thoughts all around, that’s for sure.

So, WTF is going to happen with New Hampshire?

Speaking Of Racing, Where’s The Leader?

“I’m a hundred miles away, son.”

That’s exactly what the leaders were saying at Texas this weekend. It was almost a given that if you got the lead, you’d end up with a 20+ car length advantage.

Was it the surface? Is the “soon to be extinct” car just that bad in traffic these days? While we have much love for our home track at Texas, the show wasn’t as stellar as it could have been. We’ll leave judgment out of it, and just wonder… WTF happened to the show(s)?

And there you have it. Your WTF’s for this week.

With two weeks to go before the season winds down, we’re going to give a shout out to all those folks that have been working the grind with little downtime since Daytona last February. We, as fans, thank each and every one of you for the job you do to support our sport. From the hauler drivers, to the crew members, to the souvenir drivers/sales folks, to the drivers, and everyone in between we give you a hardy Thunder Lounge salute and thanks.

3 comments. Add your 2 cents!.

Filed Under: Las Vegas, Nascar, New Hampshire, Nextel Cup, Texas, Tracks, WTF? Wednesday's





Trackback URL for: Texas Sized WTF’s

By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Wednesday October 31, 2007
11:42am CDT
Published on Thunder Lounge.

This week, we tackle some crazy stuff. If you’re not asking “WTF?”, then there’s a problem.

NASCAR May Try To Curb Nationwide-Whacking

First off, that just doesn’t have the ring that Busch Whacking does. I guess we’ll get used to it, or figure out a different term.

According to ESPN, when NASCAR brings the “Pony” cars to the Busch Nationwide Series in 2009 they are looking at not allowing Cup drivers in the Top 35 to accumulate points in an effort to stop the influx and work towards giving the series its own identity.

WTF is that all about?

Cup drivers aren’t there for points, they are there for seat time, information, and most of all to race. By not allowing them to score points, what’s the point (no pun intended) in that? There isn’t one. The only result is you’ll have guys in the field, still eating up the spots, but only the Non-Cuppers get the points? So you can have a guy with 0 points and 6 wins in the series. That would be a funny thing indeed.

If you want the title to be decided within the series, and not by a Cup driver, instead limit the number of races that a Cup driver can enter in the Series, based on the number of full seasons they have run in Cup. One exception would be if that driver is not currently running a Cup effort (like when Kenny Wallace went to Busch after running Cup for BDR).

If you cap it at 10 or 12 races a year for a Cup driver that has 5 or more years at the Cup level, you still get the benefit of “names” in the series, but at the same time they won’t be a title factor. Tie in owners points to that as well, and then there won’t be an issue with that either.

Bill Davis Buyout

It’s on, it’s off. It’s Jacques Villeneuve, it’s his agent, it’s Big Bird.

WTF? Deny, deny, deny. Rumor, rumor, rumor.

Where there’s smoke, there’s usually fire.

Not a week ago, Davis was talking (in a round about way) about it in one of the local papers. Now he’s back to complete denial. So which is it, Bill?

ESPN, You’re In Hot Water

Just saying NASCAR coverage and ESPN is an automatic WTF.

While it’s generally been decent up to the checkers, here is the impression they are giving:

“There’s the checkers, how quick can we get out of here guys?”

You know, there is more to covering the race than just getting to the end. When you consistently roll credits during the Victory Lane coverage, there are some serious issues. Either you have failed to properly schedule your time, or you just flat out don’t care.

The consistent drop in ratings (down 16.7% for Atlanta as compared to 2006) week in and week out should be telling you something. If it isn’t, you better look at other options.

Get on the ball, and get it right. NASCAR requires the Top 5 finishers to stick around for you, and the very least you could do is show your appreciation and respect these guys by giving them their TV time.

If NASCAR doesn’t step in and mandate certain coverage aspects, like a 15 minute minimum post-race for example, then we’re at the mercy of the Networks and what they feel is important.

We can see where ESPN’s current priorities are.

They were supposed to be the TV savior for NASCAR, after NBC/TNT just flat out hosed it up. Thus far, they are far from living up to the hype.

Here’s to looking forward to the return of FOX, and the return of post-race coverage.

NASCAR For Sale?

Following on the heels of recent rumors that Chez Brian may be moving positions within ISC, we have this little ditty from Cup Scene Daily, through Yahoo Sports, that ISC “is studying the sale of the world’s largest stock car auto racing sanctioning body due to financial troubles“.

WTF?

Can’t say that a separation of interests wouldn’t possibly be good for the sport, but financial troubles? Did the Staten Island and Seattle fiasco’s really take that big of a toll on ISC?

Well, there you have it folks. This week’s WTF’s are interesting to say the least.

Aside… Don’t Forget!

It’s time for the showdown at Texas Motor Speedway, and of course Thunder Lounge will be there to provide the best entertainment and party on the planet!

See y’all there!

3 comments. Add your 2 cents!.

Filed Under: Busch Series, Features, Nascar, Nextel Cup, Texas, Tracks, WTF? Wednesday's





Trackback URL for: It’s Wednesday, So WTF?

By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Thursday October 25, 2007
9:38am CDT
Published on Thunder Lounge.

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
Tuesday April 17, 2007
1:31pm CDT
Published on Thunder Lounge.

You know, some people out there are just plain idiots. We’re talking major, or wish they were major, media outlets and their ridiculous love affair with Dale Junior. They love to write about him, at times they love to hate him, then there are the times they want to bring out the big guns to pop a fly on the wall. It’s no wonder that half the crap you folks write is a distant memory by the time the ink dries on the worthless rags you write for.

You’ll be hard pressed to find a one-sided opinion on the Lounge, but every now and then a driver gets beat up in the press over something so stupid that we need to take a stance. Not to back away from a neutral position, but when something isn’t right, someone should say so. So we’ll continue.

What is the damn deal here with beating up Dale Earnhardt Jr. for hopping into the #5 of Kyle Busch to finish out the race at Texas last Sunday? It’s nothing but selfishly trying to grab a few readers, and smells worse than a rotten jar of Jay-Bee’s. Granted that jar of Jay-Bee’s still works, and maybe even better. Granted your readers ain’t biting on the stench you’re slinging out, unlike ol’ Mr. Whiskers that’ll snatch up the mouthful of Jay-Bee’s quicker than a Texas twister snatchin’ up some poor guy’s trailer.

Then there’s the folks that think Junior’s going to head to Hendrick just from jumpin’ in that seat. Come on people. Did common sense just walk out the door for a vacation? Hello, there’s no room there.

Here’s the plain and simple truth. Nothing more, nothing less.

A) Team Chevy. With a new kid on the block, every point counts. Granted it wasn’t a teammate by owner, but it sure was by manufacturer.

B) Junior’s got friends everywhere. You think they refer to the garage area as a big family for nothing? When someone needs help back there, and you can help, you do it.

C) Hello, Junior’s in a big contract negotiation if you haven’t heard already. Why pass up the opportunity to hop into someone else’s stuff, and see what it’s got? OK, so it was torn up. That’s OK though. Junior’s driven his stuff in a similar condition, and there are some comparisons which can be made. One of which that he commented on was how smooth the steering was, and he said he could tell it was a pretty hot car before the accident. There you have it. Now he knows a little bit, granted not a lot but a little bit, about some of the quality of equipment which isn’t from his current provider in DEI. Not talking teams and their effort, but the equipment results from having the backing, additional equipment, and R & D to put into the effort. By the way, Jr., I hear Cal Wells has got a Chassis Dyno up for grabs.

D) He’s a racer, and Ken Schrader always sums it up best when he tells the story about how you could put wheels on a popsicle stick (or hot dog) and these guys would be out there to race it.

That’s all there is to it, really. No need to whine, cry, or call Junior stupid because of “What if he misses the chase by 3 points behind Kyle Busch”, or “What if he misses the title by 3 points to Kyle Busch”, or any of that crap. And it is crap.

So next time you want to pick on someone, do for them screwing up. Don’t just sit there and jump all over someone for doing not only what was a favor and helping hand, but for doing what was right.

/rant

4 comments. Add your 2 cents!.

Filed Under: Dale Earnhardt Inc #8, Dale Earnhardt Junior, Drivers, Hendrick Motorsports #5, Kyle Busch, Nascar, Nextel Cup, Teams, Texas, The Soapbox, Tracks





Trackback URL for: Back Off Junior’s Sack, Flacks…

By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Saturday March 3, 2007
12:45pm CST
Published on Thunder Lounge.

Do it. Do it now.

Make your plans to attend the greatest party on earth. Mardi what? Spring Break huh? Nope, there is no comparison to letting loose and partying all weekend at the Thunder Lounge.

Our first event for 2007 is set to rock at Texas Motor Speedway for the Samsung 500 weekend April 13th-15th, 2007.

Don’t waste your money on a grandstand ticket. Grab an infield ticket, and come find us. We’re in the center of the infield, just east of the garage area. In other words, get into the infield, find the center of the garage area, and turn towards the back stretch. If you “get lost”, ask someone. One of the friendly EMS folks from Greater Dallas EMS would be more than happy to help you find the party.

So gear up, bring your own “beverages” and a stack of beads, and let’s rock. As a note, if you stick around into the wee hours of the morning, or think you might, we recommend parking on the south side of the track. They tend to close the north entrance, and it’s quite a detour when you walk out the south and around the track to the other side. You’ll definitely need an extra beverage or two.

For your convenience, there are several hotels in the area, and most keep it reasonable even with the weekend activities.

Live music usually every night, plus a DJ, plus more fans than you can shake a stick at. We’ll be having various contests throughout the weekend, with prizes and the whole lot.

Appearing and performing again is one Mr. Randy Brown. Always a favorite, he’ll knock your socks off and plays with intense heart and soul. No “Great White Fiasco™” here folks. Pure music, all night.

When there’s action on the track, we’ll have the radio feed playing if available, and don’t forget the infamous 2nd floor view. So bring your sunscreen, relax, and enjoy a weekend at Texas Motor Speedway.

Share your thoughts!.

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





Trackback URL for: Make Your Plans For April, And Texas Motor Speedway