NASCAR FAN
Of course, most people that know me, know that I'm a Dale Jarrett fan. For as long as he's been driving the 88 car for Yates racing, I've been a loyal fan from year to year. He's not been driving the 88 car for them for that long,(only since Ernie Irvan's big accident in Michigan)he took over the 88 car and team, then when Ernie came back, Ernie started driving the 28 car. Now Kenny Irwin drives the 28 car. Kenny is still a rookie but when he gets some experience under his belt, he should be a good team mate for Dale. If Kenny ever gets into the bracket of racer that Dale is, the two will be hard to handle. For now, even though he's practically all alone on the track, He's doing a fine job in '98. Let's hope that Yates will keep better engines under him the rest of the year!
Mark Martin is having a very good year in '98. Even with some of the boo boos earlier in the season, like trying to pull out of the pits before the jack man drops the car, he's still doing well in the points race for the Winston Cup Championship. If I had to choose a driver other than Dale Jarrett, it would definately be Mark. Mark is, over all, a good ethical driver but able to bump and grind when the time comes, like Bristol. Mark has a big advantage over a lot of the other drivers. He drives for Roush Racing with 4 other team mates. Team mates, on tracks like Talladaga and Daytona where drafting is a must, are great to have like Jeff Burton, Johnny Benson and Ted Musgrave is a great plus when competing for the Championship title. Way to go Mark!! Keep it up!!
Johnny Benson has been a wild card favorite of mine. He's never really in the spot light like some of the other drivers such as Mark Martin and Rusty Wallace, but he's had a good '98 season so far. He now has the backing from an excellent owner, Jack Roush, and he has great potential for on-coming seasons. With team mates like Mark Martin, Jeff Burton and Ted Musgrave, he has the chance for a win before the year is out. His team has good sponsorship like Cheerios and pop-secret for the money backing that is required to keep this expensive sport going. Don't tell anyone, but I even liked him before he started driving a Ford. Shhhh!, our little secret! Maybe we'll get to hear more about Johnny in the '99 season. Bet we'll hear more about Kenny Irwin too!
Awesome Bill from Dawsonville! Bill Elliott is definately an old-time favorite of mine. In the mid and late 80's, he dominated most of the larger tracks like Talladaga and Daytona with record setting speeds that were mind boggling. I'm not sure which track it was on, pardon me for my ignorance, but he set a record top speed of 212 miles per hour. That would be an awesome feeling, even for awesome Bill! Now with the restricter plates being required by Nascar on these bigger, super fast tracks, race cars are held under 200 miles per hour for safety. They say it's safer but it bunches up the field more and requires more drafting from team mates making it a team event and sometimes not quite as safe as the non-restricter plate races. Old Bill has made a lot of foot prints that could never be filled!
Bobby Labonte is kind of an outlaw in my eyes. Maybe that's why I like him. With no team mates out there to help him out, he's still having a great season in '98. There's another car that I hate to admit being a fan of. A stinking Pontiac! As you'll see, I like another Pontiac on the track, Ernie Irvan. Bobby gets a lot of help from his brother Terry. On several occasions, I've seen brother Terry help him with drafting before he would help his team mate Jeff Gordon. That tells a lot about the old saying that "blood's thicker than water". Can't blame Terry though. I've seen Jeff Gordon attempt to pass Terry when it was evident that Terry was clearly the better running car and Jeff had no chance of being competitive with the lead cars. Bobby's a tuff one! Keep an eye on the old boy!!
I don't have a clue why, but Ernie Irvan is one of my favorites too. Like I said earlier about Bobby labonte, he also drives a stinking Pontiac now! He used to drive the 28 car for Robert Yates, but with a "falling out" with Yates racing, he left to drive the Skittles car. I've heard rumor that he was fired from Yates racing, but I believe that he's more of a loner than a team player anyway. Some said that he complained that Dale Jarrett was getting all the best equipment and engines but in truth, Robert Yates showed Ernie the serial numbers on his engine and they were the same on the engine that Dale had won a race with the prior week. Believe half what you see and none of what you hear. Who knows what actually happened between Yates and Ernie? Good luck in Michigan again!
Jeff Burton was looking very promising in the '97 season. I was making predictions that he would be a major contender for the '98 seaon Championship, but what happened to him this year is unexplainable. Someone said that he's been having some serious medical problems, but I haven't heard anything to confirm that. Hopefully, he can get his problems straightened out and be a major factor in the on-coming races. I like Jeff very well and I like his driving style. He's another one of those drivers, like Mark Martin, he is ethical but can bump and grind with the best of them. With team mates that drive the same way, like Mark Martin and Johnny Benson, he has a bright future ahead of him. Let's get back on track and get some wins, at least for the'99 season, Jeff!!
Jeremy Mayfield was a big surprise to me this '98 season. I liked him last year, but this year he has literally torn up the track. He and team mate Rusty Wallace are , on the most part, dominating the track. I don't know if it was his last car owner or his K-Mart sponsor last year, but he is really doing well with the Mobil One team driving for Pennski. He has only taken two checkered flags, in Charlotte, in a non points race, but yet, he's a top contender for the Winston Cup Championship title. Go, Jeremy!!! If this keeps up, I may have to switch favorite drivers. He's young, he's experienced and he's got a very bright future. Look out Mark, Dale, Rusty, Jeff Gordon, the Labonte brothers and anyone else that think they can't be beat!! The kid is in town!!!
Rusty Wallace has not always been one of my favorites. Now that he's driving for Pennski, he's changed a lot of his driving style. He drives much more conservative now like some of the better racers such as Dale Jarrett and the Labonte brothers. It seems as if now, he's looking at the big picture instead of only looking as far ahead as the next pass. A good racer is conservative on tires, fuel and passing with minimal risk. When a driver makes those heroic moves to gain a position, they risk losing the whole race and even losing the Championship, if they are in contention. Rusty's a smart driver, but yet, has that in-your-face attitude. That's why a lot of people don't like him. Oh, well! I like him!!!
This year is Nascar's Fiftieth anniversary. Help keep the sport alive and enjoy it while you can before something wierd happens like the EPA shutting them down! It's a growing sport that almost everyone loves. Not just us red necks! Check out some of these links below!
NASCAR WEB SITE
JOIN THE DALE JARRETT FAN CLUB
BACK TO GOOB'S WORLD
EMAIL ME HERE