A Cure for the After-Dega Blues

The day after Talladega is kinda like the day after Christmas. There's so much buildup to the big event - it's a slow letdown when the party is finally over.

On the day after Dega, you wake up still on an adrenaline high from the sights, the sounds and the excitement. You  keep turning on your camera just to scroll through your race photos again and again.  You relive and retell the weekend's highlights with your buddies or any poor soul who will listen.

Then you gradually come back to reality as you pack for the journey home, return to work, or stand in an interminable airport security line.

Alas, it's too bad every day can't be Dega.

Personally, I can't quite come to terms with the real world just yet.  So I'm sharing some of my favorite photos from this weekend in the hopes they'll help alleviate those after-Dega blues ...

Jeff Burton and the No. 31 crew
await their turn to qualify.



Kevin Harvick laughing it up on pit road.



Jimmie Johnson chats with the boys from ESPN.

I'm still not used to seeing Kasey Kahne in
a Red Bull Racing uniform.

The "Lucky Dog" gets a place of honor
on David Reutimann's No. 00

Best off-track activity at Dega?
Playing "Costume or Not a Costume" -
sometimes it's hard to tell ...

American Idol alumnus Josh Gracin sang a
fantastic National Anthem.

There's always a camera crew following
Kyle Busch and fiancee Samantha Sarcinella

The fans are loving Tony Stewart - this was taken right after
he gave his Coca-Cola to a little girl who was decked out in No. 14 gear.

If fan adoration equaled good luck at Dega, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. would
have led every lap and won by a mile.

Scott Speed and company head down pit
road before qualifying.

The answer is "subtle".  The question is
"What is one thing Talladega fans are not?"

SB Nation reporter Jeff Gluck interviews
Clint Bowyer before qualifying.

If NASCAR Had Style Points, What Would Reuty Do?

I've recently become addicted to "A Conversation On Cool"  - a pictorial Tumblr site that oozes Rat Pack hip, Hepburn chic and McQueen macho.

And while viewing the site's most recent posts, I began to contemplate the idea of form over substance.  The under-rated importance of a good delivery.  The role that style plays in life and sport.

These musings led me to to wonder if style should count for more in NASCAR.  Racing is, truth be told, a sport which relies heavily on drama and big personalities to keep the tickets selling.

And this, in turn, got me thinking about David Reutimann.

Bless his heart. 

Reuty seems like a nice guy.  He is a talented driver who is gracious with fans.

Yet his pitiful attempt to take Kyle Busch out in Sunday's Kansas contest made me cringe.  I felt a little sad for him.  Perhaps NASCAR should tack on an addendum to its current dictate: "Have at it boys ... but try not to wreck yourself in the process."

I don't disagree with Reutimann's reasoning. After Bristol, ol' Reuty sure had a score to settle with KB.  And Busch takes other drivers out often enough.  But here's the rub - Busch at least pulls off his efforts at revenge with showmanship and a bit of éclat.

On the other hand, if NASCAR were to hand out style points in the vein of college football, then Reutimann should have been docked at least a few dozen for his unwieldy smashup of the No. 18.

Other faux pas that should merit a loss (or gain) of style points in NASCAR (were NASCAR ever to adopt such a policy)?

Crying in Victory Lane: -50

Whining on the radio: -50

Cleaning your own windshield under caution: +100

Throwing another driver onto your car hood: +75

Leaving an "I Hate You" note in a fellow driver's 'copter: -75

Getting your wife to flip off another driver: -100

You get the picture. 

There's something to be said for cool ...

Photoshop Friday - Superman Returns

Kyle Busch may have been Superman at Bristol Motor Speedway (at least he thinks he is, according to David Reutimann), but can Busch win again at Atlanta?  We'll find out when Superman returns to the track Labor Day weekend.

Keselowski Isn't the Only Driver Who Thinks Busch is an ...

Kyle Busch may have done the "Bristol Sweep".

But it sure would be nice if he'd be a gracious winner for a change.

Fans have come to expect sulk and snark when a race doesn't go Busch's way. We get it. The guy's a vicious competitor who hates to lose.

But you'd think Busch would be a bit more sportsmanlike after winning a race - or the entire weekend of races, in fact.  Turns out that even in the midst of a perfect, history-making moment, Busch still can't help but take unnecessary digs at his fellow competitors.

Bob Pockrass at Scene Daily has the full story, but here's what Busch had to say about second-place driver David Reutimann after Saturday night's race at Bristol.

Per Scene Daily:

"Reutimann was fast, and he was good, and I’m not going to say why I beat him because then he’ll fix it, but it has to do with behind the wheel,” Busch said matter-of-factly.


Busch elaborated by saying, “He wasn’t driving the place right. I’m sorry. If he fixes how to drive this place, he’d be right there with me.”Whatever happened to good job, great race, and a modicum of sportsmanship?

Not surprisingly, Reutimann was less than thrilled with Busch's remarks, calling it the stupidest comment he's ever heard.  He even suggested that Busch open his own driving school since he's so darn good at Bristol.

Touche.

I'm all for smack talk and driver drama.  But fans would be better served if Reutimann, Brad Keselowski and the like would take their beef with Busch to the track.

That's what fans want - a little less talk and a lot more action.

Team Owner Shoutouts

Chip Ganassi got a lot of press this weekend - and deservedly so.  With Dario Franchitti's domination of the Indy 500 and Jamie McMurray's victory at the Daytona 500 in February, Ganassi is now the first team owner in history to win both of these events in the same year.

(Insert round of applause here).

With McMurray back at EGR and Juan Pablo "Mad-toya" wheeling the No. 42 car, it looks like 2010 is going to be a better year than expected for the NASCAR side of team Ganassi.

But Ganassi isn't the only surprise in the NASCAR garage. There are a couple more team owners who deserve props for the first third of the season.  Sure, they haven't made history yet - but then again, the year ain't over.

Take Michael Waltrip.  Mikey's best career move may turn out to be giving Martin Truex, Jr. a full-time ride.  Truex definitely seems to click with the guys at MWR and he has the points to prove it. After Charlotte, Truex is only 14 points outside the top twelve. And he might well be the sleeper of the season.  The New Jersey native drove his way into the All-Star race and finished second only to winner Kurt Busch.  And let's not forget Truex also snagged the pole at Dover. 

MWR's David Reutimann isn't doing too badly either.  Reutimann has managed to secure top five finishes in the last two points races (which is more than current champ Jimmie Johnson can boast).

Another owner that deserves props is Richard Childress.  Toward the end of 2009, it was apparent to anyone paying attention that the RCR cars were making vast improvements. If the season had been a few races longer, we might even have seen an RCR win. 

That's why it wasn't all that surprising that Childress and company hit the track running in 2010.  Kevin Harvick is leading the points and has an early season win courtesy of Dega. Jeff Burton is in the top 12. And Clint Bowyer is a mere four points out.  It looks like Childress is back - and they mean business.

Rick Hendrick and company better watch out ...

Photo info: Kevin Harvick and team owner Richard Childress talk in the garage.

Richmond in the Rear View

If the spring race at Talladega was Christmas morning for race fans, then Saturday's contest at Richmond was Thanksgiving at the in-laws - nice enough and somewhat satisfying, but not as good as Mama makes it.

In what is usually an exciting showdown with fender-bangin' and last-minute slidin', Saturday night's race at RIR didn't quite live up to the hype (or the Dega comparison).

Still, for all the opportunities to catch some shuteye during the broadcast, there were a few developments of note at Richmond this weekend:

Kyle Busch - the Official Restart King - It was only a matter of time before Rowdy ended up in Victory Lane again.  And how fitting that KB's first checkers of the season would be the result of beating Jeff Gordon on a late-race restart.  Gotta hand it to Rowdy, if he's near the front, he gets it done.

MWR outruns HMS - The boys at Michael Waltrip Racing haven't had too much to smile about in 2010. But Richmond may have turned those frowns upside down - both Martin Truex, Jr. and Marcos Ambrose earned Top 10 finishes, while David Reutimann eked out a p15.  Compare that to the Hendrick Motorsports crew who finished 2nd, 10th, 25th and 32nd. Proof of the apocalypse?

Has JJ found his kryptonite? - Ever since the return of the spoiler, Jimmie Johnson hasn't had the most stellar of finishes. Richmond was tough on the No. 48 team. After a miserable night in the pits, Johnson barely saved the car as it slid across the finish line into10th place.  If the spoiler isn't to blame, maybe his tiff with Gordon is.  Ol' Jeff's earlier rantings just might be messing with four-time's head.

Jeff Gordon makes nice - Speaking of Jeff, After Rick Hendrick reportedly put the smackdown on the brewing feud between teammates Gordon and Johnson, all was nicey-nice at Richmond. The pair never got together on the track and Gordon's attitude post-race was all rainbows and sunshine.  We'll see how long it takes for the drivers to go at it again.  Darlington, anyone?

RCR lookin' good - At the end of last year, Richard Childress Racing was making a comeback. They just didn't have enough races left to prove it.  Now that the 2010 season is well underway, it's clear that something is clicking over at RCR.  Harvick has already snagged one victory this season and Jeff Burton hasn't been running too badly either. Also consider they finished third and fourth (respectively) at Richmond. And now that Harvick is the points leader - I'm thinking Happy just might smash "four-time's" plans to make it five.

A Little Dega Eye Candy

For those of you who weren't present at Sunday's Talladega race, my sincere condolences.  It was NASCAR Nirvana.

Unpredictable. Exciting. Dramatic. You name it, this Dega race had it. And after such a fantastic day of racing, it's hard to get back to workaday reality.

Here are a few of the sights I captured before the race.  Enjoy the photos and take my advice - order your ticket for the Fall Talladega race as soon as you can.  No self-respecting NASCAR fan should miss this.

Tony Stewart's Old Spice Chevy - I didn't get close enough to sniff him, but I wonder if Smoke actually wears this stuff?  My granddad used to ...

In the words of Martina McBride, "This One's for the Girls". NASCAR hunk Carl Edwards takes a moment in the garage to talk to broadcasters and sign a few autographs.

Talladega is a heartless mistress.  And no driver has suffered her scorn more severely than Ryan Newman. I wonder if he'll take the advice screen-printed on his shirt when he returns to Dega this autumn?

Roll Tide! University of Alabama Athletic Director Mal Moore served as the Grand Marshall Sunday. He's Bama diety, but even he seemed impressed with the boys of NASCAR. I heard him ask one of the photographers if he could get copies of his photos after the race.

The inside of Dale Jr's National Guard No. 88 Chevrolet, as it sits on the starting grid.

A.J. Allmendinger, David Reutimann and Jeff Burton chat it up before driver introductions.

Brad Keselowski may have exited the Cup race with an oxygen mask strapped to his face, but he rebounded in grand style to win the Nationwide race later that day.  Not too shabby.

Future teammates talking about 2011? Or two buddies catching up pre-race? Only Kasey Kahne, Ryan Newman and Rick Hendrick know for sure ...

My favorite Talladega snapshot - is Kyle Busch giving big brother Kurt some driving lessons?

Talladega's favorite son, Dale Earnhardt Jr.  And rest assured you Junior fangirls, that hand with the wedding ring isn't Junior's. It belongs to Kurt Busch.

Jeff Gordon's Dupont Chevy on the starting grid. Such a promising start.  Such a disappointing finish.

Greg Biffle wins the day for the driver who signed the most autographs. Say what you will about The Biff, he knows how to treat the fans.

The Third NASCAR Day of Christmas: Three Monday Races

From the get-go, Mother Nature seemed ready to play havoc with NASCAR this year. Matt Kenseth's rain-shortened win at the Daytona 500 started it off. And by season's end, three Cup races during had to be run on Monday due to inclement weather.

The Coca-Cola 600 was one of those rained-delayed races.

But rainy days and Mondays sure didn't get David Reutimann down. When more precipitation hit the track on Monday, NASCAR officials called the race early, giving Reutimann his first Sprint Cup victory and Michael Waltrip Racing its first win ever.

Reutimann and Waltrip celebrated the victory with a most exuberant man-hug. And I predict Waltrip will be doing more hugging in 2010 - he's added Martin Truex Jr. to the MWR fold and Marcos Ambrose had some darn good showings to build on for next season.

The other two Monday winners? Denny Hamlin at Pocono in August and Tony Stewart, just one week later, at Watkins Glen.

Hamlin's win - his first in 2009 - gave the #11 team the momentum it needed to end the season mid-Chase. And Stewart, well his victory at Watkins helped cement his spot as the regular season champ.

See? Rain's not so bad after all.

Photo info: Waltrip and Reutimann talk things over during the Coca-Cola 600 rain delay.

Looky There - Things Just Got Interesting

Everyone said it was highly improbable that Jimmie Johnson would have a bad race between Talladega and Homestead. But that's the funny thing about the improbable - it sometimes happens.

In fact, Johnson got hit with a ton of improbable during lap three of the Dickies 500 on Sunday in the form of David Reutimann and Sam Hornish Jr. And although Johnson's crew (as well as several members of other Hendrick Motorsports teams) worked frantically to get the #48 back on the track, they lost an hour of time and more than 100 laps. And Johnson lost 100 points.

Just like that.

Of course there's no great loss without some gain. And Mark Martin stands to gain the most from Johnson's unlikely brush with fate. Although Martin started Texas with a nearly insurmountable points lag, he left the track only 73 points behind.

It looks like Pheonix just got interesting--and that Homestead tickets just got harder to come by.

Sunday Superlatives - Dover Edition

The Autism Speaks 400 wasn't the most exciting race of the season, but it did have its moments. Below are the winners and losers of The Monster Mile.

The Two Things At Once Award: With another 2nd-place finish at Dover and a new first place spot in The Chase, Tony Stewart gets my vote as the guy who's most likely to make this driver/owner thing work. Not only are the teams of Stewart-Haas Racing competitive in their first year out, they're damned good. With rumors abounding that Smoke will add a third car to his stable in 2010, it looks like this is one driver who can own a team and still be a formidable on-track contender.

Smooth Move of the Race: For sheer racing gravitas, this award goes to David Reutimann. The pole sitter found himself in an uncomfortable position when David Stremme wrecked right in front of him. But with some quick-thinking smoothness, Reutimann spun his car around the careening Stremme to avoid one monster of a crash. "The Franchise's" move saved the day and helped give Michael Waltrip Racing a top 20 finish.

Weekend Game-Changer: Rick Hendrick made a tough call this week, replacing Tony Eury Jr. with Lance McGrew atop the #88 pit box. And, from the sound of the team's radio chatter and Dale Jr's 12th-place finish, it looks like the crew chief shake-up was a good thing. Not only did the switch appease Junior Nation, McGrew's calls seemed to satisfy his driver as well. Junior told the media after the race, "I was pretty pleased that we were making good gains on the car all race long."

Instant Karma's Gonna Get You Award: Kyle Busch made headlines this week taking yet another verbal jab at Dale Earnhardt Jr., his favorite punching bag. But in the end, Busch's punches came back to haunt him. Call it instant karma or poetic justice, but Busch lost Saturday's Nationwide race to Brad Keselowski (who just happpens to drive for the Dale Jr.-owned JR Motorsports). As if that wasn't enough, Busch finished Sunday's Cup race in 23rd spot, well behind Dale Jr's 12-place-finish. Of course, Busch will likely blame tire trouble and/or equipment failure for his lackluster performances. After all, it's never the driver's fault. Right, Kyle?

Killer Pit Crew Performance: Matt Kenseth's Killer Bees secured a leading spot for their driver in one heckuva pit stop. Too bad Kenseth's car didn't have the goods to contend for the win. But kudos to his crew for their fantastic performance.

Rebound of the Race: Greg Biffle went from one lap down to having a legitmate shot at the checkers. Taking just two tires on the last pit stop put the #16 Ford in position to win. But in the end, Johnson and Stewart proved too much for The Biff. Still, third place is nothing to sneer at--and it's Biffle's ninth top 10 finish at Dover.

Stewart and Reutimann Ain't Got Nuthin' on These Cats

The rain-delay altercation between Tony Stewart and David Reutimann got a lot of press this week (this blog included). But when you think about it in terms of jaw-dropping excitement, it was about as thrilling as watching a tree grow. Compared to the more physical exchanges the sport has seen over the years, Monday's little skirmish was pretty darn tame.

In recent years, there's been Kevin Harvick and Juan Pablo Montoya, Kevin Harvick and Carl Edwards, a helmet-throwing Tony Raines, and of course Mr. and Mrs. Bobby Hamilton Jr. doubleteaming Landon Cassill in a hillbilly display of temper and choice fingers. And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

So sit back, relax and relive some of those high-drama feuds. Stewart and Reutimann look like nuns compared to this bunch:

Cussed Out, Rained Out, But Still a Winner

He was cussed out by Tony Stewart and washed out by rainfall, but in the end, a win is a win.

And David Reutimann will take it.

Although a Cup victory for Reutimann in 2009 isn't a big surprise, the fact that he won this particular race is. Listening to pre-race coverage, Hendrick Motorsports was supposed to dominate, Ryan Newman was pegged to give Stewart-Haas its first points win, or Kasey Kahne was a shoe-in to repeat last year's victory. And early on, it looked like The House of Gibbs had the whole shebang locked up as Kyle Busch quickly drove away from the field.

Tony Stewart clearly thought Reutimann didn't have a shot. During one of the rain delays, he walked over to the #00 Toyota and accused Reutimann of racing like a Nationwide driver. It was a re-emergence of the Stewart we all know and love. And things got even more heated when one of Rudy's crew decided to take Smoke on mid-tirade.

But racing fortunes can turn on a dime, and the fates do not always favor the fastest car, the quickest pit crew or the most aggressive driver. Sometimes, a victory boils down to a gutsy strategy and a little bit of weather.

And that's fine by Reutimann.

"When you envision yourself winning your first Sprint Cup race, you envision it different," Reutimann said. "But it's so hard to win these deals, we'll take it any way we can."

Not only is this a career milestone for Reutimann, it's also the first victory for Michael Waltrip Racing. To put it politely, until the first few races of 2009, nobody would have given MWR a snowball's chance in hell of winning a Cup race.

My, oh my, what a difference a year makes! Wonder what Stewart thinks about that?

Note From NASCAR-ista: For all you Tweeps in the NASCAR universe, David Reutimann does not have a Twitter account, per the communications office at Michael Waltrip Racing. Yes, there is a guy who claims to be Reutimann on Twitter, but he's a phony.

Associated Press Photo

Rockin' the All-Star Vote -- A Little Help for Race Fans

Political party affiliations be damned. This week, NASCAR fans have a much more complicated vote to cast--namely, to decide which Sprint Cup driver is All-Star worthy.

We only have until Saturday at 7:30 p.m. to cast our vote for who's in. So to help the indecisive among us, I've put together a short little voting guide for the 10 drivers who are currently leading the fan vote. And if this isn't enough, check out a search engine like Ask.com and type in the names of your pick. We fans need all the help we can get!

AJ Allmendinger: He's the king of shameless self-promotion and he unabashedly begs for votes every time a TV camera crosses his path. He's got one top five and two top 10 finishes this season. Plus, he races for The King Richard Petty, so what more needs to be said?

Bill Elliott: Awesome Bill from Dawsonville has long been a NASCAR all-star. With 44 career Cup wins, this old-school vet may be a bit long in the tooth...but he can still lay down a fast lap. Because of his past career successes, Elliott gets my vote, hands down.

Joey Logano: Boy Wonder has two top 10 finishes this season. But winning Rookie of the Year should be enough accolades for this kid. Making him an all-star so early on is definitely putting the cart before the horse.

Jamie McMurray: He's a guy that race day pundits usually pick as a sleeper to contend for the win. But so far in '09 he hasn't been able to pull it off. In fact, McMurray hasn't won a Cup race since 2007. But things could be worse--at least the #26 team has three top 10s to their credit this season.

Juan Pablo Montoya: He takes no guff and he cuts no slack. Plus, the off chance that Montoya might start a fist fight on the track is reason enough to cast your vote for the #42. If you need numbers, he's got three top 10 finishes this year.

David Ragan: Ragan scored his first Nationwide win this season, but he has yet to take the checkered flag in Sprint Cup (his best finish thus far is a top 10). Still, there's something about Ragan that's intensely likeable. Maybe it's his Unadilla accent.

David Reutimann: A pleasant surprise in the early going and a huge boon to MWR. As they say, Reutimann is The Franchise. With four top 10 finishes and one top five, surely Reutimann will pull out a win before Homestead.

Eliott Sadler: I love ol' Elliott, but I just can't get past his near crying jag when he realized he was going to lose this year's Daytona 500. It was almost as uncomfortable as watching Gilles tear up on Dancing With the Stars. But then again, he does have a top five and a top 10 finish.

Martin Truex Jr.: Any driver that can last an entire race whilst suffering from a kidney stone deserves your admiration and arguably your vote. Plus, he's finished in the top 10 three times this year. Martin's a man among boys.

Michael Waltrip: Where do I begin? He wrecks almost every time he touches the track (and usually more than once per race). But then again, he sure is funny. If it's entertainment you seek, then by all means vote Waltrip. Besides, he has managed to eke out one top 10 finish.