Forum: HoseHeads Sprint Car General Forum (go)
Moderators: dirtonly  /  dmantx  /  hosehead

It's what it should be called cause Sammy is horrible and I can't take it anymore, If you watch the highlights of the last race when Hirst and Madsen go by him in turn one you can see Sammy acted like he was scared shitless and points the car straight and hits the brakes getting lapped again, damn it's making me sick....... Give him a pink slip and send him home and put Kevin in the car to bring dignity back to the Swindell name, he is looking like Waltrip 

Well just two weeks ago I watched him at Tulare.  He ran 4th and looked just fine!

 
I LEARNED ESP FROM MY MOM

"PUT YOUR SWEATER ON: DON'T YOU THINK I KNOW WHEN 
YOU'RE COLD?"

I'm hoping for a Sammy comeback, but not optimistic

You know nothing, engine ran like crap.  He pulled into work area twice to work on it.  I know for sure Sammy was not scared.  

People don't forget how to race overnight.  Sammy won the Short Track Nationals last fall, was upfront at the Chili Bowl until contact got him sideways, was fast in Australia as well.  

Even if he was done (which he isn't), enjoy him while you can.  He's among the top 3 to ever strap into one of these cars.  

I know he is running in the back every week and being lapped, no mystery in that it's a fact. 

You can't enjoy your favorite driver being punked weekly and running in the back being lapped in stellar equipment I might add.

this is the same guy that took subpar equipment ( beaver drill & tool car) and won the don Martin,now he's in good equipment and being embarrassed weekly, there is no excuse anymore, everybody else has figured out the Hoosiers but Sammy can't???? We're talking about a master of machinery here that Can wrench and do it all, now he looks clueless which is very odd for somebody as knowledgable as him with sprints, 

A very similar thread like this was started about two years ago with Steve done and Sammy da man and now look how it has changed.  If you think Sammy forgot how to drive, your nuts.  Obviously they are struggling and trying to get things figured out.  They tested at I-30 Speedway for four hours a few weeks back.  It is taking longer than Sammy fans would like but don't think this is not driving Sammy nuts as well.  Steve finally switched to buying motors and that changed things around for him....now Sammy's turn to figure it out.  He will be back...relax!

www.ibracn.com
#PaulsToTheWall
GO SAMMY!

It is amazing how people want to write off drivers who begin to struggle or hit a rough stretch. Especially the veteran drivers over the last few years. Just like the countless amout of morons who said Steve was done and now he is running back to form this season. The same can be said about the same morons who wrote off Fred Rahmer and look at the year he had with the Sell car last season. It is unbelievable the amount of stupidity some people display.  

What I don't understand is why people have to focus completely on 1 driver, this attitude of I like this guy and everyone else is against me and this driver. I try and enjoy the thing as a whole and like watching everybody and really actually enjoy seeing different people win. Now I do have some I cheer for more and some less but it just doesn't get me in this hole where if 1 persons doing bad, he's my guy and now the world sucks. LIke Brad said and you said it yourself Dirtlover, Sammy's a smart guy and will figure it out, I'd just sit back and enjoy the ride.

http://gph.is/XMLGff

Agreed. I respect anyone with the balls to drive one of those monsters, & never cheer for a crash. I was for "anybody but Schatz" at Nationals but his incredible win from 21st (or whatever) was one of the best things I've seen on a sprint track.

But its more fun if you root for someone. I like Sammy cause he's an old fart like me & "the guy everybody loves to hate". Haven't been following the sport long enough to have seen his alleged misdeeds. Was it 3 yrs. ago when he put 2 cars into the wall at Eldora? That had me wondering....but then at Knoxville on one of the qualifying nites Wayne Johnson did the same to Sammy, & he somehow recovered after a series of wild maneuvers on the cushion, & even passed Wayne by the end of the race. That was impressive... he can not only dish it out but take it too.

I hope he gets competitive again cause I hate to see a guy with so much pride perform so poorly

Clearly it was the switch to Eagle.  Prior to that, he was a top 5 Outlaw car every night.  As soon as he switched, it was all down hill.  I don't care how much Speedy Bill is paying him to run his crap, he should switch back to Maxim.

He went back to Maxims last year, not sure if he has went back to eagle, or still has maxims, haven't payed much attention

Just did some checking, he is still running a Maxim this year.

Hey, he switched back to Maxim at mid season last year, as far as I know he still has Maxims.

YEP it's still gotta be the Eagle LOL

Getting old and losing hand/eye coordination and endurance is a fact of life.  The wall for me when I really started to feel my age was last fall after I turned 62 and got slammed by this brutal winter.  I have never drove a Sprint Car so I can't weigh in on what that's like but I watch a lot of sports and can't think of any other sport where guys can still be competitive at 60.  At some point these older drivers are either going to know when it's time to get out of it or their skills will decline gradually and in some cases very quickly.  Everbody ages a little differently but the one constant is that we all get older and can't do some of the things we did when we were younger.  No shame in that, it's just the natural progression of life.

I have seen some great drivers since 1960 and eventually they all move on so I learned at a young age that it's more about the cars and the sport than the drivers.  Are Sammy's skills declining quickly or is it some kind of setup, motor, tire or shock issue?  Give him some time and he'll either get it squared away and give us a few more years watching him race or he won't.  The owners in this sport seem to appreciate history and past accomplishments but at some point they will make a driver change if they deem it necessary.  My personal observation is that Sprint Car racing is a young man's sport and not many can excell at it when they get older like Steve and Sammy.  If they're still running up front now against the kids that shows how awesome they were to still be talented enough to keep a ride.  It also adds some weight to those barroom arguements about which era was the best.  I hope I'm around in 30 more years to see how today's young stars have the longevity that Steve and Sammy have had.  Sammy is one of the best there is working on these cars so if anyone can figure things out it will be him.

Stan Meissner

Well said, I just have to be patient and enjoy him and Steve while I can and hope for the best.

It's probably got something to do with all those made in China big game stickers he puts on his cars... IMHO...

The rumors of Samm's demise are overly exaggerated.  No worries, just persistence.

Go SAMMY!