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

i listened all four nights on the radio, rented 3 nights of ppv. not once did i here jamie say anything that they were running like hotlaps.

He isn't from Nebraska; he's actually from Pennsylvania I believe.

He goes by "Pork Chop" and he worked the 50th Knoxville Nationals.

http://bobbycoxtheclown.webs.com/

wednesday and thursday heat races were super hard to pass. without a yellow flag the top qualifiers were screw.  heard talk of dirty air??? is that really true?  heard johnny gibson say he thought fast cars should be in the front of the heats. might make for a better feature will all top cars in feature but the low buck teams wouldn't have less chance of making the big show. 

I know that some of you are going to jump on me, but I have been going to Knoxville, and we love the place, but up until the B Main Saturday night , most every race looked like a hot lap session. A fast track turns less skillful drivers into supermen and takes the drivers skill out of the equation. Granted the A Main final was terrific, but those who rave about great racing all week saw something different that we did. I listen to radio on headset during races and announcers even made comments about looking like hot laps most of time.

Disappointed until A Main on Saturday!!!

Couldn't agree with you more.   Up until the B main Saturday night the whole week of racing felt like watching hot laps with no passing anywhere to be seen for the most part.    Jason Johnson's hard earned victory saved the Nationals week and sent most people home feeling happy that Schatz had finally been beaten.    With that being said I have been going to Nationals since 1989 and after watching 3 1/2 nights of hot lap sessions decided I will not return next year.   I have a lot of great memories from seeing 28 Nationals races but if you take this years Saturday night A main feature out of the equation I would say this was by far the worst overall racing I have witnessed at Knoxville for the Nationals ever.   

Couldn't agree with you more.   Up until the B main Saturday night the whole week of racing felt like watching hot laps with no passing anywhere to be seen for the most part.    Jason Johnson's hard earned victory saved the Nationals week and sent most people home feeling happy that Schatz had finally been beaten.    With that being said I have been going to Nationals since 1989 and after watching 3 1/2 nights of hot lap sessions decided I will not return next year.   I have a lot of great memories from seeing 28 Nationals races but if you take this years Saturday night A main feature out of the equation I would say this was by far the worst overall racing I have witnessed at Knoxville for the Nationals ever.   

I went to my first Nationals in 1972....missed my first since then this year but had PPV all four nights. The problem with the heat races isn't a Nationals issue....it's the damned WoO and the current car specs. The Nationals went from inverting 10 cars to 8 cars in the heats on qualifying nights because it was getting tougher and tougher for the fast qualifiers to make top 4 in their heat races, and there was little passing. Now we are facing the same problem with the 8 invert. Changing the invert either way is not going to resolve the issue. Think about it.....the WoO were inverting only 2 stinking rows in their heats and still 90% of the time the heats were follow the leader with a front row driver winning. To ensure ALL the WoO teams have a better chance.... now they no longer invert.  I remember the days when Steve Kinser or Doug or Sammy and other top drivers started 10th and made it to the front of their heats in as soon as 1, 2 and 3 laps. Those days are gone. And they are gone because today's car is a "cookie cutter" car that demands a lot of money. The amount of money that is only available to a few. And those few will rise to the top regardless how damn boring or exciting the heat races are. 

I went to my first Nationals in 1972....missed my first since then this year but had PPV all four nights. The problem with the heat races isn't a Nationals issue....it's the damned WoO and the current car specs. The Nationals went from inverting 10 cars to 8 cars in the heats on qualifying nights because it was getting tougher and tougher for the fast qualifiers to make top 4 in their heat races, and there was little passing. Now we are facing the same problem with the 8 invert. Changing the invert either way is not going to resolve the issue. Think about it.....the WoO were inverting only 2 stinking rows in their heats and still 90% of the time the heats were follow the leader with a front row driver winning. To ensure ALL the WoO teams have a better chance.... now they no longer invert.  I remember the days when Steve Kinser or Doug or Sammy and other top drivers started 10th and made it to the front of their heats in as soon as 1, 2 and 3 laps. Those days are gone. And they are gone because today's car is a "cookie cutter" car that demands a lot of money. The amount of money that is only available to a few. And those few will rise to the top regardless how damn boring or exciting the heat races are. 

You are entitled to your opinion but if it was the worst racing at the Nationals you have ever witnessed, why are you giving up on it because of one bad year?  I think the racing at the Nationals is pretty good on most years.  Some years great, some years not so great.  The heats have never been side by side, slide job filled races---and that goes for pretty much any track, anywhere, any division.  Heats usually suck.  JMO. 

What makes this format so unique is the fact that you have to fight like hell to get those points.  Nobody lays down no matter which position they are in.  They want those extra 2 or 3 points for each position.  Next year, we may witness some of the best heat races we have ever seen.  Who knows?  Although they usually aren't very memorable, I do remember some qualifying nights with damned good heat races.  Makes the B main that much more intriging watching a guy make a transfer spot and then work his way up in the A trying desperately to earn the points.

I say leave it alone.  I will agree 70% of the show was "hot lappish" but that happens sometimes.  If that finish in the Saturday finale would not have happened, I would have chalked this one up as one of the least memorable Nationals ever. But, in all of my years of watching all forms of racing, you have to sit through some less than entertaining moments in order to enjoy the moment that was the last 25 laps of that A!  Worth every second when that happens too! 

I must have been at a different racetrack than some on this board.  I saw good racing every night (but, I don't just watch the lead car either).  

If Schatz had taken the lead and drove off many would have said it was a snoozer and not even noticed Larson from 21st to 5th.  There is more racing than just racing for the lead.

Yep, he was a rocket-ship. 

My guess is even without the race up front, many wouldn't have noticed, they seem to only watch the leader and expect the battle for the lead to be magnificent at every race.  Ian Madsen was pretty fast too, 24th to 8th and no mention. 

But, some people don't watch the racing, they watch the lead and that's it.  I've seen monster battles with 5-7 cars for 2nd-8th almost every week at Knoxville, but people only seem to notice the car that is out front and forget that everyone else is clawing and scratching to get there.

I know that some of you are going to jump on me, but I have been going to Knoxville, and we love the place, but up until the B Main Saturday night , most every race looked like a hot lap session. A fast track turns less skillful drivers into supermen and takes the drivers skill out of the equation. Granted the A Main final was terrific, but those who rave about great racing all week saw something different that we did. I listen to radio on headset during races and announcers even made comments about looking like hot laps most of time.

Disappointed until A Main on Saturday!!!

ive been going to knoxville for the Nationals for over 30 years and might make it out there another 2-3 times a summer. This year I was there for the capitani & then wed & thurs. I made the comment to my brother during the cappy about how "nice" the track was after 3 days of the 360's. Come Wednesday & Thursday the track was just as fast which led to minimal passing, especially the heats. 

I know the dunkins are the best in the business and undoubtedly take pride in having a well prepared track. I know it's far fetched but I'd allow for the possibility that judging by how much the 15 has stunk up the show the last 10-12 years and just how good that car is once the track slicks off could they have possibly been trying to affect the outcome? Unlikely I know but worse things have happened. 

What car specs do you think might help the issue?  Most cars at the Nationals are going to have whatever works best regardless of what the rules are.  I don't see different rules having much of an affect.

What I think would help more would be if they didn't have the track so wet early.  If the track was not so locked down we should see more passing.  It would likely slow down qualifying but that's fine too.  You still have to setup for and drive whatever condition the track is in.  The better drivers should actually have better times and maybe it wouldn't come down to who has the best motor as often.  As quick as the qualifying nights go I wouldn't mind see less water early with a built in break to rework the track later in the night.   Just a thought.

Track was very similar from July 4th on.   Not too many slick tracks at all this year even with very little rain in May or June (or August).

Couldn't agree with you more.   Up until the B main Saturday night the whole week of racing felt like watching hot laps with no passing anywhere to be seen for the most part.    Jason Johnson's hard earned victory saved the Nationals week and sent most people home feeling happy that Schatz had finally been beaten.    With that being said I have been going to Nationals since 1989 and after watching 3 1/2 nights of hot lap sessions decided I will not return next year.   I have a lot of great memories from seeing 28 Nationals races but if you take this years Saturday night A main feature out of the equation I would say this was by far the worst overall racing I have witnessed at Knoxville for the Nationals ever.