nascar sprint cup race: NASCAR NATION: Loud Finish at Loudon - 06/29/10 07:10 AM
The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Loudon, NH on Sunday was pretty quiet for most of the race.  In fact, other than the caution at Lap 34 for debris, all laps were under green until Lap 235, when poor Kasey Kahne's engine of his #9 Budweiser car finally gave out after limping around for several laps beforehand.  There were even two green flag pit stops which shook things up a little, especially since Tony Stewart had to pit out of sequence because he didn't get enough fuel dumped into his car under the debris caution of Lap 34.  However, the … (3 comments)

nascar sprint cup race: NASCAR NATION: Tailspins at Talladega - 04/28/10 03:39 PM
Sorry for the delay in writing this NASCAR recap.  But, whew, what a race!  The tailspins in Talladega were the stuff of legends and the finish was a sight to behold.  Since Saturday was rained out, there was no practice session for the Sprint Cup guys.  They lined up according to points to start the day at Talladega, with Jimmie Johnson leading the charge.  The first caution of the day was a competition caution at Lap 21 so everyone could check out the car after sitting since Friday.  The two-car breakaway took precidence all day as we saw a record 88 … (2 comments)

nascar sprint cup race: NASCAR NATION: Martinsville is a Day Late and a Dollar Short for Some - 03/29/10 01:11 PM
Martinsville ended up being a day late and a dollar short for some of NASCAR's Sprint Cup drivers.  Since yesterday's race was rained out, the drivers were able to race under cloudy but dry skies today.  I had to work but was only able to fend off my curiosity for the first half of the race.  I was listening to the live broadcast when the excitement got to be just too much.  Off went the computer and on went the TV.  I'm glad I decided to watch, too.
Jeff Gordon (#24) seemed to be doing well towards the beginning of the … (8 comments)

nascar sprint cup race: NASCAR NATION: California Natives Rule at Pepsi 500 in Fontana - 10/12/09 11:36 AM
The California natives ruled at the Pepsi 500 in Fontana, CA on Sunday, October 11, 2009.  Once again, Hendrick Motorsports proved why they own the Auto Club Speedway.  I guess this is apropos for the company who is celebrating its 25th Anniversary.  After Jessie McCartney skipped a line or two of the National Anthem (practicing the national anthem before you perform it in front of a bunch of rednecks might be a good idea), grand marshal Kelsey Grammar gave the "Gentlemen, start your engines!" to begin the first Sprint Cup race to come to Southern California.  Jimmie Johnson quickly overtook pole … (7 comments)

nascar sprint cup race: NASCAR NATION: Watch Them Wiggle at Atlanta Motor Speedway - 09/08/09 08:39 AM
"Watch them wiggle, see them jiggle."  This is what kept running through my mind as I watched the Sprint Cup race on Sunday night at the Atlanta Motor Speedway.  First, there was poor Carl Edwards who hobbled in on crutches after breaking his foot in a weird Frisbee accident.  (Yes, you CAN injure yourself while playing Frisbee).  While hurting yourself playing Frisbee may not sound very manly, driving 500 miles with a broken foot (your gas foot, too) is VERY manly.  As is driving a car whose paint scheme was created by a 13-year-old girl in her 3rd year of fighting … (2 comments)

nascar sprint cup race: NASCAR NATION: Carfax 400 at Michigan International Raceway - 08/16/09 10:36 AM
Michigan is a track that is well known for races that are determined by fuel mileage (the Spring race was won by Mark Martin after first Jimmie Johnson and then Greg Biffle ran out of fuel on the very last lap).  And this race was no exception.  For the third week in a row, there was a rain delay for the NASCAR Sprint Cup race.  When the caution was thrown at lap 9 for rain, I thought, "Oh great!  This will be the 3rd week in a row that I have to rearrange my schedule on Monday to watch the race.  … (6 comments)

nascar sprint cup race: NASCAR NATION: $1 Million 1-2 Punch at Chicagoland Speedway - 07/13/09 05:57 AM
What started out as a pretty boring race ended up in a blaze of rubbin', bumpin' and racin' hard at Chicagoland Speedway on Saturday, July 11th.  When there were only two cautions thrown after the first 200+ laps of a 267 lap race (and those were for debris only), it appeared that no one was even close competition for Mark Martin.  He kept passing car after car, narrowing the number of cars on the lead lap down to around 14 or 15 by the end.  Jimmie Johnson ran out front for a little bit.  But, it was definitely Mark's race to … (4 comments)

nascar sprint cup race: NASCAR Nation: Yes He Kahne - Recap of Sonoma Spring Cup Race 2009 - 06/21/09 04:45 PM

Holy smokes, folks!  Another great race.  Lots of spinning, lots of rubbin' and lots of smoke.  After a couple of last minute caution flags and shoot-out style restarts, Washington State's very own Kasey Kahne ended a year long winless streak to edge out Tony Stewart for the checkered flag at Sonoma's Infineon Raceway this afternoon.  The Tasmanian Devil himself, Marcos Ambrose, ran a fantastic race and ended up 3rd.  This is why I love the road race format.  You never know what you're going to end up with.  A spinout on a road race doesn't necessarily bring out the caution … (4 comments)