Fan columnist: NASCAT keeps race fan purring
The entire middle portion of the Pep Boys Auto 500 at the Atlanta Motor Speedway was dominated by Matt Kenseth. This led my wife, Tara, and our cat, Monomer, to take a little nap at this point in the race.
Let me tell you about our NASCAT. Monomer (it’s a chemistry term I picked up on somehow) is just shy of 20 pounds, has long khaki-colored hair and loves watching NASCAR. By watching NASCAR, I, of course, mean that he loves sleeping on one of us during the entire race. Affectionately known as “Big M,” both he and Tara often take midrace naps together until I see a close call like this weekend and yell, “Waltrip’s wrecking again!” At that point Tara and Monomer open their eyes for a moment to see a replay of Michael Waltrip’s car spraying tire confetti all over the Atlanta Motor Speedway. Then it’s back to snoozing.
Monomer’s hobbies include eating and sleeping and then repeating those steps. If you put a pedometer on this cat, the step count on any given day would only be in the teens. Shaped like a football with Tic Tacs for legs, this Fatcat McSwain actually grunts when he hops up on the couch to join us for the duration of a race. Purring usually begins after he gets comfortable and is at the volume of a jet drier. It’s especially tough in the hot weather months because he lays on us and a large amount of heat is generated from his girth.
Everyone was awake for the ending at Atlanta; it’s had some good finishes. Watching Carl Edwards pass Denny Hamlin got me thinking about the scuffle Edwards had with Kevin Harvick. One possible reason Edwards was so angry at Harvick for calling him a pansy for racing in the back at Talladega might have been because it wasn’t Edward’s idea. Seems like a strategy he was coaxed into doing by his crew chief, Bob Osborne. That’s pure speculation, but it certainly makes sense considering the pass he tried on Jimmie Johnson at Kansas one week prior.
Next year the Atlanta track is not part of the Chase For The Sprint Cup; California is. It was ironic that the Atlanta surface was compared to Darlington Raceway’s, considering next year the track will have what should be Darlington’s Labor Day weekend. The first Southern 500 ran on Labor Day in 1950. One of the biggest mistakes NASCAR ever made was pulling the Labor Day race from Darlington in 2004. That generated much bad publicity and ill-will from fans. Even people who didn’t watch NASCAR heard about it. I know, because they asked me about it. I would comment on how I didn’t know they watched NASCAR. They said they don’t, really, but they just saw Darlington mentioned. Everyone can at some level sympathize with the unfortunate end of tradition, especially when it wasn’t even necessary.
The Auto Club Speedway event will be race number four in the Chase next year. Talk about laying an egg in the middle of the Chase. Millions across the country may find themselves taking a midrace nap at this time next year.
