response 1 of 18:

May 10 02:35 UTC 2001

Could someone please sort out all of the auto racing leagues for me?

It used to be there was Indy racing.  I hadn't even heard about it until 
someone entered a response in another item, bemoaning it's passing in 
favor of NASCAR.

When I was a kid, there was drag racing; cars going down a straight line 
at (I guess) very high speeds.

Now everyone talks about NASCAR.  There's Winston Cup, Busch Series... 
what else?  CART?  Is that NASCAR?  Is it stock car racing, or another 
type?

If you're a car racing fan, do you go to the track (and which one or 
ones)?  Do you watch on TV?

Why does everyone hate Jeff Gordon?

Was Dale Earnhardt a hero?  Didn't he earn his living driving other cars 
off the track?

My brother is into car racing, since he moved to Tennessee.  He likes a 
driver named Ward Burton.  Have you heard of this guy?  (It's quite an 
accomplishment for me to have remembered his name.)

Enlighten me!

response 3 of 18:

Jul 7 19:15 UTC 2001

Perhaps I should fill in a few details.  All "stock" racing cars, whether in
drag racing or sports car racing or NASCAR, are really purpose built race cars
with "silouette" bodywork designed to resemble a production vehicle. 
Sometimes more, sometimes less.  Only in isolated instances will you see
genuine cars modified and racing. 

The competetiveness of the series is not delineated above.  Formula One does
not produce very many heart-stopping finishes or even passes.  The thrill lies
in the refinement of the cars and the drivers.  When some passes someone else
on track for the lead (last year, Mika Hakkinen passed Michael Shumacher in
a tremendous move at Spa... and the fact that I can identify that as the most
prominent example should say something) it's a big deal.  NASCAR, on the other
hand, has quite a bit of passing and runaway victories are rare, which is one
of the major reasons it is so popular.

I had the pleasure to witness the Michigan 500s in 98, 99, and 2000.  The 98
and 00 versions are probably two of the most exciting races in the history
of racing... anywhere.  A peculiar aerodynamic device designed to limit speeds
(a common occurance at Michigan, where the cars would be lapping at above 250
if they didnt' keep trying to keep the speeds down) also created a large
footprint in the air, making drafting (using the slipstream of the car in
front of you to increase speed) much easier.  There were passes for the lead
and for other positionos on almost every lap.  This is a CART race, by the
way.  CART can often have moments of excitement, though usually not as
frequently as NASCAR.  The Indy 500 in particular is hard to pass on because
of the design of the corners.

I was going to get into drivers, but I've written enough already.

response 5 of 18:

Jul 8 06:55 UTC 2001

USAC is the parent sanctioning body to the IRL.  It continued to sanction the
Indy 500 even when CART ran there, a tenuous arrangement that wound up lasting
15 years.  USAC still runs lower level forms of open wheel oval racing, though
the IRL is governed separately.

response 7 of 18:

Jul 9 23:37 UTC 2001

I'm residually a CART fan, but not as much as I used to be.  I might have to
get into it.  I don't religiously follow any series anymore.  My comments
about Formula One aren't as much praise as analysis, but it is currently the
series I most enjoy watching.  CART's been my favorite over the years,
however.  

Formula One, like soccer, is not very popular in the United States compared
with other motorsports, partially because Americans are not very successful
in it.  Jaguar is the major American offering, but people are more in tune
wiht Ford's self-named efforts in NASCAR than its more british-oriented F1
cousin.  There are no American drivers in F1 at all, and the last one was
Michael Andretti in a disappointing 1993 run with Mclaren.  The USGP at Indy
will get some press, at least before the race.  Check it out.  It will be a
parade. :)

I should point out that I *am* chimaera.

response 9 of 18:

Jul 11 03:24 UTC 2001

I've done it before, but it would wind up reading something like "I like
Football."  "Yes, so do I."  "Football season is only a month and a half a
way."  "Oh hell yeah."  "You know it brotha." "Give me some skin, hommie."

Okay, perhaps not that bad.  

response 11 of 18:

Jul 14 18:16 UTC 2001

I've been there numerous times.  When Roger Penske, who at the time owned the
Speedway, opened the California Speedway, he dropped the "international" in
the title of the Michigan Speedway to keep the names (and the logos)
consistent.  They were sister tracks, essentially.  I believe they've reverted
to the MIS title now that the track has been bought out, though.  I know they
announced something to that effect.

It sounds like you're planning on attending the NASCAR race.  My advice would
be to start working on tickets now.  Not tomorrow or next week, but now. 
There's a good chance that it's sold out already, but that doesn't necessarily
preclude ticket acquisition.  

My dad and I didn't attend the NASCAR races, prefering the CART versions in
late july.  Tickets are definitely available for that one, the last CART race
at MIS for the forseeable future.  No guarantee that it will be as exciting
as the last three years, though.  

Anyway, if you want to go to the track, the best news you can have is that
there are incredible amounts of free parking all around the track.  We have
never not been able to park for free.  Go early, so you can settle in and
relax a bit more, and hopefully buy lunch from the McDonald's down the street
in Brooklyn.  Sure, you can buy concession food-but why pay $5.00 for a
hamburger that's virtually the same size as a hamburger you can get for $.75
at McDonald's?  I think there are some other fast food joints in the area,
as well.  

Bring lots of water, because there is no shade anywhere except under the press
box.  The seats get hot.  They allow moderate coolers intot he facility, and
it's helpful to stock those with food and supplies.  And bring Binoculars.
The MIS is built so that virtually every seat can see all the way around the
track, and the back stretch passes are a lot of fun to watch.  You can't
follow the whole track with them, but they're useful to have along sometimes.
As such, there are no bad seats, which is fortunate, since there are no cheap
seats either.  

I'll probably think of more helpful hints later.  Where are you driving from?
Directions can be tricky.

response 13 of 18:

Jul 17 02:06 UTC 2001

Don't take US12, unless youv'e left yourself hours that you don't mind using
sitting in traffic.  I don't have any actual experience with this; the rout
my dad and I take has never had traffic problems in ten years.  Enough people
have talked about US12 in very negative terms to indicate that it is worth
avoiding.  Particularly for the NASCAR race, whose capacity doubles the
Silverdome's by 100% without all the terrific traffic routing (sarcasm) in
Pontiac. 

Brooklyn is directly northwest of the track itself, and its main drag is the
street that borders MIS on the west.  It is no distance at all, really. 

response 15 of 18:

Jul 19 12:25 UTC 2001

The Bush Grand National series is sort of the second tier in NASCAR.  It's
a minor league, but it is becoming popular enough to get its own television
coverage (I wouldn't be surprised to see that race on TNT) and headline
events.  Winston Cup drivers will occasionally run Busch cars of their own
in the race to keep themselves busy, and this could well be a week where that
happens.  It's not a bad series.  Actually, someone who didn't know better
might not be able to tell the difference, except that the sponsors aren't
*quite* as flashy.  

I don't know why I didn't mention this earlier, but don't forget to bring ear
protection.  Indy Cars have a piercing tone that tears through you from left
to right, which in my younger days I stupidly tolerated without wearing much.
My ears would generally be numb afterwards.  Stock Cars are substantially
louder.  Lack of proper protection can significantly reduce your enjoyment.

response 17 of 18:

Aug 31 21:55 UTC 2001

No, I had to end up working all weekend, so I had no opprotunity for either
the Busch race or the Winston Cup.  I will be better informed in the future.

In other news, has anyone been to a Motocross race?  How about the less
"glamorous" ones they hold around the state (from my web searching)?