Random Lugnuts

I watched Dave Despain's Wind Tunnel last week and caught a few comments about whether NASCAR should focus on being a real sport for the ticket-buying fans or entertainment for television, and whether a fan was a true fan or not if they didn't spend...

Opening Lap
Win on Sunday, sell on Monday is dead, right?  Weakened by parity, mortally wounded by the common template, and finally killed off by the Car of Tomorrow?
True, the old method of proving your product is better than the competition's by racing the same cars that are parked in the showrooms is long gone, but the basic concept is still viable.  It just needs a little nudge from the marketing department....

First, the obvious (in case you haven't heard):  Patrick Sheltra is the 2010 ARCA Racing Series Champion. Woohoo!
Then, the less well known:  I am a Patrick Sheltra fan.
Of course, I should say that being a fan has nothing to do with him winning a championship.  After all, I still haven't gotten around to liking Jimmie Johnson, and I like him even less with each Cup trophy he takes.  Being a Sheltra fan has to do with...

Rookie camps start today in the NHL, while NASCAR is in Richmond preparing to finalize the Chase for the Sprint Cup field tomorrow.  It's gotten me thinking about a topic where NASCAR could learn from the NHL.
In NASCAR, there are awards other than the Sprint Cup Champion.  There are the individual race winners, as well as a Rookie of the Year contest and a Most Popular Driver.  In the NHL, there is of course the Stanley Cup, but there is also a whole series...