Woman on pole

logdog wrote: What did poor ol' Kenny Wallace do to get dragged into this? Who is next? Buckshot Jones?

Dick Trickle: "Danica is on the pole!"

ba dum chhh

Now maybe we won't be hearing/seeing so much about Junior.

We could bring Ward Burton into the conversation, but no one would understand him.

Shirley "Cha-Cha" Muldowney certainly got the marketing buzz when she was racing. Remember the movie "Heart Like a Wheel"? Not only did she win the pinnacle of her sport (Top Fuel), she did it three times. Funny fact, she was the first TF multi-champion, and 3-peater, all stop. Not the first female, first period. She also won a TF title in the AHRA, was voted into the Hall of Fame, and was named the #5 NHRA driver of all time.

That's a good (female) driver worthy of all of this praise in the media. Not Ms. One-Win Patrick. And don't give me any snot about "not being able to race" like her, that's bull honkey and you know it. Circumstances is what gives everybody their shot. The best natural driver in the world might be some villager in the Sudan, but her circumstances will prevent her from every knowing it. I've seen local club racing drivers that drove lines miles better than the "Pros", but they didn't have the $$$$$ or family name to make it happen in the big time. Fact is, pro racing now is just a marketing scheme. You buy your seat. That's true from the top (F1) all the way down, including NASCAR.

bravenrace wrote: In reply to Flight Service: Without looking it up, I'm fairly certain that there are a few well respected male drivers out there that had similar records in the length of time she has been driving. Michael Waltrip comes to mind. And switching from open wheel to NASCRAP isn't that easy, just ask all the male drivers that have struggled with it. She's not the best and she's not the worst. She has some "assets" to market herself that she uses effectively. I wonder how many of the women in the pictures you post on that other thread have done the same thing.

MW went 16 years in Sprint Cup w/o a win until the '01 Daytona 500 in an Earnhardt stable car, that's around 500 starts in full season schedules. To date, 4 wins and mediocre top 5s and 10s in 28 years/ 770 starts. Not stellar by any means but owning your race teams, bagging major sponsorship, broadcast gigs and being a fixture in NASCAR can't be disputed as fail.

Flight Service wrote:

logdog wrote: What did poor ol' Kenny Wallace do to get dragged into this? Who is next? Buckshot Jones?

Dick Trickle: "Danica is on the pole!" *ba dum chhh*

What did Ward Burton say to Danica after her pole for the Daytona 500?

"Dick Trickle from Mike Skinner pole."

It's a work in progress.

In reply to Javelin:

Sad but true.

Javelin wrote: The best natural driver in the world might be some villager in the Sudan, but her *circumstances* will prevent her from every knowing it. I've seen local club racing drivers that drove lines *miles* better than the "Pros", but they didn't have the $$$$$ or family name to make it happen in the big time.

There's a big heap-o truth there. And has to do with a lot more than racing.

In reply to Javelin:

But she was a big deal. Got sponsors. Had a movie made about her. Danica is in the news because she's racing right now. I doubt that Danica will ever be talked about in the same breath as Shirley when it comes to the great women of racing, but since this is a current event, wouldn't it make sense that it's in the news now?

In a way, it's too bad that the only thing we all get to watch and talk about is the national/international championships. Honestly, if you could get regular coverage with good video and good commentary, isn't there better racing out there that's a lot cheaper to produce?

Too much is dependent on money there. I feel like in MotoGP, the pointy end of the field really is made up of guys with supernatural talent, but there are a fair few other guys who'd be making things a lot more interesting if it weren't for the fact that you absolutely cannot win a championship on anything other than a factory bike, and right now only two factories have working bikes.

I digress. The upshot is that it would be nice to get to watch good coverage of racing that wasn't so tied to marketing. If I only watched youtube/cable access/ local track stuff, I think what I'd miss most is the good camerawork and the MotoGP commentary team.

Those are not the most expensive parts of what's going on here. I don't care about the two-semi hospitality suite. I don't care much about 24/7/365 wind tunnel testing for fractional advances that have no application outside the series.

The money isn't going where it improves things for me as a fan, and much of it isn't going where it improves things for the racers...

I like how people can say a car with 850hp on 10 inch wide tires is "Easy to drive"...

Javelin wrote: I've seen local club racing drivers that drove lines *miles* better than the "Pros", but they didn't have the $$$$$ or family name to make it happen in the big time. Fact is, pro racing now is just a marketing scheme. You buy your seat. That's true from the top (F1) all the way down, including NASCAR.

So true, in all of this statement. I know what it cost to rent a seat in World Challenge, I helped put a mid-pack car together with Duke of Understeer. I also, know what it cost to rent a seat from a championship winning Trans Am TA2 race team as well for the same reason. You don't even wanna know what the team owner/two time champion dropped out of his own wallet to win back to back years. And to the point of drivers with unreal ability, I have never seen someone come down turn 12 at Road Atlanta with the aggressiveness of this guy in basically a FI stockcar. Never!

Stock car racing is a bit different when it comes to an actual ladder system in the states. There is a very good ladder system to move up unlike sportscar racing here. Why do you think Danica was racing FF overseas? It may be open wheel but there is a better ladder system over there. Money is a huge necessity when sportscar or open wheel racing if you don't have the name or a ton of money to gentlemen drive. So few open wheel drivers come from sprint cars. So with no name recognition money and a little bit of moving up the European ladder is what she needed to do. "Selling her body" as some say, is just a way to get more recognition to get her moved up. I see nothing wrong with that. She would have never made it up through the stockcar racing ladder IMHO without a name.

BARNCA wrote: Courtney Force qualified number one this weekend in a car that is about 8 thousand times harder to drive....

Very cool!

Volvo122 wrote:

BARNCA wrote: Courtney Force qualified number one this weekend in a car that is about 8 thousand times harder to drive....

Very cool!

And if she was just a Courtney Smith who started in Jr. Dragsters and was even that berkeleying good she might advance to Econo-dragsters w/ in several years providing life doesn't get in the way. Daddy John Force had a lot to do w/ that... no wait, he had everything to do with that.

N Sperlo wrote: Lap One:

I can tell you can see the future, what are Wednesday's powerball numbers?

She has 10 'Cup' races under her belt...all were last year. 11th try she is on the pole at Daytona. How many other drivers have been on pole in under a dozen Cup attempts? Guessing...not many.

Perspective--drivers with similar open wheel backgrounds: JPM went three whole seasons, and got his first pole in April of his 4th season (spring 'Dega race). How about Sam Hornish, Jr....115 Cup starts and zero poles. 'Dinger went 87 starts in Cup before he got his first pole (spring Phoenix 2010)...no wins.

I'm no fan...but I don't wish any ill will on her. This is the bottom line--She can drive.

FSP_ZX2 wrote: Perspective--drivers with similar open wheel backgrounds: JPM went three whole seasons, and got his first pole in April of his 4th season (spring 'Dega race). 'Dinger went 87 starts in Cup before he got his first pole (spring Phoenix 2010)...no wins.

By the way, for people who like to make NASCAR is easy comments, Both of these two drivers won the 24 hours of Daytona in the last two years. How many of these sportscar and open wheel drivers have won a significant NASCAR roundy-round race. If you throw Stewart's name out there, think about who Danica is currently under the wing of.

fast_eddie_72 wrote: I just don't think any driver who exploits there looks or poses in skimpy clothes can be any good.

Yep, I'm all for gender equality. But I'd really rather not see Tony Stewart posing like this.

Lesley wrote:

fast_eddie_72 wrote: I just don't think any driver who exploits there looks or poses in skimpy clothes can be any good.

Yep, I'm all for gender equality. But I'd really rather not see Tony Stewart posing like this.

Tony Stewart couldn't pose like that...he's too much of a marshmallow.

FSP_ZX2 wrote:

Lesley wrote:

fast_eddie_72 wrote: I just don't think any driver who exploits there looks or poses in skimpy clothes can be any good.

Yep, I'm all for gender equality. But I'd really rather not see Tony Stewart posing like this.

Tony Stewart *couldn't* pose like that...he's too much of a marshmallow.

Who is it anyway?

In reply to Lesley:

Carl Edwards

Lesley wrote:

fast_eddie_72 wrote: I just don't think any driver who exploits there looks or poses in skimpy clothes can be any good.

Yep, I'm all for gender equality. But I'd really rather not see Tony Stewart posing like this.

that doesn't look like Tony Stewart ....

edit: anti-stance beat me to it

Lesley wrote:

FSP_ZX2 wrote:

Lesley wrote:

fast_eddie_72 wrote: I just don't think any driver who exploits there looks or poses in skimpy clothes can be any good.

Yep, I'm all for gender equality. But I'd really rather not see Tony Stewart posing like this.

Tony Stewart *couldn't* pose like that...he's too much of a marshmallow.

Who is it anyway?

Good, well cut Missouri meat.

Is that the dude with the great big teeth who does back flips off his car?

FSP_ZX2 wrote: She has 10 'Cup' races under her belt...all were last year. 11th try she is on the pole at Daytona. How many other drivers have been on pole in under a dozen Cup attempts? Guessing...not many. Perspective--drivers with similar open wheel backgrounds: JPM went three whole seasons, and got his first pole in April of his 4th season (spring 'Dega race). How about Sam Hornish, Jr....115 Cup starts and zero poles. 'Dinger went 87 starts in Cup before he got his first pole (spring Phoenix 2010)...no wins. I'm no fan...but I don't wish any ill will on her. This is the bottom line--She *can* drive.

NASCAR legend Loy Allen, Jr won a Daytona 500 pole in his 9th race attempt. He further validated his driving talent by DNQing 12 times later that season.