Fan Commentary

Ready or Not, Here They Come

by Grandstand Bob

In a week when one little-known rookie won a Winston Cup race and another little-known rookie was involved in a fatal crash, little discussion surrounded the topic of how and when drivers move up a level, which leads to the very politically uncorrect discussion of how many are ready to advance.

Let's look at the ARCA tragedy first.

ARCA, by nature, is a series populated with inexperienced drivers. As such, many see it as a stepping stone to larger series; however, only a very few ever advance beyond this stage. Most are drivers with big dreams and limited finances who hope to catch the attention of someone with enough cash to put them in a big-time ride. While that’s all good, and has given us some great talent, sometimes drivers are chosen not by their driving skill, but by their ability to attract attention, and thus, sponsors.

I don’t know what happened behind the scenes, so I really can’t speculate about the reasons behind Deborah Renshaw’s planned ascent from the Late Model Series to the Busch series with a brief ARCA stop, but it at least merits discussion. Most of the media seem to be treating that subject with a delicate touch.

What we do know is that the 25-year-old was the subject of controversy at her Late Model track in Tennessee. At this track, a bunch of her male competitors pooled their money to pay someone to finish behind her and then protest. That happened, and her car was found to be in violation. While this seemed like a crappy thing for these guys to do, you have to believe that they had their reasons, and that these reasons went beyond the fact that she was a female. Furthermore, the car was in violation, so her success came from breaking the rules. The media stories of the Tennessee incident downplayed that part of the story. I guess a story about how a bunch of guys discriminated against a female competitor is much better reading than discussing how that competitor broke the rules.

Ironically, the Tennessee scandal probably helped Renshaw make the leap from the Late Model Series. Instantly, she had name recognition and legions of people eager to get behind her cause. The cynic in me believes that this was more of a deciding factor in her promotion than her actual driving ability.

There are thousands of guys out there working their butts off to get a shot at the big time. They’re sacrificing time, money and sometimes families to do it, but they’re at a disadvantage because they’re not female or a racial minority. They must stand to the side and watch less qualified individuals get opportunities, many times, without equal sacrifices.

I’m not indicting team owners for giving women and minorities a shot at the big time. Everyone knows that a successful female or minority would draw tons more fans to the sport, which would be good for everyone.  Can’t you just imagine how many black fans would embrace NASCAR if a black driver were competitive. Same thing with women. Tropicana would have been rolling in it, if Shawna Robinson could compete at the Winston Cup level.

What I do have a problem with are team owners who make these decisions without thinking about fellow competitors. Drivers’ lives depend not only on their driving abilities, but also on the abilities of their fellow competitors. If someone screws up, they can die.

I was nervous as hell when Hideo Fukuyama raced at Dover. He didn’t wreck anyone and left the race early, but you have to admit that the chance that he would screw up was greater than that for any other driver on the track.

Deborah Renshaw wasn’t as lucky. Maybe it wasn’t her fault that she was unable to miss Martin’s car or at least slow down enough to lessen the severity of the impact, but you have to wonder. And if you wonder about that, you wonder about her readiness to compete at this level. It’s not politically correct, but I wonder.

Grandstand Bob Profile and Past Columns

note: This opinions expressed in this column are those of writer and do not necessarily reflect the opinions or positions of ARS Racing Outlet or its parent company, amI, Inc.