Dale Sr talks about the "aero package"

Spotter22 said:
The more things change.........

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That man brought me to this sport. An absolute legend. Transcends my manufacturer loyalty. The ONLY thing that does. Damn. I would give a **** about the Hall of Fame if he was the measuring stick (as he should be). That way, everybody wouldn't get a trophy. There will never be another. Ever.
 
The television coverage in the early 2000s was so awesome. Pre-race and practice coverage was informative and educational, and they consisted of driver interviews and off-track features.

Watching this interview alone makes me realize how awesome the coverage and the personalities back then were. Now, it's all so bland.
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
The television coverage in the early 2000s was so awesome. Pre-race and practice coverage was informative and educational, and they consisted of driver interviews and off-track features.

Watching this interview alone makes me realize how awesome the coverage and the personalities back then were. Now, it's all so bland.
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That's a damn good point. Now we watch practice without the interviews/insights into the weekend. We perseverate on fast lap time which means nothing, and blab about an "average" time that isn't relevant when we should be following 5 and 10 lap averages.
 
Revman said:
That's a damn good point. Now we watch practice without the interviews/insights into the weekend. We perseverate on fast lap time which means nothing, and blab about an "average" time that isn't relevant when we should be following 5 and 10 lap averages.
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The coverage today is geared towards casual viewers. There were more casual viewers watching in the Fox-NBC-TNT era and they didn't treat the audience like they were stupid.
 
Revman said:
That man brought me to this sport. An absolute legend. Transcends my manufacturer loyalty. The ONLY thing that does. Damn. I would give a sh!t about the Hall of Fame if he was the measuring stick (as he should be). That way, everybody wouldn't get a trophy. There will never be another. Ever.
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Who's in the Hall you think shouldnt be?
 
My main problem with NASCAR coverage now is the incessant zooming in/out. I HATE THAT! I have no problem with a zoom in on front grill to show debris or potential tire rubs. But Jesus...could they keep more than one car in the shot? I actually love watching some of the older races where it appears they only used 2 cameras. Worked the boom camera guy to death but it covered THE WHOLE FIELD. Now it's just the leader.

I wasn't an Earnhardt fan. Liked basically any of the Ford guys. Just because they were the underdog back then. Awesome Bill, Davey Allison, Allan Kulwicki, Mark Martin were my guys. But it was really fun to see Dale Sr start in the back and bet on how long i took him to get to the top 5. He WAS possibly the greatest on Bias ply tires. I just don't like using the chrome horn as much as he did. But I do miss him. Sure wish he had lived a few years of retirement to hear what he had to say once out of the car.
 
Revman said:
That man brought me to this sport. An absolute legend. Transcends my manufacturer loyalty. The ONLY thing that does. Damn. I would give a sh!t about the Hall of Fame if he was the measuring stick (as he should be). That way, everybody wouldn't get a trophy. There will never be another. Ever.
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He brought me in as well, I left when he did and Kyle Busch brought me back again
 
Revman said:
That man brought me to this sport. An absolute legend. Transcends my manufacturer loyalty. The ONLY thing that does. Damn. I would give a sh!t about the Hall of Fame if he was the measuring stick (as he should be). That way, everybody wouldn't get a trophy. There will never be another. Ever.
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Well said, sir.
 
Spotter22 said:
Who's in the Hall you think shouldnt be?
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I think the voters should concentrate more not so much on who should be in, but on what absolutely cannot be left out. Without Dale, the Hall has no meaning. None.
 
kyle18fan said:
He brought me in as well, I left when he did and Kyle Busch brought me back again
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That is so damn cool. Seriously. For all of the reasons the both of us understand. Quick question.....Would you watch Dale Sr. wheel a truck if you had the chance today? Yeah, me too.
 
Revman said:
That is so damn cool. Seriously. For all of the reasons the both of us understand. Quick question.....Would you watch Dale Sr. wheel a truck if you had the chance today? Yeah, me too.
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I would watch him wheel a tricycle ....... because he was just that cool of a guy
 
KTMLew01 said:
My main problem with NASCAR coverage now is the incessant zooming in/out. I HATE THAT! I have no problem with a zoom in on front grill to show debris or potential tire rubs. But Jesus...could they keep more than one car in the shot? I actually love watching some of the older races where it appears they only used 2 cameras. Worked the boom camera guy to death but it covered THE WHOLE FIELD. Now it's just the leader.
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The "sniper" camera view has gotten WAY out of hand, but I think (could be wrong) it's due to sponsors paying the networks to zoom in on their driver so their sponsorship is clearly visible. I would be very ok with the primary camera view being a stationary view from the top of the spotters' stand which shows the entire track. It wouldn't be the best view, but would certainly be better than seeing each individual molecule on a car I can't discern from the sniper view.
 
kyle18fan said:
I would watch him wheel a tricycle ....... because he was just that cool of a guy
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Yeah, but he would win, and that wouldn't be good "racing'." Understanding that this is what we want. Didn't know. :idunno:
 
2 Sweet said:
I always hate watching this, knowing it was one of the last times Dale was interviewed, especially with the talk about the safety of the helmet and seat and all that. Surreal.
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Theres one interview before this race where he said “I think you’ll see something thats never been seen before on FOX”.

be9ak7ts16 said:
He was a stubborn old bugger. To bad he fought the HANS device.
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He didnt just decide not to use it. He seriously mocked other drivers for wearing it. Told them “they were afraid to die” and more.

It’s sad that revisionist history has painted some of Earnhardt's life in rose colored glasses. Calling him “stubborn” is a stretch. He was ignorant and stupid, simply stated. A fantastic race car driver but not the best man in the world.
 
ChexOrWrex said:
He didnt just decide not to use it. He seriously mocked other drivers for wearing it. Told them “they were afraid to die” and more.

It’s sad that revisionist history has painted some of Earnhardt's life in rose colored glasses. Calling him “stubborn” is a stretch. He was ignorant and stupid, simply stated. A fantastic race car driver but not the best man in the world.
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I totally agree. I was just trying to be nice.
 
Revman said:
I think the voters should concentrate more not so much on who should be in, but on what absolutely cannot be left out. Without Dale, the Hall has no meaning. None.
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First of all he is in the Hall, so what do you mean?Dale was great but thier are many who deserved to be in there before him
 
Spotter22 said:
First of all he is in the Hall, so what do you mean?Dale was great but thier are many who deserved to be in there before him
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All I am saying is use him as the benchmark. There is a cluster of Hall of Famers around that benchmark. There are a couple who got in who aren't even close. Keep the Hall for the greatest. Not the most significant. Not the most popular. Only the GOAT's should be there. BTW, Dale was in the first class if I remember correctly?
 
I tend to focus on the people I like that are in the Hall of Fame rather than wasting time railing about the others. Leaving out the star power some drivers have is pretty ignorant also. Ironic that we are talking about a driver that passed away in 01 and not a car.
 
Revman said:
All I am saying is use him as the benchmark. There is a cluster of Hall of Famers around that benchmark. There are a couple who got in who aren't even close. Keep the Hall for the greatest. Not the most significant. Not the most popular. Only the GOAT's should be there. BTW, Dale was in the first class if I remember correctly?
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Yes he was in the first class
 
ChexOrWrex said:
Theres one interview before this race where he said “I think you’ll see something thats never been seen before on FOX”.


He didnt just decide not to use it. He seriously mocked other drivers for wearing it. Told them “they were afraid to die” and more.

It’s sad that revisionist history has painted some of Earnhardt's life in rose colored glasses. Calling him “stubborn” is a stretch. He was ignorant and stupid, simply stated. A fantastic race car driver but not the best man in the world.
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I can remember a few drivers wearing a Hutchens device but not a Hans before Earnhardt got killed. he was old school and when he was saying those things it was with that sly grin, he wasnt serious. Calling him stupid and ignorant is well, stupid. He was a very smart guy and a damn good business man.
 
Spotter22 said:
I can remember a few drivers wearing a Hutchens device but not a Hans before Earnhardt got killed. he was old school and when he was saying those things it was with that sly grin, he wasnt serious. Calling him stupid and ignorant is well, stupid. He was a very smart guy and a damn good business man.
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Dale Jarret disagrees with you. So does Jeff Gordon about Dale’s seat safety and several guys commenting on his seat belt preferences. Dale constantly made changes to his spot in the car, completely out of his own ignorance and unwillingness to believe that he was the smartest in the room, that compromised safety.

Unfortunately it took his life.

Like I said, one of the world’s greastest race car drivers and a strong knowledge of how to conduct business. Although not someone to look up to when it came to personal relationships and wisdom.
 
Spotter22 said:
I can remember a few drivers wearing a Hutchens device but not a Hans before Earnhardt got killed. he was old school and when he was saying those things it was with that sly grin, he wasnt serious. Calling him stupid and ignorant is well, stupid. He was a very smart guy and a damn good business man.
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Earnhardt seemed to have what very few people have today....common sense.
 
Snappy D said:
Earnhardt seemed to have what very few people have today....common sense.
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Oh come on. The man voluntarily continued to wear an open faced helmet and sat in what amounted to a bus seat in the ****pit while everyone else had enough sense to use the latest safety innovations for the times.
 
Revman said:
Wait. I thought he was a bad guy?
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Or that one time he heard a church didn’t have enough money to pave the parking lot that he went and donated a check to them or donating about a million to charities in 2 years. He was one of few drivers still signing through the mail.
 
ChexOrWrex said:
Oh come on. The man voluntarily continued to wear an open faced helmet and sat in what amounted to a bus seat in the ****pit while everyone else had enough sense to use the latest safety innovations for the times.
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He built a business empire with an 8th grade education...that’s gotta count for something
 
ChexOrWrex said:
Oh come on. The man voluntarily continued to wear an open faced helmet and sat in what amounted to a bus seat in the ****pit while everyone else had enough sense to use the latest safety innovations for the times.
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That's not quite fair to Earnhardt. Other than wearing the open face helmet, almost nobody else was doing a whole lot on the personal safety front either. I only remember a couple drivers ever actually competing with a Hans device before Dale was killed. I remember Kyle Petty trying an early version, (The original ones were MUCH larger, bulkier and heavier) and I think he went away from it and MAYBE only came back to it after Adam was killed. It seems like maybe Brett Bodine was using one weekly by the start of the 2001 season. I don't even remember ever SEEING a Hutchens Device until after Dale died. From what I was able to find online, it seems the RCR drivers and maybe two others used it at Rockingham the week after the 500. Jeff Gordon was the first Cup driver to win a race with a Hans Device when he won at Las Vegas in March of that year. Seats were SLOWLY improving, but the REALLY good seats, especially the carbon fiber ones Hendrick started building wouldn't be seen until after Dale died. Basically, everybody was sitting around waiting for somebody else to be the guinea pig and perfect the stuff before they were willing to commit to the new technology. Dale Jr didn't even wear a Hutchens Device until almost mid-season, and Tony Stewart was a notorious holdout on using either one. Here's a quote from Mark Martin about the Hans: The week after Earnhardt's death, Mark Martin said at Rockingham, "I would not wear one for anything. I'll just keep my fingers crossed and take my chances". Back to Earnhardt's open face helmet; while I agree that in general terms a full face helmet is safer, AND has the added benefit of being able to seal the driver's head and allow cool air to be piped in, I'm not aware of any modern era NASCAR accident where an open face helmet was a primary cause of a serious injury or death. In fact, in the case of the basilar skull fractures, the added weight and mass of the full faced helmet might actually make the problem worse. Yes, Earnhardt was stubborn and set in his ways, but he had a LOT of company in the respect, and lay this all at his feet is quite unfair.
 
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