Did NASCAR screw over Tim Richmond?

SpeedPagan said:
http://thethrowdown.wordpress.com/2014/02/16/the-name-nascar-wants-forgotten/

I just got done reading that article. I never saw Tim Richmond drive, I was too young at the time, but if this guy was as good of a driver as the article makes him out to be, then what NASCAR did to keep him out of the sport was a big disservice, and they did screw him over.
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The only thing I can say to get a handle on the timeline we're talking about and how AIDS was perceived in the 80s is to watch Dallas Buyer's Club.

He got a screw job but it's not like NASCAR was purely vindictive. His whole story is tragic.
 
AIDS was a freaky thing in the 80's because there wasn't a lot of certainty about it. NASCAR didn't want to be associated with the disease nor have an incident where he wrecked and was bleeding and their safety personel had to come into contact with him.

He just didnt fit in with a lot of the drivers because of his personality. Its too bad. I think he would have been embraced in todays age he was just ahead of his time.
 
Wrangler1 said:
AIDS was a freaky thing in the 80's because there wasn't a lot of certainty about it. NASCAR didn't want to be associated with the disease nor have an incident where he wrecked and was bleeding and their safety personel had to come into contact with him.

He just didnt fit in with a lot of the drivers because of his personality. Its too bad. I think he would have been embraced in todays age he was just ahead of his time.
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AIDS was associated instantly with homosexuality in the 80s. Both are viewed much differently than they are today. Homosexuality was very taboo until about five years ago. Richmond was not gay but having AIDS would've instantly made people believe he was.
 
Here's a favorite Tim Richmond clip of mine that you don't see a lot. He and Darrell Waltrip battling for a win at Riverside in 1986.

 
gordonite said:
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I began going to the races at Bristol in 1962. Bobby Johns won and Fireball Roberts finished 2nd. Both of them were driving Pontiacs. I remember that Joe Weatherly and Ned Jarrett were in the race but not much more. Attendance cost $6.00. I frequented Atlanta, Bristol, Charlotte, Talladega and my wife and I were at Daytona seventeen consecutive years during Speed Weeks. I've never attended a race when a local preacher's prayer wasn't stacked alongside the national anthem with equal status. I don't understand why that part of NASCAR activities is off limits. I mean I had to sit there quietly and tolerate that yet in discussion on a racing forum it won't be tolerated. It's difficult to understand. Is religion a part of NASCAR or not?

I stopped going to the races in my mid 70's. My poor eyesight and staying awake on long drives has become a concern for our safety.

The timing was perfect. Now I can see each and every activity during a race from six different camera angles including seeing the drivers turn their steering wheels. I watch and record them on my WiFi Samsung 60" home theatre with service provided by ATT's Uverse.
 
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So I saw 30 for 30 The Tim Richmond Story, it was very well done and the ending was very tragic. :( He believed to his final days that he was going to climb back into a race car.
 
I don't think Nascar screwed him over really, It's more the time but back then, even if they had let him race, it's not like he would still be alive. He had full blown aids. Maybe his will to live died but I don't think it would have been smart for him to be driving while sick.
 
George Finley said:
........ I've never attended a race when a local preacher's prayer wasn't stacked alongside the national anthem with equal status. I don't understand why that part of NASCAR activities is off limits. I mean I had to sit there quietly and tolerate that yet in discussion on a racing forum it won't be tolerated. It's difficult to understand. Is religion a part of NASCAR or not?
.
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I hear ya George , and know where you're coming from . I think that as you go on reading these threads , you will find that many of them descend into crazy bickering and get way off topic . It makes them hard for some of us to participate in because it's basically a shouting match between a couple of people . Sometimes it touches on religion or government , but most times it's other stuff . The mods let them go at it in "the podium" and the rest of us don't have to watch .:)
 
ted@economy said:
I hear ya George , and know where you're coming from . I think that as you go on reading these threads , you will find that many of them descend into crazy bickering and get way off topic . It makes them hard for some of us to participate in because it's basically a shouting match between a couple of people . Sometimes it touches on religion or government , but most times it's other stuff . The mods let them go at it in "the podium" and the rest of us don't have to watch .:)
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Thanks....I thought it was just me :D
 
"Is religion a part of NASCAR or not?"
It is in that many in the NASCAR community have their faiths. Note "faiths" - plural, meaning more than one is legitimate.

"...you will find that many of them descend into crazy bickering and get way off topic..."
I am not against you (or anybody else) for having their faith. But other places are more appropriate for arguing about it or pushing "the message". I've seen too many otherwise great forums degenerate into crazy bickering and / or continual off-topic tangents due to religion or politics. I don't come to a racing website to find or debate religion or politics. I'm glad that the moderators are moving those threads. Be glad that they're just moving them - many would delete them completely and banish your account.

Yeah, I've fallen into this trap again (acknowledging and responding to a religious argument). But you asked so I figured I'd answer.
 
I remember watching a Pocono race a few years ago, Mike Joy made a comment about how Richmond got around Pocono.....big mouthDW and Larry Mac completely blew him off and went back into the same old tight and loose thing we all heard 100's of times.....Tim Richmond is NASCAR'S forgotten man! Petty,DW and quite a few others were all running around calling Richmond a sinner.
 
Marty D said:
I remember watching a Pocono race a few years ago, Mike Joy made a comment about how Richmond got around Pocono.....big mouthDW and Larry Mac completely blew him off and went back into the same old tight and loose thing we all heard 100's of times.....Tim Richmond is NASCAR'S forgotten man! Petty,DW and quite a few others were all running around calling Richmond a sinner.
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Richard Petty was always threatened by Richmond's personality and driving ability. Petty was jealous once Richmond started winning, and DW was jealous that Earnhardt and Richmond stole his spotlight.
 
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