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By Richard Petty,
for Turner Sports Interactive
September 11, 20023:16 PM EDT (1916 GMT)
You've heard, "Rubbin' is racin'." In fact, after the race this past week at Richmond and a couple of weeks ago at Bristol, you've probably heard it a lot. The thing is, rubbin' ain't necessarily racing, but it is a part of it. These cars have fenders on them. Now that might seem pretty obvious to you, but it is a pretty integral part of our sport. Indy cars can't beat and bang; if they do, those wheels are going to touch and cars are going to be flying. NASCAR cars do it because they can do it. In Indy cars, one car even comes real close to another and everybody is mad. In NASCAR, the cars touch and drivers accept that as just a part of the way things are.
Take this past weekend, for example. On a three-quarters mile track like Richmond, there is just going to be a certain amount of beating and banging. A track that size, even though it's wide enough to avoid it, is going to see cars popping each other a little bit.
At a Richmond or Martinsville, it's not always that big of a deal. Try that same kind of stuff at, say, Talladega, and you're going to see one of the biggest messes there has ever been.
Every driver out there knows the deal when he cranks the engine. You know what you can do and you know what you can't do. And you know the guy starting beside you knows the same thing -- at least, you hope he does.
Somebody getting into you a little bit at Richmond might not be that big of a deal. Somebody getting into you the exact same way at Talladega is probably going to be completely different. At Richmond, you're thinking, "Hey, man. Cool it a little bit back there." At Talladega, you're thinking, "That guy back there is crazy!"
The same way, a bump that makes you mad at Richmond you might not think twice about at Martinsville, which is shorter and slower and has flatter turns. It's all in the way you race the race track. A nudge at Martinsville isn't always appreciated but it's not that big of a deal. A nudge at Talladega might end your day -- and whole lot of other people's days -- a lot sooner that it should.
If you are bumping somebody pretty bad early in the race, that's not going to be accepted as well as if you are bumping somebody pretty bad late in the race. NASCAR has always been pretty good at letting two guys go at it towards the end of the race if they are racing for the win. I'm not talking about one guy trying to spin another guy or that sort of thing. I'm thinking more along the lines of the cars hitting each other as they pass, realizing that, as close as these cars race, there is going to be some tapping here and there, that sort of thing.
The bumpers are long gone but drivers still talk about the "chrome horn." If somebody is holding you up pretty bad at the first of the race -- and it's obvious they are holding you up -- you might give him a little shot. Nothing big, just a tap that says, "Hey, I'm back here and I'm going to pass you sooner or later, so why don't you let me go now?" Late in the race, you might have to honk that horn a little louder.
Again, I'm not talking about wrecking people or that sort of thing. You just don't do that. But there is an art to using these cars for position. I think some of the younger guys I've seen the past few weeks are still drawing "stick men" when it comes to the "art" of using the cars.
Location on the track is another thing to keep in mind. Bumping somebody pretty hard going down the frontstretch is a lot different than bumping somebody in the turns. And bumping somebody square in the rear end is a lot different than bumping somebody in the left rear quarterpanel.
Believe me, the guy in front of you knows if you're just making your presence known or if you are looking to send him to the garage early. One he might not appreciate; the other he'll usually try to get you back.
To me, a driver who can go out there at Martinsville or Talladega and run well without tearing up the car is the kind you want. If he doesn't tear up anybody else's car, well, that's a plus too.
By Richard Petty,
for Turner Sports Interactive
September 11, 20023:16 PM EDT (1916 GMT)
You've heard, "Rubbin' is racin'." In fact, after the race this past week at Richmond and a couple of weeks ago at Bristol, you've probably heard it a lot. The thing is, rubbin' ain't necessarily racing, but it is a part of it. These cars have fenders on them. Now that might seem pretty obvious to you, but it is a pretty integral part of our sport. Indy cars can't beat and bang; if they do, those wheels are going to touch and cars are going to be flying. NASCAR cars do it because they can do it. In Indy cars, one car even comes real close to another and everybody is mad. In NASCAR, the cars touch and drivers accept that as just a part of the way things are.
Take this past weekend, for example. On a three-quarters mile track like Richmond, there is just going to be a certain amount of beating and banging. A track that size, even though it's wide enough to avoid it, is going to see cars popping each other a little bit.
At a Richmond or Martinsville, it's not always that big of a deal. Try that same kind of stuff at, say, Talladega, and you're going to see one of the biggest messes there has ever been.
Every driver out there knows the deal when he cranks the engine. You know what you can do and you know what you can't do. And you know the guy starting beside you knows the same thing -- at least, you hope he does.
Somebody getting into you a little bit at Richmond might not be that big of a deal. Somebody getting into you the exact same way at Talladega is probably going to be completely different. At Richmond, you're thinking, "Hey, man. Cool it a little bit back there." At Talladega, you're thinking, "That guy back there is crazy!"
The same way, a bump that makes you mad at Richmond you might not think twice about at Martinsville, which is shorter and slower and has flatter turns. It's all in the way you race the race track. A nudge at Martinsville isn't always appreciated but it's not that big of a deal. A nudge at Talladega might end your day -- and whole lot of other people's days -- a lot sooner that it should.
If you are bumping somebody pretty bad early in the race, that's not going to be accepted as well as if you are bumping somebody pretty bad late in the race. NASCAR has always been pretty good at letting two guys go at it towards the end of the race if they are racing for the win. I'm not talking about one guy trying to spin another guy or that sort of thing. I'm thinking more along the lines of the cars hitting each other as they pass, realizing that, as close as these cars race, there is going to be some tapping here and there, that sort of thing.
The bumpers are long gone but drivers still talk about the "chrome horn." If somebody is holding you up pretty bad at the first of the race -- and it's obvious they are holding you up -- you might give him a little shot. Nothing big, just a tap that says, "Hey, I'm back here and I'm going to pass you sooner or later, so why don't you let me go now?" Late in the race, you might have to honk that horn a little louder.
Again, I'm not talking about wrecking people or that sort of thing. You just don't do that. But there is an art to using these cars for position. I think some of the younger guys I've seen the past few weeks are still drawing "stick men" when it comes to the "art" of using the cars.
Location on the track is another thing to keep in mind. Bumping somebody pretty hard going down the frontstretch is a lot different than bumping somebody in the turns. And bumping somebody square in the rear end is a lot different than bumping somebody in the left rear quarterpanel.
Believe me, the guy in front of you knows if you're just making your presence known or if you are looking to send him to the garage early. One he might not appreciate; the other he'll usually try to get you back.
To me, a driver who can go out there at Martinsville or Talladega and run well without tearing up the car is the kind you want. If he doesn't tear up anybody else's car, well, that's a plus too.
