What exactly was better about NASCAR back in the day, and why was that way better?

NASCAR is great. The past wasn't better. Back in the day, when drivers would blow the field out, nothing was bitched about. NASCAR Radio still points to the 600, and identifies that as the worst race of the season. I thought it was the best. How the hell did the 78 do that? The cars are so close. How? Amazing, but no, the NASCAR fandom hates that. Great racing cannot be quantified. Most say they know if when they see it. Whatever. The cars fire. The drivers go fast. It's the coolest thing in the ****** world, and true fans of the sport supposedly hate it. Who gives a **** about segments, Chases, points, whatever.....go fast and race your ass off. Nothing has changed, and it's good. Just most don't know it.
 
Revman said:
NASCAR is great. The past wasn't better. Back in the day, when drivers would blow the field out, nothing was bitched about. NASCAR Radio still points to the 600, and identifies that as the worst race of the season. I thought it was the best. How the hell did the 78 do that? The cars are so close. How? Amazing, but no, the NASCAR fandom hates that. Great racing cannot be quantified. Most say they know if when they see it. Whatever. The cars fire. The drivers go fast. It's the coolest thing in the ******* world, and true fans of the sport supposedly hate it. Who gives a sh!t about segments, Chases, points, whatever.....go fast and race your ass off. Nothing has changed, and it's good. Just most don't know it.
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Too much has changed.
 
Revman said:
NASCAR is great. The past wasn't better. Back in the day, when drivers would blow the field out, nothing was bitched about. NASCAR Radio still points to the 600, and identifies that as the worst race of the season. I thought it was the best. How the hell did the 78 do that? The cars are so close. How? Amazing, but no, the NASCAR fandom hates that. Great racing cannot be quantified. Most say they know if when they see it. Whatever. The cars fire. The drivers go fast. It's the coolest thing in the ******* world, and true fans of the sport supposedly hate it. Who gives a sh!t about segments, Chases, points, whatever.....go fast and race your ass off. Nothing has changed, and it's good. Just most don't know it.
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I went to the 78 World 600, off of my grass cutting money it was a great race. DW, Benny, Donnie Allison, Cale, and Pearson all were strong and looked fast enough to win.
DW won that race.
http://www.racing-reference.info/race/1978_World_600/W
 
Greg said:
I always enjoying the Ford people crying, that there is some vintage nascar itself.
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When Elliott won the thing in Talladega – ‘skooze me, ‘dega – in ‘85 it was after the Shivvie people had done the whinin’ ‘n cryin’.

Both sides were good at it, lyin’ ‘n cryin’ like politicians about one another havin’ an advantage. The faithful of the manufacturers lickin’ it up ‘n ready to fight if one said otherwise – similar to today when one speaks against the “true fans’ “ beliefs.

In response, NASCAR had raised the Fords ‘n lowered the other ones.

It was edgy ‘n enhanced the experience for the fans ‘n although many of the top cars had busted before Elliott made up the laps, he still kicked ass that day - in a car an inch higher than the Shivahlays.

Watchin’ it was a thing of beauty. The whinin' that followed was simply exquisite.

Yeah, the racin’ was better then.
 
There isnt anybody in racing like Bobby Allison was back in the day.

He schooled Penske on how to run a cup car, even how to make an AMC Matador fast. He constantly flipped rides, and even flipped car brands during the same season.
In 1971 he had won five in a row, 3 of them in a 69 Mercury and the last 2 in a 71 Dodge.

He may have been too good for his own good, with the abilities that allowed him to be so volatile. If he had ever put down roots he may won more races and championships. I think so anyway.

Bobby was always tough on my favorites and I didnt respect enough for all he was and could do, or what he gave.
I doubt that there will be another one as good at driving, and setting up a car as him. I think he could have been a great CC too. He didn't follow a program, he was more like the program wherever he went.
 
David Pearson, man I hated him in the puralotar car, he just beat Petty too many times, and that was a harsh reality.

I went to the 78 world 600 and Pearson was on the Pole. That big old Mercury looked as out of place as a Tank or a school bus. But he nailed those opening laps, it was like an art watching him hit the marks.

I never could hate him after that.
 
Revman said:
NASCAR is great. The past wasn't better. Back in the day, when drivers would blow the field out, nothing was bitched about. NASCAR Radio still points to the 600, and identifies that as the worst race of the season. I thought it was the best. How the hell did the 78 do that? The cars are so close. How? Amazing, but no, the NASCAR fandom hates that. Great racing cannot be quantified. Most say they know if when they see it. Whatever. The cars fire. The drivers go fast. It's the coolest thing in the ******* world, and true fans of the sport supposedly hate it. Who gives a sh!t about segments, Chases, points, whatever.....go fast and race your ass off. Nothing has changed, and it's good. Just most don't know it.
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Nothing has changed?? Nascar has become pro wrestling in 17 yrs and nothing has changed???? SMH...

It doesn't need the Chase, it doesn't need phantom cautions, it doesn't need long standing rules thrown out just because it fits the story better.
 
Robert J Sublett said:
Nothing has changed?? Nascar has become pro wrestling in 17 yrs and nothing has changed???? SMH...
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Exactly. When drivers could no longer work on the cars, because NASCAR had them committed to some sponsor appearance, it was done. Late 80's early 90's. Done. Now it's all sims and engineers. Can't put the Genie back in the bottle though.
 
I enjoyed watching the Rolex 24 with my son,it reminded me what Nascar used to be like when I watched with my dad.Some absolutely great cars you lust after and want to own that looked like showroom cars.All 3 manufacturers in Nascar had cars in the race,no Fusion,SS or Camry though.All 3 had performance cars in the race,which they do make.No manufactured finish,no funny debris cautions,just a great race.There doesn't have to be a game 7 moment every race.The Homestead race last year was an embarrassment and I am not a Carl Edwards fan.I don't blame him for walking away.
 
Greg said:
David Pearson, man I hated him in the puralotar car, he just beat Petty too many times, and that was a harsh reality.

I went to the 78 world 600 and Pearson was on the Pole. That big old Mercury looked as out of place as a Tank or a school bus. But he nailed those opening laps, it was like an art watching him hit the marks.

I never could hate him after that.
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Been pulling for the Woods a long time. Pearson ‘n the Woods, deadly at Charlotte when they were together.

Remember ‘76. The track was scramblin' with bonus programs to bring the winner’s share of purse to 50 grand.

The gates to the pits were open after the race then. There were two crewmen with the 54 loadin’ up, the third was Pond after he’d driven the race.. The guy I went with ‘n I helped ‘em load while we waited to see if Wheeler could come up with the money.

At the same time, Guthrie was being taken to the airport by helicopter to catch a plane to be interviewed by news entertainment folks in New York.

The racin’ was better then.
 
darlingtonfan said:
I enjoyed watching the Rolex 24 with my son,it reminded me what Nascar used to be like when I watched with my dad.Some absolutely great cars you lust after and want to own that looked like showroom cars.All 3 manufacturers in Nascar had cars in the race,no Fusion,SS or Camry though.All 3 had performance cars in the race,which they do make.No manufactured finish,no funny debris cautions,just a great race.There doesn't have to be a game 7 moment every race.The Homestead race last year was an embarrassment and I am not a Carl Edwards fan.I don't blame him for walking away.
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I suspect that wall impact hurt him more than he let on. Just decided it wasn't worth it. I will be surprised if he come back.
 
I guess what I liked about the 70's and 80's , the cars looked a lot what you could buy
in the showroom. Now they don't look like anything you could buy except for the front grill
and sticker head lights. That's all ancient history though to look back on.

I like the racing then and now. Its racing. I am a race fan. The rules ,specs, and techs will always
continue to change and I concern myself very little with it. There is still a race going on.
If I have a couple bucks, I am going.
 
Robert J Sublett said:
Nothing has changed?? Nascar has become pro wrestling in 17 yrs and nothing has changed???? SMH...

It doesn't need the Chase, it doesn't need phantom cautions, it doesn't need long standing rules thrown out just because it fits the story better.
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They start the cars? They go fast? One guy wins? Nothing has changed. Don't sweat the details. They are not what brought you here.
 
Revman said:
NASCAR Radio still points to the 600, and identifies that as the worst race of the season.
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It was boring as hell from start to finish. Not just the worst race of the season but one of the worst races I have ever seen in my life.

Revman said:
I thought it was the best.
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Of course you do, because you're a Toyota fanboy.

Revman said:
How the hell did the 78 do that? The cars are so close.
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Because passing is almost impossible and clean air is premium more than ever. The only reason fans enjoyed that race was because Truex won it. If Harvick had done that, the bitching would've been non-stop.
 
Hi Long time lurker, first time poster. I felt compelled to reply after seeing this thread. Been a fan since 1989 or 90ish, I'm only 32 so I don't go back that far. I became a fan watching my dad cheer for Dale Earnhardt on Sundays,but became a die hard during Jeff Gordon's first few years. My dad told me when we were watching a race "that kid is going to be great", been hooked ever since. I think NASCAR was great from about 1990-04 . I loved the season long points system, every race felt like it mattered. And it didn't bother me if a driver clinched early, there were other points battles for positions in the top 10 going on, a rookie trying to win his first race, a veteran trying to keep his years long win streak alive or a vet trying to win for the first time in a long time. To me, the season long points system felt authentic. I think that's what NASCAR is missing most now, true authenticity and things happening organically. I also felt the schedule was more awesome back in the day: Wilkesboro and The Rock were such exciting tracks to watch for me personally. Wish they were still on the schedule today but reality is they are not. But man those tracks were throwbacks were it felt like it took more skill for the driver to win than engineers and aero like it seems most of the 1.5 miles are. I also feel NASCAR is missing it in the details,for instance the Winston Million was a pretty cool deal. I remember when Jeff won in 1997, it felt like he did something amazing in winning 3 of those 4 races. It'd be like a golfer now winning 3 of 4 majors in a year, I wish NASCAR would do something like this to emphasize their big races like the Winston Million used to. Say it's Daytona, Charlotte, Indy and Southern 500. I hate what NASCAR has become, but I can't walk away. It's such a big part of my Sunday's it'd be weird to walk away. I DVR most of the races now and really am not excited for these segemented races but..Iam willing to give it a chance maybe the first 8 weeks of the season and see what happens.
 
Snappy D said:
Hi Long time lurker, first time poster. I felt compelled to reply after seeing this thread. Been a fan since 1989 or 90ish, I'm only 32 so I don't go back that far. I became a fan watching my dad cheer for Dale Earnhardt on Sundays,but became a die hard during Jeff Gordon's first few years. My dad told me when we were watching a race "that kid is going to be great", been hooked ever since. I think NASCAR was great from about 1990-04 . I loved the season long points system, every race felt like it mattered. And it didn't bother me if a driver clinched early, there were other points battles for positions in the top 10 going on, a rookie trying to win his first race, a veteran trying to keep his years long win streak alive or a vet trying to win for the first time in a long time. To me, the season long points system felt authentic. I think that's what NASCAR is missing most now, true authenticity and things happening organically. I also felt the schedule was more awesome back in the day: Wilkesboro and The Rock were such exciting tracks to watch for me personally. Wish they were still on the schedule today but reality is they are not. But man those tracks were throwbacks were it felt like it took more skill for the driver to win than engineers and aero like it seems most of the 1.5 miles are. I also feel NASCAR is missing it in the details,for instance the Winston Million was a pretty cool deal. I remember when Jeff won in 1997, it felt like he did something amazing in winning 3 of those 4 races. It'd be like a golfer now winning 3 of 4 majors in a year, I wish NASCAR would do something like this to emphasize their big races like the Winston Million used to. Say it's Daytona, Charlotte, Indy and Southern 500. I hate what NASCAR has become, but I can't walk away. It's such a big part of my Sunday's it'd be weird to walk away. I DVR most of the races now and really am not excited for these segemented races but..Iam willing to give it a chance maybe the first 8 weeks of the season and see what happens.
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Nailed it!!!
 
Snappy D said:
Hi Long time lurker, first time poster. I felt compelled to reply after seeing this thread. Been a fan since 1989 or 90ish, I'm only 32 so I don't go back that far. I became a fan watching my dad cheer for Dale Earnhardt on Sundays,but became a die hard during Jeff Gordon's first few years. My dad told me when we were watching a race "that kid is going to be great", been hooked ever since. I think NASCAR was great from about 1990-04 . I loved the season long points system, every race felt like it mattered. And it didn't bother me if a driver clinched early, there were other points battles for positions in the top 10 going on, a rookie trying to win his first race, a veteran trying to keep his years long win streak alive or a vet trying to win for the first time in a long time. To me, the season long points system felt authentic. I think that's what NASCAR is missing most now, true authenticity and things happening organically. I also felt the schedule was more awesome back in the day: Wilkesboro and The Rock were such exciting tracks to watch for me personally. Wish they were still on the schedule today but reality is they are not. But man those tracks were throwbacks were it felt like it took more skill for the driver to win than engineers and aero like it seems most of the 1.5 miles are. I also feel NASCAR is missing it in the details,for instance the Winston Million was a pretty cool deal. I remember when Jeff won in 1997, it felt like he did something amazing in winning 3 of those 4 races. It'd be like a golfer now winning 3 of 4 majors in a year, I wish NASCAR would do something like this to emphasize their big races like the Winston Million used to. Say it's Daytona, Charlotte, Indy and Southern 500. I hate what NASCAR has become, but I can't walk away. It's such a big part of my Sunday's it'd be weird to walk away. I DVR most of the races now and really am not excited for these segemented races but..Iam willing to give it a chance maybe the first 8 weeks of the season and see what happens.
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Welcome. Well said. Also, I like your avatar. NASCAR '98 maybe? That brings back memories of when NASCAR was great...
 
29-4 said:
Welcome. Well said. Also, I like your avatar. NASCAR '98 maybe? That brings back memories of when NASCAR was great...
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It's from NASCAR Thunder 04 for PS2, my fav racing game ever, that game had EVERYTHING. Every little detail. (F1 2010 is a close second)
 
2010%20Elliott%20with%2076%20Torino%20(2).JPG


35vi.jpg


Guys like this could come into NASCAR with a wing and a prayer and become stars. The independents such as Jimmy Means, J.D. McDuffie, Buddy Arrington, Dave Marcus and a host of others could make living even though they had no chance of winning a race.
 
Another thing that made the '80's and '90's better than today. It didn't matter if your name was Earnhardt, Waltrip, or Elliott or if you were Jimmy Means, J.D. McDuffie, or Ronnie Thomas mechanical failure always lurked around the next corner and it made the racing better.
 
KTMLew01 said:
Exactly. When drivers could no longer work on the cars, because NASCAR had them committed to some sponsor appearance, it was done. Late 80's early 90's. Done. Now it's all sims and engineers. Can't put the Genie back in the bottle though.
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Drivers unable to wrench their own cars due to their hectic sponsor appearance schedules created the need to go all sims and engineers. I see.

Some of you fellas were conceived during the late 80's / early 90's.
 
Robert J Sublett said:
Another thing that made the '80's and '90's better than today. It didn't matter if your name was Earnhardt, Waltrip, or Elliott or if you were Jimmy Means, J.D. McDuffie, or Ronnie Thomas mechanical failure always lurked around the next corner and it made the racing better.
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This is some good stuff right here.
 
Anyone got a year on that Elliott blue 9? Thanks.

If I had to guess I would say late 70's.
 
Quite frankly, the racing was better. Simple as that. The cars could actually run around each other and they didn't drive so drastically different in traffic. Guys could really race each other hard. Nowadays, the cars are so aero dependent, passing is much more difficult. Clean air is king and it's more about the car than the driver. The majority of green flag passes for the lead come immediately after restarts.

Also, there was a lot more parity back then, even during the years when you had guys like Gordon winning dozens of races. It was common to see some guy who was 30th in the points running up towards the front because they hit on their setup that day. Every race you would see a surprise team having a good run. They usually didn't win, but it meant a lot for the bottom feeder teams to get a good finish every now and then. Nowadays, there are never any surprises in the top 10 and it's always the same guys bringing up the rear of the field. Who wants to sponsor Timmy Hill when they know he's a guaranteed 38th every single week?

One of my best friends finally became a NASCAR fan a few years ago. Always a big sports fan, but never gave racing a chance because "cars going around in circles is for rednecks" is what he would tell me. Well he moved down to North Carolina and attended a race at Charlotte, and instantly became a fan. He's been hooked ever since. He recently started watching old races on youtube from the 80s and 90s, and told me he can't believe how great the racing was back then. He regrets not giving NASCAR a chance earlier in his life because he says he missed out on the golden years.

There are a lot of other things too.....the schedule/tracks, the constant format changes, playoff/points BS, the TV broadcasts, etc. But above all, it's simply the product on the race track. I still love NASCAR and I'll always be a fan, but I don't think it's as good as it once was.
 
One thing I do really miss from my early days as a fan, and I think this is another major problem, the broadcast. No matter if it the race was on ESPN, TNN or any other, it was a good broadcast. Bob Jenkins, Benny Parsons, Ned Jarrett, Dr. Jerry Punch and John Kernan were phenomenal. So was Mike Joy, Neil Bonnett and Buddy Baker. They could make the race enjoyable for a 30 year fan or a first timer. The broadcast teams today just don't have that. Watching old races on YouTube makes me miss them more. At least MRN is still good.
 
2 Sweet said:
Quite frankly, the racing was better. Simple as that. The cars could actually run around each other and they didn't drive so drastically different in traffic. Guys could really race each other hard. Nowadays, the cars are so aero dependent, passing is much more difficult. Clean air is king and it's more about the car than the driver. The majority of green flag passes for the lead come immediately after restarts.

Also, there was a lot more parity back then, even during the years when you had guys like Gordon winning dozens of races. It was common to see some guy who was 30th in the points running up towards the front because they hit on their setup that day. Every race you would see a surprise team having a good run. They usually didn't win, but it meant a lot for the bottom feeder teams to get a good finish every now and then. Nowadays, there are never any surprises in the top 10 and it's always the same guys bringing up the rear of the field. Who wants to sponsor Timmy Hill when they know he's a guaranteed 38th every single week?

One of my best friends finally became a NASCAR fan a few years ago. Always a big sports fan, but never gave racing a chance because "cars going around in circles is for rednecks" is what he would tell me. Well he moved down to North Carolina and attended a race at Charlotte, and instantly became a fan. He's been hooked ever since. He recently started watching old races on youtube from the 80s and 90s, and told me he can't believe how great the racing was back then. He regrets not giving NASCAR a chance earlier in his life because he says he missed out on the golden years.

There are a lot of other things too.....the schedule/tracks, the constant format changes, playoff/points BS, the TV broadcasts, etc. But above all, it's simply the product on the race track. I still love NASCAR and I'll always be a fan, but I don't think it's as good as it once was.
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I agree with this. In 98 when Gordon won 13 races, Mark Martin won 7 races himself. Dale Jarrett, Rusty, Earnhardt, Jeff Burton, Bobby Labonte,Jeremy Mayfield, Texas Terry, Bobby Hamilton and Ricky Rudd all won races. That's pretty deep driver roster in my opinion
 
Bowtie3 said:
One thing I do really miss from my early days as a fan, and I think this is another major problem, the broadcast. No matter if it the race was on ESPN, TNN or any other, it was a good broadcast. Bob Jenkins, Benny Parsons, Ned Jarrett, Dr. Jerry Punch and John Kernan were phenomenal. So was Mike Joy, Neil Bonnett and Buddy Baker. They could make the race enjoyable for a 30 year fan or a first timer. The broadcast teams today just don't have that. Watching old races on YouTube makes me miss them more. At least MRN is still good.
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Yes. 100% agreed.
 
Snappy D said:
I agree with this. In 98 when Gordon won 13 races, Mark Martin won 7 races himself. Dale Jarrett, Rusty, Earnhardt, Jeff Burton, Bobby Labonte,Jeremy Mayfield, Texas Terry, Bobby Hamilton and Ricky Rudd all won races. That's pretty deep driver roster in my opinion
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Almost every year you had a surprise winner or two. Hell, Ward Burton won a race in the Bill Davis 22 car the same year he got fired from Al Dillard's team. He won in the same 22 car that failed to qualify for a couple races earlier in the year with Randy Lajoie. You'll never see anything like that nowadays.
 
Robert J Sublett said:
Another thing that made the '80's and '90's better than today. It didn't matter if your name was Earnhardt, Waltrip, or Elliott or if you were Jimmy Means, J.D. McDuffie, or Ronnie Thomas mechanical failure always lurked around the next corner and it made the racing better.
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Very true. You really don't see engine failure like you used to. You don't hear mention of the engine builders either. You used to hear them talk about guys Eddie Lanier and Runt Pittman all the time.

Glad to see that Ronnie Thomas hasn't been totally forgotten. I'm from about 20 minutes up the road from him. By the time I became a fan, he'd left cup and was running local short tracks. I watched an old race from 85 or so where one of the networks came to his hometown for a story. It was pretty cool to see some landmarks I was familiar with during a Nascar broadcast.
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
It was boring as hell from start to finish. Not just the worst race of the season but one of the worst races I have ever seen in my life.



Of course you do, because you're a Toyota fanboy.



Because passing is almost impossible and clean air is premium more than ever. The only reason fans enjoyed that race was because Truex won it. If Harvick had done that, the bitching would've been non-stop.
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Yeah, I know because you are a fan of good racing which you will know when you see it.

Yeah, self-described so you are beating a dead horse...but that isn't the reason I liked that race. It's fascinating to me that they have these guys in such a box, and the 78 was so superior. I appreciate masterful work, and that was it if I ever saw it. Sorry to say, but I doubt you will be getting any letters of apology from Cole and the crew anytime soon. On this topic, I have repeatedly expressed my respect for Harvick's 2014. They had 3 tenths on the field from the pre-Christmas test to Homestead. Freaking amazing. An epic season really.

The lack of passing had nothing to do with the 600. The 78 had 3-4 tenths in two laps after the green generally speaking. That tape is old, and applies to many races--but not this one. If somebody could have been quick enough, we've got another story, but nobody was even close, and you know that.

Interesting that you would make your worn out fanboy assertion, and mention Harvick as an example of a guy who would be hated with such a display. What the hell was 2014? Didn't think he took too much crap really.
 
2 Sweet said:
Almost every year you had a surprise winner or two. Hell, Ward Burton won a race in the Bill Davis 22 car the same year he got fired from Al Dillard's team. He won in the same 22 car that failed to qualify for a couple races earlier in the year with Randy Lajoie. You'll never see anything like that nowadays.
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Remember how good Bobby Hamilton was in the 43 in 1996? If it hadn't been for your 24 he might have won more than Phoenix. Speaking of teams that could run off a good streak out of nowhere.
 
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