NASCAR History
Early stock car racingIn the first few decades of the 1900s, Daytona Beach became known as the place to set world land speed records. The beach became a mecca for racing enthusiasts and fifteen records were set on this beach between 1905 and 1935. Then, in 1936, the Bonneville Salt Flats became the premier place to host land speed record attempts, so the Daytona beach course began hosting car racing events. Drivers raced a 1.5 to 2 mile stretch of beach as one straightaway and beachfront highway A1A as the other. Stock car racing had its origins in bootlegging during Prohibition. Bootleggers needed to distribute their illicit products, and they typically used small, fast vehicles to better evade the police. Many of the drivers would modify their cars for speed and handling, as well as increased cargo capacity, and some of them came to love the fast-paced driving down twisty mountain roads. One of the main 'strips' in Knoxville, Tennessee, had its beginning as a mecca for aspiring bootlegging drivers. The repeal of Prohibition in 1933 dried up some of their business, but by then Southerners had developed a taste for moonshine, and a number of the drivers continued "runnin' shine," this time evading the "revenuers" who were attempting to tax their operations. The cars continued to improve, and by the late 1940's, races featuring these cars were being run for pride and profit. These races were popular entertainment in the rural Southern United States, and they are most closely associated with the Wilkes County region of North Carolina. Most races in those days were of modified cars, street vehicles which were lightened and reinforced. Significant peopleWilliam France, Sr.Mechanic William France, Sr., moved to Daytona Beach, Florida, from Washington, DC, in 1935 to escape the Great Depression. He was familiar with the history of the area from the land speed record attempts. France entered the 1936 Daytona event, finishing fifth. He took over running the course in 1938. He promoted a few races before World War II. France had the notion that people would enjoy watching "stock cars" race. Drivers were frequently victimized by unscrupulous promoters who would leave events with all the money before drivers were paid. In 1947, he decided this racing would not grow without a formal sanctioning organization, standardized rules, regular schedule, and an organized championship. On December 14, 1947, France began talks with other influential racers and promoters at the Ebony Bar at the Streamline Hotel at Daytona Beach, Florida, that ended with the formation of NASCAR on February 21, 1948. NASCAR was founded by William France, Sr., on February 21, 1948, with the help of several other drivers of the time. The points system was written on a bar room napkin. The original plans for NASCAR included three distinct divisions: Modified, Roadster, and Strictly Stock.[2] The Modified and Roadster classes were seen as more attractive to fans.[2] It turned out that NASCAR fans wanted nothing to do with the Roadsters, which fans perceived as a Northeast or Midwest series.[2] The Strictly Stock division was put on hold as American automobile manufacturers were unable to produce family sedans quickly enough to keep up with post-World War II demand.[2] The 1948 schedule featured 52 Modified dirt track races. The sanctioning body hosted its first event at Daytona Beach on February 15, 1948. Red Byron beat Marshall Teague in the Modified division race. Byron won the 1948 national championship. Things had changed dramatically by 1949, and the Strictly Stock division was able to debut with a 20 mile exhibition in February near Miami. Erwin "Cannonball" BakerThe first Commissioner of NASCAR was Erwin "Cannonball" Baker. A former stock car, motorcycle, and open-wheel racer who competed in the Indianapolis 500 and set over one hundred land speed records. Cannonball Baker earned most of his fame for his transcontinental speed runs. Baker would prove a car's worth by driving it from New York to Los Angeles. After his death, the famous transcontinental race the 'Cannonball Run' and the film that was inspired by it were both named in his honor. Baker is enshrined in the Automotive Hall of Fame, The Motorcycle Hall of Fame, The Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame, and The NASCAR Hall of Fame. This level of honor and success in each diverse racing association earned Baker the title "King of the Road". Bob "Barky" BarkhimerIn the early 1950s the United States Navy stationed Bill France, Jr., at the Moffett Federal Airfield in northern California. His father asked him to look up Bob Barkhimer in San Jose, California. Barkhimer was a star of midget car racing from the World War II era, and later ran about 22 different speedways as the head of the California Stock Car Racing Association. Young Bill developed a relationship with Bob Barkhimer and his partner, Margo Burke. He went to events with them, stayed weekends with them and generally became very familiar with racing on the west coast. "Barky," as he was called by his friends, journeyed to Daytona Beach and met with Bill France, Sr. In the spring of 1954, NASCAR became the stock car sanctioning body on the Pacific Coast under Barky. Strictly Stock to Grand NationalThe first NASCAR "Strictly Stock" race ever was held at Charlotte Speedway (not the Charlotte Motor Speedway) on June 19, 1949 -- a race won by Jim Roper after Glenn Dunnaway was disqualified after the discovery of his altered rear springs. Initially, the cars were known as the "Strictly Stock Division" and raced with virtually no modifications on the factory models. This division was renamed "Grand National" beginning in the 1950 season. However, over a period of about a dozen years, modifications for both safety and performance were allowed and, by the mid-1960s, the vehicles were purpose-built race cars with a stock-appearing body. One of the tracks used in the inaugural season is still on today's premier circuit: Martinsville Speedway. Another old track which is still in use is Darlington Raceway, which opened in 1950. (The oldest track on today's NEXTEL Cup circuit is the Indianapolis Motor Speedway which dates back to 1909; however, the first Brickyard 400 did not take place until 1994.) 
Most races were on half-mile to one-mile (800 to 1600 m) oval tracks. However, the first "superspeedway" was built in Darlington, South Carolina, in 1950. This track, at 1.366 miles (2.22 km), was wider, faster and higher-banked than the racers had seen. Darlington was the premiere event of the series until 1959. Daytona International Speedway, a 2.5-mile (4 km) high-banked track, opened in 1959, and became the icon of the sport. The track was built on a swamp, so France took a huge risk in building the track. The first NASCAR competition held outside of the U.S. was in Canada, where on July 1, 1952, Buddy Shuman won a 200-lap race on a half-mile (800 m) dirt track in Stamford Park, Ontario, near Niagara Falls. Beginning of the modern eraNASCAR made major changes in its structure in the early 1970s. The top series found sponsorship from R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company (RJR). Tobacco companies, which had been banned from television advertising, found a popular and demographically suitable consumer base in NASCAR fans and engaged NASCAR as a promotional outlet. As a result of that sponsorship, the top competitive series became known as The "Winston Cup" starting in 1971, with a new points system and some significant cash benefits to compete for championship points. Also in 1971, the NASCAR season was shortened from 48 races to 31. For these reasons, 1971 is often acknowledged as the beginning of NASCAR's "modern era". The next competitive level, called Late Model Sportsman, gained the "Grand National" title passed down from the top division and soon found a sponsor in Busch Beer. In the mid-1970s, some races began to get partial television coverage, frequently on the ABC sports variety show "Wide World of Sports." Finally, in 1979, the Daytona 500 became the first stock car race that was nationally televised from flag to flag on CBS. The leaders going into the last lap, Cale Yarborough and Donnie Allison, wrecked on the backstretch while dicing for the lead, allowing Richard Petty to pass them both and win the race. Immediately, Yarborough, Allison, and Allison's brother Bobby were engaged in a fistfight on national television. This underlined the drama and emotion of the sport and increased its broadcast marketability. Luckily for NASCAR, the race coincided with a major snowstorm along the United States' eastern seaboard, successfully introducing much of the captive audience to the sport. The beginning of the modern era also brought a change in the competitive structure. The purse awarded for championship points accumulated over the course of the season began to be significant. Previously, drivers were mostly concerned about winning individual races. Now, their standing in championship points became an important factor. NASCAR-sanctioned seriesNEXTEL Cup
The "NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series" is the sport's highest level of professional competition. It is consequently the most popular and most profitable NASCAR series. The 2006 NEXTEL Cup season consisted of 36 races over 10 months, with over $4 million in total prize money at stake at each race. Writers and fans often use "Cup" to refer to the NEXTEL Cup series and the ambiguous use of "NASCAR" as a synonym for the NEXTEL Cup series is common. As of 2007, the defending champion is Jimmie Johnson.  In 2004, NEXTEL took over sponsorship of the premier series from R. J. Reynolds, formally renaming it from the Winston Cup to the NEXTEL Cup Series. A new championship points system, "The Chase for the NEXTEL Cup" was also developed, which reset the point standings with ten races to go, making only drivers in the top ten or within 400 points of the leader eligible to win the championship. In 2007, NASCAR announced it was expanding "The Chase" from ten to twelve drivers, eliminating the 400-point cutoff, and giving a ten-point bonus to the top twelve drivers for each of the races they have won out of the first 26. Wins throughout the season will also be worth five more points than in previous seasons. In 2008, the premier series title name will become the Sprint Cup Series, as part of the merger between NEXTEL and Sprint. Busch Series 
The "NASCAR Busch Series" is the second-highest level of professional competition in NASCAR. The cars look very similar to Nextel Cup cars with only a few differences, such as the weight and length of the car, the size of the rear spoiler, and the power output of the engine. As of 2007, the defending champion is Kevin Harvick. The Busch Series is currently the only series of the top three to race outside the United States and the only series to have ever held points-paying international events. The season is a few races shorter and the prize money is significantly lower. Over the last several years, a number of NEXTEL Cup drivers have tried to run races in both series, using the Busch race as a warm-up to the Cup event at the same facility. Detractors of this practice have labeled such drivers as "Buschwhackers." The Busch sponsorship is set to expire at the end of 2007, and the series will now be sponsored by Nationwide Insurance. Nationwide will also become NASCAR's offical insurance agency replacing Allstate. Craftsman Truck Series  The '"NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series" features modified pickup trucks. It is one of the three national divisions of NASCAR, together with the Busch Series and the Nextel Cup. As of 2007, the defending champion is Todd Bodine. In 1994, NASCAR announced the formation of the NASCAR SuperTruck Series presented by Craftsman. The first series race followed in 1995. In 1996, the series was renamed the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series to emphasize Craftsman's involvement. The series was first considered something of an oddity or a "senior tour" for NASCAR drivers, but eventually grew in popularity and has produced Nextel Cup series drivers who had never raced in the Busch Series. NASCAR Canadian Tire Series NASCAR announced the purchase of Canadian racing series CASCAR in September of 2006. The CASCAR Western Series will become NASCAR's fourth-tier series starting in the Fall of 2007. NASCAR Corona Series In December of 2006, NASCAR also announced the creation of a new series in Mexico, the NASCAR Corona Series, replacing the existing Desafio Corona Series, to begin in 2007.[3] Regional racing seriesIn addition to the five main series, NASCAR operates several other racing circuits. Many local race tracks across the United States and Canada run under the Whelen All-American Series banner, where local drivers are compared against each other in a formula where the best local track champion of the nation wins the Whelen All-American Weekly Series National Championship. The Whelen All-American series is split into four divisions. Each division champion receives a point-fund money payout and even more goes to the National champion (driver with most points out of the four division winners). The Whelen All-American Series is the base for stock car racing, developing NASCAR names such as Clint Bowyer, Jimmy Spencer, Tony Stewart, the Bodine brothers and many others along the way. NASCAR also sanctions three regional racing divisions: The Whelen Modified Tour, which races open-wheel "modified" cars in Northern and Southern divisions; the Grand National Division, which races in the Busch East Series (formerly Busch North); and the NASCAR West Series. Grand National cars are similar to Busch Series cars, although they are less powerful. The AutoZone Elite Division, which races late-model cars which are lighter and less powerful than NEXTEL Cup cars, was originally split into four divisions: Northwest, Southwest, Southeast, and Midwest. At the end of 2005, NASCAR announced that the AutoZone Elite Division would be discontinued after the 2006 season due to having trouble securing NASCAR-sanctioned tracks to successfully host AutoZone Elite Division events, plus escalating costs of competing and downsizing of the Division in recent years. In 2003, NASCAR standardized rules for its AutoZone Elite and Grand National divisions regional touring series as to permit cars in one series to race against cars in another series in the same division. The top 15 (Grand National) or 10 (AutoZone Elite) in each series will race in a one-race playoff, called the NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown, to determine the annual AutoZone Elite and Grand National champions. This event has been hosted at Irwindale Speedway in California since its inception. Many drivers move up through the series before reaching the NEXTEL Cup series. In 2002, over 9,000 drivers had licenses from NASCAR to race at all levels. The winners of the Dodge Weekly Series National Championship, the four AutoZone Elite Divisions, the two Whelen Modified and Grand National Divisions, and the three national series are invited to New York City in December to participate in Champions Week ceremonies which conclude with the annual awards banquet at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. North Carolina race shops Most NASCAR teams are based in North Carolina, especially near Charlotte. Cities in North Carolina that are home to NASCAR teams include: Charlotte, Mooresville, Concord, Statesville, Huntersville, Corenelius, Welcome, Wilkesboro, Kernersville, Randleman, Greensboro, High Point, Harrisburg, and Kannapolis.[citation needed] NASCAR compared to other forms of motorsportNASCAR races take place predominantly on oval tracks of 3 or 4 turns, with all turns to the left. Oval tracks are classified as short track (less than 1 mile), intermediate or speedway (1 to 2 miles) or superspeedway (2.5 mile tri-oval). Road courses are any tracks having both left and right turns. As of 2007, the NEXTEL Cup series includes 36 points races, comprised of 34 oval-track races and 2 road course races. NASCAR races are different compared to the rough terrain and sharp turns of Rally, as well as the complicated twists and turns seen in the Formula One course that put up to 5 or 6 g's of stress on the driver's body. NASCAR is not the only racing league to run a large number of races on oval tracks; the Indy Racing League also runs many oval track races, although IndyCars usually average over 30-40 miles an hour faster than NEXTEL Cup cars due to lighter cars, high downforce designs, and wider tires. NEXTEL Cup races have 43 cars in competition at the start of each race (with more being forced to go home after qualifying), compared to 22 for Formula One and 18-20 for IndyCar Series and Champ Car World Series. NASCAR teams must endure a 36-race schedule over 41 weeks. Teams usually only have about five days to prepare before arriving at any given track. While many fans of other racing series are often critical of NASCAR, fans of the sport can point to the success (or lack thereof) of drivers who move to NASCAR from other series. Juan Pablo Montoya won his sole IRL race, the 2000 Indianapolis 500; 25% of his CART races; and 7.3% of his Formula 1 races; yet he has won just 3.2% of his NASCAR Nextel Cup starts. Two-time Australian V8 Supercar Champion Marcos Ambrose has failed to win a race in 22 Truck and 30 Busch series starts while generating a total of just 8 top 10 finishes. A.J. Allmendinger, who won 5 of the 14 CART races in 2006, has qualified for just 13 of the 30 NASCAR Nextel Cup races in 2007 with no top ten finishes. Champion road racers Ron Fellows and Boris Said have failed to win in 17 and 30 NASCAR Nextel Cup Starts respectively. Sprint Car great Steve Kinser's NASCAR career lasted just 5 races before he was replaced after recording a best finish of just 27th. 3 Time IRL champion and Indy 500 champion Sam Hornish Jr. has failed to qualify for any Nascar Nextel Cup events (3 attempts) and has failed to record a top 10 finish in his 8 career Busch series starts. There are exceptions to this, however, such as Mario Andretti who is the only driver ever to win the Indianapolis 500 (1969), NASCAR's Daytona 500 (1967), and the Formula One World Championship. CriticismTechnology far from "stock" or production
The 1960s-era technologies used in the "stock cars" bear little resemblance to modern-day street vehicles. Modern NASCAR vehicles share very few attributes of the commercial models with which they are associated; for example, the production Chevrolet Monte Carlo weighs nearly the same as the NASCAR Chevy Monte Carlo, but the NASCAR vehicle has a cast-iron eight-cylinder engine driving the rear wheels, whereas the production car has an aluminum alloy front-wheel-drive V6. Also, NASCAR vehicles continue to use carburetors instead of the now-common fuel injection, and they also use a 2-valve per cylinder configuration operated by a single cam-in-block using push rods, instead of the double overhead cams operating 4-valves per cylinder that are common on production cars. Supporters note that this is a modern condition: when NASCAR first started 59 years ago, the race cars were production vehicles, but the safety and performance needs of modern racing have required custom-built race cars. Supporters also note that the strict equipment rules place less emphasis on getting a technological advantage, and thus more emphasis on individual driver skill. All of NASCAR's series also run on spec tires made by certain tire manufacturers such as Goodyear and American Racer. Some suggest that this discourages tire competition and development, which they further assert has led to the absence of rain/wet condition tires, and to races (such as the 2005 UAW-GM Quality 500) where tires seem to self-destruct.[4] Business structure and decision-making policiesNASCAR's business structure has also been criticized. Since its founding in 1947 by William France Sr., the overall NASCAR organization has been majority owned by the France family, ensuring that the family controls a majority of the overwhelming revenue that the sport generates (compared to other sports where the owners and players split revenue almost evenly). NASCAR is also criticized for its reluctance to promote some aspects of safety that it would have to pay for (e.g., traveling safety crew),[5][6] and other allegedly monopolistic aspects such as merchandising and race-track ownership. In addition, due to its overwhelming influence and lack of drivers' say, NASCAR has even been compared to a dictatorship by some motorsports, political, and economic analysts.[7][8] Examples of such influence include the cancellation of the SPEED Channel television show Pit Bull (which frequently criticized many of NASCAR's decisions and policies and enjoyed modest ratings), frequent use of the vague "detrimental to NASCAR" rule, and the creation of rules on whim, especially during a race. NASCAR has taken to penalizing drivers in recent years, with fines, point penalties, and lap penalties in races for drivers or mechanics who use obscene language in interviews to the media.[9] Driver competition in multiple series
NASCAR has long allowed drivers to compete in as many series and events as they like, with few restrictions. However, in recent years, top NEXTEL Cup drivers have competed in and dominated the lower tier Busch races on a regular basis, earning NEXTEL drivers the nickname "Buschwhackers". The situation is compounded by the close timing of the races in the two series: a typical NASCAR weekend has a Busch race on Saturday followed by a NEXTEL race on Sunday at the same track. Some have wondered why "major league" NEXTEL drivers are allowed to compete in the "minor league" Busch races with such frequency, and whether Busch is an adequate developmental series. Sportswriter Bob Margolis noted that much of this is due to the similarities between the cars used in the two series (they are mostly alike except for the engines and the wheelbase), and the desire for NEXTEL drivers to get as much practice time as possible to learn about the track and car setup before the main race. [10] The extra skill and money brought in by teams and drivers from the NEXTEL Cup Series has led to a wide gap above the Busch Series only teams, which was most evident in 2006 when NEXTEL Cup driver Kevin Harvick clinched the Busch Series title with four races to go. | |||||||||||||||||||||
