Okay fearless predictors, Daytona 500 time...

Get in early on who you think might make the finish line first.

I'm likin' Smoke, he's looked good all of Speed Weeks. I got a little wobbly on him when I saw the headline about the practice wreck, back up car and all. But he just looks like a guy on his game right now, and with a Hendrick car under his butt he'll be tough. Nobody else inspires me as much being ready to win it. Vickers, who I'm not real fond of, looks the next closest, and maybe Jeff Gordon, mostly based on hunger and wanting to show he's not "over the hill" yet.

So there's a start..............chime in..............

Hey!! That ain't right, you took my guy!!!!! The wreck in practice was ugly... He and his team mate Newman were just cruisin'. Then Newman's right rear popped and it put him and Smoke in back up cars..... In the interview afterwards, Smoke let us all know again just how "pleased" he is with Goodyear tires.......

So, because Uncle Bob picked Smoke I gotta go with my sentimental favorite, Mark Martin.... Maybe it's finally his turn to get the big race.... But as always I'm really hoping Smoke and Newman got them backup cars dialed in and finish 1-2... Gonna be a wild race for sure.

I further predict "the big one" takes out 9 cars this year...:mad::mad:

Well, Ol' smoke might cut his nose off to spite his face, he is so upset with Good Year. I agree he is a man with a mission on his own. But I think it's going to be Jimmy Johnson. :D I usually don't try to predict, every time I do they seem to get taken out in the first lap.:LOL: It should be fun to watch!
Ken

Bill Elliot and the Wood brothers make the comeback of the century:D

I was going to say Jimmy Johnson or Kyle Bush (my least favorite driver)... I'd really like to see Dale Earnhardt Jr take it... But if he gets anywhere close to the front, Kyle will just take him out... again...

as long as it is a Chevrolet, I'll be happy.

Probably Johnson or Gordon. Backup cars are iffy.
Junior seems to be jinxed of late.

mark martin

Okay, race has started so any predictions after this will be suspect...........:D

Mine's not doing so good:LOL:

It's official....................we all fell down on this one!!!:LOL:


I wonder if Vickers thinks he should have to take a 5 lap penalty and give up that Talledega victory he got a couple years ago when he wrecked Johnson and Jr to take the lead? Yeah, right!!:LOL:

If Jr made the hit on purpose, shame on him...But blocking should not be tolerated before the last lap...Vickers was guilty of the first foul in my opinion. I used to hate mirror drivers when I raced stock cars..

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Originally Posted by robot

as long as it is a Chevrolet, I'll be happy.

Probably Johnson or Gordon. Backup cars are iffy.
Junior seems to be jinxed of late.

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hmmmmm. Guess you're not happy with the finish Robot, but I sure am!!! The Blue Oval Brigade finally got one! First Daytona win since Dale Jarrett in 2000. Worked all day and didn't watch any of the race... Oh well, maybe I'll work through all of them this year if it keeps my Ford's winning!!!! Well, with the exception of Smoke..... He's the man! Top 10 today driving a backup car, maybe it's gonna be his year?????

I think with Jr's run going that when Vickers cut down on him, Vickers lost some momentum and contact was then made---if Jr had checked up it would have been more disastous, just different people would of been involved

It was Kyles race till the wreck took him out... Why was Vickers blocking Jr anyway??? He was a full lap behind!

I thought the radio said that Vickers and Jr were both a lap down and racing to be the first one a lap down. I'm happy a Ford won, but would have liked to see what the results would have been if Kyle was still running.

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Originally Posted by 25T_Bucket

It was Kyles race till the wreck took him out... Why was Vickers blocking Jr anyway??? He was a full lap behind!

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They were both a lap down...Blocking should not be tolerated before the last lap of the race..

Jr. lost his cool and the race when he couldn't find his pit stall! It might be a case of lack of color vision which is more common in males than many want to admit. He had a good car but pit problems TWICE caused him to really push and he was trying to get the free pass from Vickers a lap down when he could have/should have been running in the top five. Even so, once the leaders wrap around and the whole field is running two wide the race is more like billiards/pool than racing! Some people like the wrecks but I hate to see those high buck machines turn into scrap!

Don Shillady
Retired Scientist/teen rodder

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Originally Posted by Daffy427

They were both a lap down...Blocking should not be tolerated before the last lap of the race..

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Oops! You are absolutely correct... they were positioning themselves for the lucky dog or what ever they call it spot...

It would of been worse if Jr had checked up so as not to touch Vickers

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Originally Posted by jerry clayton

It would of been worse if Jr had checked up so as not to touch Vickers

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Almost any time a driver gets OFF the gas he's going to get drilled from the rear. I'm sure Vickers let off the gas while he was driving in his mirror. We'll never know if Earnhardt hit him on purpose.

Am I the only one that thinks a 4 hour pre race show is a bit much? They new the rain was coming .I guess its all about the commercial money. Jr is my guy but Jack Roush has paid his dues and Im glad for him and Ford

I think when Vickers cut down so abruply that he got loose and as Jr was coming on there was no way not to touch him----remember that there going 2 1/2 mile lap in 40something secs, it takes a micro sec or so ( average 1/2 sec) to react to something so how far did they go???

I think this accident started when Vickers looked in his mirror

I would of liked it better if Jr would of drilled Bush right in his door :LOL:
I know, I know, I'll ask for forgiveness Sunday :D
Ken

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Originally Posted by 25T_Bucket

I was going to say Jimmy Johnson or Kyle Bush (my least favorite driver)... I'd really like to see Dale Earnhardt Jr take it... But if he gets anywhere close to the front, Kyle will just take him out... again...

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Or vice versa,as it turned out:D

Marko,

No you are not the only one that doesn't like the pre race bull sh**. They could have did away with at least 1 1/2 hour of those commercials and the talking heads trying to impress everyone with their vast knowledge of trivia. And if you watch the idiot, Jeff Hammon, former crew chief, who is on the cut away car, he makes a lot of mistakes. We have a discussion about NASCAR and its possible impending demise over on CC. I don't think it has been racing for years and they will do anything to help their stars. I have always like road racing better and if there is a road race of any kind on, I will watch it over the boring high speed, follow the car in front until the phantom caution flag to let one of our starts make up some distance and day of the week.
That said, since I am pretty new on here I am sure I will be corrected by several of the members who have been here for a long time. Just don't let Uncle Bob know.

Ron :)

That pre race nonsense was over the top. Starting with a pre race show at one that lasted an hour was reasonable, then race coverage at 2 that turned out to be another hour and forty minutes of filler BS was way too much.. I like to think there will be enough public outcry to move that start time up for next year to like it used to be. All that said this race had plenty of drama, controversy and stategy play out as the 500 so frequently does. We even got a dash of Dale sr. to spice things up:3dSMILE:Lots of cool stories as well.

Ron, Ron, Ron..............................;):LOL:

It is amazing, Sr. still sells even though he's been gone for 8 years. Of course Jr. benefits from that even though he's got his own merits. I was reading a business article on NASCAR the other day, their report was that Jr. related "stuff" accounts for 40% of all NASCAR chotchki sales. Put another way, the other 60% is split among ALL the 50 or so other drivers/teams. Absolutely amazing. Of course if you're an Earnhardt hater that "proves" that civilization is at it's end......................:LOL:

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Originally Posted by Dave Severson

Hey!! That ain't right, you took my guy!!!!! The wreck in practice was ugly... He and his team mate Newman were just cruisin'. Then Newman's right rear popped and it put him and Smoke in back up cars..... In the interview afterwards, Smoke let us all know again just how "pleased" he is with Goodyear tires.......

So, because Uncle Bob picked Smoke I gotta go with my sentimental favorite, Mark Martin.... Maybe it's finally his turn to get the big race.... But as always I'm really hoping Smoke and Newman got them backup cars dialed in and finish 1-2... Gonna be a wild race for sure.

I further predict "the big one" takes out 9 cars this year...:mad::mad:

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Dave you were right on with your 9 car prediction.

Kenseth is my overall favorite, so you know I'm happy....LOL! Roush deserves it and has paid his dues many times over.

I would not have been upset if Mark Martin had won it either. How can you not like him?

Gotta feel for Elliott Sadler too.

I would have been happy for any of the non-regular winners to win it, except for the toyota drivers. I'll root for anyone over a rice burner....LOL!

I'm a Kenseth fan so was glad to see him get the win. Even through the back door! Actually, I really like to see the under dogs have a chance and I like Tony a lot. When you really get down to it anyone but the Bush brothers. Even Derrick Cope!

What i would like to know is why should blocking be allowed on the last lap, that was the lap that Dale Sr was killed on , If blocking is not safe on the other laps what makes it ok on the last lap . if vickers wouldn't have cut Junior off there wouldn't have been a crach .
I used to think vickers was an OK guy Now I think he is a cry baby just like Harvick and Jeff Gordon

My prediction - Kenseth will win!!

(Oh nuts - late again.)

As far as the Vickers/Earnhart crash - not an unusual thing for a couple of, IMHO, mediocre drivers. Yes, I do know that there are lots of Jr lovers here and elsewhere - but how much support would he have if he didn't have that magical name, even if it is a Junior. Would he even be a factor if Dale Sr hadn't been killed? He bitches and bellyaches about everything - why?? He has the best equipment that money can buy. His cousin is his crew chief and can't control his driving and whining? At least one other crew chief has tried - and probably even more. It almost appears that Johnson and Gordon wont "work" with him on the track. He's ~35 years old, and has never really been able to make a real lasting mark - except by his name. Not a lot of wins for the dollars spent - he barely made the Chase last year and did not 2007 and 2005 He has endorsements from about every sponsor in NA$CAR and is making more money then ever, but how many more years will it continue until they drop off. Does he spend too much time sampling his wares at the Charlotte bar he owns? The two pit road screw ups are inexcusable for a driver at this level. Then he has to know Vickers will be blocking with the incoming weather and a chance to be the "lucky dog" - but maybe he thought he was still on the lead lap and Vickers was just trying to hold him up for unknown reasons. Whatever - these things happen in mini-milli microseconds and a zig that should have been a zag causes these wrecks

Vickers - he is usually a mid to back marker driver. Could be good with some teams, but then, maybe not!! Not ever been one of my favorites.

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Originally Posted by IC2

My prediction - Kenseth will win!!

(Oh nuts - late again.)

As far as the Vickers/Earnhart crash - not an unusual thing for a couple of, IMHO, mediocre drivers. Yes, I do know that there are lots of Jr lovers here and elsewhere - but how much support would he have if he didn't have that magical name, even if it is a Junior. Would he even be a factor if Dale Sr hadn't been killed? He bitches and bellyaches about everything - why?? He has the best equipment that money can buy. His cousin is his crew chief and can't control his driving and whining? At least one other crew chief has tried - and probably even more. It almost appears that Johnson and Gordon wont "work" with him on the track. He's ~35 years old, and has never really been able to make a real lasting mark - except by his name. Not a lot of wins for the dollars spent - he barely made the Chase last year and did not 2007 and 2005 He has endorsements from about every sponsor in NA$CAR and is making more money then ever, but how many more years will it continue until they drop off. Does he spend too much time sampling his wares at the Charlotte bar he owns? The two pit road screw ups are inexcusable for a driver at this level. Then he has to know Vickers will be blocking with the incoming weather and a chance to be the "lucky dog" - but maybe he thought he was still on the lead lap and Vickers was just trying to hold him up for unknown reasons. Whatever - these things happen in mini-milli microseconds and a zig that should have been a zag causes these wrecks

Vickers - he is usually a mid to back marker driver. Could be good with some teams, but then, maybe not!! Not ever been one of my favorites.

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IC2- I was wondering if some time you would be willing to share your real feelings on JR's driving abilities? :LOL:
Ken

I would like to know if Vickers had even a slight head cold????Even without it---driving/flying---imagine this-- accelerating, turning head to look in mirror, track banking changes(tips) turning head back frontwards, turning car, looking in mirror, more track angle (tip) looking back to front, increasing turn, turning back, check mirror, track angle increse, turn rate change, check mirror, spin starts, close eyes, rotational rate increse, abrupt negative Gs and deceleration, impact, open eyes, impact, rotation, more deceleration, rotation, panic ,

these guys are all pretty good drivers but there are many physical things plus physics that effect high speed objects along with there human components

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Originally Posted by Ken Thurm

IC2- I was wondering if some time you would be willing to share your real feelings on JR's driving abilities? :LOL:
Ken

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Ken - He's the best!!!:LOL::LOL: (I hope you can read between the lines:whacked:)

Quite frankly, I think he has excellent driving abilities - but is too side tracked by his outside interests and 'fame' to currently be on a par with Kyle Busch (who I REALLY dislike), his team mates, Gordon, Johnson or even Martin or for that matter most of the Roush drivers.

Even in the big leagues, your name will only carry you so far..... There are so many talented drivers, would be curious to see what some of them could do with Jr.s ride... My usual question to all his fans, how many even new there was a Dale Jr. til Dale Sr. got killed??? As for the blocking, Dale Sr. was blocking on the last lap for Dufus Waltrip and Jr. when he got killed. Anyone who's made a lap or two in a circle burner knows about blocking, when you get in front or trying to save your present position in the closing laps of a race you make your car as wide as possible.... Nothing new there. The biggest downfall of Daytona is the restrictor plates and bump drafting. Not saying they should turn Daytona and Talladega into a "run what you brung" race (the speeds would be in excess of 220), but there are many ways to slow a car down besides killing the air intake and making acceleration a 2 lap process. ASA did it many years ago, limited the compression ratio to 9:1.... As for bump drafting, well, ya should restrict it to drivers who are smarter then the bumper!!!! Also with the new car, I sure don't like to see them using the suspension bumpers as a tuning device!!!! Shock packages and spring rates that keep the car off the snubbers might be a good way to build a bit of control in the turns. And the tires??? I'm like Smoke, don't even ask what I think of Goodyear!!!! Should be a couple choices for the crew chief as to what would be the best tire, though I wouldn't want it to turn into the tire debacle of years back.....

I was following NASCAR when about the only coverage it got was Chris Economacki's column in Speed Sport. Can't say I like all the changes in NASCAR, but it's their game and their rules so that's how the competitors have to play......

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Originally Posted by IC2

As far as the Vickers/Earnhart crash - not an unusual thing for a couple of, IMHO, mediocre drivers.

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I'm certainly not going to contend that Jr is one of the best drivers out there, and for sure, I think he's his own worst enemy in some of the choices he makes, but putting him in the same category as Vickers is inappropriate too. Jr is 7th on the active driver win list with 18, Vickers has 1 (in Hendrick equipment yet).................and he got that by knocking out Johnson and Earnhardt (who was leading) in the last lap at 'dega. Like I said earlier, I doubt he thinks a 5 lap penalty would have been an appropriate response then. In fact I recall his comment when asked if he thought he won unfairly was something like "that's racin'!". Jr will probably drop on that list as Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards continue to win regularly, maybe even Kenseth and Biffle will pass him by, but that would still have him in the upper 25-30% record wise. It might be interesting to see if all the criticism he's taking this week will make him stronger or beat him down.................that'll tell us what kind of man he is.

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Originally Posted by Bob Parmenter

I'm certainly not going to contend that Jr is one of the best drivers out there, and for sure, I think he's his own worst enemy in some of the choices he makes, but putting him in the same category as Vickers is inappropriate too. Jr is 7th on the active driver win list with 18, Vickers has 1 (in Hendrick equipment yet).................and he got that by knocking out Johnson and Earnhardt (who was leading) in the last lap at 'dega. Like I said earlier, I doubt he thinks a 5 lap penalty would have been an appropriate response then. In fact I recall his comment when asked if he thought he won unfairly was something like "that's racin'!". Jr will probably drop on that list as Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards continue to win regularly, maybe even Kenseth and Biffle will pass him by, but that would still have him in the upper 25-30% record wise. It might be interesting to see if all the criticism he's taking this week will make him stronger or beat him down.................that'll tell us what kind of man he is.

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Unk - I guess you really didn't read my Post, # 34. Fame and fortune have relegated him to mediocrity - and until he gets into a competitive frame of mind, starts to ignore the cries of "you are the greatest" - he will be at best, a mediocre driver in my estimation. But opinions are what makes these discussions interesting:eek::LOL:

Kinda reminds me of something a sales manager told me once; "When you're green you grow, when you're ripe you rot." Hmmmm