Join the Discussion "I think I'd have to ... put Dale Jarrett at the top of the whiner list!! The engines weren't even turned off today and he was whining. I remember last year when his car was the best thing since sliced bread that he was telling all the Chevy guys to shut up and do their homework better. Now the shoe is on the other foot and they are 'at a disadvantage'. " 24Rules

Related Resources • Gary Nelson • Previous Skinner

Last weekend the NASCAR Winston Cup drivers rolled into Daytona for the start of the stock car portion of Speedweeks and immediately the fireworks began. We haven't even started the Championship battle yet and already there is a lot to catch up on.

Whiners

It sure didn't take long for the drivers and owners to begin lobbying NASCAR for some rule changes to help them along. The cars had barely rolled to a stop following the Bud Shootout when the Ford drivers were started to complain. Both Jeff Burton and Dale Jarrett made the statement that the Fords were at a real aerodynamic disadvantage.

NASCAR is looking for the facts instead of listening to the political wrangling of the teams. They loaded up the Pontiac of Tony Stewart, Dale Earnhardt's Chevy, Rusty Wallace's Ford and Bill Elliott's Dodge immediately following the Bud Shootout and headed off to the wind tunnel to get the real facts on aerodynamics. They intend to announce their findings on Thursday.

Cheaters

Ah, there is nothing quite like the Daytona 500 to bring the gray (and not so gray) areas of the rulebook into focus. This year's list of qualifying inspection fines reads like a who's who of NASCAR.

At the top of the list is Tony Furr, crew chief for Jerry Nadeau's #25 car. Tony was suspended for four races (beginning after Daytona), fined $10,000 and had his front row qualifying spot taken away for a device that lowered the car during competition. He was then fined an additional $2,500 for fuel cell violations, and fined yet an additional $250 for having adjustable braces on the car. Needless to say Tony Furr is not off to a good start in 2001.

There were a total of twenty-five separate fines handed down to eighteen different teams ranging from $10,000 down to $250. The list includes all three Hendrick teams who between them account for seven of the fines handed down by NASCAR. Other big name teams who caught NASCAR's attention include Rusty Wallace, Dale Earnhardt and Bill Elliott.

It is a game that the teams play with NASCAR every year. The teams spend all winter looking for gray areas in the rules or new ways to hide old cheats and then NASCAR tries to catch them all during inspection. Pushing the limits is an age old tradition in NASCAR and every February teams pay the price for getting too creative.

Skinner

The 2001 season hasn't started too well for Mike Skinner either. By the second day of practice Mike had caused two incidents and had a long conversation with NASCAR's Gary Nelson.

On Friday morning Mike got into the back of Steve Park and sent him spinning down the frontstretch. Fortunately Steve was not injured and his car only suffered minor damage.

Then Saturday morning Mike made a late dive out of traffic for pit road without warning. (I don't care what Mike said, the other drivers all said he never waved and Gary Nelson sure seemed to have a lot to say to him)

Mike's dive forced Jeff Burton to make a split-second decision, either plow into Skinner, swerve back up into heavy traffic or take his chances down on the apron. Burton picked the apron where Dale Earnhardt Jr. was already slowed to enter pit road and damaged the back of Jr's car and the nose of his own.

Mike has started out the 2001 season with some poor decisions on the track but lets hope that he has learned from his mistakes and has a safe ride for the rest of the season. It doesn't take much for a driver to get a reputation in NASCAR and a driver with a bad reputation can find it incredibly hard to find a drafting partner when he needs one.

Oh My!

This is the only time of the year that over forty Winston Cup drivers are all tied for the points lead. A new season brings the promise that the only predictable thing is that the unpredictable is sure to happen.

The 2001 NASCAR season is here. Let's go racing!

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