1997 Features
12/16/97 - NASCAR Fan Of The Year
See what it takes to win first prize in the Sears DieHard Fan Of The Year contest in this special guest column.
12/10/97 - Winston Cup Awards Banquet
Jeff Gordon's emotional speech at the Banquet scores big with the fans.
12/02/97 - Beat The Off-Season Blues
Now that the season is behind us here are some tips on how to survive the NASCARless winter.
11/18/97 - Atlanta
Jeff Gordon is the 1997 Winston Cup Champion. Check out this season's critical Championship moments.
11/11/97 - Season Finally Preview
Atlanta has a new look and faster speeds as the drivers go south to settle the Championship.
11/04/97 - Phoenix
Jarrett dominates while NASCAR is up to it's old tricks with the rules.
10/28/97 - Rockingham
Trickle and Mast have strong runs as the Championship looms ever closer.
10/21/97 - Talladega
Jeff Gordon narrowly escapes disaster while Ken Squire finally finds his niche.
10/08/97 - Charlotte
It was a sad weekend for NASCAR as Darrell Waltrip missed the race;
Jarrett picked up the win while we had to suffer through another Ken Squire broadcast.
09/30/97 - Martinsville
Jeff Burton comes out on top as Rusty Wallace draws a controversial black flag while leading the caution filled race.
09/24/97 - Dover
A bunch of great scanner activity as Mark Martin picks up the win. Also, check out my review of Fox's "Steel Chariots."
09/16/97 - New Hampshire
Gordon displays "The Golden Rule" while extending his Championship lead. Check out the great quote of the week.
09/09/97 - Richmond
Kenny Irwin Jr. turned in a remarkable debut performance, but Dale Jarrett ends up in Victory Lane as NASCAR goes racing under the lights.
09/02/97 - Darlington
Jeff Gordon picks up the Winston Million in a door-to-door finish while our thoughts are with Dale Earnhardt.
08/26/97 - Bristol
Jarrett sleeps through victory lane; the fans make the biggest mistake of the race; preview of the Winston Million and more.
08/12/97 - Watkins Glen
Some impressive driving performances, some less-than impressive officiating
performances, and more as NASCAR hits the final road course of the season.
08/05/97 - Brickyard 400
Ricky Rudd picked up the lucrative win while Mark Martin and his team showed why they are
solid contenders. Get the view from the top row of the third turn.
07/29/97 - Why I Don't Like Gordon
Why I don't like PosterBoy (driver of the NASCAR Winston Cup Dupont
Chevrolet #24). And a Pro-Gordon opinion.
07/22/97 - Pocono
The Labonte brothers have something to talk about over the next family dinner while the championship was the main focus of the weekend.
07/15/97 - New Hampshire
Jeff Burton picks up his second impressive win as John Andretti shows his uncle's famous temper.
07/08/97 - Daytona
This week's last lap incident has sparked a debate; should NASCAR have thrown the green?
Unfortunately this is diverting attention away from John Andretti's first Winston Cup victory.
07/01/97 - Winston Vital To NASCAR
Last week's column about the demise of Winston in Motorsports generated this well written counterpoint from a reader.
06/24/97 - Goodbye To Winston?
The major tobacco companies agreed on Friday to stop sponsoring sporting events.
What does this mean for the future of Winston Cup Racing?
06/17/97 - Michigan
After an involuntary week off I'm back with a ton of scanner activity from Michigan. See who said what during the Miller 400.
06/03/97 - Dover
Four top contenders took themselves out of the race. This was a full moon afternoon. Check out this week's great quote.
05/27/97 - Charlotte
This weekend witnessed "The Great American Race" surpass "The Greatest Spectacle In Racing" as the premier Memorial Day motorsports event.
05/20/97 - Winston Select
PosterBoy checked out on the field but the real story is in the post-race interviews.
05/13/97 - Talladega
Mark Martin makes it two in a row by winning the fastest Winston Cup race in history.
05/06/97 - Sears Point
Mark Martin breaks his 42 race winless streak; Rusty Wallace makes 2 rare mental mistakes; Ernie Irvan pushes and shoves, and more.
04/29/97 - Talladega - Rain
Talladega was a wash but the rumor mill was in full swing. Possible changes for both Ernie Irvan and Rusty Wallace?
04/22/97 - Martinsville
The shortest short-track; PosterBoy survives a mid-race spin to win another, I was there, check out the scanner bites.
04/15/97 - Bristol
Lots of bent machinery; PosterBoy adds one more to his personal fan club; Geoff Bodine fined $10,000 and more.
04/08/97 - Texas
Jeff Burton finally gets that elusive first Winston Cup Victory. And there's a long bonehead list from the weekend.
04/01/97 - Early Season Re-Cap
The Winston Cup drivers again had the week off so I take this
opportunity to take a quick look back at the first 5 races and cover some of the
"sidelights" that didn't make it into the column.
03/25/97 - Darlington
Dale Jarrett makes it two in a row after surviving a brush with the wall and a late race charge from Ted Musgrave.
03/18/97 - More Rule Changes?
The Winston Cup drivers have the week off so the Top Row Fan
takes the opportunity to address NASCAR's constant tinkering with the rules.
03/11/97 - Atlanta
Dale Jarrett dominates again and gets the win; PosterBoy has
a bad day and loses the points lead; Steve Grissom gives us a scare and more....
03/04/97 - Richmond
Rusty wins his first of the year ... With a little help. #24
makes some enemies. Robby Gordon and Chad Little face off and get fined.
02/24/97 - Rockingham
Jarrett dominates but the 24 car gets his second win of the year.
02/18/97 - Daytona 500
The Super Bowl of NASCAR. Close restrictor-plate racing, and wrecking. I identify some heros and some losers.
02/11/97 - The Busch Clash
Notes from The Busch Clash as well as warming up for the Daytona 500.
