 | Greg Bailey
WCNC Sports Director |
When was the last time nobody noticed Micheal Jordan? His Airness walked past at least 20 news cameras on Saturday at Lowe's Motor Speedway and nobody saw him because everyone was running to see Governor Mike Easley take a few laps to raise money for the families of National Guardsmen.
Welcome to race week at LMS, where the sport that laid the foundation for all the other sports in town commands and demands our attention.
LMS is called its own city on race nights, but it's really the greatest fairgrounds in history. Big tops with race cars, big tops with souvenirs. The biggest big tops sell cold beverages and the faithful stroll in from the campgrounds before noon.
You can try to move in the sea of people, but that comes with risks. NASCAR tried to transport us to shoot an interactive fan exhibit, but our golf cart was quickly passed on both sides by two other carts. The golf cart on our right squeezed through a sliver of asphalt created by our cart and pedestrians walking to the track. As I turned to politely tell the aggressive drivers to slow down, Jimmie Johnson waved hello and goodbye.
Once the racing starts, it's exactly the way an All Star event should be. The title really does mean something to the drivers and the million bucks doesn't hurt. Toss in the fact that points don't count and as Dale Jarrett told us, "I think I've finished second more than once, but I really don't remember. Nobody else does either."
Wow, Greg maybe there should be a golf cart all-star race.
But I think you hit at something that maybe NASCAR needs to consider going forward: To make each RACE matter more, rather than the year-long championship.
I know Nextel is on board for the big title, but in terms of excitement and fan interest, massive purses and looser rules is where it is at.