Three Way News

Your Source. For everything. Really.

Sunday, May 29, 2005

Weight of the driver

I'm not a NASCAR guy (big surprise) but my in laws are. While watching the Your Product Name Goes Here 400, I was struck by how close the race actually was. It didn't look close on the television, mind you -- the winner had a seven length lead down the stretch. In time, though, it was the tiniest fraction of a second. Over 400 miles, the difference between winning and losing was a good, healthy bowel movement before the start of the race. (For example, Carl Edwards won the Golden Corral 500 by .028 seconds.)

More or less.

At any rate, the lighter drivers definitely have an advantage in NASCAR. The cars weigh the same, but the drivers don't. Were it not for the good old boy network, all the drivers would be jockeys looking for a safer career.

Why aren't there more 4 foot 11 inch men in auto racing? My guess is that it's because 4 foot 8 inch teenage boys don't fare well in autoshop.

Now that Danica Patrick has qualified fourth for the Indy 500 this weekend, Robby Gordon wants to change the rules. He didn't mind being 200 pounds and losing to boys, but weighing 200 pounds and losing to girls? That just can't be right.