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Only one color matters to NASCAR: green: NASCAR's Drive for Diversity must stay in the fast lane

Sporting News, The, March 25, 2005 by Lee Spencer

It didn't take an e-mail from Mike Contreras for me to realize that bigotry still exists. Contreras, a reader and NASCAR fan, was offended by a recent cartoon by Lori Munro that appeared on Jayski.com, a popular website that serves as a clearinghouse for NASCAR articles. The cartoon featured a donkey with flashing lights between its ears and this caption: Mexican Pace Car. Contreras wrote, "If NASCAR ever wondered why they are having problems getting minority fans, it is because of racist crap like this."

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Minutes earlier I had seen the same sketch, and my internal PC meter spiked. You don't have to be of Mexican descent to find it offensive. I shot off an e-mail to Jay Adamczyk, Jayski.com's creator, to express my dismay. Initially, Adamczyk noted his First Amendment right to free speech. But when I replied, "Ask Lori if she has a lawn jockey in her yard," he got the message and pulled the cartoon.

The perception exists that people of color are not welcome at NASCAR events. That's rubbish. When it comes to race, NASCAR is colorblind. The only color that interests NASCAR is green. Keeping their hearts--and cash registers--open to a rainbow of race fans helped the France brothers amass their fortunes.

Certainly, NASCAR has had the power to encourage minorities all along. But it wasn't until attendance figures recently started slipping that NASCAR launched a full-fledged marketing assault aimed at women, African Americans and Hispanics.

The complexion of NASCAR's staff has changed dramatically in the last five years, in the business and competition areas. And sources in the garage have said that two pit road officials lost their jobs last year after they were overheard using derogatory racial terms.

Still, more needs to be done. One black woman I worked with feared going to tracks in the South. And Contreras obviously has concerns with "folks associated with NASCAR."

Though old attitudes sometimes die slow deaths, NASCAR is making strides in the right direction. In a sport renowned for the speed of its competitors, let's hope the Drive for Diversity, NASCAR's formal effort to increase minority involvement, continues on the fast track.

Try to keep this straight

Fou Nextel Cup races, four different schedules. Have you tried to figure out when qualifying is this week at Atlanta (race No. 4)? Good luck.

It's at 7:10 Friday night. Prime time, baby! And if you expect to watch Cup practice on Saturday, forget it. The Cup garage will be closed. Several teams, including Evernham Motorsports' Nos. 9 (Kasey Kahne) and 19 (Jeremy Mayfield), are flying back to North Carolina after qualifying.

Starting this year, NASCAR is moving toward a schedule that has qualifying on Friday but no Cup activity on Saturday. Not all tracks are on board with that yet according to Robin Pemberton, NASCARs vice president of competition. Putting the new procedure in place at all tracks is probably a few years away, Pemberton says.

"We hate that it goes this way," Pemberton says. "We're pushing toward the impound schedule! In the future, the impound schedule Will save teams wear on equipment. This weekend, Evernham will not have hotel and per diem expenses. Eventually, all who travel for Nextel Cup races will be home an extra night-which no one will complain about.

speed reads

Given the precision with which NASCAR now monitors pit road, competitors need a more accurate method of measuring speeds. Stock cars don't have speedometers, in part because there has been the fear that teams would hook up traction control (which is illegal in NASCAR) to the speedometers. Drivers gauge their speed based on the tachometer, but with today's technology, there must be a better way.

Before Nextel Cup teams venture 2,000 miles to Mexico City, track promoters must ensure a significant purse: The Busch funds were up from most events, but considering the inconvenience involved, the Cup fund would have to be up substantially to entice teams.

Could this be Kyle Petty's comeback season? Evernham engines are making the Petty Dodges more competitive, and the fresh approach that former champion crew chief Paul Andrews is using with the No. 45 has brought early dividends to the team.

Lee Spencer's Nextel Cup Power Poll

1. Jimmie Johnson. As Johnson says, "This team rocks." Every week it gives Johnson strong cars, great stops and endless support. If Johnson keeps Kurt Busch in his rearview mirror, the title is his to lose.

2. Kurt Busch

3. Jeff Gordon

4. Greg Biffle

5. Cad Edwards

6. Tony Stewart

7. Rusty Wallace

8. Kevin Harvick

9. Mark Martin

10. Kyle Busch

INSIDE DISH

NASCAR teams are full of engineers, including Penske Racing's Ryan Newman, Matt Borland and Don Miller. Last Thursday, those three were treated to a behind-the-scenes tour of one of America's engineering wonders: the Hoover Dam. "It's definitely cool to be a part of the tour," Newman says. "What amazes me is the engineering that went into this with the lack of technology in the 1930s. That's when we were just starting to figure out six-cylinder engines." The trip might have been inspirational. Newman won the pole Friday for the Las Vegas race, his 28th pole in 119 starts, and finished 10th Sunday.

Only one color matters to NASCAR: green: NASCAR's Drive for Diversity must stay in the fast lane

Sporting News, The, March 25, 2005 by Lee Spencer

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