Let’s add a few more right turns

By Mike Smith

Thursday, Aug. 11, 2011 | 4:09 p.m.

What’s the antidote for the mid-summer, flat track, cookie-cutter track doldrums? A road-course race.

I’ve come to appreciate the Cup races at road courses more every year. And the addition of the double-file restarts has added some intensity and unpredictability to the racing and to the feuding.

The last road-course race I attended was at Sonoma. I’m one of those fans who needs to have a full view of the entire track during a race. What’s the point of attending if I can’t see everything that’s going on? If I have a ticket, I want to be high enough in the grandstands to see all of the action. If I have a press credential, I can’t sit in the media center and watch the race on a TV monitor. I have to be in a location that allows me to see every turn.

This is one of the drawbacks of watching a road-course race. It’s not always possible to find a location that gives you a full view of the entire facility, but Sonoma does have a great hill overlooking turn two that allows you to see most of the track. Binoculars are a must.

But let me get back to the original point I was trying to make.

The races at Infineon and Watkins Glen during the past few years have provided some of most interesting, physical and competitive racing we’ve seen in those seasons. And that’s why, given the need to break up the single-file racing we see too much in mid-summer, NASCAR should include another road-course event on the Cup schedule.

When considering more than two road-course races a year, the first thing that comes to my mind is Pocono. Why does this track warrant two races a season? Despite the good race we saw last weekend, the action we’ve seen over the years at the Pennsylvania track doesn’t warrant two races a season. It’s time to remove one of this track’s racing dates.

In addition, cost would probably be a serious consideration if the schedule were adjusted to include races with right turns. Teams may not want to spend more on their road-course programs than they currently do. And these economic times make an increase in costs more painful. But investing in change is what has made this sport grow since its inception in 1947. When necessary, NASCAR has instituted all kinds of changes like new TV deals, the Car of Tomorrow, schedule changes, point system changes and the “Boys Have At It” mantra. Some plans have worked better than others, but the sport understands that it can’t stay the same if it wants to remain relevant.

And here’s my final thought. Since the Auto Club Speedway lost one of its races this season, let’s bring another race back to California and make the third road-course event of the season at Infineon in Sonoma.

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