| My Report card: Junior |
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As expected, I have received numerous e-mails about my recent "grading" of Jr and the Bud team. I knew going into it that this would spark some people up. After a few weeks of humorous and satirical columns, I received e-mails from people asking me to write about issues. They wanted to read thought provoking articles on issues other than what we read on Nascar.com or ESPN.com or even Jayski.com. So I watched the race with an open mind and when the scene was shown with Wilson and the volleyball, I thought, "Cool" and I laughed. But then I noticed that the guys were not wearing them and I thought, "Not so cool."
Since then, I read articles about JR pushing Nascar to make helmets mandatory. I read reports from all the top Nascar sites commending those teams who wore helmets. They were Dale Jarrett, Ricky Rudd, Ward Burton, Hut Stricklin, Bill Elliott, Stacy Compton, Tony Stewart, Casey Atwood and Kevin Harvick. Speaking of Kevin, he and Dale Jr are the two biggest names pushing Nascar to make pit crew helmets mandatory. Kevin's crew wore them. Now, I have received e-mails from people stating that Jr's tire changers had red hockey helmets on during the first pit stop, but took them off after that. This was also pointed out as where Wilson's helmet came from. They didn't bring one specifically for Wilson. Someone put it on him after they took it off. This was pointed out to me by people who were at the race. This, obviously, was no fault of Juniors. Let me reiterate that I never said that Dale Jr and the Bud Team "INTENTIONALLY" tried to mock the safety issue or Bobby Burrell. What I did say was that it "relayed a message of mockery". Dale Jr was one of many drivers asking his crew for updates on Bobby after the incident at Homestead. Also, what I said was, "Now this last grade is not 100% of Jr's doing, but, as the "quarterback" of that team, I feel his level of responsibility is higher than anyone else's." I also gave Jr an A++ for pushing Nascar to make helmets mandatory. The one thing I love about this sport is the loyalty to the drivers and teams. Out of all the e-mails I received there were 3 groups. 1) Diehard Jr fans telling me to lay off and that I don't deserve to be grading Jr. 2) Open minded Jr fans who felt that I just took it wrong and reminded me that Jr or his team would never do such a thing on purpose, but they understood that it didn't come across well. And 3) Non Jr fans who agreed that it was wrong and thanked me for pointing it out. I personally fall into the 2nd group. I am a Jr fan, but I took it the wrong way. I am also capable of taking off the rally cap and taking a step back and critiquing my driver, my favorite. I think it is healthy and I enjoyed all the e-mails I received, both good and bad. I write to make people think. I don't report the news, I don't tell you how the race went or who won or who finished where. You can find that anywhere. I write to address topics that aren't written about. Maybe they shouldn't be written about, maybe they should. But, as long as people are reading and voicing an opinion, I feel I am doing my job. When the floods of e-mails stop coming in, then I am in trouble. So, how would I grade myself on the past article? There are a few grades to be given. If we based it on e-mail replies, it would be about 60-40 in support of the article. Grade: C If we based it on the fact that I missed the tire changers wearing the helmets. Grade: D If we base it on the fact that it got people thinking and sparked some attention. Grade A+ You may not always agree with me and I will never claim to always be right. I will, however, continue to make you think and hope that you look at the situation open minded and then voice your opinion. To the few future Mrs. Earnhardts that took major offense to anyone even thinking about saying something bad about Jr, "Lighten up". To those who pointed out that the tire changers had helmets for one pit stop, "Thank you". To the Jr fans who pointed out that this was not intentional, " I agree". And to everyone, "Thanks and keep reading!" Rob |