Ever since NASCAR changed the tire compounds the Rocket Man has had a hard time getting to victory lane.  Well, he finally made it there andhe picked a great race to do it in, the 50th anniversary of the Daytona 500.  He had some help from an unusual source, teammate Kurt Busch.  Teammate isn’t a word Kurt has historically embraced, but maybe he’s grown up a little.  And Ryan Newman finally has a car and a team that he’s not fighting with anymore.

Read this story in the Journal Sentinnel and tell me what you think.

Don’t want to take the time to read it?  Okay, I’ll tell you what it’s about.  Marty Greenberg, sports attorney and State Fair Park Board chairman, thinks we should build a retractable field — a la the Phoenix Cardinals new stadium — for the infield of the Milwaukee Mile.  Why would we do such a thing?  So, race fans would have nice plushy grass to party on during race weekend?  No, so we could get a Major League Soccer team in Milwaukee.  This can be yours for the mere price tag of $40,000,000.  Yes, that’s 7 zeroes.

And what if we don’t get a Major League Soccer team to come play on the field?  Well, it’s movable so maybe the Packers could use it in December when the Lambeau turf is all chewed up.  Or, we could put a basketball court on it and the Bucks could play some outdoor games.  Or maybe the Admirals would like to move from the Bradley Center to the great outdoors.

What if we do get an MLS team in Milwaukee?  Even if you charged $30/ticket, you still need 1.3 million tickets sold to pay for it.  Then you can start paying the players.  Plus, last I checked the Milwaukee Mile is a race track.  The seating doesn’t go all the way around the oval.  It’s on one side of the oval and the race track and safety barriers stand between the seats and the infield.  I don’t think you’d have the greatest of seats for your $30 ticket.  Plus, ask the Brewers how hard it is to get people to spend $30 on a ticket.

If some private investor really wants to sink their money into it, I guess I could care less.  It seems like a bad investment to me.  But, if they come asking for public funding it could get ugly.  People are already unhappy that they are still paying for Miller Park.  The Brown County residents are paying for the Lambeau field remodel.  And, I’m waiting for the good Senator to come asking for a new home for the Bucks soon too as the Bradley Center is one of the oldest arenas in the NBA.  You want me to pay for a movable field?  For a soccer team?  That might not even come to Milwaukee?  Ummmm…no…don’t think so.

It has been a long standing tradition in my NASCAR pool to either hate Hendrick Motorsports or DEI and its signature driver, Dale Jr.  It made for a great rivalry, especially when DEI owned the restrictor plate races.  The problem is, now they’ll be on the same team.  HMS will now sport 3 of top 4 marketable drivers in the series (I’m picking Tony Stewart as the other).  So, who do you root for?  Do you hope the 8 (or whatever number Jr. will now have) puts the 24 into the wall at Richmond?  Or that the 24 spins out the 8 at Watkins Glen?

Believe it or not folks, I have the answer.  Do what I do…root for the 17.  That’s right.  It’s the only Ford worth a darn.  Kenseth has had the most laps on the lead leap of any driver this season.  He’s second in points and only Gordon has more top 10 finishes.  The 17 is on his way to his 2nd championship.  Something the 8 has yet to do.

If you’re a racing fan, today is your day.  1,100 miles of 800 HP furry.

 First the Indy 500.  As popular as NASCAR has become, this is still the most recognized auto race of them all.  The open wheelers take to the track just a little while from now.  That’s followed up by the Coca Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Charlotte.  I’ve got to get ready for some racing, but the favorites are pretty easy picks.  I’d go with Hornish Jr. at Indy and Jimmie Johnson at Charlotte.  How can you not?  Johnson has averaged a 2.5 finish in his last 10 races there.  Personally, I hope Kenseth does well and he should.  It’s his kind of race and the car did well at the Challenge.

 I’m not as big of an IRL fan as I am a NASCAR fan but I do hope Patrick does well.  Why?  I think it would be good for racing in general and especially open wheel racing for her to finish well.  There’s been all this hype the last couple of years.  She needs to seal the deal to legitimize it and increase racing’s popularity among women.  I know, people will be upset.  It’s a man’s sport.  Why?  Doesn’t her car have the same horsepower of Canaan’s?  A championship female driver would increase the popularity of the IRL among women and that’s good for the sport of racing.