NASCAR officials have pushed back the start of today’s 54th running of the Daytona 500 shortly before the green flag was scheduled to drop (at 1:29 p.m. ET). So instead of sitting around waiting to hear word of a postponement (if there is one), I decided to get a few things done around the house today. But now I am back here sitting in front of my computer on Twitter waiting out this rain delay with thousands of others.
[media-credit name=”David Graham (Associated Press)” align=”alignright” width=”242″]
[/media-credit]This is the first time in Daytona 500 history that the start of the race has been delayed due to weather. However there have been four times (in 1965, 1966, 2003 and 2009) that “The Great American Race” has started but then was ultimately shortened. The winner declared after NASCAR decided that it was a lost cause to take nearly three hours to dry the 2.5 mile tri-oval or that an estimated start time of lets say, 9:00 p.m. was too late for fans that had already been at the track for 8 hours. Naturally, the process can’t even be started until it stops raining.
“We are equipped,” says NASCAR president Mike Helton. “The Daytona International Speedway has every drying piece of machinery they got across the country here today, because we know that the fans at home and the fans here in Daytona want to see the race run. We do, too. The sooner, the better.”
If this race is indeed postponed today, it will be the first time in its 54-year history.
Rain is the silence at a racetrack that should have 43 screaming race cars competing. And if Goodyear and NASCAR ever decide to develop rain tires like other racing series’ (such as the Nationwide Series event at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in 2008), it’s just something we will have to live with. However last season when the race at Watkins Glen International was postponed until the following Monday, Robin Pemberton (NASCAR’s Vice President of Competition and Racing Development) explained reasons why that is not an option at this point.
“We feel at this level, it really throws a wild card in there. Our guys, we’re a series that doesn’t have experience on rain tires. It’s a lot to put on them. Nowadays the championships are so close and making the Chase is so close, it’s a lot of pressure to put on one race at this stage of the season. Quite frankly, we feel like our Cup Series puts on great races in dry weather. And that’s what we aim to do. It’s about that.”
“We’ve done it in the Nationwide Series and we’ve got a good history with that. But you know, at this point in time we don’t feel like it’s something that needs to get done in the Cup Series.”
Rain is NASCAR’s greatest enemy. Last season there were three races that were postponed including Atlanta, that was run on a Tuesday. It seemed like every time we turned around, practice, a qualifying session or a race was interrupted due to Mother Nature’s wrath.
At 5:06 p.m. ET, it is announced via media members on Twitter that the race will be postponed until tomorrow at noon ET (on FOX).
Well, here we go again.
