Consistency in Caution Calls - That Would Be Nice

I was watching my taped NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race from Talladega.  IT was pretty fun.  Truck races are always fun to watch.  They provide the classic "rubbing is racing" action that is promoted so often.  Those laps were winding down and it became the classic rush for the checkered flag at Talladega.   No more tactical plotting.  No more laying back hoping to avoid the "big one."  This was the rush for the gold.  Someone yelled "Thar's gold in them thar hills," and everyone rushes for that front line.

Up until the last lap in the Truck series race, the big one did not happen yet.  There were small accidents throughout the day that did not collect everyone.  I started wondering if we'd see it or not.

We came into the last lap, trucks were jostling what row or line they were in.  Some got out of sorts but fixed it.  Some lost their spots as they drifted of found themselves pushed out of the way.  THIS is what Truck Series racing is all about.  But then again, most of their races are like this.  But this is Talladega.

They made it to the last lap, they came out of turn 2, hit the backstretch and then it happened.  Someone got out of hand in the middle of the pack and it became a multi-vehicle wreck.  But this is the last lap.  It's been quite a while since we've seen a caution flag when a wreck takes place on the last lap of a NASCAR race.  I was looking forward to that last ditch effort by the race drivers up front.  Who was going to pull out and take a chance?  Who was going to not give an inch and cause a wreck?  Who would survive the onslaught for the checkered flag?

But today during the Truck Series Talladega race, that rush was not to be experienced by the TV crowd or the fans that paid good bucks to watch the excitement.  Today, a caution was called before the rush hit turn 3.  The fun was called, the wind was pulled from the sails of fan expectation.  We did not get that excitement we all were hoping for.  The big pay out for watching or experiencing the last few hours was pulled out from under fans across the board.

And that surprised me.  NASCAR hasn't called a last lap caution in quite a while.  And at this track, it's so huge that letting the field run to the checkers didn't seem that dangerous.  They had a huge distance to cover from the start-finish line to the wreck, so I wasn't worried.  Yet on this day, Parker Kligerman got himself a win.  He was in the right spot at the right moment, that moment being when the caution flag flew.  Congrats Parker!  But to the fans, my condolences to losing that moment we all wait for. (I wonder if he had a relative in the flag stand?  LOL)

I just wish that we'd get some consistent behavioral pattern from NASCAR when it comes to calling last lap cautions.  At times I'm shocked when they let a race finish out on smaller tracks.  And this time around, the wind was sucked from my sails when the momentum of that last lap dash was called by the yellow.

I don't normally trash on NASCAR policy.  They have a tough job administering a motorsports league.  It's tough to run any motorsports league.  Bu this one seems more upfront.  Either do it or don't and stick to letting races pan out during the last lap...  unless the wreck is sitting ON the finish line.  But otherwise, let's get consistent.  Consistency would have been a great payout during the NASCAR Trucks Series race.

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