You Asked For It! ~ "Is It Junior? Is It Brad? Can You Define A Real Racer?"
5/09/2014
PattyKay Lilley
I bid
you welcome gentle readers to what might hopefully be some great conversation
today. A warm welcome as well to our assigned reader,
somewhere within the Fan and Media Espionage Center in the lovely Queen's City
of Charlotte, NC. First, I have to assure you that this one is not a
set-up. Someone really asked me not just what constitutes a "real racer",
but to do a column about it. Quite frankly, I think her estimation of my ability
to define must be at a higher level than is my own. My first inclination was to
throw both hands in the air and scream, "I don't know!"
And
therein lies the truth; I don't know... and neither do you, or you... or you
there in the back of the room. We don't know, because to my way of thinking,
there is no such thing. For openers,
let's parse the phrase just a tad. "Real" ~ genuine, actual,
authentic, factual, valid, existent... that's enough... as opposed to what? Phony? False? Make believe? Of
course they're real! By definition, every living, breathing human being is
real... you, me and that same guy back in the corner; we're all real. Have you
ever stopped to read a label on something in your grocery store of choice and
seen the words, "Made with real ingredients?" Are there
other kinds?
So
then, "Racer."
The definitions of this are almost endless, since one can race almost anything
that can be driven, ridden or propelled in any matter. Out in California, they
race jumping frogs, so technically, even frogs can be racers... and they're
certainly real. I've raced snowmobiles many times... and yes, I usually won.
Does that make me a racer? I guess by definition, it would have to. Many years
ago, my horse and I competed in barrel racing. Who would be the racer in that
combination, the horse or the rider? Technically, I'd suppose the answer would
be both.
OK, I
admit, I know where she was going with the question and that would be something
akin to the difference between a driver and a racer, though even taken in that
context, the definition does not present a clear line of demarcation. Is a
racer defined by number of wins? Is Richard Petty a racer, having claimed 200
wins in NASCAR's elite series? Of course he is. Was Dale Earnhardt a racer,
having earned 7 Winston Cup Championships? Of course he was and is. Standouts
such as those men easily fit the definition of a racer in anyone's book. Feel
free to toss Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon into that category as well.
Now, let's
make it a bit trickier, shall we? Last month, many of you, my gentle readers,
sent birthday cards to an elderly gentleman at my request. That man was Junie
Donlavey, and if you missed my tribute to Junie on his 90th birthday, you can
find it by clicking right about here. Junie worked, played, ate, slept
and breathed racing for his entire adult life, yet in all that time, he only
laid claim to one win, and he wasn't happy or proud of the way that one came
about. Decidedly, Junie Donlavey would not fit the criteria of basing the right
to be called racer on wins alone. I'll happily answer this one for you guys and
gals. Of course he was and is a racer. Racing is what makes his heart pump and
his blood flow; it's what wakes him up in the morning and fills his dreams at
night... even at age 90. Would anyone dare question his right to the title of
racer?
Oh my,
there are so many... so very, very many that come to mind and they are all
winners in some way, shape or fashion. Consider for a moment an old journeyman
racecar driver named John Delphus (J.D.) McDuffie.
J.D. never won a race in the elite series and never really came close. He was
not a rich man, other than in friendships... of those he had plenty... and
whatever funds he had that didn't go to feed and clothe his family went into
racing. His car was never of the newest model year; his tires were usually
slightly worn, or "scuffed in" as he liked
to describe them; his car parts were almost always ones cast aside for new by
one of the more affluent teams. Against those odds, J.D. still loved to race...
he lived to race, and eventually, in 1991 at Watkins Glen, racing took his
life. Would you call J.D. a racer? I surely would, and I'll happily take on
anyone that would argue that.
Unlike
what we discussed in the last column, defining a racer in no way depends on
when or where someone might have raced. Age or youth have no part in this
discussion. Picture if you will, a 5-year old Ken Schrader in a tiny version of
a racecar or go-kart, tied to a tree and turning circle after circle after
circle, never getting dizzy and always wanting more. There you have a very
early picture of a racer; one that to this day cannot easily be dislodged from
a racecar even for supper. Yet... this racer... and no one would dream of
denying him that title... won only 4 races in the elite series.
Those
are but a few examples of men that are more than deserving to be called racers,
and already you can see my dilemma. Supposedly, there are "drivers"
out there on any given Sunday that are not "real racers." Someone is going
to have to convince me of that I'm afraid. Each week, 43 of what are said to be
the world's best drivers... in stock cars at any rate... strap in and go out to
risk their lives racing for money, fame, glory, points or however you want to
look at it, but I look at it as they are doing it for my pleasure and
entertainment. God bless them, every one.
And now,
gentle readers, it's your turn. Let's hear from each of you, your definition of
a "real racer." If you can, try to define who among them, today or
yesterday, is or was not a real racer. That part interests me more, to be honest.
Whom do the fans see as being just out for a Sunday drive?
How
about NASCAR's Most Popular Driver, declaring that, "You’ve just got to
pick your battles and I felt like we were better off not getting in a wreck and
trying to stay back there." Does that fit the definition of being a
"real racer?" Then, there's Brad Keselowski, wrecking several others
along with himself while being 6 laps down to the field. Where does that fall
on your scale of real racing? It gets kind of tricky, doesn't it? Well, that's
why I'm asking all of you. When asked, I quickly realized that I didn't have a
good answer; the best I could do was stutter and stammer. Please, leave your
thoughts below in our Comments section. Keep it civil please; no one is here to
fight or hurt feelings, but to trade thoughts and ideas... and who knows, maybe
learn a thing or two in the bargain.
And now
it's time for our Classic Country Close-out, which has brought many warm and wonderful
comments on its own. It's always been my belief that stock car racing and
Country Music go hand in hand, and it seems a lot of you, my gentle readers,
agree with that philosophy. Today's choice has been a favorite of mine since it
was first released in 1953, when I was a Freshman in
high school. Two versions came out around the same time, one by June Valli and the other by Rex Allen Sr. Both were good, but
one was haunting. The song was recorded again by Elvis Presley circa 1964, and he
did a very respectable job with it, but never the equal of Rex Allen singing Crying
in the Chapel. Please enjoy:
Bonus
Recording: I did say I'd take requests for Classic Country, and by golly, I got
my first request this week... for Lefty Frizell.
Lefty had a marvelously distinctive voice. When you heard it, there was no
question who was singing because no one else ever sounded like Lefty Frizell. (Merle Haggard did do a really good impression
though) This is a live performance by that long dead singer, incorporating bits
of two of his biggest hits, I Love You a Thousand Ways and I
Want to Be With You Always.
Be well
gentle readers, and remember to keep smiling. It looks so good on you!
~
PattyKay