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Politics : Stockman Scott's Political Debate Porch -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: geode00 who wrote (78645)	12/10/2008 3:15:00 PM
From: stockman_scott	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 89467

Boycott Alabama Now boycottalabamanow.com

To: geode00 who wrote (78645)	12/10/2008 3:29:06 PM
From: stockman_scott	Respond to of 89467

NASCAR is on the rocks, too _______________________________________________________________ BY MIKE BRUDENELL DETROIT FREE PRESS COLUMNIST December 9, 2008 The once-solid ground under NASCAR is shaking, even as a domestic automotive bailout appears imminent. NASCAR -- the titan of American motor sports, perhaps second only to the NFL in prestige and drawing power -- knows that without Congress intervening to help the Detroit Three, the world of stock car racing will be rocked as if hit by a giant meteor. Manufacturer support in the hundreds of millions of dollars from GM, Ford and Chrysler would dry up. The Sprint Cup Series -- NASCAR's showcase -- could disappear, or change radically, before the dust settles. Already the effects of a gravely wounded economy have seen deep layoffs in NASCAR garages at teams like Dale Earnhardt Inc., Chip Ganassi, Bill Davis Racing, Hendrick Motorsports, Roush Fenway Racing and Richard Childress Racing. Petty Enterprises -- the team built by NASCAR icon Richard Petty -- is desperate to merge with Gillett Evernham Motorsports or it might go the way of the dinosaurs. Longtime Ford team Wood Brothers already has announced it will run only 12 Cup races in 2009. Last month, NASCAR chairman Brian France delivered a ban on testing next year at sanctioned tracks in a bid to save money. Over the weekend, the Associated Press said it had obtained a letter written by France to key senators lobbying Congress to support the automakers. "I'm writing to you as a concerned American who wants what is best for our general country," France wrote, according to AP. "Of course, the domestic automobile manufacturers play a very important part of the heritage of NASCAR, but, more importantly, it is vital for all of America." France added: "For these manufacturers to survive, your assistance is urgently needed. By immediately supporting America's automobile industry, you can help our nation avoid a devastating economic blow." France knows what's good for the Detroit Three is good for NASCAR. If thousands of jobs are lost through a collapse of one or more of the automakers, many fewer people will be in a position to attend Sprint Cup, Nationwide and Camping World Truck Series races next season. Sponsors, already tough to find, would become scarcer. TV might turn away from the sport. Though France said NASCAR would survive a manufacturers' fallout, he may be fooling himself. Several people close to the Detroit Three told the Free Press this week that if Washington did not approve the bridge loans, motor sports support could be chopped -- not just shaved. On Monday, Jeff Gordon, four-time Cup champion, told the Sporting News wire service he is willing to take a salary cut -- Forbes magazine lists his annual income, including endorsements, at $32 million -- if it would help his team, Hendrick Motorsports, through the economic crisis. "It's no laughing matter," said Gordon, driver of the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet. "It's tough times. It's something to be very serious about. ... I'll do whatever it takes for us to have the best team we can possibly have. If that means take part of my salary to keep certain people on or hire certain people, I'll do it." Gordon added that luxuries that go with being a racing star probably no longer are warranted. "It's stupid what we spend on motor homes and planes and all this," he said. "Do we need that? No." Even if the Detroit Three get their bridge loans, or some portion of it, look for a much less flamboyant NASCAR landscape in 2009.