Is NASCAR too quick to call a race due to rain?

Question

After a short red flag on Sunday @ MIS, NASCAR called the race. About twenty minutes after that, it stopped raining, and I (along with my fellow infield mates) thought there was plenty of time to dry the track & finish the last 70 laps. The two hour rain delay before the Talladega race had higher TV ratings than the NBA & NHL Playoffs....why can't NASCAR hold off before calling the race?!?

It didn't rain again until after dark...I was there, and I'm at every race at MIS, and the last time it rained on a race Sunday was August 2001....qualifying & practice are more often shortened by rain, but not the race.

Answer 1

I agree totally! People, shes not saying postpone the race till Monday. All she is saying is what I was thinking. That is why not wait since they have daylight till 8:30 at night to finish the race. I mean come on they stopped how many times for rain delays and then when the race started getting good they called it instead of waiting an hour or so to finish it. But I am with you totally that they should've waited and at least let them go another pit cycle if they could've. I have not seen that many strong cars running at the end like that. Kasey,Carl Edwards, Junior and even my man Kenseth after a crappy day was sitting in 12th and who knows what he had left. I think they were way too quick to call it. But I do think they should've have said once its too dark too race that's it but they had already reached the halfway point so racing on Monday was out of the question no matter what.

Answer 2

ya know i was a little steamed at first, b/c ther was a serious race going on and it woudl have been great to see it end up.. but apparently in the end nascar made the right call. they used the radars and saw no cleaning. it was still arining hard about an hour or so later and there is no way the track would have gotten dry in time to wrap it up. track can't just look dry..it has to be REALLY DRY, and it taks a lot more than an hour or so of late afternoon sunshine.. trust me, i have spent many of days at MIS waiting to see if it gets called or not..you sit there for a few hours in the rain and then it gets called..NOT FUN. it stinks, b/c yeah, you go through a lot to get there, but it's a risk we all take.. there was no point in keeping fans any longer. i mean trust me, a few years ago i think there ended up being a 3 hour delay during the race after an hour late getting started..let me tell you how much fun that was not sitting in the stands..
and second, these teams had a deadline. they had to be pulled out by around 10 to make it to sonoma in time. there was just no way it was all going to happen. they also take a poll of drivers/owners/teams and such to see what they think.. and well, obviously the majority of them (normally the ones running up front) thought it was an appropriate enouh action.
eehh, it seemed quick at the time, but crap happens, and like i said..in the end they really did end up making the right call. here's the bottom line to it all. nascar really needs take a look at the schedule. i know that there have been races rant at the same tracks at the same time for years, but michigan is horrible for rain. i can't really remember a year in which one michigan race didn't have rain complications.. there's always issues, and it's time to look at rearranging the schedules as the weather permits better. i mean, climates have changed..let's adjust accordingly.

Answer 3

Way to quick. We were their too last Sunday (kudos to you for infield I have done that a couple times...great party!!) After the first quick rain just before "start you engines" it sprinkled and I said, they wont call it yet, they are trying to get at least 1/2 way though. then 129 laps it poured and they called it. An hour latter the sun was out. Track dried. Pissed me off too. Took me 1 hour 15 minutes to get there and 5-1/2 hours home. I soooooo wish I would have gotten to see the whole race. Never even got my t-shirt they shut down the trailers as soon as they called the race. I was disappointed. But I am a speed freak and I love this sport!! Adam Sandler did rock! Loved him! Also loved the f-16 fly over....twice...very cool!

Answer 4

NASCAR's reason to call the race stemmed from the reality that the teams have to truck from Michigan to North Carolina (where nearly all the teams are based) and then have to pack to head back out to Infineon Raceway, in California. That's a whole lot of driving for the hauler drivers and work for the shop guys. The teams need that time. Racing on Monday would not really been an option.

Answer 5

I agree with you that the race was called premature. NASCAR has gotten to the point that the fans are not their primary consideration. They don't care that fans put out, in some cases, thousands of dollars to attend a race. Instead, they worry more about the television contracts and the sponsorship dollars. When they get to a point that a race is official, they end up calling it to please the networks. After all, the network would be tied up for a few more hours waiting for the rain to leave and the track dried up.

Answer 6

I thank that a whole lot more than the rain went into the decision to call the race off. lights, travel time back to North Carolina unload and reload and then drive to California. If they ran the race on Monday that would made them late getting to California..

Answer 7

Nascar,did not call the race to early due to rain. I find Nascar makes super judgement calls.

Answer 8

I don't think that they are too quick. I set up a few years ago until three in the morning to see them run at ( I think) Daytona, the first year they installed the lighting system. If it looks on the radar like more is moving in, why not just call it and move on.

Answer 9

Each time a race is called due to rain, it is done due to the judgement of the officials at the track. It's a judgement call.

Answer 10

YES! @ MIS last week if they ran the whole race Jr. defiantly would have won! They should get rain tires that can hold the cars!