Sunday is a travel day for me.  I have to drive 1 1/2 hours to get back to Sheboygan where I work during the week (different story for a different day.)  So, I was excited when NASCAR changed their start times to earlier in the day so I could watch the races before I left.
Boy, was I disappointed yesterday.

I figured a couple of delays for crashes due to restrictor plates, the race would take about four hours and I'd be out the door and on my way by four (I like driving during daylight whenever possible as it aids me in seeing law enforcement officials a lot better.)  So, imagine my surprise when the race was halted for, of all things, a pothole.

This would be like the NFL halting the big game for bad turf.  Or the NHL holding up the game for melting ice.  I get the crash delays.  In restrictor plate racing they're unavoidable.  But potholes?  Are you kidding me?

So, I left for my trip after the first (yes first) pothole delay thinking I could catch the conclusion of the race on the radio.  After an hour of driving, the race finally resumed.  By the time I got to the radio station, there were thirty-five laps left to go.  I ran inside to do a couple of quick things, thinking there would be about twenty laps to go when I came out.  The good news was I nailed it, there were twenty laps to go.  The bad news? Pothole delay #2.

I got to my apartment, started the laundry, did a few other things I needed to do and finally, around 6:30, the race finally ended after a whole bunch of crashes and green, white, checker scenarios.

I'm just a casual NASCAR fan.  I enjoy the speed, the strategy and yes, the crashes.  But I think even the most die hard fan had a tough time yesterday.  How in the name of Bobby Allison can an organization host a signature event at a track IT owns and have the race be delayed not once but twice by potholes?  I heard one of the drivers talking about how they didn't want to see Daytona repaved because they like the grip the track has now, but,  from where I sit, how much grip do you have when the track is literally falling apart?

Yes, the end of the race was exciting with Jamie McMurray taking the checkered flag, but you wonder how the results may have been different without the 2 hours and 24 minutes of pothole delays.  By the time the race finished it was dark at Daytona and most of the cars had daytime setups.  The late finish altered the performance of several cars not to mention the pothole damage sustained to several cars.  Still, NASCAR whipped out the fiddle afterwords while the track was burning all around them:

“From the racing perspective, you couldn’t wish to get your season off to a better start,” NASCAR spokesman Ramsey Poston said. “Obviously the red flags are unfortunate. No one wants to see that. But hopefully what fans will really remember about this race tomorrow and years to come is that dramatic finish.”

What you didn't say is "Yes, the red flags are unfortunate, but ones we could have avoided due to our own incompetence is unforgivable."

Maybe people will remember the finish.  But they will also remember that it took six and a half hours to get there.