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It is common for the casual NASCAR fan to believe that the way to win is to have the fastest car. Often, this is very true. Throughout the week, the drivers and the crews are spending endless hours tweaking their set-ups to produce the fastest car performance they can before entering the race track later that weekend. As it has been shown on in NASCAR news broadcasts many times, this does not guarantee a win. Unfortunately, not every car can be the fastest on the track, so the teams are constantly analyzing new ways to achieve victory.

For instance, David Reutimann won the 2009 Coca Cola 600 when crew chief Rodney Childers told him to skip the pit stop as the leaders were entering. The race was beyond the half-way point, and precipitation was falling. Should the rains have continued, the race would have been stopped. Reutimann, and two other drivers, Ryan Newman and Robby Gordon, gambled on Mother Nature.

At about 6:30 p.m. EST, NASCAR officials were obliged to cancel the race, giving Reutimann his first Sprint Cup win. In the past, a victory in a rain-shortened event had a proverbial asterisk beside it. Sometimes, these wins, cause complaints from fans who consider the win as a mere fluke. The opinions of some fans often find an audience on NASCAR news channels. This must be weighed against the fact that NASCAR is probably the most competitive form of auto racing around. A win is a win, and every driver on the track would be happy to perform the ‘rain dance’ if it meant that they were going to make the coveted trip to victory lane. NASCAR news has been on hand to witness some impressive and creative strategies end in victory.

Strategy played a part in Reutimann’s victory. Armed with the information from the latest weather reports, his crew chief decided to keep Reutimann out on the track. If the showers had stopped, and the cars reentered the track, then they would have went to the pit, but according to Childers and Reutimann, they would have made necessary adjustment to increase automotive performance. Such reconfigurations would have taken too long. Additionally, Reutimann would have lost his place on the track if they had pit stopped with the others, so he chose to wait on the rain. Their strategy turned out to be the winning strategy.

Driver Kyle Busch had maintained the lead for 173 of the 207 laps that were paced, while the winner Reutimann had just gained lead position for five laps and after holding fourteenth position at the time the precipitation began.

Similar events involving driver Jeff Gordon were noted, according to certain NASCAR news sources. In 2007, Gordon used almost the same strategy to win a race at Pocono. He did not have a car that could contend for the win, but his team sensed that the rain showers were immanent, and it paid off. If the rain had come only five seconds later, Gordon would have likely finished in second place. Ryan Newman was in the process of passing Gordon when NASCAR displayed the caution flag because of the rain.

It seems like all the stars of the heavens must be in alignment to win a race. Other strategies to help a racer win without possessing the fastest vehicle deal with fuel mileage and tire strategy.

In 2003, Newman and his Penske Racing team were renowned for stretching fuel mileage with a smaller carburetor. At least four of his eight total wins during the 2003 season could be contributed to fuel mileage.

Other drivers have used the two-tire pit stop to get a better track position near the close of the race, thus, affording opportunity to run for the victory. In many cases, this has worked out for the driver.

A win is a win in NASCAR. It makes no difference how the trophy was gained, the driver will accept it every time.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 28th, 2009 at 2:01 am and is filed under Sports And Fitness. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.