. .mom was born in the late 40's. . .which means that the stone wheel was discontinued around 1949. . . j/k ;)
>
> NASCAR rubs me the wrong way. . I've been annoyed with them ever since the mid 80's or so when they decided to put those stupid governors on the engines. Before, it was exciting. . one guy would have a faster car than another and it would be an actual race. Now, they all perform pretty much identically which means you have to be real lucky to pass. lame, IMHO. I don't have a problem with standardizing performance if it's a test of driver skills, but going around in circles is not terribly hard once you've done it a few times. If they wanna have everyone driving the same car, then they should get away from the oval track and more into a roadrace type. . . otherwise, let 'em go to town on making their car fast so it gets interesting again!
>
I agree with your views on restrictor plate racing. It keeps the cars bunched and triggers those pileups. Restrictor plate racing at 190 mph is more dangerous than unrestricted at 210. That's what Mark Martin has been trying to tell them for years. I wonder if they should just reduce displacements and allow a boost like on the Indy cars. At least they could pass.

Do you remember when the slingshot pass was the most exciting part of drafting?

Your Mom is just a kid! I'm a 1933 model and I've been a stock car fan ever since I saw my first race at the Nashville State Fairgrounds in 1952. I watched it from a hillside across the road. They raced on a one mile dirt oval that doubled as a horse track. I can't remember who won, but the drivers included Richard Petty's daddy, Buddy Baker's daddy and guys like Glenn Roberts and Joe Weatherly. Dale Jarrett's daddy probably wasn't racing yet. It doesn't really seem like that long ago. (Guys my age tend to ramble a bit.)
Howard