Category: my thoughts on

By David G. Firestone

I hate to say I told you so, but based on some information I’ve been hearing, I may just have to. A couple years ago, the NHRA “upgraded” the design of Pro Stock cars from the traditional carburetor to low tech fuel injection. When I first heard the news, my immediate reaction was that this was going to harm the category, forcing drivers out, and leading to short fields.

Fast forward two years, and this is the case. Pro Stock has lost many part-time teams, and the fields are almost always short. V Gaines has retired, and Allen Johnson will be retiring at the end of 2017. What makes this even worse is the fact that while Dodge has languished in Pro Stock, Chevy has flourished, to the point it doesn’t make sense for teams to run Dodge in Pro Stock. Dodge has come up empty in 2017, and had minimal success in 2016.

In addition to the ill-advised change, the NHRA won’t promote the category…at all. The category is suffering, and sponsors won’t approach it. Yet something that could save the category is easy, and reasonable, but the NHRA won’t do it. Granted that sponsors prefer the nitro categories, but it’s not like they wouldn’t be getting less for sponsoring a Pro Stock. They would get the same national attention, and the drivers are happy to promote them. But the NHRA can’t or won’t put the effort into a category that has a fan base, and could make them a lot of money.

Is the NHRA giving up on Pro Stock? The recent rumors reporting that the category won’t run the full 2018 season, combined with the NHRA’s unwillingness to promote the category seem to say this. Add in that Dodge seems to have given up on the category, and you have a drifting ship with nobody at the helm. I’m a Pro Stock fan, I love the category, but it’s hard to ignore the signs that the ship is adrift.

Please don’t try to convince me that the Battle of the Burnouts isn’t a symptom of this. It’s plainly obvious that the NHRA saw that the fans loved the burnouts that Tanner Gray did, and decided that it would use that to promote the category. This is the NHRA’s attempt to promote the category, and while it is a good move, there needs to be more, maybe bringing in Toyota as a manufacturer, and promoting the sport to potential sponsors. It certainly wouldn’t hurt at this point.

Again, I hate to be the one who says I told you so, but based on all available information I have, I was right in 2015, and I’m right today. Sadly, I’m right at the expense of one of the better categories in the NHRA. I really wanted to be wrong, but I wasn’t.

By David G. Firestone

I came across this recently, and I decided it would be good for a Tuesday feature. I’m going to talk about my grandparents. First up, grandma.

Adaline Firestone came from France during WWII to New York to escape from Hitler. She married, and started a family. She worked hard her whole life.

The period of time I knew her, she was descending fast. She had recently been release from her job, and had to deal with her mother’s difficulties as well. She would visit her mother daily, and do what she could to help her. She had a lot of love for her family.

I would call her every Sunday and talk to her for a few minutes. She knew who it was, and loved talking to me. I enjoyed talking to her as well. Sometimes she was not completely coherent. She was proud of me no matter what. She had pictures of our whole family all over her apartment. She was nearly deaf, and that led to some unusual situations. She had some social problems, and that led to other problems.

Every once in a while, she would come from New York to Chicago to visit us. We would go bird watching, to art museums, and other such activities. I went just to be with her. I guess you could say that I knew her time on this planet was limited, but I didn’t want it to be. She had a way about her. One of her traits that she passed on to me is the ability not only to speak her min, but to complain about things that need to be complained about. Sometimes her odd stances on life were confusing. Her logic is almost untranslatable. She would like something, and dislike something else related to that, for no real reason. She supported Bill Clinton. She hated Rudi Giuliani. She was not quiet about these issues. She would always complain about Giuliani and the “bad stuff” he did. There was no real logic there, but she complained about him anyway.

Her social skills, or lack thereof, led to some interesting visits. The last time she came to Chicago was for my high school graduation. During that visit, we went to a restaurant in Evanston for lunch. I’m not in the best shape I could be, and she let me know it. During the time we were at the restaurant, I started to eat a piece of bread. She snaps at me and tells me “I’m watching you!” After that, I picked up my water glass, and asked her “Is water alright?”

On an earlier visit, we went to Illinois Beach for the day, and we went to lunch. She looks at the menu, notices an item that is “crab meat and fruit.” She orders it. When it is served to her, she says out loud “Crab meat and fruit, Egh! Who eats this crap? What do they eat in Illinois?” We were looking at her thinking “You ordered it!” That was a unique experience

There were a couple of incidents that took place at the synagogue that I used to belong to. One incident took place during my confirmation. She is sitting 15 rows back from the stage. It was a very hot day, and the air conditioning was on. As I’m sitting up on the stage, I hear her begin to complain about the AC. “Egh! It’s Cold! It’s Cold! Turn down the AC!” I’m sitting there, hearing this, and trying not to laugh. The second incident took place 3 years earlier at my Bar Mitzvah. This fun little event took place close to the end of the ceremony. I was accepting gifts from the religious school, and the sisterhood. The two people in question are not small people. As they are speaking I hear a voice go “Look at all the fattys!” I’m sitting there, trying not to laugh.

One of her most memorable traits was her phone etiquette. Apparently she got some obscene phone calls. She then assumed all phone calls not at times she was expecting them were obscene. As such, when she received such a call, she would pick up the phone, yell “You Schmuck!” into the receiver, and slam the phone down. This happened to everybody who made that mistake.

I did double-cross her a few times. As I mentioned above, she was upset about my weight. She would talk about it. On more than one occasion, we anticipated this, and planned a strategy. She lived in a Manhattan apartment. Withing walking distance of her building, were a pizza place, a Subway, and a KFC. When we went out to lunch, I got something small. When we went back to her place, I said that I would like to go for a walk. I did go for a walk…to the KFC. My brother Steve went with dad to see Grandma. Steve is tall but thin. He had a decent appetite. For years, Grandma would say “My David, he is so big yet he doesn’t eat a thing. And my Steven, he is so little, yet he eats everything in sight. The best one was one particular trip to New York in 1994. Mom and dad had tickets to “The Most Happy Fella.” Grandma and I went to dinner. For dinner, I ordered a salad, with oil and vinegar dressing. The result was Grandma praising me for years on end about how I’m such a healthy eater. The salad move was a calculated risk, which paid off. When they came back, I explained what I did, and we ordered pizza.

In the summer of 2001, she began to seriously deteriorate. By the fall, it was apparent that it wasn’t a question of if, but when. 9-11 happened, and I don’t think she understood what took place that day. Two and a half months later, I went on a service project to Arizona. I was at an art gallery in Tuscon, when I got the news. It wasn’t a complete shock, but it threw me. I said above that I knew her time on this earth was limited, but I didn’t want to believe it. When I got the news, it forced me to realize that life is ever changing.

When her funeral took place, it was delayed by several months. I was in Arizona at the time, and I did not want to leave the trip, and fly back home. We had several members of our family fly in. One of the things that I have always loved about our family is that a funeral is not a “sadness of death,” but it’s a celebration of life. Our family went out and had a good time and we had a good time in honor of her. We still talk about her often. We have more stories about her than I can mention here. I know where ever she is, she can see us, and is watching over us with pride. When I walk across the stage in June to get my diploma, I will dedicate that event to the memory of Adaline Firestone, a woman who meant more to me than anyone can ever know.

Next, I will discuss my grandfather.

Henry Firestone not only came over from Europe to avoid Hitler, he fought in the Army in Europe against Hitler. He was in the Normandy Invasion. After the war, he came back to the states, and set up business. He worked his whole life, and he supported his family. He had a stroke, and that forced him to retire, as well as forcing him into a wheel chair.

I have more vivid memories of him after the stroke. He was in a bad relationship, and he got out. I remember the night when that happened. Dad was on the phone for most of the night. The next day, he came over from New York, and he came to live with us. He slept in our family room for a number of weeks. After that, we got him an apartment in Evanston. After his first winter in Chicago, he started flying to Florida to live with my uncle for winter. When he came back in the spring, we would see him all the time. Every Sunday, after religious school, we would go to the Botanic Garden, or other local attraction.

We would have cookouts every Sunday. We would all sit in the family room, and watch America’s Funniest Home Videos. I still watch that show, because when I do, it reminds me of the memories we had, and the fun we had. That’s my way of keeping him alive. Then we would eat. He would give me extra beef, and dad would object. Grandpa’s response? “AH Shut Up!”

We would take trips together. His stroke had left him half paralyzed. We had to work with the airlines and the hotels to accommodate him. One of the first trips we took was to Starved Rock. He purchased a whole bunch of art, and he didn’t have it shipped. We had to ride in a Ford Thunderbird, with a number of large paintings all over the place. After that, we forced him to ship the art he purchased, and he purchased a lot. Some of it can still be seen in my dad’s office.

Another major trip was to Canada. We flew to Canada, and we went to a number of parks, and attractions. We went to Lake Louise. Grandpa purchased art, and he had it shipped home. We only had one car, so we had six of us in it. We had to push his wheelchair all over the place, and it got tiring after a while.

We went to Colorado one year, and we did not have a critical piece of information. This was a nature trip, and we drove up a mountain. As we are about to drive up, his caretaker tells us “You can’t take him there, he’s afraid of heights!” We went up anyway, and the rental car we had died. There was one point where I had to push his wheelchair to a lookout point. We are 7,000 feet up. I push him to the lookout point, and I damn near pass out. We go back down, and then we finish our trip. One funny story took place at the Air Force Academy. We were walking through the museum, and he said “where do we check in?’ He thought the museum was a hotel. It was that same trip where we got stuck with a horrible hotel. Hot water was a wish. Running water was a wish. At one point, we were at dinner, and mom had said that she was able to take a shower. Grandpa promptly shouted “You took a Shower?” You must understand that because of the stroke, his speech was garbled.

The trip to Virginia was a fun one. This was more of a history lesson than a vacation. We had to get him into Monticello. We went to various places within that area, and pushing him was difficult sometimes.

The Badlands trip was by far the most memorable. For some reason we drove from Evanston Illinois to the Badlands of South Dakota and back. Our 1993 Chevy Cavalier, equipped with a wheelchair storage rack on the roof was more than able to complete the trip. We stopped at several tourist traps along the way. Keep in mind, this was a two-week driving trip, with six people going at the same time. Dad and Grandpa were in the front. Mom, Steve, and Grandpa’s caretaker Roz were in the back seat. I was in the trunk, which had a rear facing seat. This is South Dakota, so besides billboards, there really wasn’t too much to look at. We ate a decent amount of buffalo. We went to the Corn Palace, Mount Rushmore, and Wall Drug, among other places. He bought art, and had it shipped.

He was at my Bar Mitzvah, and that event was termed “the last hurrah.” We called it that because it would be the last time many members of our family were at the same place at the same time. One of the last pictures of Grandpa, Uncle Milton, and Uncle Bernard were taken at that event. The next big event was my middle-school graduation. We had a party to celebrate that event.

The next winter, 1997, he began to deteriorate. He was in Florida, and it became evident that it was only a matter of time. He has been hospitalized for various issues. Uncle Jeffy was taking care of him. One cloudy winter morning I go to school. I went to my first period cooking class. I was handed a note midway through telling me to go to the attendance office after first period. I knew what had happened. I go home, and fly to Florida. We meet up with my uncle, and prepare. You must understand that in our family, a funeral is not a sadness over death, rather it is seen as a celebration of life. We went to the flea market he went to, and we went to places he had fun at. The funeral itself was a somber event. We did have many memories of grandpa to remember, and talk about. When I got back to Evanston, I had to adjust to life without him. I caught up on all the work I had missed. I was acting in a play at the time. I did not miss a rehearsal. What I did do was dedicate my role in the play to his memory.

I know where ever he is he is happy. I also know where ever he is he is watching us, and protecting us. I think about him often. I miss him. When he was alive, sometimes I found his wheelchair to be a hassle. You don’t know what I would give to push his wheelchair one more time, and be able to say goodbye.

By David G. Firestone

I’m going to be a little lazy this week. I normally would work on the Tracker and grades over the weekend, but this last weekend was a little bit different. On Saturday, I had a cookout to celebrate my 35^th birthday. I had friends and family come over, and we had a great time. On Sunday, I went to the Armenian Festival in Downtown Evanston with a buddy who was visiting from California. Since I was so busy, I never got around, so the Tracker and grades will run next week.

I also wanted to discuss something that happened over the weekend. The NHRA Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals is taking place this weekend. After the event, the Countdown To The Championship starts, and the top 10 in points will get locked in. At the time of this writing, Troy Coughlin Jr. is 10^th in points in Top Fuel. On Saturday, Troy left Kalitta Motorsports, “citing a desire to get more experience in the Top Alcohol Dragster ranks” according to the NHRA’s website.

The timing of this decision could not have been worse. Leaving the team when you are seated 10^th in points before the cutoff is shocking. However, the team has signed Richie Crampton to replace Coughlin, so they have upgraded in that respect, and Shawn Langdon, another Kalitta Motorsports driver is 11^th in points, so he will certainly make the Countdown. So the damage isn’t as bad as it could be.

I found it a little odd that Coughlin was signed from Pro Mod to Top Fuel. Coughlin’s a good driver, but he didn’t take to the class well at all. He was complaining about a lack of seat time during his early runs. He certainly wasn’t going to be a contender right out of the gate, which is something you want in a driver. He also wasn’t going to win Rookie of the Year, that is certainly going to Tanner Gray. This whole thing just wasn’t well thought out.

Why Coughlin didn’t race in Top Alcohol Dragster is odd, given that he could have run a few events just to get some seat time to learn how different a dragster is from a doorslammer. Why this didn’t happen is mystifying. There are a number of questions that don’t have answers. For now, I’m going to consider the Coughlin experiment a failure.

By David G. Firestone

I was going to discuss some things for the website last week, but real life got in the way. I would normally not discuss something that heavy, but I was so disgusted with what I was seeing, that I had to say something. I try to keep things light, and I will try not to discuss anything that heavy on this site anymore.

With that out of the way, I will discuss some things with the site. I’ve been starting work on schedules for 2018, and I’ve made a few set in stone decisions for next year. The first thing I’ve decided is that the schedule will remain the same for 2018 as it is in 2017. I like the way the schedule works, and I see no reason to change at any time.

For Throwback Thursday, I’m going to focus on endurance racing, and I may or may not grade some of the Truck Series, but I haven’t made the final decision on that yet.

When it comes to the videos on Monday. I’m putting the finishing touches on Seasons 19 and 20 of Introduction to Sports Memorabilia. I’m done with season 19, and I will finish season 20 within the next few weeks.

Earlier this year, I announced that F1 Month will be replaced with Little Guy November. Little Guy November will feature uniform items used by drivers who aren’t in the big leagues. The point is that there are many race car drivers who don’t race professionally. I’ve since decided that 2018 will also have Little Guy November. I can also promise that real uniform aficionados will love the first two articles of 2017 Little Guy November.

Speaking of theme months, Wheel Reviews January will return in 2018. I have two books and two movies that I will be reviewing for January. This comes after I spend December with the Paint Schemies, and the Paint Scheme Leaderboard. I treat December as a kind of sabbatical, but instead of relaxing, I spend most of that time working on other aspects of the site. I can get a lot done in that time, and since I don’t have to do the tracker and grades every week, it helps me get work done.

I do also plan on going off topic, but I’m planning it out better than I did this year. I have some interesting topics planned.

I know I say this every year, but I do plan on bringing back Tailgating Time for 2018. While I have said this in the past, I do have a plan for 2018, but more on that later.

Other than that, there isn’t much to report right now. I’ll be back soon with more.

By David G. Firestone

I’d be remiss not to address the situation that took place in Charlottesville, Virginia. The shadow of the dark weekend that looms over us as a country can’t be ignored. Between an emboldened and vocal white supremacist movement, an anti-fascist movement that “doesn’t believe property damage constitutes violence,” two police officers killed in a helicopter crash, and a deranged driver killing a woman and injuring many others using his car, the last 72 hours have sent a clear message that the country is in a lot of trouble.

This last weekend will forever be known for the chaos of those protests, and the three deaths. What should also be known is that these alt-right white supremacists do NOT speak for all white people. They certainly do not speak for me and they don’t speak for many of my friends and family. Their views prove how uneducated, and disconnected from reality they really are. Hate has no place with me or my websites.

At the same time, this Antifa or anti-fascists movement is helping embolden the white supremacist movement. Peaceful counter-protesting is the easiest and best ways to fight back, since it sends the message that there are a lot more people who disagree with the white supremacist movement than agree with it. When violence breaks out, any message the counter-protestors have, is instantly lost. The focus shifts from the message to the violence, and that’s all anyone pays attention to. In the end, nobody wins.

We really have forgotten the lessons learned by Martin Luther King and Gandhi, who achieved changes not through violence, but through peace. Their movements and tactics made sure that the message was the focus. We need changes to happen, but the loss of focus on the change is ensuring we don’t get the message. Sadly, there are no easy answers, but we need to keep trying. A house divided against itself cannot stand, and right now, we really appear as a house divided.

By David G. Firestone

Last week was devoted to serious news stories, this week, I’m going to discuss some less serious things I’ve come across. I should have done these sooner, but sometimes things just get shuffled around.

I don’t consider myself to be a gentleman. I don’t usually read Gentlemen’s Quarterly or GQ. But they had an article recently that I found interesting. Basically Jake Wolfe states that racing uniforms are becoming chic in terms of fashion. To quote the article:

“… Nascar gear is built for practicality. Each team needs a bold color scheme to differentiate itself from around 40 other teams racing that week. The racing suits aren’t just places to make ad dollars—they’re designed to keep drivers safe in the event of a fire or crash, as are their shoes and helmets, and it doesn’t get more pragmatic than that. And maybe that’s why the pieces are being twisted and subverted by some of the most talented people in the fashion game. After all, it’s more fun to turn something banal into a coveted luxury item (Balenciaga Ikea bags, anyone?) than it is to continually produce wearable, but potentially boring, clothing.”

A couple of thoughts on this subject. First off, it’s “NASCAR” not “Nascar.” NASCAR is an acronym for National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, not just a word. Second, auto racing and fashion have been hand in hand for some time, for fans of the sport. Seriously, go to a NASCAR, F1, IndyCar or NHRA event, and see how many people are wearing driver jackets or pit shirts. Teams wear them as not only a work uniform but a source of pride.

While the runways of Milan and Paris are embracing auto racing design, the places it truly belongs are the straightaways and pit lanes of Daytona, Silverstone, and Indianapolis. It should be pointed out that the way firesuits are designed is to protect the driver, and give the various sponsor logos as much exposure as possible. There are various standards that the designers use, which factor in such things as in-car camera placement, and television interview angles. IndyCar and F1 logo placements differ from NASCAR logo placements, which differ from NHRA logo placements. There is a very exact science to logo placements…unless you are Kyle Larson.

The other thing that I found interesting was that earlier this year, the SCCA F4 United States Championship released a very detailed ans specific “style guide” for 2017. This was in the form of a PowerPoint that morphed into a PDF. It’s worth a read.

I don’t consider this to be unusual, because I’m willing to be that every sanctioning body has a setup like this. I do consider this to be weird in that it has been leaked to the public. Nothing about this PDF is strange to me, again every team does this, but I’d love to see the NASCAR, IndyCar and F1 style guides, even if they are a few years old. Why don’t these style guides get made public? Auto racing has a lot of fans who are interested in design, so why not feed their interest? Though I do find it a bit odd that the driver and crew wear different shirts…

By David G. Firestone

Since I’ve been on vacation, there have been a number of newsworthy events that have garnered my attention. I’m going to discuss some of them today and give my brief take on each story.

-Alex Bowman is going to replace the retiring Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the #88 in 2018. I think this sums up Hendrick’s mindset perfectly. There are a number of decent drivers in both Cup and Xfinity Series competition, and people within Hendrick are convinced that Alex Bowman, who has done NOTHING in his career, aside from some ARCA races.

In three years, Hendrick Motorsports has gone from the gold standard down to the bronze standard. Hendrick is becoming the new Roush Fenway Racing! Jeff Gordon, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. have been replaced by Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman. Their program of supplying equipment to other teams has gone by the wayside. They simply are not as formidable and marketable than they used to be. The question needs to be asked, is this the beginning of the end of Hendrick Motorsports? If things keep going in the direction they are, then it very well could be

-The Silly Season continues with Ryan Blaney, Erik Jones, and Paul Menard all switching teams for 2018. Blaney is going to Penske for a third full-time team, Erik Jones is replacing Matt Kenseth in the #20, and Menard is going to the Wood Brothers. I can’t really disagree with any of these moves. They are smart moves all around.

-Target announced that this is the last year they will be sponsoring the #42 of Kyle Larson. This is a little confusing since Larson can now be considered a top-shelf driver, and he is very much a championship caliber driver. However, if it comes down to the sponsorship not being economically viable, then it is the right decision.

-The NHRA announced that they will soon be regulating the so-called “swept-back headers” in Funny Car. Currently, the maximum angle they can be is 32 degrees, however, in 2018, that will change to 40 degrees. I’m going to be interested in seeing how this change will affect teams. It’s been established that Courtney Force, and, presumably, the rest of the John Force Racing Funny Cars use the 40 degree headers. Yet Matt Hagan, and presumably the rest of Don Schumacher Racing use the 32 degree headers. Will this put Force ahead of Schumacher? It remains to be seen.

-I was thinking about the rivalry between Force and Schumacher. Don Schumacher and John Force have a rivalry that rivals Force and Cruz Pedregon’s rivalry in the 1990’s. But what I’ve been noticing is that every year, one says something that riles the other up. What then happens is that there is a tension between the two for a while, but then that cools down. I’m wondering how far is too far? I’m really concerned that one or the other is going to take one step too far, and it’s going to get everyone in trouble. I hope both sides can work something out to avoid that happening.

-Indy Car has announced and shown the new cars that will be running in 2018. There are two different aero kits, one that is raced at super-speedway ovals, and the other which is raced at all other events. The drivers seem to be happy with this new package, and I’m looking forward to seeing it in action.

-When it comes to this site, everything is back to normal starting this week. The Paint Scheme Grades and Tracker will be up and ready. It was a fun vacation, which I’ll discuss more on Friday!

By David G. Firestone

It’s that time of the year again. It’s the week before July. This is the last week I will work on The Driver Suit Blog before I go on my vacation and take my sabbatical. You know the drill, I take all of July off, and enjoy the summer here in Chicago. I have a few things planned for my time off, and I will work on some side project.

As usual, I will be attending the Route 66 Nationals, and I will do my usual article on that. I’ve got somethings planned for Route 66, but more on that later. I plan to watch racing, and hang out. I work a tiring job, and this time off is nice.

It’s not that I don’t enjoy working on The Driver Suit Blog, but I need a break, and the summer time is a nice time. I will come back. I’m committed to The Driver Suit Blog, and I will continue my work.

Now that the sabbatical announcement is done, I’d like to discuss something about racing. Why do teams continue to use “road course ringers?” For the race at Sonoma, a number of teams decided to use these drivers, who have little Cup experience to try and win races. This hasn’t worked since 1973, but teams keep trying it.

This is part of an odd strategy of taking something that hasn’t worked in decades, and trying it again to see if it works this time around. If it hasn’t worked before, why would it work now? Are there exceptions, yes, but for the most part, it makes no sense. Why would you try something like that? It makes no sense, accomplishes nothing, and makes you look stupid.

That’s it for now, see you all in August!

By David G. Firestone

So FOX had their “driver’s only telecast” where the analysts, commentators, and pit road reporters were replaced by drivers for one race. Many people liked the idea, and they thought the telecast was decent. I am not one of those people. I hated the idea, and the result was as bad as I thought I would be.

The pit road reporting wasn’t good. Erik Jones, Ryan Blaney, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. were not good on pit road. When you have professional pit road reporters coaching you through the course of the telecast, and you still mess it up, that says a lot. I hated the play by play, Kevin Harvick,Joey Logano, and Clint Bowyer do not have a future in broadcasting. The only decent part were Danica Patrick and Denny Hamlin as Analysts.

Is this how desperate FOX and NASCAR are for ratings? The fact that ratings and attendance are down has forced changes, but not all changes are good. There’s a reason you have a dedicated play by play announcer, who went to broadcasting school, and was trained to call sports, and one or more color commentators, who are former athletes, and can add insight to what the play by play guy is saying. When you have a group that are basically all color commentators, it just doesn’t sound good.

On a lighter note, I got an email recently from the author of The Racing Champions Blog. He is a collector of 1/64 Racing Champions cars, which many young racing fans collected growing up. His research on the individual cars is great, and the blog is a great read. I do have a number of Racing Champions cars. Maybe I’ll do a Friday Feature on them at some point.

I’ve also started a couple of new projects on YouTube. It’s under the banner of Dave Tries. One is a beer sampling video series, which I post on Saturdays, and a soda review series that I do on Tuesdays. That’s been keeping me busy lately. I’ve got a couple ideas for videos brewing, and I’ll keep you posted.

By David G. Firestone

Some minor controversy last week, but it proves something I’ve been, and a lot of people have been saying for a while. It was announced earlier this year, that Dale Earnhardt Jr. would drive a Philadelphia Eagles themed car for Axalta All-Pro Teachers Program, a Philadelphia-based effort to reward teachers. This was all set, until last week, when the NFL canceled the scheme, because they have a rule that states that club logos can’t be used to promote another sport.

Can I ask a relevant question? Does the NFL’s greed, selfishness, and myopia know no bounds? What the NFL has essentially done is screw over a charity and cost them money by blindly enforcing a pointless rule. The merchandise sales from this event would have brought in a lot of money for the charity, and, while Dale Jr. is a Washington fan, he, Axalta, the NFL, and the Eagles would get some free good publicity. Thanks to the NFL, nobody looks good right now. Nobody wins in this situation.

Who in the NFL looked at the fact that the Eagles are trying to reach out and help teachers and said “No, our rules are more important than community outreach?” The NFL is completely out of touch with the world around them! This rule really proves that the NFL is run by a greedy corporation that doesn’t seem to understand the value of cross-promotion. The MLB, NHL, and NBA understand the value, especially in cities that have multiple teams. City loyalty is a powerful thing, and the fact the NFL doesn’t understand this is proof that they don’t understand the world they live in.

I could understand this if this was just a race car scheme, with no charity behind it, but why would you screw over a charity for a rule that makes no sense? What exactly did you accomplish by doing this? Oh…I see, you “protected your logos.” You do realize that there are ways to protect logos without making yourself look bad, and screwing over a charity initiative…right? I hope your lawyers and executives are happy…you’ve screwed over a teacher’s charity! You must feel really proud right now!

Add this, along with racial issues, domestic violence, player health, October breast cancer awareness funds, to the list of reasons that prove that the NFL doesn’t seem to care how people see them. I’m really wondering who works in the PR department of the NFL, because they all seem to suck at your jobs. Think about this for a second. If you bend the rules, you will help out the community and make yourself look good. But you live in a world where rules take precedent over PR image. This is new low for the NFL…I hope protecting your logos was worth it!