Spade Racing Opens a Box of 2023 Donruss Cards, Pack 22 of 24



Pack 22: Who are three people who have never been in my kitchen?


FIRST LOOK: And we have a tire piece from Joey Logano!  I’m a big fan of these, since having a full-size tire in my apartment would we, well, weird (and a bit smelly).


TO THE BACK: It works—I met a lady in a bar who only knew of Austin via his reality show.  So they’re really picking up the “Goes to The Palm on Friday Night” crowd.


SAY WHAT: “No, its not ALLSOUTHEL—read the whole thing!”


RATING: 8 spinouts out of 10



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NASCAR ROTY RANKINGS 1975: Ranking the Rookie of the Year Classes Through the Years



Runner-up Grant Adcox
Join me as we take a look at every NASCAR Cup Rookie of the Year class from 1972 (the start of the modern era) through 2021, going from the worst to the first in terms of overall careers of each year’s rookie class.

1975

Winner: Bruce Hill (Bruce Hill).  Runners Up: Carl Adams (Richard Mummert), Bruce Jacobi (Opal Voight), Grant Adcox (Adcox), Joe Mihalic (Lou Viglione), Travis Tiller (Travis Tiller), Ferrel Harris (Ferrel Harris).  Aborted Attempts: Chuck Bown, Dick May

How their careers turned out: You think Nascar is unfair NOW?  How about back in the 1970’s, when you had what was essentially a two-tiered system of competition—about six to eight guys who could win races and run for the championship, and everyone else.  All these drivers fell into the “everyone else” categories throughout their careers, running their own equipment and/or for other independents.  Seriously—calling these guys “journeymen” is a stretch.

“Fun” “Fact” about the winner: The fact that he shares the same name as a famous football player is probably the most-interesting thing about Bruce Hill.

Ranking: #43 out of 50



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Musically Declined: Nascar Runnin’ Wide Open—Oh King Richard



In 1995 Nascar was starting to get hot.  Jeff Gordon was on his way to his first Cup championship, TV ratings were on the rise, and for the first time ever, stock car racing was somewhat cool.  So what better way to celebrate the sport’s success than with an album of bland middle-of-the-road country music?

The Song: Oh King Richard

The Star: Kyle Petty

The Clip: https://youtu.be/SRIDVMy2R-Q?si=DQuCPGeeCMdJt6-u

The Review: Probably my favorite song on this album, too bad I’ve already reviewed it on here.  But its really the only song that’s actually about, y’know, an actual Nascar driver.

The Verdict: Great song, and actually on-topic.



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The Hero Card Project 2023--POST Epilogue

   


Another year, another season.  Another season, another batch of hero card requests sent out to Nascar Cup, Xfinity, Truck, and ARCA teams!  CLICK HERE to learn more about hero cards, one of my favorite things to collect.  These cards arrived just this past week:

A few cards from the Reaume Bros and Team Hezemans





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NASCAR ROTY RANKINGS 1974: Ranking the Rookie of the Year Classes Through the Years



Runner-up Richie Panch
Join me as we take a look at every NASCAR Cup Rookie of the Year class from 1972 (the start of the modern era) through 2021, going from the worst to the first in terms of overall careers of each year’s rookie class.

1974

Winner: Earl Ross (Brooke/Junior Johnson).  Runners Up: Richie Panch (Thornley/Donlavey), Jackie Rogers (Frederick/Dalton).  Aborted Attempt: Ramo Stott

How their careers turned out: Earl Ross is most-famous for three things in Cup: Winning the 1974 ROTY award, winning the 1974 fall Martinsville Cup race, and being Canadian.  And while his career in Cup lasted only two more races beyond that due to sponsorship issues, it’s still an impressive feat.  Richie Panch and Jackie Rogers each had slightly longer careers than Ross, but neither ran more than 50 Cup races.

“Fun” “Fact” about the winner: Ross was one of only five Cup drivers to win a race ALL SEASON.  This is a good year to point out when people whine that “the good old days” in Nascar were better.

Ranking: #39 out of 50



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Musically Declined: Nascar Runnin’ Wide Open—Cadillac Ranch



in 1995 Nascar was starting to get hot.  Jeff Gordon was on his way to his first Cup championship, TV ratings were on the rise, and for the first time ever, stock car racing was somewhat cool.  So what better way to celebrate the sport’s success than with an album of bland middle-of-the-road country music?

The Song: Cadillac Ranch

The Star: Rick Trevino

The Clip: https://youtu.be/9NlLf9_6f_8?si=4ow0lkkXST2nW3OM

The Review: An alright song weighed down by its subject/title.  Barring a few early races, who associates Cadillacs with Nascar?  Then again this song also mentions the noted Nascar hotbed of Houston.

The Verdict: Good music, irrelevant lyrics.



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Spade Racing Opens a Box of 2023 Donruss Cards, Pack 21 of 24



Pack 21: Super-sub, a friendly bub, and chicken sans rub


FIRST LOOK: Just how many teams has Josh Berry raced for in Cup this year?  He’s like the “all-time quarterback” in a flag football game.


TO THE BACK: DJ always came off like a cool, relatable guy to me.  He’s like most UPS guys, just without the brown shorts.


SAY WHAT: “I prefer more of a spice-hot than chili-hot in my chicken, but what do I know?”


RATING: 7 driver introductions out of 10



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NASCAR ROTY RANKINGS 1973: Ranking the Rookie of the Year Classes Through the Years



Join me as we take a look at every NASCAR Cup Rookie of the Year class from 1972 (the start of the modern era) through 2021, going from the worst to the first in terms of overall careers of each year’s rookie class.

1973

Lennie Pond's car in 1985

Winner: Lennie Pond (Elder-Ranier).  Runners Up: Darrell Waltrip (DarWal).  Aborted Attempts: Johnny Barnes

How their careers turned out: Nothing against Cup race winner Lennie Pond, but this just goes to show you how the ROTY results aren’t indicative of future success.  Darrell Waltrip, a three-time Cup champion, couldn’t beat Lennie Pond in his rookie year.  Oh well—at least Lennie never went on to bastardize the Past Champion’s Provisional.

“Fun” “Fact” about the winner: Lennie ALSO never went on to make vaguely threatening comments about the president.

Ranking: #18 out of 50



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Musically Declined: Nascar Runnin’ Wide Open—Runnin’ Wide Open



in 1995 Nascar was starting to get hot.  Jeff Gordon was on his way to his first Cup championship, TV ratings were on the rise, and for the first time ever, stock car racing was somewhat cool.  So what better way to celebrate the sport’s success than with an album of bland middle-of-the-road country music?

The Song: Runnin’ Wide Open

The Star: Joe Diffie

The Clip: https://youtu.be/RZBjEK-flas?si=dmuQop5mk7GPuLs8

The Review: Its the title track (which probably should’ve been track one, but anyways), and you know what?  It’s actually pretty good.  While I’d prefer something a bit of a faster beat in a song about, y’know, speed, its still decent enough.

The Verdict: Damning with faint praise here, but a good song that shines through the rest of the drivel on this album.



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The Hero Card Project, EPILOGUE

  


Another year, another season.  Another season, another batch of hero card requests sent out to Nascar Cup, Xfinity, Truck, and ARCA teams!  CLICK HERE to learn more about hero cards, one of my favorite things to collect.  These cards arrived in December:

Jordan Anderson Racing cards--one autographed!

Autographed cards from Emerling Gase



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NASCAR ROTY RANKINGS 1972: Ranking the Rookie of the Year Classes Through the Years



Join me as we take a look at every NASCAR Cup Rookie of the Year class from 1972 (the start of the modern era) through 2021, going from the worst to the first in terms of overall careers of each year’s rookie class.

1972

Runner-Up David Sisco

Winner: Larry Smith (Harley Smith).  Runner Up: David Sisco (McGee).  Aborted Attempt: Doc Faustina

How their careers turned out: Larry Smith’s promising young career (one that was funded by Carling Black Label beer) was halted due to a fatal crash at Talladega the following year.  David Sisco, meanwhile, was far greater as a local racer in Nashville, and mostly ran his own equipment in Cup.  The modern era for the ROTY award did NOT start out on a conspicuous note.

“Fun” “Fact” about the winner: Go to Larry Smith’s Wikipedia page to see what looks to be an opening paragraph edited by a ten-year-old.

Ranking: #45 out of 50



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Musically Declined: Nascar Runnin’ Wide Open—Racing With My Heart



In 1995 Nascar was starting to get hot.  Jeff Gordon was on his way to his first Cup championship, TV ratings were on the rise, and for the first time ever, stock car racing was somewhat cool.  So what better way to celebrate the sport’s success than with an album of bland middle-of-the-road country music?

The Song: Racing With My Heart

The Star: Sammy Kershaw

The Clip: https://youtu.be/m-7nFmO0enU?si=lK8D5jG1N6l4IK09

The Review: Any song mentioning a “Five and Dime” after 1978 is going to be pretty irrelevant.  Singers—if you love racing, maybe just describe how cool it is to race, instead of telling dull stories about it.

The Verdict: So generic you’ll forget about it while you’re listening to it.  


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