Sun could provide problem in Phoenix
Anyone who drives a car has at one time or another been at least momentarily blinded by the glare of setting sun.
Try having that happen at 150 mph.
“I noticed yesterday in practice the sun was coming under the grandstands right in your eyes,” said Rusty Wallace, who will join 42 of his NASCAR Nextel Cup competitors in today’s Subway Fresh 500 – a 312-mile (500-kilometer) race that will begin in daylight and end under the new lights at Phoenix International Raceway.
The problem in Thursday’s practice came between 6 and 6:30 p.m., which will be about one hour into today’s race. Unless the day turns out overcast that could lead to problems.
“You’re right up against the wall, and that was really touch and go,” Wallace explained. “When you’ve got sunlight right in your face going into turn one, that’s one thing. You know kind of what to expect. But when you’re wide open in the throttle coming off (turn) four and the sun is glaring in your eyes and you have to make a turn there, I think that’s the tough turn.”
It’s just the latest sun problem faced by Cup drivers as NASCAR continues moving races into TV’s prime-time hours on the East Coast.
NASCAR spokesman Jim Hunter said the sanctioning organization is aware of the situation, but that officials are counting on the ingenuity of the Cup teams to ease the problem.
“These guys know what they’ll be facing and they have dark face shields for their helmets and some other things to keep from being blinded,” Hunter said. “I’m sure our officials will be keeping a close eye on it to make sure it doesn’t become a big problem.”
Four-time series champion Jeff Gordon thinks it might already be a big problem.
“I love night racing, but I’m extremely concerned with the starting times of these races,” Gordon said. “I don’t think they’re taking the competitors into account enough because they’re not recognizing how the sun sets and how blinding it is at some of these racetracks.
•Gordon, who posted a speed of 133.675 mph, won the pole position for the Subway Fresh 500 today, beating out reigning series champion Kurt Busch’s 133.254 mph.
Biffle Buschwhacks Busch regulars
Greg Biffle survived an early spinout and grabbed another dominating victory, this time overpowering the field in the NASCAR Busch Series race at Phoenix International Raceway in Avondale, Ariz.
The former Busch Series champion and current Nextel Cup star won the Cup race last Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway and followed it with the win in the Bashas’ Supermarket 200 on the mile oval at Phoenix, leading 112 of the 200 laps.
Biffle became the latest in a long line of Nextel Cup stars – known as Buschwhackers – to beat the Busch Series regulars. It was his 17th Busch victory, but his first since last September at California Speedway. He previously won in Phoenix in 2001.
The race was marred by crashes and spins that resulted in 14 caution periods for 67 laps and two red-flag stoppages. That easily broke the Busch track record of nine yellows.