Full Throttle

The bigwigs that run ISC must be crazy, or stupid, or both. But for the moment I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt and believe they are just showing faith in NASCAR fans to act responsibly.

MARTINSVILLE, Va. (AP) — Martinsville Speedway will open its race season this week with a new policy, offering for the first time unlimited beer at track concessions but limiting how much fans can carry in coolers — a signature of the circuit.

Martinsville will usher in the policy at this weekend’s Advance Auto Parts 500. Qualifying starts Friday and the race is Sunday.

The rules are part of the corporate policy already in place at NASCAR tracks owned by International Speedway Corp. of Daytona Beach, Fla., a spokesman said.

“If you look, rarely do you see any alcohol-related incidents at motorsports facilities,” David Talley said. “We feel our fans will conduct themselves in an appropriate manner.”

On the other hand, I remember a few cases of fans throwing foreign objects on the track early last year. Apparently Mr. Talley has a faulty memory, or he believes those guilty were stone cold sober!

Riiiight! And the earth is flat, The moon is made of cheese and Van Gogh died with two ears.