Earnhardt Jr. Coins a New Phrase
What has commonly been called “bump drafting” by fans, drivers, NASCAR officials and press alike has been given a new name by Dale Earnhardt Jr. “It’s more like slam drafting,” he said. “At Talladega we hit each other hard. It feels like being hit by a sledgehammer.”
“The car we’re taking this weekend had to have a whole new rear clip put on it, because it was so banged up from the last plate race,” he said. “But it’s a part of it. Some guys don’t like it, but I think it’s fun.
“If you do it right, it can be a big advantage, but if you don’t … it isn’t pretty.”
New name, old tactic, a tactic learned from Dale Sr. Here are a couple excerpts from a story about Senior’s last Talladega win and I highly suggestyou read the entire article. Earnhardt led the outside line. He was fourth. Two laps to go.
I was never a Dale Sr. fan, but that was a fantastic article.
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I thought so also. It captures in words very well what those last 20 or so laps were like.
After reading it I broke out the tape and watched the last fifty laps to refresh my memory.