New Hampshire in November? Don't sweat it

By Ryan Smithson, Turner Sports Interactive
September 13, 2001
4:08 PM EDT (2008 GMT)

COMMENTARY

I can hear the jokes already.

Ryan Smithson

"Drivers will need snow plows in front of their cars!"

"Goodyear better make a snow tire!"

"New Hampshire 300 tickets - the perfect early Christmas gift!"

"Get your Rainbow Warrior parkas here!"

"After the turkey is finished, watch the New Hampshire 300!"

"The New Hampshire 300 - brought to you by Zerex and Klondike!"

Stop the jokes already. There was no option other than racing in Hew Hampshire in November, and it might go off without a hitch or a one-horse open sleigh.

This is a good solution. Holding a NASCAR race in cold weather is nothing new - they used to race in Richmond in late February, and we all know about Atlanta in November. If Green Bay can play (and watch) football in 10-degree weather, NASCAR can do this in 40.

To put it simply - it won't be a major problem, and it is certainly a minor one in light of what happened this week. Those people will be suffering for a lifetime. It won't hurt 100,000 people at the track to be cold for three hours.

What happened this week is a real problem. In light of these tragic circumstances, this was NASCAR's only option.

New Hampshire International Speedway

Actually, there might be some benefits to racing in November at New Hampshire. The teams are showing signs of wear -- this will definitely help break up the schedule a bit. The track is bound to be cold -- making the cars grip better under long green-flag runs, so maybe the race itself will be better.

One of the few problems will be getting heat into the tires. The way the solve this would be to run several hot laps - under yellow -- before the race starts to help build heat into the tires. They would also need to do this before restarting after a caution.

The cars will need a completely different setup, so maybe we will have a surprising winner. Those are always welcome.

Of course, the fans will be cold, but think of it as a Patriots game played in early winter. The fans in New England are used to it -- they know how to dress for cold weather. The drivers won't feel a thing - the winner will still emerge sweaty in Victory Lane.

Who knows - we might get lucky and be blessed with a sunny, 50-degree day. If not, who cares - it'll all be over in three hours.

And if not, your beer will still be cold.

NOTE: Ryan Smithson is Senior Producer of NASCAR.com. The opinions listed here are solely those of the writer. To provide feedback, email him at ryan.smithson@turner.com.