Someone please give this man a ride? Credit: Autostock

We wonder ...

A weekend on a road course leaves us with plenty of questions

... why isn't Boris Said's name being mentioned for one of the open seats in Nextel Cup?

Am I missing something here? The guy has a dedicated fan base, is a great interview and he can flat out drive a race car. And as Duane Cross pointed out to me, he proved at Daytona that if you put Said in good equipment, he can run up front -- road-course or not.

	Mark Spoor
	DO YOU WONDER? Tell Mark what has you shaking your head

Is it because he's not 19 years old? When did that become a prerequisite to driving in NASCAR? Everyone is looking for the next Denny Hamlin or Kurt Busch and in the meantime we're forced to endure a dozen or so caution flags -- on a road course.

Sooner or later, one of these car owners has to be able to make a convincing argument to a potential sponsor that experience is something to be cherished, not scoffed at.

And sooner or later, one of these sponsors has to be willing to believe it.

... can someone please tell Kurt Busch to stop making those snow angels?

He's like that guy we all have in our circle that tells the same bad joke every time you see him. You know the guy -- you see him like once every couple months and every time he tells that awful story about when you got thrown out of a bar while you were in college -- 15 years ago.

It wasn't funny the first time and it's not funny this time, either.

As I watched Busch do his little move after winning the Busch race on Saturday, I couldn't help but remember a series of interviews our boy did earlier in the year where he proclaimed he was a man's man.

"I'm a working man's man," Busch told our Dave Rodman in June. "If I've got a broken toilet, I'm going to go to Lowe's or The Home Depot and buy the parts that I need and I'm going to fix it myself."

Yeah, I could certainly picture someone like Dale Earnhardt celebrating a win by doing a snow angel -- on asphalt.

And just so all the Kurt Busch fans don't think I'm picking on him ...

... what was Kurt Busch supposed to do to avoid that penalty Sunday?

Credit: Autostock

Official Results AMD at The Glen Pos. Driver Make 1. Kevin Harvick Chevrolet 2. Tony Stewart Chevrolet 3. Jamie McMurray Ford 4. Robby Gordon Chevrolet 5. Carl Edwards Ford 6. Scott Pruett Dodge 7. Elliott Sadler Ford 8. Ryan Newman Dodge 9. Kyle Busch Chevrolet 10. Denny Hamlin Chevrolet • Complete results, click here • Official standings, click here Victory LaneHarvick celebrates his AMD at The Glen win SpinnersJeff Gordon and Dale Jr. stumble at The Glen Big wreckA pileup takes out several on Lap 61 Tough weekendBiffle crashes into guardrail, taking him out of contention CautionKyle Busch causes caution when tire goes flat Green flagStart troublesome for Kurt Busch and Sadler Sign up for TrackPass now BUY THE NEXTEL i836

This is something we can all relate to. You're zooming down the highway and the traffic light you're coming up on is yellow. You don't know if you're going to make it, so you give yourself the benefit of the doubt and go by it.

Most times, you pay no penalty. Busch can hardly say the same.

He was probably five feet from the commitment line when the red lights came on signaling that pit road is closed. There was no way that Busch could go back out on the track. What was he going to do, pull a uee?

The argument was made on NBC's coverage that Busch could have just gone through pit road and went back on the track, but that's nothing more than a self-induced penalty. The No. 2 team still loses track position on a course where it is difficult to pass, at best.

There should be a grace distance a few feet before the commitment line where you can stop without incident. When you receive a penalty, it should be because you had a chance to make things right and chose not to. A dominant car -- as Busch's was -- should not be taken out of contention because a guy in the tower threw a switch.

... aren't Jeremy Mayfield and Elliott Sadler the same driver?

It's no secret that Elliott Sadler is going to the No. 19 car -- despite all the cleverly worded interviews Ray Evernham gave where he called Sadler "the 2007 driver," like he's Mr. Wrestling II or something.

Sounds like a big deal, but is it really? Sadler and the man he's replacing, Jeremy Mayfield, are basically the same driver.

Not literally, of course. But statistically they are. Since 2000, Mayfield, with 10 fewer starts, has four wins to Sadler's three. Mayfield has 26 top-fives to Sadler's 16. Mayfield has 57 top-10s to Sadler's 50.

And the clincher: Mayfield's average finish is 21.062 while Sadler's is 21.455.

Both have, shall we say, a distinctive talking style and both enjoy poking fun at themselves.

The difference would be ...?

... why doesn't Delana Harvick go to road-course races?

During his Victory Lane interview Sunday, Kevin Harvick said hi to his wife Delana and said that she doesn't go to road-course races.

Is it that she doesn't like road-course racing? Does she not like Watkins Glen or Sonoma? Inquiring minds would like to know.

... could Mark Martin either retire or just tell us he's going to drive forever?

Mark Martin said Sunday on SPEED's NASCAR Raceday that next season he plans to drive the full Craftsman Truck Series schedule plus a dozen Nextel Cup Series races if he can get sponsorship.

I'm confused. When Martin first said he was going to retire, what, like 10 years ago, he said he was doing so because he didn't like the demanding schedule. But -- and I know my math can be suspect -- the Craftsman Truck Series runs 25 races a year. That, added to a dozen Cup races adds up to 37 events, one more than a Nextel Cup season minus the Bud Shootout and All-Star race, which by the way Martin would be eligible for.

Don't get me wrong. Martin shouldn't retire. He's still a competitive driver, to say the least. Plus, I think NASCAR needs his veteran presence now more than ever. Still, the whole, "I'm leaving, I'm not leaving, I'm kind of leaving" thing is getting tiresome -- quickly.

Just drop it. Refund all the money from those "Salute to You" t-shirts, give the rocking chair back to FOX, race as much as you want to and don't apologize for it.

You're a racer. Race.

The opinions expressed are solely of the writer.