Silly Season gets longer as sales continue to be larger

There might just come a time, in the not too distant future, where Silly Season in the Nextel Cup Series will begin at California ... in February.

Over the past 10 years, Silly Season's high-water mark has moved from as late as Charlotte in October to Charlotte in May, and there are plenty of reasons for this.

First, sponsorships and marketing initiatives have grown to the point where it takes several months to put all the pieces in place. Companies are ponying up $15-$20 million per season per car, and that's not chump change. If companies are switching teams, it takes time to undo the previous deal while at the same time getting the new deal done.

The real reason the annual dance of musical chairs is getting longer and longer is licensing and merchandise.

When Dale Earnhardt Jr. shocked the NASCAR world by announcing he was going to leave Dale Earnhardt Inc. for another team, the timing seemed odd. Why announce you're leaving in May, when there's still six months of racing?

So that the apparel and die-cast merchandise could be designed, approved and licensed in plenty of time for Christmas.

There were other factors in Earnhardt's decision to leave his father's company -- mainly his relationship with his stepmother and the feeling that he wasn't getting any younger in his chase for a championship. But you can bet that the marketing and merchandising timeline was at least in the top three reasons why the announcement had to be made so early.

All along, Earnhardt said that a decision on a contract extension with DEI had to be made by the end of May. Once the scenario played out, it was clear why that was: a short free-agency period would still leave plenty of time to get all the details worked out.

Most of the die-cast cars for which NASCAR is famous are manufactured elsewhere, mainly the Pacific Rim, China and Taiwan. Sponsorship with Hendrick's new team, whether it be Kellogg's, Budweiser or some other company, has yet to be announced, as has the number that Dale Jr. will carry.

Once those factors are known, the process can begin. Paint-scheme designs will be submitted, and the winning look will be transferred to plans bound for Asia. The order will be fulfilled and shipped back to the U.S. by slow boat.

If you noticed earlier this year, there were hardly any COT die-cast cars available when the COT made its debut at Bristol in April. The design of the car was late in getting approval by NASCAR, and that delayed the production approvals of the die-cast. (Continued)