Youthful invasion healthy for grizzled Truck Series (cont'd)

Also, history shows us that drivers developed through the Truck Series have had great success.

Owen Kearns, senior manager of communications with the Truck Series who tracks development in the series, said Roush Fenway pretty much set the bar in terms of development, an initiative the team put in place when Greg Biffle came to the series in 1998.

Since then, the organization has produced five rookies of the year all under the age of 30, and jumped Kurt Busch, at age 21, and Carl Edwards, at age 25, directly to Sprint Cup.

Beyond that, the diversity in age and generations makes for an entertaining opening act for NASCAR fans. And without getting too analytical, I will point out that through three races, the Truck Series' TV ratings are up 30 percent in average households over last season.

Anyone's guess as to why is as good as any, but again, Kyle "Rowdy" Busch comes to my mind.

Braun, as well as myself, agree the differing ages and personalities is bringing a renewed intrigue to the Truck Series.

"I think it keeps things interesting," Braun said.

In years past, seemingly everyone running up front in the Truck Series was well into their 40s. Last year, the youngest members of the final top 10 were 31.

However, now, three of the top 10 and seven among the top 20 are 20-somethings, each individual getting a great racing education among veterans with significant Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series showings in equal equipment in some cases, Kearns said.

At least three drivers under 30 have finished among the top 10 in each of the three races thus far in 2008.

When young talent comes into any sport it increases the overall competition level. Also, it pushes the veterans to get up on the wheel, which will also help develop the young guns.

I think a shot of youth is good for the golden oldies of the Truck Series.

Besides, how entertaining would it be if we could see Rick Crawford or Ron Hornaday chase "Rowdy" Busch around the Truck garage cursing his "meddling" moves that foil their plans for a championship?

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.