Smack: Some rough Cup seasons could get rougher

1. We're halfway to the Chase, and right now Kasey Kahne, Clint Bowyer, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kevin Harvick are all outside of the top 12. Do any of those drivers stand a chance of getting in?

David Caraviello: Well, if Richard Petty Motorsports can work some magic with the new Dodge engine, Kahne might be able to sneak in. But the rest of those guys? I'm not optimistic. Too many of them have spent too much time heading in the wrong direction.

Raygan Swan: I like Clint Bowyer for this question, even though he has had some bad luck since his strong start to the season. Then again, Kahne is gaining ground and has three top-10s now. But I fear Kevin Harvick is out.

Joe Menzer: Of the four you mentioned, I think Kahne has the best shot of sneaking in. The Richard Childress Racing guys seem lost on the intermediate tracks that are so important, particularly Harvick after the crew swap with Casey Mears. And don't even get me started on Dale Jr. I think we all know his hopes for the Chase were all but extinguished last weekend in Charlotte.

David Caraviello: The Bowyer thing stumps me. Wasn't it just a few weeks ago -- OK, maybe it was longer than that -- when we were talking about what a great job he was doing with his new team? And suddenly they've taken a tumble. That seemed rather unexpected. But then again, maybe that's indicative of what's happened to the entire Richard Childress Racing stable, which seems struggling to just get one car into the playoff. This after two consecutive years of getting three cars in.

Joe Menzer: Kahne is showing signs of life, just as he did at about this point last season. If Sunday -- er, excuse me, Monday's race -- had gone the distance, it looked like it probably was going to come down to him and Kyle Busch.

Can still make it

As the halfway point to the Chase approaches and four drivers are within 100 points of 12th, Bill Kimm and Jason Schoellen debate which driver can still make the Chase.

• Head2Head: Chasing 12th
• Weigh in: Your thoughts

Raygan Swan: Kahne was in a position last season to make the Chase and didn't get it done in Richmond. But at least he produces enough to be in contention coming down to the end.

Joe Menzer: Bowyer has become a bit of a mystery, yes. But as you said David, no one at RCR is lighting it up right now. Not even Jeff Burton.

Raygan Swan: Kim Burton lit it up in the Pit Crew Challenge. Just saying.

Joe Menzer: Hey, you don't have to tell me about Kim Burton lighting it up in the Pit Crew Challenge. I was there. I saw with my own eyes. And her husband has been the best of the RCR bunch, but right now that isn't saying much. They are so far off it isn't funny -- and Burton said that if they didn't get it straightened out in Charlotte, it was going to be a big red flag of concern. Because they thought they had maybe found something.

David Caraviello: I agree with Raygan on Kahne -- he never seems to get buried, he either makes the Chase or just misses it. I wonder how much that has to do with the limitations of his manufacturer. Of course, Kurt Busch is showing that's not as much of an obstacle this year as it might have been in seasons past.

Raygan Swan: Yeah, Kurt is having a great season and winning races. Kahne will win a race, too. But you wonder how much the merger has affected him. Does he miss having Ray Evernham's support? That guy is no where to be found these days.

David Caraviello: Joe, on the RCR situation, you have to wonder -- is this all the result of expanding to a fourth team? Have resources and personnel so been stretched that performance as a whole is suffering? It doesn't seem purely coincidental, given the way they ran across the board the last two years, and the way they're running now.

Eury Jr. out

After one win in 48 races together at HMS, team owner Rick Hendrick decided a change was needed on the No. 88 team so Tony Eury Jr. has been removed as Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s crew chief.

• Complete story
• Audio: New crew chief for Jr.
• Harvick, Mears swap chiefs

Raygan Swan: I agree David, four teams could mean resources are spread too thin. Especially when the economy is as soft as it is.

Joe Menzer: Ray Evernham is off shining things in his new personal museum, which is very impressive. And helping prepare a different kind of "car" for a record land speed run with drag racer Doug Herbert behind the wheel. That's the kind of power Kahne needs, but isn't getting on a consistent basis in his No. 9 Dodge. As for four-car teams struggling, even the top organizations struggle to keep all four -- or for this year, at least, five in the case of Roush Fenway -- consistently competitive. But they've usually got at least a couple that are dynamite. RCR doesn't even have that.

David Caraviello: I mean, granted, Burton is hanging in there. And Bowyer is coming off a bad finish that dropped him four spots, making him look further from Chase contention than he probably is. But to see Kevin Harvick in 23rd place, one spot higher than Reed Sorenson, is sort of shocking.

Joe Menzer: The thing is, even with Burton, they aren't even threatening to win races right now. This after they hung their hat on reliability and consistency the last two years, when wins were scarce enough with three for the entire organization in each season. Maybe their struggles with the "new car" are the greater than others as far as making the kinds of improvements in performance that we've see, say, with Jeff Gordon's team at Hendrick.

Raygan Swan: Could the team changes at RCR really be having the big of an effect? Was it too much change too soon between Kevin's crew chief and Bowyer swapping teams with Mears?

Joe Menzer: The thing is, they were struggling before that and they've continued to struggle after. But I'd have to think that for Harvick, that swap was especially unsettling. He had been with crew chief Todd Berrier for years and they seemed to have a certain chemistry that now is lacking on that No. 29 team.

David Caraviello: But still, it could be a very interesting Chase, with maybe Mark Martin, one of (or both) David Reutimann and Juan Montoya, and the Stewart-Haas guys. Lot of unknowns there. New things to write about. I'm ready for September!

2. NASCAR held a first "town hall" meeting with competitors Tuesday at the Research and Development Center. Does such a move mean the sanctioning body is inching a little more toward democracy?

Joe Menzer: Let's hope so. It's long past due. They should have meetings like this more often. They've done some in the past, but this one seemed to have more of the give-and-take between the powers-that-be in the governing body and the drivers and owners who attended. In my mind, that's a move in the right direction.

David Caraviello: Democracy? What moron wrote that? No, this sport will never be a democracy. And unlike government, that's not necessarily a bad thing. The auto racing series that have traditionally been the best-run -- NASCAR and Formula One -- are that way because there's one guy at the top calling the shots. You want a democracy, look at the mess that was CART.

Raygan Swan: It will be if they actually listen to any of the people who attended the meeting, and from the reports it sounds like it was an even exchange between the drivers and the sanctioning body. I'm not big on one-on-one meetings behind haulers, because in an open forum you're more likely to really speak your mind. Really, it might be just a show at the end of the day, NASCAR's way of appearing to be open and flexible.

A little get-together

NASCAR held a town-hall meeting with drivers and owners covering everything from the economy to fans to the new car and the drug policy.

• Complete story
• Blog: NASCAR Says ...
• Audio: HMS weighs in
• Audio: Newman enjoyed
• Audio: Hunter pleased

David Caraviello: Hey, it's very good that NASCAR is calling all these guys together so issues can be aired. That's overdue, especially with the confusion over the drug policy. But don't think we're anywhere near the point where Brian France stands up front with a gavel and asks "Car of Tomorrow? All in favor say aye?" and policy is made by consensus. Given the disparate and sometimes conflicting interests of teams, sponsor, manufacturers and the like, there's no way the competitors themselves could cobble together rules and regulations that would be considered fair for everyone.

Raygan Swan: Yeah David, it was made clear in the meeting that the new car is going nowhere despite complaints from crew chiefs and car owners. But seemingly they are open to making some changes as long as they don't cost huge amounts of money.

Joe Menzer: You're right when you say it will never be a democracy, and it shouldn't be. What's the old saying? You can't have the inmates running the asylum. But I would add that every time one of them has an idea that might have some merit, you don't need to order up a lobotomy, either.

Raygan Swan: Ha, who would be the inmate of NASCAR? Tony Stewart or Kyle Busch?

David Caraviello: That much, Joe, is true. The old, "come on into the hauler and let's set a spell" approach was antiquated to say the least. There does need to be a more organized way for drivers to air grievances and ask questions. This town hall meeting was a nice step in that direction. Now we wait and see just how much NASCAR listened.

Joe Menzer: Speaking of ordering up a lobotomy, how about I order one now for whomever thought a $200,000 fine and 12-week suspension was fair for poor Carl Long.

David Caraviello: Well, I was sauntering down Bourbon Street when that whole thing went down, so I'm not exactly an authority on it. But you bring an engine thats out of spec to the race track, what do you think is going to happen?

Raygan Swan: Everyone feels sorry for Long, as do I. But the policy, like the drug testing policy should be, is black and white. No room for confusion. Why don't people get that? It's not a case-by-case policy, it's a one-size-fits-all with an appeal process that no one will ever win.

Joe Menzer: Listen, I'm not saying he shouldn't have been punished. But the punishment here doesn't fit the crime, and threatens to put the poor guy out of business. It didn't need to be so harsh.

David Caraviello: Well, something tells me the drug policy is a little more ambiguous than the rules governing engines. But I see where Carl says he bought it from a reputable source, so it looks like we have another he said/she said type thing brewing. Like we don't have enough of those already.

Joe Menzer: I think Long has a good chance of getting his sentence reduced via appeal in this case. If not, I guess he can take it to town hall. He'll have the time, if not the resources, to march around down there with a big sign.

Raygan Swan: For his financial sake, I hope so. How many jobs is he working now to go racing?

Joe Menzer: That's just it. His other jobs -- working as a spotter, helping out with other teams -- all hinge on his ability to go to the race track, even when he doesn't have his own car entered. Now he can't even do that.

3. Another of NASCAR's crown jewels has been shortened by rain. Really, there's nothing series officials can do in these situations -- right?

Raygan Swan: I have no right answer or even a good idea on this one, but perhaps a uniform rain policy is a good place to start. Maybe when the fans go home, everyone else should be able to go home.

David Caraviello: OK, I know race fans pine for fantastical rain tires, or domed tracks, or some sort of tarp that can be pulled down over the asphalt once it starts racing. But really, none of those options are realistic, at least not right now. Rain is an unfortunate part of the deal. It happens. Everyone has to come to grips with it.

Weekend Washout

The 24 Hours of the Coca-Cola 600 finally came to a wet finish Monday at 6:25 p.m. ET, with the end anti-climactic to all but a few.

• Complete story
• Rodman: Still a success
• Menzer: Thoughts during delay

Joe Menzer: Listen, I think they did all they could to get the 50th running of the Coca-Cola 600 in. (Sorry, I've been writing that so often for the last month that it's hard to stop cold turkey.) If anything, speaking for all of us who waited it out the entire two rainy days, I thought they should have called it earlier on Monday. It was obvious they weren't going to get back out there at least an hour before they made it official. In fact, several of the drivers changed out of their firesuits and into street clothes long before it was called. Word on the street is that some of them might even have left the track, although I find that a little difficult to believe.

David Caraviello: But Joe, I'd rather them wait too long to call it than call it quickly and have the rain stop -- which is what happened in the case of this year's Daytona 500. NASCAR looks better waiting a little longer than not waiting long enough. The latter feeds conspiracy theories that TV is making some of these rain calls.

Raygan Swan: I will say that I wish the broadcasters would just go back to regular programming instead of staying at the track. Really, who wants to watch Carl Edwards talk about eating a ham sandwich?

Joe Menzer: David, there you (and NASCAR) go again, worrying too much about what people might think. Just do the right, sensible thing and get on with it. There was no way they were going back racing after about 45 minutes of the final rain delay. And they made everyone suffer through almost another hour and a half before finally letting poor David Reutimann relax with the victory.

David Caraviello: Hey, perception is everything, baby. You have to worry about that. And the right, sensible thing is to wait. Hey, I know it stinks. Everybody loses. I waited out three days of rain at Michigan two years ago. But what are you going to do?

Joe Menzer: Spoken like a guy who was strolling down Bourbon Street at the time, probably half drunk out of his mind! I was stuck there at the track, man! It was pure misery!

Raygan Swan: Yeah, sorry Joe. I pulled the pregnant card, David, and went back home to Indiana! Did I mention that I love Duane Cross? But I served my rain time in Fontana this season and last. Rain delays are miserable, and the calls are not consistent. They need a written policy.

Joe Menzer: You should have been at the town hall meeting to bring that up. Unfortunately, I think writing up some kind of policy to uniformly handle rain delays is impractical and won't happen. Baseball doesn't have one, do they? As for racing, it depends on how hard the rain is falling and for how long and other variables, like the type of track it is and so on.

David Caraviello: And another thing -- enough e-mails about rain tires. Anyone who saw the rainy Montreal race last year knows that racing in the rain isn't feasible because of visibility reasons. Not to mention impossible on high banks. I know everybody wants it. It's not going to happen. I'm not a tire guy, and Goodyear may have some super-secret rain compound they're working on, but for now, please, let's put that old canard to rest once and for all. I mean, guys in that Montreal race were traveling at highway speed on a road course and still spinning out. And people think racing in the rain is viable on a high-speed oval? Talk about having one too many on Bourbon Street!

NASCAR's solution to rainouts? "It's like a shammy, it's like a towel, it's like a sponge. It's SHAMWOW! You'll be saying wow everytime."

Joe Menzer: Unfortunately, in this case, I think the sport is at the mercy of Mother Nature. But if they can do anything, maybe they can say once the race is more than halfway, they shouldn't make anyone -- fans, competitors, media -- wait more than an hour before either making the decision to get back out there and calling it for good. Then everyone can head home at a decent hour.

David Caraviello: I don't agree with that Joe. As big a part of this as the fans and everyone else are, this is ultimately about determining a winner in the fairest way possible. And if that means you wait, you wait. Competitors come first. Like a lot of things in NASCAR, you have to take rainouts on a case-by-case basis. It stinks that the two biggest races of the year thus far have been impacted by weather. Just stinks, no question. But until the guys at the R&D Center invent some giant fan to blow rain clouds out of the way, we're all going to have to deal with it.

Raygan Swan: What about that ShamWow thing I see on TV? It could be the officially shammy of NASCAR. Holds 12 times its weight in liquid!

David Caraviello: That's kind of how I felt last week, now that you mention it.

Joe Menzer: I realize the competitors come first. But when it becomes obvious there is no chance to get the race started again, they need to call it. Period. Sort of like this Track Smack. When Raygs starts talking about "that ShamWow thing" she saw on TV and loving our boss, I'm out.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writers.