Don't cry for the qualifiers racing to a nice paycheck

Racing's always been about two things: the money and the competition.

It's hard to say which rates higher, because money buys speed. And since being the absolute best is what drives competitive people, you obviously need more money to buy more speed to ultimately win.

Sounds simple, right? But like most things as complex as a NASCAR race team, it just can't ever be that cut and dried.

Start and park

Some owners seem to have built a business model around simply making races to harvest some purse money. But is it really an issue at all?

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And when it comes to NASCAR racing, that's one of the things that makes it so rivetingly fascinating: the sheer complexity of it.

It's also why, in 2009 when the most money that has ever been at stake in the sport is on the table while the competition level is at its highest, that racing faces some of its most complex issues.

For some people, one of those sticking points seems to be competitors that they're apparently accusing of taking advantage of the system by qualifying for races, doing what seems like a minimal amount of preparation, taking the green flag and then running just a few laps before parking.

That apparently means in these folks' minds, just taking a walk to the bank to make a deposit.

They just don't get it. All they're seeing is dollar signs, when at the root of it all is competition, pure and simple.

But don't let me tell it -- listen to someone who's raced at every level NASCAR has to offer, from the weekly series through regional touring to all three national tours, as a crew chief.

"People just don't understand how hard it is just to make these races," the crew chief said, off the record because it's just as obvious that most people don't understand the emotion and human investment that goes into racing at this level.

"They have no idea what it takes to do this, and what the guys who are doing this at the highest level put into it. They are busting their [guts] to get to the race track and to make a race -- and they definitely don't get the credit they deserve when they're successful." (Continued)