Southern-fried speed

>>NASCAR driver Bobby Hamilton Jr. just
hopes to survive Montreal’s F1-friendly
Circuit Gilles Villeneuve

MCREDNECK RACER: Hamilton Jr. on the track

With more obvious candidate cities out West, it’s curious that NASCAR, the flag-waving-est exhibition of pure, unfiltered Americana, would choose Montreal, the land where Ferrari is king, as the point-of-entry for Canadian expansion. This Friday and Saturday, the Montreal NAPA Auto Parts 200 at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve will be the litmus test to see if Montrealers adopt big, ad-laden cars and flaming wreckage as another summer ritual. The Montreal stop will be a B-level Busch Series race, meaning that although many of the drivers for the A-series (called the Nextel Cup circuit) will be present for the extra check, the field will not feature many of the top names.

“We could get a warm welcome, or we could just hear that they like F1 better,” says Busch Series driver Bobby Hamilton Jr. He is a second-generation stock car driver and a proud Nashvillian; one who says winning by fuel mileage is boring and who doesn’t mind being referred to as a redneck.

“There’s so many people nowadays who aren’t off the cuff, they try to tell you what to say and how to act. That don’t fly in my court,” he says. “I’ll be politically incorrect with ya. If I got a comment about somethin’, you’re gonna know about it. I’m not ashamed of how I was raised; I was born in the country, and I don’t have a problem with people calling me [a redneck] because that’s what I am.”

Race organizers will be competing with Divers/Cité for like-minded fans, so Hamilton Jr. offers his unfettered advice. “If y’all wanna go to the gay party, go to the gay party, and if y’all wanna see NASCAR, go see NASCAR. It’s your money and your time.”

Look for more crashes

Back in June, a week after Lewis Hamilton won the Formula One Canadian Grand Prix, retired NASCAR legend Terry Labonte tested the Gilles Villeneuve track, putting a 1,400 kilogram stock car through the 4.361-kilometre track for the first time. Labonte’s best lap was 34 seconds slower than Hamilton’s fastest time in a 600 kilogram F1 car. Hamilton Jr., who admittedly is not a fan of road courses like the Circuit Villeneuve (most NASCAR races are staged on oval tracks), says the narrow track and tight turns explain the lack of speed. Hamilton Jr. says Labonte’s brakes were worn out after the session.

“I don’t think Busch cars or (Nextel) Cup cars are made to be road-course cars,” he says. “With (Labonte’s) brake problem, we’re going down there with the intent not to race hard but just to survive it.”

Hamilton Jr. is quick to point out how NASCAR and F1 differ. The obvious difference beyond the size of the cars is the numerous lead changes that occur throughout the race, and with so many big cars on the road, a spectacular crash is more the norm than an occasional phenomenon. For a guy often in the middle of these life-threatening collisions, Hamilton Jr. proudly says NASCAR’s primary selling point is unpredictability.

“We got fenders and quarter panels so a NASCAR can get in there and bang. F1 cars touch each other and more often than not they’re done. It’s a different atmosphere—instead of watching someone run in line and get five-second spreads between them, you get to see the leaders bumping and banging. People get to see tire smoke and they really enjoy that.

“You’re driving Talladega at 200 miles per hour and you only got two inches of space between you and the guys around you. The guy wrecks in front of you, he can take 13, 14 cars with him.” Nevertheless, Hamilton Jr. says a NASCAR is safer than an F1 car.

NOT APPEARING AT DIVERS/CITÉ PARTY: Bobby Hamilton Jr.

Ethanol-free

Up until this season, Busch series cars were still using lead additives in their fuel, further compounding the tricky debate about the environmental impact of NASCAR races. Concrete information is difficult to come by, but a typical race weekend would necessitate around 30,000 litres of gasoline. This year, GM Silverado pick-up trucks powered by E85 ethanol fuel were used in 10 races in the Craftsman Truck Series, and GM has been pushing NASCAR in the direction of renewable fuels for their racing cars, much like how IndyCar (an open-wheel race league) made the switch to 100 per cent fuel-grade ethanol this season. Hamilton Jr. says it’s an issue that hasn’t been brought up with drivers.

Hamilton Jr. hopes Montrealers will mingle with the many Southern fans who plan on making their first visit to Montreal by actively participating in the time-honoured ritual of tailgating. “Bring beer and somethin’ to grill,” he advises.