Another month. Another JUST MY THOUGHTS. So here we go. 

1. RACES - The 2009 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will be comprised of 14 races. There are ALOT of fans complaining , but we can not put all the blame on NASCAR. Mansfield Motorsports Park closed, so that is one date lost. Waterford Speedbowl does not know if they are coming or going, so there is another date lost. Add those two races, and 16 would be a respectable Tour. You can not really blame Don Hoening for dropping a few races or the number could even be 18. I personally feel there were too many races at the same track anyhow. On the possitive side, since Whelen came onboard as Title Sponsor of the Tour, they have become the first and only division to run under the lights at Martinsville Speedway. In 2009 the Tour will make more history when they run the combination event at Bristol Motor Speedway. I think if this event proves sucessful, you may see Dover added next year. I am still wondering when the Tour will return to Richmond, and what happened to Watkins Glenn.  I think the way of the future will be having Modified events as part of NEXTEL Sprint Cup Series weeks at more tracks. New Hampshire and Bristol should be just the beginning. Just for good measures, I should mention that the much younger Whelen Southern Modified Tour has 16 races.

2. NORTH VS. SOUTH - They have gone to the same rules for cars, and from what I have heard the tire rules will now be the same as well. In 2009 a second combination event was added to the schedules of both the Whelen and Whelen Southern Modified Tours. Could we see even more combination races in the years to come ? Perhaps a new points system could be used. All Northern events would count towards a Northern Champion, Southern events towards a Southern Champion. The combination events would be used as a Bonus Point System to determine a National Champion. Drivers could also recieve bonus points for entering events outside of their region. This may entice Southern drivers to come North during their long break, and may also send more drivers South in the pre-Northern season. 

3. THE CUP INFLUENCE - Tony Stewart, Carl Edwards, Ryan Newman, Kevin Manion, Rob Fuller and others have either entered or provided cars for NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour events. Perhaps more could be done by these individuals to increase awareness for the division. Maybe they could take a young driver under their wing, and provide him or her with the oppurtunity to compete in a Modified. Hey, it's just a thought.

And finally:

4. WHY IS NASCAR NOT CASHING IN ? - It seems to me that the powers that be, say it with me now FRANCE FAMILY AND ISC want to squeeze every penny they can get out of fans. They try to corner the market from every angle possible. So, can someone PLEASE explain to me why they have not done more to corner the OPEN-WHEEL market. They already have the cars, they can attract the "big name" driver's (see above) and the division is.... wait a minute their FIRST AND OLDEST!!!! Yes, I am talking about the NASCAR Whelen and Whelen Southern Modified Tours. Come on NASCAR, you know you need a few more dollars. 

These are just my thoughts, agree or disagree I would love to see what you think.

Thanx for reading,
-WMT-