There are sports columns that are so bad that readers stop reading after the first paragraph or two – sometimes even after the first sentence.
Then there are sports columns that absolutely hit the target dead-on.
Huntsville (Ala.) Times columnist Mark McCarter falls into the latter category. His column on Barber Motorsports Park and this past weekend’s IndyCar race there absolutely, positively nailed it – with some good-natured humor thrown in.
From the headline, a reader is immediately drawn in: “The preposterous notion of an IndyCar race in Alabama turns out to be a rousing success”
You can click on the headline to read the whole column, but we’d be remiss if we didn’t repeat the best part of McCarter’s outstanding piece of prose:
Just as (track founder/builder George) Barber envisioned, (Barber Motorsports Park) also was a magnificent racing venue for the daredevils on two wheels and those expensive, sleek sports cars that make so many cameo appearances in mid-life crisis dreams.
But IndyCars?
C’mon.
Too tight. Can’t pass. Too many elevation changes.
And, besides, didn’t anybody look at a map?
It’s Alabama, for cryin’ out loud.
It’s Talladega territory, the sole – and soul – of NASCAR’s Southern footprint. This is where kids are taught to count, “One … two … Earnhardt … four…”
But, look here. The Honda IndyCar Grand Prix of Alabama is in its fifth season. It’s still a hit.
Indeed, IndyCar racing continues to be a big hit and success deep in the heart of Dixie, and will likely keep doing so for many more years to come. Who knew?
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