How NASCAR Can Avoid Rain Shortened Races

(Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

No one likes rain. It's cold, wet, and makes the day (and one's hair) look like hell.

When it comes to sporting events, rain is the baseball player breaking his favorite bat. It's the unsuccessful Hail Mary in the Super Bowl. It's the goal in hockey with just a few ticks left on the clock in the third period. 

Martin Brodeur, goaltender for the New Jersey Devils, knows all about that—and not in a good way.

Rain is NASCAR's greatest enemy. Rain is the silence at a racetrack that should have 43 screaming race cars competing. 

Rain just ruins everything.

Last weekend in New Hampshire, Joey Logano went from spinning, to losing a lap, to winning. How? Because it rained.

For Logano, a win is a win and the debate about whether or not he or any other rain winner deserves it is over. Instead, it's time to focus on the fact that the race didn't need to end like that.

No race does.

Thus far in 2009 two of NASCAR's biggest races were ruined by rain. The Daytona 500 and the Coca-Cola were both cut short due to the weather.

Unlike other sporting events, there are no roofs over NASCAR tracks—That's something never likely to happen.

Last year, however, the NASCAR Nationwide Series did race in Montreal with rain tires. That was a road course, though—where the cars are not traveling nearly as fast as they would be at Daytona or Atlanta. 

For anyone to want rain tires at tracks such as those would be suicidal—Except I say, let's cut them loose on road courses and see who can get it done.

But there is something that NASCAR officials can and should look into to help avoid more rain ruined races. 

The NASCAR schedule shows the start times for each weekend's race. Looking at the schedule for the second half of this season, one giant question hangs in the air.

Look at the start time for Daytona and Chicagoland, both night races—They are scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

Excellent, both are consistent times and both are perfect times for night racing. 

The next four races that follow: Indianapolis, Pocono, Watkins Glen, and Michigan are all scheduled for a 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time start.

Once again, NASCAR did a great job of keeping things consistent. But don't expect that for long and see if you can find where the giant question comes in.

The following three races—Bristol, Atlanta and Richmond—which lead to the Chase for the Championship, are night races.

But instead of being scheduled for 7:30 like Daytona and Chicagoland, Bristol is marked for 6:30 and the other two are marked for 7 p.m. Charlotte in October also has a 7:00 start time.

Why the difference?

Looking at the rest of the schedule, it's more of the same with scattered start times.

Loudon, Dover and Kansas, as well as Martinsville a few weeks into the Chase, actually follow the previous day races with a 1:00 start. Obviously, one is a popular choice and seems to work out.

Let's all vote for every day race to have a staring time of 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time... ok, glad that's settled.

Then Fontana, California is next up and West Coast races, day and night, are going to be difficult to please everyone with a time.

One thing that is certain is that there should in no way be a repeat of what happened at California in February of 2008.

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