Austin Cameron Update - 05/02/2003

Over the past few weeks in the world of racing, there have been many incidents that have resulted in harsh criticism towards many drivers. Austin Cameron has been among the drivers to be on the receiving end of this criticism.

When I first heard of the Bullring incident, it was from people talking poorly about Austin. It was almost as if he was being condemned for what he did and I was very curious to see what he could have done that was so bad and what all the hype was about. I was shocked because from what I had seen of Austin and the NAPA organization, they were a class act group of people.

Prior to the Bullring at Las Vegas Motor Speedway race, I have to admit I wasn’t much of a NASCAR Winston West fan. I occasionally watched the TV races and almost always attended the live events at Evergreen Speedway, along with the results and stories on RacingWest.com. However, one does not need to be a Winston West fanatic to know who Austin Cameron and McAnally Racing are. After watching the Bullring race on TV and the interviews to follow, and then hearing what everyone else thought about the race and interviews, I seemed to interpret it differently than most.

Following the race it seemed the majority of people thought Austin was trying to excuse himself and his driving actions due to the fact of who he was affiliated with. I however didn’t take it that way at all.

What I saw during the race was some good hard, competitive racing. Fender to fender, doughnuts on the doors and an occasional friendly wave or two. Scott and Austin both have a lot of talent and it is awesome watching two people of that caliber go at it like that. That’s the excitement of Auto racing and it’s also what keeps people coming back for more. The end result of the battle wasn’t really what I had expected, but I saw it as a racing deal.

Typically when that type of racing incident happens, both drivers are obviously angry, the media wants to get the first word, so the drivers have a microphone shoved in their face and they say the first thing that’s on their mind which usually isn’t good. But hey, these are real people. They experience emotions as everyone else and of course, they get upset too. This happened in Austin’s interview but with the exception of something that I was impressed with.

What I have found in racing is that when these deals happen, drivers tend to blame each other so its never their fault. Austin really impressed me. Sure he was mad, and he said what was on his mind, but he also admitted that what he did was wrong, he made a mistake and he apologized for it. By saying NAPA doesn’t deserve it, I think he meant NAPA wouldn’t deserve the negative repercussions that were sure to follow the race. I really don’t think he was trying to excuse himself just because who sponsors him and what they do for the series he runs. I think that says a lot about Austin and what kind of person he is. It takes a lot to own up to your responsibility and admit when you do something wrong but it also says a lot about your character.

I have never met Austin or anyone affiliated with Austin, but I have a tremendous amount of respect for him as a person, driver, and competitor to the other Winston west drivers.

None of this is intended to persuade people to like Austin. This is purely an opinion of mine that I have wanted to share for the last few weeks. I’m not a driver and probably never will be, so I will never understand exactly what it’s like to be in Scott or Austin’s position. With that being said, thanks for taking the time to read my opinion and if you have any questions or comments, feel free to email me at Shoppey213@aol.com.

Rebecca :)