Its trivial, I know. Can anyone tell me why the 1956 Pontiac Firebird concept car is on the official logo for the 2015 Daytona 500? :confused: :confused: http://www.conceptcarz.com/vehicle/z8698/GMC-Firebird-II-Titanium-Concept.aspx
This came out of Wikipedia= A miniature version of the Firebird I crowns the Harley J. Earl Trophy, given to the winner of the Daytona 500. My guess
Great question! I always recognized the car on top of the trophy as the Firebird I, but I never really thought about it.
They started racing at the current track at Daytona in 1958 I think, that's near the same time as the concept car, maybe that's why? :confused: Joey Logano, age 24, won the race today in a Ford btw.
The first race on the high-banked oval was the 1959 500 race. Before that, they raced on the sands of Daytona Beach, from before the war.
Just a thought,it also may have alot to do with the fact it is the Harley J Earl Trophy, and Harley J Earl also gets credit for the Firebird I design. That and the Time frame already mentioned. And the fact that it was and still is a Kool Design.
NASCAR used to race (modified) American stock cars. NASCAR is (was) an acronym for National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing. Now that the cars are all the same except for the decals, with no stock parts, I've lost interest and moved on. It's just too much like professional wrestling for me. Your results, of course, may vary.
My results are the same. There are no longer STOCK CARS racing. This also includes all major sports. A player no longer plays for the team he loves. He plays for the team owner who owns him. Your results are owned by millionaires.
The cars 'aren't stock' anymore primarily because all of the technology improvements in engine design, suspension, aerodynamics and tires (among other things) have made 'stock cars' unsafe at the speeds that they run. They needed to implement the somewhat standardized full tube frame / roll cage / side intrusion bar design so that the drivers could survive a 200mph wreck. They could have perhaps reduced mandatory engine size significantly to bring top speeds down to the 150mph range, but I'm not sure the NASCAR fans would have accepted that option.
Actually Marshall,, the engine size has been limited for a while.. Here is a quick look of NASCAR specs as of 2010... http://hometracks.nascar.com/nascar_101/Technical_Elements
....And they are still reaching speeds of 210+. I was talking about further reductions, like down to the 250 cubic inch range.....
