FanHouse Coca Cola600

Welcome back to another edition of Sprint Cup Notes & Quotes, where even Noah couldn't keep his boat afloat after the non-stop rain at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

Are you one of those lonely souls mad that David Reutimann snookered 'em -- yep, that's the first recorded use of that word on FH -- to win his first career race Monday afternoon?

If so, get over it. First time winners are fun to see, and when the race officially ended he was the car leading everyone else. Kyle Busch, Brian Vickers and the rest of the field didn't have to pit, but they did -- and that's just the way it goes.

I'd still like an explanation as to why NASCAR decided on a start time of 12 p.m./EDT for the Monday make-up of its longest race.

For once, NASCAR as a sanctioning body completely deserves a heaping of praise.

Nope, there won't be rubbing, questioning or accusing in this post because its actions Monday afternoon concerning the true spirit of Memorial Day in the States is something a lot of fans won't soon forget. And should they, on any level -- whether it involve a national anthem singer or the allowance of a foreign-owned manufacturer in the sport -- there's one moment to fall back on.

That moment came at exactly 3PM Monday when NASCAR threw the red flag over the Coca-Cola 600, brought the field to a stop, quieted the cars and stood at silent attention in honor of the service of the men and women of the armed forces.

CONCORD, N.C. -- For 49 years, the crown jewel of Lowe's Motor Speedway had never failed to run a lap on the day it was scheduled.

A heavy rain shower, though, thoroughly doused the 1.5-mile speedway seemingly just minutes before NASCAR was to give the Coca-Cola 600 field the command to fire engines, leaving the 50th edition to set a disappointing new benchmark for the nearly sold-out crowd.

Now, the race will fire off on Monday afternoon, with NASCAR saying the green flag will fall at 12:01 pm/ET and television coverage provided by FOX.

Where: Lowe's Motor Speedway
Time: Sunday 5:45 p.m./EDT
TV/Radio: FOX Sports, PRN Radio
Twitter: In-race updates at FanHouseRacing
Forecast: 64 degrees, 80% chance of rain
Distance: 400 laps (600 miles)
Pole Winner: Ryan Newman
2008 Winner: Kasey Kahne
First-time NASCAR winners have been commonplace at Lowe's Motor Speedway for quite a few years now. Jeff Gordon got his first there as did Jamie McMurray, Matt Kenseth and Casey Mears.

Sunday night, though, the favorites look to be of the veteran variety.

FH writers Holly Cain and Geoffrey Miller are taking part in both major American races this weekend. Here, they go Wheel2Wheel on some major issues facing each sport.

There's been lots of talk about Danica Patrick this week moving to NASCAR. We'll ask again: is this for real?

Holly Cain: While Danica is clearly enjoying her flirtation with NASCAR, I don't think it's a real option - yet as much as a bargaining ploy to land a good IndyCar ride.

Geoffrey Miller: I couldn't agree more, though a move by her would be a tremendous short-term gain for NASCAR in terms of a new character in the garage.

CONCORD, N.C. - Mike Bliss has again found some tremendous success at the only track in NASCAR's Nationwide Series he's ever won at.

Five years after scoring his first career Nationwide win at Lowe's Motor Speedway, Bliss used a bit of pit road luck, a timely caution and an even more timely rain shower to win the delayed and shortened Carquest 300 that say yours truly and thousands of others walk out thoroughly soaked.

The win, and the right-time-and-right-place racing luck, also gave his Phoenix Racing team their second surprise win in a month in NASCAR competition.

Follow Motorsports FH from Lowe's & Indy on Twitter! FanHouse Racing

Suspended and embattled Sprint Cup driver and team owner Jeremy Mayfield has picked up a lawyer in his bid for NASCAR reinstatement, and the attorney feels the evidence in favor of his client is quite compelling.

"Somebody is going to have to come forward and acknowledge that, well, we thought we did what we were supposed to do, maybe we made a mistake, let's try it again," said Mayfield's attorney Bill Diehl, suggesting NASCAR's next step in the process that has suspended the driver indefinitely from the sport during an interview on Sirius Speedway Wednesday.

Given history has yet to show a single lawyer not confident in a coming case, the factors seem to making the case for Mayfield's reinstatement a little brighter.

Musings, rumblings and ramblings from Geoffrey Miller after Saturday night's Sprint All-Star Challenge

'Wooooooooo!' to LMS, NASCAR

I'm not sure who makes the final call on the All-Star race format, but Saturday night's version is about as a good as it gets. That 10-lap finale? Adjectives don't describe that, but honorary race director Ric Flair's trademark "Woooooo!" does.

'Woooooo!' Part Deux

The single funniest moment of the night? Joey Logano's Ric Flair imitation after being announced as the fan vote winner. [Watch here at 1:16]

I can no longer grin and bear it.

Never again will I propose a slight substitute or alteration, nor will I pitter-patter around the bush when asked what NASCAR can do to make racing better. Consider this the start of a crusade -- likely a powerless one, but meaningful nonetheless -- to help NASCAR see the ills of its head in the sand ways.

Race fans, it's imperative we see this through: NASCAR desperately needs to implement a double-file restart rule with the leaders up front for every single race on its 36-race schedule.

So how does a "Top-5" car run in the middle of the pack for nearly an entire race?

Just ask Jeff Gordon.

Following last Sunday's Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's Motor Speedway, Gordon found himself with a fourth-place finish in NASCAR's longest event after stretching his fuel mileage late in the race. That finish, though, wasn't an accurate picture of Gordon's night at LMS.

According to NASCAR's loop data, Gordon had an average running position throughout the race of 19th. Winner Kasey Kahne however averaged a 5th-place effort.

In years past, statistics like that and Gordon pulling out a fourth-place finish would be indicative of a car that just wasn't performing throughout the event, but that simply wasn't true. Instead, what kept Gordon -- and plenty of other drivers -- from moving through the field was his track position.

"...When we got up front there and got our lap back, I thought hey, you know, we've got a pretty decent car. We just need track position," said Gordon after the race. "Once we got our lap back, we were back in the back again and there were cars all over the place."

"You just can't go anywhere and you can't pass anybody."

As a race fan, I'm not particularly fond of a driver saying "you can't pass anybody".