Maybe it's just time to re-set expectations.
For those of us who were around for the early days of the All-Star race, we fondly remember how, every other year, something wild and memorable happened. Those who weren't around keep seeing those moments play out in promotional spots for the event.
What folks tend to forget is that the event wasn't a home run every year. In year two for instance, the one race not run at Charlotte, Bill Elliott won by 5 laps in Atlanta. Okay, it only seemed that way; and since there were more media people than fans there, who is still around to dispute my claim?
In fact, the move to a night race was a response to RJ Reynold's desire to pump some life back into the event. Boy, did it!
Unfortunately, it's been a while since we had one of those signature moments. To their credit, the folks at Sprint and Charlotte Motor Speedway keep trying to find ways to make things more exciting and less predictable.
Maybe it's our expectations that need to change. Accept that it's racing on a weekend we wouldn't have any. It's the biggest stars in the sport in a relatively short event. And, just maybe, if the cards fall right, we may see something memorable.
And, green flag it 8:00 instead of 9:40.