Now I'm a stickler for keeping things the way they are - change and I don't always get along - but after Sunday's race at Pocono it is obvious change is in order. The Pocono Raceway has had a 500-mile race since Richard Petty won the inaugural event in August 1974. Since then, the 2.5-mile triangle-shaped track has produced little in terms of excitement. Sure there is always Jeremy Mayfield bumping Dale Earnhardt out of the way for the win in 2000, but the norm is usually what we witnessed on Sunday.

Being from the area - a native of New Jersey - my family and I always opted to see a race a Dover as opposed to Pocono. The track was too long, the race was too long, we had been told by many that the fans could hardly see any of the action - this was before the time of the Sprint Vision - and most importantly, we knew if we went to Dover we would see better racing.

Drivers have voiced their concern over the length of the races over the past few years and in June complained the heat in the car was almost unbearable. Most favor shortening the event to 400-miles, but their comments have often fell on deaf ears.

"I think the race is too long here," Earnhardt pointed out on Friday. "I think NASCAR thinks it's too long, but I think the track owners could care less how long it is (laughs). But they don't have to be out there running. But the fans, I feel like, might consider it. The majority may feel it's too long. I'd like to see a poll on that. But ya'll should do that. It seems like NASCAR listens to the fans. I read a lot of polls on line, more so than I read articles, just to see what the fans really think. But the people that are in charge of that will not change it for whatever reason, just for spite maybe, I don't know (laughs), but it seems like it's too long of a race. It's a big, big race track. It's no different really, personally, than running at Indy, and that's 160 laps. I know it's a 400-mile race and that's probably what they should be."

"I am always a fan of shorter races," explained four-time Pocono winner Jeff Gordon, "I just think they are more exciting. I think it depends on the lap times as well. This is one of the longest lap times that we have besides a road course and certainly the longest race that we have. To go 500 miles under this lap time is a long, long day and its gets pretty spread out. I just think we could put on a little more exciting race being a 400-mile race. I think would be a great show for the competitors and for the fans."

With Bruton Smith shopping around for a Cup Series date for his newly acquired Kentucky Speedway, Pocono seems like the perfect choice to lose one of its two dates. The track currently holds two dates on the Cup Series schedule only weeks apart. When drivers, fans and media alike complain about the type of racing seen at a track it is time to make a change.

Unfortunately for NASCAR and Bruton Smith, Pocono Raceway is independently owned by the Mattioli family and does not appear to be making any changes anytime soon. When asked in May if he would be interested in purchasing Pocono from the Mattioli's, Smith offered this, "I don't believe I can answer that properly, I'm always interested in a speedway - If I say anything about Pocono, it would indicate to you that it was for sale. I don't know if it's for sale or not. But if you're telling me it is, I'll make the phone call tomorrow."

Pocono currently holds more fans, with a grandstand capacity of 76,812 compared to 66,089 at Kentucky. However, one of the first things Smith announced would change about Kentucky was that he planned on creating an additional 50,000 seats over the next few months, which would boost attendance in the grandstands to over 100,000.

The biggest thing going for Pocono, besides being independently owned, is that it is the closest track to the New York market. Only ninety-miles away from New York City and Philadelphia, Pocono is able to attract attention in a market NASCAR has desperately tried to gain ground in for years. Yet, as I mentioned before, my family always chose to go to Dover and even Watkins Glen over a race at Pocono.

After Sunday's fuel mileage snoozer at Pocono it is clear change is long overdue for the 2.5-mile track. Whether it is listening to the fans and the drivers and shortening one - if not both - events to 400-miles or losing a date to Kentucky, either way change is in order. With the economy hitting fans in the pocket harder than ever, having the choice between seeing a race at Pocono or at another track might end up forcing the Mattioli's to alter their plans.