Dave Kallmann

MILWAUKEE -- When, we ask, is the right time to wrap up a year that won't end? Because that pretty much sums up 2011 in motorsports.

Starting with a head-shaker of a Daytona 500, it included more monumental highs and heartbreaking lows than in any other in years. Maybe decades. With a sour economy continuing to play havoc with such a sponsor-driven industry, continuous deal-making and deal-scrambling have all but wiped out the off-season.

In most years, a 20-year-old winning his sport's biggest event could carry a season. That's almost an afterthought in a year that had a little of everything from A to Z, or at least from Bayne to Wheldon.

Mindful of holiday overindulgence, we'll try to break the year down into digestible bites:

MILWAUKEE -- It's always easier to spend someone else's money.

Take two examples from the past week.

1. An accident at Richmond International Raceway sends four-time champion Jeff Gordon slamming into a wall on the infield side of the racetrack, concrete not protected by the SAFER barrier system. The impact hurts. A lot. And the admonitions rain down: It's ridiculous a car can still hit an uncovered wall in a NASCAR event. There should be soft walls everywhere .

The series is more robust, with a deeper and more talented field of drivers and a buzz of excitement generated by changes to the lineup, schedule and rules.

All signs point to a great season for the IZOD IndyCar Series, even when you account for the way people tend to gush on the eve of opening day for any sport.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- He can drive a race car. That much we know.

But given his ascendance from bright young racing prospect to Daytona 500 champion in a single afternoon, an obvious question has arisen:

Who's Trevor Bayne?