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Happy Monday all. Another work week in the makings hope you all had a fabulous weekend.
Countdown to Daytona
Countdown to Daytona
Here y'all go:
Daytona Countdown: '86
Bodine benefits from Earnhardt misfortune; Challenger explodes
By Mark Aumann, NASCAR.COM
When Dale Earnhardt ran out of fuel with three laps to go, Geoff Bodine found himself alone and heading for victory in the 28th Daytona 500 on Feb. 16, 1986. Earnhardt had beaten Bodine twice earlier in the week, but the third time was not the charm, even though Earnhardt was poised to make a slingshot pass for the lead.
A 1986 Chevrolet Monte Carlo Super Sport SS listed for $12,865, so if Bodine had chipped in another $60, he could have purchased 15 Monte Carlos -- not including a fleet discount, tax, tags or title.
ALSO IN 1986 ...
• The U.S. Senate allows its debates to be televised on a trial basis (Feb. 27)
• "Captain Midnight" (John R. MacDougall) hijacks HBO's satellite and transmits his own message to HBO viewers (April 27)
• In London, Prince Andrew, Duke of York marries Sarah Ferguson at Westminster Abbey (July 23)
• Desmond Tutu becomes the first black to lead the Anglican Church in South Africa (Sept. 7)
• The centennial of the Statue of Liberty's dedication is celebrated in New York Harbor (Oct. 28)
Courtesy: Wikipedia
On Jan. 23, the first group of musicians were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. They included Chuck Berry, James Brown, Ray Charles, Fats Domino, the Everly Brothers, Buddy Holly, Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis Presley.
If Bodine had wanted to be at the induction ceremony, the 317-mile trip from his hometown of Chemung, N.Y., would have taken six hours in the stock Monte Carlo SS -- or two hours and eight minutes in the stock-car Monte Carlo, based on Bodine's average winning speed of 148.124 mph.
On Jan. 24, the Voyager 2 space probe made its first encounter with Uranus. Venus by Bananarama was one of the top selling singles of 1986.
On Dec. 23, flying an experimental plane named "Voyager," Burt Rutan and Jeana Yeager completed the first nonstop circumnavigation of the earth by air without refueling in nine days, three minutes and 44 seconds.
On March, the Japanese space probe Suisei flew past Halley's Comet. Bill Haley -- famous for his 1954 hit, (We're Gonna) Rock Around the Clock -- was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.
On Jan. 12, the first Hispanic-American astronaut -- Dr. Franklin R. Chang-Diaz -- lifted off in Columbia. Sixteen days later, the first teacher in space -- Christa McAuliffe -- is killed, along with six other astronauts, when Challenger explodes 73 seconds after liftoff.
On Feb. 7, President Jean-Claude Duvalier fled Haiti after 28 years of dictatorship, while on Feb. 25, President Ferdinand Marcos fled the Philippines after 20 years of rule. When The Going Gets Tough, The Tough Get Going was a hit for Billy Ocean in 1986.
On Feb. 19, the Soviet Union launched the Mir space station. Two months later, the Chernobyl nuclear plant launched itself across much of the Ukraine and Belarus, killing at least 31 people and exposing thousands more to radiation.
On Jan. 9, Kodak handed over the instant camera business to Polaroid after losing a patent battle. On Jan. 20, the United Kingdom and France shook hands after agreeing to construct the Channel Tunnel. On May 25, millions of Americans held hands for "Hands Across America," reportedly raising $30 million for the nation's hungry and homeless.
On Nov. 3, a Lebanese magazine reported that the United States was selling weapons to Iran in secret to secure the release of seven American hostages being held in Lebanon. Two weeks later, National Security Council member Oliver North and his secretary started to shred documents implicating them in the sale of weapons to Iran and channeling the proceeds to help fund the Contra rebels in Nicaragua.
On April 3, IBM unveiled its first laptop, the PC Convertible. In July, Apple discontinued its Lisa computer. On Nov. 11, Sperry Rand and Burroughs merged to form Unisys.
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That's history....
NASCAR’s Checkered (Flag) Past, One Story at a Time
Slingshot Move
Amy Henderson
Talladega. The name alone sends shivers along the spines of even the most hardened fans (and drivers). The 2.66-mile Superspeedway, located in the heart of the Deep South, has more lore attached to it than all but the oldest of NASCAR’s venues. Built on the site of a long-abandoned military installation, it’s also rumored to be set squarely on top of a Native American burial ground. Some have sworn they heard voices as they circled at top speed around the behemoth track.
Stories abound about the place. Drivers threatened to boycott its high banks and seemingly endless backstretch. Until very recently, one of Talladega’s two races was held under a sweltering summer sun, so hot that fire extinguishers mounted in the cars would go off on their own. The official qualifying speed record for a NASCAR stock car was set there, over 212 miles an hour by a young and apparently fearless Bill Elliott. It scared somebody enough to invent what some call the scourge of big-track racing, the dreaded restrictor plate, but not before Elliott etched one of his own racing legends, making up more than two laps under green flag conditions. In a test of high-speed communications in 2004, Rusty Wallace, one of the few drivers who raced before plates became the rule, ran an unrestricted lap of roughly 220 miles per hour. Oh yeah, and he said he lifted off the throttle.
But those (and countless other) stories will have to wait. I’m going to tell you another story today. Watching racing at Talladega is like playing with a jack-in-the-box. You know the kind, it plays a tinny “Pop Goes the Weasel” as you turn the crank, and the clown springs out of the top when the song gets to the “Pop!” No matter how many times you set that thing off, no matter that you know fully what’s going to happen, it still scares the bajeebers out of you. Every single freakin’ time. As does the so-called “Big One,” the multi-car, chain reaction accident that occurs at restrictor plate races like clockwork because the cars run in tightly bunched groups wrought with aerodynamic instability at high speeds. Breathe on a car in the main pack, it’ll get sideways. And so will the cars next to him, and behind him. Literally half the field can be caught up in the Big One. Watching on television, it seems eerily silent as it comes, a predator that knows we expected it and still finds a way to sneak up when we aren’t looking. The Big One in question took place in April 1996.
The incident began as a minor lap 130 dispute over a piece of turn one real estate too small for both the racecar of Mark Martin and that of Jeff Gordon. One pushed, the other shoved, and a lot of people suffered the aftermath. Especially Ricky Craven.
The day had already seen an aerodynamics display in which Elliott got turned, got airborne, and got taken to the hospital. Elliott suffered a broken femur, the largest bone in the leg, and would require surgery, missing six weeks of action while it healed.
When Gordon and Martin tangled, they wiggled, almost righted, and checked up enough for the field to jam up behind them. Thirteen cars got involved in the free-for-all and Craven spun. When a speeding racecar gets spun backwards at speeds somewhere in the vicinity of 180 miles an hour, air gets under the car’s rear end, which is significantly higher off the ground than the nose. Despite devices like roof flaps designed to keep the car on the ground, they act more like small airplanes than large cars. Which is what happened to Craven.
The chain link fence that sits on top of and is rooted deep into and even below the retaining wall is called the catch fence. Catch Craven’s flying racecar it did, probably saving the lives of a section of fans and possibly Craven too. What it next, however, was beyond the fence’s job description. When 3400 pounds of racecar slammed the links and guy wires on the fence, the fence gave against the force. When it had stretched as far as the cables would allow, it snapped back, launching Craven’s car like a giant slingshot, back across the track. The driver knew it was a hard hit, but other than some neck pain, didn’t think it was a terrible crash, all things considered
Craven was airlifted to a Birmingham hospital with a cracked vertebra in his neck while the race was red flagged for more than an hour to repair the courageous catch fence. The race eventually got underway, and Sterling Marlin took the checkered flag and went to victory lane.
Craven, at the hospital, managed to catch the end of the race coverage on TV. The driver happened to see the replay of an earlier wreck. He watched Jeff Gordon and Mark Martin fight over some real estate. He watched the field bunch up like an accordion. It happened so fast, it was hard to see the car numbers as they crumpled and spun. Craven watched one car lift above the others like a wayward bird, slam into the catch fence, and fly back through the field like a stone from a slingshot before coming to rest on the flat inside of the oval. “Boy, do I feel sorry for that guy,” thought Craven.
Upon closer inspection, Craven realized that “that guy” was, in fact, him. He continued his season despite the injury to his neck, permanently etched on highlight films for years to come. And that’s history.
Slingshot Move
Amy Henderson
Talladega. The name alone sends shivers along the spines of even the most hardened fans (and drivers). The 2.66-mile Superspeedway, located in the heart of the Deep South, has more lore attached to it than all but the oldest of NASCAR’s venues. Built on the site of a long-abandoned military installation, it’s also rumored to be set squarely on top of a Native American burial ground. Some have sworn they heard voices as they circled at top speed around the behemoth track.
Stories abound about the place. Drivers threatened to boycott its high banks and seemingly endless backstretch. Until very recently, one of Talladega’s two races was held under a sweltering summer sun, so hot that fire extinguishers mounted in the cars would go off on their own. The official qualifying speed record for a NASCAR stock car was set there, over 212 miles an hour by a young and apparently fearless Bill Elliott. It scared somebody enough to invent what some call the scourge of big-track racing, the dreaded restrictor plate, but not before Elliott etched one of his own racing legends, making up more than two laps under green flag conditions. In a test of high-speed communications in 2004, Rusty Wallace, one of the few drivers who raced before plates became the rule, ran an unrestricted lap of roughly 220 miles per hour. Oh yeah, and he said he lifted off the throttle.
But those (and countless other) stories will have to wait. I’m going to tell you another story today. Watching racing at Talladega is like playing with a jack-in-the-box. You know the kind, it plays a tinny “Pop Goes the Weasel” as you turn the crank, and the clown springs out of the top when the song gets to the “Pop!” No matter how many times you set that thing off, no matter that you know fully what’s going to happen, it still scares the bajeebers out of you. Every single freakin’ time. As does the so-called “Big One,” the multi-car, chain reaction accident that occurs at restrictor plate races like clockwork because the cars run in tightly bunched groups wrought with aerodynamic instability at high speeds. Breathe on a car in the main pack, it’ll get sideways. And so will the cars next to him, and behind him. Literally half the field can be caught up in the Big One. Watching on television, it seems eerily silent as it comes, a predator that knows we expected it and still finds a way to sneak up when we aren’t looking. The Big One in question took place in April 1996.
The incident began as a minor lap 130 dispute over a piece of turn one real estate too small for both the racecar of Mark Martin and that of Jeff Gordon. One pushed, the other shoved, and a lot of people suffered the aftermath. Especially Ricky Craven.
The day had already seen an aerodynamics display in which Elliott got turned, got airborne, and got taken to the hospital. Elliott suffered a broken femur, the largest bone in the leg, and would require surgery, missing six weeks of action while it healed.
When Gordon and Martin tangled, they wiggled, almost righted, and checked up enough for the field to jam up behind them. Thirteen cars got involved in the free-for-all and Craven spun. When a speeding racecar gets spun backwards at speeds somewhere in the vicinity of 180 miles an hour, air gets under the car’s rear end, which is significantly higher off the ground than the nose. Despite devices like roof flaps designed to keep the car on the ground, they act more like small airplanes than large cars. Which is what happened to Craven.
The chain link fence that sits on top of and is rooted deep into and even below the retaining wall is called the catch fence. Catch Craven’s flying racecar it did, probably saving the lives of a section of fans and possibly Craven too. What it next, however, was beyond the fence’s job description. When 3400 pounds of racecar slammed the links and guy wires on the fence, the fence gave against the force. When it had stretched as far as the cables would allow, it snapped back, launching Craven’s car like a giant slingshot, back across the track. The driver knew it was a hard hit, but other than some neck pain, didn’t think it was a terrible crash, all things considered
Craven was airlifted to a Birmingham hospital with a cracked vertebra in his neck while the race was red flagged for more than an hour to repair the courageous catch fence. The race eventually got underway, and Sterling Marlin took the checkered flag and went to victory lane.
Craven, at the hospital, managed to catch the end of the race coverage on TV. The driver happened to see the replay of an earlier wreck. He watched Jeff Gordon and Mark Martin fight over some real estate. He watched the field bunch up like an accordion. It happened so fast, it was hard to see the car numbers as they crumpled and spun. Craven watched one car lift above the others like a wayward bird, slam into the catch fence, and fly back through the field like a stone from a slingshot before coming to rest on the flat inside of the oval. “Boy, do I feel sorry for that guy,” thought Craven.
Upon closer inspection, Craven realized that “that guy” was, in fact, him. He continued his season despite the injury to his neck, permanently etched on highlight films for years to come. And that’s history.
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Quote's of the Week
``I won't predict a three-peat. I never thought we'd get our first championship.''
-- Team owner Jack Roush, on predicting a three-peat after Kenseth (2003) and Busch (2004) won titles for Roush Racing.
"Sometimes the grass looks greener on the other side. But when you get over there, it's harder to chew."
Eddie Wood speaking on why the Wood Brothers have never switched from Fords
I want Brendan's job. Wait – I've already got it."
-Steve Park when asked what he thought the ideal job in Las Vegas would be. Park is driving for the Truck Series team Brendan Gaughan was with before Gaughan went to Nextel Cup last season
"I'm sure there are 43 other guys who are scared to death I'll be on the track with them."
Boris Said, talking about the Daytona 500
``I won't predict a three-peat. I never thought we'd get our first championship.''
-- Team owner Jack Roush, on predicting a three-peat after Kenseth (2003) and Busch (2004) won titles for Roush Racing.
"Sometimes the grass looks greener on the other side. But when you get over there, it's harder to chew."
Eddie Wood speaking on why the Wood Brothers have never switched from Fords
I want Brendan's job. Wait – I've already got it."
-Steve Park when asked what he thought the ideal job in Las Vegas would be. Park is driving for the Truck Series team Brendan Gaughan was with before Gaughan went to Nextel Cup last season
"I'm sure there are 43 other guys who are scared to death I'll be on the track with them."
Boris Said, talking about the Daytona 500
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Comments from the Peanut Gallery
from Pops
Momma
Remember Wallace's complaining about the motel service in Darlington SC...the $19.95 per hour, finally had someone send it in to my humor group..
Qwackers@yahoogroups.com! LOL
Pops
Dang! Were they sleeping on the job?!
from Bob S
Whoops, Allison back to 84 wins: NASCAR Vice President Jim Hunter said a ''computer glitch'' resulted in a change to the records last year that awarded Allison one more win. Allison for decades has claimed that he owned a 1971 victory at North Wilkesboro, N.C., for which he was never credited. Said racing historian Bob Moore: ''Bobby was driving a Mustang in what was then the Grand American Series. NASCAR needed to fill out the field at North Wilkesboro that day and invited him to enter the car in its Grand National race. After Bobby won the race he was told it didn't count.''
My biggest peeve with NASCAR is how they rewrite their history to suit whatever agenda suits them at the moment. If it had been a Grand American race and they let him enter a more potent Grand National car as a field filler, I could perhaps see it, but to as a favor to the promoter to enter a smaller car with a smaller engine, and beat the big guys should be celebrated, not penalized. Remember this happened in the boycott at the first Talledega race when a lot of drivers boycotted it for safety reasons, and they let the Grand American "pony cars" fill the field. While Brickhouse won in a Dodge, I believe GA cars were 2nd and 3rd. Would it not have been a race if the wrong car won? Does this mean NASCAR ran a race and no one won? Are they going to send him a bill for the prize money?
from Bob S
Whoops, Allison back to 84 wins: NASCAR Vice President Jim Hunter said a ''computer glitch'' resulted in a change to the records last year that awarded Allison one more win. Allison for decades has claimed that he owned a 1971 victory at North Wilkesboro, N.C., for which he was never credited. Said racing historian Bob Moore: ''Bobby was driving a Mustang in what was then the Grand American Series. NASCAR needed to fill out the field at North Wilkesboro that day and invited him to enter the car in its Grand National race. After Bobby won the race he was told it didn't count.''
My biggest peeve with NASCAR is how they rewrite their history to suit whatever agenda suits them at the moment. If it had been a Grand American race and they let him enter a more potent Grand National car as a field filler, I could perhaps see it, but to as a favor to the promoter to enter a smaller car with a smaller engine, and beat the big guys should be celebrated, not penalized. Remember this happened in the boycott at the first Talledega race when a lot of drivers boycotted it for safety reasons, and they let the Grand American "pony cars" fill the field. While Brickhouse won in a Dodge, I believe GA cars were 2nd and 3rd. Would it not have been a race if the wrong car won? Does this mean NASCAR ran a race and no one won? Are they going to send him a bill for the prize money?
Bits and Pieces
Waltrip, Petty finish Las Vegas Marathon for charity: Two-time Daytona 500 winner Michael Waltrip and wife Buffy committed to raising $1 million for the operating costs of Kyle Petty's Victory Junction Gang Camp in a campaign called OPERATION MARATHON. ...Michael Waltrip finished 747th overall and 124th out of 270 in his age group (Men's 40-44) in a time of 3 hours, 58 minutes and 33 seconds. Petty finished 1112th overall and 168 out of 270 in his age group (Men's 40-44) in a time of 4 hours, 18 minutes and 1 second. To date, the Waltrips have raised close to $700,000 and raised more money during the Las Vegas Marathon. - FOXSports
Waltrip, Petty finish Las Vegas Marathon for charity: Two-time Daytona 500 winner Michael Waltrip and wife Buffy committed to raising $1 million for the operating costs of Kyle Petty's Victory Junction Gang Camp in a campaign called OPERATION MARATHON. ...Michael Waltrip finished 747th overall and 124th out of 270 in his age group (Men's 40-44) in a time of 3 hours, 58 minutes and 33 seconds. Petty finished 1112th overall and 168 out of 270 in his age group (Men's 40-44) in a time of 4 hours, 18 minutes and 1 second. To date, the Waltrips have raised close to $700,000 and raised more money during the Las Vegas Marathon. - FOXSports
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Penske facility now the biggest in NASCAR: Roger Penske said he wanted everything under one roof, and, man, it’s a big one. The NASCAR team owner is about to move his three Dodge teams into a facility that is at least twice as large as any other single facility in the sport. “I wanted to build a shop where everybody was in the same house,” said Penske. “In NASCAR, we’ve kind of grown up with the ‘2’ shop (Rusty Wallace) some place and the ‘12’ shop (Ryan Newman) somewhere else. I think, in this kind of environment, we need to cross information across the teams and not have a bunch of silos where no one really talks. At the race track, it’s too hard to get the information because so much is going on. “I think we basically took a building that was sitting here. It was the Panasonic building. We had the benefit of the footprint of a big building, and yet, we wanted to utilize it wisely. I think we want to build a test track on the 50 acres outside. Those are things we want to do in the future.” - The Shelby Star
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Nazareth Speedway goes up for sale: The Nazareth Speedway is officially up for sale. When it closed for racing five months ago, the owners had said the track might remain a venue for motor sports activities. "When we evaluated the interest from teams and from racing schools to use the speedway as a rental facility, the numbers didn't work out," track president Craig Rust said Friday. "While we were doing that we'd been receiving a great deal of interest ... in the property." The speedway, built as a dirt track in 1966, is on 157 acres at Routes 191 and 248 in Lower Nazareth Township. In 1986, the home track of the father-son racing duo of Mario and Michael Andretti was paved. The track is owned by International Speedway Corp., of Daytona, Fla., which owns or operates 11 motor sports facilities. - AP/USA Today
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Rusty Wallace Kicks Off "Rusty's Last Call" Tour With Charity Fundraising Initiatives - Wallace and NASCAR Team Owner, Felix Sabates, Raise $72,800 for Charity: Rusty Wallace, former NASCAR Champion and one of NASCAR’s top-ten all-time winningest drivers, has claimed that his 2005 retirement tour, dubbed “Rusty’s Last Call,” is all about giving back to the fans. After some of his recent charity initiatives, he has more than enough evidence to lend credibility to such a claim. Wallace and NASCAR Team Owner, Felix Sabates, recently made a trip to Boca Raton, FL, for a January 15 fundraiser. The event, held at the Boca Raton Airport, featured an auction to benefit the Cancer Center at Boca Raton Community Hospital. During the event, attended by nearly 1500 guests, Wallace auctioned one of his Miller Lite driving uniforms. The uniform brought $22,000 in proceeds for the hospital. Sabates personally matched this amount, bringing the grand total for the uniform to approximately $44,000. Additionally, Wallace and Sabates teamed up to offer a one of a kind opportunity to witness, up-close and personal, Wallace’s final attempt at the famed Daytona 500. The package included 2 pit passes to this year’s race, team uniforms, accommodations on Sabates’s private yacht and more. The audience responded with a winning bid of approximately $27,000. Overall, Wallace and Sabates together raised nearly $71,000 to benefit the Cancer Center.
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Extended Hours for Fans on February 2nd Free Fan Forum To Highlight NASCAR Testing At California Speedway: If the 40-plus NEXTEL Cup Series drivers that are confirmed to test aren't enough to bring you out to California Speedway, a fan forum featuring some of the sport's best racers will highlight an added event on Wednesday, February 2nd. A question and answer session featuring Casey Mears, Jamie McMurray, Scott Riggs and Joe Nemechek will be conducted in the Speedway's "Party Zone" tent in Suite Lot C. Race fans can submit questions prior to the forum for the drivers upon entering the tent. Gates open to the public on Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. and guests are invited to watch the cars on-track from above the Terrace Suites along Pit Road. After the cars have finished testing for the day, guests are invited to attend the fan forum, which will be limited to the first 1,500 guests in the standing-room-only tent (guests will be admitted in the tent beginning at 4:30 p.m.). Guests can also attend the test on Thursday, February 3rd from 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Did we mention that all of this is FREE?
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NASCAR Driver Sadler Spins Tunes, Not Tires, as Celebrity DJ on CMT.com: Tuning across the radio dial, one would be hard-pressed to find a station playing the music of legendary rock group Aerosmith back-to-back with that of country superstars Brooks & Dunn. But leave it to Elliott Sadler, driver of the M&M’S® Ford Taurus, to create a play list so diverse that those who listen will experience everything from the harder edged music of Metallica to bluegrass sensation Allison Krauss as well as all genres in between. Sadler gladly accepted the task to be featured as a Celebrity DJ for CMT.com Radio, in support of the network debut of The Greatest: CMT 40 Greatest NASCAR Moments special. A self-admitted music fanatic, the Virginia native confesses to aspirations of becoming a country music singer if his racing career had not come to fruition. Thus it posed no problem for the 29-year-old driver to select over 75 of his favorite songs from all music genres for inclusion in his own radio station. This is not the first foray into the world of country music for Sadler, a participant in last season’s inaugural NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Chase for the Championship. He made his Country Music Television debut in the video for hit “Ol’ Red” released by singer Blake Shelton in 2002 followed by a second cameo in a Shelton video, this time for the singer’s No. 1 hit “Some Beach.” Sadler’s Celebrity DJ Station can be accessed by logging on to CMT.com and visiting Radio CMT. Sadler also is scheduled to be one of several NASCAR drivers featured in the CMT 40 Greatest NASCAR Moments special airing on CMT Friday, Jan. 28 at 8 p.m. - Elevation Motorsports Group
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Press Guide comes out Tuesday, Feb 1st: Official NASCAR Preview and Press Guide 2005 by UMI Publications marks the magazine's 20th year of being the Official record of NASCAR. With unmatched quality, insightfully written features and unique format, there is no question why for 20 years the Press Guide has been THE magazine of choice for true NASCAR fans and industry professionals alike! The 2005 Press Guide waves the green flag on the beginning on this year's racing action with over 450 pages of the most accurate and valued sources of information highlighting and previewing every NASCAR series across the country. The Press Guide will be available on newsstands beginning February 1 or can be ordered directly from UMI at 800-747-9287 or umibooks.com.
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Gilliland wins at Phoenix: David Gilliland used lap traffic to slip by [#29 Cup driver] Kevin Harvick and pull away to win the United Rentals 100 at Phoenix International Raceway on Sunday. Defending series champion Mike Duncan finished the race in second, with series rookie Jason Jefferson taking third. Mike David finished fourth, followed by Brandon Ash in fifth. #10 ppc Racing's Busch driver ended up 6th, Kevin Harvick ended up 13th, Sarah Fisher finished 21st, Ken Schrader ended up 31st.(Phoenix International Raceway PR)
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Win a Charger, help a cause: Following the world introduction of the all-new 2006 Dodge Charger this month in Detroit, Chrysler Group is auctioning the NASCAR body shell used in the press reveal along with first volume production Dodge Charger to roll off the line at its Brampton, Ont. (Canada) Assembly Plant. "The King," Richard Petty, seven-time NASCAR Cup Series title winner and legendary Dodge Charger driver will personally deliver the keys to the top bidder at the May 7, 2005 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race at Darlington Raceway. The auction proceeds will benefit Victory Junction Gang Camp and the Salvation Army. The mock race car shell is a replica of NASCAR Rookie-of-the-Year driver Kasey Kahne's No. 9 Dodge Dealers/UAW Dodge Charger. The shell covered the production version of the all-new 2006 Dodge Charger as it was revealed to more than 3,500 international media in a press conference at the 2005 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS). Petty and Kahne took part in the introduction of the vehicle representing the past and present of Dodge dominance in NASCAR racing. The NASCAR shell has been autographed by Petty, Kahne and Chrysler Group President and CEO Dr. Dieter Zetsche. Bidding will begin at ebay.com/charger on February 1. Proceeds from the winning bid will be shared between Victory Junction Gang Camp and the Salvation Army. The auction will close on February 11, 2005.
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Fittipaldi to run stock cars in Brazil: After two unsuccessful seasons in NASCAR, former Champ Car and Formula 1 driver Christian Fittipaldi has decided to return to Brazil to race stock cars. Fittipaldi had been looking for work since his deal with NASCAR's Petty Enterprises collapsed because of a lack of sponsorship. "For various reasons I didn't have the success I was hoping for," Christian Fittipaldi told Radio Jovem Pan on Saturday. "But I'm glad I got the opportunity in Brazil, where everybody knows stock car racing is growing rapidly." Fittipaldi, nephew of two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Emerson Fittipaldi, started 16 races in NASCAR, failing to finish better than 24th. The 34-year-old Brazilian signed a contract to drive for team Avallone Motorsport beginning in May.(ESPN.com/AP)
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Airplus Footcare Returns Comfort with ppc Racing in 2005: ppc Racing officials announced the return of Airplus Footcare as associate sponsor with driver #14-John Andretti. Entering its second year of sponsorship with ppc Racing, the Implus Footcare logo will be featured on the deck lid of the #14 VB / APlus at Sunoco Ford Taurus in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series. At the track and at the shop, the ppc Racing team uses the Airplus insoles to keep members comfortable on their feet. The Airplus insoles provide the team with the latest in technological and help reduce the stress on team members feet, knees and back. For more information, visit airplusfootcare.com.(ppc Racing PR)
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Rusty comments: Brandon Mudd of KFNS (www.kfns.com) in St. Louis spoke to Rusty Wallace today at a new conference discussing the Wallace Family Tribute 250 [Busch Series Race] to be held July 30th at Gateway International Raceway. St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay proclaimed July 30th as Rusty Wallace Day in honor of his outstanding acheivement in NASCAR. Rusty said he plans on winning the race, since his Busch Series team will be running for an owner's points championship with Jamie McMurray, Jeremy Mayfield, and himself in the driver's seat (Rusty is running the Gateway race as well as the Mexico City road race). Discussing his testing at Daytona, he said his car wasn't very good the first day, but came around and he was very pleased with it at the end. He also said he doesn't feel much difference between the new Charger and the Intrepid, the car formerly representing Dodge in the Cup and Busch Series.(KFNS.com)
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Las Vegas testing starts today
The biggest ever NASCAR test at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway will begin today where more than 60 Nextel Cup and Busch Series drivers will turn laps over the next four days.
A record 43 Nextel Cup teams have filed testing vouchers, including all 10 drivers in last year's Chase for the Cup for their Monday and Tuesday test. In addition to all of last year's major contenders, Robby Gordon, John Andretti, Dave Blaney, Jason Leffler and Hermie Sadler will all make the ‘Preseason Thunder' trip to gain valuable test miles with their new teams.
Although fewer Busch teams are entered than in previous years, fans taking some time out to watch the action from the grandstands will be able to see defending Champion Martin Truex Jr. and Champ Car recruit Michel Jourdain Jr. amongst others in action on Wednesday and Thursday.
Following is a complete list of the drivers scheduled to test.
Nextel Cup drivers (Monday/Tuesday): John Andretti, Stanton Barrett, Greg Biffle, Dave Blaney, Mike Bliss, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Carl Edwards, Jeff Fuller, Jeff Gordon, Robby Gordon, Jeff Green, Bobby Hamilton Jr., Kevin Harvick, Dale Jarrett, Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne, Matt Kenseth, Travis Kvapil, Bobby Labonte, Jason Leffler, Sterling Marlin, Mark Martin, Jeremy Mayfield, Eric McClure, Jamie McMurray, Casey Mears, Joe Nemechek, Ryan Newman, Kyle Petty, Scott Riggs, Ricky Rudd, Elliott Sadler, Hermie Sadler, Johnny Sauter, Ken Schrader, Tony Stewart, Brian Vickers, Mike Wallace, Rusty Wallace, Michael Waltrip and Scott Wimmer.
Busch Series drivers (Wednesday/Thursday): Johnny Borneman, Clint Bowyer, Stacy Compton, Tim Fedewa, Denny Hamlin, Shane Hmiel, Michel Jourdain Jr., Justin Labonte, Paul Menard, Johnny Sauter, Brent Sherman, Reed Sorensen, Martin Truex Jr., Tyler Walker, Kenny Wallace, Paul Wolfe, Jon Wood and J.J. Yeley.
The biggest ever NASCAR test at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway will begin today where more than 60 Nextel Cup and Busch Series drivers will turn laps over the next four days.
A record 43 Nextel Cup teams have filed testing vouchers, including all 10 drivers in last year's Chase for the Cup for their Monday and Tuesday test. In addition to all of last year's major contenders, Robby Gordon, John Andretti, Dave Blaney, Jason Leffler and Hermie Sadler will all make the ‘Preseason Thunder' trip to gain valuable test miles with their new teams.
Although fewer Busch teams are entered than in previous years, fans taking some time out to watch the action from the grandstands will be able to see defending Champion Martin Truex Jr. and Champ Car recruit Michel Jourdain Jr. amongst others in action on Wednesday and Thursday.
Following is a complete list of the drivers scheduled to test.
Nextel Cup drivers (Monday/Tuesday): John Andretti, Stanton Barrett, Greg Biffle, Dave Blaney, Mike Bliss, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Carl Edwards, Jeff Fuller, Jeff Gordon, Robby Gordon, Jeff Green, Bobby Hamilton Jr., Kevin Harvick, Dale Jarrett, Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne, Matt Kenseth, Travis Kvapil, Bobby Labonte, Jason Leffler, Sterling Marlin, Mark Martin, Jeremy Mayfield, Eric McClure, Jamie McMurray, Casey Mears, Joe Nemechek, Ryan Newman, Kyle Petty, Scott Riggs, Ricky Rudd, Elliott Sadler, Hermie Sadler, Johnny Sauter, Ken Schrader, Tony Stewart, Brian Vickers, Mike Wallace, Rusty Wallace, Michael Waltrip and Scott Wimmer.
Busch Series drivers (Wednesday/Thursday): Johnny Borneman, Clint Bowyer, Stacy Compton, Tim Fedewa, Denny Hamlin, Shane Hmiel, Michel Jourdain Jr., Justin Labonte, Paul Menard, Johnny Sauter, Brent Sherman, Reed Sorensen, Martin Truex Jr., Tyler Walker, Kenny Wallace, Paul Wolfe, Jon Wood and J.J. Yeley.
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Lamar posts first NASCAR Victory of 2005 at Phoenix
Burney Lamar of W. Sacramento, Calif. scored his fourth career win and first for new car owner Kevin Harvick. Lamar led 58 laps en route to a .320 second victory over Ken Schrader in the NASCAR AutoZone Elite Division, Southwest Series portion of the Copper World Classic at Phoenix International Raceway Sunday afternoon.
Three-time PIR winner Eddy McKean finished in the third position for his ninth top three finish in the last 10 PIR races. Eric Holmes, and 2003 series champion Jim Pettit II rounded out the top five finishers in the 75-lap event.
Burney Lamar of W. Sacramento, Calif. scored his fourth career win and first for new car owner Kevin Harvick. Lamar led 58 laps en route to a .320 second victory over Ken Schrader in the NASCAR AutoZone Elite Division, Southwest Series portion of the Copper World Classic at Phoenix International Raceway Sunday afternoon.
Three-time PIR winner Eddy McKean finished in the third position for his ninth top three finish in the last 10 PIR races. Eric Holmes, and 2003 series champion Jim Pettit II rounded out the top five finishers in the 75-lap event.
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Rumor: Could ISC be buying the IRL?
There is talk floating around in some circles that there will soon be a joint announcement involving the International Speedway Corporation (NASCAR's sister organization) and Indianapolis Motor Speedway Corporation (IMSC) president Tony George.
IMSC and ISC are already partners in The Motorsports Alliance, which ensures that their activities in circuit ownership do not conflict with one another. NASCAR uses Indianapolis Motor Speedway for one of its biggest events of the year and the IMSC-owned Indy Racing League regularly race on ISC circuits across the country. So it makes sense that the interest of the ISC in the IRL remains healthy.
The problem is that no-one is really sure what is going to be announced, although logically ISC must see open-wheel racing as a good way to develop in the future now that NASCAR is reaching saturation point and international expansion is being considered.
It might be that the parties consider that to be too a big a step and want to increase their hold on the racing scene across the country. ISC has already made a foray into sports car racing with the GrandAm championship, which it established in 1999 to bring stability to professional endurance road racing in America.
The GrandAm series has been a big success and there has been speculation that ISC may now try to do the same thing with IRL, in league with George. It should be remembered that GrandAm was one of the companies that showed interest when CART's assets were up for sale at the start of 2004.
Whatever the case, it's clear that something is brewing and that could have an effect on the popularity of open-wheel racing in the United States.
There is talk floating around in some circles that there will soon be a joint announcement involving the International Speedway Corporation (NASCAR's sister organization) and Indianapolis Motor Speedway Corporation (IMSC) president Tony George.
IMSC and ISC are already partners in The Motorsports Alliance, which ensures that their activities in circuit ownership do not conflict with one another. NASCAR uses Indianapolis Motor Speedway for one of its biggest events of the year and the IMSC-owned Indy Racing League regularly race on ISC circuits across the country. So it makes sense that the interest of the ISC in the IRL remains healthy.
The problem is that no-one is really sure what is going to be announced, although logically ISC must see open-wheel racing as a good way to develop in the future now that NASCAR is reaching saturation point and international expansion is being considered.
It might be that the parties consider that to be too a big a step and want to increase their hold on the racing scene across the country. ISC has already made a foray into sports car racing with the GrandAm championship, which it established in 1999 to bring stability to professional endurance road racing in America.
The GrandAm series has been a big success and there has been speculation that ISC may now try to do the same thing with IRL, in league with George. It should be remembered that GrandAm was one of the companies that showed interest when CART's assets were up for sale at the start of 2004.
Whatever the case, it's clear that something is brewing and that could have an effect on the popularity of open-wheel racing in the United States.
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Martin to make last Busch Series start at Homestead
The most successful driver in terms of race wins in Busch Series history, Mark Martin, will round out his Busch career in the final round of the 2005 series at Homestead with team owner Jack Roush.
Defending Nextel Cup Series Champion team owner Roush will campaign Martin in seven races during the upcoming Busch Series campaign with sponsorship from Pennzoil with Matt Kenseth taking the wheel of the #9 Ford in a further two races.
The 2005 season will be Martin's final full-time campaign in Nextel Cup and while future outings in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series are possible for 2006, the November 20th Ford 300 Busch Series event could well be Martin's final Busch Series outing.
The day after the Busch race, Martin will make his final full-time Nextel Cup start in the Ford 400 at the 1.5-mile Homestead oval and Roush's Busch deal enables the perennial title hopeful to go for what could be a phenomenally successful final weekend.
"We are looking forward to getting back on the track in the #9 Pennzoil car," said Martin. "We had a couple of pretty strong runs in the #9 last year and hopefully we can get Pennzoil in victory lane this season. I'm pretty excited that we'll be working with Pat Tryson and an all new team on the #9 car so hopefully we'll be able to make some more noise in that series."
Martin will be a the helm of the #9 Pennzoil Ford for events at Fontana, Las Vegas, Texas, Richmond, Loudon and Kansas City before the season-finale at Homestead. Kenseth will drive the car at Charlotte and Texas in October and November.
"It will be fun working with Pat and the #9 team for a couple of races in 2005 and I look forward to driving the #9 Pennzoil car," added Kenseth. "We had a really strong run for Pennzoil last year at Vegas and we'll be looking to expand on that and hopefully get a win in one of those races. Texas and Charlotte are among my favourite tracks, so I'll be looking forward to both of those races. "
Pennzoil and Roush have a deep-rooted history. Pennzoil first sponsored Jack Roush in the 1960's, when the former Ford Motor Company engineer was a driver himself.
Martin, who made five starts in last year's Busch Series following a three-year hiatus, has a total of 45 Busch wins in his career.
The most successful driver in terms of race wins in Busch Series history, Mark Martin, will round out his Busch career in the final round of the 2005 series at Homestead with team owner Jack Roush.
Defending Nextel Cup Series Champion team owner Roush will campaign Martin in seven races during the upcoming Busch Series campaign with sponsorship from Pennzoil with Matt Kenseth taking the wheel of the #9 Ford in a further two races.
The 2005 season will be Martin's final full-time campaign in Nextel Cup and while future outings in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series are possible for 2006, the November 20th Ford 300 Busch Series event could well be Martin's final Busch Series outing.
The day after the Busch race, Martin will make his final full-time Nextel Cup start in the Ford 400 at the 1.5-mile Homestead oval and Roush's Busch deal enables the perennial title hopeful to go for what could be a phenomenally successful final weekend.
"We are looking forward to getting back on the track in the #9 Pennzoil car," said Martin. "We had a couple of pretty strong runs in the #9 last year and hopefully we can get Pennzoil in victory lane this season. I'm pretty excited that we'll be working with Pat Tryson and an all new team on the #9 car so hopefully we'll be able to make some more noise in that series."
Martin will be a the helm of the #9 Pennzoil Ford for events at Fontana, Las Vegas, Texas, Richmond, Loudon and Kansas City before the season-finale at Homestead. Kenseth will drive the car at Charlotte and Texas in October and November.
"It will be fun working with Pat and the #9 team for a couple of races in 2005 and I look forward to driving the #9 Pennzoil car," added Kenseth. "We had a really strong run for Pennzoil last year at Vegas and we'll be looking to expand on that and hopefully get a win in one of those races. Texas and Charlotte are among my favourite tracks, so I'll be looking forward to both of those races. "
Pennzoil and Roush have a deep-rooted history. Pennzoil first sponsored Jack Roush in the 1960's, when the former Ford Motor Company engineer was a driver himself.
Martin, who made five starts in last year's Busch Series following a three-year hiatus, has a total of 45 Busch wins in his career.
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Preview: Jeremy Mayfield
Flying below radar with ducks in a row, No. 19 team ready to race
By Dave Rodman, NASCAR.COM
Jeremy Mayfield's Evernham Motorsports Dodge team was called the underdog in the inaugural Chase for the Nextel Cup -- and was tagged an underachiever on the superspeedways last season.
If either of those statements were true, Mayfield's No. 19 Dodge Charger might be a car to watch in 2005, because owner Ray Evernham has kept all the best elements of Mayfield's team, while adding another critical piece.
Mayfield comes to Speedweeks 2005 at Daytona with crew chief Slugger Labbe, who previously was a key member of the restrictor plate dynamo at Dale Earnhardt Incorporated.
Mayfield joked at a recent Dodge Motorsports dinner that as a small-town guy from Kentucky he'd be able to communicate better with Labbe, who has a New England short-track racing background.
"In our type of racing you can't just have it all about numbers -- it's just not going to work," Mayfield said. "We know the balance numbers but getting those balance numbers and applying them to the racetracks is a different story.
"Once you get that done, you've got to have someone who's good with the guys as a coach -- and engineering isn't a part of that deal. You need a good leader, someone who keeps the guys pumped up.
"I think that's a big part of our sport. You've got to have the right mixture of people to make it work."
But engineer Kenny Francis, who also earned his share of praise as Mayfield's crew chief last year, remains with the program in a managerial and engineering role that may emphasize his strong points.
"We finished in the top 10 last year and that was just the beginning -- I feel like that's the great thing," Mayfield said of Evernham's behind the scenes work. "You see all the things he's done since he started the team and the things we've done the last six months and the things he's doing for the future."
But Evernham said he feels like the future is now when he forecasts a possible breakout year for Mayfield and his young teammate, Kasey Kahne.
"We hope so (because) we're putting everything in place to do that," Evernham said of the chance of 2005 being his team's best in its fifth year of existence. "We were on the verge (of multiple wins) again in 2004. If we can just keep putting ourselves in position, it's got to come."
Mayfield won at Richmond in September to launch his team into the Chase for the Nextel Cup, and Kahne was second an agonizing five times without a win.
"If both of these cars won more than one race this year," Evernham said. "I don't think anyone would be surprised."
Depending on which statistical category you analyze, Mayfield's 2004 season was his best since 2000 -- the year before he left Penske Racing -- or 1998, which was his career breakout when he won his first Cup race and had 12 top-five and 16 top-10 finishes.
"When I first started with Ray (in 2002) he looked at the big picture all the time," Mayfield said. "He looked so far out that it took me awhile to figure that out (because) he looked so far down the road, and I wanted to run good now."
Mayfield said that if it took him the better part of three seasons to figure that out. In 2005, he's ready to put it into practice.
"I knew last year was a great year, but it was like a building year," Mayfield said. "This year will be different. I'm confident about all my guys and the new car and the way everything is going at Evernham Motorsports."
Mayfield would like to expand on his career totals of four Cup victories and nine pole positions, and said his team owner was critical to his outlook.
"Ray is very good about putting the right people in the right places," Mayfield said. "The Ray I know, now is a huge leader and his control is putting the right people in the right places and letting them have control.
"I think he's done a great job of that. All we worry about is racing now, but so many things are going on that's going to help our race team as a whole for the future (that) you won't see it until a couple of years down the road."
Mayfield's primary goal is to make his second consecutive Chase. Mayfield said he'd learned his lessons last year, but wouldn't change much.
"Looking back, I'm going to tell you we've got to go all out at the beginning of the season," Mayfield said, "because I don't want to go through what I went through last year."
Mayfield didn't know his team was in the Chase until he got out of his car in Victory Lane. He said the adjustments would be minute ones.
"I guess the best way to sum that up is you're not going to go out there and race any harder (because) your guys can't work any harder," Mayfield said. "All you can do when you're having a bad day is try to capitalize on everybody else's mistakes (and) if you're going to finish 20th, try to finish 18th.
"We found out last year that two spots is a lot of cars (over the course of a season). I think that's what you'll see more than anything. Guys will repair when they wreck and when they're having a bad day (you'll) gamble on strategy."
In addition to his Nextel Cup program, Mayfield will also compete in roughly half the Busch Series schedule in a No. 64 Miller High Life Lite Dodge for Rusty Wallace.
"My jaws are hurting from talking and smiling -- I've been smiling like crazy," Mayfield said. "I'm so excited about this year (because) I've never been in this type of situation where I've got everybody around me and everybody pulling for me.
"Ray and I are doing great. I'm flying below the radar. I'm kinda scared (because) I've never been in a situation where everything is right and we're just beginning.
"Last year was a good year, but now we've got all our ducks in a row and we're ready to race."
Flying below radar with ducks in a row, No. 19 team ready to race
By Dave Rodman, NASCAR.COM
Jeremy Mayfield's Evernham Motorsports Dodge team was called the underdog in the inaugural Chase for the Nextel Cup -- and was tagged an underachiever on the superspeedways last season.
If either of those statements were true, Mayfield's No. 19 Dodge Charger might be a car to watch in 2005, because owner Ray Evernham has kept all the best elements of Mayfield's team, while adding another critical piece.
Mayfield comes to Speedweeks 2005 at Daytona with crew chief Slugger Labbe, who previously was a key member of the restrictor plate dynamo at Dale Earnhardt Incorporated.
Mayfield joked at a recent Dodge Motorsports dinner that as a small-town guy from Kentucky he'd be able to communicate better with Labbe, who has a New England short-track racing background.
"In our type of racing you can't just have it all about numbers -- it's just not going to work," Mayfield said. "We know the balance numbers but getting those balance numbers and applying them to the racetracks is a different story.
"Once you get that done, you've got to have someone who's good with the guys as a coach -- and engineering isn't a part of that deal. You need a good leader, someone who keeps the guys pumped up.
"I think that's a big part of our sport. You've got to have the right mixture of people to make it work."
But engineer Kenny Francis, who also earned his share of praise as Mayfield's crew chief last year, remains with the program in a managerial and engineering role that may emphasize his strong points.
"We finished in the top 10 last year and that was just the beginning -- I feel like that's the great thing," Mayfield said of Evernham's behind the scenes work. "You see all the things he's done since he started the team and the things we've done the last six months and the things he's doing for the future."
But Evernham said he feels like the future is now when he forecasts a possible breakout year for Mayfield and his young teammate, Kasey Kahne.
"We hope so (because) we're putting everything in place to do that," Evernham said of the chance of 2005 being his team's best in its fifth year of existence. "We were on the verge (of multiple wins) again in 2004. If we can just keep putting ourselves in position, it's got to come."
Mayfield won at Richmond in September to launch his team into the Chase for the Nextel Cup, and Kahne was second an agonizing five times without a win.
"If both of these cars won more than one race this year," Evernham said. "I don't think anyone would be surprised."
Depending on which statistical category you analyze, Mayfield's 2004 season was his best since 2000 -- the year before he left Penske Racing -- or 1998, which was his career breakout when he won his first Cup race and had 12 top-five and 16 top-10 finishes.
"When I first started with Ray (in 2002) he looked at the big picture all the time," Mayfield said. "He looked so far out that it took me awhile to figure that out (because) he looked so far down the road, and I wanted to run good now."
Mayfield said that if it took him the better part of three seasons to figure that out. In 2005, he's ready to put it into practice.
"I knew last year was a great year, but it was like a building year," Mayfield said. "This year will be different. I'm confident about all my guys and the new car and the way everything is going at Evernham Motorsports."
Mayfield would like to expand on his career totals of four Cup victories and nine pole positions, and said his team owner was critical to his outlook.
"Ray is very good about putting the right people in the right places," Mayfield said. "The Ray I know, now is a huge leader and his control is putting the right people in the right places and letting them have control.
"I think he's done a great job of that. All we worry about is racing now, but so many things are going on that's going to help our race team as a whole for the future (that) you won't see it until a couple of years down the road."
Mayfield's primary goal is to make his second consecutive Chase. Mayfield said he'd learned his lessons last year, but wouldn't change much.
"Looking back, I'm going to tell you we've got to go all out at the beginning of the season," Mayfield said, "because I don't want to go through what I went through last year."
Mayfield didn't know his team was in the Chase until he got out of his car in Victory Lane. He said the adjustments would be minute ones.
"I guess the best way to sum that up is you're not going to go out there and race any harder (because) your guys can't work any harder," Mayfield said. "All you can do when you're having a bad day is try to capitalize on everybody else's mistakes (and) if you're going to finish 20th, try to finish 18th.
"We found out last year that two spots is a lot of cars (over the course of a season). I think that's what you'll see more than anything. Guys will repair when they wreck and when they're having a bad day (you'll) gamble on strategy."
In addition to his Nextel Cup program, Mayfield will also compete in roughly half the Busch Series schedule in a No. 64 Miller High Life Lite Dodge for Rusty Wallace.
"My jaws are hurting from talking and smiling -- I've been smiling like crazy," Mayfield said. "I'm so excited about this year (because) I've never been in this type of situation where I've got everybody around me and everybody pulling for me.
"Ray and I are doing great. I'm flying below the radar. I'm kinda scared (because) I've never been in a situation where everything is right and we're just beginning.
"Last year was a good year, but now we've got all our ducks in a row and we're ready to race."
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Preview: Elliott Sadler
No. 38 team looking to be at the 'right place at the right time'
By Lee Montgomery, NASCAR.COM
MOORESVILLE, N.C. -- Some view Elliott Sadler's appearance in the 2004 Chase for the Nextel Cup as a fluke. Those same skeptics expect Sadler to fade into anonymity this year, proving last year's two-victory season was nothing more than a stroke of luck.
But Sadler, crew chief Todd Parrott and the rest of the No. 38 Robert Yates Racing team have other ideas.
To use one of Sadler's favorite phrases, 2004 was simply the "tip of the iceberg." In other words, his fellow drivers better look out, for Sadler and his team has plenty of depth and strength.
"We've got a lot people with high hopes, and people wonder if we can back up what we did last year," Sadler said. "I think as consistent as we were and as good as we ran the entire season, I can't see us not being able to do that again.
"If you knew what I knew -- as far as the changes we've made and the headway we've made -- we can do that. I think we're definitely going to be a top-10 team."
Why so much confidence? Several reasons. For starters, RYR hired front-tire changer Mike Lingerfelt and front-tire carrier Ryan McCray for the No. 38 pit crew.
That has upgraded the crew, Sadler said, and could provide him several spots in the running order throughout the season. Heck, they might even get Sadler a victory.
"The pit crew that we've got right now, we're going to have everybody covered on pit road," Sadler said. "I'm not worried about that."
If Sadler does have a worry, it's his performance when he gets into the Chase. Even then, Sadler is confident he's learned the right lessons from 2004, when he roared into the Chase for the Nextel Cup with loads of confidence, only to fizzle with disappointment.
But he'll be much better prepared this time around, learning to use the "race the track" approach.
"I should've listened to my teammate more," Sadler said of former Cup champion Dale Jarrett. "He's been in that position. I tried to listen to him some, but sometimes your natural instincts take over, and you make some mistakes.
"Todd and I both learned a lot of lessons last year that are going to help us."
Parrott agreed with his driver, noting their "nothing to lose" attitude seemed like a good idea at the time.
"The last five races, that was the attitude we went with," Parrott said. "It didn't work out too well. He made some mistakes on the racetrack racing with some guys he should've have been racing with."
Parrott admitted to making some mistakes on pit road, too.
"I think we'll back down some from the 'Katie bar the door, we're going for it, guns blazing' attitude," Parrott said.
Sure, aggression is always needed in a Nextel Cup race, but Sadler could stand to learn a little Shakespeare in 2005: Sometimes, discretion is the better part of valor.
"As a driver, I've never been running up front every weekend, running for wins every weekend," Sadler said. "There is stuff you've got to learn."
Sadler likened his 2004 season to some NFL quarterbacks.
"They do a good job in the regular season but maybe they don't in the postseason because they're not used to the intense kind of play," Sadler said. "You've got to learn from your mistakes.
"I learned a lot from last year, being in the Chase. I think the 10 guys in the Chase last year have an advantage over the people who weren't because we understand how much different the pressure was, how much different the pit strategy was."
This year, Sadler hopes the testing of the 2005 package both last year and this one gives him a good start to the season. In a perfect world, Sadler would pick up a couple victories early in the year, build up a solid cushion in the points and cruise to the Chase.
"We really think we've got a shot to win at a majority of the tracks we go to," Sadler said. "The tracks we're maybe not so successful at, we've got a doggone good chance to finish in the top five. Our mindset's a little different.
"It's all how well we jell together. Momentum is going to be the difference in us finishing in the top five or maybe winning a championship. But I think we've got all the pieces together. We've just got to be at the right place at the right time."
No. 38 team looking to be at the 'right place at the right time'
By Lee Montgomery, NASCAR.COM
MOORESVILLE, N.C. -- Some view Elliott Sadler's appearance in the 2004 Chase for the Nextel Cup as a fluke. Those same skeptics expect Sadler to fade into anonymity this year, proving last year's two-victory season was nothing more than a stroke of luck.
But Sadler, crew chief Todd Parrott and the rest of the No. 38 Robert Yates Racing team have other ideas.
To use one of Sadler's favorite phrases, 2004 was simply the "tip of the iceberg." In other words, his fellow drivers better look out, for Sadler and his team has plenty of depth and strength.
"We've got a lot people with high hopes, and people wonder if we can back up what we did last year," Sadler said. "I think as consistent as we were and as good as we ran the entire season, I can't see us not being able to do that again.
"If you knew what I knew -- as far as the changes we've made and the headway we've made -- we can do that. I think we're definitely going to be a top-10 team."
Why so much confidence? Several reasons. For starters, RYR hired front-tire changer Mike Lingerfelt and front-tire carrier Ryan McCray for the No. 38 pit crew.
That has upgraded the crew, Sadler said, and could provide him several spots in the running order throughout the season. Heck, they might even get Sadler a victory.
"The pit crew that we've got right now, we're going to have everybody covered on pit road," Sadler said. "I'm not worried about that."
If Sadler does have a worry, it's his performance when he gets into the Chase. Even then, Sadler is confident he's learned the right lessons from 2004, when he roared into the Chase for the Nextel Cup with loads of confidence, only to fizzle with disappointment.
But he'll be much better prepared this time around, learning to use the "race the track" approach.
"I should've listened to my teammate more," Sadler said of former Cup champion Dale Jarrett. "He's been in that position. I tried to listen to him some, but sometimes your natural instincts take over, and you make some mistakes.
"Todd and I both learned a lot of lessons last year that are going to help us."
Parrott agreed with his driver, noting their "nothing to lose" attitude seemed like a good idea at the time.
"The last five races, that was the attitude we went with," Parrott said. "It didn't work out too well. He made some mistakes on the racetrack racing with some guys he should've have been racing with."
Parrott admitted to making some mistakes on pit road, too.
"I think we'll back down some from the 'Katie bar the door, we're going for it, guns blazing' attitude," Parrott said.
Sure, aggression is always needed in a Nextel Cup race, but Sadler could stand to learn a little Shakespeare in 2005: Sometimes, discretion is the better part of valor.
"As a driver, I've never been running up front every weekend, running for wins every weekend," Sadler said. "There is stuff you've got to learn."
Sadler likened his 2004 season to some NFL quarterbacks.
"They do a good job in the regular season but maybe they don't in the postseason because they're not used to the intense kind of play," Sadler said. "You've got to learn from your mistakes.
"I learned a lot from last year, being in the Chase. I think the 10 guys in the Chase last year have an advantage over the people who weren't because we understand how much different the pressure was, how much different the pit strategy was."
This year, Sadler hopes the testing of the 2005 package both last year and this one gives him a good start to the season. In a perfect world, Sadler would pick up a couple victories early in the year, build up a solid cushion in the points and cruise to the Chase.
"We really think we've got a shot to win at a majority of the tracks we go to," Sadler said. "The tracks we're maybe not so successful at, we've got a doggone good chance to finish in the top five. Our mindset's a little different.
"It's all how well we jell together. Momentum is going to be the difference in us finishing in the top five or maybe winning a championship. But I think we've got all the pieces together. We've just got to be at the right place at the right time."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
I can quit being a NASCAR fan anytime I want to!
Cheryl Walker
One of the bonuses of being a NASCAR columnist is getting to publicly state something that will be read by as many readers as will click on your article. (This is why editors like it so much when you come up with catchy titles; their only hope beyond that is that what you have written in the bulk of the article is as enticing and entertaining as what you decided to call it. When both are liked by the readers, this is editors’ nirvana.)
As everyone knows, NASCAR writers can also publicly vent when they have something to get off their chests, and lots of them do so with great vigor. For the most part, however, I have tried to keep my words on the happy end of the NASCAR spectrum, finding silver linings wherever I can.
Today, however, I am going to vent. I may even head into ranting and raving if I am not careful. So I stayed away from caffeine today, and just watched an episode of ‘Touched by an Angel’, so therefore I feel confident I can say what I have to say without becoming as manic as a member of a Jerry Springer show audience.
Simply put, today a friend of mine had the audacity to infer that I am a hopeless NASCAR addict. That I have managed to cross over from being an energetic follower into a fanatic. She even inferred that certain things that I have done to my home are, as she put it, beyond weird.
If there is anyone reading this that thinks devoting a few walls to diecasts, photographs, artist renditions, bobbleheads, clocks, old TV Guides, key chains, super-sized plastic cups, and chicken buckets with a common NASCAR theme is weird, please stand up? Or at the very least send on your thoughts, which I will share immediately with this friend of mine.
She pointed out that we don’t have any room in my son, Joshua’s, bedroom for another dresser because of the three stand-ups in the corner, and I had to say that piling clothes on the floor makes it easy for him to choose what he wants to wear. She continued on in her haughty vein by asking me why the wall-hanging she bought me at an arts show seemed to missing, right where a throw featuring Dale Jr.’s 2001 ‘All-Star Game’ Chevrolet is now hanging.
She was too mad for me to reply with what I really wanted to say: “So you think that a mail organizer painted with pretty little flowers is cooler than Dale’s car, huh? Well I LIKE his car better, and I LIKE my bills all piled up on my desk right where I need them. So there!”
So I said nothing. I just thought it really hard.
Since she doesn’t understand my feelings about NASCAR, and I know she doesn’t read my weekly columns, I can get the last laugh and let all of you know what a nitwit she is, and she’ll never know.
There’s one other thing that she doesn’t know: I can quit being a NASCAR fan anytime I want to! It wouldn’t be that hard at all, but I see no reason to do so. When she can prove to me that scheduling my life around a wholesome sport is so bad, and having my house decorated with racing mementos is so awful, why then I’ll just stop right then and there.
As she has no chance of doing that successfully, however, I am not even worried about it.
See? I am just fine, and I am perfectly normal. Aren’t you?
I just had to repost this...I laughed so hard when I read this!
Cheryl Walker
One of the bonuses of being a NASCAR columnist is getting to publicly state something that will be read by as many readers as will click on your article. (This is why editors like it so much when you come up with catchy titles; their only hope beyond that is that what you have written in the bulk of the article is as enticing and entertaining as what you decided to call it. When both are liked by the readers, this is editors’ nirvana.)
As everyone knows, NASCAR writers can also publicly vent when they have something to get off their chests, and lots of them do so with great vigor. For the most part, however, I have tried to keep my words on the happy end of the NASCAR spectrum, finding silver linings wherever I can.
Today, however, I am going to vent. I may even head into ranting and raving if I am not careful. So I stayed away from caffeine today, and just watched an episode of ‘Touched by an Angel’, so therefore I feel confident I can say what I have to say without becoming as manic as a member of a Jerry Springer show audience.
Simply put, today a friend of mine had the audacity to infer that I am a hopeless NASCAR addict. That I have managed to cross over from being an energetic follower into a fanatic. She even inferred that certain things that I have done to my home are, as she put it, beyond weird.
If there is anyone reading this that thinks devoting a few walls to diecasts, photographs, artist renditions, bobbleheads, clocks, old TV Guides, key chains, super-sized plastic cups, and chicken buckets with a common NASCAR theme is weird, please stand up? Or at the very least send on your thoughts, which I will share immediately with this friend of mine.
She pointed out that we don’t have any room in my son, Joshua’s, bedroom for another dresser because of the three stand-ups in the corner, and I had to say that piling clothes on the floor makes it easy for him to choose what he wants to wear. She continued on in her haughty vein by asking me why the wall-hanging she bought me at an arts show seemed to missing, right where a throw featuring Dale Jr.’s 2001 ‘All-Star Game’ Chevrolet is now hanging.
She was too mad for me to reply with what I really wanted to say: “So you think that a mail organizer painted with pretty little flowers is cooler than Dale’s car, huh? Well I LIKE his car better, and I LIKE my bills all piled up on my desk right where I need them. So there!”
So I said nothing. I just thought it really hard.
Since she doesn’t understand my feelings about NASCAR, and I know she doesn’t read my weekly columns, I can get the last laugh and let all of you know what a nitwit she is, and she’ll never know.
There’s one other thing that she doesn’t know: I can quit being a NASCAR fan anytime I want to! It wouldn’t be that hard at all, but I see no reason to do so. When she can prove to me that scheduling my life around a wholesome sport is so bad, and having my house decorated with racing mementos is so awful, why then I’ll just stop right then and there.
As she has no chance of doing that successfully, however, I am not even worried about it.
See? I am just fine, and I am perfectly normal. Aren’t you?
I just had to repost this...I laughed so hard when I read this!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Flip-flops are for big feat at DEI
Swapping teams and cars is a gamble, but goal is to win a title
By TERRY BLOUNT / The Dallas Morning News
MOORESVILLE, N.C. – Tony Eury Sr., now the director of competition at Dale Earnhardt Inc., doesn't sugarcoat it. The dramatic flip-flop this season at DEI, swapping the teams and cars of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Michael Waltrip, is a big gamble.
"We don't have a clue how this will turn out," Eury said. "It's definitely risky.
"But sometimes you have to take risks in this business. We needed a spark."
The team changes were the big topic Wednesday during the annual DEI stop of the NASCAR Nextel Cup media tour.
Eury Sr., Earnhardt Jr.'s uncle, was Earnhardt's crew chief on the No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet. He guided Earnhardt since his back-to-back Busch Series titles in 1998-99.
Tony Eury Jr., who was Earnhardt's car chief, now is Waltrip's crew chief. Pete Rondeau, who was Waltrip's car chief, now is guiding Earnhardt as a crew chief for the first time.
Not only did the two drivers switch crews, they also switched cars. Every car Waltrip drove last year as the No. 15 NAPA Chevy now is part of the No. 8 stable, and vice versa.
"We've painted all the red cars blue and all the blue ones red," Eury Sr. said. "It's a big shake-up, but we think we are going to show people what we're made of."
It's an unusual tactic, but Earnhardt said he's all for it.
"I think all the changes have been real productive," he said. "We are taking some chances, but we are looking at the long-term benefit. We would have continued to win races like it was, but I don't know if we would have gotten where we need to go."
For Earnhardt, that's a Cup title. He went to the final race last season with a chance to win it before falling short and ending up fifth in the standings.
He also had volatile moments and disagreements with Eury Jr. Earnhardt thought it was better to remain friendly cousins rather than struggle with a working relationship.
"We had a lot of good times together," Earnhardt said. "But the bad times were really bad. This is a great opportunity for Tony Jr. to get to where he needs to go in his career. We felt we had capped each other out. This is a new chapter for us."
Eury Sr. was asked if he thought the new arrangement would change Earnhardt.
"I don't think he will be any different," Eury Sr. said. "That team was one wreck [too many] from winning the Nextel Cup championship. When the car is good, Junior's happy. If it's bad, he's going to scream."
Rondeau said he's ready to deal with Earnhardt's emotional nature.
"He's no different than any other driver," Rondeau said. "Hopefully, I can be a calming influence when things don't go well. Instead of getting wound up, focus on giving me the information so we can take care of it."
Swapping teams and cars is a gamble, but goal is to win a title
By TERRY BLOUNT / The Dallas Morning News
MOORESVILLE, N.C. – Tony Eury Sr., now the director of competition at Dale Earnhardt Inc., doesn't sugarcoat it. The dramatic flip-flop this season at DEI, swapping the teams and cars of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Michael Waltrip, is a big gamble.
"We don't have a clue how this will turn out," Eury said. "It's definitely risky.
"But sometimes you have to take risks in this business. We needed a spark."
The team changes were the big topic Wednesday during the annual DEI stop of the NASCAR Nextel Cup media tour.
Eury Sr., Earnhardt Jr.'s uncle, was Earnhardt's crew chief on the No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet. He guided Earnhardt since his back-to-back Busch Series titles in 1998-99.
Tony Eury Jr., who was Earnhardt's car chief, now is Waltrip's crew chief. Pete Rondeau, who was Waltrip's car chief, now is guiding Earnhardt as a crew chief for the first time.
Not only did the two drivers switch crews, they also switched cars. Every car Waltrip drove last year as the No. 15 NAPA Chevy now is part of the No. 8 stable, and vice versa.
"We've painted all the red cars blue and all the blue ones red," Eury Sr. said. "It's a big shake-up, but we think we are going to show people what we're made of."
It's an unusual tactic, but Earnhardt said he's all for it.
"I think all the changes have been real productive," he said. "We are taking some chances, but we are looking at the long-term benefit. We would have continued to win races like it was, but I don't know if we would have gotten where we need to go."
For Earnhardt, that's a Cup title. He went to the final race last season with a chance to win it before falling short and ending up fifth in the standings.
He also had volatile moments and disagreements with Eury Jr. Earnhardt thought it was better to remain friendly cousins rather than struggle with a working relationship.
"We had a lot of good times together," Earnhardt said. "But the bad times were really bad. This is a great opportunity for Tony Jr. to get to where he needs to go in his career. We felt we had capped each other out. This is a new chapter for us."
Eury Sr. was asked if he thought the new arrangement would change Earnhardt.
"I don't think he will be any different," Eury Sr. said. "That team was one wreck [too many] from winning the Nextel Cup championship. When the car is good, Junior's happy. If it's bad, he's going to scream."
Rondeau said he's ready to deal with Earnhardt's emotional nature.
"He's no different than any other driver," Rondeau said. "Hopefully, I can be a calming influence when things don't go well. Instead of getting wound up, focus on giving me the information so we can take care of it."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Little E a giant among drivers
By Louis Brewster
Staff Writer
MOORESVILLE, N.C. - If there is anyone who does not believe Dale Earnhardt Jr. is the most popular and recognizable driver in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series, they did not witness Wednesday's mob scene at the Garage Majal.
The NASCAR Nextel Media Tour paid a visit to Dale Earnhardt Inc. headquarters and the press conference approached presidential portions. More than three dozen TV stations from the Southeast were on hand as were the majority of journalists from throughout the country, and a pair from Europe.
Virtually everyone was there to get the opportunity to interview Earnhart Jr. A few made their way to speak with Martin Truex Jr., the 2004 NASCAR Busch Series champion, or Richie Gilmore, DEI executive vice president, but clearly, it was Earnhardt who commanded the attention.
The biggest story during the brief NASCAR offseason was the decision by DEI to switch crew chiefs and crews between Earnhardt and teammate Michael Waltrip. It was newsworthy because it stemmed from a very public family feud between Earnhardt and cousins, Tony Eury Sr. and Jr., who headed the crew for the No. 8 Chevrolet driver.
It also signaled the emergerence of Earnhart, last year's Daytona 500 winner, into a leadership role in the organization his father started in 1992 and had been run by stepmother Teresa Earnhardt.
Media attendance at DEI was almost double that of earlier stops at the Wood Brothers or Robert Yates Racing. After a cursory question of Tony Eury Jr., who will now head Waltrip's operation while Pete Rondeau moves over from No. 15 car, the questions were directed at Earnhardt and why the changes were made.
"Basically, we just tapped out," Earnhardt said of Eury Jr. "This will be as good an opportunity for him as it will be for me. But who's to say that we won't work together again?"
There is no question that the split was brewing over a period of years.
"Tony Jr. and I have always been really competitive," Earnhardt said. "The situation wasn't that bad where I said, 'I have to get out of here." But I wasn't necessarily the guy who spoke first. I came into the shop and as a group we looked at a few scenarios. I walked in one day and they had it all figured out and I said 'OK, I'm fine with that and we'll do this." '
Earnhardt said the decision was reached after talking with the all parties. He is of the belief that the switch, which will also include cars, will be benifical to the organziation with Eury Sr. now overseeing the entire race operation.
"It's going to be tough," said Earnhardt, pressed up against his race car by the media throng. "People are going to talk one way or another. If Tony Jr. and I had stayed together, they would have said something anyway. When we'd get inconsistent last year people would talk and try to figure out who was at fault.
"It's tough when you're walking around in that red uniform. It was hard on Tony Jr. and Tony Sr. and that team because they just wanted to work and be in their little world. But when you're not in your own world, you can't be. It's going to be a different experience for them. Hopefully they'll handle it well."
Earnhardt is convinced the change will strengthen his bid for his first championship.
"Working with Pete is what I need to do. Working in that environment with those guys is what I need to turn that corner," he said. "I don't think anything I was doing in the past kept me from the championship, but that's the kind of corner I need to turn to get there. Hopefully I'm right.":
As for those who would second-guess his decision, he had this to say, "I think Pete will help me mature as a person. I think Tony Sr. is 15 times more valuable to the organization than he was six months ago.
"One of the things I like about Pete is that he gives me a lot of respect," Earnhardt said. "He has a similar demeanor as I do in and around the car and at the shop and away from the track. It's been a really nice off-season. With the change we made it took a lot of stress away from me."
As for his role at DEI: "There are a lot of things that will change with things moving around," said Earnhardt, who finished fourth last year in the Chase for the Championship. "I feel that I earned a more respectful role at the company. I feel that the things I say and what I say about the car or ask for, I feel carry a little more weight.
"Pete really knows that I'm his link between him and the steering wheel. With the company, they see a little difference in me and I get a different reaction."
Eury Jr., who said he called most of the decisions in the last part of the year for Earnhardt although his father was the crew chief, will enter his first season as a crew chief.
"Tony Jr. is really enjoying himself now, too," Earnhardt said. "He's getting it going on now. He's working with Michael and they're really clicking now. He's able to do things that maybe we couldn't do together before.
"The transition between the two teams was a lot smoother than I anticipated. The work that I see the guys doing on the car with Pete is really satisfying to see. They keep their heads down and keep going after the car."
By Louis Brewster
Staff Writer
MOORESVILLE, N.C. - If there is anyone who does not believe Dale Earnhardt Jr. is the most popular and recognizable driver in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series, they did not witness Wednesday's mob scene at the Garage Majal.
The NASCAR Nextel Media Tour paid a visit to Dale Earnhardt Inc. headquarters and the press conference approached presidential portions. More than three dozen TV stations from the Southeast were on hand as were the majority of journalists from throughout the country, and a pair from Europe.
Virtually everyone was there to get the opportunity to interview Earnhart Jr. A few made their way to speak with Martin Truex Jr., the 2004 NASCAR Busch Series champion, or Richie Gilmore, DEI executive vice president, but clearly, it was Earnhardt who commanded the attention.
The biggest story during the brief NASCAR offseason was the decision by DEI to switch crew chiefs and crews between Earnhardt and teammate Michael Waltrip. It was newsworthy because it stemmed from a very public family feud between Earnhardt and cousins, Tony Eury Sr. and Jr., who headed the crew for the No. 8 Chevrolet driver.
It also signaled the emergerence of Earnhart, last year's Daytona 500 winner, into a leadership role in the organization his father started in 1992 and had been run by stepmother Teresa Earnhardt.
Media attendance at DEI was almost double that of earlier stops at the Wood Brothers or Robert Yates Racing. After a cursory question of Tony Eury Jr., who will now head Waltrip's operation while Pete Rondeau moves over from No. 15 car, the questions were directed at Earnhardt and why the changes were made.
"Basically, we just tapped out," Earnhardt said of Eury Jr. "This will be as good an opportunity for him as it will be for me. But who's to say that we won't work together again?"
There is no question that the split was brewing over a period of years.
"Tony Jr. and I have always been really competitive," Earnhardt said. "The situation wasn't that bad where I said, 'I have to get out of here." But I wasn't necessarily the guy who spoke first. I came into the shop and as a group we looked at a few scenarios. I walked in one day and they had it all figured out and I said 'OK, I'm fine with that and we'll do this." '
Earnhardt said the decision was reached after talking with the all parties. He is of the belief that the switch, which will also include cars, will be benifical to the organziation with Eury Sr. now overseeing the entire race operation.
"It's going to be tough," said Earnhardt, pressed up against his race car by the media throng. "People are going to talk one way or another. If Tony Jr. and I had stayed together, they would have said something anyway. When we'd get inconsistent last year people would talk and try to figure out who was at fault.
"It's tough when you're walking around in that red uniform. It was hard on Tony Jr. and Tony Sr. and that team because they just wanted to work and be in their little world. But when you're not in your own world, you can't be. It's going to be a different experience for them. Hopefully they'll handle it well."
Earnhardt is convinced the change will strengthen his bid for his first championship.
"Working with Pete is what I need to do. Working in that environment with those guys is what I need to turn that corner," he said. "I don't think anything I was doing in the past kept me from the championship, but that's the kind of corner I need to turn to get there. Hopefully I'm right.":
As for those who would second-guess his decision, he had this to say, "I think Pete will help me mature as a person. I think Tony Sr. is 15 times more valuable to the organization than he was six months ago.
"One of the things I like about Pete is that he gives me a lot of respect," Earnhardt said. "He has a similar demeanor as I do in and around the car and at the shop and away from the track. It's been a really nice off-season. With the change we made it took a lot of stress away from me."
As for his role at DEI: "There are a lot of things that will change with things moving around," said Earnhardt, who finished fourth last year in the Chase for the Championship. "I feel that I earned a more respectful role at the company. I feel that the things I say and what I say about the car or ask for, I feel carry a little more weight.
"Pete really knows that I'm his link between him and the steering wheel. With the company, they see a little difference in me and I get a different reaction."
Eury Jr., who said he called most of the decisions in the last part of the year for Earnhardt although his father was the crew chief, will enter his first season as a crew chief.
"Tony Jr. is really enjoying himself now, too," Earnhardt said. "He's getting it going on now. He's working with Michael and they're really clicking now. He's able to do things that maybe we couldn't do together before.
"The transition between the two teams was a lot smoother than I anticipated. The work that I see the guys doing on the car with Pete is really satisfying to see. They keep their heads down and keep going after the car."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Well, that's all for today. Until the next time, I remain,
Your
Momma
"Don't come here and grumble about going too fast. Get the hell out of the race car if you've got feathers on your legs or butt. Put a kerosene rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up there and eat that candy ass." - Dale Earnhardt – 1998
"It's nothin' personal, it's just racin'
-Dale Earnhardt
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
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This list is authored by:
Sandra Monacelli
221 W. 57th Street 18B
Loveland, CO 80538
970/663-6967
Your
Momma "Don't come here and grumble about going too fast. Get the hell out of the race car if you've got feathers on your legs or butt. Put a kerosene rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up there and eat that candy ass." - Dale Earnhardt – 1998
"It's nothin' personal, it's just racin'
-Dale Earnhardt
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Subscribe: KnowYourNascar-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
Unsubscribe: KnowYourNascar-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
List owner: KnowYourNascar-owner@yahoogroups.com
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
This list is authored by:
Sandra Monacelli
221 W. 57th Street 18B
Loveland, CO 80538
970/663-6967
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