Seavey last won the race in 2004 and his son, who was the youngest winner, crossed the finish line first in 2012.  An amazing family accomplishment.   Runner up Zirkle seemed to think the Old Dog knew a thing or two in assessing the outcome.  She noted that Mitch knew when to take a break to rest his team while others kept a pace that was not sustainable.   

Until next year, trail lovers....

             HEY GABBERS AND OTHERS!!!!! 

Hi guys. I decided to start a NASCAR fantasy league for Gabbers and others. It's on ESPN. You get to pick 5 drivers. You have a salary cap of $100.00. The list of drivers in order of how they finished last year, their price tag (which will change with their performance) and their record is there too. Seems to be self explanatory but I can answer questions. Never played at ESPN before or this format before but it looks easy. AND it's free. Big plus.

"Checkered Past" is the group and "Gabbers" is the password. Drop a note in my Gab box or post down below your email and I'll send you an invite. Hopefully I get it right. Seemed easy enough for me to set it up and I'm not Ms Tech Savvy.

I will certainly be posting helpful hints on drivers abilities at each track. According to the rules you have till just before race time to pick. Some of the Start & Park guys don't race every week. In fact with the new qualifying rules and the new car package I'm not sure what we'll be seeing.

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Add on.....apparently you can go to ESPN.com and do your entry and pick join a group. I guess it's there you'd pick the group "Checkered Past" and then enter the password "Gabbers".

So you're all welcome........

 

Many who are not racing fans might think,  that if racecar drivers get hurt or die,  they are tempting fate and that they knew the risks beforehand.    So don’t expect them to shed many tears.

But to the family,  friends and fans of these racers the loss is no less impactful.   Most participants of this sport have a vested interest.    Most are like family and most seen a different side of it all.

Race car drivers and mechanics will spend more time at home preparing for the week’s racing programs than the races themselves.  While racing fans themselves have racing blogs and sports channels to keep them up to date on the latest happenings.

There are various websites like Dirt Vision, Speed Channel and Hoseheads that fans can use to keep abreast of what is happening.   When a member of one these families pass,   there is a ripple-effect throughout the tracks,  across the states and around the world.

The fact that many people actually physically hang out with the drivers makes it all the more personal.

Stephen Allard -   200 career feature wins and 40 year old brother of part time World of Outlaw racer,  Jonathan Allard.

Tyler Wolf -   A young mover and shaker in Outlaw sprint car driving,  the 21 year old lost his life after sustaining multiple injuries at the track,  during a race.

 

Tyler Morr -   Was a very young driver,  just a boy at age 12.   It looked like his condition was getting better before his injuries took a turn for the worse.    Many will say he was just a child and that kids this age should not race.  

In spite of his death and the three deaths so close together,  racing is still a lot safer than ordinary driving and besides this is no time to bring politics into this.

I will update you as the season goes on to short track racing and my favorite NASCAR hero,  Regan Smith.

 

Thoughts from an Island Girl

 

East Bay Nationals

Just along Highway 41 and past the ports of Tampa where George Steinbrenner had some of his ships fixed in dry docs,   lies East Bay Raceway Park.

But the history of that area (Gibsonton) has it’s own unique twist.  It is home to a carnival and midway that has a rather eclectic story of it’s own.   It is the home of Lobster Boy,  who was featured on a certain crime drama and the now defunct Giant’s Camp Restaurant.

Giant’s camp was actually owned by a giant,  who stood way over 7 foot tall while his wife was a midget.   Race car drivers like Steve Kinser dined there.   Famous for it’s down home country food and it’s reputation for pulling in race cars and their drivers.   It was a prominent land mark.

East Bay Raceway Park will be hosting it’s 37<sup>th</sup> Winternationals from January 31, 2013 through February 28<sup>th</sup>,  2013.  So can you really find a better solution to your entertainment needs?  I think  not!

And here is the kicker,   it is usually very comfortable weather-wise during that time.    And even if it may be cold,   racing fans are like the Packer fans and they come out,  rain or shine,  warmth or cold!

And like the Packers players they mix with the crowds because you see,  these tracks are like family to the fan.  Generations of spectators have seen it all.    Their heroes come and go but one thing is pretty certain,  more heroes will emerge.

For all the money put into the big divisions,   the smaller classes have more fans and more gate receipts.  In the street stocks and mini stock divisions,   you have whole families in the pits or so it seems.   Where else can you have that kind of fraternization with the fan?  I know!  Nowhere!!!!

Keith Nosbisch Wins $2,000 Topless Late Model Feature Event At East Bay Raceway Park

Lasker Picks Up Feature Win, And Possibly A Wife

Buzzie Reutimann - Age 72 - Winning

A few of the racing stars and their families are iconic.   Like the Reutimanns and yes the same family that David Reutimann comes from.   And what’s more,   his dad is a legend with over 1,300 career feature wins and more importantly he is still winning at age 72.

Next in line are the Nosbisch’s.   I am not sure how old Keith is but he still continues to win as well and he is in his late 50s or even early 60s.

He and brother Ken Nosbisch who drove the 41 were the most dominant family racers in the track’s history.   Brother Keith,  the all time winner in feature wins drives the 02 whenever he decides to come back.

The food is not bad either and there are booths that sell souvenirs from racing videos to cars and T-Shirts.  They also love and pay homage to service members and their families.   The whole track also helps out in the community and is another chance for the fan and the driver to work literally side by side.   No 500 dollar autographs here but a lasting legacy of family entertainment that will exist forever in our collective minds and souls.

Two years ago,  the week before Regan won his first race,  I declared him as my favorite.   Quite ironically I found out that he won the Nationwide race by a friend.   Considering the fact he came on hard late in the season,  I felt he did deserve more than just Furniture Row and to actually place in the top 5 in Dale Jr's car basically confirmed that.

I have also found out that his new crew chief will be none other than Jimmy Johnson's engineer when Jimmy won his five consecutive titles.  Greg Ives.   When people refer to his momentum,  it is a clear signal that good things are expected and hopefully this leads to a great season and perhaps one of the big cars in maybe the 88 or 24 car in the near future.

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Very soon racing season begins again.   In Florida racing begins at the end of next month along with the World of Outlaws.   One thing I have to say about the Outlaw series is that they also have their own version of the Lucas Oil Late Models on dirt.   And in fact,  they have larger programs at many sprints at the various tracks.

WoO Sprint Car Series

World of Outlaws Late Model Series

World Racing Group Modifieds

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Racing does start next month in Florida as the Winternationals take place.  I will update frequently this year to keep you posted.

I will have specifics on this racing at volusia and East Bay Raceway Park in Tampa, Florida.   Afterall,  we sometimes get very disenfranchised with professional athletes and their behavior.

Hope you enjoy this and I plan to give a lot of information in the coming months,  so you can enjoy a very family environment and especially with all this calamity these days,  this will be a welcome relief.

Sunday night my sister and I were smashing dead Bic lighters to get the flints for her Zippo lighter. My dad kept saying Zippo was going out of business. He had heard something about the company. So off to the laptop we went. We checked out Zippo lighters on EBay and then Googled them. Found this cool story. Turns out Zippo is doing great and will be around a while.

Zippo lighters are produced here in the USA in a north western town called Bradford, PA. It was founded by George G Blaisdell in the fall of 1932. Except for improvements to the flint wheel and modifications to the case finish this product has remained unchanged and based in Bradford, PA. The Zippo Lighter lifetime guarantee remains too. 

                                                             IT WORKS OR WE FIX IT FREE

The actual 500 millionth lighter will be a classic brushed chrome model with 2 tone engraving. This one of a kind lighter will feature a distinctive bottom stamp with the date & time of production and a serialization of #1. It will then be placed on display at the company museum near the Zippo lighter plant. 

500 MILLIONTH ZIPPO LIGHTER FUN FACTS

         A stack of 500 million Zippo lighter would be taller than 14 Empire State buildings.

         500 million Zippo lighters would weigh over 32,031 tons. 

         If you laid 500 million Zippo lighters end to end they would stretch from Bradford, PA to Bangkok, Thailand and    back.

I'm thinking I would like to make a trip to Bradford, PA some time in May or June to see the Museum and maybe buy an AMERICAN MADE ZIPPO LIGHTER even though I don't smoke. I think I may even look up their ticker # and add it to my Yahoo Fantasy Stock Portfolio contest roster. I plan on winning that $50,000 in April of next year. Maybe I'll buy some real stock in that company. 

MARTINSVILLE GOODY'S FAST RELIEF 500 RACE RECAP

This track has become my favorite. It's a .526 mile track with speeds of about 95-100 mph and a pit road speed of 30 mph. Richard Petty did the Gentleman start your engines honor in his trademark black feather adorned cowboy hat and huge dark sunglasses. Kasey Kahne had the pole which helped one of my fantasy leagues with 5 points. WOO HOO!!! Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin, Clint Bowyer and Ryan Newman rounded out the top 5 starters.

The race started out fast and furious. Harvick took the lead and I thought he was going to do a repeat of his win in the truck race this weekend but by lap 21 Jeff Gordon took the lead and Harvick slowly faded. 

Caution on lap 97 came out for Kyle Busch who can't seem to buy a break this year. He couldn't turn and drove straight up the track and into the wall. extensive damage kept him in the pits for repairs to the front and rear of his car. Is Karma pounding on the M&M's wonder?  It would seem so. Ryan Newman and Jimmie Johnson got speeding penalties during pit stops for this caution. Not a good thing at Martinsville.

The restart on lap 105 saw Gordon once again in the lead. Denny Hamlin, Kasey Kahne, Brad Keselowski and Clint Bowyer rounded out the top 5. Aric Almirola gave Dale Jr a bump and took the 8th position only to have Dale Jr come back 2 laps later to reclaim it. Such is Martinsville racing.

On lap 175 Gordon is still leading with Hamlin Dale Jr, Bowyer and Kahne in tow.

On lap 179 Kyle Busch returns to the track in 38th and 79 laps down. Gordon still leads with Hamlin, Dale Jr, Kahne and Bowyer in the top 5.

Lap 205 Kurt Busch gets a 2nd flat tire. He and his brother Kyle are being pounded by Karma today. And of course Gordon still leads.

On lap 220 Bobby Labonte is the first to start green flag pit stops. NASCAR is allowing an extra man over the wall to take care of the wind shield and driver.

On lap 229....OMG!!!!!! IT'S DALE JR TO THE LEAD AND THE CROWD GOES WILD!!!!!!!!! And Gordon goes to the pits for his green flag pit stop.

Lap 239 Kahne is thinking he may be losing his motor. Smoke is beginning to puff out of the tail pipe.

Caution on lap 244 for Dave Blaney wreck in turn 2. Kahne goes to the garage. Gordon comes out of the pits first followed by Dale Jr, Bowyer, Kenseth and Keselowski.

Gordon takes the lead on the restart.

Caution on lap 263 brought out by Montoya spinning after he bumps into Schader. Says something in his steering is broken. Newman gets the lucky dog pass. Aric Almirola and Bobby Labonte are the only ones to pit. 

Gordon again takes the lead with Bowyer, Dale Jr, Keselowski, and Kenseth.

Cation on lap 315 for Kahne. He came back out onto the track but on the back stretch his motor goes up in smoke and as he enters pit road he spins out. Pits are closed till lap 323 for lots of speedy dry and sweeping up. Keselowski gets pit road speeding penalty. 

It's Gordon, Johnson, Dale Jr, Hamlin, Bowyer and Kenseth on the restart. Gordon takes it but Johnson is still fighting with him in a side by side battle till he takes the lead 21 laps later.

Carl Edwards informs his crew chief Bob Osborn that his transmission has broken. Ha Ha Ha....APRIL FOOLS!!!

Caution on lap 361 for Travis Kvapil's spin off turn 2. Doesn't hit the wall. Edwards gets the Lucky Dog Pass. During pit stops Johnson is held up. There's some confusion about if all the lug nuts are on or not.

Hamlin takes the lead on the lap 368 restart. Gordon, Johnson, Stewart and Kenseth follow. 

For 33 laps Johnson fights side by side with Hamlin for the lead and on lap 393 he takes lead from Hamlin with Gordon following him to 2nd.

With 50 to go there's only 15 cars on the lead lap. 

With 20 to go crew chiefs for Dale Jr and Gordon are saying they may be 2-3 laps short on fuel so try to save. Dale Jr is a bit PO'd he wasn't told sooner. 

With 8 to go David Reutimann has a flat tire but misses pit road. In fact he keeps missing pit road till 4 laps to go when a second tire goes down and he stalls on the track. BOOOOOOOO!!!!!! It's Geen/White Checker time. Gordon takes the lead from Johnson in turn 4 just before the caution flies.

Stewart gets the Lucky Dog Pass and everyone except Gordon and Johnson go into tyhe pits for fuel and tires. Can you say sitting ducks on the front row? NASCAR has called Reutimann and crew chief to the hauler after the race to explain the decision not to pit. Apparently he had a broken sway bar with the flat tires and chose not to pit for whatever reason.

GREEN/WHITE CHECKER #1 on lap 503. Our 2 sitting ducks on old tires Mr Gordon and Mr Johnson can't get away. Newman bumps into Bowyer who dive bombs to the bottom of the track, hits the curb and bounces into Gordon who slides up into Johnson and around they go. Newman shoots through to the lead. Bowyer has to pit for fender damage. Johnson too. Gordon runs out of fuel and a wrecker has to push him to the pits. 

GREEN/WHITE CHECKER #2 on lap 513It's Newman, Allmendinger, Dale Jr (w/fender damage), Truex Jr and Kenseth on the restart. Newman and Allmendinger are side by side for the lap till they reach the white flag. Newman takes the lead and the win. 

Gordon led 328 laps and got the most laps led points but 14th 1 lap down. OUCH!!!

The top 12 finishers were...Newman, Allmendinger, Dale Jr, Kenseth, Truex Jr, Hamlin, Stewart, Almirola, Keselowski, Bowyer, Edwards, Johnson. There were only 12 on the lead lap.

The top 12 in points are...Biffle, Dale Jr, Stewart, Kenseth, Harvick, Truex Jr, Hamlin, Newman, Bowyer, Johnson, Edwards and Keselowski

No Nationwide race this week so there's no Danica up date. She needs a rest any way. Next race is Texas Motor Speedway on the 14th for Cup drivers. It's a night race and I have 2 weeks to set my outdoor antenna up so I can watch on the couch instead of chasing the signal around the living room with the indoor antenna. Quite the marathon during the Daytona 500. But any way... thanks for stopping by and you all have a great day......

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Welcome Gabbers and others. Thought I'd bring a story of pioneering never say never spirit in todays written offering. It's a story of a man who against all odds and adversity made a name for himself as a respectful talented racer, gained the respect of other racers and just never quit. Wendell Scott was a Black American who decided that racing would become his life. 

He was a taxi driver from 1939-1943. Served as a mechanic and paratrooper during WW II in the US Army from 1943-1945. Had his own garage called Scott's Garage from 1949-1990. Drove in NASCAR from 1961-1973.

Of course he was a bootlegger as most of the NASCAR drivers were back then. He bragged that his liquor car could go 95 mph in 2nd gear and 118 mph in high. No police car in Danville, Va could go that fast so as a result, Wendell was only caught once in 1949 and given 3 years probation. He still made his late night whiskey runs.

Wendell traveled from race to race with his wife Mary and their kids. They had 6 in all and Wendell Jr and Franklin ended up as his pit crew when they were old enough. Travel as a black family was rough. They brought their own food and carried extra cans of fuel just in case they couldn't make it to a gas station or restaurant that would serve them. Some tracks refused to let him race. People booed him from the stands. Drivers out right wrecked him or slashed his tires. The track scorers would not score him and would place him last on the score board. Of course he'd get last place pay too. 

Wendell's son Franklin told of a story of Wendell smashing the qualifying record of Jack Smith at a Savannah, GA track. He let Wendell know he was going to drive right through him. Seems he never got close enough all race. Wendell came in 2nd behind Ned Jarret. The animosity continued with Jack wrecking him else where and Wendell just had enough. During the pace lap at another race Jack drove up beside Wendell and pointed at him. Wendell pulled out a gun and pointed it at Jack. There were no more issues with Jack Smith after that.

Of course there were those that were happy to help Wendell. He was on a limited budget and very few resource. Richard Petty, Tiny Lund, Ned Jarret, Fireball Roberts and Joe Weatherly were just a few drivers who helped out when they could. On one such occasion Tiny Lund gave Wendell a set of tires to qualify on. Another time Ned Jarret sold Wendell a Holman Moody Ford for a $1. Wendell finished 12 in the points that year even though he missed several races. 

On December 1, 1963 at Speedway Park in Jasksonville, Fla Wendell Scott became the first Black American to win in NASCAR. As usual though the scorers were ignoring Wendell and they waved the checkered flag over top of Buck Baker the 2nd place car. The track officials were afraid of a riot if they let Wendell in victory lane and he kissed the trophy girl. Wendell complained and got the prize money but the trophy came a couple races later and it wasn't the right trophy. 

Through all the adversity Wendell never showed bitterness or acted out in spite. He always took the high road, kept his nose to the grind stone and showed his children how a great man acts. He knew fighting would not serve any purpose in helping him to do what he loved and that was to race.

His career in racing came to an end in 1973 at Talladega, Ala in a 19 car pile up which almost left him a cripple. He sustained multiple injuries. A broken pelvis, 3 broken ribs, a broken leg and a laceration on his arm that required 70 stitches.

In 1971 Wendell received the first Curtis Turner Achievement Award for his efforts to promote NASCAR. He has received many other awards for his community work as well as a street in Danville named after him. In 1999 he was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall Of Fame. Unfortunately Wendell had passed away in 1990 of spinal cancer.

Who knows what he could've accomplished with the money and resources of the better funded teams. He certainly had the talent and most of the drivers admitted that much. He was a genius under the hood of the car making the most out of what he had. He made parts or tools if he had no money to buy them. 

He was truly a NASCAR pioneering spirit in the highest order.

FONTANA CALIFORNIA

I didn't think it rained in California but it did on Sunday. The Auto Club 400 was about 70 laps short due to rain. From the time the green flag dropped all the drivers seemed to be on a mission. Very focused on no caution flags and there weren't any until lap 123 for rain drops in turn 3. By lap 129 it was a red flag and all cars went to pit road to cover up and wait. At 5:25 EST they called the race and my most handsome Knight of the Mobile1 Tony Stewart was awarded the race. 

Normally our veteran drivers have better days in the pits but there were mistakes a plenty. Jeff Gordon dragged his gasman on lap 108 out of the pit box resulting in a stop and go penalty. Green flag stop and he went one lap down. OUCH!!!

Lap 36 Regan Smith too fast exiting pit road. Pass thru penalty.

On lap 68, Jamie McMurray didn't get all his lug nuts on and had to come back in. Came back in again several laps later complaining the wheel was loose.

Lap 70 Bobby Labonte almost as old as Mark Martin was too fast exiting pit road. Pass thru penalty. At the half way lap 100 Brad Keselowski was too fast exiting pit road. Pass thru penalty.

Lap 105 JJ Yeley too fast entering pit road. Pass thru penalty. 

Kyle Busch got the most laps led bonus with 80 laps. Brother Kurt got a top 10. YEAH!!! 

Smoke started pouring from Johnsons car on lap 128. Thought it might be an oil line knocked loose from debris bouncing off or a blown motor. In either case the red flag on lap 129 and rain out race ending saved his 10th place finish.

Hamlin for some unknown reason elected to go in for a pit stop on during the rain caution on lap 123 and gave up 2nd place. 

First thru 12th on the track at the end of the race were... Tony Stewart, Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr, Kevin Harvick, Carl Edwards, Greg Biffle, Ryan Newman, Martin Truex Jr, Kurt Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Denny Hamlin, and Mark Martin.

TOP 12 IN THE POINTS - Greg Biffle, Kevin Harvick, Dale Earnhardt Jr, Tony Stewart, Matt Kenseth, Martin Truex Jr, Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson, Clint Bowyer, Ryan Newman, Paul Menard and Carl Edwards

THE DANICA UPDATE

On Saturdays race debris punctured her radiator and her race day ended with engine failure. She only drove 63 laps and ended up 35th for the day and many laps down. She's 17th in the points standings. 

48 PENALTY UPDATE

The chief appellate officer John Middlebrook gave Jimmie his 25 pts back, and took away the race suspensions of Chad Knaus and car chief Ron Malec. The $100,000 fine stands. Rick Hendrick maintained his team was innocent. He keeps highly detailed records of all his cars and presented all this to John Middlebrook who sided with Hendrick in the end. John is not talking about why he over turned the decision and NASCAR isn't talking either. We are left to wonder why the other cars were allowed to fix their C-post before inspection without a fine and the 48 team wasn't.

Next week it's Martinsville. Lots of tempers flying and lots of beatin' & bangin'. Can't wait. I've moved up 2 spots in my Yahoo fantasy league. Not sure where I am in my work fantasy league but I'm hoping for the best. 

Thanks for stopping by and you all have a great day........

 

 

So any way, there was Bristol in the day light on Sunday. Full of lots of surprises. Not just for me but there were a few drivers struggling and caught up in other peoples messes. Roush-Fenway driver Greg Biffle got the pole. So that was good for my Yahoo Fantasy league. My Knight of the Mobile1 qualified 23rd. Not a good thing at Bristol but Tony is a seasoned veteran and I had all confidence he'd make his way up to the front. Due to rain during the night NASCAR scheduled a competition caution for lap 50. That means you can go in the pits for tires or adjustments but NO FUEL.

The race started and all was well till lap 24. Kasey Kahne passed Regan Smith for position and his spotter said clear so he moved up the track and thought he'd be in front of Regan but.....he wasn't quite clear. Regan bumped into Kahne's rear fender and our first pile up occurred. Keselowski managed to slip through even though he was right there but it took out Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick, Marcos Ambrose and Carl Edwards. Kevin was the least damaged of all. He made 9 pit stops to repair the front end and stayed on the lead lap. Edwards, Busch, Kahne and Ambrose needed extensive front end work. They were out but returned many laps down. Regan Smith cut down a tire but no damage.

Lap 42 it was decided would be the competition caution. 

Lap 47 was the restart. AJ Allmendinger had come out of the pits first and maintained his lead followed by Martin Truex Jr, Brian Vickers, Jeff Burton, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Tony Stewart has moved up to 22nd. Jimmie Johnson has moved to 17th. 

Lap 70 AJ is still in the lead. with Truex Jr, Vickers, Burton and Dale Jr still in 2-3-4-5.

Lap 88 Kyle is now crawling back into his car to return to the track.

Lap 96 Vickers takes the lead from Allmendinger.

Lap 115 CAUTION. Ken Schrader is riding the wall. The bead has melted on his tire and caused him to lose the air and control of his car.

Lap 122 we restart with Vickers, Allmendinger, Gordon, Burton and Dale Jr as your top 5.

Lap 155 Kahne returns to the track. 

Lap 175 Kahne is 130 laps down, Kyle is 72 laps down, Ambrose is back in and 107 laps down but Edwards is still out. 

Lap 200 Edwards is now back on track. Keselowski is battling Vickers for the lead. Allmendinger is complaining of a wicked loose car. Says he's wrecking. 

Lap 235 Allmendinger comes to pit road for service. Top 5 is Keselowski, Gordon, Kenseth, Vickers and....you guessed it folks...Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Around lap 250 green flag pit stops begin. Denny Hamlin has a bad one. His pit crew drops the car on top of a tire they took off. Under green at Bristol, this is a catastrophe. To make things worse he must go back in because his right front tire is loose. Double catastrophe. No luck of the Irish here. Hamlin is pissed and ranting on the radio at his crew. He's now 2 laps down and 25th. OUCH!!!!!

Lap 278 Your top 5 is Keselowski, Kenseth, Gordon, Burton and AGAIN!!!!...Dale Earnhardt Jr.Johnson has moved up to 8th, Stewart to 12th and Harvick despite the front end damage on lap 24 is in 14th AND the lead lap. There are only 17 cars on the lead lap at this point.

Lap 324 Stewart looses a lap as Keselowski finally gets by him after a very vigorous fight.

Lap 340 CAUTION David Stremme is in the wall. The luck of the Irish is with Stewart. He gets his Lucky Dog Pass to the lead lap.Lap 346 is restart and Keselowski is in first and Kenseth beside him in the double file restart. The replay shows that Kenseth beat Keselowski to the line which is a no-no but nothing is said. Race goes on with Kenseth and Keselowski fighting hard. About lap 350 or so Keselowski lets Kenseth have the lead.

Lap 359 CAUTION Gordon loses the air in his tire after him and Dale Jr get together and he backs into the wall. Jrs tail pipes flattened Gordon's tire. Ryan Newman gets the Lucky Dog Pass to the lead lap. Lap 371 is restart. Your top 5 Kenseth, Keselowski, Bowyer, Burton and Dale Jr. How long can this last?

With 120 to go Gordon is off, Kyle is 75 laps down, Ambrose 109 laps down, Kahne 133 laps down and Edwaeds 252 laps down. Keselowski is still battling hard to get the lead from Kenseth.

With 98 to go Keselowski takes the lead but he's complaining he may have a flat tire. His spotter says he drove a little higher on the track once and may have picked up some marbles. Keep driving. ( marbles are bits of tire rubber that are on the track )

With 75 to go your top 5 is Keselowski, Kenseth, Bowyer, Vickers and Burton. All drivers are being told to conserve fuel in case it goes green to the end.

With 35 to go Gordon has come back on to the track and there are only 14 on the lead lap.

Lap 478 CAUTION Tony Stewart bounces off the wall when Brendan Gaughan hits him from behind.  Rear damage but not bad enough to end his day. During pit stops Dale Jr is sited for TOO FAST ON PIT ROAD. He's now 15th but on the lead lap. Keselowski is discussing which lane to choose on the restart. Being first he has that choice. He chooses the top to restart. 

With 18 to go Keselowski takes the lead again on the restart with Kenseth in hot pursuit.

With 10 to go your top 5 is Keselowski, Kenseth, Truex Jr, Bowyer and Vickers . That's all 3 of Micheal Waltrip Racing's drivers in the top 5!!!!!!

Keselowski wins the race and takes the lead lap points too. He led a total of 231 laps. 

Your top 15 finishers and only lead lap cars were...Brad Keselowski, Matt Kenseth, Martin Truex Jr, Clint Bowyer, Brian Vickers, Jeff Burton, Jamie McMurray, Juan Montoya, Jimmie Johnson and Paul Menard, Kevin Harvick, Ryan Newman, Greg Biffle, Tony Stewart and Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Was an action pack race and like I said it was a Shamrock Shake for a few drivers. Recovery this early in the season is definitely possible. No worries for Edwards, Ky Busch or Hamlin yet. All 3 are still in the top 15 in the point standings. Regan Smith is 19th so MIA should be proud of her man. Next week I will try to have a nice story to write along with my race recap. Till then enjoy the NCAA bracket fun, the Manning sweepstakes and for some of us some really awesome unexpected weather. Thanks for stopping by, take care and.....

Have an awesome day......

 

 

 

Welcome Gabbers and others to another fun filled race recap, race updates, story telling and trivial nonsense. Been digging around looking for interesting NASCAR stuff. Researching stories I already know of to get my facts straight in my retelling. So in this weeks story? Since we have a love of monkeys and general monkey business here at The Gab, I thought it only fitting to tell a tale of one such pint sized rhesus monkey named Jocko Flocko and his adoptive family the Flocks. His NASCAR career was a short one, only 8 races total in 1953 but one worth telling. He had his own uniform and there are some very nice but rare photos on TimFlock.com. 

The final race didn't go so well. So I'll let it be told in the words of his copilot Tim Flock...."Back then the cars had a trap door that we could pull open with a chain to check our tire wear. Well, during the Raliegh 300, Jocko got loose from his seat and stuck his head through the trap door and he went berzerk! Listen, it was hard enough to drive those heavy old cars back then under normal circumstances but with a crazed monkey clawing you at the same time, it became nearly impossible! I had to come into the pits to put him out and ended up 3rd. The pit stop cost me 2nd place and a $600 difference in my pay check. Jocko was retired immediately. I had to get that monkey off my back."

Now Tim is saying he went berzerk after looking in the trap door at the tires. I'm thinking he had a date he was late for and the race was running too long. Even monkeys know to never be late for a date because you know how us women get.

The Flock family were 8 children born to Lee and Maudie. This family probably would've been in the X Games or other extreme sporting events of today. Lee was a mechanic, taxi driver, bicycle racer and tight rope walker. Maudie worked at a hosery mill. Carl the oldest son was a speed boat racer. Reo, one of the girls was a wing walker and parachutist. Ethel raced in over 100 races. Bob, Tim and Fonty raced cars. Now of course they were bootleggers and ran that bootleg too. Uncle Peachtree Williams was supposedly the most high profile bootlegger in those parts at the time and the Flock boys got their racing practice running bootleg.

As legend has it the bootleggers would find a cow pasture and drive around in a circle till a track was worn in it and then they'd race drawing crowds of 200 to 300 people. This is the pre NASCAR days. Brian France Sr came along to start the Grand Nationals which later became NASCAR. The inaugural Grand National Championship race was in June of 1949 in Charlotte, NC. The Flock brothers raced in it. Bob came in 3rd, Fonty 5th and Tim 8th. 

In 1950 NASCAR had it's only time in history that 4 siblings raced in the same race. Ethel beat her brothers who all had car issues by coming in 11th in her Cadillac. 

Fonty loved racing in his Bermuda shorts and there's a pair of those shorts in the Darlington museum. 

Tim was the brother who made out the best. He had 2 championships. One in 1952. He raced the #91 Hudson Hornet to that championship earning a $3000 dollar pay day. In 1955 he got his second championship in his #300 Chrysler earning $5000. He had 18 wins and 19 pole positions that year.

Tim won the only NASCAR sports car race in 1955 driving a Mercedes Benz 300 SL Gullwing.

Tim had the first 2 way radio in his car so he could talk to the crew chief in 1954. 

Tim was the only driver to win in all 4 divisions on Daytona Beach. 1955 Grand National, 1956 Modified Division, 1956 Grand National and 1957 Convertible Division.

In 1961, Tim and his crew chief Curtis Turner were banned from NASCAR when they tried to bring in a union going so far as to contact Jimmy Hoffa. In 1965 it was repealed but Tim didn't return.

So it would seem that NASCAR does have some very colorful stories from the past. Even a monkey. The ONLY winning monkey in racing unless of course our own Johnny Monkey. I'm not sure about his checkered flag past. I don't claim to know all the NASCAR history.

RACE RECAP

Well the Las Vegas race plagued 2 more drivers with fuel injection system issues. Both Penske drivers had issues. A J Allmendinger  in the Pennzoil #22 had low fuel pressure starting around lap 149. It got slowly worse from there with each pit stop to change parts ultimately leading up to changing out the whole fuel injection system. He finished 37th and many laps down. His team mate Brad Keselowski in the Miller Lite #2 had it off and on. During one of the last restarts he was in first with Tony Stewart behind him but the car refused to respond and Stewart blew right by him. At first I thought he ran out of fuel but it was reported his fuel pressure dropped. He wound up 32nd and 8 laps down. 

Kurt Busch is trying to stay positive and be a leader for his team but I think the powers that be are testing him. He ran over some debris on the track and cut down a tire resulting in a race ending spin into the wall with 15 laps to go. With 8 laps to go his brother Kyle who came from the back of the field in a back up car also cuts down a tire and spins out. He stays on the lead lap though and comes in 23rd. 

For all you Dale Earnhardt Jr fans out there he lead like 70 laps in the beginning of the race but after a pit stop where he took 4 tires and others took 2, he ended up in mid pack. He later said that it was his fault for not getting enough information to Letarte to make the proper adjustments as the track changed during the race. 

Jimmie Johnson's crew chief Chad Knaus was at the track despite the Daytona penalty. He and Hendrick are appealing it on Tuesday. Jimmie wrecked in practice and had to go to the back up car. According to the rules your qualifying time is disallowed and you start in the back. He came up through the field to challenge Tony Stewart for the win but Stewart held him off with his stellar restart skills. 

Mia's man Regan Smith had an awesome day coming home in 15th. He's on a small under funded team but drives Hendrick equipment so 15th is awesome for him. Even in the best equipment half of it is the ability to set up the equipment and the other half is the driver. I'm expecting if the economy ever lightens up he'll be in a better ride.

YES!!!!!! My Knight of the Mobile 1 took Las Vegas. On one of the last restarts Tony made another of his spectacular dive bombs to the apron to snag the lead. On old tires no less. My daddy called me just now to tell me of a contest to win $10,000 and a chance to be his boss for one race. So after I get done writing this it's off to QL.com to get in on that.

The race top 12 at the end of the race....1. Tony Stewart  2. Jimmie Johnson 3. Greg Biffle 4. Ryan Newman 5. Carl Edwards 6. Clint Bowyer 7. Paul Menard 8. Jamie McMurray 9. Trevor Bayne 10. Dale Jr 11. Kevin Harvick 12. Jeff Gordon

UPDATES

THE DANICA - Her only race was the Nationwide on Saturday. She came in 12th and all 200 laps. Congrats to Danica. This puts her in 15th in the NNW Points Standings.

FUEL INJECTION - It was reported that Stewart didn't have a parts failure last week. It was a breaker. A change out of the system and talks with the manufacturer are in the works. Stewart doesn't expect more issues.

This race saw A J and Brad having low fuel pressure issues. Expect they'll be tearing their systems apart and having talks with the manufacture too.

ELLIOT "DUH" SADLER - Drives for RCR full time in the NNW series in a CHEVY. He had talks with Micheal Waltrip about running 6 races in the Cup series driving a TOYOTA. Now when in NASCAR you don't mix car manufacturers. He never spoke with Childress about wanting to drive Mikies car. After a talk it was decided he shouldn't drive MWR's car. That's good news for Brian Vickers. He gets 6 races driving the #55. Both races at Bristol, Martinsville and New Hampshire.

DODGE NEWS - Dodge unveiled their new 2013 Cup car on Sturday. Apparently Robby Gordon will be the only Dodge next year unless they get others on board. Penske Racing announced they were going with Ford next year.

KNAUS DAYTONA PENALTY - At Daytona Knaus and his car chief Ron Malec got 6 race suspensions, Jimmie -25 points and Hendrick -25 owners points for the C-post violation. Hendrickk appealed and on Tuesday March 13th they get their day in NASCAR court. Hendrick's beggest complaint is that the car never made it to the inspection. The car was pulled out of line when the infraction was spotted and we were told to go fix it. We did. I think I'm siding with Hendrick on this one.

ROWDY NEWS - On March 15th ROWDY.COM will be no more. In the transition the guys made only 2 of them could move and one wasn't allowed to commute. The web site suffered because of this. Other factors being Bass got assignments in other sports that took him away from Rowdy and Buzz was left to do the podcast and take care of the site mostly by himself while traveling to races. The podcast has suffered too. It's just not as good as it once was. They promised the podcast would live on. I hope so. It's a big loss in my opinion. I wish Bass and Buzz the best. Maybe some where down the line Rowdy can be resurrected.

So that's about it folks. Thank you for stopping by and have an awesome week........

 

 

 

 

 

​It is the same old story.   An owner or group of owners have a dream.   To build a racetrack.   After it's completion,  owners and sponsors try to lure in fans,  in hope of building something lasting.   No one even considers the track's probable demise one day.  For now,  the future is here.

​It is a local event.  Whole families gear up for the night's action.  Parents purchase the tickets while the smell of local food sizzles on the grill.    Vendors are lined up near the ticket window on the inside,  and sell programs and novelties.  

Many families root for a particular guy or guys and in many cases,  some racers are friends of family.    The rivalries off the track match the competitiveness on it.  Drivers and their fans become hardcore adversaries.   Adding to the rich drama that unfolds in both places

The  track featured here was the former East Windsor Raceway.   Now just a memory for some,  many older fans wax sentimental.   A hole in their heart has been opened and until they die,  it is like the loss of a favorite pet.   In fact,  it is almost like the loss of a family member!

 Here are some videos.   Take a moment to digest this.  Like the hockey arena recently shown here on Yougab,  this track has a finite history and the legacy of entertainment.

​One will note the changes.   From old coops that barely resemble the stock cars that are racing today.   The younger fan marvels at the old school look,  while for some reason,  the older fan wants the younger one to appreciate what they had.   From the dust in the eye, to the greasy burgers and oil-soaked fries and bathrooms just horribly gross by today's standards.   But I imagine,  even those tawdry accommodations can be, 'Home Sweet Home'.

​Hard to imagine these cars racing or more actually,  the guys who did and the occassional women.  

 

 

 

For those who remember the past,  the future is hard to take.   Seeing what thrived at one time,  only to be replaced by a flea market,  parking lot or shopping mall,  it is even harder to take.

​I hope you all enjoyed this story and I will provide a link for further research on this track.

http://www.3widespicturevault.com/front%20page%20stuff/East_Windsor_Memories_HOMEPAGE.htm

We get started at 7pm and on lap 2 Elliot Sadler taps Jimmie Johnson in the left rear like has been happening in all the races during speed weeks and by now he should know better because there goes Jimmie hard into the wall and also gets nailed in the drivers door by David Ragan. Danica, last years winner Trevor Bayne and Kurt Busch are collected as well. Danica's car looked good to me but she went behind the wall for extensive repairs. Seems she needed a whole new rear end. New gears, trailing arms, housing and sheet metal among other things.

Lap 7 is restart. Greg Biffle, Carl Edwards and Tony Stewart are your top 3.

At Lap 13 Ryan Newman has a tire go down and around he goes. In the pits Newman's troubles continue. As he's leaving his pits the lug nuts aren't on and he loses his tire. AJ Allmendinger hits him in the rear. AJ never recovers. He's back in the 30's laps down for the rest of the race.

Lap 17 we restart. Paul Menard and Denny Hamlin didn't pit so they're out front followed by Carl Edwards, Greg Biffle and Regan Smith to round out the top 5. Denny quickly takes the lead.

Lap 22 Danica, Trevor and Kurt are still in the garage for repairs.

Lap 37 Trevor comes back on the track.

Lap 44 Your top 10 is Jeff Buton, Greg Biffle, Denny Hamlin, Paul Menard, Regan Smith, Joey Logano, Marcos Ambrose, Martin Truex Jr, Jeff Gordon, Clint Bowyer.

Lap 54 green flag pit stops begin. Jeff Gordon is complaining his car is running wide open but has no speed. Kevin Harvick has a small vibration. Tony Stewart slows to come in the pits but is blocked by another car. Must speed up and go around. This puts him as the only one on pit road and nobody to draft with to get to the lead pack.

Lap 64 Stewart is saved. Debris caution is called. Landon Cassil is awarded the Lucky Dog Pass to the lead lap. Danica is backing out of the garage and gets back into the race at 62 laps down. Matt Kenseth is over heating. Looks like a geyser with the water spewing out. Having radio issues too. 

Lap 67 Restart. Top 10 is Jeff Burton, Greg Biffle, Marcos Ambrose, Martin Truex Jr, Kyle Busch, Mark Martin, Jeff Gordon, Joey Logano, David Ruetimann and Brad Keselowski.

Lap 70 Joe Nemechek does his Start & Park thing. He's off to the hauler.

Lap 81 Caution. Jeff Gordon's motor goes poof and up in flames. Says the gages never told him he had an issue. Tony Raines gets the Lucky Dog. Pit stops are mostlt fuel only but Kyle Busch takes right side tires too. 

Lap85 Restart. Terry "The Iceman" Labonte is out front followed by Greg Biffle, Marcos Ambrose, Martin Truex Jr and Kyle Busch for you top 5.

Lap 89 Caution. Marcos Ambrose bumped Terry Labonte's left rear and he goes for a spin. Great save by Terry. Look mom no walls.

Lap 92 Restart and 9 laps to the $200,000 bonus for leading at half way. Martin Truex Jr manages to get the bonus. Greg Biffle is 2nd followed by Denny Hamlin, Jeff Burton, Carl Edwards, Brad Keselowski, Aric Amirola, Matt Kenseth and Kasey Kahne as you top 10.

Lap 101 Clint Bowyer complaining about over heating. By lap 119 it's even worse. .On lap 126 Bowyer is out of fuel. He misses pit road and brings out the caution on lap 129. A tow truck comes out to give Clint a push around the track to his pit stall. Ryan Newman gets the lucky Dog and there are 28 cars on the lead lap. 

With 68 to go It's Martin Truex Jr, Greg Biffle, Tony Stewart, Regan Smith and Denny Hamlin in the top 5. Hey it's Mark Martin leading with 65 laps to go!!!!!

Hey!!!! Is that Sliced Bread out there leading? Sure is. Joey Logano leads a lap with 57 laps to go.

Caution with 43 laps to go David Stremme's motor goes bye bye. Pit stops begin and the Twilight Zone moves in. Juan Montoya is complaining of a vibration in every gear. He's hurrying to catch up to the pack for the restart driving down on the yellow line to stay clear of the trucks blowing debris off the track. Something snaps on Juans car and he careens into the trailer of one of the trucks. His car is destroyed and the jet helicopter engine used to blow the track is carrying 200 gallon of fuel and it's pouring down the track. Seconds later it's an inferno. Juan crawls from his wrecked car and the track worker is escorted from the burning truck. 

The red flag is out with the drivers parked on the track. All start getting out to check out the mess. The flames are quickly extinguished and clean up efforts begin with skid loaders picking up the truck, speedy oil dry followed by Tide laundry detergent washed down with water and then a coating of street bond. This was a 2 hour delay.

Brad Keselowski made the best of the situation by having his iphone with him. He now has the distinct honor of being the first to Tweet a picture during the race. He also gained 55,000 followers on Twitter. It would seem that some of the drivers had compartments built into their cars during practice and speed weeks to hold their phones. Although Kes was the only one to have his and the drivers took turns playing with it.

When some of the drivers got too close to the clean up the fun police intervened and sent them back. Carl Edwards wanted a snack. Said a sub or Cheez - its would be great about now. Dave Blaney, Landon Cassil, Tony Raines and David Guililand didn't pit and held their breaths as a threat of rain was issued during clean up. Dave was only trying to get a bonus point for leading a lap but would've been happy to take the win. But at 11:25 the drivers are directed to get in their cars. Weather threat is over, the tracks cleaned up and crew members have been bused to the back stretch to help hook up, belt up and window net the drivers. 

Around midnight the cars start moving. The front 4 that gambled have now gone to the pits for fuel and tires. Kyle Busch comes in for a splash of fuel just in case there's a green/white checker ending. He has to start as the last one on the lead lap due to pulling a tear off off his wind shield. 

It's 12:10am with 34 laps to go and we're off again. Matt Kenseth, Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick and Greg Biffle lead the pack.

At around 24 laps to go the pack comes up on Casey Mears who is all by himself. He gets cycled back through the faster cars and a wreck happens. Ricky Stenhouse Jr moves down on Aric Amirola so Casey Mears and Marcos Ambrose go around.

With 18 laps to go we restart. Before they go Joey Logano is sent from 6th to 18th place for not maintaining the pace car speed. Don't know why. 

15 to go...Matt Kenseth, Greg Biffle, Dale Earnhardt Jr, Denny Hamlin and Paul Menard are your top 5.

Caution with 13 to go Jamie McMurray has a tire go down. Aric Amirola, Regan Smith, Tony Stewart, Kasey Kahne, Carl Edwards and Brad Keselowski all caught in the mess. After watching the replay it would seem Tony Stewart has no damage even though he drove into McMurray's door. Edwards needs ride side front fender work.

Restart with 7 to go. Kenseth, Biffle, Dale Jr, Hamlin and Harvick are your top 5.

Caution with 4 to go. David Guililand pushed Ricky Stenhouse into Tony Stewart. Stewart spun but says he needs new tires even though he saved the car. McMurray is back on the track without front fender.  

We now have a green/white checker to end the race. It's Matt Kenseth, Greg Biffle, Denny Hamlin, Dale Jr, Jeff Burton, Kevin Harvick, Paul Menard, Mark Martin, Joey Logano and Martin truex Jr for your top 10.

On the restart Kenseth, Biffle and Jr hook up and stay ahead of everyone else. Nobody seems to be able to get together and freight train by them or even to them. Kenseth is never challenged and wins at 1 am AND it's finally over.

SIDE NOTE

Some of you are probably wondering why they went to all the trouble to get Danica's car fixed and back in the race. Well being in the top 35 in the owners points gets you a guaranteed starting spot for every race. Even though she'll only be in 10 Cup races, she's sharing that # with somebody else. So every point counts even if your down 62 laps. Stewart Haas Racing bought the owners points from Tommy Baldwin Racing for 10 races. Those came from poor Dave Blaney who had to race his way into the Daytona 500 in the Duels on Thursday. Besides all that Danica needs seat time in the car. A Cup car is different from a NNW car. 

So next week is Phoenix. I hear it doesn't rain there. Maybe a few cacti will come onto the track and bully some drivers or a few buzzards with do a fly by. One things for sure it shouldn't be a 6 hour affair like Daytona. I'm beat. I need a nap. 

If any one is so inclined to do so you can bring some of the videos here. I'm not so computer talented. Typing and surfing are my only skills. I wouldn't consider 3 fingers typing either. Till next time, you have a great day and thanks for stopping by......

 

 

​Wow!!  While not winning the Second race yesterday at Daytona,  Regan Smith took a strong second place finish and qualified in the 6th starting position for Sunday's Daytona 500!  A race won by Matt Kenseth in the last two laps.  The first race was won by a very hot Tony Stewart.  So yes,  I am very glad.

One of my other favorites is Trevor Bain.   I love the underdogs and there are so few of them these days.   At least the ones who have the potential to win.   And even some of those who have had it all,  find themselves on the outside looking in.  

Take Kurt Busch.  His virtual demotion has fostered a good sense of what team play is all about.  After acting his way out of the #22 Penske sled,  he has grown a deeper appreciation of what he had.   He is also learning what it means to have to work harder and be more conservative in his approach on and off the track.   He,  like his brother has more than enough talent to dominant but a lack of appreciation has caused them a lot of negative feedback and in the case of Kurt,  the loss of big money sponsorship.

But the NASCAR silly season is even more evident in Camping World Truck Series.  Great drivers like Todd Bodine are again struggling for sponsorships and one has to wonder what was going on at the end of last year.    Bodine and his teammate were acting out,  as were other drivers and I think that truck owners were are now are,  even more hesitant to sponsor and own drivers that like to mix paint.   Just my take on all that.     I think Bodine might find some help and have stated that he will be racing in the first race.   Let's hope he and some others get that financial boost they need to competitive and even show up for the races.

​As I mentioned in my last article on NASCAR,  there is other racing going on now.   This includes the Sprint 360s at East Bay Raceway Park in Tampa, Florida.   The event know as King of the 360s kicked off last night with Shane Stewart picking up the victory.   42 cars lined up for the feature event, with five heats an A and B-Main and of course the final race of the evening,  take by the Canadian born Shane Stewart.

​East Bay will have it's second night of racing for the King of the 360s this evening,  with the final night and championship race on Saturday evening at the 1/3 mile clay track.  Down the road at Volusia Speedway in Barberville, Florida was the running of the season opener in the World of Outlaw Sprint Cars.  The racing was held on February 18th and 19th with double features on the 19th.    On opening night Danny Lasoski picked up the A-Main feature event,  while on the 19th, the first feature was taken by Donny Schatz.    For the big A-Main feature championship,  Wisconsin's own Craig Dollansky took the checkered.

​The 410 sprint series doesn't race again until the first week of March,  when they travel to 'The Dirt Track in Las Vegas" for one night of racing.  Following that on the 10th of March they travel to Perris Speedway in California.

​But the World of Outlaws have their Late Model Series.  On the opening night of late model action,the race was won by Billy Moyer of Arkansas age 54. Good for him.  One Wednesday  the track succumbed to the rain and so that action was postponed until Friday afternoon.

​One Thursday evening, 39-yr old Dennis Erb Jr. took the A-Main checkered, winning $10,000 dollars for his efforts.

​The final night of racing will be this afternoon,  so if you get this early enough you can always get out there.   Otherwise, for you at home,  simply register at Dirtvision.com and listen to the race free of charge and meet some other racing fans who share your robust love of racing, in one of the premier racing divisions in America.

​Today I would like to discuss another Underdog, in the world of sports.   This time it is NASCAR's Regan Smith.   While certainly not a giant in racing,  he has done enough to inspire sponsorship and perhaps get more of those precious dollars, so many are struggling to obtain.

 

​Born September 23, 1983, this young veteran has won one Cup race, discounting the one he was stripped of.    But he is no real stranger to the sport of racing.  He began racing at age 4 in  Quarter Midget like cars.   At 12 he joined and won the World Karting Association and in 1996, at the ege of 13 won the Grand National Championship in the WKA.  The following season he won the WKA's Master Cup in 1997.   

​Following his stint in Karts,  he graduated to USAR in 2001 and the highlight was his winning three consecutive Sunoco Pole Awards,  a record to this day.  In 2003 and 2004 competed in the Truck series and during 2004,  recorded his first top ten finish (9th).

​The 2005-2006 seasons were his introduction to the Busch Series ( Now Nationwide) where he finished 20th in driver points.  

​He has been racing in the cup series since like 2007 while 2008 was his first full season racing in NASCAR's premier division.   While top 10 finishes have been relatively rare,  he has showed himself as reliable,  making a vast majority of starts over the past two or so years.

​His lone win came last year,  in a race that some experts called a fluke.  Ironically I picked him as my favorite driver just one week before his win.   And though he places towards the middle of the pack,  I have grown quite fond of him and his familiar #78.   I don't believe he has reached the upper-limits of his talent but of course a lot of this will have to do with funding and technical support.

Unlike Jeremy Lin of the New York Knicks,  he hasn't busted out yet,  but there is no reason with the right logistics,  that he can't make his mark as a top competitor in the Cup Series.

 

​In other racing news,  Steve Francis won $10,000 in capturing Saturday's final of the Lucas Late Model program,  at East Bay in Tampa, Florida.    It was the culmination of six nights of racing in this premier class of dirt late model racing.   

​But this was not the first racing at East Bay for the 2012 season.   Each year at around the first of February,  East Bay has had it's winter fling on the clay.  Racing occurs for 4-6 weeks each year and this year the National culminate with three nights of racing,  called "The King of the 360 Sprints".     Many of Sprint Car racing 410 drivers appear at the track for this event.  A few years ago,  around 80 cars were present.   These cars come from about 4 countries and 38 states.   It,  like the Lucas Late Models are must see events and like Bowman Gray in North Carolina,  has a rich history with drivers like Steve Kinser,  Stevie Smith and many others.

​It is also a stepping stone to the bigs.    Past stars include Kenny Adams,  Gene Lasker and Sport Allen.

​The Nationals started back on February 2nd with the NE Late Models and Street Stock World Championship which culminated on February 4th.  February 8-11th were the UMP Modifieds and USA mod-lites.

East Bay is rated as one of the best clay racing surfaces in dirt racing.   The facilities are nice too.  Ownership and Management  are professional and former drivers at the track.   This is a very nice facility and if you get the chance to visit Tampa during February,  you will find you had a pretty good time.

 

 

STARTING POSITIONS - Edwards Pole - Ku Busch 4th - Keselowski 5th - Kenseth 6th - Gordon 7th - Johnson 9th - Earnhardt Jr 11th - Newman 14th - Stewart 15th - Ky Busch 19th - Harvick 21st

I'm doing a different write up this time. There were only 2 drivers contending for the Championship trophy any way. So we have our starting positions and every one except me has written Tony's championship hopes off because he's starting 15th and Carl is on the pole. Fools I say. AND Tony soon proves that to be so. At the drop of the green flag there's a 20% chance of showers but Edwards takes the first lap while Stewart makes a bold 3 wide move to 12th.

Lap 3 Kurt Busch is off to the Garage because his transmission just left go. Don't know who made him mad but he's showing some love to some one through that middle finger.

Lap 5 Stewart to 10th.

Lap 14 Stewart is 8th and a caution comes out for rain. All go to pit lane for service and it is discovered that Stewart has a hole the size of a fist in the mesh part of his grill. Work begins to fix this. All signs point to the debris from Kurt's transmission for the cause of the hole. He's now back in 40th but still on the lead lap. Edwards in 1st. 

Four laps after the restart on lap 22 Stewart is on a mission and in 29th. Edwards is still first.

Lap 30 Stewart is 25th and says his car is STILL fast. Edwards still out front.

Lap 34 Dave Blaney spins in turn 4 and brings out a caution. All to pit road for service. Stewart has an extended stay to fix the grill. Good news. Radiator is not damaged.  Back to 30th. Edwards rear tire changer slipped on that stop and he's starting in 5th.

Lap 40 Stewart to 27th. Edwards to 3rd.

Lap 45 Stewart to 23rd. Lap 47 Stewart 19th.

Lap 48 Edwards to the lead.

Lap 51 Kurt Busch is now back on the track 47 laps down in 42nd.

Lap 56 Stewart to 16th. Edwards in lead.

Lap 74 Marcos Ambrose to the garage for a blown motor. He's the first Ford to go. Edwards is still leading and Stewart is 12th.

Lap 83 Caution. David Ragan also a Ford has just lost his motor. Oil on the track and a question mark appears for the Ford camp and Edwards. After Edwards pit stop Bob warns him that his right front tire was pushed to the limit. Don't go any harder because the inside shoulder was worn through. Edwards in the lead at restart. Stewart in 10th.

Three laps later Stewart is in 7th.

Lap 104 Johnson to the pits for a missing motor. They change the ignition boxes and are about to replace the plugs but the caution is now out.

Lap 108 Caution comes out for rain. The red flag comes out on lap 109 and no work or pit stops can go on during a red flag. Johnson's crew must stop working. They park the cars for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Edwards is still leading. Stewart is in 5th.

Cars are started up and out onto the track where a yellow flag flys at lap 110. Johnson's crew may now work on the car. Turns out it's a carburetor issue and a new one is installed. He's now 5 laps down in 36th.

Lap 117 restart and Gordon takes the lead. Stewart is on his bumper in 2nd and Edwards is in 3rd.

Lap 123 Stewart to the lead. Edwards still 3rd.

Lap 130 Edwards to 2nd. Bob is still telling him to take care of that right front tire. Warns he's being a little too aggressive.

Lap 133 Trevor Bayne rides the wall to bring out a caution. 

Lap 139 on restart Harvick takes the lead and Martin Truex Jr takes 3rd from Edwards.

Lap 140 It's Harvick - Truex Jr - Edwards in 1,2,3.....Stewart in 9th

Lap 141 Caution for Johnson spinning. Has to go into the pits before open for 4 flat tires.

Lap 145 Harvick is out of pits first. Edwards 3rd. Stewart 9th.

Lap 147 Truex takes the lead from Harvick on the restart. Stewart is going 4 wide to the bottom. Edwards beside the wall then Harvick then Kyle and Stewart on the bottom. IT'S WIDE RACING FOR POSITION!!!!!

Lap 150 It's Truex - Newman - Stewart - Kenseth - Edwards.

Lap 152 Stewart to the lead and Edwards to 3rd.

Lap 154 Caution. Wreck. Cassil, Bayne and Whitt involved. Stewart has a bad pit stop. The socket on the rear tire changers air wrench is stripped. Edwards in 5th. Stewart in 12th on restart.

Lap 161 Restart. Stewart to the high side this time AND GOES WIDE AGAIN to take 7th. Kenseth to the lead and Edwards to 3rd.

Lap 163 Stewart to 4th and he taps Edwards bumper to let him know he's there. NASCAR sends a knock it off message to Stewart.

Lap 174 Edwards to 2nd. Lap 176 he's in the lead again with Stewart in 3rd. Lap 180 Stewart to 2nd

Lap 193 Greg Biffle another Ford is down a cylinder and goes to the garage. Green flag pit stops are in progress.

Lap 202 Most of the cars have pitted and Edwards goes in for 4 tires and fuel. Stewart is told the he can go 57 laps on a tank and Edwards can't so Darian tells Stewart to stay out 12 - 15 more laps and save fuel. Stewart is now being passed by cars with fresher tires and Edwards is one who goes by him.

Lap 210 On his final lap to the pits his fuel pressure gage drops to 2 Lbs in turn 2. In turn 3 he shuts it off and coasts. In turn 4 he coasts to pit entrance and starts the car. Darian tells him to keep the rpm's up as they fuel the car. He leaves the pit stall, he makes it to the last timing line and the car motor dies. He coasts about 100 feet and it comes back to life. He re-enters the track to be in 15th. 

Lap 213 Caution for rain. Edwards pits again for fuel and 2 tires.

Lap 231 On the restart the caution laps have made Edwards and Stewart good to go to the finish on fuel. Top 5 is Kyle - Keselowski - Stewart - Bowyer - Edwards. AGAIN  STEWART GOES 3 WIDE ON THE RESTART to pass Kyle and Keselowski for the lead.

From here on out Stewart keeps the lead and Edwards stays in 2nd. They come up on lapped cars that don't give any resistance and move out of the way. There was debris reported but NASCAR held that yellow flag and chose not to bring out a caution. All drivers kept their cars under control and the race and the Chase ended with Tony Stewart winning both. The points were a tie and with Stewart's 5 wins being the tie breaker he got the championship.

There was no victory burn out and no fence climbing. Bummer. I so wanted to see my handsome knight of the Office Depot - Mobile One ride his trusty Chevy Impala steed to victory and climb the walls of the castle Homestead to claim his flag and the Sprint Challis Trophy. It was still an epic battle and the best Chase yet. Stewart now has a Winston Cup, Nextel Cup and a Sprint Cup trophy. He had to pass 118 cars all together with the issues he had. Edwards was quite classy and gentleman like in his defeat. 

CHASE POINTS - Stewart 2403 (5 W's) - Edwards 2403 - Harvick 2345 - Kenseth 2330 - Keselowski 2319 - Johnson 2304 - Earnhardt Jr 2290 - Gordon 2287 - Hamlin 2284 - Newman 2284 - Ku Busch 2262 - Ky Busch 2246

Thanks for dropping by and man I can't wait for Daytona already.......

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

STARTING POSITIONS - Kenseth Pole Position - Stewart 8th - Edwards 9th - Keselowski 12th - Johnson 16th - Ku Busch 17th - Earnhart Jr 22nd - Gordon 23rd - Harvick 27th - Newman 30th - Hamlin 33rd - Ky Busch 34th

KYLE BUSCH - We'll start with Kyle. Due to blowing up his motor in practice NASCAR's one engine rule comes into effect. He had to change it so that meant he had to start in 43rd. BUT this is Kyle we're talking about here so no worries yet. By lap 15 he's 28th. By lap 50 he's in 17th. Holds steady there till cautions land him in 5th around the half way mark. He gets as high as 3rd and his motor starts to let go. Now it's time to worry. He backs off to try and save the motor but by lap 195 he goes to the garage and he's done for the day. He falls to the 12th spot in the Chase.

Besides the $50,000 fine, M&M Mars has asked not to be on his car for the last 2 races in Cup so Interstate Batteries has stepped up. They don't condone what Kyle did at Texas but are supporting Joe Gibbs. Z Line has asked that Hamlin drive Kyle's car in NNW and get someone else in the truck. The sponsors have spoken. They aren't happy but they aren't leaving and Joe Gibbs is standing firmly by Kyle's side through this mess. What an awesome boss to have. Kyle has written his apology letter and in a press conference with Joe Gibbs by his side he has vowed to become a new man. He knows that this is his last chance and that he really wants to drive in Cup, NNW and trucks. Good luck Kyle.

RYAN NEWMAN - Ryan started out in 30th but by lap 15 he's in 23rd. By lap 100 he's in 15th. With each pit stop his car gets better. By lap 175 he's 8th and is in 5th by lap 245. He finishes 4th right behind his boss Stewart. He jumps 3 spots in the Chase to 9th.

DENNY HAMLIN - Denny's day starts out in 33rd and he breaks the 20's and stays there for the first 100 laps adjusting on his car in the pits during cautions. Lap 165 he's in 12th. Breaks the top 10 for a while but ends his day in 11th. Sigh of relief. No engine issues for Hamlin. He stays 10th in the points.

KURT BUSCH - Kurt is his usual grumbly self on the radio. He's in the top 10 by lap 15 and griping the whole time about his car. By lap 135 he's angry about how his team mate Keselowski's car can be 2% different on paper but be so different on the track from his. Why he's griping I don't know because he's having a way better and much more consistent day than Keselowski. By lap 165 he's 4th. Robby Gordon brings out a caution on lap 220 when he rides the wall and Kurt comes out of the pits in the lead. He keeps that lead all through green flag pit stops but stays out one lap too many and on lap 279 he runs out of fuel at the entrance to pit road on his way in. To add insult to injury he speeds coming into the pits because his cars not running so the tach isn't working to tell him how fast he's going and has to do a drive thru penalty. He ends his day in 22nd and 1 lap down. Ouch. He actually moves up one spot in the standings to 8th. 

JEFF GORDON - His day was just one big bummer. He's complaining of brake issues. They're heating up and the pedal sinks to the floor when they're too hot. He's in the pits under the caution laps multiple times to have holes cut into the front valance to get more air to the brakes. It doesn't help and he starts falling back. By half way he's 1 lap down in 30th. By lap 200 he's 2 laps down in 28th. With 70 laps to go he's 3 laps down. He ends his day 6 laps down in 32nd. He drops 3 spots to 11th in the standings.

DALE EARNHARDT JR - Jr starts falling back immediately. Handling issues just can't be resolved. He has a 25th place average all race long going down a lap around lap 200. He finishes 24th and 1 lap down. He maintains 7th in the standings.

JIMMIE JOHNSON - He's sporting a new paint scheme. Black Kobalt Tools. Nice one too. Would love to see more of that. Has handling issues all race long. Air pressure and track bar adjustments can't bring the car under control. Jimmie describes his car as scary scary loose. Around lap 175 he scuffs the wall but he's hanging on to 23rd on lap 185. By lap 200 he's in the top 20 with 17th. He does goes down a lap with 7 to go and comes in 14th. Only 12 cars on the lead lap. Bumps up one spot to 5th in the standings.

BRAD KESELOWSKI - The Kes is his usual resourceful self. Trying new things to see if he can make some thing of it. He's having a decent day riding in and around 12th for the first 75 laps. Then he back and forth between 6th and 9th till with 85 laps to go he and Biffle have a side to side bump and smoke rolls off his tires. He drops back to 19th. With 15 to go he's in 1st to get that lead a lap bonus point then it's off to the pits 2 laps later for fuel. He ends up 18th and 1 lap down. He and his crew chief are trying things every week that are just out of sequence of the other drivers. Some times it works to their advantage and sometimes not. He's got a good thing going with his crew chief. He bumps up one spot to 4th in the standings.

MATT KENSETH - He's got the pole and keeps the lead for the first 50 laps till Stewart takes it from him on the restart. No biggie. His car is handling good and he stays in the top 4 fighting, slicing and dicing with Stewart and Edwards till lap 168 when Edwards takes the lead from him and he starts falling back because his brakes are heating up. Lap 175 he's in 12th and Brian Vickers comes up on Kenseth's bumper and drivers him forward which smokes the brakes and pushes his front end into the track. Heavy damage on Kenseth's car sends him to the garage with a smoking radiator among other things. Vickers said Kenseth just stopped on the back stretch. He does make it back onto the track for some laps but finishes his day 34th and 74 laps down. Ouch. Kenseth asks why they park a guy who retaliates under a caution but lets this guy retaliate 2 races later and don't call him to the hauler. He's got a point on this one. We'll see what NASCAR does this week if anything. He falls 2 spots to 6th in the standings.

KEVIN HARVICK - Has handling issues all race long. Pits under green giving up 12th for a vibration on lap 144. Which is his best showing. For much of the race he's between 13th and 18th. He finishes in 19th and 1 lap down. He maintains 3rd place in the standings.

TONY STEWART - By lap 15 he goes from 8th to 3rd. He's on a mission. By lap 20 he's 2nd. Kenseth is still leading but on lap 36 Stewart goes to the outside with Geoff Bodine in between him and Kenseth. He's now leading. He keeps the lead till lap 158 when Kenseth takes it. On lap 178 there's a caution for Vickers hitting Kenseth and Stewart takes back the lead on the restart. Lap 220 there's a caution for Robby Gordon riding the wall. Stewart comes out of the pits in 3rd but an air pressure adjustment turns out to be too much. He's now struggling to keep his position. He pits with 19 laps to go for a splash of fuel only and falls back to 5th with 15 laps to go. Keselowski hasn't pitted yet so when he finally does Stewart is in 4th. He passes Jeff Burton to end his day in 3rd and 3 points behind Edwards to remain 2nd in the point standings. He lead the most laps for the bonus.

CARL EDWARDS  - Edwards hung out in the top 3 all day even with a loose race car. He stayed out of trouble and didn't lead the most laps but came in 2nd to Kasey Kahne to remain in first place in the point standings.

POINT STANDINGS - Edwards 2359 - Stewart 2356 - Harvick 2308 - Keselowski 2294 - Johnson 2291 - Kenseth 2298 - Earnhardt Jr 2257 - Ku Busch 2252 - Newman 2252 - Hamlin 2249 - Gordon 2247 - Ky Busch 2224

All are eliminated but Stewart and Edwards. Only 3 points separate the 2 drivers. Stewart has 4 Chase wins. Edwards has no Chase wins. If Stewart wins the race next week or if they are tied due to where they place at the end of the race Stewart wins the championship with the 4 wins as the tie breaker. My money is still on my dark knight of the Mobile One. Edwards favors the Homestead track with the win there last year at this time. Stewart says he's ready to go now. He don't want to wait till Friday. Homestead is in Florida and is a 1.5 mile oval track with low banking. I'm excited. So it's 3pm Sunday November 20th for the Ford 400. Be there or be square......

Welcome, Howdy and Good Day. It's Monday and Chase race #8 goes into the history books, 3 contenders are mathematically eliminated, our wild card tried something wild, the M&M's got parked, 5 time goes for a spin, Smoke is rising and the heat is on. WHAT a weekend in racing!!! I seriously thought we would be watching a fuel mileage race but was pleasantly surprised when once again NASCAR sat on the caution flag and left the race play itself out organically. To this I thank NASCAR. I'm still irrate about ESPN's A.D.D. Schtzoid type coverage. You obviously don't know Jack about how to cover a race. BUT lets get into the race recap. Shall we?

START POSITION - Kenseth 3rd - Stewart 5th - Edwards 7th - Keselowski 8th - Johnson 11th - Ku Busch 14th - Earnhardt Jr 16th - Ky Busch 17th - Harvick 21st - Gordon 23rd - Newman 24th - Hamlin 28th

KYLE BUSCH - We'll start with our big story of the weekend. Kyle was in the truck race on Friday night and 13 laps into the race Kyle and Ron Hornaday Jr are going for the same piece of realestate. Neither one will let up as they come up on another truck, Ron slides up into Kyle and they both end up riding the wall. At this point both cars have minimal damage and are fixable. BUT Kyle at 150 mph decides to run up on Ron's bumper and ride him into the wall. Now both cars are DONE.  NASCAR tells Kyle he's parked for the remainder of the truck race and calls him and crew chief to the hauler for a chat. Saturday morning he's told he won't be aloud to race his NNW car or Cup car and that he should write an apology letter. Hamlin drives the NNW car to a 2nd place finish. However Micheal McDowell is chosen for his Cup car and doesn't do so hot. Kyle asked to be aloud on his pit box to be with the team and permission was granted. He didn't grant any interviews though. Since Kyle didn't start the race in the car his 17th place starting spot was eliminated and McDowell had to start in the back. He makes it up to 33rd but by lap 50 he's a lap down. He never recovers. Goes down 2 laps then ends up in 33rd 3 laps down. Kyle drops 4 positions to 11th in the standings. What a harsh lesson to have to witness his car floundering on the track while he sat on the pit box. 

RYAN NEWMAN - For some reason he never is able to get his car handling issues fixed. He's a lap down most of the race in or around 30th. Does get a lucky dog and some wave arounds to the lead lap but nothing helps. With 39 laps to go green flag pit stops begin. He decides not to go in. So he is 2nd with Jeff Burton leading. With 15 laps to go he passes Burton for the lead but at 13 to go he pits for fuel. It does improve the outcome though. He comes in at 16th on the lead lap. It doesn't help his Chase position though. He's still last.

DENNY HAMLIN - Never seems to get a handle on his car. Works his way from 28th to 16th around lap 200 and up to 12th by lap 243 but a pit road incident sends him back to 25th. Keselowski was in the pit stall ahead of him and went into his pits head first so he had to back up to get out. Of course when he did he hit Hamlin. Damage on both cars. Not a good thing for Texas. He's one of those that decides not to do the last green flag pit stop when everyone else does. He's in 7th with 25 to go but at 17 to go he runs out and has to pit. He comes in 20th. Moves up to 10th in the standings.

JEFF GORDON - Gordon starts out in 23rd but he makes his way to 15th by lap 25 and 10th by lap 50 which is where he stays most of the day. On lap 201 Brian Vickers gets into Geoffrey Bodine who gets into Jaun Montoya and brings out a caution just as Gordon enters the pits. He does a drive through, stays on the lead lap and then pits with everyone else. Good save. With 50 to go he manages to get up to 3rd but ends up coming home in 6th. Great day for Gordon. He moves up 2 spots in the standings to 8th.

DALE EARNHARDT JR - Jr had a very quiet day hanging out between 12th and 18th. No run ins with any one but not able to get his car dialed in either which seemed to be the theme of the day for most everyone. He ends up 7th for the day. Awesome job for Jr. He moves up 2 spots in the standings to 7th. 

KURT BUSCH - Not such a good day for Kurt. He drops back to 25th by lap 50 but fights his way back up to 18th by lap 130 which is where he hangs out most of the day. Every pit stop is trying something to get the handling dialed in. He's 8th with 25 laps to go being the last of those that tried not to pit for fuel and make it to the end. He doesn't make it and ends up in 30th 2 laps down. He drops one spot to 9th in the standings.

JIMMIE JOHNSON - He He's in the top 10 most of the day except for an issue in the pits when he ran over his hose. During the caution on lap 201 He's in the pits twice for adjustments. The Evil Genius Knaus just can't seem to dial Jimmies car in today and on lap 240 Jimmie is mowing the grass. He gets into the pits, gets 2 tires only, makes it out before the pace car traps him a lap down but ends up getting a commitment cone violation because of coming into the pits through the grass the way he did. He's now in 18th,  the last car on the lead lap but he has 4 tires and fuel. He's good to go 2 cautions later as he's up to 13th. He finishes his day in 14th. Stays in 6th place in the point standings. 

MATT KENSETH - Leads 85 laps till he drops back to 5th for the rest of the day. No run ins with any one or spins. Great day for Kenseth. He brings it home in 4th and moves up one spot in the standings to 4th.

BRAD KESELOWSKI - He was bouncing around in the top 10 all day. Except for the backing up into Hamlin on pit road he stayed in the top 10. After the pit road issue he came out in 26th. With 25 to go he's 6th and one of those that chose not to pit. He's in 4th with 10 to go. With 6 to go he has to pit. It cost him big. He comes in 24th. He drops one spot in the standings to 5th.

KEVIN HARVICK - Harvick manages to break the top 10 around lap 125. He stays there but is continually working on the car to stay there. On the lap 201 caution he's in the pits twice to put tape on the break duct openings on the nose of the car hoping this will help with the handling. He looses his top 10 and ends up coming home in 13th. He retains his 3rd place in the standings.

TONY STEWART - I do believe he's sending a message to Edwards. This makes back to back races he dominates and wins. By lap 9 Tony goes from 5th to 3rd. On the lap 116 restart Tony takes the lead. He leads for the rest of the day until with 25 to go there are 8 cars that haven't pitted under green and he's back in 9th. Jeff Burton has decided to go for it on a fuel mileage gamble. With 5 to go he runs out and Tony resumes the lead and then the win. That's 4 wins in the Chase for those that are counting. He gets the bonus for leading the most laps for a total of 48 points and he's now 3 points out of first. MMMMMM-WA -HA-HA-HA-HA-HA.

CARL EDWARDS - Had tire and handling issues all day. At one point he's told the tires had blisters on them because of too much camber. Bob his crew chief isn't worried though and tells him to just back off and save the tires and car. So he hangs in and around the top 5 for the rest of the day. There's a debris caution on lap 270. Edwards just can't keep Tony down. He must navigate through the 8 cars that didn't pit on the last green flag stops to catch Tony. It slows him down and he can't pass. He comes in 2nd. He's still leading the points though.

POINT STANDINGS - Edwards 2316 - Stewart 2313 - Harvick 2283 - Kenseth 2278 - Keselowski 2267 - Johnson 2261 - Earnhardt Jr 2237 - Gordon 2235 - Ku Busch 2229 - Hamlin 2217 - Ky Busch 2216 - Newman 2213

Well, it's a 2 man race unless Edwards and Stewart wreck out at Phoenix or Homestead. Harvick in 3rd is 33 points out. That's a lot to make up in 2 races. Stewart made up 5 points at this race and if Edwards wouldn't have finished 2nd he'd have more. Hamlin, Ky Busch and Newman are mathematically out. My money is still on Stewart. Edwards looked dazed and confused at the end of the race like he was shocked at Stewart's 2nd win in a row. To Edwards credit he did go over to Stewart's car and shake his hand. Now that's class and sportsmanship. 

At the media center after the race a reporter asked Stewart if his 2 Cup championships gave him an advantage over Edwards. Stewarts reply......"It's definitely an advantage but I'm not gonna tell you why. Cause that's what I'm gonna take to the next 2 weeks with me. We win this thing I'll tell you what the advantage was and why but there is an advantage."

Edwards says he's still not worried or psyched out.

So it's on to Phoenix International Raceway for the Kobalt Tools 500 on Nov 13th at 3pm (eastern time). It's a 1 mile track with very low banking in a tri oval shape. It has lights just in case of a caution induced or rain delayed night race finish. Yea I know you in the Phoenix area are laughing about the rain delay mention. It could happen. Any way, The track has been repaved and there's no rubber on it so this will be a mystery race. Nobody knows how the racing will be. Both Edwards and Stewart along with several others were out there for Goodyear's tire testing this year so they may have a good idea of what to expect. Edwards won last years November race here. He also holds the qualifying speed record of 137.279 mph. Stewart has the race record speed of 118.132 mph. So I'd say this ones up in the air too but my money is on Stewart.

So thanks for stopping by and have a great day........

 

ESPN - First things first.  ESPN obviously has some one with A.D.D. running that channel. There's way too much going on about the future and not enough about the now. Way too much pop ups glopping up the screen. They can run baseball, NFL, etc scores on the bottom of the screen all race long and through the commercials and instant replays but can't keep the driver leader board up and scrolling. Racing except for the cautions is non stop. Position changes are going on constantly. They don't have a down or a hit or a play and then go to a time out to confer on what we do next. It's sad that I have to listen to the radio broadcast at the same time as watching the race to keep track. ESPN needs to get it together when it comes to broadcasting. Will we have to have an Occupy ESPN to get their attention on just how bad their broadcast is? Nuff said, onward and upward.

STARTING POSITIONS - Qualifying was rained out so they lined up as they are in the points. Edwards Pole Position - Kenseth 2nd - Keselowski 3rd - Stewart 4th - Harvick 5th - Ky Busch 6th - Johnson 7th - Ku Busch 8th - Earnhardt Jr 9th - Gordon 10th - Hamlin 11th - Newman 12th

RYAN NEWMAN - During the lap 65 caution Newman decides not to pit so he can lead and collect that bonus point. He leads more laps through another caution on lap 105 and decides to pit. He's in 23rd on the restart and makes his way to 13th by lap 138, 9th by lap 147. A caution on lap 150 comes out and Newman again leads. He drifts back to 13th again and this is where he stays for the rest of the race. He manages to get 10th in the end. He stays in 12th place in the standings.

DENNY HAMLIN - Our Dega odd man out had a great day despite a caution on lap 8 where Jr decided to squeeze in between the curb and Kurt Busch. He ran out of room and spins out himself, Kurt, Gordon, Hamlin, Vickers, Allmendinger and Skinner. Hamlin goes in for tires and tape on the nose of the car. Comes out in 27th. Another caution on lap 27 and Hamlin stays out of the pits to now be in 9th on the restart. Another caution on lap 46 and he's 5th on the restart. Lap 65 Hamlin takes the lead. For the rest of the day he rides around in the top 10 leading laps at different times and brings it home with a 5th place finish. He's still 11th in the point standings but a major improvement in results.

JEFF GORDON - On lap 8 he's caught up in the spin that Jr created fighting over a spot. He's got front end damage. A nice heavy mallet and 4 tires takes care of the issue. He goes in again to makes sure air in getting into his radiator and to cool his brakes. He complains of possible over heating around lap 27 and drops back into the 20's. At the lap 72 restart he's in 7th but drops back to the 20's again. By lap 147 he's peaking into the top 10 once again and his over heating issues seem to have faded away. On lap 235 it's Gordon to the lead. At lap 248 he puts Edwards down a lap. And again on lap 314. He spends the rest of the day in the top 5 and brings it home in 3rd. He's still 10th in the points.

DALE EARNHARDT JR - Says he has a hot rod today and expects a great finish. He almost finished his day on lap 8 with a spin out that took out 6 other drivers and himself. On the restart he's in 31st. Three cautions later and Jr has made his way to 2nd. On lap 150 he punts Joey Logano who bounces off the wall to bring out a caution. He does start dropping back to 21st and then clawing his way to the top 10 again around lap 194. On the last restart on lap 4 Jr runs into the back of Hamlin who runs into the back of Keselowski sending him spinning. Jr never leads a lap for the bonus point and brings it home 7th but stays in 9th in the standings.

KURT BUSCH- On lap 8 he's caught up in the spin Jr created when the two were fighting over position but comes out pretty clean. After the next caution he starts in 5th. He's complaining about handling issue in the transition from asphalt to concrete (there are patches of concrete in the asphalt) and that he also hates this track. He starts dropping. On the lap 112 restart he's back to 30th. On the lap 156 restart he's clawed his way back up to 10th. He drops back to 19th and goes down a lap around lap 322. A caution on lap 398 for Kurt turning Jeff Burton around gives Kurt the wave around. On lap 432 Kurt and Paul Menard get together and spin. Kurt now has heavy front and back end damage. He's around 20th now. He manages to stay on the lead lap and bring it home in 14th and never leads a lap. Still 8th in the points. 

KYLE BUSCH - A wild ride for this guy. On lap 52 restart he's leading. Falls back a bit due to all the cautions and pitting strategies going on but is right back up to take the lead by lap 118 again which he keeps til lap 235 when Gordon moves out front. Kyle stays in the top 5 till lap 464 when he's caught up in a wreck with Kenseth and Montoya. Heavy damage all around. His crew chief is trying to get repairs done under caution and as the pace car comes around orders are given to drop the jack and for Kyles to go around and come back in. This would've been ok but the lug nuts weren't tightened on the left front tires and he loses the tire at the exit to pit road and has to go around the track on 3 tires and a piece of metal. He limps around the last laps. Kyle ends his day in 27th and 7 laps down to drops one position to 7th place in the standings. Consolation? He did lead the most laps.

JIMMIE JOHNSON - An uneventful day for our 5 time champ hanging around the top 5 most of the day. He leads laps and at the last restart he and Stewart are side by side and Jimmie has the chance to shove Stewart up the track and out of the way for the win. He chooses not to and ends his day in 2nd. When asked why he didn't fight Stewart more he said it wasn't the right thing to do and it's not his style to run over some one for a position. Class act if you ask me. Jimmie moves up one position to 6th in the standings.

KEVIN HARVICK - He manages to hang around 10th most of the day. On the restart on lap 404 his out front. There's a caution and another restart on lap 412. Stewart takes the lead from him but not without some beatin' and bangin' contact. On lap 414 Biffle goes around and backs into the wall. Stewart gives up the lead to Harvick for tires. Harvick out front for lap 419 restart. Another caution on lap 432 for Kurt Busch spinning out. Still in the lead for lap 434 restart. With 63 to go Johnson takes the lead from Harvick and he gets dropped back to 6th. He fights his way back to a 4th place finish. This gives him a 2 spot gain to 3rd in the standings.

TONY STEWART - Sorry folks but I can't do the objective writer thing here. This is my man and I'm doing my best Snoopy dance right now for his victory. He takes 2nd by lap 8 and on lap 31 during another caution he doesn't pit and takes the lead for that all important bonus point. But after that he starts dropping back. By lap 112 he's 7th, By lap 147 he's 11th. By lap 161 he's 18th. He's struggling with a bad handling car that won't turn. On his last pit stop they found that he used his right rear tire down to nothing after just 45 laps. Mean while Gordon has taken the lead and he's lapping the field one by one. By lap 320 Stewart is in 16th. On lap 348 Paul Menard is put down a lap by Hamlin who now leads. Guess who's next? Hamlins on his bumper and Stewart is fighting for his position. Hamlin just can't pass him. They get up to other traffic and now poor Mark Martin is being used as a shield to keep Hamlin at bay. Martin is hanging on as these 2 fight to keep him in the way and bump him out of the way at the same time. Hamlin still can't get by Stewart. They both pass Martin and next on the shield list for Stewart is Jeff Burton. Stewart keeps Burton pinned into position to keep Hamlin back. Finally on lap 361 David Guilliland has a flat tire and backs into the wall to bring out a lap saving caution for Stewart. From then on he's on a mission. Another caution later he's out of the pits in 3rd. On lap 413 Stewart takes the lead from Harvick but contact with Harvick puts him in the pits for Tires. He's worried some things broke and the car doesn't feel right. Crew chief says tires are fine that we took off. He's in 23rd on the restart, in 17th after another caution, and with 57 laps to go he fights to 11th. Another caution and he's in 3rd. Another caution and now a restart with 4 laps to go puts him beside Johnson who's in 1st. They're off. They wrestle for position but Johnson doesn't push him up into the wall and Stewart passes for the lead and on to the win. He moves from 4th to 2nd in the standings.

BRAD KESELOWSKI - Our wild card falls as far as 27th at one point but manages to stay in or around 10th staying out of trouble most of the day. He's got a pit road stall right at the speed timing line so he can pass one or 2 cars on pit road at a higher speed without getting docked for speeding if he slows down at the next timing line. Nifty trick. Keeps him passing cars in the pits for a better spot on the track. On the last restart with 4 laps to go he's in 8th. As they get going and fighting for position Jr shoves Hamlin into Keselowski and he spins out of line. This gives him a 17th place finish and he drops from 3rd to 4th in the standings.

MATT KENSETH - His day starts great as he takes the lead for the first lap. He's hanging between the top 5 or 10 for most of the race. Around lap 450 Kenseth and Brian Vickers are getting into each other right in front of Stewart. Kenseth finally tires of Vickers bumping and helps him into the wall on lap 457 for a caution. On the lap 464 restart Kenseth has to lock up the brakes enough to not hit any one and his tire goes. He takes out Kyle Busch and Jaun Montoya. Heavy damage to Kenseth's car sends him to the garage with a broken track bar. He comes home in 31st and 23 laps down. Which drops him from 2nd to 5th in the standings. 

CARL EDWARDS - Another scary day for our points leader. He takes the race lead at 5 laps in and keeps it till a caution on lap 27. And the problems begin as he is now 14th on the restart. By lap 82 he's 23rd. He manages a brief top 10 due to cautions and pit strategy but it soon goes bad. At lap 248 Gordon puts Edwards down a lap in 25th. He gets the lucky dog on lap 258 when Mark Martin spins and brings out the caution. On lap 300 he's the last car on the lead lap in 24th. At lap 314 he's a lap down again. Hermie Sadler goes around and brings out a caution on lap 408. Lucky Dog for Edwards. He's still back around 20th. On lap 428 Edwards is black flagged on a restart for not staying in position on the restart till he passes over the start/finish line for the first time. BUT the NASCAR decides he got back in line and took back the black flag. So I didn't see any replays so I can;t say. He's still 20th at this point. and needs adjustments on the car to turn better. Another caution and he now is in 13th. On the last restart he's 10th and is able to get one more spot to bring it home in 9th. He's still our points leader by 8 points.

STANDINGS - Edwards 2273 - Stewart 2265 - Harvick 2252 - Keselowski 3346 - Kenseth 2237 - Johnson 2230 - Ky Busch 2216 - Ku Busch 2215 - Earnhardt Jr 2200 - Gordon 2197 - Hamlin 2193 - Newman 2184

SUMMERY - This was one ugly beatin' and bangin' tight quarters make no friends race. Jr at one point said if they did more short tracks like this one that he might be known as a dirty driver cause it's just so easy to do. His car looked like it too. You couldn't read the number on the side of the car by half way through the race. They didn't get above 89 mph but the carnage factor was high. Brian Vickers in the #83 was in half of the 18 cautions. His car was a mangled mess but he managed to stay in it until 8 laps to go when he hit the wall for the last time bringing out the last caution of the day.

As far as the Chase goes, I'm thinking that it's between the top 4 guys now with Stewart and Edwards being the favorites. Edwards is hungry but I don't think he can put together 3 good finishes in a row. Stewart is a 2 time champ with way more years of experience. He said in victory lane about Edwards..."He better be worried. He ain't gonna have an easy 3 weeks". So the head games begin. Does Stewart 8 points back with 3 Chase race wins psych out Edwards? Do the HMS boys (Johnson, Gordon & Jr) along with his team mate Newman block and or help Stewart in some capacity to get that title? Does Keselowski pit strategy his way back in this title Chase? Is Harvick going to make that charge from so-so finishes to command the lead again in the points. I'm excited. I can't wait to see.

So next week on Nov 6th at 3pm we'll be at Texas Motor Speedway for the AAA Texas 500 in Fort Worth, Texas. It's a quad oval designed 1.5 mile track with 24 degree banking in the turns. Hamlin won the April and November races there last year. This year it was Kenseth in the April race. This is a good track for Edwards who has 3 wins here. So I certainly hope Stewart has some thing for these 3 guys. Just wish ESPN could get their act together.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day......

 

 

 

STARTING POSITION - Edwards 9th - Harvick 13th - Kenseth 11th - Ky Busch 34 - Stewart 12th - Keselowski 16th - Ku Busch 14th - Johnson 2nd - Earnhardt Jr 6th - Newman 10th - Gordon 5th - Hamlin 31st

DENNY HAMLIN - This guy was a victim from start to finish. He practiced with Ryan Newman as his Partner because Tony Stewart said he wanted to find some one to hang in the back during the race. When he couldn't find one then Newman became Tony's partner effectively leaving Denny with no date to the Dega prom. By lap 21 Denny goes down a lap because he can't keep up with the pack without a dance partner. His description of the race......The best I can describe it is, we were stuck without a date for the prom, so I was just hitting on everyone's mom. A debris caution on lap 24 gives Denny the Lucky Dog Pass to the lead lap. Still no partner but he's side drafting off other cars to stay in the lead lap. Joey Logano spins out trying to make a green flag pit stop and misses pit road. His tire goes flat and tears up the fender bringing out the caution on lap 68. Kyle Busch says if Joey's car can be saved he still wants to be his partner even if he's laps down. Kyle and Denny end up together but there's communication issues. Kyle can talk to Denny but Denny can't talk back. On lap 96 the Kyle/Denny tandem take the lead for a lap. Lap 104 AJ Allmendinger loses control spinning down the track. Takes out Kyle and Denny is partnerless again. Denny asks AJ's partner Marcos Ambrose if he'll be his partner. Nope. Ford has given orders that Fords will only draft with Fords. He hooks up with Joey Logano for a bit and then Newman later on but finishes the race by himself in 8th. If he doesn't have a nobody loves me and I'm gonna eat some worms mentality by now I'd be surprised. Bonus...he's not last any more. He's 11th in the points and he finished 11th in the race. 

JEFF GORDON - His tandem partner is Mark Martin who got the pole for the race so at the green flag Martin and Gordon hook up and slowly drop to the back for safety reasons. The Martin/ Gordon Tandem make their way to the front a couple times to collect leading a lap bonus points and just to practice how they'll go about it at the end of the race. All is well Until lap 181 when Gordon has to check up to avoid Paul Menards bumper on the 10 to go restart. Martin loses control and goes into Regan Smith. Now Gordon is without a dance partner. He calls Trevor Bayne on the radio and talks about being dance partners. Trevor says yes and lines up on Gordons bumper for the restart with 3 laps to go. They worked together at Daytona and thought this would be a great chance to be together again. Imagine Gordons surprise when Trevor dumps him and goes with Matt Kenseth. Trevor Tweeted after the race that.....he'd rather pull over and finish last then be strong armed into bailing. So my question is....Why didn't he? Gordon finishes 27th because Ford gave Trevor orders to hang the Chevy driver out to dry. He stays in 10th in the points.

RYAN NEWMAN - Newman and Stewart hook up and Newman talks Stewart into staying up front to race. They're practicing dropping back and going forward. On lap 42 they get to the front and Newman moves over to give Stewart the chance to lead a lap for that all important bonus point. Doesn't quite work and they drop like a stone. On lap 46 they try it again. No dice and Clint Bowyer takes the lead with his tandem partner Jeff Burton. Again on lap 64 they try again and this time they time it right for Stewarts leading a lap bonus point. On lap 80 Newman gets a side draft off of David Reutimann that pushes him down onto the flat apron and then the grass. The grass tears up his front splitter. Stewart is now without a dance partner. He's now multiple laps down in 39th. He hooks up with Logano and Hamlin on different occasions. Finishes 38th and 17 laps down. Now he has the 12th spot in the standings.

TONY STEWART - Like stated above Stewart and Newman became tandem partners when Stewart couldn't find a partner to hang out in the back with him. This turned out to be a good thing for him. Stewart says he's to blame for Newmans spin but Reutimann was still way too close to Newmans door causing the side draft disturbance that sent him to the grass. Joey Logano is asked to be his partner and Stewart is now being pushed by a damaged left front fenderless Home Depot car. They do very well. With 88 laps to go they lead a few laps. With 52 laps to go they lead again and still out front with 32 to go. With 20 laps to go Stewart is separated from Logano and he winds up with Paul Menard who was Kevin Harvicks partner. With 13 laps to go the Stewart/ Menard tandem is in the lead. With 8 laps to go Regan Smith is in the wall and we are set up for a green/white checker. On the restart Brian Vickers launches into Bowyer who pushes his partner Burton out front. They take off and leave every one in the dust. Stewart brings it home in 7th with a bonus point for leading the most laps and one for leading a lap. He's up one spot to 4th in the standings 19 points from the lead.

DALE EARNHARDT JR and JIMMIE JOHNSON - It's the Johnson/Earbhardt tandem. They hook up and drop to the back for safety reason. Jr wants to be up front but defers to Johnson to decide what they'll do. After all he pushed Johnson to a victory at the spring Dega race so why would it be any different this time? On lap 78 Johnson pushes Jr into the lead and the crowd goes wild. They hang around the teens at mid pack for awhile and then drop to the 20's. On lap 163 Andy Lally spins out and hits Johnson's right side door. Minimal damage. Just needs tires and a grill cleaning. The Jr/ Johnson tandem is still in tact. They're in 13th and 15th with 20 laps to go. With 15 laps to go Bobby Labonte spins out, Kurt Busch hits him and bring out the caution. Jr and Johnson are in to get tires because they ran over some of the debris. Johnson is 25th and Jr is 27th. They're having over heating issues because of the debris on their grills. With 8 laps to go Regan Smith is in the wall and Jr and Johnson again must pit for tires because they ran through debris. Jr is 16th and Johnson 19th. On the green/white checker restart they get shuffled back to 25th and 26th because they had to switch places for the over heating issue. This created drag and sucked them back. Not a good day. The plan was a bust. Jr stays at 9th in the standings. Johnson stays in 7th.

KURT BUSCH - His tandem partner is Regan Smith. They have as quiet a day you can have at Dega as you can get hanging around 15th thru 20th. They worked extremely well together even getting to lead a lap for a bonus point. That is until with 15 laps to go Bobby Labonte spins out and Kurt has no where to go but into Bobby's car. Heavy front end damage puts him in the hauler in 36th place 15 laps down. He loses a spot and goes to 8th in the standings.

KYLE BUSCH - His dance partner is team mate Joey Logano. Kyle leads lap 34 for that bonus point. Things are going smoothly till lap 67 when trying to go into the pits under green flag conditions, Trevor Bayne clips Logano sending him spinning. He misses the pit road commitment cone and now must go around the track again. On the way his right front tire blows out tearing up his fender and bringing out the debris caution on lap 68. Kyle wants them to fix it best they can because he wants to work with Logano. Logano is in the pits for 3 laps and comes out in 39th so he ends up partnering with Hamlin. They have radio issues. Kyle can talk to Denny but Denny can't talk to Kyle. On lap 96 Kyle leadsa lap with Denny pushing. On lap 104 Allmendinger goes for a spin. Takes out Kyle. To the garage we go for repairs. He's back on the track in 38th and 11 laps down with 81 laps to go. He ends his day 33 and 13 laps down. He loses 2 spots and drops to 6th in the standings.

KEVIN HARVICK - Decided on team mate Paul Menard as tandem partner. He leads some laps and puts Hamlin down a lap on lap 21. The Harvick/Menard tandem hang out around 10th most of the day till disaster strikes on lap 104 when Allmendinger spins out taking Harvick out. Heavy front end damage. Harvick limps back to the pits. He's in and out for repairs and ends up 36th and 2 laps down at lap 110. With 64 laps to go Harvick is complaining of smoke in the car. With 62 laps to go NASCAR is encouraging them to fix the smoking 29 car. With 61 to go Harvick is black flagged and told he will come in to fix the car now. He's off to the garage where all team members from the RCR stable are all over the car trying to fix the front end damage and replace the broken oil cooler. He's back on the track at 37th and 7 laps down. For the rest of the race he just rides the apron but at speed so as not to be black flagged again. Comes in 32 and 9 laps down. Drops from 2nd to 5th in the standings.

BRAD KESELOWSKI - Hooked up with Dave Blaney as his tandem partner. They too had a quiet day hanging in the back most of the day. With 71 laps to go they're hanging around the top 10. They slide back to the 20's and with 25 to go they're in the top 10 again. With 20 to go they're leading and just that quick with 13 to go they're in 18th and 19th. On the last restart they're 14th and 15th. They bring it home 3rd and 4th giving Keselowski a 3 spot jump in the standings to 3rd.

MATT KENSETH - His pick for tandem is team mate David Ragan. They lead lap number 4 for that bonus point. They hang out in the top 10 most of the day. With 71 laps to go they're in the lead. With 20 to go they're 5th and 6th. With the restart at 3 laps to go they're 12th and 13th. Some how they get separated and Kenseth is picked up by Bayne. He comes home in 18th. Moves up one spot to 2nd in the points.

CARL EDWARDS - Tandem partner was Greg Biffle. These guys hung out in the back but waited too long to make their way to the front. The wrecks caused them to have to pit for tires because they ran over debris. At 13 laps to go they're 23rd and 26th. At the last restart with 3 laps to go they're still there. Edwards manages to get an 11th place finish. He keeps his points lead.

POINTS STANDINGS - Edwards 2237 - Kenseth 2223 - Keselowski 2219 - Stewart 2218 - Harvick 2211 - Ky Busch 2197 - Johnson 2187 - Ku Busch 2185 - Earnhardt Jr 2163 - Gordon 2155 - Hamlin 2153 - Newman 2149

As it stands right now realistically there are 5 guys in this Chase that could take it. Harvick in 5th place and 26 points down is the last guy in my opinion. Any thing can happen but Ky Busch is next at 40 points down and it only gets worse from there. Johnson is 50 points back and I really think he's done. No number 6 on the horizon for the 48 team. Martinsville is the next oval on the list. It's a tough track and not one of Edward's of Kenseth's best. So possibly We could see a big change in the points. Like I keep saying about this year, it's just so crazy and unpredictable. Talladega hit some of the drivers hard just like we knew it would. When the dust settled we have 5 realistic contenders. Or do we?

You all have a great week.....

The remaining 19 drivers decided to pay tribute to Dan by performing a 5 lap salute around the track in remembrance of their friend and colleague.

Over the years, Wheldon had matured into a very respected family man. He won the Indy 500 twice, as recently as this year when he passed JR Hildebrand on the last lap after Hildebrand struck the Turn 4 wall. Everyone had nothing but kind words to say about Dan. He was often characterized as one of the nicest and most popular drivers in the series. One thing is for certain, the auto racing world certainly lost one great man on Sunday. My thoughts, and the thoughts of the auto racing world are with his wife Susie and their two children.

Besides mourning the loss of Wheldon, IndyCar certainly has a dilemma on it's hands. Many fans, writers, and even drivers were critical with the decision to race a record-setting field of 34 cars on a 1.5 mile oval where there is no lifting off the throttle, speeds are regularly at 220-225 miles per hour, and nobody can really break away from the pack. 

IndyCar might not be the same without ovals, but I believe they need to be more selective in what ovals they choose to race on. None of these 1.5-2 mile ovals designed for NASCAR. IndyCars shouldn't be racing on these type of tracks at much higher speeds. They need to bring back the 1 mile ovals like Loudon and Milwaukee and forgot about the high-speed ovals other than of course, Indianapolis. The smaller and flatter ovals like Loudon and Milwaukee allow the race to be much more in the hands of the driver. The tracks actually take skill to race at, unlike the pack racing that is a by-product of tracks like Vegas. As we've seen over the year, it doesn't take much for these cars to get airborne. Kenny Brack and Ryan Briscoe had memorable crashes at Texas and Chicagoland where both launched into the catchfence. Luckily, both are still with us today. Sadly, in Wheldon's case, that isn't the case primarily due to the fact that when his car launched into the air, it flipped over and he hit the catchfence cockpit side/helmet first. 

So, what is IndyCar to do? If they really wish to race on the bigger ovals like this, they need to make a safer car. Ironically, Wheldon was a main tester of the new Dallara car that will be used in 2012 which is reportedly safer. Still, either IndyCar has to find a way to prevent these cars from racing in such huge packs at such high speeds, or they need to find a way to keep the cars from going airborne so easily. In Sunday's crash, 4 cars went airborne, including Wheldon. The other three were those of Will Power, Pippa Mann, and Townsend Bell. 

If IndyCar can't address the current safety concerns with aerodynamic improvements, then they need to reduce the speed. Another thing that I would like to see added is a "pod" around the cockpit to protect the driver. That may factor into the extraction time if a terrible incident were to occur, but it will surely prevent the driver(s) from slamming into the wall/fence helmet first.