NASCAR 2009 est. 2005

[spinach]

tony's steering is off.... [toe is messed up]
not much damage
but his handling is gonna be horrible now...

if they can get a long caution really soon he can get that fixed and not lose much

[Xena]

Lap 173 -- Crews are cleaning up debris as damaged cars head to the garage.

Lap 172 -- Tony Stewart reports his steering wheel has moves a few inches after getting sideways.

[Xena]

Mild cussing from the 14. Good ole Jr!

[spinach]

Dale Jr. might have had an oil leak..that caused him to spin...
currently behind the wall, with an oil leak, but they can't find where it's leaking from

[Xena]

Why do we have to listen for peckers on TV? :lol:

[spinach]

Why do we have to listen for peckers on TV? :lol:

I must have missed something...
what's that all about?

[Xena]

Smoke close to going a leap down

The racing Gods are not being nice to SHR

[Xena]

I must have missed something...
what's that all about?

Viagra or such :lol:

[spinach]

Viagra or such :lol:

oh....I thought someone said something funny on the radios in the race
:))

When the race goes to commercial I flip over to football.

[spinach]

10-15 laps from pit stops....

we'll see....
crunch time!

[Xena]

I'm wondering how long will Rick put up with Jr?

[spinach]

I'm wondering how long will Rick put up with Jr?

I'd say his chances of being back next year are slim-- but you never know.

He's been on a slide.
A serious slump now for about 2-3 years

kezlowski might end up taking his place
I kinda would like to see Jamie Macmurray come over to RH

[Xena]

Junior had an oil leak since the early laps of the race.

Thanks for trying to fix it before you wrecked half of the field. :rolleyes:

[spinach]

82 has sheet metal dangling

might get black flagged soon. if not, a caution is coming...

[Xena]

Whoa, Vickers car looks horrible

[spinach]

Junior had an oil leak since the early laps of the race.

Thanks for trying to fix it before you wrecked half of the field. :rolleyes:


I see...
the team put a car on the track that they KNEW was unsafe...
I hope the officials say something about that.

no way that's legal

[spinach]

Whoa, Vickers car looks horrible
yeah he smacked the wall again
and has some sheet metal sorta dangling.

he will be in the wall before this is over
the car is crap

[Xena]

Marky is fastest for now

[Xena]

I see...
the team put a car on the track that they KNEW was unsafe...
I hope the officials say something about that.

no way that's legal

At least a slap upside on his head

[Xena]

Smoke says his car is plowing.

Corn? Lettuce? Tomato? :lol:

Ya gotta laugh at times

[Xena]

Damn, I'd like some turkey . . .

[spinach]

Damn, I'd like some turkey . . .

well it is turkey month.

Ever deep fried one? it's awesome...
but you have to use a thermometer and keep an eye on it as it cooks

[Xena]

34 to go

[Xena]

Nice save from Burton

[Xena]

well it is turkey month.

Ever deep fried one? it's awesome...
but you have to use a thermometer and keep an eye on it as it cooks

Yes, :drool:

[Xena]

Burton fastest for now

[Xena]

Go Marky!

[Xena]

Kurt has been tough all day

[Xena]

5 to go

[Xena]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v336/XenaWarrior/NASCAR/CheckeredFlag2.gif

Congrats to Jimmie Johnson!

[Xena]

Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts 500 (http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2009/35/data/results_unofficial.html)
Unofficial Race Results | Phoenix
2:30 p.m. ET Sunday | ABC
November 15, 2009 | Race 35 of 36

FIN ST CAR DRIVER MAKE SPONSOR PTS/BNS LAPS STATUS
1 3 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Lowe's 195/10 312 Running
2 36 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet Cat Financial 170/0 312 Running
3 5 11 Denny Hamlin Toyota FedEx Ground 165/0 312 Running
4 10 5 Mark Martin Chevrolet Kellogg's/Carquest 160/0 312 Running
5 1 1 Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet Rain-X 155/0 312 Running
6 2 2 Kurt Busch Dodge Miller Lite 155/5 312 Running
7 13 33 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet Cheerios/Hamburger Helper 146/0 312 Running
8 17 42 Juan Montoya Chevrolet Target 142/0 312 Running
9 14 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet DuPont 138/0 312 Running
10 15 00 David Reutimann Toyota Aaron's Dream Machine 134/0 312 Running
11 21 47 Marcos Ambrose Toyota Little Debbie/Kingsford/Clorox 130/0 312 Running
12 7 18 Kyle Busch Toyota Pedigree 127/0 312 Running
13 16 44 A.J. Allmendinger Ford Ford. Drive one. 124/0 312 Running
14 6 16 Greg Biffle Ford 3M 121/0 312 Running
15 4 9 Kasey Kahne Dodge Budweiser 118/0 312 Running
16 25 99 Carl Edwards Ford Aflac 115/0 312 Running
17 12 77 Sam Hornish Jr. Dodge Mobil 1 112/0 312 Running
18 28 17 Matt Kenseth Ford USG Sheetrock 114/5 312 Running
19 30 26 Jamie McMurray Ford Irwin Marathon Saw Blades 106/0 312 Running
20 24 39 Ryan Newman Chevrolet U.S. Army 108/5 312 Running
21 27 20 Joey Logano * Toyota Home Depot 100/0 310 Running
22 22 7 Robby Gordon Toyota Jim Beam 97/0 310 Running
23 33 6 David Ragan Ford UPS 94/0 310 Running
24 31 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Shell/Pennzoil 91/0 310 Running
25 8 14 Tony Stewart Chevrolet Old Spice/Office Depot 88/0 310 Running
26 40 43 Reed Sorenson Dodge Paralyzed Veterans of America 85/0 310 Running
27 9 07 Casey Mears Chevrolet Jack Daniel's 82/0 308 Running
28 35 19 Elliott Sadler Dodge Insignia 79/0 308 Running
29 41 98 Paul Menard Ford Johns Manville/Menards 76/0 308 Running
30 29 09 David Gilliland Chevrolet Miccosukee Resort & Gaming 73/0 308 Running
31 39 96 Erik Darnell Ford Valvoline 70/0 306 Running
32 23 113 Max Papis * Toyota GEICO 67/0 304 Running
33 37 82 Scott Speed * Toyota Red Bull 64/0 303 Running
34 42 34 John Andretti Chevrolet Taco Bell 61/0 268 Running
35 18 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet Amp Energy/National Guard 58/0 256 Running
36 11 55 Michael Waltrip Toyota NAPA Auto Parts 55/0 251 Running
37 26 12 Brad Keselowski Dodge Penske Racing 52/0 239 Running
38 19 83 Brian Vickers Toyota Red Bull 49/0 170 Running
39 20 171 Bobby Labonte Chevrolet TRG Motorsports 46/0 169 Running

*rookie
<snip>

[Xena]

Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts 500 (http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2009/data/standings_unofficial.html)
Unofficial Driver Standings | Phoenix
2:30 p.m. ET Sunday | ABC
November 15, 2009 | Race 35 of 36

RANK +/- DRIVER POINTS BEHIND STARTS POLES WINS TOP 5 TOP 10
1 -- Jimmie Johnson 6492 Leader 35 3 7 15 23
2 -- Mark Martin 6384 -108 35 7 5 14 21
3 -- Jeff Gordon 6323 -169 35 1 1 16 24
4 -- Kurt Busch 6281 -211 35 0 2 9 20
5 -- Tony Stewart 6207 -285 35 0 4 15 23
6 -- Juan Montoya 6203 -289 35 2 0 7 18
7 -- Greg Biffle 6171 -321 35 0 0 10 16
8 -- Denny Hamlin 6140 -352 35 1 3 14 19
9 -- Ryan Newman 6081 -411 35 2 0 5 15
10 -- Kasey Kahne 6016 -476 35 0 2 7 14
11 -- Carl Edwards 5972 -520 35 0 0 7 13
12 -- Brian Vickers 5826 -666 35 6 1 4 13
CHASE FOR THE Sprint CUP - CURRENT CONTENDERS
13 -- Kyle Busch 4310 -2182 35 1 4 9 12
14 -- Matt Kenseth 4265 -2227 35 1 2 7 12
15 -- Clint Bowyer 4224 -2268 35 0 0 4 16
16 -- David Reutimann 4103 -2389 35 2 1 5 10
17 -- Jeff Burton 3847 -2645 35 0 0 4 9
18 -- Marcos Ambrose 3767 -2725 35 0 0 4 7
19 -- Joey Logano * 3700 -2792 35 0 1 3 7
20 -- Casey Mears 3653 -2839 35 0 0 0 4
21 -- Kevin Harvick 3626 -2866 35 0 0 4 8
22 -- Jamie McMurray 3495 -2997 35 0 1 1 5
23 +3 Martin Truex Jr. 3365 -3127 35 3 0 1 5
24 -1 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 3343 -3149 35 0 0 2 5
25 -- A.J. Allmendinger 3342 -3150 35 0 0 1 5
26 -2 Elliott Sadler 3310 -3182 35 0 0 1 5
27 -- David Ragan 3191 -3301 35 0 0 0 2
28 -- Reed Sorenson 3104 -3388 35 0 0 0 1
29 +1 Sam Hornish Jr. 3103 -3389 35 0 0 2 7
30 -1 Bobby Labonte 3058 -3434 35 0 0 1 2
31 -- David Stremme 2919 -3573 33 0 0 0 0
32 -- Paul Menard 2894 -3598 35 0 0 0 0
33 -- Michael Waltrip 2761 -3731 33 0 0 0 2
34 -- Robby Gordon 2653 -3839 34 0 0 1 1
35 -- Scott Speed * 2608 -3884 34 0 0 1 1

*rookie
<snip>



Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts 500 (http://jayski.com/next/2009/32mar2009.htm)
Unofficial Classic Driver Standings | Phoenix
2:30 p.m. ET Sunday | ABC
November 15, 2009 | Race 35 of 36

RANK +/- DRIVER POINTS BEHIND STARTS POLES WINS TOP 5 TOP 10 WINNINGS
1) #48-Jimmie Johnson(X), 4996
2) #14-Tony Stewart(X), 4983, -13
3) #24-Jeff Gordon(X), 4940, -56
4) #5-Mark Martin(X), 4635, -361
5) #11-Denny Hamlin(X), 4611, -385
6) #2-Kurt Busch(X), 4593, -403
7) #42-Juan Pablo Montoya(X), 4454 -542
8) #16-Greg Biffle(X), 4420, -576
9) #39-Ryan Newman(X), 4353, -643
10) #18-Kyle Busch, 4310, -686
11) #9-Kasey Kahne(X), 4276, -720
12) #17-Matt Kenseth, 4265, -731
13) #99-Carl Edwards(X), 4252, -744
14) #33-Clint Bowyer, 4224, -772
15) #00-David Reutimann, 4103, -893
16) #83-Brian Vickers(X), 4024, -972

*rookie

<snip>

[spinach]

7 wins

JJ deserves to be champion...
but there's still an outside shot for MM

[WhiteHatBobby]

Jimmie still hasn't clinched it. A few years ago on this very Homestead layout Jimmie crashed out of the race before halfway. That should be a warning.

Four in a row won't be as big as The Sarge, the Seven Time Drag King who won his sixth consecutive Full Throttle Top Fuel Championship.

[Samm]

7 wins

JJ deserves to be champion...
but there's still an outside shot for MM

The perfect scenario for Mark... he wins the race and Jimmie come in 26th. ;)

[NascarGirl2448]

The perfect scenario for Mark... he wins the race and Jimmie come in 26th. ;)

Uh, no thank you. GO JIMMIE GO!!!!! Either way, looks like, barring disaster, it'll be 1-2-3 HMS. Not a bad season.

[Samm]

Uh, no thank you. GO JIMMIE GO!!!!! Either way, looks like, barring disaster, it'll be 1-2-3 HMS. Not a bad season.

Well at least 1-2. Kurt could easily slip up behind Gordo and bite him in the butt. The way things mix up on the last lap at Homestead, we most likely won't know how that will work out until the dust clears after the checkers.


And Montoya is right on Tony's ass too. Tony has to finish in front of Juan to hold onto 5th.

[Xena]

Stewart slammed his hands inside the car and called Earnhardt a “no talent (expletive).”

I hope Tony is back! No more being bland.

[Xena]

Ford 400 (http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2009/36/data/entry_list.html)
Entry List | Homestead
2:30 p.m. ET Sunday | ABC
November 22, 2009 | Race 36 of 36


CAR DRIVER HOMETOWN MAKE SPONSOR OWNER
00 David Reutimann Zephyrhills, FL Toyota Aaron's Dream Machine Michael Waltrip
1 Martin Truex Jr. Mayetta, NJ Chevrolet Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Teresa Earnhardt
2 Kurt Busch Las Vegas, NV Dodge Miller Lite Walter Czarnecki
5 Mark Martin Batesville, AR Chevrolet Kellogg's/Carquest Mary Hendrick
6 David Ragan Unadilla, GA Ford UPS John Henry
7 Robby Gordon Orange, CA Toyota Robby Gordon Motorsports Robby Gordon
07 Casey Mears Bakersfield, CA Chevrolet Jack Daniel's Richard Childress
08 Terry Labonte Corpus Christi, TX Toyota Carter/Simo Racing John Carter
9 Kasey Kahne Enumclaw, WA Dodge Budweiser George Gillett, Jr
09 David Stremme South Bend, IN Chevrolet Miccosukee Resort & Gaming James Finch
11 Denny Hamlin Chesterfield, VA Toyota FedEx Express J D Gibbs
12 Brad Keselowski Rochester Hills, MI Dodge Penske Racing Roger Penske
14 Tony Stewart Rushville, IN Chevrolet Office Depot/Old Spice Margaret Haas
16 Greg Biffle Vancouver, WA Ford 3M Jack Roush
17 Matt Kenseth Cambridge, WI Ford Dewalt John Henry
18 Kyle Busch Las Vegas, NV Toyota M&M's Joe Gibbs
19 Elliott Sadler Emporia, VA Dodge Best Buy George Gillett, Jr
20 Joey Logano * Middletown, CT Toyota Home Depot Joe Gibbs
21 Bill Elliott Dawsonville, GA Ford Motorcraft Glen Wood
24 Jeff Gordon Pittsboro, IN Chevrolet DuPont Rick Hendrick
26 Jamie McMurray Joplin, MO Ford Crown Royal Geoff Smith
29 Kevin Harvick Bakersfield, CA Chevrolet Shell/Pennzoil Richard Childress
31 Jeff Burton South Boston, VA Chevrolet Caterpillar Richard Childress
33 Clint Bowyer Emporia, KS Chevrolet Cheerios/Hamburger Helper Bobby Ginn III
34 John Andretti Indianapolis, IN Chevrolet Taco Bell Teresa Earnhardt
36 Michael McDowell Phoenix, AZ Toyota Wave Energy Drink Tommy Baldwin
37 Travis Kvapil Janesville, WI Chevrolet Long John Silver's Brad Jenkins
39 Ryan Newman South Bend, IN Chevrolet Haas Automation Tony Stewart
42 Juan Montoya Bogota, Colombia Chevrolet Target Teresa Earnhardt
43 Reed Sorenson Peachtree City, GA Dodge Siemens Richard Petty

*rookie

<snip>

[Samm]

Stewart slammed his hands inside the car and called Earnhardt a “no talent (expletive).”

I hope Tony is back! No more being bland.

I happened to be away from the tube while that wreck (including reruns) happened, but from the sounds of it, Jr. bears a lot of the responsibility for it.

[Xena]

I happened to be away from the tube while that wreck (including reruns) happened, but from the sounds of it, Jr. bears a lot of the responsibility for it.

He usually says he's sorry. I just wonder goes on with him. He stays in his bar a lot and that it not so good. Or does he have ADHD? Whatever is going on, he needs to get some help. For himself and the other teams/fans.

[WhiteHatBobby]

The entry list for the 42nd Annual Snowball Derby in Pensacola, FL, an "outlaw" Late Model race taking place December 4-6 (after all racing has ended), is slowly being released and we have some names for the traditional end-of-year bash that at one time was NASCAR-sanctioned. The 300-lap Super Late Model race will have drivers who have raced this year in Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series competition, and will also feature children of two former Sprint Cup Champions doing battle.

Here's the list of notables:
Benny Gordon (PA; USAR Champion and part-time Nationwide Series driver)
David Rogers (FL; 1994 Whelen All-American Series National Champion; won every feature race to win the title.)
Shane Hall (SC; former Nationwide Series driver)
Brian Ickler (CA; Kyle Busch Motorsports' Late Model driver; has run ARCA, NNS, NCWTS in 2009; DQ from 2008 Snowball)
Ross Kenseth (WI): The reigning Daytona 500 Champion's son (from a previous relationship) enters his first Derby, a race dad ran a few times but did not win.
James Buscher (TX): A Camping World Truck Series rookie who is moving up to James Finch's Nationwide Series #1 car in 2010.
David Stremme (IN): Recently dismissed from Penske Racing, he will enter this big Super Late Model race.
Ryan and Shane Sieg (GA): The brothers have raced in the Camping World Truck Series in the past few years. Shane last year raced as the "B" driver to Billy Ballew Motorsports when Kyle Busch had other committments.
Kyle Busch (NV): Without Chase committments, he's racing during Prizegiving week by going for the biggie. Only once has an active Sprint Cup driver won the Snowball.
Steven Wallace (NC): The 2005 champion and Nationwide Series driver returns
William Clyde (Chase) Elliott II (GA): Is he ready to be Awesome II? Bill Elliott's 14-year old son will enter this Super Late Model race after sweeping the field in many a feature race on local Georgia-area tours.

The lists for the major off-season races are still coming:

November 26: USAC Turkey Night Grand Prix. The signature Thanksgiving race in California could see some NASCAR stars pop into the midget races.
November 27-28: Turkey Derby, Modified Racing at Wall Stadium in NJ.
December 26-27: Rumble in Fort Wayne. Tony Stewart is expected to race.
December 31-January 1: Polar Bear 150 at Rockingham. Street Stocks with some Sprint Cup mechanics included in the 150-lap, 152-mile race at Rockingham.
January 11-16: Chili Bowl Midget Nationals. Tony Stewart, Kasey Kahne, Jason Leffler, and other drivers are expected to participate in the lid-lifter for midget racing.
January 28-30: Toyota All-Star Showdown. The 2009 NASCAR Camping World East and West Series will officially close their 2009 season with this 250-lap feature at Irwindale -- live on Speed. Joey Logano and David Gilliland have won this race. Ryan Truex is expected to be in the race as the CWE Champion.

[Samm]

He usually says he's sorry. I just wonder goes on with him. He stays in his bar a lot and that it not so good. Or does he have ADHD? Whatever is going on, he needs to get some help. For himself and the other teams/fans.

You may be right. It stretches credibility that all of his bad races are due to bad luck... particularly when you consider that the other Hendrick cars are 1, 2, 3 in the standings.

[WhiteHatBobby]

Sources are reporting that new engine rules are coming to NASCAR in 2011. NASCAR is seriously (after talking to manufacturers) contemplating fuel injection to replace carburetors. This could make its debut at Talladega October 31, 2010 (NASCAR often releases trial balloons for the next season's Daytona 500 at the AMP Energy 500).

NASCAR and manufacturers are deciding on injection style. Direct injection is seriously considered because of manufacturers' desire to push for latest technologies.

* Carburetor mixes gasoline and air into one central point in engine.
* Throttle-body injection - Similar to carburetor.
* Multi-Point Injection - Nozzle injects gas to each cylinder.
* Sequential Injection - Times spray from nozzle to each cylinder.
* Direct Injection - Sprays fuel right into the combustion chamber, beneath the valves.

An IRL-style RPM limit or spec ignition boxes are seriously being considered to replace restrictor plates. The IRL has used an RPM limit since going to normally aspirated engines in 1997.

http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/sports_nascar/2009/11/several-sources-including-a-nascar-sprint-cup-crew-chief-and-a-manufacturers-representative-have-confirmed-that-the-sanctio.html

[Xena]

Juan spun in Prac 1. No damage. He was awesome in stopping it.

[Xena]

Broadcast Schedule
Ford 400 (http://www.nascar.com/races/tune_in/)

11|20|09 11:30 p.m. ET Friday Practice 1 (SPEED)
11|20|09 3:00 p.m. ET Friday Qualifying (ESPN2)
11|21|09 1:30 p.m. ET Saturday Practice 2 (SPEED)
11|21|09 2:50 p.m. ET Saturday Practice 3 (ESPN2) *
11|22|09 2:30 p.m. ET Sunday Ford 400 (ABC)

* TV at 3 p.m. ET

[Xena]

Ford 400 (http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2009/36/data/practice1_speeds.html/)
Practice 1 | Homestead
2:30 p.m. ET Sunday | ABC
November 22, 2009 | Race 36 of 36

Pos Car Driver Laps Best Speed Last Speed Avg. Speed Best Time Last Time Avg. Time
1 2 Kurt Busch Dodge Miller Lite 173.433 31.136 Leader
2 42 Juan Montoya Chevrolet Target 173.138 31.189 -0.053
3 33 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet Cheerios/Hamburger Helper 172.922 31.228 -0.092
4 39 Ryan Newman Chevrolet U.S. Army/All-American Bowl 172.227 31.354 -0.218
5 20 Joey Logano * Toyota Home Depot 172.068 31.383 -0.247
6 14 Tony Stewart Chevrolet Office Depot/Old Spice 171.975 31.400 -0.264
7 99 Carl Edwards Ford Aflac 171.925 31.409 -0.273
8 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet National Guard/Amp Energy 171.909 31.412 -0.276
9 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Shell / Pennzoil 171.865 31.420 -0.284
10 00 David Reutimann Toyota Aaron's Dream Machine 171.663 31.457 -0.321
11 16 Greg Biffle Ford 3M 171.657 31.458 -0.322
12 12 Brad Keselowski Dodge Penske Racing 171.657 31.458 -0.322
13 9 Kasey Kahne Dodge Budweiser 171.652 31.459 -0.323
14 5 Mark Martin Chevrolet Kellogg's/Carquest 171.641 31.461 -0.325
15 77 Sam Hornish Jr. Dodge Mobil 1 171.641 31.461 -0.325
16 1 Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet Bass Pro Shops/Tracker 171.636 31.462 -0.326
17 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet DuPont 171.603 31.468 -0.332
18 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet Caterpillar 171.494 31.488 -0.352
19 07 Casey Mears Chevrolet Jack Daniel's 171.483 31.490 -0.354
20 21 Bill Elliott Ford Motorcraft 171.434 31.499 -0.363
21 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Lowe's 171.303 31.523 -0.387
22 47 Marcos Ambrose Toyota Little Debbie/Kingsford/Clorox 171.298 31.524 -0.388
23 26 Jamie McMurray Ford Crown Royal 171.211 31.540 -0.404
24 83 Brian Vickers Toyota Red Bull 171.157 31.550 -0.414
25 09 David Stremme Chevrolet Miccosukee Resort & Gaming 171.076 31.565 -0.429
26 11 Denny Hamlin Toyota FedEx Express 171.059 31.568 -0.432
27 44 A.J. Allmendinger Ford Ford. Drive one. 170.989 31.581 -0.445
28 18 Kyle Busch Toyota M&M's 170.983 31.582 -0.446
29 171 Bobby Labonte Chevrolet TaxSlayer.com 170.978 31.583 -0.447
30 82 Scott Speed * Toyota Red Bull 170.832 31.610 -0.474
31 96 Erik Darnell Ford Hall of Fame Racing 170.756 31.624 -0.488
32 78 Regan Smith Chevrolet Furniture Row Companies 170.627 31.648 -0.512
33 98 Paul Menard Ford Johns Manville/Menards 170.600 31.653 -0.517
34 55 Michael Waltrip Toyota NAPA Auto Parts 170.562 31.660 -0.524
35 19 Elliott Sadler Dodge Best Buy 170.465 31.678 -0.542
36 187 Joe Nemechek Toyota NEMCO Motorsports 170.089 31.748 -0.612
37 17 Matt Kenseth Ford Dewalt 170.073 31.751 -0.615
38 202 David Gilliland Toyota Farm Bureau Insurance 169.918 31.780 -0.644
39 34 John Andretti Chevrolet Taco Bell 169.758 31.810 -0.674
40 36 Michael McDowell Toyota Wave Energy Drink 169.555 31.848 -0.712
41 6 David Ragan Ford UPS 169.481 31.862 -0.726
42 43 Reed Sorenson Dodge Siemens 169.311 31.894 -0.758
43 113 Max Papis * Toyota GEICO 169.237 31.908 -0.772

*rookie

<snip>

[WhiteHatBobby]

ESPN found some notes on cars that are being raced for Sunday's Ford 400:

00 - #625. Best finish 4th at Las Vegas. Also was the car involved in Lap 3 incident that sent Johnson into the fence.
02 - #245. Car was 25th.
07 - RCR 282. 19th at Indy, 6th at MIS, 17th at Dover, 6th at Lowe's
1 - #070 - Raced in Atlanta and Texas in the spring, last used in Kansas (16th).
2 - Patriot. Won at Texas (November)
5 - #5-527. Won the GoDaddy.com 500 and LifeLock.com 400 (Joliet).
6 - RK-620. 20th at Lowe's (October), has FR9.
11 - JGR 248. Won Pocono and Martinsville
12 - PRS-706. New car.
14 - #14-564. Started 4th and finished 6th at Texas (November)
18 - JGR 254. 13th in Atlanta (September), 24th at Fontana (October)
29 - RCR 288. Debuted at Fontana (October) 10th, 18th at Lowe's, 5th at Texas.
31 - RCR 290. New car.
33 - RCR 284. 29th in Atlanta (September)
42 - #910. New car.
48 - #48-553. Won at Indianapolis and Fontana (October) #48-558, the backup car, won at Lowe's (October).
71 - RCR 227. Ex-Childress car qualified 28th at Texas (November)
88 - #88-559. 25th at Fontana (October). Car was 11th before crash near end of race.
99 - RK-669. Raced at Richmond (May), both New Hampshire, and Fontana (October).

[WhiteHatBobby]

More Season Ending notes:

1. Jarno Trulli, who lost his F1 ride after Toyota left the series, has reportedly applied for a Camping World Truck Series licence (with an FIA Superlicence, it's all but assured). Trulli, who was born in 1974, was named for Finish motorcycle racer Jarno Saarinen, who won the Bill France-promoted Daytona 200 motorcycle race in March 1973, only to die at the Grand Prix of Nations that May in Monza.

2. Frank Caliendo will host the Prizegiving banquet December 4 (9 PM, Speed) from Las Vegas. The broadcast will be hosted by Mike Joy and Krista Voda.

3. The #62 and #66 NNS cars go Toyota in 2010.

4. Kasey Kahne is reportedly on his way out at George Gillett's operation. I wonder if Fiat has enough Euros to put him back in a Ram in 2011, and if he's keeping his USAC and WoO teams Mopar.

[Xena]

Ford 400 (http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2009/36/data/qual_order.html)
Qualifying Order | Homestead
2:30 p.m. ET Sunday | ABC
November 22, 2009 | Race 36 of 36

ORDER CAR DRIVER MAKE SPONSOR
1 83 Brian Vickers Toyota Red Bull
2 6 David Ragan Ford UPS
3 11 Denny Hamlin Toyota FedEx Express
4 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet National Guard/Amp Energy
5 12 Brad Keselowski Dodge Penske Racing
6 42 Juan Montoya Chevrolet Target
7 5 Mark Martin Chevrolet Kellogg's/Carquest
8 44 A.J. Allmendinger Ford Ford. Drive one.
9 34 John Andretti Chevrolet Taco Bell
10 2 Kurt Busch Dodge Miller Lite
11 00 David Reutimann Toyota Aaron's Dream Machine
12 18 Kyle Busch Toyota M&M's
13 17 Matt Kenseth Ford Dewalt
14 20 Joey Logano* Toyota Home Depot
15 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet DuPont
16 39 Ryan Newman Chevrolet U.S. Army/All-American Bowl
17 1 Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet Bass Pro Shops/Tracker
18 43 Reed Sorenson Dodge Siemens
19 99 Carl Edwards Ford Aflac
20 07 Casey Mears Chevrolet Jack Daniel's
21 14 Tony Stewart Chevrolet Office Depot/Old Spice
22 96 Erik Darnell Ford Hall of Fame Racing
23 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet Caterpillar
24 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Shell/Pennzoil
25 98 Paul Menard Ford Johns Manville/Menards
26 7 Robby Gordon Toyota Mapei/Menards
27 16 Greg Biffle Ford 3M
28 9 Kasey Kahne Dodge Budweiser
29 55 Michael Waltrip Toyota NAPA Auto Parts
30 19 Elliott Sadler Dodge Best Buy
31 26 Jamie McMurray Ford Crown Royal
32 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Lowe's
33 77 Sam Hornish Jr. Dodge Mobil 1
34 33 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet Cheerios/Hamburger Helper
35 47 Marcos Ambrose Toyota Little Debbie Cupcakes/Kingsford/Clorox
36 171 Bobby Labonte Chevrolet TaxSlayer.com
37 202 David Gilliland Toyota Farm Bureau Insurance
38 66 Dave Blaney Toyota Prism Motorsports
39 170 Mike Skinner Chevrolet Adobe Road Winery
40 21 Bill Elliott Ford Motorcraft
41 113 Max Papis * Toyota GEICO
42 78 Regan Smith Chevrolet Furniture Row Companies
43 08 Terry Labonte Toyota FanCar

*rookie

<snip>

[WhiteHatBobby]

Jimmie's not taking the title for granted. He's starting P1 for the Ford 400 (3:30 PM, ESPN Broadcast Network) and that means he will only have to finish 28th to win once he leads Lap One.

The only way Mark can win it now is for another error similar to the 2005 error Johnson had when he was chasing Smoke and had a tyre problem lead to a shot into the fence. And still, there's no guarantee of a win, since errors could lead to another shot into the fence. He's making no bones about this one -- he wants four and next year he's going for the thumb. The Dynasty is (nearly) ready to be coronated, but it's a joy to watch such domination. A season of (nearly) mistake-free racing is the way to win a crown. He'll probably bag home the TAG Heuer Racing Award at the end of the year, the award for best driver in international motorsport, the way Carl Edwards did last year, for his prowess.

[Xena]

Ford 400 (http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2009/36/data/lineup.html)
Lineup | Homestead
2:30 p.m. ET Sunday | ABC
November 22, 2009 | Race 36 of 36


POS CAR DRIVER MAKE SPONSOR SPEED TIME BEHIND
1 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Lowe's 173.919 31.049 Leader
2 82 Scott Speed * Toyota Red Bull 172.695 31.269 -0.220
3 47 Marcos Ambrose Toyota Little Debbie Cupcakes/Kingsford/Clorox 172.678 31.272 -0.223
4 5 Mark Martin Chevrolet Kellogg's/Carquest 172.353 31.331 -0.282
5 14 Tony Stewart Chevrolet Office Depot/Old Spice 172.243 31.351 -0.302
6 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Shell/Pennzoil 172.145 31.369 -0.320
7 39 Ryan Newman Chevrolet U.S. Army/All-American Bowl 172.035 31.389 -0.340
8 16 Greg Biffle Ford 3M 172.024 31.391 -0.342
9 21 Bill Elliott Ford Motorcraft 171.860 31.421 -0.372
10 33 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet Cheerios/Hamburger Helper 171.838 31.425 -0.376
11 26 Jamie McMurray Ford Crown Royal 171.838 31.425 -0.376
12 2 Kurt Busch Dodge Miller Lite 171.794 31.433 -0.384
13 44 A.J. Allmendinger Ford Ford. Drive one. 171.750 31.441 -0.392
14 1 Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet Bass Pro Shops/Tracker 171.646 31.460 -0.411
15 07 Casey Mears Chevrolet Jack Daniel's 171.630 31.463 -0.414
16 78 Regan Smith Chevrolet Furniture Row Companies 171.576 31.473 -0.424
17 202 David Gilliland Toyota Farm Bureau Insurance 171.461 31.494 -0.445
18 36 Michael McDowell Toyota Wave Energy Drink 171.434 31.499 -0.450
19 171 Bobby Labonte Chevrolet TaxSlayer.com 171.396 31.506 -0.457
20 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet DuPont 171.336 31.517 -0.468
21 19 Elliott Sadler Dodge Best Buy 171.331 31.518 -0.469
22 00 David Reutimann Toyota Aaron's Dream Machine 171.276 31.528 -0.479
23 42 Juan Montoya Chevrolet Target 171.162 31.549 -0.500
24 99 Carl Edwards Ford Aflac 170.994 31.580 -0.531
25 9 Kasey Kahne Dodge Budweiser 170.967 31.585 -0.536
26 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet Caterpillar 170.967 31.585 -0.536
27 12 Brad Keselowski Dodge Penske Racing 170.816 31.613 -0.564
28 37 Travis Kvapil Chevrolet Long John Silver's 170.805 31.615 -0.566
29 77 Sam Hornish Jr. Dodge Mobil 1 170.794 31.617 -0.568
30 18 Kyle Busch Toyota M&M's 170.648 31.644 -0.595
31 96 Erik Darnell Ford Hall of Fame Racing 170.530 31.666 -0.617
32 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet National Guard / Amp Energy 170.454 31.680 -0.631
33 83 Brian Vickers Toyota Red Bull 170.411 31.688 -0.639
34 17 Matt Kenseth Ford Dewalt 170.379 31.694 -0.645
35 20 Joey Logano * Toyota Home Depot 170.272 31.714 -0.665
36 98 Paul Menard Ford Johns Manville/Menards 170.266 31.715 -0.666
37 7 Matt Crafton Toyota Mapei/Menards 169.881 31.787 -0.738
38 11 Denny Hamlin Toyota FedEx Express 169.715 31.818 -0.769
39 55 Michael Waltrip Toyota NAPA Auto Parts 169.353 31.886 -0.837
40 34 John Andretti Chevrolet Taco Bell 169.274 31.901 -0.852
41 6 David Ragan Ford UPS 169.072 31.939 -0.890
42 43 Reed Sorenson+ Dodge Siemens 169.003 31.952 -0.903
43 08 Terry Labonte Toyota FanCar -Champion's Provisional -

+Set by Owner Points
*rookie

<snip>

[Xena]

We have a bromance in NASCAR.

A few seconds after JJ got the pole, Chad said "I love you". "I want to kiss you."

:eek:

[Xena]

From another person:

"Why not? Considering that Chad wears eyeliner and crap on TWIN, it really wouldn't surprise me. Glad to see that he's embracing his inner woman."

:))

[WhiteHatBobby]

You have to wear makeup and eyeliner when you're on television.

Hilarity. Juan Pablo Montoya told the press at the BeLive Colombia event that benefits charities for his native land (Colombian celebrities are at the event; however, golfer Camilio Villegas, usually at the event, was in Dubai since he played 12 European Tour events, and finished in the Top 60, so he was playing there) that Sebastian, his son, was a Kyle Busch fan. When you're around all the drivers that's one thing, but I wonder if the kid was a fan too because of Kyle's sponsor (M&M's) and those cute candy mascots?

Along with the Hispanic media, the NASCAR media showed up, as usual. ESPN's David Newton said, "Not enough material in bathing suits of first 20 runway models to make one driver uniform." And the Sprint Cup drivers were there -- Gordon, Johnson, Kahne, and Sorenson were spotted. F1 free agent Jarno Trulli, a guest of Michael Waltrip Racing, and compatriot "Mad" Max Papis were there, and looked "strange" to the rest of the Hispanic world -- singers, beauty queens, models (I don't know if she did come, but since she's Colombian, I would have expected The Price Is Right model Manuela Arbeláez to have been there), and entertainers. Welcome to the world of NASCAR Culture, Mr. Trulli, where drivers do each other's benefit events.

[Xena]

You have to wear makeup and eyeliner when you're on television.

Hilarity. Juan Pablo Montoya told the press at the BeLive Colombia event that benefits charities for his native land (Colombian celebrities are at the event; however, golfer Camilio Villegas, usually at the event, was in Dubai since he played 12 European Tour events, and finished in the Top 60, so he was playing there) that Sebastian, his son, was a Kyle Busch fan. When you're around all the drivers that's one thing, but I wonder if the kid was a fan too because of Kyle's sponsor (M&M's) and those cute candy mascots?

Along with the Hispanic media, the NASCAR media showed up, as usual. ESPN's David Newton said, "Not enough material in bathing suits of first 20 runway models to make one driver uniform." And the Sprint Cup drivers were there -- Gordon, Johnson, Kahne, and Sorenson were spotted. F1 free agent Jarno Trulli, a guest of Michael Waltrip Racing, and compatriot "Mad" Max Papis were there, and looked "strange" to the rest of the Hispanic world -- singers, beauty queens, models (I don't know if she did come, but since she's Colombian, I would have expected The Price Is Right model Manuela Arbeláez to have been there), and entertainers. Welcome to the world of NASCAR Culture, Mr. Trulli, where drivers do each other's benefit events.

Uh, no. Chad was watching JJ quals. No big camera in Jimmie's face. Only audio from Chad.

Here are comments from Chad:

Oh baby
Get some of that
Told you
Yes! Yes! Yes! http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v336/XenaWarrior/Smilies/Heartbeat.gif
Wow
I Love You
Kiss You On the Lips? http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v336/XenaWarrior/Smilies/Heartbeat.gif

He must have a cigar after saying those comments. :eek:

[Xena]

Ford 400 (http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2009/36/data/practice2_speeds.html/)
Practice 2 | Homestead
2:30 p.m. ET Sunday | ABC
November 22, 2009 | Race 36 of 36


Pos Car Driver Laps Best Speed Last Speed Avg. Speed Best Time Last Time Avg. Time
1 5 Mark Martin Chevrolet Kellogg's/Carquest 168.177 32.109 Leader
2 11 Denny Hamlin Toyota FedEx Express 167.884 32.165 -0.056
3 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Lowe's 167.863 32.169 -0.060
4 39 Ryan Newman Chevrolet U.S. Army/All-American Bowl 167.822 32.177 -0.068
5 18 Kyle Busch Toyota M&M's 167.811 32.179 -0.070
6 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet Caterpillar 167.806 32.180 -0.071
7 16 Greg Biffle Ford 3M 167.738 32.193 -0.084
8 9 Kasey Kahne Dodge Budweiser 167.183 32.300 -0.191
9 20 Joey Logano * Toyota Home Depot 167.079 32.320 -0.211
10 1 Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet Bass Pro Shops/Tracker 167.074 32.321 -0.212
11 44 A.J. Allmendinger Ford Ford. Drive one. 167.043 32.327 -0.218
12 33 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet Cheerios/Hamburger Helper 166.909 32.353 -0.244
13 42 Juan Montoya Chevrolet Target 166.893 32.356 -0.247
14 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Shell/Pennzoil 166.801 32.374 -0.265
15 00 David Reutimann Toyota Aaron's Dream Machine 166.795 32.375 -0.266
16 17 Matt Kenseth Ford Dewalt 166.703 32.393 -0.284
17 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet DuPont 166.636 32.406 -0.297
18 83 Brian Vickers Toyota Red Bull 166.436 32.445 -0.336
19 07 Casey Mears Chevrolet Jack Daniel's 166.282 32.475 -0.366
20 26 Jamie McMurray Ford Crown Royal 166.241 32.483 -0.374
21 2 Kurt Busch Dodge Miller Lite 166.092 32.512 -0.403
22 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet National Guard/Amp Energy 165.837 32.562 -0.453
23 14 Tony Stewart Chevrolet Office Depot/Old Spice 165.705 32.588 -0.479
24 47 Marcos Ambrose Toyota Little Debbie Cupcakes/Kingsford/Clorox 165.604 32.608 -0.499
25 12 Brad Keselowski Dodge Penske Racing 165.507 32.627 -0.518
26 6 David Ragan Ford UPS 165.355 32.657 -0.548
27 202 David Gilliland Toyota Farm Bureau Insurance 164.544 32.818 -0.709
28 21 Bill Elliott Ford Motorcraft 163.800 32.967 -0.858
29 98 Paul Menard Ford Johns Manville/Menards 163.612 33.005 -0.896
30 77 Sam Hornish Jr. Dodge Mobil 1 163.612 33.005 -0.896
31 99 Carl Edwards Ford Aflac 163.310 33.066 -0.957
32 37 Travis Kvapil Chevrolet Long John Silver's 163.157 33.097 -0.988
33 82 Scott Speed * Toyota Red Bull 163.034 33.122 -1.013
34 55 Michael Waltrip Toyota NAPA Auto Parts 163.004 33.128 -1.019
35 19 Elliott Sadler Dodge Best Buy 162.980 33.133 -1.024
36 43 Reed Sorenson Dodge Siemens 162.548 33.221 -1.112
37 171 Bobby Labonte Chevrolet TaxSlayer.com 162.421 33.247 -1.138
38 7 Matt Crafton Toyota Mapei/Menards 162.172 33.298 -1.189
39 34 John Andretti Chevrolet Taco Bell 162.021 33.329 -1.220
40 78 Regan Smith Chevrolet Furniture Row Companies 161.213 33.496 -1.387

*rookie

<snip>

[Xena]

Ford 400 (http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2009/36/data/practice3_speeds.html/)
Practice 3 | Homestead
2:30 p.m. ET Sunday | ABC
November 22, 2009 | Race 36 of 36

Pos Car Driver Laps Best Speed Last Speed Avg. Speed Best Time Last Time Avg. Time
1 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet Caterpillar 165.736 32.582 Leader
2 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Shell/Pennzoil 165.375 32.653 -0.071
3 5 Mark Martin Chevrolet Kellogg's/Carquest 165.067 32.714 -0.132
4 1 Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet Bass Pro Shops/Tracker 165.021 32.723 -0.141
5 39 Ryan Newman Chevrolet U.S. Army/All-American Bowl 164.604 32.806 -0.224
6 20 Joey Logano * Toyota Home Depot 164.549 32.817 -0.235
7 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Lowe's 164.534 32.820 -0.238
8 07 Casey Mears Chevrolet Jack Daniel's 164.369 32.853 -0.271
9 12 Brad Keselowski Dodge Penske Racing 164.339 32.859 -0.277
10 11 Denny Hamlin Toyota FedEx Express 164.214 32.884 -0.302
11 2 Kurt Busch Dodge Miller Lite 164.204 32.886 -0.304
12 47 Marcos Ambrose Toyota Little Debbie Cupcakes/Kingsford/Clorox 164.184 32.890 -0.308
13 14 Tony Stewart Chevrolet Office Depot/Old Spice 164.169 32.893 -0.311
14 26 Jamie McMurray Ford Crown Royal 164.089 32.909 -0.327
15 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet DuPont 164.029 32.921 -0.339
16 17 Matt Kenseth Ford Dewalt 163.984 32.930 -0.348
17 16 Greg Biffle Ford 3M 163.954 32.936 -0.354
18 33 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet Cheerios/Hamburger Helper 163.895 32.948 -0.366
19 44 A.J. Allmendinger Ford Ford. Drive one. 163.686 32.990 -0.408
20 18 Kyle Busch Toyota M&M's 163.671 32.993 -0.411
21 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet National Guard/Amp Energy 163.612 33.005 -0.423
22 9 Kasey Kahne Dodge Budweiser 163.503 33.027 -0.445
23 21 Bill Elliott Ford Motorcraft 163.320 33.064 -0.482
24 202 David Gilliland Toyota Farm Bureau Insurance 163.275 33.073 -0.491
25 00 David Reutimann Toyota Aaron's Dream Machine 163.246 33.079 -0.497
26 42 Juan Montoya Chevrolet Target 163.167 33.095 -0.513
27 6 David Ragan Ford UPS 163.083 33.112 -0.530
28 77 Sam Hornish Jr. Dodge Mobil 1 163.009 33.127 -0.545
29 83 Brian Vickers Toyota Red Bull 162.778 33.174 -0.592
30 171 Bobby Labonte Chevrolet TaxSlayer.com 162.768 33.176 -0.594
31 99 Carl Edwards Ford Aflac 162.670 33.196 -0.614
32 98 Paul Menard Ford Johns Manville/Menards 162.611 33.208 -0.626
33 82 Scott Speed * Toyota Red Bull 162.133 33.306 -0.724
34 19 Elliott Sadler Dodge Best Buy 161.507 33.435 -0.853
35 78 Regan Smith Chevrolet Furniture Row Companies 161.507 33.435 -0.853
36 55 Michael Waltrip Toyota NAPA Auto Parts 161.478 33.441 -0.859
37 96 Erik Darnell Ford Hall of Fame Racing 161.310 33.476 -0.894
38 43 Reed Sorenson Dodge Siemens 161.295 33.479 -0.897

*rookie

<snip>

[WhiteHatBobby]

Humpy Wheeler compared Jimmie Johnson's career to that of the late Tim Flock. Flock won 39 races and two titles in 187 starts. Johnson's 47 wins and three championships have taken 290 starts. Herb Thomas has 48 wins and two champions in 228 starts.

"He drives like Tim did, smooth but very fast, and he never wrecks . . . I wish ol’ Tim was still around (died in 1998 - cancer) because he would have loved to seen Jimmie drive."

The only thing we need Jimmie Johnson to have is a passenger seat, a helmet, HANS device, and a firesuit for a monkey to sit in the passenger seat of his Lowe's Impala.

[Xena]

Homestead Weather (http://weather.yahoo.com/forecast/USFL0208.html)

Today: A mix of clouds and sun during the morning will give way to cloudy skies this afternoon. High 84F. Winds SE at 10 to 15 mph.

Tonight: Mainly cloudy. Low 69F. Winds light and variable.

[Xena]

Ford 400 (http://www.homesteadmiamispeedway.com/)
Homestead | 2:30 p.m. ET Sunday | ABC
November 22, 2009 | Race 36 of 36
Green at 3:30 p.m. ET

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v336/XenaWarrior/NASCAR%20Tracks/Homestead.jpg

[Xena]

I hope for a good race as in, the winner and or Champion should have worked his butt off. No drivers moving away so the leader can have an easy race.

[spinach]

invocation now
and national anthem to follow....

almost race time!

[Xena]

Gentlemen, start your engines!

[Xena]

Robby Gordon will drop to the rear of the field for a driver change

[spinach]

My final race "picks".
let's see how I do:

1. Kevin Harvick
2. Ryan Newman
3. Tony Stewart
4. Jimmie Johnson
5. Jeff Gordon
6. Denny Hamlin
7. Kurt Busch
8. Greg Biffle
9. Kyle Busch
10. Carl Edwards

[spinach]

Robby Gordon will drop to the rear of the field for a driver change

driver change?
is someone else driving Robby's car?

[Xena]

Boogity, boogity, boogity!

Let's go racin boys!

[Xena]

driver change?
is someone else driving Robby's car?

Yes, Robby is racing in the Baja 1000, so Matt Crafton is driving for him.

[Xena]

Marcos in first for now

[spinach]

Marcus Ambrose to the lead

Tasmanian Devil in the lead!

[spinach]

JJ back to the lead...

[Xena]

Crap, Marcos has a tire going down

[spinach]

47 has a flat RR tire....
got to pit.

the curse of being first!

[spinach]

he's so fast that he will get his lap back as a lucky dog, if they have a caution.
he should be able to easily pass anyone else that get lapped.

look for him to finish 10th or better.
:)

[Xena]

Smoke in 3rd

[Xena]

Spinach, glad you come in here. We are the NASCARITES of Hannity. :)

[spinach]

Dale Jr. is riding the wall...super super fast

up 19 spots already.

coming off the corners he's unbeatable.

he will likely have the lead soon.
[if he doesn't crash]

the worst thing about the wall line is that you can't make errors.
it would be wiser to move down a little, about half a lane or so, in case you flub a corner.

[spinach]

Spinach, glad you come in here. We are the NASCARITES of Hannity. :)

thanks.
And you are a great thread host.

:hug:

[spinach]

47 in the pits again...electrical fault
now changing the battery.

he's not gonna finish well now, no way.

[spinach]

Smoke takes the lead!!

Xena does cartwheels!! :))

[Xena]

Ambrose in more problems. They are getting a new battery

[Xena]

Smoke in the lead

[Xena]

I hate when my mom calls me while I trying to watch the race

[spinach]

I hate when my mom calls me while I trying to watch the race

Well, racing will always be there.
Mom's are more important.

Mine called this morning to set up plans for the Thanksgiving day dinner.
also, Xena, keep in mind that some folks don't have their moms around right now.

:)

[Xena]

Spinach, did you see the stuff here about Chad? :))

[spinach]

Jr scraped the wall. that stupid ultra high line

knew it would happen
one more time and he will wreck.

that guy needs to get his head right.
what kind of nut does this?

his dad would call him an idiot for doing this

[spinach]

Spinach, did you see the stuff here about Chad? :))

No, what happened?

[Xena]

Well, racing will always be there.
Mom's are more important.

Mine called this morning to set up plans for the Thanksgiving day dinner.
also, Xena, keep in mind that some folks don't have their moms around right now.

:)

True and I usually don't mind it. But, I was trying too many things at that time.
I love my Mom very much. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v336/XenaWarrior/Smilies/Heartbeat.gif

[Xena]

Marky in 8th

[Xena]

Marcos Ambrose is back in the race scored 14 laps down

That sucks

[Xena]

No, what happened?

http://forums.hannity.com/showpost.php?p=64320671&postcount=3806

:shifty:

[spinach]

http://forums.hannity.com/showpost.php?p=64320671&postcount=3806

:shifty:


Well, if he starts wearing pink headphones to the races...something is up.

:shhh:

:))

[spinach]

Harvick in the lead....my "winner" pick. :cool:

about time I got something right.
:))

[Xena]

rain is moving in the area

[spinach]

rain is moving in the area

that stinks.
that's the thing about southern Fla, it can rain just about every day.

I wish nascar had rain tires.
that would be interesting

[Xena]

Lots of praise for Tony/SHR

[spinach]

Jeff G up to 6th

:)

[Xena]

that stinks.
that's the thing about southern Fla, it can rain just about every day.

I wish nascar had rain tires.
that would be interesting

http://weather.yahoo.com/forecast/USFL0208.html

[spinach]

http://weather.yahoo.com/forecast/USFL0208.html



weatherbonk.com is a good site for radar

you can click on radar and look at the rain
you can zoom in too!
:)

[spinach]

yellow flag pit stops

ambrose went for a wild ride

[Xena]

Caution 1 - Marcos spun

[Xena]

can't get the link to work..
weatherbonk.com is a good site for radar

you can click on radar and look at the rain
you can zoom in too!
:)

It worked for me? maybe I left out of something

http://weather.yahoo.com/united-states/florida/homestead-2423770/

[Xena]

Erik Darnell, Robby Gordon, Elliott Sadler and John Andretti the wave-around cars.

[Xena]

Wow, nice move of Harvick to take the lead

[spinach]

Jeff G may have a flat tire...losing spots rapidly...

[Xena]

Gordo having a tire going down

[spinach]

It worked for me? maybe I left out of something

http://weather.yahoo.com/united-states/florida/homestead-2423770/


d'oh!!

I meant that my link I was trying to post for weatherbonk wouldn't work
I was trying to link direct to Homestead but it doesn't come up right.

:))

you link worked fine. :shifty:

[Xena]

Montoya flying

[spinach]

Jr scraped the wall again

didn't wreck.

but he's trying hard to.

[Xena]

Caution 2 - Andretti got into the wall

[spinach]

John Andretti hit the wall

caution out

[spinach]

RF tire blew on Andretti 34

and put debris all over the track

[spinach]

this caution saved Jeff G

[Xena]

Caution 3 - Ambrose got into the wall

[spinach]

47 hit the wall again....

I wonder if Nascar is gonna park him.
caution is out.

[Xena]

Caution 4 - Montoya dueling with Smoke, then Montoya hit Smoke in the back. Smoke gently gave Montoya a bump.

At least Juan RACES.

[spinach]

caution

tony and JPM tangle.....
42 into the wall, flat tire

tony might get a penalty lap. pretty flagrant shove.
he almost wrecked JPM driving him toward the inside wall.

No way Nascar is gonna let that fly.
NO WAY

[spinach]

chain reaction crash on pit road.

hoo boy....
19 is done, 43 is done-- pit road crash

[spinach]

42 went behind the wall.
to the garage.
I bet he is Jalapeno hot. Justifiably

Might have steering damage

[Xena]

I wondered about this:

Kevin Harvick warned by NASCAR officials about his restarts.

[spinach]

I wondered about this:

Kevin Harvick warned by NASCAR officials about his restarts.


yeah, he's been slowing down and then hitting the gas.
they gave the team an official warning--
which I think means if he does it again, it's a pass thru penalty

[Xena]

Tony said JPM ****ing ran over him twice

[spinach]

JPM did not talk to reporters

car has damage, steering damage, brake damage [no brakes]

I cannot believe NASCAR did not penalize smoke for that.
I can't beleive it

[Xena]

Lap 121

Jimmie Johnson will restart 23rd, Mark Martin will restart 25th after their pit stops.

[spinach]

Tony said JPM ****ing ran over him twice


I saw the bump---
that was just racing.

dunno about the other incident that Tony is talking about.
in any case, what Tony did was flagrantly wrong.

[Xena]

Oh, yeah, now the drivers are parting the water for JJ.

[spinach]

Jr RR tire flat

pitting under green.
another horrible day for the 88 team.


Kurt Busch to the lead.

[spinach]

Oh, yeah, now the drivers are parting the water for JJ.


that is very irritating.
they should be making him earn spots.

this is GAY

[Xena]

I saw the bump---
that was just racing.

dunno about the other incident that Tony is talking about.
in any case, what Tony did was flagrantly wrong.

Believe, NASCAR would love to slap Tony around.

Hmm, or if SHR is protected because he's affiliated with HMS. :think:

[spinach]

I think the 42 spun out the 14

the 42 is gonna be parked, count on it.

[Xena]

Caution 5 - Juan got Smoke into the lawn

[spinach]

Caution 5 - Juan took out Smoke


the 42 just got parked for 2 laps.

not much of a penalty, because he's 28 down already.
it's a dumb penalty.

they should have parked him.

[Xena]

Lap 155 -- YELLOW FLAG NO. 5: Juan Montoya didn't listen to the message from NASCAR as he bumps Tony Stewart sending the No. 14 into the inside wall. John Andretti gets the free pass.

[WhiteHatBobby]

This is NASCAR. Montoya is truly an old-school driver. High, wide, and handsome, and willing to go headhunting like drivers of yore.

[spinach]

Denny Hamlin takes the lead off pit road.
:)

[Xena]

JPM on Stewart: "What an Mother ****er *******"
"We gotta go to the ****ing garage"

:))

[spinach]

Kurt and Denny dueling for the lead, as the track cools...
:cool:

[Xena]

Caution 6 - Robby spun

[Xena]

Harvick racing hard, JJ doesn't seem to like it

[Xena]

3-wide with JJ, Truex, Gordo and Harvick

We are having a RACE!

[Xena]

62 to go

[Xena]

Busch boys flying together

[Xena]

Caution 7 - debris

[spinach]

beneficiaries of the latest caution:

smoke: lucky dog
Junior: can now get fresh tires, after staying out.

[spinach]

Kurt busch took 2 tires....that won't work.

he might wreck the field

[Xena]

JJ just lost 4 spots on pit road

(not that it would matter)

[Xena]

I am listening to Tony right now...IT AIN'T OVER

:think:

[spinach]

white flag for Denny!!

[Xena]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v336/XenaWarrior/NASCAR/CheckeredFlag2.gif

Congrats to Denny Hamlin!



Chase Champion Jimmie Johnson

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v336/XenaWarrior/NASCAR/JJWithTrophy2.jpg

2006 - 2007 - 2008 - 2009

[spinach]

congrats to Denny
congrats to JJ

:)

2009 is done.

[Xena]

Ford 400 (http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2009/36/data/results_unofficial.html)
Unofficial Race Results | Homestead
2:30 p.m. ET Sunday | ABC
November 22, 2009 | Race 36 of 36

FIN ST CAR DRIVER MAKE SPONSOR PTS/BNS LAPS STATUS
1 38 11 Denny Hamlin Toyota FedEx Express 195/10 267 Running
2 26 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet Caterpillar 175/5 267 Running
3 6 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Shell/Pennzoil 170/5 267 Running
4 12 2 Kurt Busch Dodge Miller Lite 165/5 267 Running
5 1 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Lowe's 160/5 267 Running
6 20 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet DuPont 150/0 267 Running
7 24 99 Carl Edwards Ford Aflac 146/0 267 Running
8 30 18 Kyle Busch Toyota M&M's 147/5 267 Running
9 14 1 Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet Bass Pro Shops/Tracker 138/0 267 Running
10 13 44 A.J. Allmendinger Ford Ford. Drive one. 134/0 267 Running
11 10 33 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet Cheerios/Hamburger Helper 135/5 267 Running
12 4 5 Mark Martin Chevrolet Kellogg's/Carquest 127/0 267 Running
13 34 17 Matt Kenseth Ford Dewalt 124/0 267 Running
14 8 16 Greg Biffle Ford 3M 121/0 267 Running
15 22 00 David Reutimann Toyota Aaron's Dream Machine 118/0 267 Running
16 9 21 Bill Elliott Ford Motorcraft 115/0 267 Running
17 25 9 Kasey Kahne Dodge Budweiser 112/0 267 Running
18 11 26 Jamie McMurray Ford Crown Royal 109/0 267 Running
19 15 07 Casey Mears Chevrolet Jack Daniel's 106/0 267 Running
20 33 83 Brian Vickers Toyota Red Bull 103/0 267 Running
21 29 77 Sam Hornish Jr. Dodge Mobil 1 100/0 267 Running
22 5 14 Tony Stewart Chevrolet Office Depot/Old Spice 102/5 267 Running
23 7 39 Ryan Newman Chevrolet U.S. Army/All-American Bowl 94/0 267 Running
24 35 20 Joey Logano * Toyota Home Depot 91/0 267 Running
25 27 12 Brad Keselowski Dodge Penske Racing 88/0 267 Running
26 36 98 Paul Menard Ford Johns Manville/Menards 85/0 267 Running
27 2 82 Scott Speed * Toyota Red Bull 82/0 267 Running
28 32 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet National Guard/Amp Energy 79/0 267 Running
29 17 202 David Gilliland Toyota Farm Bureau Insurance 76/0 267 Running
30 39 55 Michael Waltrip Toyota NAPA Auto Parts 78/5 267 Running
31 19 171 Bobby Labonte Chevrolet TaxSlayer.com 70/0 267 Running
32 16 78 Regan Smith Chevrolet Furniture Row Companies 67/0 267 Running
33 40 34 John Andretti Chevrolet Taco Bell/ETA Shuttle 64/0 267 Running
34 41 6 David Ragan Ford UPS 61/0 267 Running
35 3 47 Marcos Ambrose Toyota Little Debbie Cupcakes/Kingsford/Clorox 63/5 251 Running
36 31 96 Erik Darnell Ford Hall of Fame Racing 55/0 247 Running
37 28 37 Travis Kvapil Chevrolet Miccosukee Resort & Gaming 52/0 243 Running
38 23 42 Juan Montoya Chevrolet Target 49/0 235 Running
39 37 7 Robby Gordon Toyota Mapei/Menards 46/0 227 Running **
** Matt Crafton subbed for Robby due to racing at the Baja 1000

*rookie
<snip>

[Xena]

Ford 400 (http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2009/data/standings_unofficial.html)
Unofficial Driver Standings | Homestead
2:30 p.m. ET Sunday | ABC
November 22, 2009 | Race 36 of 36

RANK +/- DRIVER POINTS BEHIND STARTS POLES WINS TOP 5 TOP 10
1 -- Jimmie Johnson 6652 Leader 36 4 7 16 24
2 -- Mark Martin 6511 -141 36 7 5 14 21
3 -- Jeff Gordon 6473 -179 36 1 1 16 25
4 -- Kurt Busch 6446 -206 36 0 2 10 21
5 +3 Denny Hamlin 6335 -317 36 1 4 15 20
6 -1 Tony Stewart 6309 -343 36 0 4 15 23
7 -- Greg Biffle 6292 -360 36 0 0 10 16
8 -2 Juan Montoya 6252 -400 36 2 0 7 18
9 -- Ryan Newman 6175 -477 36 2 0 5 15
10 -- Kasey Kahne 6128 -524 36 0 2 7 14
11 -- Carl Edwards 6118 -534 36 0 0 7 14
12 -- Brian Vickers 5929 -723 36 6 1 4 13
CHASE FOR THE Sprint CUP - CURRENT CONTENDERS
13 -- Kyle Busch 4457 -2195 36 1 4 9 13
14 -- Matt Kenseth 4389 -2263 36 1 2 7 12
15 -- Clint Bowyer 4359 -2293 36 0 0 4 16
16 -- David Reutimann 4221 -2431 36 2 1 5 10
17 -- Jeff Burton 4022 -2630 36 0 0 5 10
18 -- Marcos Ambrose 3830 -2822 36 0 0 4 7
19 +2 Kevin Harvick 3796 -2856 36 0 0 5 9
20 -1 Joey Logano * 3791 -2861 36 0 1 3 7
21 -1 Casey Mears 3759 -2893 36 0 0 0 4
22 -- Jamie McMurray 3604 -3048 36 0 1 1 5
23 -- Martin Truex Jr. 3503 -3149 36 3 0 1 6
24 +1 A.J. Allmendinger 3476 -3176 36 0 0 1 6
25 -1 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 3422 -3230 36 0 0 2 5
26 -- Elliott Sadler 3350 -3302 36 0 0 1 5
27 -- David Ragan 3252 -3400 36 0 0 0 2
28 +1 Sam Hornish Jr. 3203 -3449 36 0 0 2 7
29 -1 Reed Sorenson 3147 -3505 36 0 0 0 1
30 -- Bobby Labonte 3128 -3524 36 0 0 1 2
31 +1 Paul Menard 2979 -3673 36 0 0 0 0
32 -1 David Stremme 2919 -3733 33 0 0 0 0
33 -- Michael Waltrip 2839 -3813 34 0 0 0 2
34 -- Robby Gordon 2699 -3953 35 0 0 1 1
35 -- Scott Speed * 2690 -3962 35 0 0 1 1
36 -- John Andretti 2597 -4055 34 0 0 0 0
37 -- David Gilliland 1928 -4724 31 0 0 0 0
38 -- Brad Keselowski 1528 -5124 15 0 1 1 4
39 -- Regan Smith 1440 -5212 18 0 0 0 0
40 -- Joe Nemechek 1342 -5310 30 0 0 0 0
41 -- Dave Blaney 1204 -5448 30 0 0 0 0
42 +1 Bill Elliott 1095 -5557 12 0 0 0 0
43 -1 Max Papis * 1047 -5605 15 0 0 0 1

*rookie
<snip>

[spinach]

I'm glad Denny closed out with a win.

when Jeff G retires, I'll be a Denny fan full time.

[spinach]

How about Mark Martin?

2nd in the chase.....at 50 years old...

He'll be back, I'm sure.
One more for the road. :)

[spinach]

the announcers sound funny about JJ taking the stage....

is JJ gonna be "booed" or something??

:confused::confused:

[Xena]

I wonder if Chad kissed Jimmie on the lips?

:))

[spinach]

I wonder if Chad kissed Jimmie on the lips?

:))


not that there's anything wrong with that--- [Jerry Seinfeld]

[spinach]

Rick H hits the trifecta

1. JJ
2. MM
3. Jeff G


that's a statement and then some
too bad Junior didn't come in 4th in the points
that would be the "home run"

[spinach]

thing is, the "off season" is only 3 months.

maybe they ought to shorten the season?
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
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Just kidding!!!!
:))

[spinach]

1st prize:

$6,520,800


whoa, that's some MOOLAH!!

[Samm]

Rick H hits the trifecta

1. JJ
2. MM
3. Jeff G


that's a statement and then some
too bad Junior didn't come in 4th in the points
that would be the "home run"

Great day for Hendrick Racing, but what was the home emergency that took him away from all this glory? I hope it was nothing too serious...

It was nip and tuck for Gordon there until the last 40 laps... Kurt gave it a very good try. I'm not a big K. Busch fan, but I admire his skill, drive and determination.

I was unhappy to see Stewart drop to 6th... but then Denny was deserving too. If not for his DNFs in the Chase, he would have been a top contender for the Championship. Montoya should have been disqualified and assigned the 43rd spot for what he did. Butt head... I hope he gets a big fine from NASCAR. The boy needs to grow up.

As far as Jr., I have come to the conclusion that it is him, not bad luck that is causing him to have poor finishes. Take today for example... he had a top 10, maybe even a top 5 car, but he kept banging it into the wall until he lost his alignment... that was completely his doing; nobody else's.

[WhiteHatBobby]

Montoya was punished, but the fans probably will like his attitude. Anyone who takes no bull and isn't afraid to act like Big E will win fans. Take No Prisoners. No fine or probation because he was punished with two laps and a few positions in the final standings. But fans, OTOH, will like it.

Tomorrow - Nationwide and Camping World Truck Series will have a joint Prizegiving banquet. Ron Hornaday and Kyle Busch pick up their trophies. With Kyle not in the Cup Banquet, he's racing the Snowball, so those in Pensacola will want to see him race.

NASCAR Countdowns:

69 Days . . . 2009 Camping World Series Toyota All-Star Showdown
76 Days . . . Daytona 500 Pole Qualifying and the Budweiser Shootout (Fox)
84 Days . . . Daytona 500 (1 PM, Fox)

And Jimmie Johnson gets to be the Star of Las Vegas. Too bad he won't be waving the green flag (or checkered flag) at the New York Stock Exchange, hanging out with everyone at the greatest stores in the world, or just being the champion the way a champion deserves thanks to Las Vegas. The top ten on the Strip just doesn't cut it the way the Waldorf has it.

How will Mark Martin treat his banquet speech? Second Place means the best speech of the night.

And how will Jimmie Johnson treat his speech?

Frank Caliendo is the banquet moderator, with the banquet hosts being Mike Joy and Krista Voda.

Ray Evernham wants to sell his stake in George Gillett's racing operation. I wonder if Kasey Kahne and Ray Evernham are planning a Dodge team for 2011. Kahne hasn't burned his bridges with Dodge, as next year's WoO team will have Dodge engines.

No If's, Ands, or Buts. Jimmie Johnson scored 5,156 points in 2009 (without the Chase) and would easily have defeated everyone again. Everyone has asked what if there wasn't a Chase . . . Jimmie once again would have won.

[Xena]

Samm, did you see this?


http://forums.hannity.com/showpost.php?p=64312111&postcount=3803

and below :))

[Samm]

Samm, did you see this?


http://forums.hannity.com/showpost.php?p=64312111&postcount=3803

and below :))

Yeah... If I were Chad I would kiss Jimmie on the lips too. ;) It may be a team effort, but it always comes down to the driver.

[Samm]

Montoya was punished, but the fans probably will like his attitude. Anyone who takes no bull and isn't afraid to act like Big E will win fans. Take No Prisoners. No fine or probation because he was punished with two laps and a few positions in the final standings. But fans, OTOH, will like it.



The big difference though Bobby, is that Big E never whined like a spoiled brat about anything, let alone his fellow drivers. Montoya has not gotten over his prima donna Indy car attitude. Of course I remember Tony was a lot like that when he first came into NASCAR too... now he just has the aggressive part.

BTW... has anyone got a clip of Tony's post race interview? I would love to see what he had to say about Montoya considering what he had to say about Jr. last week.

[countmein]

Great day for Hendrick Racing, but what was the home emergency that took him away from all this glory? I hope it was nothing too serious...

It was nip and tuck for Gordon there until the last 40 laps... Kurt gave it a very good try. I'm not a big K. Busch fan, but I admire his skill, drive and determination.

I was unhappy to see Stewart drop to 6th... but then Denny was deserving too. If not for his DNFs in the Chase, he would have been a top contender for the Championship. Montoya should have been disqualified and assigned the 43rd spot for what he did. Butt head... I hope he gets a big fine from NASCAR. The boy needs to grow up.

As far as Jr., I have come to the conclusion that it is him, not bad luck that is causing him to have poor finishes. Take today for example... he had a top 10, maybe even a top 5 car, but he kept banging it into the wall until he lost his alignment... that was completely his doing; nobody else's.

samm,
Hendrick's niece was having an emergency liver transplant.

[NascarGirl2448]

Rick H hits the trifecta

1. JJ
2. MM
3. Jeff G


that's a statement and then some
too bad Junior didn't come in 4th in the points
that would be the "home run"

I knew it, HMS would finish 1-2-3 this season. I wish Dale Jr had been right up there with them. Oh well, next year, watch out, because another HMS driver is gonna light up the track. You can't mess with the best!

[WhiteHatBobby]

The niece is brother John's daughter. John was killed in the Hendrick plane crash October 24, 2004.

Jimmie Johnson will light the Empire State Building in Team 48 colours.

[NascarGirl2448]

The niece is brother John's daughter. John was killed in the Hendrick plane crash October 24, 2004.

Jimmie Johnson will light the Empire State Building in Team 48 colours.

I remember when that plane crash happened. I hope Mr H's niece is OK. Can't wait to see the Empire State Building lit up in true Championship style!! GO JIMMIE!!!

[WhiteHatBobby]

Last night was the combined Nationwide and Camping World Truck banquet in Miami. Only the top five (usually ten) drivers were honoured on stage, so the weekend's races mattered since only fifth place was the last man on stage, not tenth.

Most Popular Driver:
Nationwide - Brad Keselowski
Camping World Truck - Ricky Carmichael


Raybestos Rookie of the Year:
Nationwide - Justin Allgaier
Camping World Truck - Johnny Sauter

The Empire State lighting is today at 3:30 PM (according to Jayski).

It's been tough for short track racing's traditional smorgsboard of big-money post-season races. Nashville was axed after the city decided to shut the track down, and now Kenly (NC) where Denny Hamlin raced is shut down and the track to be sold at auction today.

And of course, the New Jersey's Turkey Derby XXXVI (Fri-Sun) and Florida's 42nd Annual Snowball Derby (next weekend) are still on the schedule. Some Modified stars are coming to Wall, and Kyle Busch will race in the Snowball.

Three stories from the Snowball:

Matt Kenseth's son Ross to start his first Snowball Derby:
http://5flagsspeedway.com/news.php?subaction=showfull&id=1257772950&archive=&start_from=&ucat=1&

Kyle Busch at the Snowball: http://5flagsspeedway.com/news.php?subaction=showfull&id=1257339585&archive=&start_from=&ucat=1&

Teenage Girl Beats the Men for the Track Championship: http://5flagsspeedway.com/news.php?subaction=showfull&id=1253934535&archive=&start_from=&ucat=1&

[Xena]

Yeah... If I were Chad I would kiss Jimmie on the lips too. ;) It may be a team effort, but it always comes down to the driver.

IMO, Chad is key for the team. With JJ and Chad have one thing. Champion.

They don't do anything, just race in NASCAR.

Note: my mother was watching the race and mentioned that JJ have a real kiss for Chandra. :cool:

[Xena]

Voting for the 2009 NASCAR® NMPA Chex Most Popular Driver Award officially ended on November 23, 2009. Thank you for voting throughout the season.
(http://www.chexmostpopulardriver.com/)

The 2009 Chex Most Popular Driver Award winner will be officially announced on December 3, 2009, at the NASCAR NMPA Myers Brothers Luncheon ceremony.

Please check back here at www.ChexMostPopularDriver.com on December 3 for the official announcement. Once again, thank you for voting!

Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Jeff Gordon
Tony Stewart
Kasey Kahne
Matt Kenseth
Bobby Labonte
Michael Waltrip
Jimmie Johnson
Carl Edwards
Kevin Harvick

[Samm]

Voting for the 2009 NASCAR® NMPA Chex Most Popular Driver Award officially ended on November 23, 2009. Thank you for voting throughout the season.
(http://www.chexmostpopulardriver.com/)

The 2009 Chex Most Popular Driver Award winner will be officially announced on December 3, 2009, at the NASCAR NMPA Myers Brothers Luncheon ceremony.

Please check back here at www.ChexMostPopularDriver.com on December 3 for the official announcement. Once again, thank you for voting!

Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Jeff Gordon
Tony Stewart
Kasey Kahne
Matt Kenseth
Bobby Labonte
Michael Waltrip
Jimmie Johnson
Carl Edwards
Kevin Harvick

I wonder why Mark Martin is not on that list? :think:

And Michael Waltrip? Is he still considered popular? :eh:

[WhiteHatBobby]

Six more years for Jimmie and Chad at Hendrick. They're in until 2015.

Some of us have warned that the Ford camp has become a one team operation (Roush) for years, ever since they were sponsored by Hugo Chávez. All Ford teams run Roush chassis and Roush engines and are controlled somehow by Roush even with the four-team limit. Roush was able to take a major sponsor away from Hendrick -- Kellogg's -- by cutting what they needed from 36 co-branded sponsorships they had the past five years with Hendrick (and 11 previous seasons with full sponsorship) to just two races with Roush's #99 as primary, small associate sponsorships on that team, and the #43 (which is likely the new number for AJ Allmendinger; currently the #44) as an associate sponsor only. I wonder if Roush is even controlling George Gillett's team now.

It proves the point that Roush has now infiltrated George Gillett's team in violation of the four-team limit with Gillett eliminating the engine department and cutting to less than 80 employees as everything will come from Roush now. This past season during the final races of the year we learned Roush rewarded Hall of Fame Racing by dumping Bobby Labonte for Roush development driver Erik Darnell.

Also from Speed: Jeb Burton, the nephew of Jeff Burton (#31 Richard Childress Racing Caterpillar Impala) and son of 2002 Daytona 500 and 2001 Mountain Dew Southern 500 champion Ward Burton, in addition to his short-track racing this year, also participated in a pair of road racing ventures at Virginia International Raceway (a popular Sprint Cup test track) in April. Speed and Volkswagen announced yesterday that highlights of those two races will air December 6 at 5 PM.

http://www.jebburtonracing.com/Content.asp?PageID=3&ContentID=114

[Xena]

I wonder why Mark Martin is not on that list? :think:

And Michael Waltrip? Is he still considered popular? :eh:

I guess so!

[WhiteHatBobby]

The day NASCAR ran a Turkey Derby for Sprint Cup cars, thanks to Usama bin Laden (http://www.nascar.com/2009/news/opinion/11/25/racing.maumann.rgordon.jgordon.thanksgiving/index.html). This "Turkey Derby" took place in Loudon, and was the oddest place to see NASCAR just days before prizegiving.

Before the modern era (1971), they'd race anytime, anywhere, on any month of the calendar.

Of course in Wall Township, Modifieds race the Turkey Derby in Jersey -- one of short track racing's greatest races.

[Xena]

Nominees announced for third 'Stewie Awards'
(http://www.nascar.com/2009/news/features/11/17/tstewart.stewie.awrds/)
By Official Release
November 17, 2009
03:19 PM EST

Sirius XM Radio and two-time Cup Series champion Tony Stewart have announced the nominees for the third annual 'Stewie Awards,' honoring the most memorable moments of the 2009 season.

The "Stewies," which first debuted in 2007, will be awarded during a live broadcast hosted by Stewart and Matt Yocum in Las Vegas on Dec. 3 (10 p.m. ET). The live broadcast will air on Sirius Channel 128 and XM Channel 128 with the "Best of Sirius" programming package.

The two-hour event will feature live interviews with the 2009 champion and other drivers in the Chase, plus other special guests. Celebrity Robin Leach will serve as the show announcer.

Fans can determine the 2009 "Stewie Award" winners by casting their votes online at (http.www.sirius.com/stewieawards).

The 2009 nominees are:

"Feels Like The First Time" Award
Recognizing the most notable "first" of the NASCAR season

• Matt Kenseth wins the Daytona 500 for owner Jack Roush. (Feb. 15)

• Brad Keselowski wins first Sprint Cup Series race at Talladega. (Apr. 26)

• David Reutimann wins first Sprint Cup Series race at Charlotte. (May 25)

• Joey Logano wins first Sprint Cup Series race at Loudon. (Jun. 28)

• Kevin Harvick gets first win in his own Nationwide Series car. (Mar. 21)

• Tony Stewart gets his first owner/driver win in Sprint All-Star Race. (May 16)

Best Original Drama
Honoring the year's most dramatic moment or sequence

• Stewart-Haas Racing's exemplary inaugural season.

•50-year-old Mark Martin makes the Chase in his first year with Hendrick Motorsports.

• Kyle Busch dominates the Dickies 500 at Texas (Nov. 8) by leading a race-high 232 laps but runs out of gas with three laps to go and finishes 11th.

• Jimmie Johnson runs out of gas on the final lap at Michigan (Aug. 16), handing the win to Brian Vickers.

• Danica Patrick's on-again, off-again relationship with NASCAR.

Best Original Comedy
Honoring the year's most entertaining "incident"

• Denny Hamlin vs. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski spins Hamlin into the wall late in Nationwide Series race at Dover (Sep. 26). After the race, crews from both teams get into a pit road skirmish.

• Tom Logano vs. Greg Biffle: Angry that Greg Biffle forced his son, Joey, into the wall at Fontana (Oct. 10), Tom Logano flips off Biffle as he heads to Victory Lane.

• Humpy Wheeler vs. Bruton Smith: Angry that he didn't get a personal invitation to attend the Charlotte races from former boss Bruton Smith, Humpy Wheeler attends the Indianapolis 500 instead and made his feelings known about Smith. The two continue to exchange words in the media for days over the circumstances of Wheeler's departure from Lowe's Motor Speedway.

• Carl Edwards vs. a frisbee: Edwards breaks his foot playing frisbee two races into the Chase and uses the injury to plug his sponsor, Aflac, in a press release.

Best Vocal Performance
Honoring the year's most memorable quote
Visit www.sirius.com/stewieawards to hear audio of nominees

• Kyle Busch tells Junior Nation that he'd rather win races than sell the most t-shirts at Bristol. (Mar 22)

• Michael Waltrip tackles 5th Grade U.S. History on FOX's Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader? (Oct. 27)

• Tony Stewart "in awe" of Jeff Gordon post-race at Kansas. (Oct. 4)

• President Barack Obama welcomes NASCAR to the White House. (Aug. 19)

• Inaugural Class of NASCAR Hall of Fame inductees announced by CEO Brian France. (Oct. 14)

Smokey Yunick Award (Best Engineering and Special Effects)
Acknowledging the year's most creative modifications to a race car

• Carl Long gets penalized for oversized engine during Sprint All-Star weekend. (May 16)

• Robby Gordon's rear axle housing exceeds the maximum specified toe of plus or minus one degree at Coca-Cola 600. (May 24)

• After finishing 5th in the Sylvania 300 (Sep. 20), Kyle Busch gets penalized after the left front of the No. 18 Toyota is too low in post-race inspection.

• Martin Truex, Jr. finishes 16th in the LifeLock 400 (Jul. 11) but fails post-race inspection when right rear quarter panel is too high. Four months later, in the Dickies 500 at Texas (Nov. 8), Truex finishes 14th but fails post-race again for being too low.

• Honorable Mention: Mark Martin's No. 5 and Jimmie Johnson's No. 48 cars for not being illegal, yet causing a media frenzy in September of 2009 after being warned by NASCAR that they were "getting too close to the tolerance limits" set forth by NASCAR.

<snip>

[Xena]

Championship's Week

NASCAR Sprint Review
Sunday November 29
ESPN2 1 p.m.

NASCAR Nationwide Review
Sunday November 29
ESPN2 1:30 p.m.

NASCAR Best of 09
Friday December 4
SPEED 5 p.m.


NASCAR Nationwide/Trucks Awards
Friday December 4
SPEED 7 p.m.


NASCAR Sprint Cup Awards
Friday December 4
SPEED 9 p.m.

[WhiteHatBobby]

Fans at the Banquet:

Tuesday at the Kurt Busch Foundation Golf Tournament, the #2 Miller Lite Dodge driver will auction two fan packages that include two tickets to the banquet and meeting him.

Here's Champions Week:

Monday:
El Cajon Crest Elementary School: 11 AM Grants to 11 area schools by the Jimmie Johnson Foundation. Will be held at Crest Elementary (El Cajon), his elementary school.

Camp Pendelton: 3 PM - Fan festival for the Marines. Saving Abel.

San Diego area Lowe's: 7 PM - Celebration at Lowe's on Mission Gorge Road.

Tuesday:
Auto Club Speeday: 10 AM Breakfast and 700 fans.

Wednesday:
Las Vegas Motor Speedway, 10 AM: Carrot Top hosts the Champion's Roast at LVMS.

Thursday:
The Strip: Victory Lap. Myers Brothers luncheon.

Friday:
Wynn Las Vegas: Banquet, 6 PM, LIVE Speed.

[WhiteHatBobby]

Two major off-season races were run.

Saturday - Myrtle Beach (SC) Speedway finished off the 250-lap feature race from last weekend's season-ending NASCAR Late Model race postponed by the weather. 19-year old NC driver Lucas Ransome, 2009 United Speed Alliance Rookie of the Year (same series that gave us Logano, Vickers, and Kenseth) passes late model superstar Frank Deiny Jr on the 250th of 250 laps. Former NNS driver Matt McCall was third, with Andy Mercer, Coleman Pressley (Former NCWTS and NNS race winner Robert's son) finishing fifth. Scott Riggs, who left Tommy Baldwin Racing because he did not want to start and park, finished ninth. Camping World Truck Series regular Chad McCumbee was 15th.

http://www.thesunnews.com/sports/story/1189998.html

Saturday -- Pennsylvania's Rowan Pennick and Howell, NJ's Jimmy Blewett won the two 100-lap features at the Turkey Derby in Wall, NJ. Blewett's win was very popular considering last year he emotionally raced in a race at Wall for the first time since he was involved in a crash during the 2008 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour that killed brother John III.

http://www.wallspeedway.com/weekly/2009/recaps/112809.html

Suspension Lifted. NASCAR has lifted the suspension of Gary St. Amant, a driver coach who had worked in the Camping World Truck Series paddock. St. Amant admitted he had been in a room with a friend who had smoked marijuana, and that stayed in his system for a considerable amount of time that NASCAR caught it and led to a suspension. St. Amant, 47, is a well-known short-track racer.

http://www.speed51.com/2009_Stories/Specials/St_Amant_One_on_One.html

[WhiteHatBobby]

Sad news over the weekend. 1966 NASCAR Modified Division National Champion Ernie Gahan died Thursday at his Cranberry Isles, ME home at the age of 83.

The New Hampshire native raced at his home track after serving two years as an Army policeman in Germany, racing in Sportsman until 1965. Driving a 1936 Chevrolet coupe in Modified racing, he won 15 of 71 races. He also made 11 Sprint Cup starts in the 1960's and won the Buddy Shuman Award for being part of Tiny Lund's rescue of Marvin Panch when Panch was injured in testing for the Daytona Continental 2,000km sportscar race.

http://localracing.nascar.com/node/4180

On a brighter note, three notes from NASCAR's regional racing. The 2009 NASCAR Camping World Series "regular season" ended a while back and we're now preparing for the big "postseason" race in Irwindale. Remember this race, while held in January 2010, is actually a 2009 season race.

A week and a half ago, German Quiroga won the NASCAR Mexico Series and earned an invitation to the Toyota All-Star Showdown in January after clinching the Mexico Series Championship at the Nuevo Autódromo de Aguascalientes November 22.

http://localracing.nascar.com/node/4165

Matt Kobyluck is going for his third "unified" Camping World Series title at the All-Star Showdown. He won last season's race (held this past January) and will look to finish off his 2009 CWE season (Ryan Truex, Martin Jr's brother, won the 2009 CWE title) with a win January 30.

http://localracing.nascar.com/node/4178

Ryan Truex will race in the All-Star Showdown. NAPA and Michael Waltrip are designing the livery for the race.

http://localracing.nascar.com/node/4172

[Xena]

Denny Hamlin is Being Himself Like NASCAR Wants—But Fans Don't Like It (http://bleacherreport.com/articles/299173-denny-hamlin-is-being-himself-like-nascar-wants-but-fans-dont-like-it)
by Kelly Crandall

Since the death of Dale Earnhardt NASCAR fans have longed for a driver that had a take no prisoners attitude.

A driver that could back up his talk on the racetrack and wasn’t afraid to speak his mind.

Tony Stewart has said he doesn’t want that role; he doesn’t want to be the go-to guy in the garage. And after his comments a few years ago about NASCAR and his subsequent sit down with the top dogs, seems he’s sticking to that.

Nearing the end of the 2009 season it seemed the perfect driver had emerged in Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin. The only problem was that Hamlin’s new attitude was met with a different result than Earnhardt’s.

While Earnhardt was praised, and sometimes criticized, for his rough and tumble nature, Hamlin has received an outpouring of nothing but criticism for his actions.

In October he started using the popular networking site Twitter to express his opinions. Soon his fans were personally connecting with him on how they felt about the happenings around NASCAR.

“You really don’t get a good idea for what the fans think until you see it through several thousands people who have a response to a race or how it goes,” he said about the site.

Things took a visibly more noticeable turn the weekend of the fall Talladega race.

After NASCAR “changed the rules” about what would be acceptable bump drafting, Hamlin was enraged and expressed as much. Some fans understood his position that it wasn’t right for NASCAR to do.

To be more precise, Hamlin actually questioned who was in charge.

“Jeff G [Gordon] told NASCAR we shouldn’t be bump drafting. Cuz they never did in the past. Who’s running this sport??”

Later he would say, “A lot of people just agree with NASCAR because they don’t want to get in trouble with NASCAR, but the truth is the truth.”

What had Hamlin so fired up that day was that NASCAR told the drivers in their pre-race meeting that they were banning two cars from hooking up and shooting to the front.

Something that Hamlin felt he was really good at and was an advantage.

“It’s just frustrating that Gordon has got that much pull with NASCAR…I just wish everyone could have equal say-so and not just somebody behind closed doors being able to change how the rules go,” he said.

“Ultimately, he’s going to lobby to NASCAR saying, ‘We don’t need to push.’ Why? Because his car didn’t push well. So it was an advantage I felt like I had gained over the last couple of years and had it taken away basically right before the race.”

Fans didn’t like what Hamlin had to say or how outspoken he was. Many said that Hamlin had no right to question a driver that has been in the sport longer than he has.

But Hamlin didn’t back down.

His next target was the recurring incidents that he’s had in the Nationwide Series with Brad Keselowski. Hamlin’s side of the story is that Keselowski has wrecked him on four different occasions and that he’s yet to repay the favor.

After the two tangled at Phoenix Hamlin came right out and said he would cash in his chips at Homestead a week later.

Hamlin kept his word and on lap 35 he sent Keselowski spinning down the frontstretch, which he called well worth it after having to serve a one-lap penalty for rough driving.

And yet, fans still aren’t happy. Some called him immature for his constant bickering with Keselowski and say that he’s a whiner when things don’t go his way.

In reality, Hamlin isn’t doing anything that any legends of the sport haven’t done. But instead of being embraced, it seems it’s going to take more time to win over NASCAR nation.

In a time when ratings are down, Jimmie Johnson is dominated the sport, and it seems there are so many things to complain about, Hamlin is giving people everything they’ve asked for.

He’s being aggressive, outspoken, and entertaining. He’s not robotic, or vanilla, he’s being himself, which is what fans have said they want. Now they’ve got it and they don’t like it.

<snip>

[Samm]

Denny Hamlin is Being Himself Like NASCAR Wants—But Fans Don't Like It (http://bleacherreport.com/articles/299173-denny-hamlin-is-being-himself-like-nascar-wants-but-fans-dont-like-it)
by Kelly Crandall

Since the death of Dale Earnhardt NASCAR fans have longed for a driver that had a take no prisoners attitude.

A driver that could back up his talk on the racetrack and wasn’t afraid to speak his mind.

<snip>
Juan Pablo could have that role... if he was not such a whinny-ass.

[WhiteHatBobby]

NASCAR history -- in 1965, Wendell Scott became the first (and only) black driver to win a Sprint Cup race. It took place December 1, 1965, and the newswires on this day 44 years ago noted the history even though scoring mistakes (prevalent in NASCAR before 1993, when electronic scoring became standard) left Buck Baker called the winner when the cards said Scott won. Such a mistake would never happen in today's NASCAR because of computer scoring.

http://www.aroundthetrackonline.com/history/December1/tabid/610/Default.aspx

[Xena]

Juan Pablo could have that role... if he was not such a whinny-ass.

You know, I like that some drivers will tell the truth. And, yes, when Smoke and Juan had their "spat" I understood both getting redneck à la Dale. Need more of it IMO.

[WhiteHatBobby]

Kenseth in Trouble. Matt's son Ross ran afoul of tech inspection last night in Pensacola over front spindles during Snowball Derby tech inspection (the team has since fixed the problem).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbYJU6TKqvA

Kyle Busch, Ross Kenseth, and Chase Elliott (Bill's son) are all scheduled to attempt the Snowball, the last major short-track race of the season.

[Xena]

Free Phone Call from Santa, Sammy the Snowman or Tony Stewart (http://www.holidayphonecalls.com/?banner=kroger)
By Christie Dedman -- The Birmingham News
December 03, 2009, 3:33PM

Kroger and Coca-Cola are offering free phone calls to your children from Santa, Sammy the Snowman or Tony Stewart.

Even though the closest Kroger to Birmingham is Hartselle you can still participate.

You will need to register for a Kroger account. It's free.

<snip>

[WhiteHatBobby]

Myers Brothers luncheon was held today.

Dale Inman: Buddy Shuman Award
Barney Hall (MRN): Myers Brothers Award
Michigan International Speedway: Home Depot Humanitarian Award
Daytona International Speedway: NASCAR Day top fund-raising track
88 - Dale Earnhardt Jnr: Chex Most Popular Driver
20 - Joey Logano: Raybestos Rookie of the Year
14 - Darian Grubb: DirecTV Crew Chief of the Year
48 - Jimmie Johnson: Dow Automotive Strategic Call of the Race and Goodyear Gatorback Fastest Lap Award (most in 2009), Sunoco Diamond Performance Award, Goodyear Award (24-karat 1/24 scale car)
17 - Drew Blickensderfer: Moog Chassis Parts Problem Solver of the Year
Hendrick Motorsports: Mahle Clevite Engine Builder of the Year
42 - Brian Pattie and crew: Mechanix Wear Most Valuable
42 - Juan Pablo Montoya: Mobil 1 Command Performance
11 - Denny Hamlin: O'Reilly Parts, People, Services, and Performance Award
16 - Greg Erwin: Tissot Pit Road Precision Award
14 - Tony Stewart: Wix Filters Lap Leader
5 - Mark Martin: Coors Light Pole Award
Lowe's: Championship Sponsor Award
48 - Chad Knaus: Champion Crew Chief Award


Earnhardt Jnr: JR Motorsports (NNS team) is having an ownership change. Rick Hendrick's 50% stake has been returned back to Dale Jnr, and the team is now a venture of Dale Jr, Kelley Elledge, and Tony Eury Jnr. Dale is still trying to find enough sponsorship to finish up 18 races for Kelly Bires, the Wisconsin driver that is signed to drive the #88 Impala for next season. While this team is all-Earnhardt, it's a Hendrick satellite team, so if any Hendrick or Hendrick affiliate driver wants a Nationwide race deal, they can call Junior's office to get a ride.

http://www.sportingnews.com/nascar/article/2009-12-03/notebook-jr-motorsports-ownership-shift-revealed

Atlanta's spring race gets more exciting: They're adding 37.5 more miles of racing into the schedule by adding a 150-lap Whelen Southern Modified Tour race on the quarter-mile legends track for the March Kobalt Tools 500 meet. That's a 37.5 mile, 150-lap race on the quarter mile after qualifying Friday, then 200 miles, 130 laps on the speedway Saturday for Camping World Trucks, and a 500 mile, 325 lap race on Sunday for Sprint Cup. Tickets for the Qualifying/Modified doubleheader will be $20 until February.

[Xena]

Smoke hands out 'Stewies' to most memorable of '09 (http://www.nascar.com/2009/news/features/12/04/stewie.awards/index.html)
By Official Release
December 4, 2009
09:17 AM EST

LAS VEGAS -- Winners of the third annual "Stewie Awards" were announced Thursday night by two-time Cup Series champion Tony Stewart live on Sirius XM Radio.

The 2009 Stewie Award winners were decided by fans around the country who voted for the best, boldest and funniest moments of the season.

Winners in 11 categories were honored. Among the evening's highlights was the presentation of the Stewie Lifetime Achievement Award to team owner Rick Hendrick and the awarding of the Golden Stewie to racing legend David Pearson.

The winners of the 2009 Stewie Awards:

"Feels Like The First Time" Award
Recognizing the most notable "first" of the NASCAR season

• Kevin Harvick gets first win in his own Nationwide Series car on March 21.

Best Original Drama
Honoring the year's most dramatic moment or sequence

• 50-year-old Mark Martin makes the Chase in his first year with Hendrick Motorsports.

Best Original Comedy
Honoring the year's most entertaining "incident"

• Denny Hamlin vs. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski spins Hamlin into the wall late in NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Dover on Sep. 26. After the race, crews from both teams get into a pit road skirmish.

Best Vocal Performance
Honoring the year's most memorable quote

• Tony Stewart "in awe" of Jeff Gordon post-race at Kansas. (Oct. 4)

Smokey Yunick Award (Best Engineering and Special Effects)
Acknowledging the year's most creative modifications to a race car

• Mark Martin's No. 5 and Jimmie Johnson's No. 48 cars for not being illegal, yet causing a media frenzy in September after being warned by NASCAR that they were "getting too close to the tolerance limits" set forth by NASCAR.

Bonehead Move of the Year Award

• Kyle Busch destroys his Nationwide Series guitar/trophy at Nashville in true "rock star fashion" on June 6.

"I Got Dumped" Award
Acknowledging the year's most memorable on or off-track bumping

• Marcos Ambrose loses Nationwide Series race at Montreal on last lap to Carl Edwards by misjudging final turn on Aug. 30.

Hal Needham Award (Best Stunt Sequence)
Acknowledging the year's most spectacular crash

• Carl Edwards wrecks on the final lap at Talladega in the spring (Apr. 26) and sends the car flipping into the catch fence. Edwards gets out of car and runs across finish line to complete the race.

Best Driver2Crew Chatter Exchange
Acknowledging the year's most memorable driver-to-pit crew communication

• Juan Montoya penalized by NASCAR at Indy for speeding on pit lane on July 26.

Golden Stewie Award
Chosen by Stewart and Yocum and honoring a legendary driver from the Golden Era of racing

• David Pearson

"Stewie" Lifetime Achievement Award

• Rick Hendrick

Guests on Thursday night's program included 2009 Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson; Chase drivers Mark Martin, Jeff Gordon, Kurt Busch, Denny Hamlin, Greg Biffle, Juan Montoya, Ryan Newman, Kasey Kahne, Carl Edwards and Brian Vickers; legendary drivers David Pearson and AJ Foyt; plus Kevin Harvick and Rick Hendrick; and celebrity Robin Leach.

<snip>

[Xena]

Jimmie Johnson Tells "Stair Racing" Story at the 2009 Stewies on SIRIUS XM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_MMIohIJz0

:))

[Samm]

You know, I like that some drivers will tell the truth. And, yes, when Smoke and Juan had their "spat" I understood both getting redneck à la Dale. Need more of it IMO.

The problem is Xena... when JP is involved in a wreck or a spat he always blames the other guy; he is never at fault. Not only that, he takes every little bump (just hard racing) as a personal attack on him. Hell, in that race where he got cross wise with Gordon, he came back and hit Jeff - damn near wrecking him - for doing nothing more than passing him. To me, that is not only being a candy ass (very un-Earnhardt like) but is very unappealing. Until he stands up like a man and says "yeah... I hit him... he was in my way" I will not respect his aggressive style. Earnhardt never whined about anything other than restrictor plates.

[WhiteHatBobby]

That's old-school racing.

Disappointed at the banquet move to Las Vegas for another reason. Whereas we'd have the drivers at the banquet at 7 and ready at 8, now we're starting at 10 PM and ending past 1 AM. That's not fan-friendly when NASCAR discussed starting races earlier. That's why New York is much better than Las Vegas when all NASCAR Series Champions (notice no regional champions are in Las Vegas unlike NYC where every NASCAR champion -- including the national short track racing champion -- did the photo shoot) are feted with their own photo shoot, the drivers are doing family-friendly things, the whole world of Wall Street is meeting and greeting the heroes they see on the tube, and with a 7 PM dinner with a 8 PM awards ceremony, they could go on Fox and we'd have a three-hour show that would end around 11 and would not go past bedtime of too many fans.

[WhiteHatBobby]

The banquet disappointed too many fans. The speeches didn't start until 11 PM and the Champion was not on stage until 1 AM. Maybe NASCAR doesn't need Las Vegas because if it was New York, they'd be off by 11 PM and the East Coast fans wouldn't have to be up very late.

Did someone forget the fans are on the East, not the West?

The Snowball!

First some sad news: A former Snowball Derby driver's daughter was killed in a traffic collision Wednesday. Her brother-in-law was entered and has withdrawn.

Short-track racing's big season-ender has two teenagers on the front row for Sunday's big 300-lap Snowball Derby in Pensacola.

Local driver Johanna Long, 17, the champion of the local Five Flags Speedway Blizzard Series and daughter of popular racer Donald Long, is on the pole. 16-year old Ross Kenseth, the son of the reigning Daytona 500 Champion Matt, is second.

Kyle Busch is third, and local driver Augie Grill is fourth.

Notables also in the field: Chase Elliott (Bill's son), 14, is 10th. Steve Wallace, the Nationwide driver, Rusty's son, and 2005 Snowball champion, is 18th.

1. 10 Johanna Long 16.463
2. 25 Ross Kenseth 16.488
3. 51 Kyle Busch 16.513
4. 112 Augie Grill 16.521
5. 99 Casey Smith 16.552

Other notables:

8. 14 Cale Gale 16.563 (NNS)
9. 39 Ryan Sieg 16.573 (CWTS)
10. 9 Chase Elliott 16.575 (Bill's son)
11. 16 Brian Scott 16.579 (CWTS; moves to NNS in 2010)
17. 15 Brian Ickler 16.654 (NNS, NCWTS)
18. 66 Steve Wallace 16.658 (NNS)
22. 35 David Stremme 16.686 (NSCS, NNS)
27. 93 Shane Sieg 16.736 (NCWTS)

http://5flagsspeedway.com/newsfull.php?subaction=showfull&id=1259977820&archive=&start_from=&ucat=39&

[Samm]

Yeah... that banquet/show was way too long. After realizing how long it was going to be, I skipped most of the first three hours and tuned back in at 12:30 when the drivers were introduced and gave their speeches. Even then, it drug on too long.

And who was that comedian... he really insulted a few of the drivers... was that supposed to be funny?

[WhiteHatBobby]

Listening to SPEED51.COM and Kyle Busch has just crashed out of the Snowflake 100 along with Five Flags Speedway track champion Johanna Long. He's done for the night and tomorrow afternoon at 3 PM ET on racetalkradio.com is live coverage of the Snowball Derby. And yes, Kyle Busch is RACING this big race. A Sprint Cup regular hasn't won this race since 1977.

[Xena]

Jimmie Johnson Tells "Stair Racing" Story - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_MMIohIJz0

Juan Pablo Montoya and Tony Stewart Discuss Their Feud - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFE8sY2R8FM

Is Smoke Happy That Mark Martin Didn't Win the Chase? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Md_uFfy6f4U

Tony Stewart Gets Kissed in Vegas - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vR_7MM9xxIE

Listen What Does Rick Hendrick Call Tony Stewart? (Black Sheep) - http://www.sirius.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=Sirius/Page&c=BackStageAsset&cid=1258752016594

Listen David Pearson Details His Preference for Dirt Tracks - http://www.sirius.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=Sirius/Page&c=BackStageAsset&cid=1258752016587

Listen Carl Edwards: "This Was Not One of the Goals of the Season" - http://www.sirius.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=Sirius/Page&c=BackStageAsset&cid=1258752016582

http://www.sirius.com/stewieawards

[WhiteHatBobby]

100 laps down at the 300-lap Snowball Derby (http://www.racetalkradio.com and http://www.speed51.com) in Pensacola.

100 of 300 Laps - Notables:
3. Brian Scott (NCWTS driver moves to NNS next season)
4. David Stremme (released from Penske this year)
8. Chase Elliott (Bill's son)
9. Steve Wallace (NNS)
10. Johanna Long (Pole Girl)
18. Brian Ickler (NCWTS) -- just pitted
19. Kyle Busch (NNS Champion) (Sprint Cup driver)
24. Ross Kenseth (Matt's son)

TROUBLE -- Ickler (in the Kyle Busch car) and Kenseth (in the Blains Farm and Fleet Fusion) just been involved in a multiple-car pileup on Lap 101. Nothing much for damage.

[WhiteHatBobby]

Kyle "Rowdy" Busch took the lead from "Fast" Eddie Mercer with 24 laps to go and wins the Snowball Derby

Busch is the first NASCAR national-series champion since Ted Musgrave (2005 CWTS Champion) in 1988 to win the Snowball.

Cup journeyman Raymond Hassler (never won a Cup race) won in 1969, while Daytona 500 champion Pete Hamilton won in 1974. Donnie Allison won in 1975, with Darrell Waltrip (the only Sprint Cup champion to have won this race) in 1976. Dave Mader III, a former regional touring NASCAR champion, won in 1978 when a scoring error in his favour cost Jaws.

Rising NASCAR star Butch Lindley won 25 years ago, but a few months later was involved in a crash at DeSoto Speedway that would eventually be fatal after six years in a coma. Mike Alexander, another rising NASCAR star, had a virtual career-ending crash when Musgrave won at the Snowball.

NCWTS race winners Butch Miller, Rick Crawford, and Rich Bickle also won this race. Steve Wallace has won this race.

Busch is the first Nationwide Series Champion to win this race, so all three of NASCAR's national touring series has had a champion win the Snowball.

Kyle Busch will have a major announcement Friday on Speed -- is this the Truck team?

42nd Annual Snowball Derby Results:
BOLD denotes Sprint Cup regular in 2009.
ITALICS denotes Nationwide or Camping World Truck Series starts in 2009.

1. Kyle Busch, 300
2. Eddie Mercer, 300
3. Steven Wallace, 300
4. Bobby Gill, 300
5. John Bolen, 300
6. Grant Enfinger, 300
7. Chase Elliott, 300 (Bill's son, 14)
8. Wayne Niedecken Jr., 300
9. Ryan Lawler, 300
10. Ryan Sieg, 300
11. Scott Carlson, 300
12. Ross Kenseth, 300 (Matt's son, 16)
13. Scott Hantz, 300
14. Dennis Prunty, 299
15. Dennis Schoenfeld, 299
16. Brian Scott, 298
17. Randy Gentry, 298
18. Johanna Long, 298
19. Gary Helton, 296
20. Danny Bagwell, 294
21. Stephan McCurley, 293
22. Casey Smith, 291
23. David Rogers, 280
24. Justin Drawdy, 260
25. Brian Ickler, 252
26. Shane Sieg, 219
27. David Stremme, 206
28. Cale Gale, 204
29. Josh Hamner, 192
30. Tyler Millwood, 169
31. Augie Grill, 142
32. Brian Campbell, 137
33. Hunter Robbins, 100
34. Bubba Pollard, 100
35. Heath Hindman, 67
36. Jeff Choquette, 64
37. Cecil Chunn, 2

[WhiteHatBobby]

An announcement in Sydney.

At Olympic Park, Marcos Ambrose was named the winner of the Sir Jack Brabham Award. Australian citizens who race with a CAMS licence and do well in international motorsport are eligible for this award. Penske IRL driver Will Power has also won this award. (Note that as member clubs of ACCUS, NASCAR and IRL cannot award foreign drivers licences for the respective series, just approval for the certain tracks; in those cases, they must have a top-level licence from their home country's federation and an FIA licence. When NASCAR races a Nationwide race in Montreal, drivers who are Canadian race with an ASN Canada licence; US drivers use ACCUS licences.)

The presentation was before the Sydney Telstra 500km V8 Supercar event Saturday night (US time). Highlights of the race will be televised in a one-hour package next Sunday at 1 PM EST on Speed as part of the new V8 Supercar next-weekend delay coverage of the iconic Australian series.

http://www.cams.com.au/Media/News/2009/CAMS-honours-Marcos-Ambrose-with-Sir-Jack-Brabham-Award.aspx

[WhiteHatBobby]

Bobby Labonte and Jimmie Johnson are testing at Daytona this week on the road course. Labonte will test a Porsche 911 in the GT class for The Racer's Group, while Johnson will test a Bob Stallings Racing Daytona Prototype. Both will be competitive and be running for a title.

[Samm]

Indycar diva Danica Patrick has teamed up with Dale Earnhardt Jr’s NASCAR Nationwide Series team and will drive a partial Nationwide schedule for JR Motorsports in 2010. She has signed with the team through 2011, and will drive the #7 Godaddy.com Chevrolet.

http://stockcarspin.com/2009/12/08/danica-patrick-is-coming-to-nascar-officially/comment-page-1/

Too bad she is driving the Godaddy car... I was hoping for the Hooters sponsorship. ;)

[WhiteHatBobby]

From Jayski: NASCAR official Jim Hunter, a former South Carolina Gamecock running back in the 1950's (his teammate was Humpy Wheeler), is fighting cancer. Fox had during Sunday's "NFL Sunday" a message, "Jim Hunter, Keep Fighting," at the end of the pre-game show.

http://sports.espn.go.com/rpm/nascar/cup/columns/story?columnist=newton_david&id=4730676

[Xena]

The 5th Annual Geoff Bodine Bobsled Challenge (http://www.bodynbobsled.com/index.php?page_id=11)
January 8-10, 2010


This year's event will feature a mix of NASCAR, NHRA and celebrities sliding to raise money for the USA Bobsled Team. Staged in Lake Placid, NY, just one month before the Winter Olympics in Vancouver, The Bodine Bobsled Challenge will be a great place for you to bring your family, friends and clients and to experience the sport of bobsledding, and learn about the the Bo-Dyn Bobsled Project. A schedule of events is below.

Schedule of Events
(All events subject to change)

Friday January 8, 2010

9:00 AM -12:00 noon
Lake Placid Bobsled Experience Public Rides – Start 4

12:00 noon
Bodine Bobsled Participants Arrive for Check-in / Clothing Distribution at Crowne Plaza

12:30 PM
Welcome Lunch and Team Meeting at Crowne Plaza

1:30 PM
Press Photo Session at Crowne Plaza

2:00 PM
Track Walk / Bobsled 101 at the Mount Van Hoevenburg Olympic Sports Center

2:30 PM
Bodine Challenge Practice Session at Start 4/3

7:00 PM
Reception at 1932 and 1980 Lake Placid Winter Olympic Museum


8:00 PM
Dinner (Invited Guests Only) location TBD

Saturday January 9, 2010

9:00-11:30 AM
Bodine Bobsled Challenge Practice Session at Start 3

12:00 noon
Lunch at Start 1/ Olympic Training Center

2:30 PM
Bodine Bobsled Challenge Qualifying at Start 3

7:00 PM
Dinner and Auction at the Crowne Plaza
Sponsored by Flink Smith Law Offices

Sunday January 10, 2010
9:00 AM
Gates Open at the Mount Van Hoevenburg Olympic Sports Center
Fan Zone Opens (Drivers will be available for photos & autographs) at Start 3

9:45 AM
Pre-Race Ceremonies at Start 3

10:00 AM
Bodine Bobsled Challenge Race 1 (14 Drivers – round 1 / 6 Drivers – round 2) Start 3

12:00 noon
Lunch / Autograph Sessions Start 1 and Lamy Lodge

1:15 PM
Pre-Race Ceremonies at Start 3

1:30 PM
Bodine Bobsled Challenge Race 2 (NASCAR vs NHRA – 20 trips) at Start 3

3:30 PM
Victory Lane Celebration & Awards at Lamy Lodge

4:00 PM
Gates Close

6:00 PM
NASCAR Happy Hour location TBD

Geoffrey Bodine had a vision of providing American athletes with the very best “Made In The USA” equipment to compete in the international arena and win. Following this vision and working closely with Geoffrey over the years, the Bo-Dyn Project has created a passion within all of us to make this program work. With the financial support of some great companies and contributions from people like you we are able to provide the funding for the design, testing and manufacturing of the Bo-Dyn Bobsleds, simply the best in the world!

The USA Team just won its first Gold Medal at the World Bobsled Championships in 50 years in a brand new Bo-Dyn sled. “I’m so proud of our athletes for what they have accomplished this year” said Geoff Bodine. “It proves my original theory, if you give USA athletes the best that Americans can design they will perform at a high level. They did, and it makes all I have done worth it. Hopefully at this year's Winter Olympics in Vancouver we can win our first Mens Gold since 1948.”

<snip>

[WhiteHatBobby]

Next weekend's ARCA Racing Series presented by Re/Max testing, the only saloon testing for Daytona since NASCAR has banned testing in their saloons (although the likelihood of a test is possible for NASCAR to test aerodynamic packages in light of the Talladega incidents), will be open to the public. Admission requires entrance of the Daytona 500 Experience lobby to the Barney Oldfield Grandstand. Trams to the Sprint FanZone are available for $15.

Drivers attending the test:

* Danica Patrick - JR Motorsports
* Alli Owens - (Daytona nativel) - Venturini Motorsports
* Bobby Gerhart - Pennsylvanian who has won this race five times, own car.
* Tim George, Jr. - Richard Childress Racing
* Dakoda Armstrong - Penske Racing

http://www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com/Articles/2009/12/Three-Day-ARCA-Test-Session-Open-To-The-Public.aspx

[WhiteHatBobby]

A few things to report:

Sprint Cup:
2 - Steve Addington: New crew chief.

14 - Tony Stewart is off to Australia for Christmas and racing at Tyrepower Parramatta City Raceway along with Donny Schatz (his driver) and Tim Shaffer (All-Star Circuit of Champions) for the Valvoline Australian Sprint Car Grand Prix at the Sydney-area circuit December 26, so while we're enjoying Christmas dinner, Smoke will be racing as it's Boxing Day. He's also racing in the Hogs Breath Sprint Car Invitational, and January 1-3 (remember the time difference) they will race the $50,000 to win Scott Darley Memorial presented by Coca-Cola.

[WhiteHatBobby]

Broadcast notes:

Fox: No changes
TNT: To be announced
ESPN: Punch to lead pit reporter. Marty Reid to be the lead on ESPN's booth.

[JimGP20]

Danica Patrick will make her nationwide Series debut at California on Feb. 20th. Here is a link that shows her new paint scheme (and pant scheme too). :cool:

http://www.latimes.com/media/photo/2009-12/50965916.jpg

[WhiteHatBobby]

For some reason, Go Daddy's Danica paint scheme doesn't look as good as when Go Daddy had the Dale Jr designed liveries. Of course, Dale Jr's designs were a winner (won a few NNS races last year with Keselowski) and that #88 team is clearly a proven winner. (Last year, Earnhardt designed the Go Daddy Chevrolet Impalas, with his #5 bearing one design, and a colour-swapped version on the Keselowski #88.) But Bires is building his career, and he will have the pressure of racing a real winner.

And that's the key. Dale Jr hopes to build a winner and one who can whip the Claim Jumpers. There's a Monster, Elvis, Guitar, and a few nice trophies that the #88 has won. Bires is the driver who will be the focus since he deserves this ride.

[Samm]

Danica Patrick will make her nationwide Series debut at California on Feb. 20th. Here is a link that shows her new paint scheme (and pant scheme too). :cool:

http://www.latimes.com/media/photo/2009-12/50965916.jpg

She might be able to get away with driving an Indy car in those shoes, but not in NASCAR. ;)

[Samm]

For some reason, Go Daddy's Danica paint scheme doesn't look as good as when Go Daddy had the Dale Jr designed liveries. Of course, Dale Jr's designs were a winner (won a few NNS races last year with Keselowski) and that #88 team is clearly a proven winner. (Last year, Earnhardt designed the Go Daddy Chevrolet Impalas, with his #5 bearing one design, and a colour-swapped version on the Keselowski #88.) But Bires is building his career, and he will have the pressure of racing a real winner.

And that's the key. Dale Jr hopes to build a winner and one who can whip the Claim Jumpers. There's a Monster, Elvis, Guitar, and a few nice trophies that the #88 has won. Bires is the driver who will be the focus since he deserves this ride.

Yeah... that's kind of a mustard puk yellow (the color of new baby poop) isn't it. :neutral:

[WhiteHatBobby]

Some are saying ticket sales for Daytona 500 Pole Qualifying will go sky-high because of Danicamania. What do you think? Because of Super Bowl XLIV, the Daytona 500 qualifying ticket consists of the Kroger Qualifying (1 PM), ARCA Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 (4 PM), and the InBev Shootout (8 PM). Watch 500 qualifying tickets soar as Danica races the middle -- and it's only an appetiser for the Shootout that night.

February 6 (Saturday):

1 PM - Kroger Pole Qualifying (Fox)
4 PM - ARCA Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 (Speed)
8 PM - InBev Shootout (Fox)

[Xena]

Yeah... that's kind of a mustard puk yellow (the color of new baby poop) isn't it. :neutral:

Thanks. I'm eating lunch. :evil:




:)

[WhiteHatBobby]

Daytona ARCA testing:

There are six Canadians testing, including "Chinese" GT driver Darryl O'Young, a Vancouver (BC) native who is a dual citizen of Hong Kong (when it was British originally) and Canada. Another Canadian, Wheeler Boys (former NSCS driver Trevor's son), is also testing. Earl Ross (1974) is the last Canadian to win a Sprint Cup race.

Narain Karthikeyan (India), a former F1 driver, is also testing.

Chickification:

* Alli Owens (Daytona Beach, FL - Atlantic HS graduate) - Venturini Motorsports
* Leilani Munter - Mark Gibson Racing
* Milka Duno (VEN) - Braun Racing (NNS #10, #32, #38)
* Jennifer Jo Cobb - Bowsher Racing
* Michelle Theriault, Jill George and Ashley Parlett - Fast Track Racing
* Twin sisters Amber and Angela Cope - Rick Markle Racing. Their uncle Derrike scored the modern upset at the 500 twenty years ago February 18.
* Danica Patrick - JR Motorsports

Brandon McReynolds (Larry's son) is testing but doesn't plan to enter the race.

Top 5 in Sunday ARCA testing:
* Robb Brent - Allgaier Racing - 49.250
* Mikey Kile - Venturini Motorsports (has raced for Brad Keselowski in 2009 but that was when Brad was driving for Dale Jr and Hendrick equipment)
* Bryan Silas - Andy Hillenburg Racing
* Alli Owens - Venturini Motorsports
* Patrick Sheltra

[Samm]

Thanks. I'm eating lunch. :evil:

Tell that to Danica... it's her car. ;)

[WhiteHatBobby]

Something from Sydney about Tony Stewart already Down Under, awaiting the Boxing Day Sprint Car races. Practice starts Christmas night US time.

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/motor/working-holiday-for-us-speed-star/story-e6frey5r-1225813013421

http://nascar.speedtv.com/article/cup-tony-stewart-qa-transcript-from-sydney/

[WhiteHatBobby]

The Budweiser Shootout field has been named. The former "top six" format for manufacturers couldn't make it this season since Dodge has just three cars.

The new format:

* 2009 Chase drivers.
* All former Budweiser Shootout Champions.
* All former Sprint Cup Champions.
* All active Sprint Cup drivers who have won the Daytona 500 or Coke Zero 400 who has made one attempt at a Sprint Cup race in the past two seasons.
* No 10-year limit used by the Sprint All-Star Race.

February 6, 8 PM EST Fox

The Chase:

Jimmie Johnson
Mark Martin
Jeff Gordon
Kurt Busch
Denny Hamlin
Tony Stewart
Greg Biffle
Juan Pablo Montoya
Ryan Newman
Kasey Kahne
Carl Edwards
Brian Vickers

Budweiser Shootout Winners
Ken Schrader (last raced in 2008)

Multiple Qualifications
B Budweiser Shootout
D Daytona 500
C Coke Zero 400
S Sprint Cup Champion:
Geoff Bodine B D
Dale Earnhardt, Jr. B D C
Bill Elliott B D C S
Kevin Harvick B D
Matt Kenseth D S
Terry Labonte B D S
Sterling Marlin D C
Michael Waltrip D C

Daytona 500 winners
Derrike Cope

Coke Zero 400 winners
John Andretti
Jeff Burton
Kyle Busch
Jamie McMurray

Sprint Cup Champion
Bobby Labonte

Raybestos Rookie of the Year
Joey Logano

[WhiteHatBobby]

SAD NEWS FROM THE WORLD OF NASCAR: 14/39 - Bobby Hutchens, the Competition Director of Stewart-Haas Racing and a former member of Richard Childress Racing during its glory days, lost his wife Sharon to cancer Tuesday. Surviving, along with her husband are her sons Taylor Lane Loaces (freshman at NC State) and Robert Ray Hutchens III, a sixth-grade student at North Davidson Middle School. Also surviving are her parents, Annette Mills of High Point and Bill Mills of Thomasville; her sisters, Susan Hollowell of Tampa, Florida and Cathy Graham of Charlotte.

In other news, Sean Caisse, a Richard Childress Racing Development Driver, who won the ARCA spring race at Rockingham this season, will come back to his stomping grounds at the NASCAR Camping World East series and participate for Marsh Racing (#31) with ECRT engines for the 2009 Toyota All-Star Showdown January 30. (Note last season NASCAR moved the All-Star Showdown to January similar to the NFL season records.)

http://localracing.nascar.com/node/4224

[WhiteHatBobby]

Christmas Day news from Tony Stewart

Heavy rains yesterday and today has postponed today's Valvoline Sprintcar Grand Prix at Tyrepower Parramatta City Raceway. They will try again tomorrow. (Remember there is a 15-hour time difference; it is mid-morning Saturday in Australia as I write this.)

Tony Stewart, Donny Schatz, and Tim Shaffer (All Star Circuit of Champions) will all participate in addition to the Aussie regulars.

Qualifying will take place at 3 AM (US EST) Sunday morning and the first race at 4 AM, with the racing hopefully finishing by 7:30 AM.

Tyrepower Parramatta City Raceway is located at 21 Wentworth St, Granville, NSW, 2142, just off Parramatta Rd near the corner of James Ruse Drive.

On the Web: www.parramattacityraceway.com.au

News: http://www.parramattacityraceway.com.au/release.asp?NewsId=34038

[WhiteHatBobby]

Tragic News from Richard Childress Racing - Swine Flu Related

#29-Donald Richardson (RCH), died at 2210 (GMT-5) Friday night from complications related to the H1N1 ("swine flu") virus. A statement December 7 said his conditions had been contracted from a trip home to Massachusetts during Thanksgiving and later pneumonia before being sent to Leominster for evaluation. He was in ICU with acute respiratory distress syndrome and stayed there until his death Friday.

http://www.rcrracing.com/messageboards/trans/displayShortMsgRpt.asp?type=1&id=3938

[Xena]

Jimmie Johnson is going to be a dad

Claire on CBL had a call in show on Jimmie and His dad Rick called in. He let it slip that Jimmie and Chandra are expecting. I don't think he was supposed to let everyone know yet.

www.sendspace.com/file/xr8c9h

[WhiteHatBobby]

That's not his dad. Gary is is father's name. You're referring to one of Jimmie's teammates in the old American Speed Association (1972-2003). But Cousin Carl and the Dynasty are both having families to start. Hmmmm . . .

[Xena]

That's not his dad. Gary is is father's name. You're referring to one of Jimmie's teammates in the old American Speed Association (1972-2003). But Cousin Carl and the Dynasty are both having families to start. Hmmmm . . .

Claire on CBL had a call in show on Jimmie and His dad Rick called in. He let it slip that Jimmie and Chandra are expecting. I don't think he was supposed to let everyone know yet.


No, Gary and Rick are daddies for Jimmie :lol:

[WhiteHatBobby]

Remember the 2009 NASCAR season doesn't end until January 30 because of the 2009 Toyota All-Star Showdown that is held in January of the new year.

Meanwhile, racing in two thousand ten is about to start with the Second Annual Polar Bear One Hundred Fifty Mile Street Stock race at Rockingham Speedway. Some NASCAR names are entered, and a live Webcast is set.

Here are notables (Sprint Cup or national NASCAR numbers used, not their racing numbers):

#82 - Jimmy Elledge (Crew Chief)
#42 - Tab Boyd (Spotter)
#42 - J. D. Frey (Mechanic)

Bryan Silas, who has raced in the Camping World Truck Series for Rockingham Speedway owner Andy Hillenburg, will also race.

Qualifying starts at 10 AM and the green flag waves at noon.

[WhiteHatBobby]

NASCAR has sent a bulletin for 2009 Toyota All-Star Showdown competitors in regards to the race at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale (CA) January 28-30 (January 30 10 PM Live, Speed).

---------------

The dispensing, transferring and removal of racing gasoline/fuel must be done in accordance to state and local laws and codes. Teams must adhere to all regulations as set forth in all state and local laws and codes that pertain to the refueling, transferring and removal of racing gasoline/fuel.

It is the responsibility of each race team to be in compliance with the state and local laws and codes and they must use the approved methods and equipment as set forth in the NASCAR Rule Book.

If you have any questions about the dispensing, transferring or removal of racing gasoline/fuel or any questions concerning your team being in compliance with the state and local laws and codes, or the approved methods as set forth in the NASCAR Rule Book, contact the L.A. County Fire Marshall, Toyota Speedway at Irwindale, and/or your Series Director.

To aid all competitors and participants in the effort to be in complete compliance with all state and local laws and codes, Toyota Speedway at Irwindale will make available for purchase Sunoco racing gasoline/fuel. This will be offered in the garage area at the designated Sunoco gasoline/fuel pumping station. At all times competitors, participants and vendors must remain in
compliance with all state and local laws and codes.

Richard Buck
NASCAR Director of Touring Series

[Samm]

Jimmie Johnson is going to be a dad

Claire on CBL had a call in show on Jimmie and His dad Rick called in. He let it slip that Jimmie and Chandra are expecting. I don't think he was supposed to let everyone know yet.

www.sendspace.com/file/xr8c9h

I bet the field is glad to hear this... and hope that the baby comes on a race day. Any advantage they can get on Jimmy to keep him from winning 5 is welcome I'm sure. ;)



Xena dear... Isn't it about time to start the 2010 thread? The Shootout is barely a month away. You wouldn't want somebody else to do it for you now, would you? :razz:

[WhiteHatBobby]

The 2009 Toyota All-Star Showdown will conclude the 2009 NASCAR season January 28-31, 2010. Under NASCAR rules, this is a "2009 NASCAR Camping World (Grand National division) Series" race. More notes for the race (January 30, 10 PM EST, Speed) are up:

* Noise Limit: All cars must run mufflers. A 90 decibel rule is enforced at Irwindale. Any car caught over 90 decibels will be black flagged and subject to a fine.

* No Testing: NASCAR's testing ban in the national series will apply to all tracks that hold NASCAR regional races until January 31 since the 2009 CWS does not end until after this race.

* Gear Rule: Cars using a quick-change rear end may run between 5.15 and 5.29 if running a NASCAR-provided specification engine (which may be used in the Camping World Trucks in 2010 for Gateway and shorter tracks). Cars using an approved engine (similar to an NNS/CWTS engine) must run between 5.49 and 5.83 gear ratio. Cars running the traditional 9" Ford rear end must use between 5.14 and 5.29 for the spec engine, and 5.50 to 5.83 for an approved engine.

* Car Numbers: Two cars may have the same number. The team that finished higher in their series keeps the number. Special circumstances will be used if both teams finished in the same position in their respective series.

* Tire Rule: Tire restrictions as follows: two sets for practice, one set for qualifying (must race on this set), and two sets of tires during the race. Cars that do not qualify from qualifying and must race their way in may purchase one more set of tires. Tires must be designated and teams must inform NASCAR. Goodyear will pay for one half set (two tires) for each of the Top 15 teams in the East and West Series to help with the race.

* Money: Winner wins $30,000, last place pays $5,000. Of the 2009 Top 30 in points, the 15 highest finishing East Series drivers will be paid $3,000 to travel to Irwindale. A similar plan for the West Series drivers will result in $1,000. The extra cost is because of the extra travel. Champions of Canada, Mexico, Modified, and Whelen All-American Championships will be paid $3,000 to travel and race.

All CWS East and West race winners and NASCAR division champions will be exempt to the feature. That, plus the number of qualifiers based on time in Friday qualifying, will total 26. The top four in 2009 CWE and CWW points of non-qualified cars (must be in top 30) will then automatically advance in the order of EWWEWEWE.

After the top 34 are named, the remaining drivers will race in a 50-lap race -- top six advance to the feature.

[WhiteHatBobby]

Baby News (from Twitter):

Media: ESPN pit reporter Shannon Spake had twins -- Brady (4 lbs, 9 oz) and Liam (4 lb, 8 oz) McSorley, with husband Jerry McSorley. They were born January 1, 2010 at 10 PM.

Camping World Series: Camping World East driver Steve Park (2 Sprint Cup wins, 2000 Watkins Glen, 2001 Rockingham February) announced at 5 PM Saturday, his wife Jessica gave birth to their first child, a son, Jaden Robert Park. He is 8 pounds, 4 ounces. Park will race in the 2009 Toyota All-Star Showdown January 30. He is an exempt driver.

Racing News
Robby Gordon: A 28-year old fan was killed in Saturday's first stage of the Dakar Rally in Argentina when a vehicle ran off course during the race.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/more-sports/fan-killed-at-dakar-rally/article1417288/

Tony Stewart: Christmas season rains keep coming at the worst possible time. First the Valvoline Australian Sprintcar Grand Prix is postponed one night, and then the A$50,000 Scott Darley Memorial on New Year's is postponed twice -- Saturday morning and now Sunday morning. A second postponement was announced. They'll try again tonight (US time) with hot laps and then the race Monday morning for preliminaries and Tuesday morning for the features

[WhiteHatBobby]

Nationwide Series rule changes:

1. A "compatibility test" will be made May 18-19 at Daytona for preparation of the new car launch. The new car will run July 2 (Daytona), August 14 (Michigan), September 10 (Richmond), and October 15 (Charlotte).

2. If a team has surplus tires with the same codes, they may be used at tracks that use the same codes.

3. A 15-man roster must be submitted to NASCAR at registration. Each team may have no more than 15 men. This includes the driver, crew chief, spotter, and pit crew. This limits mechanics to just five. No scorer will be required (NASCAR has used electronic scoring since 1993.)

4. A sealed engine must be reused every other race.

ARCA Rockingham winner Sean Caisse will race in the All-Star Showdown (2009 season race).

http://localracing.nascar.com/node/4224

[WhiteHatBobby]

As the 2009 NASCAR season is just three weeks away from its exciting conclusion at the Toyota All-Star Showdown for the Camping World Series cars, some more fan events are here:

Friday and Saturday: Sprint Speed and Sound in Nashville.

Friday's concerts at the Grand Ole Opry: Danny Gokey (Idols) makes his debut at the signature Nashville venue. Jason Michael Carroll (7 PM), the father-daughter team of Hank Willams Jnr and daughter Holly (9:30 PM), Chris Young, and Kyle Petty. Appearances by Denny Hamlin, Clint Bowyer, Jamie McMurray, and Greg Biffle are slated.

Saturday at Municipal Auditorium, Aric Almirola, Justin Allgaier, Michael Annett, Carl Edwards, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Kyle Busch, James Buescher, Brad Kesolowski, Logan Ruffin, Brian Scott and Morgan Shepherd, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin, Kasey Kahne, Michael Waltrip, Clint Bowyer, Reed Sorenson, and David Stremme. Performers are Danny Gokey, Danielle Peck, Corey Smith, Ashton Shepherd, Brady Seals, Nathan Lee Jackson, Kate & Kacey, Jason Michael Carroll, Josh Turner, members of Diamond Rio, and Chris Young.

Friday-Sunday: Grand-Am Rolex testing. Some Cup drivers will test sportscars.

January 15-16: NASCAR Preseason Thunder: Matt Kenseth, Ryan Nwman, Kevin Harvick, Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jnr,

January 12-16: Chili Bowl Indoor Midget Nationals, Tulsa. Kasey Kahne is entered.

January 17-23: Sprint Cup Media Tour in the Charlotte area.

January 28-30: 2009 Toyota All-Star Showdown (Speed, LIVE 10 PM January 30). This race officially ends the 2009 NASCAR season.

January 30-31: Rolex 24 (Speed, LIVE 3 PM January 30)

[Xena]

Geoff Bodine Bobsled Challenge on TV

It will be on January 24 on SPEED at noon.

[WhiteHatBobby]

Last year, Joey Logano closed out the 2008 NASCAR season with a controversial dump and chase on Peyton Sellers on the final lap, thinking he'd won the Toyota All-Star Showdown.

He didn't. NASCAR called that blatant and disqualified him. He has entered the 2009 Toyota All-Star Showdown (January 30, 10 PM ET, Speed) in a car entered by Mike Olsen, the heir to one of short-track racing's greatest drivers, Stanley (Stub) Fadden, who died in March.

http://www.speed51.com/2010_Stories/Showdown/Preview_Logano.html

NASCAR Schedule for the Toyota All-Star Showdown, the race that will officially ring down the curtain on the 2009 NASCAR season.

Friday:

1:00 PM - First Super Late Model Practice
1:55 PM - First Camping World Practice
3:00 PM - Final Super Late Model Practice
3:55 PM - Final Camping World Practice
5:30 PM - First Late Model Practice
7:00 PM - Gates Open. Super Late Model Qualifying
9:00 PM - Qualifying, Camping World Series
10:35 PM - Super Late Model Feature, 100 Laps or One Hour (TV Time Limit)
Midnight - Qualifying Race, Camping World Series, 50 Laps

Saturday:
12:00 Noon - Late Model Final Practice
4:00 PM - Late Model Qualifying
10:10 PM - Camping World Series Toyota All-Star Showdown, 225 Laps. There will be breaks after every 100 laps.
12:20 AM - Late Model Race, 75 Laps. Curfew enforced at 2 AM ET.

All times Eastern. Speed plans to televise all features.

[WhiteHatBobby]

Red Horse Racing is expected to test Nelson Piquet Jnr again in a Camping World Truck as he is expected to join the series in 2010. One thing NASCAR may do is put him on probation for the season as the Confederaçâo Brasileira de Automobilismo may punish him for intentionally causing the caution at the 2008 SingTel Grand Prix.

[Xena]

The stoopid wing is died. At least, the drivers are called in to NASCAR about it. I hope it will HAPPEN!

[WhiteHatBobby]

The Las Vegas race is shorter (267 laps instead of 285 laps), and the Phoenix April race is longer (375 laps instead of 312 laps). The Phoenix race is now the Subway Fresh Fit 600km, as PIR's Sprint Cup race is a metric race.

The change was made because sunset takes place around 7 PM, and the new start times moved up the race one hour, so instead of a 5:30 PM green flag, they would start at 4:30. This guarantees a night finish as it will take nearly four hours to run the 603 kilometer (375 mile) race.

[Xena]

Phoenix lengthened race so it ends under lights - it will be 375 miles instead of 312

[WhiteHatBobby]

While the Phoenix spring race goes from 500km to 600km, the Fontana fall race is being cut to 400 miles (200 laps) from 500 miles. This move allows the ESPN broadcast to finish before 7 PM. The 2009 race, a 500-mile affair, came close to 7 PM, and ESPN's attitude to NASCAR races going past 7 PM is not good. In 2008, the Phoenix fall race ran past 7:30 and shifted to ESPN2 in order to protect Desperate Housewives.

So we have a race cut short in order to assure Desperate Housewives doesn't run late.

[WhiteHatBobby]

NASCAR is increasingly unhappy at ESPN. As part of the push of all sports to cable only, ESPN has moved the Chase to the cable properties and away from network television, which had been the case for NASCAR's 2001 game plan.

Here are "lowlights":

All races on the ESPN side are on the ESPN Cable Network except the three Saturday Night races (Bristol, Richmond, Charlotte), all on the ESPN Broadcast Network.

ESPN pre-race shows on at 12 Noon until the Chase. ESPN2 with a one-hour show, then ESPN Cable Network with the race at 1 PM after NFL Countdown

And you're saying ratings will go up? Sorry, but ratings will drop. This is just another racket for ESPN to be able to increase their per-subscriber rates as they move sports to cable. They've moved the Open Championship and the BCS to cable, and now the Chase. Slowly but surely, the ABC affiliates are being shafted, something NASCAR didn't envision when the 2001 television contract was signed.

This means 16 races on network television, and 20 on cable. Once we get past the 600, the only races on network television are Bristol, Richmond, and Charlotte. This could be the impetus for the Fan Council to get angry. There are also two races (Texas, Phoenix) in the Chase that need sponsors, and the move to cable will backfire at sponsors.

[Xena]

NASCAR is increasingly unhappy at ESPN. As part of the push of all sports to cable only, ESPN has moved the Chase to the cable properties and away from network television, which had been the case for NASCAR's 2001 game plan.

Here are "low lights":

All races on the ESPN side are on the ESPN Cable Network except the three Saturday Night races (Bristol, Richmond, Charlotte), all on the ESPN Broadcast Network.

ESPN pre-race shows on at 12 Noon until the Chase. ESPN2 with a one-hour show, then ESPN Cable Network with the race at 1 PM after NFL Countdown

And you're saying ratings will go up? Sorry, but ratings will drop. This is just another racket for ESPN to be able to increase their per-subscriber rates as they move sports to cable. They've moved the Open Championship and the BCS to cable, and now the Chase. Slowly but surely, the ABC affiliates are being shafted, something NASCAR didn't envision when the 2001 television contract was signed.

This means 16 races on network television, and 20 on cable. Once we get past the 600, the only races on network television are Bristol, Richmond, and Charlotte. This could be the impetus for the Fan Council to get angry. There are also two races (Texas, Phoenix) in the Chase that need sponsors, and the move to cable will backfire at sponsors.

I still am "what the ****?" I'm wondering if fans are going to put up with this. I am not amused.

[WhiteHatBobby]

I still am "what the Foxtrot?" I'm wondering if fans are going to put up with this. I am not amused.

I say no. Sponsors are saying no as O'Reilly Auto Parts decided not to renew the Phoenix November race. O'Reilly Auto Parts, or its predecessor in Arizona CSK Automotive, has sponsored 12 of the 22 500-kilometer fall races at the Desert Jewel (1988-90, 2001-09).

Watch the number of sponsors go for the 13 races on Fox and not for the TNT or ESPN races. You earn double or even triple the revenue when you're going for a broadcast audience than the narrowcast audience of ESPN.

[WhiteHatBobby]

Heavy crash involving the AF Corse Ferrari which is partially owned by Michael Waltrip Racing, which sent two drivers to the Dunlop Tyres 24 Hours of Dubai GT race that is currently running.

At 11 PM Friday night (9 hours), Michael Waltrip (USA), in the AF Corse Ferrari F430, and Tamas Horvath (HUN), in the Zengo Motorsport (VW) SEAT Leon Supercopa, collided. Horvath was sent to the trackside medical centre with a broken shoulder and collarbone. Waltrip was uninjured.

http://www.24hdubai.com/default.asp?page=67&newsID=500

[WhiteHatBobby]

More entries are filing for the Toyota All-Star Showdown:

Whelen Southern Modified Tour Champion George Brunnhoelzl III will drive a second Ted Marsh car for the Showdown, joining Sean Caisse as teammates. Brunnhoelzl is an exempt driver as the Whelen Southern Modified Tour Champion, so he will be in the feature.

David Gilliland, a former Showdown champion (2005), will enter the race for West Series team owner Jennifer Wong's Speed Wong team.

Candace Muzny, a former Irwindale regular, will make her return after racing on the East in 2009. Munzy hasn't raced there since her fiancé-crew chief died after the 2008 season.

Nick Joanides (3rd in Whelen All-American Series points, California State Champion) and Joe Gibbs Racing Developmental driver Matt DiBenedetto will participate in the 2009 Toyota All-Star Showdown January 30. Joanides will race in all three features.

[Xena]

This Week in NASCAR (http://dalyplanet.blogspot.com/2010/01/speed-shifts-gears-and-twin-is-casualty.html)
Wednesday, January 20, 2010

The network's stalwart This Week in NASCAR on Monday nights has been cancelled. The news and analysis format, hosted by Steve Byrnes, Michael Waltrip and a variety of other guests, "just wasn't connecting with the fans anymore," SPEED President Hunter Nickell said.

[WhiteHatBobby]

A new Jimmy Spencer-hosted show will take its place, as will four nights of Race Hub (Mon-Thu).

Darlington gets a Truck race for the first time since losing it in the Ferko lawsuit. The 200-mile affair is on August 14 and is a one-day affair.

[Samm]

This Week in NASCAR (http://dalyplanet.blogspot.com/2010/01/speed-shifts-gears-and-twin-is-casualty.html)
Wednesday, January 20, 2010

The network's stalwart This Week in NASCAR on Monday nights has been cancelled. The news and analysis format, hosted by Steve Byrnes, Michael Waltrip and a variety of other guests, "just wasn't connecting with the fans anymore," SPEED President Hunter Nickell said.

Well, I have to admit... they were not connecting with me. :neutral:

[Samm]

I just heard today that the Sprint series is going back to the spoiler over the course of this season beginning in March... that's pretty exciting. :dance:

[WhiteHatBobby]

The other series (Nationwide, Camping World Truck, Whelen Modified N/S, K&N Pro E/W, Canadian Tire, Corona Mexico) all use spoilers.

The 2009 Camping World season officially ends next Saturday with the All-Star Showdown and will also end Camping World's relationship with this series; in 2010, it will be the K&N Pro Series East and West

[Xena]

Hamlin tears ACL playing hoops (http://sports.yahoo.com/nascar/news;_ylt=Apm.oQ9NbWwv1SxpoUHspj7ov7YF?slug=ap-nascar-hamlin-tornacl&prov=ap&type=lgns)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP)—Denny Hamlin has a torn knee ligament and won’t have surgery to repair it until after the upcoming NASCAR season.

Hamlin says he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee playing basketball on Friday. The injury was first reported by ESPN.com after Hamlin pulled out of a skills competition for NASCAR drivers hosted by the NBA’s Charlotte Bobcats.

Hamlin had surgery in December on his right knee, and the new injury is unrelated.

Hamlin is the popular preseason pick to unseat four-time defending champion Jimmie Johnson this year. He won two of the final 10 races last year, including the season finale.

[Samm]

Hamlin tears ACL playing hoops (http://sports.yahoo.com/nascar/news;_ylt=Apm.oQ9NbWwv1SxpoUHspj7ov7YF?slug=ap-nascar-hamlin-tornacl&prov=ap&type=lgns)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP)—Denny Hamlin has a torn knee ligament and won’t have surgery to repair it until after the upcoming NASCAR season.

Hamlin says he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee playing basketball on Friday. The injury was first reported by ESPN.com after Hamlin pulled out of a skills competition for NASCAR drivers hosted by the NBA’s Charlotte Bobcats.

Hamlin had surgery in December on his right knee, and the new injury is unrelated.

Hamlin is the popular preseason pick to unseat four-time defending champion Jimmie Johnson this year. He won two of the final 10 races last year, including the season finale.

Popular pick by whom? Denny Hamlin fans? :eh:

[RETXED]

I just heard today that the Sprint series is going back to the spoiler over the course of this season beginning in March... that's pretty exciting. :dance:


Plus opening up the restrictor plate for Daytona & Dega... A move that is long over due... :dance:

Allowing Bump drafting again.... About time. Put racing back in the drivers hands.

Only other thing I would like to see is get rid of the mandated rear spring & shock rules...Might as well take the drivers down to the local go-cart track and race..