A Black Letter Day for Gilliland Fans...AGAIN!

Sometimes my favorite sport, NASCAR, is brutal. Today was especially harsh!

Fans of David Gilliland have been upset over the Watkins Glen incident where David was given a second car to drive, so that TRGMotorsports could showcase Andy Lally in the #71 car. There was a certain level of fan understanding on this deal, as Lally had a much longer relationship with TRG than David. The execution of owner Kevin Buckler's two car plan was a huge fail! There was only one crew chief, as the person assigned to CC David's car had never had that experience. Crew Chief Slugger Labbe admitted, during a Sirius interview on the Monday following The Glen, that he was supposed to work on both cars, and got stuck on working on Lally's car for the whole practice session. The result was that David's car received little attention, and he went out to qualify in a 'scary loose' car, and barely avoided wrecking on each turn. David went home, and his sponsor was transferred to the car driven by Lally.

David has continue to remain faithful to TRG. A recent online chat with his fans showed David to be very supportive of the efforts of TRG and their driver:

"I think everyone needs to know that everyone at TRG works day and night to be able to race every week. We go to the track with the cars ready to race. Whether we get to or not comes down to if we have the money."

This support is laudable, but appears to be misplaced. An owner is truly allowed to do what he pleases. However, the owner needs to be prepared for the fallout. A press release early on Thursday, September 3rd loudly declares how exciting it is for Team TRG and David to be going to Atlanta, and a few short hours later, the news leaks out that David is out, and Bobby is in. I heard about it as a breaking news item while half awake, listening to it at 745 AM Pacific. Things moved very fast.

Fans of David Gilliland were already feeling burned. Now, they are upset in defense of their driver. First, early this year, they endured the last minute decision at Yates Racing, to replace David with Bobby Labonte. Now, it is happening again. A different owner, but the same drivers.

I understand that money is needed to drive those bright billboards in circles. I understand that Labonte had a long streak of NASCAR starts going, and it would be a shame to break that statistic. I understand that Bobby is a great guy. (I have met him twice, and he is a gentleman!) I understand the nasty necessities of this sport.

But do I have to like it? No, I don't. As a fan, I am taking my prerogative to display my anger towards the team owner, towards the 'new' driver, and towards the sponsor that seems to believe the hype from the owner.

A good guy is getting the shaft. Again.

I only hope that Labonte understands that if he couldn't equal Gilliland's results at Yates, he certainly won't be happy at TRG. Their cars are three generations old. The parts on the 71 have been used all season long, with the stress and wear showing up at the worst times, like Bristol. As bad as Yates looks, it is certainly worse at TRG.

David will take the high road when interviewed this weekend. He IS that kind of person. Fortunately, I don't have to answer to a sponsor.
Therefor, I will be taking a different road.

I was proud to be a part of Gilly's Gang when we presented Kevin Buckler with our hard earned cash to buy a set of tires for one of David's races. I think I want my money back! And judging from the temperment at DavidGilliland.com, I do believe that most of David's fans feel the same way.

NASCAR Sponsor Takes Over!

NASCAR sponsors have a way of becoming a focus of NASCAR fans. We generally support the sponsors of both the teams and the sport.

As a fan of Yates Racing, there was initial excitement at the beginning of 2009 when it was announced that Bobby Labonte had signed with Yates, and brought Ask.com to the table as a sponsor. That excitement quickly turned to dismay when I discovered that Bobby was 'in', and David Gilliland was 'out' of his ride. While I entirely understand the financial side of the deal, it left me feeling disgruntled.

Ask.com, formerly known as Ask Jeeves, has made a huge mark in the NASCAR world. Not only are they sponsoring the 96, they have become the Official Search Engine of NASCAR. They are the 'go-to' source for trivia questions on television broadcasts. They have a browser toolbar that is configured for NASCAR fans. They were at each track I attended this year (California, Vegas, and Texas) handing out CD's with a contest opportunity and most likely, their toolbar.

I never loaded that CD, in part because of the YR deal with David Gilliland losing his ride. And because of a recent experience, I am glad that I left that CD sitting in my track backpack.

About two weeks ago, I downloaded a game from Facebook. It was a game from a company I had used several times, and indeed a company whose games are good enough that I have purchased three of their selections. This download, however, had a special little add-on....an opportunity to download ask.com. In a hurry, I did not take the time to read what I was installing, and therefor neglected to un-check the box.

Suddenly, my Firefox browser directed me to Ask.com. Internet Explorer did the same. Both had the toolbar loaded. And both had the search engine default switched from google to ask.com. Arrrgggg!

That hurried and totally stupid download has reminded me that I need to slow down. I managed to remove the toolbar, and I managed to changed the default search engines back to google. I have, however, been wrestling with one last vestige of this pesky software, as everytime I mistyped something in my url box, it redirected me to ask.com.

After two weeks, I found that removing that redirect from Firefox is an exercise in itself. You have to use the "about:config" function in a tab, to change the strings. Very scary for an Internet Apprentice (which is way below Internet Wizard on the Savvy Scale) and one that helped to increase my high-blood pressure. I stressed at the moment I saw how changing those settings could upset the stability of my machine. My MACHINE? What about MY stability?

Sadly, the easiest way to remove it is to go to Ask.com, and beg them for help. There have apparently been so many problems, that they developed a special removal tool. Since it was an executable file, I was worried about downloading that one, too. But quite a bit of research gave me some courage to try it, and it seems to have worked.

While I like Bobby Labonte, I am still peeved over the Yates Racing Deal. Now I am just as peeved over the sponsor taking over my computer. For me, DON'T Ask.com!

TRG, David Gilliland & Gilly's Gang: A Kind of Magic!

Proposed sticker for #71 TRG car at Martinsville.

Its a kind of magic
Its a kind of magic
A kind of magic
One dream one soul one prize one goal
One golden glance of what should be
Its a kind of magic
One shaft of light that shows the way!

(from A Kind of Magic, by Queen, movie Highlander)

Yesterday, I blogged a comparison of Yates Racing and TRG (The Racer's Group)! I discussed the magic that appears to be brewing at TRG, with wonderful chemistry between Driver, Crew Chief and Owner. Today, I want the NASCAR world to know that the magic continues. A special Kind of Magic.

Last year, the fans of David Gilliland, calling ourselves Gilly's Gang, attempted to contribute financially to David's team. We knew that it took a lot of money, but the dollar figure we were given was daunting. Frankly, we gave up!

This year, David has a new ride and a new owner. We wanted to reach out, but after the reaction to our attempts last year, we expected nothing different from TRG. One member pressed forward anyway, and on Monday of this week, received a response from Lloyd Wideman, TRG Marketing Director! His response:

Good Morning and Happy Monday!

My name is Lloyd Wideman, I am the Director of Marketing for TRG Motorsports. I spoke with Daniela just before getting out and on the road to Bristol about getting the Fan Club on the race car for one or more events... How could I turn down a fellow Missourian???

I ran some concepts past the ownership and spoke to David about the ideas... Here is what we have to work with:

What ever the amount of money you raise, $5 or $5000... we will provide you with the Deck Lid (trunk) for a race. The entire space is yours to do whatever you want with it.

We can put Martinsville together pretty quickly if ya'll would like to do it there!

If you need help developing a concept, please let me know.
Lloyd

As we speak, Gilly's Gang is in the process of gathering funds. There is an amazing amount of interest, and members are contributing whatever they can, and the Gang is accepting ANY amount!

Marketing folks are the unsung heroes of most businesses, and most especially in NASCAR. This sport does not run entirely on good looks, good faith, and good results. It takes real money to get those rolling billboards on the track. The marketing department of any race team is busy finding ways to persuade sponsors that their team is a good deal. Deals can be on the verge of a signature, and then get hijacked by other teams and THEIR marketing departments. The marketing teams are the ones chasing the leads, following up, and helping to negotiate the deals, while the owners and drivers get all of the attention during the announcements.

It is understandable that some of the larger teams might be reluctant to have a 'fan sticker' on a car. Accepting a less-than-market-value amount might cause a reaction similar to Retail Sale Syndrome (where buyers will hold off purchasing because they know it will be cheaper in the future) and cause other potential sponsors to balk at paying the amount that is really needed. This is probably the reason for the response from Yates last year, and is totally understandable.

The other part of being a Marketing Guru is in knowing that there are opportunities with any idea. And sometimes, the simplest idea can turn into a huge opportunity to sell a story, or a concept, or a sponsorship. It is always challenging for Marketing folks who have to prove to the owners that there is 'value' in any idea. But savvy marketers will at least try the idea, and see if it works. Taking chances is part of any NASCAR driver's race, but the marketing team finds it harder to present those dangerous chances to the owners, as they are never sure how ANY deal will work out. TRG is taking a chance with this concept, but the fan response has been energetic and exciting to watch!

David's fans know that it may be challenging to come up with the amount of money that TRG REALLY needs for the whole deck lid, or even the stickers on the wing mounts. But, we do know that we are being heard as fans, and we are excited to know that we indeed have an opportunity to contribute. Racing would not exist without it's fans, and TRG seems to understand that fans want to participate on a grass roots level.

Kevin Buckler of TRG told SpeedTV's Dave Despain that he has no problems with tweaking the angle of a team and driver in the middle of a Cinderella Story. However, Cinderella did not find her Prince without the help of Magic! And the fans, in this case, are providing Magic to help their driver, and his team! A Kind of Magic, indeed!

If you wish to be a part of the magic, go to www.davidgilliland.com, and sign up for the Fan Circuit. On that message board, you will see instructions on how to contribute. If you wish to not join but want to contribute, please feel free to email me, and I will give you all of the needed information! Join in the magic!

David Gilliland: Another Cinderella Story?

Photo by Snafam

Bristol has taken its toll on many of the competitors. The #82 Red Bull car, driven by Scott Speed, is below the Go or Go Home bubble, tied with the #8 car of the Ganassi/DEI stable, driven by Aric Almirola. Two of the 3 Yates Racing entries, the 28 of Travis Kvapil and the 98 of Paul Menard, are still solidly below the bubble. More on that subject coming up!

We have good news this week, and we have bad news! First the bad news!

Travis Kvapil will most likely not be in the 28 car at Martinsville. Multiple sources on the web report that Yates Racing will suspend operations for the 28, unless a miracle happens and a sponsor shows up with dollars in hand, by Wednesday of this week.

This has been a source of frustration for many on the web, especially long-time fans of the storied #28 of Robert Yates Racing fame. Last year, David Gilliland and Travis Kvapil performed exactly to their instructions, to get the most out of the car and to do everything they could to grab the attention of sponsors. Both drivers had their cars solidly in the Top 35. For this year, due to a reported lack of sponsorship, David Gilliland was given his walking papers, and his points were given to the #96 car of Bobby Labonte. Travis was given a 5 race bye to perform and find a sponsor, but his points were transferred to the #98 car of Paul Menard.

After the first 5 races, Travis suffered from not qualifying for the Vegas race and a blown engine at Atlanta. He had, however, a splendid run at Bristol, with a 10 to 15 lap battle with Kyle Busch, to try and maintain his lead lap. Finishing 18th, it may be too little, too late. And after the first five races, team mate Paul Menard now joins the ranks of those who have to qualify on merit, rather than inheriting the efforts of someone else. (To be fair, he would have been 'in' the race if he could have used his points from DEI, but he also stated on Sirius, over the off-season, his contract required that he would have Top 35 points available to him for the first five races of 2009.

Many feel that Travis is getting the short end of the stick, when it is obvious that he can get the job done, and when it is widely felt that Paul Menard has squandered away the points, and the opportunity that was provided to him from other than his own efforts.

As a David Gilliland fan, I too should be feeling the same way. However, David opted out of his contract with Yates Racing, missing the Daytona 500. By the time that the Auto Club Speedway race rolled around, David had a 4 race deal with start-up team TRG, The Racers Group, led by motorsports enthusiast Kevin Buckler. And that, leads to the good news! TRG team 71 left Bristol in the top 35 in owner's points, thereby insuring that they have a qualifying spot reserved for them at Martinsville!

Start up, or upstart?

Is TRG a start up team, or an upstart team? A bit of both, it appears! Buckler has a solid racing history, dating back to 1988, and most recently in the Grand-Am series, with his GT cars winning 1st and 2nd at the 2009 24 hours of Daytona. Started from a garage operation in 1994, Kevin and wife Debra built their businesses to success in many areas, including the TRG enterprise, and the Adobe Road Wines. Kevin dangled his toes in the NASCAR pool last year, with 1 win in the (then) Craftsman Truck Series, by driver Donny Lia.

The 'bad' economy, which has so negatively impacted many both in and out of racing, gave Buckler the opportunity to jump into Cup racing. Starting with a single car, the team failed to qualify for the Daytona 500. Buckler then hired David Gilliland, and brought in crew chief Slugger Labbe. Both Gilliland and Labbe have proven to be a cohesive force, and dropping the cars firmly into the Top 35 after Bristol. They now have 4 cars, and ten employees!

It's a kind of magic!

There appears to be a certain magic with this team. Even though they did not have the best of runs at Bristol, (a lugnut penalty and two green flag flat tire changes were to blame!) they stuck it out and still finished in the Top 35. The chemistry between Gilliland and Labbe is amazing! Many reports have statements from Driver, Crew Chief and Owner, all saying how much fun they are having. This team is the epitome of grass roots racing. Gilliland's first three races were in the same car. And the first two races were on the same transmission. The team left California, headed to Vegas, and spent a few days in a casino parking lot preparing and painting the car for the Las Vegas event. Very old school! Their pit crew is rented, and they have been know to hustle for tires on pit road, from competitors who have fallen out of the race early. They are bare bones, with a plain pit box. However, it is apparent that they are not scrimping on parts, as their runs have been good, but tied up with misfortune not of their making!


Magic, or a hunger to succeed?

Perhaps it is not all magic! TRG recently took the time to send out a press release in an off week. The whole purpose of the release was to remind the media that there was a Cinderella story brewing. Since the NASCAR teams were on an off-week, this placed the TRG firmly in the middle of the mind of the media, resulting in multiple articles and interviews, leading up to race day. Even late last night, after the race, TRG was busy making sure that all of the media outlets had their post-race reports in their email boxes by the start of today's business day.

Evidently, it takes work to make magic! Perhaps the Yates Racing team needs to look at what is happening with The Racers Group, as they are doing better than two of the Yates cars, with even less funding. They are most certainly working to make that magic! As for Slugger Labbe, David Gilliland and TRG, magic indeed! And as for the fans of the 71 team, we are all completely enchanted!

Loyalty in NASCAR

It is no secret that I am a fan of David Gilliland, and a downright proud fan, too! We have reason to be proud right now, as David has performed especially well in his new ride, the TRG #71 car, which has the audacity to be in the Top 35 in points after 3 out of 4 races, with David at the helm! I must admit, this has created a quandary, as I started following the drivers for Robert Yates Racing a few years, and when David opted out of his ride, I had to put my allegiance to Yates on hold! (And I put it on hold just before Yates Racing put out a kick*** black jacket!)

I found myself wanting to talk about it, but never could quite find the words to express how I feel. Today, someone found the words I have been unable to find. The following post was found on David Gilliland's Fan Circuit message board. I have received permission from the member David H who is also known as 'azzkickin68." Here, in his unedited words, are his emotions over trying to be a loyal fan to a team, and to a driver.

***********

Loyalty in Nascar

As a fan of Nascar throughout the years there has been one team and only one team that I have watched on Sunday and that is those of Yates Racing formally Robert Yates Racing. I have known about Yates before it was even a race team in Nascar. I knew of the great mastermind behind the engines while working at my grandfather’s shop in the early 80’s I was a very young child and loved racing.

I started watching Nascar off and on in the early 90’s. The first race I watched from flag to flag was the 1998 Daytona 500. I know some of you may have seen that one. I fell in love with the box like cars and fell out of love with the Indy Cars that I grew up watching as a kid.

I followed every driver that went through the RYR organization. I was a fan of all them. It didn’t matter who they were or what team they came from, I knew that in those cars were the best the drivers on the track driving the cars with the best engines in Nascar.

One day in June I watched the Nationwide race(formally Busch) and sat there stunned that a little team with no Cup affiliation, no big name driver or budget at all was about to upset the world of Nascar as we know it. Remember we know the teams that will win and be contenders but on this night a guy from Riverside, Ca broke the rules and won which to me and the fans of racing will know as the greatest upset in Nascar history. Some might say otherwise but in this era with mega teams it is.

When David Gilliland got the call to drive the 38 car I was thrilled. I said hey this guy is good. I watched every race till the checkered flag regardless if the 88(28) or 38 was in contention or not. It didn’t matter to me because I was loyal to Yates. Those were my guys. When anyone asked who my favorite driver was I said Kvapil, Gilliland, Rudd, Jarrett, or whoever was with Yates at the time. I would get two different responses. Either it was “Why?” Or it was “Who is Kvapil?” It didn’t matter to me, but like life things change.

I have always been the guy that followed the underdogs. I always want the underdog to win. They are there to prove something. Prove that they belong. Prove to the naysayers that they can be just as good as the other guy. For some reason watching the Daytona 500 this year I followed one guy around on the Pit Command program and that was Kvapil. Don’t get me wrong I was happy that Labonte was with Hall of Fame racing which is more than less a Yates car. Menard, well he’s probably good at some racing but in Cup he has proved nothing. This is when I noticed that my Loyalty for Yates has gone to the wayside. The driver I wanted to watch was David Gilliland. The underdog. The guy who upset big time teams in Kentucky a few years prior. That was the guy that should have been given a chance to run the 28 car or at least a 4th Yates car.

The news came that David Gilliland was going to run the 71 car for TRG. I was thrilled yet again but at the same time I had my doubts. Here is a team that is underfunded and borrowing equipment. They are running RCR engines but I still was worried about Gilliland making races. After 3 weeks I am amazed. The team is doing something other teams in the garage don’t do. Run the same car every week. Run a transmission for 1400 miles. Doing more with less. But I noticed something. I was watching a guy run a car that wasn’t a Yates car and on top of all that he is running a Chevy. I am a diehard Ford fan. I have had nothing but Ford’s my entire life. My grandfather worked at the Milpitas, Ca Ford plant for 30 years. That is all we drove in the family. Loyalty shifted. It went from a team to a driver for the first time in my life.

David Gilliland is a driver that can go around and say “Hey not only can I drive the car but if I have to I can build it, set it up, and if I can’t drive it I can sit on the pit box and make the calls as a crew chief. There might be a handful of drivers that can do that. It takes talent my friend to do all that.

I will never lose heart for Yates. I still wear my RYR shirts that I got years ago. I still cherish my sheet metal off an old 88 car that I have signed by Dale Jarrett, Todd Parrott, and Robert Yates. I consider it my most prized Nascar piece of memorabilia. I am disappointed with Yates that they let go a talented driver but in Nascar money is top priority. They got a so-so driver but they got the $20 million sponsor to go with it. I am also disappointed that after a long struggling year building owner points that Kvapil and Gilliland lost them all.

After a year of getting hammered by the media and being questioned about his driving ability the media is now saying. “Hey look at this guy. Single underfunded car doing what they can and not only are they making races but they are finishing them in the Top 25.” The same media that blamed David Gilliland for wrecking cars and other people is now telling us this? What a shame. Maybe someone should send them the clip of him winning in Kentucky. Maybe someone should show him his stats when he ran out here in California. Ignorance is bliss when you’re in the media isn’t it?

I usually don’t write and go off on a rant but there it is. A true hardcore Ford racing Yates fan that is following a guy in a Chevy, but it’s kind of hard not to follow a guy with talent. I wish nothing but the best of luck for David Gilliland and the 71 team this year.

Cutting Ties! Gilliland, Kvapil and Yates Racing.

When the 2008 race season ended, it was a time for many NASCAR drivers to sit back on their laurels and enjoy their past successes. It was time to take off, have fun, frolic, and for a couple of drivers, get married. Other drivers, though, would have loved to be able to enjoy the off-season, but were unable to do so. They were the ones whose jobs were in jeopardy.

Many of the mid-pack and back-marker teams were also reflecting on their past, and planning for their futures. One team in particular, Yates Racing, made some dramatic changes, and made them with such speed it left the media spinning and the drivers' fans reeling.

Fans of David Gilliland and Travis Kvapil spent a watchful season, waiting for news of sponsors or a show of driver support from the owners. After all, things were looking positive, as Paul Menard was slated to be a third team mate, along with the cash infusion from Paul's family business run by his father, John. As December rolled closer to Christmas, we were thrilled to hear David on Sirius radio, talking about the need for sponsorship, but that he would indeed be in a car at the Daytona 500. We also heard from various sources that Travis also had sponsorship for 5 races, and he too would not only be in the 500, but was qualified for the Budweiser Shootout.

The bottom fell out of the hopes of the fans on January 13th. The announcement of Hall of Fame's 'alliance' with Yates Racing was a bombshell, surprising the media, and leaving many shocked. One of those shocked was David Gilliland, as he had heard via the internet that he was out of a ride. By the next day, he had talked with Max Jones, and appeared on Claire B Lang's show "Dialed In" on Sirius. David admitted he had heard the initial news from the internet, and David did a notably good job of being positive.

In the last three weeks, fans of both Yates drivers have heard that the owners points earned by Travis would be sent to Paul's car, and the points earned by David would be passed to Bobby, thereby enabling both newly installed car numbers/drivers to be entered in the Shoot-out.

We have also heard Doug and Max proclaim that David was a good guy, and they were trying to find something for him. Discerning fans immediately saw that there was nothing available for a Ford driver in Cup, Nationwide or Camping World Truck series. It was extremely noticeable that Yates would not do anything to support David, or try to find sponsorship for David, when they announced the new Business Development team. The announcement specifically mentioned the 28, the 96, and the 98. Neither the 38 or David Gilliland was mentioned anywhere in the announcement, a clear statement that they were not going to be working towards any sponsorship for David.

Travis also lost his sponsor to Bobby Labonte, and will be running his five races with 'catch as you can' sponsors, or with a blank car. At this point, David continues to be under contract, and it is hopeful that he is being paid due to that contract. David was also not invited to the Charlotte media tour, and he is also not part of the Media 'cattle call' at Daytona. And one wonders why, if Travis will run five races, why they can't use David for a few races? David would most certainly be a great ringer for the road course events.

It is painfully obvious that David is on the team in name only, and there will be no effort to support him. I understand that Max and Doug certainly have the need to run profitable businesses. Having sponsored cars is great. Having a driver the likes of Bobby Labonte is equally great. But both Bobby and Paul need to be grateful that Travis and David paved the way for them. If not for the efforts of Gilliland and Kvapil, there would not be teams there waiting for them to step into.


The two Yates cars will probably do much better in 2009. But, it will be because Yates is running with sponsorship funds, not due to lack of effort from either of the 2008 drivers. In fact, Max Jones and Doug Yates owe huge debts to both Travis Kvapil and David Gilliland. One hopes that Doug and Max keep that in mind. David, for one, is remaining very generous in his relationships with Doug and Max. It is much more challenging for the fans to remain as generous.

Merry Christmas, Elliott Sadler! Santa Claus, or Out Clause?

There are times when humor and irony are so overwhelming, that one cannot help but laugh. So it was today, for me, as I returned from a day of shopping, to discover an article by Marty Smith at ESPN.com, blaring out the title of "Sources: Gillett Evernham putting Allmendinger in Sadler's No. 19 Dodge" In this article, Smith reports that multiple sources have reported that Sadler was given notice before Christmas that he was being replaced by AJ Allmendinger, in the #19 Dodge at Gillett-Evernham Motorsports.

There were many, who after seeing AJ's performance in the last few races of 2008, commented that AJ was doing better than both Sadler, and the latest Budweiser poster boy, Kasey Kahne. Out of five races at the end of the year, "The Dinger" scored 3 Top 15's, with a 4th finish at 16th. Sadler, in the same 5 races, in equipment that was considered to be better than the 10 car, and with a familiar crew and team, scored his highest position at 25th!

Now really, it is easy to see that GEM would be courting AJ with everything up to and including Roses and Chocolate! AJ took a car, crew and equipment that have had a history of spotty finishes, and started giving CONSISTENT results. AND he was finishing better than the supposed stars of the GEM stable!

Where does the humor and irony come in? Check it out, and decide for yourself!

• May 2008, AJ and Sadler had an on-track incident at the All-Star Race at Lowes Motor Speedway, leaving a frustrated Sadler to refuse to use AJ's name and referred to him as "Whatever his name is!" (Later, after Elliott and AJ supposedly made up, AJ's puppy bit Sadler. Smart Puppy!)
  

• Sadler's Technical Director Rodney Childers, has scampered away to join Micheal Waltrip Racing, joining former Sadler TD Josh Brown!Sadler, over the last few years, has run through several TDs/Crew Chiefs. Regular listeners to the Sadler Scanner report consistent whining about the car, with the TD always placating Sadler to make him feel better. This has been a pattern stretching back into the Pre-Yates days, when Michael McSwain reportedly left Yates after his first test with Sadler, saying they would never get along. (Check out 'Witch Hunt' by fellow blogger One Lugnut Short, for the 'Sadler Crew Chief Report!)
  

• Sadler himself invoked an 'out clause' from his contract to leave Robert Yates Racing mid-season 2006. He left for the 'greener pastures' of Ray Evernham's team, leaving Yates scrambling. When it became known at about the same time that Dale Jarrett was leaving Yates also, taking his UPS sponsorship with him, it left RYR in disarray, with Robert never able to recover and retiring at the end of 2007.
  

• The above linked article states that some of Sadler's sponsors were reported to being shocked and wanting to leave with Sadler. Really now...how tiresome! We heard the same thing when Sadler abandoned M&M's! For some reason, Sadler has a reputation of being a "Sponsor Favorite!" Yet in 2006, M&Ms/Mars, who was widely reported to being ready to leave with Sadler, exhibited great loyalty in staying with Yates, and indeed sponsoring both Yates cars in 2007. M&M's likely never regretted that, not only because of poor results from Sadler in 2007, but because it left them open to sponsoring the 18 car of Kyle Busch, who won 8 times for the Mars company in 2008. I don't really think any of Sadler's current sponsors, once over the shock, will regret this move anymore than M&M's/Mars.
  

• Sadler is reported to be a 'fan favorite' also. Yet, during 2006 and 2007, his fan club members were reporting heavy-handed restrictions on his fan forum, a sparse fan pack that included expired Tylenol, and very little of the promised Driver interaction on the payed fan club forum. It didn't get much better in 2008, at there have been no updates to the site since the off-season. Indeed, it is a few short days away from the New Year, and there is yet any information on Fan Club membership for 2009. Many former fans are still feeling disgust over previous shenanigans of Sadler and his entourage.
  

• And one more irony on this whole 'rumor?' Marty Smith, the writer of the 'sources said' article is the same one that released the information early in the 2006 season, that Sadler was bolting to Ray's team. Marty knew about it months before Sadler made his proclamation of I am leaving Yates, but I have not personally talked to anyone about a job' (paraphrased) and yet a week later he was driving the 19. Marty seems to have an 'in' with Sadler.

• AND, for regular listeners of Sirius radio, we know that Sadler has been a no-show quite often for his weekly radio interview slot. AJ makes it on time, every time! And, he is far more enjoyable to listen to, in my humble opinion!

With all that I type, I find that I still have to remind myself that this is still a rumor only. However, Marty Smith has a lot of 'Credibility Points' and I think this will be interesting to watch as it unfolds. But with every sober reminder, I then find myself giggling hysterically, as I mutter about grass being greener, and 'Out Clause is the cousin of Santa Claus!'

Jeremy Mayfield is probably giggling hysterically, too!

Gillland:Forever Branded as a NASCAR Bad Boy!

When one action overwhelms perception!

NASCAR is filled with personalities, ranging from drivers through the owners, NASCAR officials, and indeed, the track owners. Sometimes, one instance can make an impact on how that person will be perceived forever. At Texas Motor Speedway, during the fall Sprint Cup race, we saw an event of pure payback that still is discussed in the media, and has indeed become a label for all actions both previous and future. David Gilliland suddenly became a Bad Boy!

David Gilliland was 2 laps down in 23rd position, and had been told by his crew chief to keep his spot, as they were racing for points position with many of the cars behind them. They also needed to maintain position with an eye on several cars that were only a lap down, as one of them having problems could mean the difference in points and in money for the beleaguered Yates Racing organization.

Many of David's fans, and a few fans of other drivers, were privy to the actions on the track that day. Apparently, ABC was not as informed, as they did not show any of the events leading up to David's 'moment'. Through the 3-D View of NASCAR.com's Raceview, we saw David get punted several times by Juan Pablo Montoya. And those stalwart fans also know that this is not the first time that JPM has punted David. David 'lost it' and for many of his fans, it was about danged time! Would it have been better at a short track? Yes. Would it have been better for David to just loosen JPM? Yes. But it did not happen that way and it appears that David will now be defined by that act for the rest of his career in NASCAR.

To quote David, “Juan and I had been going back and forth for a few laps. Juan got into my left rear and actually lifted my car. I hate that both cars were torn up. I was out there racing. I meant to get him loose but I didn't mean to wreck him and ruin both of our days. I feel real bad for my team and Yates Racing."

Those who know David know that he is one of the nicest men on the track. Somewhat shy and a plain speaker, he usually does not give the practiced and polished persona that many NASCAR drivers ooze publicly. However his fans hear David on the scanner, and they understand that he is passionate and forthright in his communication, and yet the communication is clear of profanity and disrespect to his team members. There are many drivers in NASCAR's top series who cannot make that claim. I have always marveled that the Public Persona of some of NASCAR's top drivers can be at total odds with their persona in private, and the scanner chatter is one of the first places to hear the difference. And yet, many of the media will continue to discuss David's transgression as if he were the worst of Tony Stewart, Kyle Busch, and Kevin Harvick rolled into one!

For instance, we have a writer for Foxsports, Kristin Valus, who proclaims that David should go to Anger Management class! Huh? While she mentions the obvious issue at TMS, she also cites David Gilliland at Watkins Glen, as having issues with Michael McDowell. The situation there is widely accepted by the vast majority of NASCAR media not named Kristin, that the WG incident was not David's fault. In fact, the only person who proclaimed otherwise, was McD's team owner, Michael Waltrip, who has since dumped the same driver he so staunchly defended. (And yes, Mikey is totally believable, after Jet-Fuel-Gate, and Track-Bar-Gate!)

Many drivers in NASCAR become defined by specific acts. Those actions become a benchmark for all actions past and future. What is important to understand, is that one act does not define the personality for ever and ever. If it did, then we would see many of NASCAR's top drivers being defined only by their bad parts, and not by their 'good parts.' For instance, Tony Stewart would not be forgiven for many of his on track antics even though he is widely known as a very kind and generous man.

There is so much good about David Gilliland, and I am still a staunch fan! I know that he is not perfect, and yet what David IS, is something that anyone who takes the time to know David will find out, there is a good man under all of that negative perception. Given a half a chance, and a full sponsor, I have no doubts that David will show the world what he can do! And even if he doesn't shed the mantle of 'the dastardly deed' he will make his way into respect by most of NASCAR's drivers, especially those that have already felt the wrath of the JPM bumper!

The Rough Times Continue

A few weeks ago, I blogged about the challenges of being a fan of David Gilliland. When I started following David, I knew that it would be a struggle. It would have been so easy to follow the "names" of the sport, the Jimmie Johnsons, Jeff Gordons, Dale Earnhardt, Jrs, etc. Yet, I chose to follow the underdog, and I don't regret it for a bit.

Last year, fans of Yates Racing and David Gilliland were deeply focused on the sponsor search. As time marched closer to Daytona testing, we felt surely there would be a sponsor announcement. Yet the two cars from Yates arrived with "SponsorYates.com" on their hoods. Fans kept hearing that there were possibilities, and as we watched testing in Vegas and Fontana, there were still no announcements.

By Daytona Speedweeks, David had a 5 race sponsorship with FreeCreditReport.com. That sponsorship extended through the season to Indy, and was followed by small sponsorhips from 5 other companies. Travis Kvapil, David's team mate, had 16 sponsors in a 36 race season.

Now, as discussed heavily in this informative article from Scene Daily, we see that NASCAR is reeling from the economy, in much the same way the rest of our country and our world is reeling. Rumors abound that Yates Racing will not be expanding from two to three cars, and since Paul Menard brings his family money with him, that David or Travis may be left out in the cold. Most say that David will be the first to go, but I truly believe that it could be either one, and it will depend on who gets the sponsor.

So, once again, David's fans are feeling lost and insecure. We have not lost faith in our driver, but we may have lost faith in the stability of NASCAR's current system. Franchises, anyone?

A Rough 24 Hours for a Gilliland Fan!

It has indeed been pretty rough to be a fan of David Gilliland during the last 24 hours. As the whole of the NASCAR world knows, there was an altercation between David and Juan Pablo Montoya that resulted in David turning Montoya into the wall.

During the Dickies 500, I was deeply engrossed in the Raceview rendition of NASCAR.com's Trackpass, listening to David's scanner and watching the graphic cars as they moved around the track. I was also in a chat room, and since the ABC broadcast was in a commercial break at the time, I was fully focused on Raceview.

I was shocked to see the 42 approach David, and hit David in the rear several times. Gilliland tried moving out of the way, and JPM kept hammering on him. I 'saw' the wreck. Shocked, I relayed the information to the others in the chat room, and we waited for the return of the broadcast, completely stunned.

The broadcast confirmed what I saw, with an exception. They only showed David taking his shot, not what led up to it.

At this point, I MUST make a statement. David's reaction to JPM may have been over the top. I had already cautioned some of the chat room members, earlier in the race, to not wish anyone to be wrecked, as this track has such high speeds, it could be disastrous.

It is very hard to admit that a favorite driver may have made an error in judgment. It was even harder to listen to the post-race shows on Sirius, as David was being viciously hammered by the fans who were calling in. I finally did something I never do, I turned the receiver off, as I could not bear to listen to it any longer. I woke up this morning, still heart-sick, hearing almost non-stop negative comments on The Morning Drive. Again, very hard!

The next show, Tradin Paint, suddenly seemed like a breath of fresh air. It went 90 minutes without caller comment on the situation, and when the first one called in expressing displeasure with David, Steve Post and Chocolate Myers were steadfast in the statement that David had served his penalty. They felt that if there were to be further sanctions, then JPM deserved to be sanctioned too, as JPM admitted to contacting David. They also said that this action was totally unlike David, and they really like him. I heard similar comments from Moody and Gang on the Sirius Speedway. I also discovered that Carl Edwards jumped to David's defense! Thank you, Carl!

Then, this evening, Tony Stewart Live really shocked me. I mentally had to prepare myself that Tony could roast David. Tony did not do so! He commented that David would not have turned JPM without cause. He illustrated some of the issues that Tony himself has experience with JPM, which were surprisingly similar to the incident in Texas. In fact, when Kyle Petty joined Tony, they talked about the fact that JPM has been so fired up after being in incidents with Kevin Harvick, and others....that the fact that JPM's post race rant was so calm, it could indicate that JPM knew exactly why he was turned.

So far, it appears that an equally great crime may be that David made it look too blatant. So many drivers can turn another, and then with a glint in their eye, declare "Gosh, I hate it that it happened!" Some fans of drivers who have ironically had their own sessions in the "Oval Office" have been the first to jump on the Dump on David bandwagon. Even Jimmy Spencer jumped all over David on his Victory Lane show on Speed. The man who 'never forgets' apparently forgot that he turned Kurt Busch at Indy in 2003.

I do find it comforting that after 24 hours, some of David's peers are stating they understand why it happened, and have declared that this is totally out of character for David. Those of us who have met David know that he is a bit shy, not the least arrogant, and really wants to succeed. His temperament is usually calm, and I think in the whole of the season, I have only heard him curse once, which was immediately followed by an apology to his team. He works side by side with his team at the shop, and his scanner chatter with his team is usually clear and concise.

Again, I am not condoning what David did. But I do appreciate that it took a lot to have David snap like that. And I can't help but believe, that if it was a rough 24 hours for David's fans, then it had to be hell for him. I only hope that Doug Yates and Max Jones stand by David, as he has stood by them during their struggle to rebuild the Yates Racing teams.

Yes, I am still proud of David Gilliland!

After today's finish at Pocono, where David Gilliland finished approximately 34th (at this writing, as I am not sure how the finish actually shuffled out) one would think that I would be embarrassed about my late night post about the upcoming success for David Gilliland!

Not at all! In fact, I am even more hopeful for the future! Listening in on the scanner conversations for the 38 team, I heard that the car was pretty darned good. I also heard adjustments that were very tiny, with no drastic changes at all. It looked like David had a car for the long runs, as he was shortening the distance to the leaders on several of the first runs.

My stress level went up when crew chief Cully Barraclough called David in to pit early. When the race was red flagged, I was fidgeting and nervous the whole time. And I was thankful that the race started back up again.

As the post-red flag laps continued, it looked as if Cully's strategy was going to turn him into a hero. David was in the top ten, and preparing to come in on the next lap, when he ran out of gas. The slow trip to pit road dropped him a lap down. Those of us in race chat were dumb-founded. David reported to the crew how sick he was, and Cully agreed that the whole team was feeling abit ill too.

The final tire stop for the car had David leaving the pits with his best handling car of the day. What is very noteworthy, is that David never once swore at his team. I am sure that the team feels bad enough. It is a pleasure knowing that David's radio is G-rated!

At any rate, David did everything he could, but a failed pit strategy gamble will show up as a bad day. I know that David did want to have a good finish for the last race with Freecreditreport.com on the car.

I would also like to take the time to thank the sponsor Freecreditreport.com. They have been a stalwart sponsor. Thank you very much for your support!

And now, on to Watkins Glen! We know that David can drive road courses. I am sure our team's success will come soon! And I am sure that David will find his way to Victory Lane, especially if these cars keep getting better.

With friends like these.....

With friends like these, who need enemies?

Jack Roush and Jamie McMurray

Jack apparently can't count to 5, as he has claimed to only have 4 teams that are important to him.

Roush discussed the value of drivers in the garage and listed four of his drivers -- Carl Edwards, Greg Biffle, Matt Kenseth and David Ragan -- when talking about working to keep competitors from being taken by other teams. Asked later if he'd intentionally left McMurray off the list, Roush admitted that the driver has not performed up to the standard of the others.

Fortunately, Jack's other drivers came to his defense.

"Jack's like that -- I'm surprised he remembered four of us," Biffle said. "He introduces us at the Christmas party and forgets Matt [laughing]. I think it's just Jack -- I don't think there was an intention of singling out anybody.

Nicely said by Biffle, but I don't think Jamie feels very comfortable right now!

Rusty Wallace, Ryan Newman and Roger Penske

Rusty Wallace, for some reason, felt that it was important to go out on a limb, and throw Ryan Newman under the proverbial bus. Yes, Rusty and Ryan were never friends while team mates at Penske Racing. Yes, Ryan is leaving Penske. One has to wonder how much talking was actually done between Rusty and Roger. And if Roger did 'fire' Ryan, why does Rusty feel a need to divulge the conversation? Roger went to work quickly to attack the statements with the alacrity of a HazMat Cleanup Crew.

"(Newman) made a decision, we made it together that he'd move on," Penske said. "There was no issue between the two of us. There's some reports that there was and that's not the case."

Ryan however, had the best responses, as widely reported.

"Was he conscious when he said it?" Newman asked. "It doesn't matter to me. I know Rusty and his personalities - plural - and everybody is different."

As I think about this, the motivation for Rusty's commentary may well be hidden within this situation. Stremme going to work for Roger may have ramifications all the way down the line to Rusty's Busch team. One wonders if Rusty was hoping that his son Steven could step into the 12 after Ryan leaves.

The potential damage to both Roger and Ryan's credibility might be the biggest issue here. Sadly, by attacking Ryan, Rusty may well have put a wedge in his friendship with Roger Penske. And he may have harmed Ryan's chances for a new ride, and indeed even Roger's ability to get a new driver!

Elliott Sadler, Doug Yates and Jack Roush.

And this is by far the most bizarre of all the 'what in the heck did he just say?' scenarios involving Elliott Sadler. And this time, his accent has nothing to do with it!

Elliott Sadler said Yates Racing does more with less than any team in Sprint Cup. But Sadler also believes the two Yates Fords don't receive the support they deserve in the partnership with Roush Fenway Racing. "When I was there, they never helped us," said Sadler, who drove for the Yates organization from 2003 until the middle of the 2006 season. "And [RFR] still doesn't help them. I really feel for those guys [at Yates Racing]. "I hate to see what they're going through. I would love to see them get with a manufacturer and team that actually supports them." ... Roush and Yates began building engines together while Sadler was there, but the two teams formed a more direct partnership at the end of last season when Yates Racing was in danger of going out of business. ... RFR president Geoff Smith and the RFR marketing team have been actively involved in helping co-owner Doug Yates find sponsorship for the No. 28 and No. 38 Fords. ... Sadler believes his old teammates at Yates still need more help, but he also is impressed with what the organization has accomplished this season. ..."I think it's phenomenal what they've done this year," Sadler said. "For Travis to come in and do what he's done on his first year with that team has been really impressive. I know how hard all those guys work there and I want to see them do well."

Why in the world would Elliott decide that now is the time for him to comment? He makes a point to claim that Jack is not supporting the Yates team, and indeed insists that Jack essentially 'takes' and never gives back. Long time fans of Sadler claim he bears a grudge with Roush that starts back to the days of driving for the Wood Brothers. One likely explanation is that he is using the media as a forum to slam Jack, after Jack's comments about Jamie McMurray (see above) who also happens to be close friends with Salder, and indeed are next-door neighbors. One other possible explanation is that Sadler is setting the stage for GEM to acquire Yates, but frankly, I don't see Robby Gordon getting great benefits from the affiliation with GEM. And the commentary about Travis Kvapil, with no mention of David Gilliland by Sadler, leaves no doubts as to how Sadler feels about his replacement. Of course, anyone listening to Sadler's scanner would have already realized that there is animosity towards the driver of the 38 car..

At any rate, the timing of Sadler's commentary could prove to be damaging to the efforts of his 'friends' at Yates Racing. If there is any doubt cast on the relationship of Yates and Roush, it could well shred any potential relationship with interested sponsors. Thanks, Elliott, for all of your help!

Again, having friends like the above suggest that it may better to consort with your enemies. But then again, it might be getting difficult to make that distinction in the NASCAR garage.

Three David's Battling NASCAR's Goliath

Three David's, all battling the Goliath of racing at NASCAR's pinnacle. David Ragan, David Reutimann, and David Gilliland. In their first year, they were all vilified by their more experienced peers, but are now earning respect in the garage. They all have some very strong similarities, going far beyond the common first names.



Family Legacy - Each David comes from a family rich in racing heritage.

• David Ragan's father, Ken, had 50 Cup race starts over a career spanning 8 years. His best finish was 11th at Talladega in 1984. He also managed 600 Racing, the Harrisburg plant that produces Legends, Bandoleros and Thunder Roadsters.
  

• David Gilliland's father Butch is also well-known on the short track, but his history is primarily West Coast. Winner of the 1997 Winston West Championship, Butch also raced 12 Craftsman Truck races and 10 Races at the Winston Cup level.
  

• David Reutimann's father is known to the world as Buzzie. Buzzie is shown as having only raced in one 'Grand National' race back in 1963, but that was a top ten finish! He is best known for his hard-charging style on the short tracks. There are four generations of racers in the Reutimann family.
  

The history of the David's:

• Ragan worked in the shop of Dash series driver Cam Strader, and also prepared the late model cars that he was to drive in 2002. Ragan worked countless hours preparing the cars that Strader would race to the 2001 series Championship.
  

• Gilliland grew up working on the cars owned by his father. Indeed, at the age of 20, Gilliland was awarded the Champion Crew Chief of the Year award after his father became the 1997 NASCAR Winston West Champion.
  

• Reutimann's whole family history is nothing but working on cars. Generations have raced out of the Zephryhills Florida garage, where the 4th generation is now hitting the tracks.
  

As much as they are similar, there are also some noticeable differences.

Age
Ragan is the youngster of the group. Born in 1985, he is certainly the youngest when stacked up to Reutimann' age of 38 and Gilliland's 32 years.

How they got started:

• After a handful of races in the upper levels, Ragan was able to snag a ride through Jack Roush's driver tests.

• After spending several competitive years in the late model series on the West Coast, Gilliland entered just a couple of truck races, and a limited Busch schedule, before he snatched the checkered flag at Kentucky, thereby catapulting him into the Robert Yates ride.

• Reutimann worked his way up from Late models, then drove a handful of Busch series races before driving for Darrell Waltrip in the Truck series. That most certainly opened the door into his ride for Darrell's brother Michael, where he is currently driving both the Nationwide and the Sprint Cup series.
  

Their current Cup rides:

• Ragan is driving the #6 car for Roush-Fenway Racing. He sits 17th in the points.

• Gilliland is driving in the newly rebuilt Yates Racing #38 ride, and is sitting 22nd in the points.

• Reutimann is driving the #44 car for Michael Waltrip Racing. He is currently at 27th in the points.

Crew Chiefs

• Ragan - 20 year veteran Jimmy Fennig

• Gilliland - 1st year Cup CC, one year in Busch as a Crew Chief, Cully Barraclough

• Reutimann - 11 year Cup veteran Ryan Pemberton

Equipment

• Ragan- state of the art from Roush-Fenway Racing
  

• Gilliland-struggled last year in equipment that was not drivable by even the likes of team mate Ricky Rudd. Now working the the equivalent of a start-up organization, running partly unsponsored. Yates Racing is buying cars and services from Roush-Fenway.
  

• Reutimann-struggling last year, not only in a start up team, but the first year for the Toyota first year attempt in NASCAR.

All three drivers are talented. All three are being noted as up and coming drivers. And all three have shown marked improvement in the last year. All three, eventually, will show that they can compete on equal footing with the Goliath's of NASCAR. It will be worth watching how their careers progress.

Meandering among the Loudon Marbles.

This year's first race at Loudon is over. Finally!

• I fully understand that the enjoyment of watching a race goes hand in hand with the results of my particular driver, For instance, I thoroughly enjoyed watching Sonoma, and I hated watching today's race at Loudon. And yes, it depended totally on how my driver fared.

• Major belated props to David Gilliland for last week's podium finish at Infineion Raceway. He impressed fans and peers alike, receiving accolades from the likes of Kyle Busch, Tony Stewart, and Jeff Gordon, along with a host of media writers and broadcasters. He deserved every bit of the praise.

• This week was not so good for either Yates Racing team! The COT proves that it is very fickle, and if the set-up is slightly off, the driver and crew chief will spend the entire race chasing the track, and chasing the set up.

• Add Jamie McMurray to the Hate List for the Junior Nation. While the rear-ending of Jr seems to have been pointless, many fans forget there is a tremendous amount of things that drivers have to react to, including suddenly closing in on a car that comes down to try and pit. I firmly believe that McMurray would never have purposely taken his own car out of the race in that manner.

• The 4th of July Fireworks happened a week early, when Kyle Busch and Juan Pablo Montoya had their little tiff on track. Kyle was quite amusing in his post-race interview, with his air of injured dignity. Juan Pablo, however, boldly admitted he wrecked Kyle on purpose. After visiting with his new friends in the NASCAR hauler, he left with a 2 lap penalty. (David Gilliland's fans thank you for that JPM! It gave us an extra sorely needed finishing spot!)

• Sadly, the shenanigans of the above two wrecks will take away from the win of Kurt Busch. In fact, I am sure there will be discussion that the top 6 cars did not deserve their finishes, as they never ran up front during the race. However, each of those cars played their strategy brilliantly, and therefor deserve their finishes just as ANY other fuel race. ALL races are, to a degree, fuel management races. Sadly, the controversies of the two wrecks will over-shadow any joy for the fans of those drivers.

• Oh, and major props to Casey Mears. He got the word last week that he was the odd man out at Hendrick Motorsports. And of course, this week he runs the best race of the season.

• Silly Season has turned into a huge merry-go-round. The NASCAR World is watching for Tony Stewart to declare his intentions, so that we can watch all of the other dominoes fall in place. The only true domino I wish to see would be the ones of sponsors declaring their faith in Yates Racing, to ensure the continuation of the organization in the sport.

Sliding through the Marbles!

Three days later, there is, amazingly, still more fall-out from the Sprint Fan Vote, which allows a driver to be voted into the All-Star race.
Fans of Dale Earnhardt, Jr, were tasked, by no less than Jr himself, to vote for Elliott Sadler. And now that it has been reported on NASCAR.com that Sadler finished third in the fan vote, the Jr. Nation is concerned that they are not quite as powerful as they believed.

Claims have ranged from voting bots and macros being used, to Budweiser 'buying' the vote. Even this morning's discussion on The Morning Drive (Sirius) has David Poole and Mike Bagley speculating on reasons for the actual voting stats not being revealed.

Fans of Elliott Sadler are claiming that Sadler really should have been the one winning the vote (if he had not crashed), as they are sure that Robby Gordon does not have enough of a fan base. (Oh, how wrong they are! Robby has a large and passionate group of followers. Anyone who was around back in the day of the Trackpass '11th man' voting will remember how it was impossible to go against the tide of their voting!)

It would be awesome if Sprint would release those numbers. However, I will not hold my breath waiting for the results to be published. After all, this was a vote sponsored by the series sponsor, and as such, they can make the rules.

Speaking of Sadler fans, there is a large contingent claiming that AJ Allmendinger never apologized for the accident with Sadler. It amazes me that they are still complaining, even after AJ's post-race comments have been widely published. In fact, AJ's comments post-wreck were broadcast. However, if one does not want to hear anything, it is a simple thing to keep the fingers firmly plugged into the ears while shouting 'LA LA LA LA LA!'

Great news for fans (and unofficial students) of Diandra Leslie-Pelecky! She will be a guest on Sirius Speedway this week, and it appears she will be a regular guest. If you haven't found her Stock Car Science blog, check it out. Her book, The Physics of NASCAR, is a must read.

More great news! If we can judge the entry list correctly, it appears that Travis Kvapil will have Lumber Liquidators on their #28 Ford Fusion for the Coca-Cola 600. According to an interview from Travis on "Trading Paint" (Sirius) last week, Travis said there was a sponsor for this race in the works, as well as a few in the future.

I also neglected to bid a fond farewell to Dale Jarrett. While it is sad that he will not be behind the wheel any longer, it will be wonderful to have him in the ESPN broadcast booth.

And don't forget, this week qualifying will be on THURSDAY! Get your fantasy picks in soon!

Meandering Amongst the Marbles!

There were some surprises coming out of the NASCAR All-Star event at Lowes Motor Speedway, but the few surprises were buried in a heap of boredom.

• Congrats to AJ Allmendinger and Sam Hornish, Jr. Both former open-wheel stars raced to the top 2 spots in the Sprint Showdown, thereby transferring to the All-Star Race. Both started from the rear of the field. While AJ finished 17th in the All-star, Hornish was able to push his way to 7th.
  

• Additional congratulations go to Kasey Kahne, the winner of the Fan Vote and then the All-Star race. As much as I hate the All-Star voting, this time it worked well! I did note, though, that Elliott Sadler finished 3rd in the voting, so evidently even the JR Nation could not make Sadler any closer to winning the popularity contest.

• Let us not forget Matt Crafton finally finding his way to Victory Lane in the Craftsman Truck series. During his interview on Sirius this week, he claimed that he and his crew chief felt they were on the verge of grabbing the checkers. They were right!
  

• Kasey will not have to worry about the whole 'Vote thing' for the next ten years, due to his win. So, will Jr endorse Sadler again next year? I wonder how Chevy felt about JR throwing support to a driver of a competing manufacturer! Hmmmm! Enquiring minds want to know!

• How ironic that the first two cautions in the Showdown were caused by two of the three GEM cars. The 10 and the 19 were out early. I am most thankful that we will not be subjected to Carpentier running nude down the front strecth. The vision of the double-tracking gaited driver wrapped in a checkered flag diaper is forever seared into my mind.
  

• Internet buzz still is of the opinion that Sadler was out of line when he was slamming AJ Allmendinger, post wreck. It will be interesting to see if Elliott actually shows up for his weekly appearance on Sirius Speedway. And if he does show, what will he say? Sadly, there is no way to retract ugly-talk. I can't help but remember the interview with Miss Bell Sadler, as she discussed that Elliott was a bit spoiled. Perhaps he has never out-grown that attitude.
  

• The latest Tony Stewart rumor has him buying into JR Motorsports. Many wonder how well he and Jr. would do as business partners, but many forget they are already partners with each other in the VLP club.
  

• There are quite a few cars that will have to go back to the drawing board, if NASCAR has their way. Ironically, some of the cars at issue include the 77 of Sam Hornish, Jr. Carl Edwards claims that his car never had any problem getting on the scales, in spite of being called out by Jeff Gordon.
  

• The two Yates Racing entries had a good showing in the Sprint Showdown. David Gilliland finished 7th in his FreeCreditReport.com Ford Fusion, followed by team mate Travis Kvapil in the unsponsored 28 Ford.
  

• Engine problems seemed to plague the Gibbs teams this weekend. Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin both had to retire early due to power plant failure. And Tony Stewart started from the back due to changing an engine prior to the race. This little blurb on Jayski.com sums up the issue.
  

Joe Gibbs Racing used its engines in the all-star race as opposed to the engines it receives from Toyota Racing Development. The team plans to go back to TRD motors for the Coca-Cola 600. Since the all-star race is a non-points race, it provides teams a chance to test equipment without fear that a failure will hurt them in the points.(Roanoke Times), #20-Stewart had to change engines before the race, #11-Hamlin and #18-Busch both lost engines during the All-Star race, all three had rocker-arm problems.(5-19-2008)

• Speaking again of the Fan Vote, there are many internet boards that claim "something is wrong with the vote process." Apparently some fans used 'voting macros' or 'voting bots' to try and sway the votes in the favor of their own driver. One wonders if ALL of the fans were using the voting bots, thereby canceling each other out.

The next few days may include some interesting revelations! There are rumors that there may be some more sponsorship for one or both of the Yates cars. Awesome!

M&M's, Pedigree, and Weapons of Mass Disgust, Oh My!

Richmond International Raceway - a race track that inspires drivers to claim it is the penultimate racing experience. Fans claim the same, and I must say I would be included in that claim. I visited RIR 4 years ago, and reminisce fondly on the whole experience.
The fans attending the race on May 3rd received a more exciting show than the value of their tickets implied. This race will compare to the most memorable races in the annals of NASCAR history, only because of the quirkiest of events.

First, Kudos to my favorite driver, David Gilliland! While Freecreditreport.com has extended their agreement with Yates, it is widely speculated that the car decorations are 'gratis' until the next big-time sponsor can be found. "Gratis or not, I am grateful for the logo's and I will be wearing purple and black as long as the FCR pirate hat continues to adorn the quarter panels.David had a marvelous run, starting from the 40's (when will the Yates cars start qualifying better?) and ran as high as 14th. Sadly, he was involved in the lap 230 fiasco that sent several cars to the garage. David's car was one of three that never returned to the track. His team mate, Travis Kvapil, finished 16th, and is now 19th in driver points with David sitting 20th. Not bad for two teams that are sorely underfunded! I am sure there are some big dollar sponsors out there who want some exposure! At any rate, this driver will continue to show the promise that came from his Cinderella-like win in the Busch series a few years ago.



Denny Hamlin certainly appeared to be the class of the field. Every restart had the hometown hero charging away from the pack, and he seemed to be unstoppable. Disaster struck for the 11 team when a tire was going down, and Denny stopped the car on the track, forcing a caution. Parked two laps by NASCAR for the infraction, he would certainly have gone down as many laps, if not more, with a green flag stop or a tire blow-out.

Denny's forced caution set the scene for one of the most talked about events of the last two days. Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. were racing side by side, when a 'racing deal' caused Jr. to spin, backing into the outside wall. The anger from the fans was evident in single digit gestures, booing, and the traditional "Jr got dumped" rain of beer cans, aka Weapons of Mass Disgust.



A Sunday afternoon spent browsing the internet shows there are three sharply divided camps on the Jr. vs Kyle subject.

• Group one is made up mostly of media, and a few fans who 'have no dog in that hunt.' The opinion's seem to agree that a racing deal happened. The members of this group are pretty sure that Kyle did not intend for it to happen, and should not be penalized by the Jr. Nation.
  

• Group two is the "I hate Jr and will now love Kyle" faction. Any driver that is involved in a battle with the scion of the man called Senior is automatically moved to the top of their list! They dismiss 17 Cup wins as a fluke in their sureness that Jr. is over-rated.
  

• And the third group is the one that will cause this event to never, ever be forgotten. Fans of Dale Earnhardt, Jr. will not forgive this one easily. Already nicknamed Vile Kyle on more than one message forum, an arrogant attitude will force this driver to endure boo's and catcalls during driver intros for years in the future.
  

Many fans are already busy writing a plethora of emails and letters to every media venue available, to Gibbs racing, and are busy creating a hate-mail campaign to Mars, Inc., the sponsor of Kyle Busch. The anger directed to Kyle Busch will overflow to Mars being instructed on the sanity of sponsoring such a controversial driver, with threats to never ever purchase any of the products ever.

Kyle's attitude reared it's head in the Richmond Nationwide race on Friday. A post-race scuffle with Steven Wallace caused Kyle to mouth some pretty self-damning statements. Kyle is showing the world his attitude with statements such as

...he's probably not even driving Ritchie Wauter's Super Late Models anymore either.

and

We've got a lot of things that go on, but this is just a little piece of the pie. I race in the Sprint Cup Series...

The most amusing quote though, was

"That's Rusty Wallace's kid so I'm not sure you're going to be able to talk to him much and get through his head...

One cannot help but reflect "Mr. Pot, meet Mr. Kettle!"

One also wonders if Mars got more than they expected. With the announced intent to acquire Wrigley, they may well have two of the most despised drivers on the NASCAR series driving cars under their banner. Oh my! Kyle Busch and Juan Pablo Montoya as 'mates! Who would have thought! And oh, by the way....congratulations to Clint Bowyer, the forgotten winner!

Sponsor for Yates and Gilliland?

NASCAR fans of Yates Racing today received a jolt of excitement, all due to one Mr. Dave Moody, kingpin of the Sirius Speedway show. Those who were listening today heard a fan call in, waxing poetic over the attributes of both Yates Racing drivers, David Gilliland and Travis Kvapil. Then Mr. Moody dropped some information that had me all agog!

As many know, Yates Racing has been a study of perseverance and tenacity. With next to nothing in the way of sponsorship, both Gilliland and Kvapil have carefully driven their cars into the midpack of the points. Many times, the cars were bare white, with numbers and 'SponsorYates.com' on their quarter panels. Many in the NASCAR world have marveled that these 'plain white wrapper' cars are outperforming many cars that have big name, and presumably big buck sponsorship.

Meanwhile, back to Sirius Speedway. The fan who called in talked about how great the two cars are driving. Dave Moody piped up with commentary that, while he was unable to pin down Doug Yates at last week's race, he had heard some interesting rumors that Yates may have sponsor decals on the quarter panels in the near future. He did emphasize that there was nothing finished, and no guarantees until the check had been received and cashed!

While I won't be holding my breath waiting for confirmation of this news, I will be keeping an eye on Jayski, and the other rumor sites. I will now be sure to listen to ALL Sirius shows, to hopefully hear trickles of news.

And if a sponsor deal is indeed around the corner, I applaud the sponsor. I want that 'mythical' sponsor to KNOW that fans of David and Travis will be thrilled to throw their support behind that sponsor! A sponsor will get an outstanding deal with those two!

And if there is no truth to this rumor, then I am sure that there are sponsors out there who would be a perfect fit with Yates Racing. And if you are a sponsor in the process of looking, then what the heck are you waiting for?

NASCAR Sponsor Roulette!

What do all of these NASCAR sponsors have in common?

Caterpillar
Target
Red Bull
Valvoline
United States Air Force
Motorcraft
UPS
Microsoft

And what do the above teams have, when combined with the following NASCAR sponsored teams?

Menards
Napa
State Water Heaters
DLP
Mobil One
Aarons Rentals

Both groups are behind the two UNSPONSORED Yates Racing cars in points. And even worse, the first group of sponsors are on cars that are not locked into the Top 35 in points, and have a chance of not even being seen in a race.



photo credit Snafam



photo credit MMSMama via DavidGilliland.com


What is wrong with that picture? Either picture?

Potential Sponsors..... please go to SponsorYates.com. This is your perfect chance to get in at the entry level.

All of the above listed sponsors need to take a long look at their own programs right now. As witnessed by General Mills moving to Richard Childress Racing, it is not too early to start your plans for next year.

After all, today at Texas Motor Speedway, those Yates cars finished 15th and 18th, and outran over half of the field. They will produce for you, too!