- Geoff Bodine keeps on racing: Geoff Bodine made a name for himself by winning 18 NASCAR Sprint Cup races and rubbing fenders with the likes of Dale Earnhardt. These days, Bodine finds himself trading paint with Father Time. It’s a race the 60-year- old knows nobody can win, but he wakes up every day determined to keep plugging away. “I don’t want to get old. I don’t want to act old,” Bodine said. “When I die, I want some quality in my life.” Bodine looked anything but old as he perched on a guardrail near his #99 Pontiac GTO in the infield of Lonesome Pine Raceway on Saturday afternoon. The veteran was in Coeburn to run a pair of 75-lap ISCAR Dash Series feature races. Bodine said ISCAR, which is the resurrection of the old Goody’s Dash Series, is a great steppingstone for young racers because it gives them a division where they can make the transition from Legend cars to Late Models.(Kingsport Times News)(6-28-2009) Comment here
- McGriff, 81, Ready for Return to Infineon Raceway: Eighty-one year old Hershel McGriff has had enough of retirement, and the legendary driver will make his return behind the wheel at Infineon Raceway for the Bennett Lane Winery 200, presented by Supercuts, on Saturday, June 20. McGriff walked away from racing in 2002, but he will compete in three road-course events on this year’s NASCAR Camping World Series West schedule, including the series’ only stop in Sonoma. If McGriff takes the checkered flag, he would become the oldest driver to ever win in one of NASCAR’s premier series. McGriff has reason to be excited about making his return at the Sonoma Valley road course. He has earned four West Series victories at Infineon Raceway (1983, ’85, ’87, ’89) and still has the track record for most West Series poles with three. Perhaps best known for his talent on a road course, it’s only natural that McGriff makes his return at the road-course events. McGriff’s racing career is one that pre-dates NASCAR and spans seven decades of racing. His first race was at 17 years of age after his family moved to Portland and from there his career took off. McGriff was presented with the NASCAR Award of Excellence and named one of the 50 Greatest Drivers in NASCAR in 1998. He was also inducted into the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame in its inaugural year in 2003. McGriff’s popularity among fans was indicated by the record 12 consecutive years (1981-1992), that he was named the Most Popular Driver in the NASCAR Camping World Series West.(Infineon Raceway), McGridd also has four Sprint Cup wins in 85 races from 1950-1993.(6-17-2009)
- Jr. Johnson son wins first race: In his first race of his young career, Robert Johnson, the son of NASCAR legend Junior Johnson and wife Lisa started sixth in the Sportsman division race at Caraway Speedway in Asheboro NC and won the race by a half a car length. Johnson is sponsored by Carolina Carports and Junior Johnson's country ham.(Robert/Jr. Johnson PR)(5-5-2009)
- Ward Burton to serve as sports marshal of festival: former Sprint Cup driver, Ward Burton, winner of five Nextel Cup races, is scheduled to be the sports marshal of the 2009 Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival and appear in many functions of the festival May 1-2. More info at thebloom.com.(4-18-2009)
- Petty to be grand marshal at Iowa Speedway event: NASCAR legend Richard Petty will be grand marshal of an event next month at the Iowa Speedway in Newton. Petty will serve as grand marshal for the NASCAR Camping World East/West Series race May 17. It will be the first of four NASCAR races at the speedway in 2009. The Iowa Speedway opened in 2006.(Associated Press/USA Today)(4-14-2009) Comment here
- Junior Johnson's son to make racing debut: Robert Johnson, the son of Junior and Lisa Johnson, is scheduled to be make his racing debut April 4th driving a Late Model car on dirt at Friendship Speedway in Elkin, NC. Johnson's team will be lead by his father and veteran NASCAR crew member Rock Harris. Sponsor's for Johnson's effort in 2009 will Carolina Carports and Junior Johnson Country Ham.(Robert and Junior Johnson PR)(4-1-2009)
- Elder honored at benefit in Mooresville: Despite a cold rain that washed out some activities outside the museum, the third annual Legends Helping Legends of Racing event on Saturday at the
Memory Lane Motorsports & Automotive Museum in Mooresville was a rousing success. Hundreds of race fans found room indoors to meet and talk with dozens of former drivers and mechanics who turned out to honor one of their own. That would be Jake Elder, a longtime crew chief known in racing circles as "Suitcase Jake" because of the many stops he had along the path in his racing career. Elder won championships with David Pearson and Dale Earnhardt [along with Doug Richert in 1980, Elder left the team in May], but there's more to him that just what you can list in record books. Elder had next to no formal education and those who know him will tell you he never wrote anything down. That does not mean that he was not also a great teacher who passed on some of his knowledge about racing and race cars to the generation who followed. Elder sat Saturday in a room lined with tables full of people he'd once raced with and against. It would have been wonderful if Elder could have a told a story about each person willing to tell a story on him, but Elder's health no longer allows that. This was Elder's first trip in a year or so outside the assisted-care facility in Statesville [NC] where he now lives. Elder's friends came to raise money to help the family deal with the financial burden of his long-term care.(in part from the Charlotte Observer)
AND: Saturday’s wet weather likely hurt the day’s attendance, but didn’t dull the excitement of the crowd. Well before the scheduled 10 a.m. opening, the line of fans had already begun to snake around three walls inside the building, back through the museum and out into the gift shop. They had arrived with a little bit of everything – from die-cast cars and trading cards to racing helmets and thick scrapbooks. Some arrived with nothing more than memories of days gone by and races already run. The people they came to see were no less pleased to lend their time to such a worthy cause. And the group ran the gamut, from championship-winning drivers to noted engine builders and crew chiefs. An all-star lineup that included Richard Petty, Bobby and Donnie Allison. Little Bud Moore and Neil “Soapy” Castles. Travis Carter, Ned Jarrett and Jimmy Hensley. Famed engine builders Wilson and Lou LaRosa. Former crew chiefs Dale Inman, Hammond, Tim Brewer and Mike Beam.(SceneDaily)(3-15-2009) Comment here
- Former NASCAR driver charged with making moonshine: Charges were filed late this morning in connection with a large liquor still found near the North Wilkesboro Speedway on Speedway Road and blown up by authorities Thursday night. Carl Dean Combs 57, of Speedway Road, North Wilkesboro [NC], was charged with manufacturing non-tax paid liquor, as well as one count each of possessing, possessing ingredients to manufacture and possessing equipment to manufacture non-tax paid liquor, said N.C. Alcohol Law Enforcement (ALE) Agent Shon Tally. Tally said Combs was at his nearby residence when he and other ALE agents found the still in the back of a gray shop building behind a go-cart track, near the North Wilkesboro Speedway (Wilkes Journal Patriot). Combs made 24 Sprint Cup [then WInston Cup] starts from 1981-1984 with a best finish of 8th at Atlanta in Nov 1983. He also was a five-time champion in NASCAR's now-defunct Goody's Dash Series and was a crew chief for car owner Junior Johnson.(3-4-2009) Comment here
- DW signed as spokesperson: Joe McDonnell, chief executive officer of For Life Products (FLP), announced the signing of three-time NASCAR Champion and FOX Lead Sports Analyst Darrell Waltrip to a multi-year deal as official spokesman for FLP's Rejuvenate Auto product line. The home and auto surface-care products manufacturer and marketer will feature Waltrip in a new national $20 million advertising campaign with Waltrip's endorsements in its new television commercial, new product packaging and point-of-sale displays. FLP's Rejuvenate brand, the leader in consumer-based, commercial-grade solutions for cleaning, restoring and protecting flooring, cabinets and other home surfaces, has the No. 1 selling floor-care product at the nation's largest do-it-yourself retailer. FLP is expanding Rejuvenate to include its eight auto-care products under the "Rejuvenate Auto" umbrella. Foremost is Rejuvenate Auto 15- Minute Wash & Wax Renewer, which is endorsed by the National Corvette Owners Association (NCOA) and provides showroom-quality auto detailing.(For Life Products PR)(3-5-2009)
- Rusty and Evernham team up to run at Bristol: Rusty Wallace and Ray Evernham announced that they will team to pilot a #2 Chevy in the March 21st Saturday Night Special at Bristol Motor Speedway. The event marks Wallace’s first career start at Bristol while driving a Chevy. Said Wallace, “When the opportunity to run this race first came about, of course I was interested, but I just didn’t really pay it a lot of attention. But then, when I saw all of these guys signing up to run, there was no way I was going to let Junior Johnson, Harry Gant and those guys get another chance at Bristol’s Victory Lane without me. I’ve been in Victory Lane there a lot of times before and you can bet that Ray and I are going to be trying like heck to get there again. Everyone’s acting like this thing’s just going to be for charity, but you better believe that we’re all in it to win it. Ray and I are bringing a bad little hot rod painted up just like my old Miller Genuine Draft cars and we’re going to try to take it to them one last time at Bristol.”
Noted Evernham, “When you look back at it, Rusty and Jeff (Gordon) were really the guys to beat at Bristol for a long, long time. Through all of those races, I’d like to think that I’ve learned a few tricks about how to get around Bristol. Believe me, we’re going to use all of them that Saturday night.” Wallace and Evernham both currently serve as studio analysts for ABC and ESPN’s coverage of NASCAR and can be seen each weekend during NASCAR Countdown.(Rusty Wallace Racing PR)(2-28-2009) Comment here
- What's Up with Ward Burton? Ward Burton would like to see every youngster get the same opportunities that he had. And the 2002 Daytona 500 winner is not talking about winning NASCAR races. Rather Burton is concerned that many of the youth of today do not know what it is like to enjoy outdoor activities such as hunting and fishing. In 1996, he founded the nonprofit Ward Burton Wildlife Foundation, an organization aimed at providing outdoors opportunities to the future hunters and fishermen. Burton, who made an appearance recently at the Eastern Sports and Outdoor Show in Harrisburg, is working through the school system in his native Virginia, something that may take more work to accomplish in Pennsylvania, where most school districts have done away with the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s hunter education programs. Recalling a recent outing with a seventh grade class from a Virginia middle school, Burton said, “You would not believe the percentage of kids who had never been fishing, or never had seen a beaver swamp or didn’t recognize a raccoon track on a bank, just simple common things.” He said he is concerned about the loss of the rural culture which, he said, is responsible for today’s young people having what he called “nature deficit disorder.” He said, “They don’t understand the things that we take for granted because of the way that we were brought up.”(see the full article at the Daily Item)(2-23-2009) Comment here
- Legendary Car Owner Raymond Parks at Daytona 500: Over half a century after his cars and drivers raced their way into history, former NASCAR team owner Raymond Parks returned to the track for Sunday's 51st Daytona 500. Parks, who celebrates his 95th birthday in 2009, attended the pre-race drivers meeting. He also participated in several photos with NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France and NASCAR President Mike Helton, plus another photo with one of his historic race cars – a black 1939 Ford Coupe on display in Daytona International Speedway's Sprint FANZONE. A Dawson County, Georgia native, Parks is one of stock-car racing's earliest – and most successful – team owners. NASCAR founder Bill France drove for him and his cars were considered among the best of their time. "Raymond Parks is one of the nicest men the sport has ever known," said Jim Hunter, NASCAR's vice president for corporate communications. "He's a true southern gentleman, and he supported the sport long before NASCAR was a household word." Funded by successful business and real estate ventures in Atlanta, Park began his career as a stock-car owner in 1938 with drivers Lloyd Seay and Roy Hall. His pairing with another Atlantan, mechanic Red Vogt, produced equipment good enough to dominate the sport throughout much of the 1940s. Driver Red Byron won the first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series title in 1949 in a Parks-owned car. Parks retired from racing in 1952.(NASCAR PR)(2-17-2009)
- Lengendary racers to run charity race at Bristol: Darrell Waltrip, Harry Gant, David Pearson, Junior Johnson and other champion drivers are scheduled to be a part of the first Saturday Night Special at Bristol Motor Speedway Saturday, March 21. Paired with celebrity partners, these legendary racers will run 35 circuits of a 50-lap event to benefit charity and send race fans on a trip down memory lane. Assigned teammates will start the race and run 15 laps. At the end of that segment, some of Bristol’s best will start the second portion of the race in the order of finish of the first. Drivers will be competing in late model stock cars and $25,000 will be donated to the charity of choice of the winning team. The second-place team will have $10,000 given to the charity of its choice and $5,000 will go to the designated charity of the other entrants. But that big Bristol trophy they get to keep for themselves. “It’s been a while,” said Johnson, who has one win as a driver, but 20 at BMS as a car owner. “But I think I can still turn some laps around this place. Darrell better buckle up.” Terry Labonte, Sterling Marlin, Jimmy Spencer and Phil Parsons also are expected to compete. Dale Jarrett, Richard Petty, Rusty Wallace and Cale Yarborough were extended invitations. The Saturday Night Special will take place after the completion of the Scotts Turf Builder 300 Nationwide Series race and the 100-lap UARA late model event. Info on Tickets at (423) 989-6900 and toll-free (866) 415-4158.(BMS PR)(2-5-2009) Comment here
- Terry Labonte looks to compete in 10 to 12 Cup races: Terry Labonte retired from driving full time in 2004, but that doesn’t mean he’s ready to throw away his helmet. Labonte has competed in 44 races in the four years since he retired, and he will attempt to make this year’s Daytona 500 in Prism Motorsports’ #66 Toyota. So far, that’s Labonte’s only scheduled race this year, but things could change.
“I wouldn’t mind running eight or 10 or 12 races, something like that,” Labonte said. “It would depend who it was. I’ve got to know them. I had a blast last year. It was actually fun.” Labonte insists he’s still retired from full-time competition, saying he doesn’t understand “why anybody would want to run every week.”(SceneDaily)(2-4-2009) Comment here
- Junior Johnson's son is.....racing: Robert Johnson is rail thin and tall, very nearly a full head taller than his dad.
The young man has the build of a basketball player, but instead, he plays lacrosse at school. Now, Robert has a new sport – racing – on which to concentrate and he has a pretty good coach during the early stages of his driving career. Others have turned to his dad for advice for years. When Junior Johnson talks, people listen. This is how far Robert’s racing career has progressed – he already has hero cards, and nice ones at that. On the back, a couple of his hobbies are listed as “driving ANYTHING” and “learning about racing.” He’s a freshman at Forsyth Country Day in North Carolina, where Richard Childress’ grandsons are also students. So far, there are a couple of cars in the Robert Johnson stable, one that’ll run on dirt, the other on asphalt, with another machine on the way. Of course, he’s using the #11, the number made famous by Junior Johnson & Associates drivers like Cale Yarborough, Darrell Waltrip and Bill Elliott. “I started thinking about (driving) a few years ago,” says the 15-year-old Robert. “I kept talking about it, and finally got something going. I learn a lot about racing just from being around (Junior), and I decided I’d see if I could do it myself.”
“He’s been talking about it … you know how kids are … since he was eight, 10, 11, 12 years old,” Junior adds. “He’s all the time acting a monkey on golf carts and stuff. You can tell he’s interested in it, and he asked me one day if I would get him a car.” See full story at Rick Houston's Stock Car History Online.(1-26-2009) Comment here
- Richard Petty releasing audio book: NASCAR's King has spoken. Richard Petty is releasing an audiobook to coincide with the 25th anniversary of his record 200th career victory. Stock car racing "is a very popular sport, but every year that goes by, we leave a little bit of our past behind," Petty said. He added that the audiobook "will help bring our colorful past into public consciousness. This is not just about Richard Petty or Petty Enterprises. This is about the history of a great sport." The four-hour, four-disc series is titled "Richard Petty's Audio Scrapbook." On it, Petty is joined by longtime racing announcer Barney Hall, former crew chief Dale Inman and drivers Junior Johnson, David Pearson and Bobby Allison. His audiobook is scheduled for release in February during the week of the Daytona 500, a race he won seven times. Petty claimed victory #200 at one of the other major annual events at Daytona International Speedway, the Firecracker 400 in July 1984.(Associated Press / Charlotte Observer)(12-26-2008) Comment here
- Yarborough Surprises Johnson With Ring Presentation: Three-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Cale Yarborough made an unannounced appearance tonight at the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Awards Ceremony at the Waldorf=Astoria Hotel in New York City. Followed by a rousing standing ovation, Yarborough presented the championship ring to 2008 series champion Jimmie Johnson during this year’s annual ceremony. The two champions will be forever linked in NASCAR lore. This season, Johnson joined Yarborough as the only drivers to win three consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup championships. Yarborough accomplished the historic feat from 1976-78. During Yarborough’s incredible three-year stretch, he posted 28 wins, 70 top-five and 74 top-10 finishes.
"Somebody finally did it,” Yarborough said. “I set a pretty good record, didn't I? It took them 30 years to tie it. There are only two of us who have done it in the 60 years of the sport. That's a pretty good accomplishment. You know, I haven't been to this banquet in several years, but tonight I feel like I got my racing spirit back. You know, all he really did is tie the record – he still has to break it. He still has some work to do. I want to congratulate Jimmie; he's a great man and a great racer. I know he's going to win some more championships. Maybe he can skip a year though."
Yarborough’s famous swagger continues to this day. During his speech, he told team owner Rick Hendrick that if there was a ride open in his stable, he could have the first 70-year-old series champion. Yarborough turns 70 next March. Johnson matched Yarborough’s record with another typically brilliant performance. In 2008, Johnson had seven wins, 15 top fives and 22 top 10s. "What a surprise and what an honor to have Cale present me with the championship ring,” Johnson said. “I'm pretty much floored.”
The Yarborough ring presentation was the culmination of a night filled with memory-making moments. Earlier in the program, Betty Jane France – widow of former NASCAR Chairman and CEO Bill France Jr. – introduced Academy Award winning actor Kevin Costner, who made some remarks commemorating the 60th anniversary season of NASCAR. Costner was later joined on stage by seven-time champion Richard Petty, who spoke on the impact NASCAR has had on his life and the tremendous growth of the sport. Also in attendance was Academy Award nominee Tom Cruise, who played Cole Trickle in the NASCAR-themed film Days of Thunder.(NASCAR PR) see images, news, notes and more on my 2008 Cup Awards page.(12-6-2008)
- Yarborough will not be at Homestead on Sunday UPDATE: Cale Yarborough won't be on hand to see Johnson potentially tie his record of three consecutive titles on NASCAR's premier series. An invitation was extended to Yarborough, who had a conflict with another appearance, according to NASCAR. Yarborough won titles from 1976-78.(NASCAR.com)
UPDATE: [Yarborough] didn't see a reason to make the trek to Miami this weekend. He's spending a low-key weekend on his farm with his wife. There was a rumor going around the Yarborough wanted an appearance fee and the track wouldn't pay it. I gave Yarborough a call a few minutes ago to ask about that. "Well, I didn't ask for any pay and they didn't offer any pay," Yarborough said from his farm in South Carolina. "They called me and asked me to come." Yarborough said nobody from NASCAR called him and wondered, "If they wanted me there, wouldn't they have called?" I [Tania Ganguli] asked a NASCAR spokesman about their process and he said NASCAR mostly left the past champion invitations up to the Speedway. The spokesman said Yarborough told them he had a prior engagement and couldn't make it. Because Yarborough's a private person, and doesn't often show up at races, they scheduled a teleconference so he could handle all his media requests at once. Yarborough told me [Ganguli] he had an autograph signing a few days ago, so he couldn't attend the Thursday press conference that featured the past champions. Today, he's just watching the race.
I [Ganguli] asked if a fee would have changed his mind. "That would have made a difference," Yarborough said, good-naturedly. "But it would've had to be a lot of money for me to go all the way down there. ... Jimmie's gonna tie my record. All good things must come to an end."(in part from the Orlando Sentinel)(11-16-2008) Comment here
- Busch to give 100K to Ard UPDATE: 23-year-old Kyle Busch dedicated his latest [Nationwide Series] win to South Carolinian Sam Ard, a two-time Nationwide -then called the Busch Series -- champion suffering from Alzheimer's disease and in tough straits financially. "Sam Ard was one of the pioneers of the sport and this really means a lot to me," Busch said after his now-traditional victory bows to the crowd. "I got to thinking about it and I decided I'm going give him $100,000 to try to help him out."(Associated Press/ESPN)(11-2-2008)
UPDATE: Sam Ard was unsettled late Saturday night, unable to sleep as he peppered his wife about things he couldn't remember. Were his parents still alive when he married Jo nearly 50 years ago? Were they doing a good job raising their children?
"He asked me `What if I go back racing?' " Jo Ard said Monday. "I said `If you go back racing, I'm going to hand you divorce papers. Nobody is going to let you go racing.' " Ard's racing days are indeed long over. He's 69 years old and suffering from both Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. He's not permitted to drive anywhere anymore, and no one is exactly sure how much Ard understands about the latest push to help his crumbling finances and mounting medical bills. Kevin Harvick, a champion of Ard's plight, donated a 2007 Chevrolet van last month to Ard's family that solved the transportation woes that plagued the couple since Jo's car died five months ago. Then the NASCAR Foundation and Motor Racing Outreach teamed for an online auction to benefit the Sam Ard Fund. The largest gesture, though, came Saturday afternoon when Kyle Busch committed $100,000 to Ard moments after winning the Nationwide Series race. The win at Texas Motor Speedway tied Ard's mark of 10 series victories in a season. Ard didn't have a particularly long NASCAR career, but his three seasons netted him two championships in the second-tier series now sponsored by Nationwide. He never got rich from racing, and collected roughly 25% of the $378,765 he made in winnings before suffering severe head trauma in a 1984 accident.
Unable to secure a consistent income after the accident, the Ards blew through their children's college funds to cover everyday expenses. Unlike every other major professional league, NASCAR does not provide a pension to its participants [as they are consdiered independent contractors not NASCAR employees] and has not been on the hook for Ard or any other former driver facing financial difficulties. The NASCAR community has occasionally stepped in to help, and a 2006 plea to their peers by Harvick and Dale Earnhardt Jr. led to a significant donation to Ard's care fund. That gesture and Ard's fight were the centerpiece of a 2007 Associated Press examination of NASCAR's indifference toward financially supporting its veterans. When Busch pledged his assistance, Jo Ard said the 23-year-old racer had no idea the magnitude of his gesture. She said she'll use a chunk of the money to make their bathroom handicap accessible so Ard can use it alone. "Kyle doesn't know what he's done. He really, truly does not know what he's done to take the load and the pressure off of me," Jo Ard told The AP by telephone Monday. "We can do the bathroom. I can maybe get someone to come to the house and help me if I need them, because we're here day in and day out because Sammy can't be left alone. He falls. He can't drive. He'll tell you he feels fine, but every day is different."(see full AP story at ESPN.com)(11-4-2008) Comment here
- Rusty back to Cup? with DEI? UPDATE denied: from an article at SPEEDtv.com by Kenny Wallace: The hot NASCAR rumor right now is not something you’d hear anywhere other than around the race shops in Mooresville, N.C. Everyone wants to know if my brother Rusty Wallace is coming out of retirement to drive for Dale Earnhardt Inc. next season. I’m running the #00 Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota in Sunday’s Sprint Cup Series race at Talladega and was at Michael’s shop Tuesday being fitted for my seat. Six different crew members came up to me and said they’d heard a rumor Rusty was coming back to drive for DEI. These rumors get started in the Mooresville area because the shops are so close to each other and nothing can be kept secret for long. All I can say is that where there’s smoke, there’s fire. And he is definitely considering stepping back into a race car. He’s considering this huge move because he watched Brett Favre come out of retirement in the NFL and his good friend Mark Martin is giving it another shot next year at Hendrick. If Mark had quit, Rusty would have been comfortable with his retirement. But watching Mark, who is a couple of years younger than my brother, stage this comeback has really tugged on Rusty’s heartstrings. Rusty has told me numerous times he can outrun half the drivers in the Cup Series and he truly is giving a lot of thought to returning to the track. If he wants to make that commitment, I’ll support him 110-percent. The decision is Rusty’s and his wife Patti’s, but I think the whole possibility is very inspirational and I’m looking forward to his answer. If he comes back, I think he’ll be a bit surprised by the new car. I predict Rusty will be successful but he’ll be shocked that he won’t have control of the chassis the way he used to. He’ll have an adjustment period because the cars are controlled by engineers, bump-stops and seven-post machines, technology that wasn’t in such great use when he left the sport. There is no doubt Rusty has the talent to run well but he’ll probably be upset he won’t be able to set up the car on his own or tell the team how to do it. Maybe we’ll know sometime soon if I’m right or not.(SPEEDtv)(10-1-2008)
UPDATE denied: Rusty Wallace on Wednesday denied a report that he is considering ending his three-year retirement to drive again -- possibly for former rival Dale Earnhardt's team. "I love Kenny to death; he's been trying to get me back in a car ever since I retired after 2005," Rusty Wallace said in a statement. "While any rumors like this are certainly flattering, they're untrue. I have a long-term commitment to ABC and ESPN and I really love what I'm doing right now." DEI president Max Siegel did not immediately return a call for comment.(ESPN)(10-1-208) Comment here
- Labonte, White to be inducted into Talladega-Texaco Walk of Fame: Fans voted in July for the 2008 Talladega-Texaco Walk of Fame honorees, and on Saturday, Oct. 4 during Talladega Superspeedway’s AMP Energy 500 weekend, two new names will be added to this prestigious list: Bobby Labonte and Rex White. The Talladega-Texaco Walk of Fame in downtown Talladega is both a focal point saluting NASCAR’s greatest names and a tribute to one of racing’s brightest stars – the late Davey Allison. Developed in 1994, the Talladega-Texaco Walk of Fame has inducted one active driver and up to two inactive drivers since 1995 based on the fans’ vote chosen from a ballot of nominees selected by strict guidelines. In the park, Davey Allison is remembered with a large marble monument, while drivers inducted into the Talladega-Texaco Walk of Fame have bronze plaques placed around the park, accessible by walkways that form the shape of Talladega Superspeedway.
Dr. Jerry Punch, lead announcer and host of ESPN/ABC sports coverage, will make his second appearance as emcee for the Induction Ceremony. Punch took over emcee duties last year after the passing of Benny Parsons. Parsons was a longtime supporter and significant part of the event. He is also credited with being one of the first inactive drivers to be inducted. During this year’s event, Phil Parsons, Benny’s brother, will help unveil a permanent plaque honoring Benny’s longtime duties.(TSS PR), more info at talladegawalk.com.(10-1-2008) Comment here
- Bobby Allison to be honored at Modified race: As part of the season long celebration of 60 years of Modified champions, NASCAR will honor Bobby Allison prior to the running of Sunday's Modified Tour event at Stafford's CarQuest Fall Final. Allison, well known for his exploits in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, was a Modified champion in 1964 and 1965. Allison had 17 victories in 82 starts to win the 1964 Modified title and followed that up with 14 wins in 66 starts in 1965 to beat the legendary Red Farmer by 540 points. Allison, a member of the International Motorsports Hall of Fame, was named one of NASCAR's 50 greatest drivers in 1998. He credits the Modifieds with helping set him up for the competition he would face in later years. NASCAR will also recognize the late Fonty Flock, the 1949 Modified champion, at Stafford. Flock was the second Modified champion following Red Byron in 1948.(Hartford Courant)(9-26-2008) Comment here
- "The King" honored at Dover: Denis McGlynn, president and CEO of Dover Motorsports, Inc., presented Richard Petty with a mini version of the new plaque that is featured on the base of the Monster Monument during Sunday's prerace ceremonies. McGlynn still thinks back in amazement of the days when the NASCAR driver known simply as "The King" drove to seven career victories at the track.
"Back in the day, we just had that little press box up on top of that old grandstand there, like a high school football press box," McGlynn said. "The thing I remember most about Richard in the early days ... I used to work up in that press box, and Richard, after whooping up on everybody for 500 miles and the temperatures inside the car and the physical endurance, he'd climb all the way up those 36 rows and put up with an hour of the media, and then he'd go out and sit in the stands and sign autographs until the last person went home. You mention all the records that Richard owns here ... I think he also owns the record for most autographs signed."(Delaware News Journal)(9-22-2008)
- DW Racing Experience announces design elements: With the NASCAR race at Bristol Motor Speedway approaching this weekend, race fans will want to know that the Darrell Waltrip Racing Experience just announced design elements of its multi-million-dollar attraction, including a mini-Bristol Motor Speedway replica. The mini-Bristol Motor Speedway will feature the "5 OFF 5 ON" pit crew
experience, featuring expert coaching by multi-championship-winning pit crew chief and world-class jackman Jeff Hammond. This totally
interactive experience will immerse visitors in the heat of racing's front lines and show them what it takes to be part of a winning team. With elements of Jeff Hammond's renowned "Pit Crew U" training program, visitors will experience an authentic over-the-wall pit crew environment." The new 27,000-square-foot racing-themed attraction in Pigeon Forge, Tenn., promises to place visitors in the driver's seat with diverse and highly interactive components to showcase the racing experience from all vantage points of today's motor speedway. The Darrell Waltrip Racing Experience has the green flag for a fall 2008 opening. Belle Island Village recently announced that Entertainment Design Group, Inc will manage the interior design, theme development, audio-visual package and installation of Belle Island's Darrell Waltrip Racing Experience and the Debbie Reynolds Hollywood Motion Picture Museum. More information about Belle Island Village can be located at www.belleisland.com.(Mary Beth West Consulting PR)(8-21-2008)
- Bodine Returns to Victory Lane at Music City Motorplex: Friday night´s Old School RacersReunion.com Shootout at the Music City Motorplex was truly a look into the track´s incredible history as Geoff Bodine, the winner of the last NASCAR Sprint Cup race held at the Motorplex in 1984, made his return to victory lane in dramatic fashion. Competing against other NASCAR greats such as Harry Gant, Sterling Marlin, Randy LaJoie, Dave Marcis and Charlie Glotzbach, Bodine proved that he still knows his way around the high banked 5/8th mile track. The results: 1) Geoff Bodine; 2) Sterling Marlin; 3) Randy LaJoie; 4) Harry Gant; 5) Lake Speed; 6) Joe Ruttman; 7) Dave Marcis 8) Charlie Glotzbach; 9) Larry Pollard; 10) D.K. Ulrich; 11) Jack Ingram.(Music City Motorplex PR)(7-19-2008) Comment here
- Jimmy Spencer to be Honored at New Hampshire: As part of a season-long celebration of 60 years of Modified champions, two-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour titlist Jimmy Spencer will be honored at the New England 100 on June 28 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Spencer, who currently works for SPEED TV as a co-host for "NASCAR Raceday" and "NASCAR Victory Lane," became the first driver to earn back-to-back NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championships in 1986 and 1987. He is one of just three NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour drivers to capture consecutive titles. NASCAR plans to honor each of its 31 all-time Modified champions throughout the season. The celebration began with the recognition of Frankie Schneider, Donny Lia and Richie Evans at Thompson on April 6. Since the season-opener Red Byron, Jeff Fuller, Ernie Gahan and Mike Stefanik have also been recognized. (NASCAR PR)(6-22-2008)
- Darrell Waltrip Racing Experience to open in Fall of 2008: Belle Island Village – along with three-time Cup Champion and FOX Sports analyst Darrell Waltrip and fellow motor sports veteran Jeff Hammond – announced key components of the Darrell Waltrip Racing Experience, scheduled to open in fall 2008 at Belle Island’s themed
development, located in the heart of Pigeon Forge, TN. The new $5 million, 27,000-square-foot racing-themed attraction promises to place visitors in the driver’s seat with diverse and highly interactive components to showcase the racing experience from all vantage points of today’s motor speedway. Included in the Darrell Waltrip Racing Experience, visitors will find:
* a variety of racecar simulators integrating virtual reality
* competition remote-controlled cars that race around a mini-Bristol Motor Speedway replica
* an interactive theater and a soundstage with an actual studio-quality media set, hardwired to allow either live television production with editing capabilities or guests’ interactive fun, such as seeing what it is like to sit in Darrell Waltrip’s studio chair on race day
* interactive pit crew area with images of Darrell Waltrip and his former Crew Chief Jeff Hammond
* both permanent and rotating exhibits, such as a variety of actual stock cars that have won racing events
* an exhibit that commemorates the history of stock car racing
* an “Infield Experience”
* a gift shop and a Victory Lane arcade with the latest in NASCAR and racing-related games
“Anyone who isn’t a die-hard racing fan when they get here will be when they leave,” Waltrip said. “We’re making sure this place is a true 'experience,’ including the sights, sounds, smells, atmosphere, motion and intensity of racing that give people an opportunity to know what it feels like to be part of a real stock car race, from a lot of different perspectives.” According to Waltrip, it will take the average guest approximately two and a half hours to see all of the attraction, given the range of components within the facility. More info at belleisland.com/dwre.htm.(PR)(5-8-2008) Comment here
- Old School Racing Postpones Inaugural Season: Old School Racing announced today a new plan for the series. Under the new plan The Old School Racing (OSR) Series will launch its inaugural season in the spring of 2009 and not in the spring of 2008 as originally planned. The postponement of the inaugural season of the OSR will allow a partnership to form that will make the OSR bigger and better for the drivers, crews and fans. The new partnership between OSR and the soon to be named partner has not been completed, but plans have already begun to move forward for the 2009 debut of the redesigned OSR program. The Old School Racing Series is based in Mooresville, NC and is scheduled to field cars for such drivers as David Pearson, Harry Gant, James Hylton, Geoff Bodine and more.(OSR)(4-26-2008) Comment here
- Trickle skipping races this season UPDATE: Dick Trickle had plans to run select races in the Midwest this summer, but those plans will be put on a hold. Wirphotos.net has been told Dick Trickle had to have heart surgery in which 2 stents/shunts were put in. Trickle won't be able to wheel a car this season per doctor orders. Trickle has drove a car prepared by Tim Rothe over the last couple a seasons and has told Tim Rothe not to prepare a car for him as he will be taking this year off.(Wirphotos.net)(3-18-2008)
UPDATE: Dick Trickle is touched by everyone who is concerned about his health. Or maybe the better word is overwhelmed. He's just fine for a 66-year-old man who underwent heart catheterization last week, his daughter, Vicky Trickle Bowman, said Thursday. (Factor in caffeine and nicotine addictions, chronic sleep deprivation and a nearly 50-year history of high-speed crashes and the Wisconsin short-track racing legend is downright great.) Besieged by questions about his heart this week, Trickle begged out of a slew of interviews, and instead Bowman offered this update: Trickle began to experience chest pains shortly after hip replacement surgery in November. Numerous medical tests turned up nothing until doctors performed a catheterization last week to check blood flow to his heart. They found two blockages and put in stents - tiny wire tubes designed to keep the arteries open - during an outpatient procedure. Because Trickle is taking blood thinners and cannot take unnecessary risk of internal injuries, he won't race this season.
"He's fine," Bowman said. "It's nice that people care."(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel )(3-21-2008) Comment here
- DW presented #11 Mountain Dew Buick Regal: Three-time Cup champion Darrell Waltrip, who leads all drivers with 12 wins at Bristol Motor Speedway, received a surprise gift from Ralph Santana of PCNA VP Sports , Media and IMG, on behalf of the Mountain Dew Racing. Waltrip, who is currently a television analyst form FOX, was presented the #11 Mountain Dew Regal he drove during back-to-back championship seasons in 1981-1982. During those two years, he captured 24 captured flags, 12 in 1981 and another dozen in 1982. His streak of seven consecutive victories at Bristol Motor Speedway began with a sweep of both Cup events in 1981 along with both Bristol events in 1982 and 1983 along with the spring race in 1984. The Owensboro, Kentucky native garnered 84 career wins in 809 starts and he sat on the pole 59 times with career winnings of $19,416,618. Waltrip’s 84 victories ties him with Bobby Allison for third in series wins. He has also been named one of NASCAR’s 50 Greatest Drivers.(TriCitiesSports)(3-17-2008) Comment here
- Rusty shakes down Nationwide car: Rusty Wallace, the retired NASCAR champion and current ESPN analyst, returned to the high banks of Daytona International Speedway for the first time since 2006 ARCA RE/MAX Series testing when he shook down one of his Rusty Wallace Inc. Chevrolets [#64J, was 13th fastest in the afternoon session]. Wallace, the 1989 NASCAR champion, has both of his Nationwide Series teams in attendance for this week's test as his drivers David Stremme and son Steve were preparing for the season-opening Camping World 300 presented by Chevy.(DIS PR)(1-22-2008)
- Gant to Race the Famed #33 in the Old School Racing Tour: Old School Racing will take old school fans back in time when they kick off their inaugural Old School Racing Tour this May. That is when the fans will be able to see their favorite drivers and the paint schemes they made famous. Harry Gant will pilot the #33 that he made famous. Along with the green and white paint scheme made famous by Gant, “old school” fans will also see the familiar red and white scheme made famous by David Pearson, the gold and black scheme made famous by Davey Allison, the “Kings” paint scheme and many others that will bring back memories of the good ‘ole days of racing. The inaugural race at Concord Speedway on May 18th of 2008, the season will run a ten race schedule. The OSR will field cars for such racing legends as Harry Gant, James Hylton, David Pearson, Geoff Bodine and some 30 other racing icons. More info at the Old School Racing Champions Tour (OSRCT) site.(1-17-2008) Comment here
- Lake Speed still racing: Lake Speed, who won a world karting championship in his youth, competed in 402 Cup Series races, scoring one victory at rugged Darlington Raceway in 1988. This past weekend, he was back on a go-kart flying over the high banks of Daytona International Speedway, the site of his famous runner-up finish to Bill Elliott in the1985 Daytona 500. Speed, who celebrates his 60th birthday Jan. 17, is now a business real estate developer who plays every so often on a stock class go-kart. Speed dabbled with historic stock car racing for a few years, but said the costs of fielding a competitive car got too high for his budget. "So I sat around a few years and this NASCAR official I know said, 'Hey, come out and do karts with me at the kart track in Charlotte,' " Speed said. "Then the bug hit me again real bad. I had forgot how much fun these things are to drive." Speed was one of hundreds of competitors who have made camp at the Speedway for Daytona KartWeek by Cometic Gasket. The World Karting Association's races ended Sunday. Speed may add more racing to his schedule this season if an old-timer series launches in May. Old School Racing Champions Tour hopes to run 10 races featuring stars of NASCAR past and other motorsports notables. "Those people asked me about racing with them and I told them to put my name on the list," Speed said. "It would be like waking up like 15 years ago."(Daytona Beach News Journal)(1-1-2008)
- Pearson, Marcis, Gant back racing in 2008? Racing legends David Pearson, Dave Marcis, Harry Gant, James Hylton, Geoff Bodine and more have signed up to race in The Old School Racing Champions Tour (OSRCT) in 2008. Scheduled to run ten races in 2008, starting on May 18, 2008. Driver safety is priority number one with the OSRCT. All tracks on the schedule are ľ a mile or less and include such venues as two-time Cup Series Champion Tony Stewart’s Eldora Speedway, the Music City Motorplex, Southside Speedway, Hickory Motor Speedway, South Boston Speedway, Flat Rock Speedway and the Springport Speedway. (OSRCT) is a new racing series debuting in 2008 that will have retired and semi-retired champion drivers competing in a 10 race regular season schedule followed by a “Last Chance Race” and a “Championship Race”.(OSRCT)(11-16-2007)
- Jeff Hammond joins the Darrell Waltrip Racing Experience: Jeff Hammond has teamed up with the Darrell Waltrip Racing Experience (DWRE) at Belle Island Village in Pigeon Forge, TN. Jeff Hammond, sports analyst for NASCAR, FOX Sports, Co-Host of Trackside Live, former NASCAR crew chief and co-creator of the PIT Instruction and Training facility in Mooresville, NC, joins his long-time teammate, Darrell Waltrip to lend his technical expertise to the DWRE. Hammond will assist in the design and development of the technical aspects of the project. His years of experience in and around NASCAR will help to authenticate the guest experience for the estimated 500,000 visitors a year that are expected to visit the venue. Darrell Waltrip has stated many times that it is his vision to give the visitor the total sensory experience at the venue, letting them …"smell, hear, touch and see.." what the drivers and crews experience. The Darrell Waltrip Racing Experience is a 27,000 square foot, interactive attraction that highlights the action, history and future of stock car racing. The high-tech attraction will feature theatres, exhibits, hands on racing and full, live production capabilities. Belle Island Village, the $114 million themed entertainment/hospitality project is set to open Fall of 2008 and will be home to the Darrell Waltrip Racing Experience, the Debbie Reynolds Hollywood Motion Picture Museum, the Knoxville Zoo's North American River Otter exhibit along with over 300,000 square feet of retail, dining, attractions and lodging. The Darrell Waltrip racing Experience and all of Belle Island Village is scheduled to open in fall 2008. Belle Island Village is located off the Parkway between traffic lights 3 and 4 in Pigeon Forge, TN. More info at www.bellelsland.com.(Allwaltrip.com)(10-17-2007)
- Plans announced for Rusty Wallace HOF: The Rusty Wallace Racing Hall of Fame is announced that Bill Sanders, Founder of the Hall, and Eddie Hurley, Principal of Lakeview Management and Development LLC, have signed a Letter of Intent and reached an agreement in principle to jointly develop the Rusty Wallace Racing Hall of Fame in Morristown, Tennessee. The Hall site will be located just northwest of the I-81/US 25E Exit 8 Morristown interchange in south Hamblen County. Only an hour southwest of Bristol Motor Speedway, 40 miles northeast of Knoxville, and 22 miles from the I-40 Sevierville Exit 407 interchange, the site is in the heart of the tourism corridor of East Tennessee and NASCAR country. A press conference officially announcing this agreement and providing details will be held at the Holiday Inn-Conference Center in Morristown at I-81 Exit 8, which is adjacent to the proposed Hall of Fame site, at 12 Noon on Wednesday, August 22, 2007. It is anticipated that the founder of the Hall, the developer, area elected officials, and several others who are to be involved in the project, will be in attendance at the news conference. They will answer questions regarding it, and make themselves available for media interviews for both print and broadcast regionally and nationally. Preliminary plans for the estimated $2 million privately owned and operated project will include construction of a 10,000 square foot facility that will include a visitor center, NASCAR-themed gift shop, refreshment center, and the state-of-the-art Racing Hall of Fame display.(Rusty Wallace Racing Hall of Fame PR)(8-21-2007)
- Rusty turns down offer to un-retire: Rusty Wallace told ESPN on Monday that he turned down an offer to drive for Richard Childress Racing next year. "I'm retired and am a broadcaster now," the ESPN motorsports analyst said. Foxsports.com reported Monday that Wallace "still has the bug" and that Richard Childress Racing was interested in hiring him to drive for the team in 2008. "Rusty Wallace is not an option for our fourth Cup team. He is not on our list," Richard Childress told ESPN on Monday. "There was never anything that went anywhere with trying to do anything with him. We never went down that road." Wallace, who retired from racing in 2005, joined ESPN as a racing analyst in 2006. He won 55 Cup races in his 22-year career and was the Cup series champion in 1989.(ESPN.com)(8-13-2007)
- A.J. Foyt OK after mishap: A.J. Foyt [former Indy.Cup driver, former Cup owner ands current IRL team owner], 72, cheated death once again in a lifetime chronicled by close escapes. Late Thursday afternoon his bulldozer plunged sideways into a lake as the bank gave way under the 35,000 lb. machine. He had been working the dirt on the lake's edge which was about three feet deep at that location, that is, until the bank gave way. For the man who survived one of the most dangerous periods in motorsports (although not without some telltale scars) in his 40-year career as a race driver, Foyt has been sorely tempting fate as a rancher lately. "It was such a helpless feeling when that dirt broke away and I was going down and down," said Foyt, who estimates the bulldozer dropped upside down into the lake about 15 feet. "The dozer had a steel cage on it which probably saved my life," said Foyt, "because without it, the dozer would have crushed me. But the cage also made it hard to escape. I had to crawl through the front of it and it was hard to do under water with all my clothes on and with my bum legs and all. I'll be honest, I was panicked a little bit. If I hadn't made it to the top of the dozer, they would never have found me because it was completely under water. I didn't want to swim to the bank 'cause it was covered in vines and steep and I was already out of breath from getting out of the dozer. I knew I'd get too tired trying to haul my big butt outta there. But as I was calling for help, I saw a water moccasin [snake] swim by. I started splashing like hell then. After about 15 minutes someone heard me and stopped to help." Once on land, Foyt, who did not go to the hospital, spent the next four hours trying to get his bulldozer out of the lake. Three wreckers later, the dozer was finally pulled out. He plans to have it trucked to his race shop today.(A.J. Foyt Racing PR)(8-3-2007)
- Rusty Wallace to Sell Part of Busch Team; Move to Cup? Rusty Wallace announced last week he will expand his Busch Series operation to two teams in 2008. But what about Sprint Cup? Wallace said Monday he would like to field Sprint Cup Series teams. However, his contract with ESPN/ABC forbids that, given the conflict of interest involved in commenting races in which teams he owns compete. So he is contemplating the future sale of a majority stake in Rusty Wallace, Inc., he told ESPN.com Monday. Wallace said the move wouldn't happen until 2009 at the earliest, and added that some current sponsors are among the interested parties in acquiring majority ownership.(ESPN.com)(7-24-2007)
- Tim Steele Retires: three-time ARCA RE/MAX Series national driving champion, Tim Steele, has officially announced his retirement from driving. After a very successful career in the ARCA RE/MAX Series that produced championships in '93, '96 and '97, and more superspeedway victories than any other driver in series history, Steele was on the verge of signing a contract to race fulltime in the Nextel Cup Series [then Winston Cup]. Then a [testing] crash at Atlanta Motor Speedway on November 5th, 1997 left him with a closed head injury and changed his world forever. "I was 10 days away from signing a Winston Cup contract when I crashed; and we were going to run for the 1998 Cup Rookie of the Year. My dad and (Green Bay Packers quarterback) Brett Favre were purchasing the team from Bud Moore, and we had Nike and Sony lined up as sponsors. Looking back in '98 when I was at the Mayo Clinic, I now know the doctors were right when they told me I should probably find a different career. I just wasn't willing to accept that. It was like admitting defeat. Racing was my life; it's how I earned my living, and the only job I ever had since I was 20. I didn't know anything else, so it was so hard to walk away from my life. I had worked so hard to get where I had gotten. I just couldn't give up on it now." Unfortunately, there would be ongoing, residual physical and personal issues that would plague Steele during his comeback phase of his career. Regardless, it's worth noting that despite the ongoing struggles, Steele still managed 11 more ARCA RE/MAX Series victories after the accident. From 1993 through 2006, Steele, driving his father Harold Steele's HS Die entries, won 41 ARCA RE/MAX Series races in 146 attempts, which equates to victories in 28% of all the races he entered. He also won 31 career pole awards.(ARCA Racing site), Steele also ran five Cup races [1994 for Bobby Allison] and ten Busch Series races and thirteen Truck Seires Races.(6-28-2007)
- NASCAR Legend Owens loses garage: Cotton Owens Enterprises burned Thursday morning in a fire the NASCAR legend described as a “big loss.” The fire destroyed Owens' collection of old car parts and antiques from Owens’ racing years. One man said the fire started when a shop at the rear of the property lit a beehive on fire, and that fire got out of hand.(Upstate.com)(6-15-2007)
- Terry Labonte testing at Montreal UPDATE: Former NASCAR Nextel Cup champion Terry Labonte will be on the 4.361 km Circuit Gilles Villeneuve road course today in an NBS stock car to provide feedback to teams who will be taking part on the NAPA 200 race in August on the island. These kinds of tests are normally done by Cup driver Jeff Burton, but with the possibility that Burton may race in the August event, NASCAR decided it give him an unfair advantage over other teams so close to the race date.(Toronto Sun)(6-12-2007)
UPDATE: History was made Tuesday when Terry Labonte tested with members of Richard Childress Racing's (RCR) NASCAR Busch Series teams at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in preparation for the inaugural Canadian Busch Series race scheduled for Aug. 4 at the Montreal road course. It was the first time a Busch Series race car has turned a lap on the 13-turn 2.709-mile circuit, which has been home to the Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix since 1978. The 2007 edition of the race was held last weekend. Labonte drove RCR's #21 AutoZone Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS. He made a total of 21 laps (57 miles) with a fast lap of 1:49:86 minutes at an average speed of 105.602 mph. "The test went very well and it was an honor and quite a thrill to drive the first laps here in a NASCAR stock car," said Labonte. "The biggest thing was figuring out the braking points that will be used for the race. We can't get into the corners as deep as the Formula 1 cars. I think there will be at least two good places to pass so track position will be very important but it's the same as Sonoma (Infineon Raceway) or some of the ovals that NASCAR races at." Labonte, retired from fulltime NASCAR competition, was chosen to be the test driver because he will not compete in the Canadian event. All the information collected from the test, including videotape taken of the course from laps in a street-legal sedan, will be shared with every Busch Series team that will participate in the event. RCR did a similar test in January 2005 with driver Jeff Burton prior to the first Busch Series race at Autodromos Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City.
On hand from RCR were NBS team manager Will Lind, all three Busch Series crew chiefs (Dan Deeringhoff/#2 BB&T, Shane Wilson/#21 AutoZone, and Pat Smith/ #29 Holiday Inn), and crew members from all three teams.(RCR PR)(6-13-2007)
- Terry Labonte to run the #55 at the road courses? UPDATE: hearing that two-time Cup champ, Terry Labonte, will run the #55 NAPA Toyota at the road course races at Infineon Raceway [where he finished 3rd in the #96 last season] and at Watkins Glen in August. Labonte would have the past champions provisional to use and since he won his last championship in 1996, he would vault ahead of #21-Bill Elliott who win his championship in 1988, guaranteeing the #55 will make both races.(6-12-2007)
UPDATE: Michael Waltrip Racing (MWR) announced today that two-time NASCAR Nextel Cup Champion [1984 & 1996], Terry Labonte will step into the #55 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry for the road course races at Infineon Raceway and Watkins Glen International. "It's not an easy decision for me to remove myself from the car, but I know it is for the betterment of our whole program," said Waltrip. "I know Terry's experience and road race savvy will breathe a little bit of fresh air into my young NAPA team." Labonte has had much success at road course tracks finishing third at Infineon Raceway last year and has six top-10 finishes at Watkins Glen International.
"To put Terry in the car is a reflection of the big picture we are trying to establish with this NAPA Racing team and hopefully, it will be the spark this team needs," Waltrip said. "I look forward to watching the NAPA team compete and learning more about all the MWR cars from a different perspective, exclusively as an owner." NAPA supports Waltrip's decision. "NAPA appreciates and respects Michael's dedication to move our racing program forward and regain our on-track competitive edge," said NAPA President Bob Susor. "We thank him for his efforts and dedication to NAPA and welcome the addition of NASCAR champion Terry Labonte to the NAPA family for these road-course events." Waltrip will return to his NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota for the Lenox Industrial Tool 300 on July 1st at New Hampshire International Speedway.(NAPA/MWR PR)(6-12-2007)
- Geoff Bodine visits troops in Bahrain: Touring the Middle East: Former NASCAR Cup driver Geoffrey Bodine, oldest of three driving brothers, has just returned from a 10-day trip which took him to Bahrain, right off Saudi Arabi. Bodine made the trip at the request of the U.S. Navy. "I was there to let our troops know somebody cares and to entertain them some, too," said Bodine. Bodine said our troops are "very upbeat and believe everything they're doing over there is the right thing and right way to do it. They are doing a lot of humanitarian things which never get reported and that's what I figured I had to do: come back here and tell people the truth about what's going on over there." Bahrain is close to Iran and four to five hours from Iraq. This was Bodine's third trip to the Middle East, having been to Iraq and Afghanistan on former trips. Bodine said he spent all his time onboard ships - 13 total - including aircraft carriers, battleships and destroyers. "I even got to drive one of the aircraft carriers," said Bodine, who made a stop at the Time Warner Media Center at Lowe's Motor Speedway this afternoon, after returning from the trip on May 25. While in Bahrain, Bodine was treated to a trip to the newly built Formula 1 track in Bahrain. "They had what they called Australian V-8s, powered by Corvette engines," said Bodine, who finished third in the 1994 Coca-Cola 600 in a race many people thought he should have won, had it not been for a late-race tire change. "They were fast and, within three laps, I was beating my instructor. I still like racing and I'd still like to be racing, but I'm out of a job and I was able to go over and, hopefully, do some good. They baked me a cake and served me ice cream on my last night there, and ice cream is a big thing over there. So, if you have any extra ice cream, send it to our troops. And remember our troops on Memorial Day (Monday, May 28)."(LMS Pit Notes)(5-27-2007)
- Junior Johnson in the legit Moonshine biz: Piedmont Distillers and NASCAR legend Junior Johnson have joined forces and introduced the company's second moonshine product, Junior Johnson's Midnight Moon. The company will continue to produce its popular original brand, Catdaddy Carolina Moonshine. Johnson is now a part owner of Piedmont Distillers, the only legal Distiller in North Carolina. Johnson's new brand, Junior Johnson's Midnight Moon, joins Catdaddy Carolina Moonshine, which is now available in eight states. Junior Johnson's Midnight Moon joins Catdaddy on North Carolina store shelves this week and will follow in several other states immediately. Distribution in additional states will be announced in the very near future. "I am really proud to own part of this company," Johnson said.
"I've done a lot of things in my life, and my history in the moonshine business is no secret. Back in the old days, we learned to drive cars fast because we'd go to jail if we didn't. Now, you can buy part of a moonshine business, tell everybody where they can buy your product, and it's all legal. It's a different deal than it was back then. I'm looking forward to being a part of this company." Like many of the other early stock car racers, Johnson grew-up tending to the family's whiskey business. He helped his father work the copper stills during the day and developed his incredible driving skills by running shine at night. Junior combined his understanding of how to make a car run flat-out with his legendary driving skill to become one of the most successful drivers and owners in racing history. As a NASCAR driver, Johnson won 50 races and 49 poles. He is tied with Ned Jarrett for 10th place on the all-time victory list. For more information on either brand, please visit www.catdaddymoonshine.com.(3-G Sports PR)(5-19-2007)
- Rusty/Dale Jr. rank among top-20 in Athlete Biz Index: Although former NASCAR champion, ABC / ESPN Lead Auto Racing Analyst and Busch Series [#66-Steve Wallace] team owner Rusty Wallace has retired from driving, his well-known commitment to corporate partners and sponsors undoubtedly remains as solid as ever. This was proven recently, as New York-based TSE Sports and Entertainment released the April 2007 edition of the Athlete Business Index. The index, highlighted in Sports Business Daily, ranked Wallace 16th among all athletes. Other athletes appearing in the top-20 of the index included Michael Jordan [3], Tiger Woods [4] and Lance Armstrong [6] - (Magic Johnson was 1st). Danica Patrick [15th] and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. [11th] were the only other auto racing-related personalities to appear in the top-20. The rankings were based upon the results of surveys completed by 213 Fortune 500 marketing executives who make use of athletes for corporate purposes. In explaining the rankings, TSE notes that the executives surveyed were asked to score athletes' ability to succeed in ten specific corporate categories or functions. These categories included trade show appearance, keynote speech, sales promotion, clinic / demonstration, meet and greet and others. Athletes are graded on a point system in each category and are given a score for both local market presence and national marketability.(RWI PR)(5-8-2007)
- Kevin Parsons Racing in Memory of his Father: Kevin Parsons will be racing with a heavy heart when the green flag drops on the 2007 season [Saturday], but he hopes it doesn't slow him down. The Myrtle Beach Speedway veteran on the Super Truck Series is the son of 1973 Winston Cup champion and longtime broadcaster Benny Parsons, who died from lung cancer in January at the age of 65. The younger Parsons is doing what his father would have wanted - keep on trucking. "I never would have gotten into racing if it wasn't for him," said Parsons, 41, who lives in Ellerbe, N.C. "He instilled the love for the sport in all of us. I never made it to the Cup Series, and that's fine with me. I just do it for the love of racing." In honor of if his famous father, Parsons is changing the number on his truck to #72, which Benny raced to the NASCAR title in 1973 and the Daytona 500 crown in 1975. He hopes it might help him to win his first series championship.(Myrtle Beach Sun)(4-8-2007)
- Rusty to consult in development of N Calif track: Riverside Motorsports Park and Rusty Wallace Inc. (RWI), announced that the two companies have entered into a five-year agreement that enlists NASCAR Champion Rusty Wallace as a consultant in the development and construction of Riverside Motorsports Park in Merced County, CA. The terms of the agreement call for the 1989 NASCAR Premier Series Champion to provide track design enhancement engineering to the eight world-class motorsports venues within the RMP facility, which was approved for construction in December 2006.
Originating in August 2000 as RMP Founder and CEO John Condren's concept for the future of motorsports in California and first announced as a development proposal on 12 August 2003, Riverside Motorsports Park will include eight different motorsports venues, offering 15 race tracks within a single recreation and entertainment park:
" Northern California's first world-class oval speedway (length: 7/8-mile) for all major stock car and open-wheel racing series
" A 3.2-mile road course for sports cars, endurance and open-wheel racing (closely replicating the world-famous Riverside International Raceway, which closed in 1988)
" A 1/4-mile (5,000-foot total length) drag strip
" An integrated 1/3- and 1/2-mile, banked paved oval tracks for stock cars and sprint cars
" A 3/8-mile dirt oval track for motorcycle, stock car, sprint and midget racing
" A 3/4-mile karting course (for sprint and shifter karts)
" 1/2-mile motocross and 1/8-mile BMX courses
" A 1-mile off-road course for trucks, buggies, rally cross cars, etc.
(Rusty Wallace site)(4-7-2007)
- Rex White to drive at Atlanta and a Book: Rex White is driving a car in NASCAR's premier series once more. Before the start of today's Kobalt Tools 500 Nextel Cup race, White will drive a 1962 Chevy Impala race car identical to the one he drove to victory at Atlanta Motor Speedway that year. The 1960 NASCAR Grand National champion's laps kick off the return of the model, this time as the Impala SS, in next weekend's car of tomorrow race at Bristol Motor Speedway.(SceneDaily.com).
BOOK: also the follow-up book to "Gold Thunder" will be hitting the book stores and news stands in May 2007. The new book, "All Around the Track: Oral Histories of Drivers, Mechanics, Officials, Owners, Journalists and Others in Motorsports Past and Present" written by Anne B. Jones and Rex White with a foreword by Ed Clark. More info on the book on my Bookstore page.(3-18-2007)
- Terry Labonte to race.....in Maine: One of NASCAR’s living legends will continue the recent tradition of Nextel Cup champions competing in the TD Banknorth 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway. Terry Labonte, who won stock car racing’s top prize in 1984 and 1996 and was named one of NASCAR’s 50 greatest drivers of all-time in 1998, Labonte, 50, plans to compete in a car prepared by Richard Moody Racing out of its spacious race shop in Auburn. He will attempt to make his fourth career start in the TD Banknorth 250 as a teammate to two-time race champion Ben Rowe of Turner. Labonte qualified for the OPS crown jewel in 1983, 1986 and 1992, with a best finish of 17th in his third try.(oxfordplains.com)(3-14-2007)
- DW visits with Dion: Three time Cup Champ and FOX broadcaster Darrell Waltrip and his family were guests of Celine Dion
last night at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. When Celine heard the Waltrip's were coming to her show, she invited them backstage for a pre-show visit. Celine's husband, Ren-Charles and their two sons are huge NASCAR fans.(3-10-2007)
- Bobby Labonte says Terry not contacted about #45 ride: #43-Bobby Labonte said he’s not spoken with his older brother Terry about pinch-hitting for Kyle Petty this summer when Petty steps out of the #45 Dodge to work as an analyst for TNT for five races.(SpeedTV.com)(2-9-2007)
- Without Pension, NASCAR Stars Forgotten: The living room of Sam Ard's brown doublewide trailer speaks to his short but successful NASCAR career. Trophies surround the fireplace and crowd its mantel. Plaques and pictures dot the living room walls. What's not there speaks to Ard's life after NASCAR, the two championship rings and a handful of grandfather clocks from Martinsville Speedway that he sold because "we was running short on cash." Unlike veterans of other sports, Ard has no pension to fall back on.
As the booming stock-car series built by men such as Sam Ard heads to Daytona International Speedway this week to kick off its 59th season, NASCAR remains the only major-league sport without a pension plan. "You can drive for NASCAR, but when it's over, it's over. You get nothing," Ard said. "When you fall out of racing or something happens to you, it seems like NASCAR just forgets about you. It's your friends and the people around the race track who have to remember you and keep you going."
Other leagues have pensions. Today's 10-year veterans in baseball will receive a six-figure annual payout beginning at age 62. Even middle-of-the-road professional golfers can pile up millions under the PGA Tour's deferred-compensation plan, which puts money away for players based on performance. An NFL player with six seasons between 1998 and 2003 will get about $2,500 a month beginning at age 55, and the NBA has a similar plan. The NHL contributes about $45,000 per year to retirement accounts for veterans. The ATP and WTA tours make annual contributions averaging between $7,500 and $9,500 to retirement accounts for each tennis player. NASCAR's policy always has been that its drivers are "independent contractors" who bear full responsibility for their finances, health care, retirement and life insurance. Few in NASCAR are arguing for a fund to help today's drivers, who make millions from team contracts and even more from race purses and merchandise sales. Jeff Gordon, the sport's all-time money leader, has won a record $82,366,716 through 14 full seasons and isn't sure what the responsibility should be.(Associated Press)(2-7-2007)
- Darrell Waltrip and Mountain Dew Celebrate a “Flashback to Glory”: Mountain Dew will once again be partnered with legendary NASCAR Champion Darrell Waltrip for the upcoming 2007 NASCAR season. Mountain Dew Racing will be celebrating DW’s Championship seasons in the Mountain Dew car over 25 years ago. In 1981 and 1982, Waltrip won back-to-back NASCAR Cup titles behind the wheel of the #11 Mountain Dew Buick. DW’s 1981 Championship season is now recognized as one of the most impressive runs in NASCAR history, as he fought back from a 341-point deficit in the final 17 races to capture the Cup. During those two seasons, Waltrip amassed an unbelievable 24 victories, 18 poles, 38 top-five finishes, and two Cup titles. Now, a television analyst for FOX Sports, Waltrip remains legendary to the sport. “It truly is an honor to be back with my friends at Mountain Dew”, states Waltrip. “Those years together were the glory years of my career. Just look in the record books - in '81 and '82...Mountain Dew and DW were virtually unbeatable!” Mountain Dew will honor DW’s history-making moments with the Fueled by Dew: Flashback to Glory national campaign. Waltrip and the #11 Mountain Dew Buick will be featured in national Mountain Dew advertising, including radio commercials, print materials, online, and on in-store point of sale materials. Mountain Dew has even refurbished one of the actual #11 Buick race cars from the Championship season and will let fans check it out at events throughout the year. Fans will also have the chance to win VIP race trips, meet Darrell and receive retro Mountain Dew Racing merchandise by participating in retail promotions throughout the country over the course of the Flashback to Glory campaign.(Darrell Waltrip Motorsports PR)(1-23-2007)
- Goody's and Petty to Celebrate 30th Anniversary Together: For 30 years, the "King" Richard Petty has been synonymous with Goody's Headache Powders and its fast pain relief. Now through a landmark agreement, Petty's status as spokesperson for the fast pain relieving headache powders will be guaranteed for life. This announcement marks the first time a current or former NASCAR driver and a sponsor have agreed to lifetime terms. The lifetime contract guarantees that Petty, NASCAR's most decorated champion
will continue his role as Goody's spokesperson and "expert on fast pain relief." This is a title that he has held since Goody's entered the sport in 1977. Petty will continue to star in Goody's advertising and make appearances on behalf of Goody's. Additionally, fans will have the opportunity to celebrate with "The King" and Goody's through a host of special promotions throughout 2007. These include limited edition Commemorative Goody's Headache Powders packaging featuring Petty's greatest moments along with a new logo titled "Goody's and 'The King', 30 Years Together." A sweepstakes to win "The King's" 30th Anniversary custom Dodge Charger will also take place to give fans a chance to drive like "The King." Petty's lifetime contract announcement is only the beginning of the most exciting year ever for Goody's. In 2007, Goody's will dramatically increase its involvement and participation in NASCAR with the Goody's Cool Orange 500 Nextel Cup race at Martinsville Speedway, the Headache of the Race Award, the Goody's Fast Relief Zone and a multitude of celebrations surrounding the Brand's 30th Anniversary in NASCAR, including car paints that will delight fans. Fans can also look forward to a major upcoming announcement with Goody's and two-time Nextel Cup champion Tony Stewart. To further celebrate Richard Petty and his 30 years with Goody's, the brand has also announced a $50,000 donation to the Victory Junction Gang Camp. Since the
camp opened in 2004, Goody's has continued its status as a major sponsor of Victory Junction and was the first company to donate $1,000,000 to help build the camp's hospital named "The Goody's Body Shop."(Lighthouse Marketing PR)(1-23-2007)
- Wallace takes some laps in his Busch car: Rusty Wallace visited Daytona International Speedway Saturday with several of his ESPN announcing colleagues to meet with Busch Series competitors testing for the Orbitz 300. Wallace, who will provide color commentary for nearly 50 ESPN race broadcasts, was asked by his son Steve to shake down one of his #66 Dodges. "Steve said the car was real loose, so I made some changes to it, fired it up and went out to draft," Rusty Wallace said. "I made four laps and the spotter tells me, 'Here comes the draft.' "As soon as they caught me, the thing blows up on the front stretch right near the start/finish line." Wallace said he hopes to draft with his son today and give him pointers via two-radio while turning laps over the 2.5-mile tri-oval.
"I want to watch him and I want to talk back and forth with him, plus I want to give him some input and help him," he said.(Daytona Beach News Journal)(1-21-2007)
- Sad News: Benny Parsons: Benny Parsons, 65, passed away today [Jan 16] at the Intensive Care Unit of the Carolinas Medial Center in Charlotte, NC. Parsons, who became a popular television and radio personality after retiring from driving in 1988, entered the hospital Dec. 26 as the result of complications stemming from his battle with lung cancer. The cancer was diagnosed earlier this year and was recently reported to be in full remission.
Survivors include his mother Hazel Parsons; wife Terri Parsons; sons Keith and Kevin Parsons; brothers Steve and Phil Parsons; sister Patty Severt; and granddaughters Emily and Libbie Parsons.(PRN/LMS PR)
See info about Benny's career and bios at BennyParsons.com, goPRN.com or rendezvousridge.com and many articles, quotes, slideshows on my Article Links page.(1-16-2007)
SERVICES, correction: SERVICES, correction: A memorial service to celebrate the life of 1973 Nextel Cup champion Benny Parsons will be held Friday, Jan. 19, at the Grace Covenant Church, 17301 Statesville Road [Rt 21], Cornelius, NC [next to the Home Depot in Huntersville]. Family, close friends and beloved members of the racing community who knew and loved Benny will be received at the 2:00pm/et service. The Parsons family has respectively requested that media members honor their wishes and not bring cameras or video equipment into the church during either the 2:00pm/et service or the following period during which race fans can pay their respects. Following the memorial, from 4pm - 5:30pm, race fans are welcome to pay their respects at the church.
In lieu of flowers, Parsons asked that donations be made in his name to the Connie E. Parsons Memorial Fund, P.O. Box 443, Ellerbee, NC 28338; to the Blumenthal Cancer Center, 1025 Morehead Medical Drive, #600, Charlotte, NC 28204 or to The Victory Junction Gang Camp at victoryjunction.org. E-Mail Condolences to the Parsons Family at bp@goprn.com.(PRN site).(1-17-2007)
