March 16, 2006
- #61 gets sponsors from AMP and Ingles: The #61 Peak Performance Motorsports Ford entry will be sponsored by Mountain Dew’s AMP Energy Drink and Ingles Markets for the Golden Corral 500 at Atlanta. Kevin Lepage will receive a boost from that great Mountain Dew citrus taste in the new 16oz. Tall Boy serving. With Maltodextrin, Ginseng, Taurine, B Vitamins, and Guarana, AMP and AMP Tall Boy are the next generation of invigoration. AMP Energy Drinks is proud to continue Pepsi’s partnership with NASCAR, a relationship that spans more than five decades. For more information, visit: www.ampenergy.com.(Peak Performance Motorsports), see an image on my #61 Team Schemes page.(3-16-2006)
- Cope & #74 McGlynn Racing to run at Atlanta & Bristol: McGlynn Racing announced Thursday that Derrike Cope and the #74 Dodge will compete in the Golden Corral 500 this weekend in Atlanta as well as the Food City 500 at Bristol the following week. The team had a serious mechanical problem with its hauler while enroute to Las Vegas for the UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 and was unable to compete for a starting spot. “We are still growing as a team and anyone that hopes to make it at this level is going to experience setbacks along the way. We have a great group of sponsors behind us and we want to ensure we represent them well on the track and we intend to do just that, ” said Ray McGlynn, owner of McGlynn Racing. “With the backing of our current sponsors and others in the works, we look forward to each and every race. Our thanks go out to My Guardian 911, Sundance Vacations, Royal Administration and all our team sponsors and our fans for standing behind us.(McGlynn Racing PR)(3-16-2006)
- #78 gets help from the Benchwarmers: The Benchwarmers, the new comedy from Adam Sandler and Jack Giarraputo’s Happy Madison Productions and Revolution Studios, will serve as an associate sponsor of the #78 Furniture Row Chevy and driver Kenny Wallace at Atlanta Motor Speedway, which will feature the title of the film on the car’s hood. The Benchwarmers, which will be released nationwide by Columbia Pictures on April 7, tells the story of three underdogs (Rob Schneider, David Spade and Jon Heder), once benchwarmers themselves, who form a three-man baseball team to challenge a full squad of elementary school baseball bullies. Their success leads to a high-stakes, winner-take-all game with the best kids in the state where, if they win, they will become an inspiration for every kid who has ever been a benchwarmer. Kenny Wallace will have to speed his way into the Golden Corral 500 by being one of the fastest cars during Friday night’s Qualifying. Expressing the reasoning behind the sponsorship, producer Jack Giarraputo said, “It would be easy to come in and pick one of the top teams to advertise our movie, but that would go against everything the movie’s about. We wanted to show support for one of the underdogs.” The three stars of The Benchwarmers, Rob Schneider, David Spade and Jon Heder, will be on hand to lend their moral support to #78 to overcome the odds, as they will also serve as Grand Marshals of the Golden Corral 500.(Furniture Row Racing PR)(3-16-2006)
- Sad News – Helen Rae Daley Smith: Helen Rae Daley Smith, 83, died unexpectedly Thursday, March 9, in her home at the Biltmore Estates in Phoenix, AZ. A beloved mother, daughter, sister, aunt, grandmother and friend to many, she was born Sept. 27, 1922, in Ames. Helen was married for more than 40 years to Clyde B. Smith. This partnership yielded one of the most successful grocery chains in Arizona history, Smitty’s Big Town. She later was married to a retired military officer, Earl Morgan, of Las Vegas. She was the first “lady” NASCAR race team owner. Contributions, in lieu of flowers, can be made to the Geisinger Medical Foundation, 100 N. Academy Avenue, Danville, PA, 17822.( midiowanews.com), drivers included Morgan Shepherd, Ed Sanger, Sterling Marlin and Phil Barkdoll for 11 races in 1985.(3-16-2006)
- Riley Technologies leaves Indy for NC: Indianapolis lost one of its major motor sports entities Wednesday when Riley Technologies and its subsidiaries announced plans to move to stock car country in September. Since 1990, the company has built Indy cars, championship-winning sports cars and U.S. Auto Club cars in a facility located a block south of Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It has 35 employees, most of whom are expected to move to a new 40,000 square foot facility in Mooresville, NC. Bill Riley, president of Riley Motorsports, said the move is based on a surge in the company’s NASCAR business. Mooresville is home to a large percentage of the Nextel Cup, Busch and Craftsman Truck Series teams and suppliers. “We want to strengthen our ties to NASCAR,” said Riley, who leads the company with his father, Bob. “We’re excited for what lies ahead.” Riley Technologies, over which Bob Riley presides, has a road-course testing project with Robert Yates Racing, a NASCAR team. Being in the Charlotte area should afford the company more opportunities in stock car racing, Bill Riley said. Riley Motorsports won the Grand American Daytona Prototype championship last year with drivers Wayne Taylor and Max Angelelli. It will continue to work with two Grand Am teams based in Indianapolis (Ganassi and Fernandez). Meanwhile, Bill Riley said a change in the landscape of open-wheel racing has meant less business for the company. “With the IRL and Champ Car becoming more spec series, none of the teams really need our services,” he said. “I grew up in Detroit going to the Indianapolis 500 with my dad, so it does kind of hurt (to leave).”(Indianapolis Star)(3-16-2006)
- Blount to the #92: look like Chad Blount has taken over the driving duties for the #92/64 Front Row Motorsports Chevy/Dodge. Blount was supposedly going to run a full-schedule then a partial schedule in the #37 RJ Racing Dodge. Blount is now listed as the #92 driver on the Front Row Motorsports website.(3-16-2006)
- Scott Lynch to Drive for Cicci at Atlanta: Frank Cicci Racing with Jim Kelly is pleased to announce that former NASCAR Grand National Division, West Series Champion Scott Lynch will pilot the #34 Chevy in the NASCAR Busch Nicorette 300 at Atlanta.(Lynch PR)(3-16-2006)
- Several Busch Teams Face Qualifying Peril: The top 30 in owner points will lock in teams with this season’s standings after Atlanta, and it looks as if there will be an established team outside the cutoff point. David Green is tied for 30th among those eligible for locked-in spots with the #58 Glynn Motorsports entry, most recently driven by Kevin Conway (with a possible sale to investor Joe Carver in the works). Stacy Compton in the ST Motorsports #59 entry is 18 behind them, while Joel Kauffman, in the No. 12 FitzBradshaw Racing car, is 36 points behind. Anthony Foyt is 51 points back in the #38 Akins Motorsports car and the #34 Cicci-Kelly Racing entry is 54 points away from the cut.(NASCAR Scene)(3-16-2006)
- Kahne to Drive at Memphis: Today, Memphis Motorsports Park officials announced that Kasey Kahne will run the second leg of the ‘Sam’s Town Challenge’ – the Sam’s Town 250 – in Memphis on Oct. 28. Kahne traditionally only runs Busch Series races during “companion” events, but is making an exception to his schedule for Memphis. By virtue of his Vegas victory, Kahne has the inside track on the ‘Sam’s Town Challenge’ and the $20,000 awarded to the cumulative points leader in the combined Sam’s Town 300 at Las Vegas in March and the Sam’s Town 250 at Memphis. (Memphis Motorsports Park PR)(3-16-2006)
- Hitachi to Sponsor Busch this Weekend: The #5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet is sporting a special paint design for this weekend’s race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Sponsored by Hitachi Power Tools and Lowe’s, the car features a distinctive green and black color scheme, similar to the “inspired” design elements featured on the Hitachi Power Tools product line. See an image on my Busch Series Paint Schemes Page. (GMR Marketing)(3-16-2006)
- Busch Series to Race in Canada?: With a second race in Mexico City behind the NASCAR Busch Series, the teams can expect to cross the border again next year – possibly two different borders. Canada remains on the NASCAR radar as the next international venue for the circuit, possibly as early at next year.(NASCAR Scene)(3-16-2006)
- Woolrich to extend sponsorship of Darnell: Woolrich, The Original Outdoor Clothing Company, has extended its primary sponsorship of the #99 Roush Racing Ford F-150 and driver Erik Darnell for seven additional Truck Series races, beginning with the John Deere 200 at the Atlanta Motor Speedway on March 17. Along with the Atlanta race, Woolrich will also be the primary sponsor at Lowes Motor Speedway on May 19, Texas Motor Speedway on June 9, Michigan International Speedway on June 17, New Hampshire International Speedway on September 16, Las Vegas Motor Speedway on September 23 and the season-ending Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 17.(Roush Racing PR)(3-16-2006)
- Crocker to be featured on Driven to Win: Erin Crocker, driver of the #98 Cheerios/Betty Crocker Dodge, will be featured on the Biography Channel’s ‘Driven to Win” program where they offer upclose and personal profiles of young drivers. The program is set to air on Wednesday, March 22, 10:30 pm/et.(The Biography Channel)(3-16-2006)
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