April 4 – Today in Jayski’s NASCAR history

April 4, 2002

• Charlie Daniel’s and UPS: The parcel service will unveil its second celebrity-based “Race the Truck” commercial on Sunday. The new spot will feature The Charlie Daniels Band urging NASCAR driver Dale Jarrett to “Race the Truck.” The first spot featured George Thorogood singing “Brown to the Bone,” a spoof of his hit “Bad To The Bone.” The new commercial has Daniels taking liberties with his song, “Devil Went Down to Georgia,” and daring Jarrett’s response. Daniels has reworked the lyrics, though the tune is still the same:
  “Now Dale Jarrett is a racecar driver, lets give the man his due. But people love that big brown truck, it’s time he raced it, too. People love the truck now, go Dale go! Put it on the track, for a drivin show!”
  The commercial will debut during the broadcast of the Samsung/RadioShack 500, on Fox, on Sunday.(Yahoo Entertainment)(4-4-2002)

• Gaughan to attempt California..in Cup UPDATE: Brendan Gaughan will attempt to qualify for the April 28 Winston Cup race at California Speedway, Orleans Racing general manager Shane Wilson said Monday. Gaughan tested a new Dodge Intrepid at the 2-mile oval last week and Wilson said the team was pleased with Gaughan’s lap times. “By the time we left (California Speedway), we were within two-and-a-half tenths of Sterling Marlin’s lap times so we felt pretty good with the test,” Wilson said. Wilson said he was working with NAPA Auto Parts — Gaughan’s sponsor in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series [#62 Dodge] — and the Orleans to put together sponsorship for the race.(Las Vegas Sun), see some past news and rumors on this on my #62 Team News and Links page.(4-3-2002)
  UPDATE: When the NAPA Auto Parts 500 kicks into action at California Speedway, April 28, Brendan Gaughan and Orleans Racing will be set to make their NASCAR Winston Cup debut. “We tested our new Cup car at Fontana last week,” said Gaughan who pilots the #62 NAPA/Orleans Hotel & Casino Dodge in the CTS. “And, we were very pleased with the results. We didn’t want to go there just to run in the back of the field. We wanted to be certain we could be competitive and the testing proved we are right in the Ball Park. California Speedway will be an excellent track for us to debut our #62 NAPA AUTO CARE/Orleans Hotel & Casino Dodge,” say team owners Michael Gaughan and Bill McAnally.” Gaughan, the two-time NASCAR Winston West Champion (2000 and 2001) moved into the CTS at the start of this season. Currently sitting in 12th in the point’s battle after two events, he also is ranked 2nd in the Rookie-of-the-Year standings, just two points out of the lead. “Running in the NASCAR Winston Cup race will be a great learning experience for our entire team,” said Orleans Racing general manager and crew chief Shane Wilson. “What we learn at Fontana will definitely benefit our truck effort. The more experience we can get, the better we will be and that is what we are striving for.”(PR)(4-4-2002)

• Irvan at the Glen: Watkins Glen International President Craig Rust announced that Ernie Irvan will serve as special guest of the track and Grand Marshal for the NASCAR Winston Cup Series race August 8-11. Irvan, winner of the 1991 Winston Cup and 1992 Busch Series races at The Glen, will commemorate the 10-year anniversary of his consecutive wins by proclaiming, “Drivers, start your engines,” to this year’s NASCAR Winston Cup field on August 11.(Watkins Glen International PR)(4-4-2002)

• Fenley Shop Sold: NASCAR legend Bud Moore’s Spartanburg-based racing operation were sold at public auction Monday at the county courthouse. The Fairview Avenue race shop that once was home to such legendary drivers as Dale Earnhardt and Cale Yarborough — and, more recently, Fenley Motorsports Inc. — fetched a price of $50,000. The buyer: Dawsonville, Ga.-based Ernie Elliott Inc., which had successfully brought a real estate mortgage foreclosure action against Fenley Motorsports. “(Elliott) just wants to recoup what he’s owed on the note from the Fenleys by selling the building and grounds,” said Georgia banker Robert R. Schuetze, who attended Monday morning’s auction with Elliott’s Spartanburg attorney, Max B. Cauthen Jr. The auction was scheduled in late February, when Spartanburg County Master-in-Equity Roger L. Couch ruled in favor of Elliott in his foreclosure action against Fenley Motorsports. Ernie Elliott Inc. had claimed that in June 2000, Fenley put up the race shop and grounds as security for $793,348.34 that Fenley agreed to pay within six months in return for leased engines, an engine technician and other services. In a two-hour Equity Court hearing, Ernie Elliott claimed Fenley had paid nothing on the money owed. He said he wanted the race shop and grounds sold to satisfy the debt. The sale of the Fenley race shop leaves no other potential Spartanburg County-based NASCAR Winston Cup racing operation on the horizon. Moore was at the back of the crowd that had gathered on the courthouse’s third floor during the bidding. He owned the race shop for four decades before selling it to California entrepreneur Robert Fenley’s organization in September 1999. Moore, who was accompanied by his son, Greg, said afterward that he showed up purely out of curiosity.(Herald-Journal)(4-4-2002)

• Grand Am driver died of Head and neck injuries, and wore a head-and-neck restraint: Grand Am series driver Jeff Clinton died from blunt head and neck injuries when he crashed during practice for a race last month at Homestead-Miami Speedway, an autopsy report said. The March 1 crash came as Clinton, 38, was preparing for the Nextel 250 Grand Am series race the next day. His car veered off the course as he entered Turn 1 and flipped repeatedly. His head was severed at the base of the skull, according to the report by Miami-Dade County Associate Medical Examiner Mark Shuman. Clinton was wearing a head-and-neck restraint, which is voluntary for Grand Am drivers, but his roll bar “broke away” as the car rolled, said Patrick Murphy, spokesman for the lower-level Grand Am circuit. Murphy said it was extremely unusual for the roll bar, which is intended to protect the driver when the car flips, to break.(ThatsRacin.com)(4-4-2002)

• Buckshot and Teen Safety: Georgia-Pacific Corp. brings its Teen Safety 500 program to two high schools in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex on Thursday, April 4. Keller High School and Fossil Ridge High School have been selected to participate in this innovative program, which utilizes Georgia-Pacific’s involvement with NASCAR to spread the message of safe driving among teens. NASCAR Winston Cup driver Buckshot Jones will be on hand to present the Teen Safety 500 program to students. Activities begin at 9:30am at Keller High School. Dallas/Ft. Worth is the second of eight stops Georgia-Pacific’s Teen Safety 500 will be making during the 2002 NASCAR season. Student drivers at these two schools will sign a safe-driving pledge to remain violation-free with no crashes during a three-week period. Once registered at Georgia-Pacific’s Web site, students will have the opportunity to win prizes for themselves and their school. Both schools will receive a cash contribution from Georgia-Pacific for their participation. The school with the highest ratio of students completing three weeks of safe driving will win an additional contribution. Georgia-Pacific will provide participating students with a variety of prizes for those who log their safe miles, such as MP3 players and product coupons from Sonic Drive-In. One winner will be chosen from all participating students nationwide to win the grand prize: a $1,000 Gift Card from Best Buy. Buckshot Jones, driver of the #44 Georgia-Pacific/Petty Dodge, is Georgia-Pacific’s spokesperson for the Teen Safety 500 program and a proponent of safe driving.(Williams Company PR)(4-4-2002)

• Fox Aminations: Chyron Corporation, a leading provider of broadcast solutions, today announced that FOX Sports is using the Duet, Chyron’s premier graphics and animation system, for FOX Sports’ on-air coverage of NASCAR. With an average of 10 million viewers every week, NASCAR is the highest-rated sport of the season. The Duet SD with Lyric provided FOX Sports with a complete on-air graphics and animation solution for NASCAR on FOX’s signature look. Operators are now able to animate pages back-to-back while working on text, instantaneously go from one directory or browser to another, attach audio files to clips, and seamlessly interface with pages from outside data sources.(Business Wire)(4-4-2002)
• #12 Gets sponsors UPDATE 2: Just Born, Inc. has signed with FitzBradshaw as a primary and major associate sponsor for the BGN in 2002 and 2003. Hot Tamales, made by Just Born, will be primary sponsor of the #12 Chevy driven by Kerry Earnhardt in Nazareth on May 19; Darlington on August 31; and Rockingham on November 2. The company’s major associate sponsorship of the car began with the Bristol race on March 23 and continues throughout the remainder of the season. Specifics of next year’s relationship have not been determined pending the release of the 2003 schedule, but FitzBradshaw Racing’s co-owner Armando Fitz confirmed that Hot Tamales will continue in both a primary and major associate role with the team and Earnhardt in 2003. Earnhardt is a rookie on the BGN this year after two successful years racing in the ARCA Series. FitzBradshaw Racing is co-owned by Fitz and Pro Football Hall of Fame member and FOX broadcaster Terry Bradshaw.(ThatsRacin.com)(3-26-2002)
  UPDATE: and JaniKing has come aboard for six races, the first being Nashville and will be a major assoc on the car for other races.(Winston Cup Scene – need sub to read)(3-28-2002)
  UPDATE 2: FitzBradshaw Racing has secured Jani-King, the nation’s leading commercial cleaning franchise company, as a primary sponsor and major associate sponsor for the BGN for 2002 and 2003. Jani-King will be will be primary sponsor of the #12 Chevy driven by Kerry Earnhardt in Nashville on April 13; Dover on June1; Daytona on July 5; St. Louis on July 20; Bristol on August 23 and Richmond on September 6. The company’s major associate sponsorship of Kerry Earnhardt begins with the O’Reilly 300 at Texas Motor Speedway on April 6 and continues throughout the remainder of the season. Jani-King will not only be the team’s primary sponsor for six races, but they will also produce television and radio advertisements featuring both Earnhardt and football legend Terry Bradshaw, co-owner of FitzBradshaw Racing. Specifics of the 2003 sponsorship will be determined pending the release of next year’s BGN schedule, but FitzBradshaw co-owner Armando Fitz confirms Jani-King will continue as both a primary sponsor and a major associate sponsor with the team and Earnhardt in 2003. “With the addition of Jani-King, FitzBradshaw Racing has completely sold out the primary sponsorships for Kerry’s No. 12 car,” said Fitz. “It’s great for our team to add Jani-King, as they are another primary sponsor with national penetration. Jani-King, combined with our other sponsors, ensures that we can compete in the entire 34-race NASCAR Busch Series season-and that was our goal.” In addition to Jani-King, FitzBradshaw’s #12 Chevy primary sponsors include SUPERCUTS, 10-10-220 and Just Born, Inc.(FitzBradshaw Racing PR)(4-4-2002)

• Cope in the #94 for the rest of 2002 UPDATE 2 : hearing that Derrike Cope will run the #94 DF Motorsports Chevy for the remainder of the 2002 BGN season, that a sponsor announcement will be made at Texas and that Keith Koppenal has been hired as the crew chief.(4-1-2002)
  UPDATE: O’Reilly Auto Parts is very pleased to announce their new partnership for the April 6th “O’Reilly 300” at Texas Motor Speedway. Not only will they be the track “Title” sponsor for this prestigious NASCAR BGN event, they will be sponsoring a participant in this highly competitive field of some of NASCAR’s hardest chargers. O’Reilly Auto Parts of Springfield, MO has reached an agreement with the young, upstart BGN team of “DF2 Motorsports” and their new driver, Daytona 500 winner and FOX Sports Network “NASCAR This Morning” co-host, Derrike Cope.(Catchfence)(4-2-2002)
  UPDATE 2: C I Host.com Joins DF2 Motorsports for the O’Reilly 300 at Texas Motor Speedway. The BGN rolls into the Lone Star state this weekend with the running of the O’Reilly Auto Parts 300 at Texas Motor Speedway. The #94 DF2 Motorsports Chevrolet will have Winston Cup veteran Derrike Cope behind the wheel and sponsorship from C I Host.com on the car. Crew Chief Keith Koppenal will be at Texas as a crew chief for the first time this weekend and expects a good showing. “We are taking a brand new car this weekend. It’s never been tested or on the track. Derrike is incredible to work for and will help us get the most out of the new Chevrolet. We fully expect good things out of the DF2 Motorsports team this weekend.” C I Host (www.cihost.com), is a Web hosting and Internet solutions provider, domain name registrar (DNR) and application service provider (ASP) serving 150,000 individual consumers and businesses in 179 countries worldwide.(DF2 Motorsports)(4-4-2002)

• #26 and Spiderman: In preparation for the April 6, O’Reilly 300 Busch Series race at Texas Motor Speedway, Dr Pepper and Carroll Racing announced that the #26 Chevy will take on the arachnid-like image of Spider-Man to help the Dr Pepper team “web” the checkered flag. The Spider-Man design marks the first time Dr Pepper has applied a special paint scheme on its race car since it began sponsoring a team in 1998. Set to debut at Texas in the BGN race, the #26 Dr Pepper Monte Carlo will sport the colorful new Spider-Man graphics, helping to further publicize and promote the upcoming nationwide Dr Pepper/Spider-Man feature film tie-in and on-pack consumer promotion. Scheduled to be in market by mid-April, and run through July, the promotion will link Dr Pepper with the web-spinning superhero. In addition to the primary and back-up cars for the O’Reilly 300, Dr Pepper has also painted one of its five show cars with the Spider-Man scheme, for use at retail and other venues. On May 3, Columbia Pictures, a Sony Pictures Entertainment company, debuts the Spider-Man action and adventure movie in conjunction with the 40th anniversary of the web-slinger’s first appearance in a comic book. Directed by Sam Raimi, the movie centers on the story of teen-ager Peter Parker’s (Tobey Maguire) transformation into Spider-Man and his fight against evil. The film also stars Willem Dafoe as Spider-Man’s nemesis the Green Goblin, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco, Cliff Robertson, Rosemary Harris and J.K. Simmons. Written by David Koepp, and based on the Marvel Comic Book by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, the film is produced by Laura Ziskin and Ian Bryce. Avi Arad and Stan Lee are executive producers.(Dr Pepper PR), see my BGN Paint Schemes page for four images of the car.(4-4-2002)

• Harmon has Texas sponsor: The #44 NASCAR BGN team of Mike Harmon and Mixon Motorsports are happy to announce that MegaMania Interactive.has come on board for primary sponsorship with our team starting with the O’Reilly 300 this weekend at the Texas Motor Speedway. MegaMania, Inc. of Houston, TX is a developer of eBusiness Solutions for the business community. The company maintains operations in Houston, Islamabad, and Karachi. MegaMania integrates technology with business to create useful web-based tools that enable any company to promote themselves and conduct business through the “World Wide Web”.. Their products and services are beneficial to companies of all sizes while especially appealing to the small and medium sized business communities. No other company offers eBusiness solutions as affordable, comprehensive.or sophisticated as MegaMania.(4-4-2002)

• Mitchell to debut earlier UPDATE: Richard Mitchell and Mac Hill Motorsports [#56] have altered their BGN schedule for the 2002 season. Mitchell, who was originally set to make his BGN debut at Richmond on May 3, will now attempt the race at the 1.333 mile Nashville Superspeedway on Sat. April 13. “There are a number of reasons why we are substituting Nashville for Richmond,” Mitchell said, “but the biggest factor is that we are trying to spread the season out a bit for our team. The last time we raced was at Daytona at the beginning of Feb. If we waited for Richmond, that would be almost a three month gap between races.” The Coach USA / Mountaineer Gaming / Forest River Motorhomes team also has added the June 8 Nashville BGN race to its slate in place of the ARCA RE/MAX event at Pocono Raceway. Other scheduled BGN races include: Chicagoland (July 13), Michigan Int. (Aug. 17), Richmond (Sept 6), Dover (Sept. 21) and Atlanta Motor Speedway (Oct. 26). Mitchell, a two-time NASCAR Northeast Regional champion, will also contest a six-race ARCA RE/MAX Series schedule. With a seventh-place finish in the Daytona 200 ARCA RE/MAX opener already under his belt, Mitchell will compete at: Lowe’s Motor Speedway ( May 18 & Oct. 12), Michigan Int. (June 15), Pocono (July 27) and Talladega Superspeedway (Oct. 5). The team recently acquired two Chevrolet Monte Carlos from Terry Labonte and Eddie Sharpe, and are in the process of having them updated to 2002 BGN specifications. Dan Begle has been retained to construct the engines for both the ARCA and NASCAR programs.(Mac Hill Motorsports PR)(3-21-2002)
  UPDATE For West Virginia driver Richard Mitchell, competing in the Pepsi 300 NASCAR BUSCH Series race at the 1.333 mile Nashville Superspeedway on April 13 is a dream come true. Mitchell, a West Virginia University mechanical engineering graduate and a two-time Northeast Regional Weekly Racing Series (WRS) champion, is a virtual poster boy for NASCAR’s nationwide entry-level program. In an era when fewer and fewer drivers are advancing to the motorsports major leagues through the short-track ranks, Mitchell has used the NASCAR WRS as a springboard to the nations second ranked race series. “The BUSCH Series will be a major test for our Coach USA / Mountaineer Gaming / West Virginia Tourism team,” stated Mitchell. “There are 30 good drivers racing in this series every week that are capable of winning. We also know that sponsorship, money and having the necessary resources are key ingredients to being successful at this level,” Mitchell added. “Our plan is to compete in seven races this year to test the waters and gain experience, then come back next season with a budget that will permit us to run the full schedule competitively.”(Mac Hill PR)(4-4-2002)

• Woman driver at Martinsville UPDATE 2 Wilson signs thru 2004: Angie Wilson, a Dash Series veteran, is expected to make her Truck Series debut at Martinsville Speedway in a Ware Racing Enterprises-owned Chevrolet sponsored by Subscriberbase. The last — and only — female driver to compete in the series was Tammy Jo Kirk, on Nov. 8, 1998, at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.(Daytona Beach News Journal), doesn’t say which Ware truck (#’s 5,51,81 see next story)(3-21-2002)
  UPDATE: Angie Wilson, a Dash Series veteran, wants to make her Truck Series debut at Martinsville Speedway in a Ware Racing Enterprises entry, but it’s not set in stone.Tom Granelli, a representative of Wilson’s, said they are exploring putting Wilson in a truck, but Martinsville is only a possibility for the start of a program. Nothing is agreed upon yet.(Daytona Beach News Journal)(3-28-2002)
  UPDATE 2: Angie Wilson was on ESPN2’s RPM 2 Night Thursday and announced that she had siged with Ware Racing to to drive the #81 Dodge truck and that the deal was a Dodge factory program with backing from Dodge. Wilson’s first race will be Martinsville and she will run the remaining races in 2002 and run for ROTY. A sponsor Wilson mentioned during the interview with John Kernan is TotalRaceBabe.com.(4-4-2002)

• Carl Long to attempt Martinsville: Mansion Motorsports is building several brand new Dodge Trucks, and Carl Long is planning to debut the first one in the upcoming Advance Auto Parts 250 at Martinsville Speedway. With the new chassis, and Mike Ege power under the hood, confidence is high that the team will be competitive. No sponsorship has been announced as of yet and is available.(Carl Long Site)(4-4-2002)

• Dotter to fly the colors of Gold Creek Golden Retriever Rescue at Martinsville: #08-Bobby Dotter will run the colors of Gold Creek Golden Retriever Rescue in the Advance Auto Parts 250 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Martinsville Speedway. Dotter’s #08 Chevy will feature the ‘Racing For Rescue’ logo and pictures of golden retriever dogs available for adoption through the Gold Creek organization. Among the dogs featured will be ‘Trooper’, a golden retriever the group nursed back to health after it was left as a stray by its previous owner. Trooper was allowed to stay in the program only if medical expenses could be raised. Thanks to a donation by Gene Christensen, owner of Dotter’s NCTS entry, Trooper was nursed back to health. In conjunction with the Martinsville sponsorship, Trooper will be featured on a special edition T-shirts. The shirts are available for a minimum donation of $30.00. Those making a donation to the Racing For Rescue program will also be listed on GCGRR website – www.gcgrr.com. Currently, all of the dogs under the care of GCGRR are in foster homes. Through Dotter’s on-track efforts, the group hopes to find permanent homes for the animals as well as raise awareness and additional funding for the group. Online donations to GCGRR can be made by credit card or check using Paypal at the group’s web page. Donations can also be made by mail to Gold Creek Golden Retriever Rescue, PO Drawer 5486, Greensboro, NC 27403.(Motorsports Management Group PR)(4-4-2002)

• #64 Crew Chief leaves: Wayne Morrow has parted ways with MLM Motorsports. MLM Motorsports Owns and Operates the #64 Truck driven by Mike Leffingwell in the CTS. Wayne Morrow is leaving to explore other options and expects to be with another team shortly and wishes nothing but the best for Mike Leffingwell and the entire MLM Motorsports Crew.(Catchfence)(4-4-2002)

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