April 6, 2001
- Hills Bros to the #27? Rumor had it Friday that Hills Bros. Coffee, primary sponsor of Junie Donlavey’s #90 Ford, was contemplating a full-time move to the #27 Eel River Pontiac. Hills Bros. sponsored the #27 at Las Vegas(NASCAR Buzz)(4-6-2001)
- Interesting UPDATE: In the past four Winston Cup seasons, the top 10 in points after seven races has provided a good indication of which drivers will be in the top 10 at season’s end – 33 of 40 drivers in the final top 10s were there seven races into the season: see the chart at That’s Racin’: Signs of things to come?
UPDATE: and an addition to the story: Others in early season points peril by David Poole(4-6-2001)
- Harvick Scheme: #29-Kevin Harvick will run an AOL/Goodwrench painr scheme at the Winston. See a diecast image on my Paint Scheme Gallery(4-6-2001)
- #75 News: Darwin Oordt, owner of the #75 Ford which has not raced in 2001 says, ”Right now we’re at a standstill,” in reference to his search for a sponsor for his idle #75 Winston Cup car. For the first time, Oordt admitted he may not make it in NASCAR’s big league. ”We’re looking at all of our options,” he said. ”Butch Mock [from whom Oordt bought the team two years ago] may get back in it. Oordt said recently printed reports that he might team up with driver Geoffrey Bodine were inaccurate. ”Geoffrey and I talked, as I’ve talked with a lot of people, but that’s all there was to it,” he said. Oordt hoped to put together a deal to get his car back on track by the third race at Las Vegas, but that also failed to develop. His aim now is to find a sponsor for the second half of the season and return to the circuit at the July Daytona Pepsi 400. So far, nothing has turned up.(in part from the Tennessean)(4-6-2001)
- Lepage in thru Talladega: Kevin Lepage has been granted another week as driver of the #4 Kodak Chevy for McClure-McClure Motorsports and will stay in the car at least through the April 22 race at Talladega. Lepage was notified of owner Larry McClure’s decision this week(That’s Racin’)(4-6-2001)
- Dyno’s UPDATE – some numbers: The top six cars in Sunday’s race were tested on a chassis dynamometer after the race by NASCAR. The dyno measures horsepower to the rear wheels. The cars tested were the Dale Jarrett(#88) and Kurt Busch(#97) Fords, the Steve Park(#1) and Jeff Gordon(#24) Chevys, Johnny Benson’s (#10) Pontiac and Dave Blaney’s (#93) Dodge(That’s Racin‘)(4-1-2001)
UPDATE – some numbers: According to results from NASCAR’s chassis dyno tests after Sunday’s Harrah’s 500 at Texas, Robert Yates had by far the most powerful engine. Yates’ edge(the #88 was tested) over the two Chevrolets tested, #1-Steve Park’s and #24-Jeff Gordon’s, wasn’t that significant, less than 10 horsepower. But Yates’ edge over the two Jack Roush engines tested, in #97-Kurt Busch’s third-place car, and #6-Mark Martin’s eighth-place car, was considerable. According to NASCAR sources, Dale Jarrett had a peak horsepower advantage of 38 horsepower over Busch and 52 horsepower over Martin. And the Dodge engine from #93-Dave Blaney’s car, though pulling more horsepower than either Roush motor, wasn’t as strong as either Chevrolet motor or Yates’ motor(Winston Salem Journal)(4-6-2001)
- Mark Martin’s Speedway has an accident UPDATE 2: James Neaves, president of the New Smyrna Quarter Midget Racing Association, is in critical but stable condition with head injuries in the intensive care unit at Halifax Medical Center in Daytona Beach, a hospital spokeswoman said. The 35-year-old Spruce Creek Fly-In resident was injured during a caution lap when a slow moving car driven by a 6-year-old Deltona boy hit him from behind. The impact at the ankles threw Neaves in the air and he landed on his head, a Sheriff’s Office report said. Robert Hart, owner of New Smyrna Speedway where the midget track is located, said it was an unfortunate incident. There was no ambulance on site nor an emergency medical technician on duty during the races. The Little New Smyrna Speedway — geared toward children between the ages of 5 and 15 — officially opened during Speed Weeks in February. Founder and Winston Cup driver Mark Martin, Neaves and Dye worked nearly a year to get the track operational for area kids to learn about competitive racing at a young age. Benny Ertel, spokesman for Martin, said the NASCAR driver was upset about the news and rushed to the hospital to be with Neaves’ family late Sunday night when he returned from the race at Texas Motor Speedway. Martin was unavailable for comment Monday.(see full story at the Daytona Beach News Journal)(4-3-2001)
UPDATE: have heard that James Neaves is doing better, nothing official
UPDATE 2: The youth auto racing official injured at New Smyrna Speedway Sunday has been upgraded to serious condition, a Halifax Medical Center spokeswoman said Thursday. James Neaves, 35, was thrown into the air after being struck from behind by a 6-year-old Deltona boy during a caution lap. The impact from the car, which weighs about 235 pounds, threw Neaves onto the asphalt track, causing severe head injuries. Neaves is president of the newly formed New Smyrna Quarter Midget Racing Association, which built a track in the infield of the speedway. He had just finished fixing a section of the low wooden wall following an accident during the practice session when he was struck. He was transported by helicopter to the hospital’s intensive care unit where he had remained in critical condition until Thursday morning(Daytona Beach News Journal)(4-6-2001)
- Earnhardt Honor at Talladega: The late Dale Earnhardt will be honored with the Governor’s Award for 2001 by the International Motorsports Hall of Fame. The award will be presented to members of the Earnhardt family as part of the induction ceremony on April 19 in Talladega. Past recipients of the award include Bill France, Jr., Tony George, Robert Penske and T. Wayne Robertson. The award is presented to ”an individual or group that has made significant contributions to the growth of motorsports.” Earnhardt, who died in a crash in the February Daytona 500, won his 76th and final race at Talladega Superspeedway last October. He is Talladega’s all-time winner, with 10 victories in Winston Cup, one in Busch and three in IROC. Earnhardt’s long-time friend, Neil Bonnett, will be inducted into the Hall of Fame, along with Jimmy Bryan, Mike Hailwood and Fred Offenhauser.(Tennessean)(4-6-2001)
- #14 Tests: Ron Hornaday and the #14 Conseco Pontiac tested at Greensville-Pickens Speedway on Wednesday in preparation for Martinsville this weekend(Garagepass)(4-6-2001)
- Nazareth Test Cut Short: Monday’s scheduled practice run at Nazareth Speedway for BGN drivers #98-Elton Sawyer and #38-Christian Elder was cut short due to an accident by the rookie Elder. Elder took nine runs on cold tires before his car spun out while coming around turn four. Elder sustained no injuries, but the scheduled two- day practice run for the team was cut short since the team did not bring a back-up car. Sawyer and Elder held a media session shortly after the accident to discuss testing as well as their other preparations for the May 20th Nazareth 200 Busch Series race. “I hadn’t even gotten up to race speed yet and I just lost her,” Elder said. ” With the cold tires, and I didn’t even want to try to save it, so once I started to spin, I was just along for the ride. I’m disappointed for the team because now we have to go home and we didn’t get a lot of work in.” Sawyer was on hand to help Elder get familiar with the track, which can prove to be a tough test even for the most seasoned veterans. “It was a tough day for him,” Sawyer said of his rookie teammate. “I was just here to get him acclimated to the track. It’s too bad he didn’t get more laps in before that happened.” Sawyer holds the Nazareth Speedway BGN record for starts, with ten. He will need a good run here at Nazareth in May to pass Tommy Houston for the most competitive miles at Nazareth. Houston has 1,936 miles in nine starts to Sawyer’s 1,748. Sawyer is also the second leading Busch Series money winner at Nazareth behind Tim Fedewa(Nazareth Speedway PR)(4-6-2001)
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