Jay Busbee is a NASCAR and Golf blogger for Yahoo! Sports.

Article source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nascar-from-the-marbles/big-daytona-payout-includes-bonus-leader-halfway-203540142.html

3M contest offers NASCAR tickets, experiences – Search

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Article source: http://abrn.search-autoparts.com/abrn/Collision+Repair/3M-contest-offers-NASCAR-tickets-experiences/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/757532?contextCategoryId=43145

Happy Hour: Two views of Danica Patrick

b0520danicaWelcome to the latest Happy Hour mailbag! You know how these work: You write us with your best rant/ joke/one-liner at happyhournascar@yahoogroups.com (note new address) or on Twitter at @jaybusbee, we respond to your messages, everyone goes away with a smile on their face.

We’re getting geared up for the season, and that’ll bring us plenty of material, but until then: hit us with your best questions, NASCAR or no. Sure, we can talk about Chase scenarios and qualifying, but let’s open it up a bit. Music? TV? Movies? Books? Fine dining? Religion? Philosophy? Politics? Hit us with it all. NASCAR will always lead the show, but let’s get a little more variety in the lower reaches of the lettercol.

And now, let’s begin with a highly noncontroversial topic: Miss Danica Patrick.

Hi Jay, how do you handle this conundrum? I have supported Danica Patrick for a while and look forward to the change to the standard in NASCAR. While chatting with my 12-year-old daughter tonight, I asked, “Do you want some fan gear, now that she is running fulltime stock?” Then it hits me. Do I want my daughter walking around in GO DADDY? I think not and dropped the conversation.

— AJ
Reedville, Va.

That’s a great point, one that I’m not certain the Danica supporters have thought through. For all the advances she makes on behalf of a “woman racing in a man’s sport” (an idea which I think is ridiculous; speed knows no gender), she gives back a lot of the goodwill by participating in those goofy Go Daddy ads. Sure, she always seems detached and above it all, but still: The message Go Daddy is pushing isn’t exactly a subtle one. For her long-term career, she’d be better served hooking up … er, aligning with a less sex-obsessed sponsor. (Kudos to Go Daddy, though, for sexing up web hosting, which has to be the unsexiest thing on Earth.) For another view on Ms. Patrick, here we go …

____________________

NASCAR does a lot to cater to fans. Frankly I feel they do a lot more than other sports do for fans, and they never get any relief from the complaining … Then we finally get a female in the Cup series with a serious chance at being competitive and all people do is complain, and complain about things they seem to know nothing about. People say she hasn’t earned her keep and yet if you look at what she’s done in other series as a child in to adulthood she’s no different than drivers who have come up the same way. So I don’t get it. Is it that she’s a chick and knows that sex sells and uses her sexuality to make money? Is the NASCAR fan base that prudish? So what did I miss here? Why is a woman who’s been racing around the world since she was 10 years old criticized so much?

— Patricia Augusta
Simi Valley, Calif.

Nice counterpoint to the letter above. The problem with using sex to sell yourself is that, as much as the “seller” wants to delude themselves that they’re in a position of power, the truth is, it’s always the “buyer” who has the power. We’re skirting right along the edge of our PG-13 rating here, so I won’t take the metaphor any further. Patrick and her handlers have made a conscious decision to dive deep into the murky waters of sex and gender, and until she can prove herself as a driver at this level, that’s the context in which she’ll be judged. She and her team have set the rules of the game for the moment, and it’s up to her to change the game going forward.

____________________

I had a thought about the new designs each car manufacturer will be adding to the field. Since the cars will be different-shaped in 2013, wouldn’t that mean that some teams are going to have an advantage, even if just minimal? And if there is some nominal gap, doesn’t that mean we’re not just seeing results based on drivers themselves, but almost more on luck of what vehicle they drive? I know that there are larger differences in the quality of engines and chassis that they use, but I feel that racing should depend on what the driver him or her can do. I would almost rather that all drivers drive an exact identical car so we can see how each individual can handle it. I know this is a pipe dream, but it would test the skills of the driver rather than relying on the better equipment they get because of the team they’re associated with. I feel that these aerodynamic differences pull away more from the driver’s skill.

Note: I am glad that they will look more like stock cars now and will be able to spot drivers easier. I’m just worried it’ll provide some unfair advantage.

— James
Pismo

Pismo is a place? I always thought that was just a Bugs Bunny beach destination. Anyway, I’m no engineer, obviously, but I would imagine that the aerodynamic differences between the various manufacturers’ noses wouldn’t be enough to change the game entirely. A fumbled lug nut or a missed pit call would have far more drastic of an effect on the race than aerodynamics. To me, it adds a new dimension to the concept of driver-as-team-member; engineers now have to step up and play with design within specifications. But it will indeed be a fascinating statistical exercise to see how the manufacturers’ new designs compare with the old ones and one another. Bottom line: I see no downside to the new designs.

____________________

Isn’t the object of qualifying to try to be the fastest and put on a show for the fans? If you make every driver and team have to get in on “strictly speed,” you would see a difference. Plus, I also follow Ron Capps on the NHRA circuit and he missed an event during the “Countdown to the Championship,” NHRA’s “playoff,” at the end of the year, and I do not recall anything being said about his sponsor, NAPA, being ready to pull the plug. You could also look at it this way: If “One Race Sponsor’s” car doesn’t make the show, it’s not “fair” to him if his car outruns some of the Big Boys and doesn’t make it, plus chances are the “One Race Sponsor’s” budget is obviously not big and they lose on their investment. So I think it’s time to get rid of the Top 35 Rule. Period.

— Greg Cates
Dinwiddie, Va.

I like the idea of throwing a little love to the one-race sponsors. Maybe there could be like a little “consolation race” for the guys who don’t make it. Matter of fact, that’s a great idea: Let ‘em race a 10-lap opening-act race to get everyone fired up! Probably ought to make sure the track is clear of fans and the prerace entertainment before you do that, though. Would be hell trying to pick pieces of Foreigner out of the grille.

____________________

Here’s a fun idea for next year’s All-Star Race…for the final segment, have “Crack-da-whip” rules. With 20 laps to go, only the top 20 cars remaining continue. As the last segment progresses for the final 20 laps, the last place car must retire from the field starting at lap fifteen. Here’s how it would go:

Twenty-2-go: 20 cars continue.
Fifteen-2-go: Last place car is black flagged and retires to the pits.
Fourteen-2-go: See above.
…..
One-2-go: Remaining 5 cars duke it out, no-holds-barred.

So, in the final 20 laps, you have a frenzy of cars trying NOT to be last and lots of bumpin’-n-rubbin’ for the final moments of the race.

— Douglas Osborn

I love this idea. LOVE it. I’d have a few more laps left at the end, maybe five, but that’s a minor tweak. You’d have fun all the way through watching the last guys trying to get across the start/finish line every lap. You might not want to do it every lap; give the last-place guy time to regroup and catch up. But yeah, that would be so, so much fun to watch. Every. Single. Lap.

____________________

These boys (AJ Allmendinger and Andy Lally at 24 hours of Daytona) did really well. One of the post-race comments was that Lally has made huge contributions to the Grand Am teams he has been on at Daytona. What’s your take on why Lally has not done better at NASCAR’s road courses? He obviously has the skill set in the prototypes.

— Jill Joachim

A very good question. Being a 21st-century journalist, I went and checked out Lally’s Wikipedia page. Did you know the dude not only races cars, but he’s a champion mountain biker? And he races street luge? And does Brazilian Jiu Jitsu? He’s a freaking athletic Renaissance man! Why didn’t we take advantage of this treasure when we had him in the Sprint Cup series? If nothing else, why couldn’t we have a Jiu Jitsu throwdown in the garage? We missed out on LallyWorld, people! Let’s get him back in the series, pronto!

And on that note, we’re out. Thanks to all our writers this week. You want in? Fire up the computer and hit us with whatever’s on your mind, NASCAR-wise, at happyhournascar@yahoogroups.com. You can find Yahoo! Sports’ NASCAR coverage on Facebook right here, and you can follow me on Twitter at @jaybusbee and on Facebook here.  Make sure to tell us where you’re from. We’ll make you famous!

Article source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nascar-from-the-marbles/happy-hour-two-views-danica-patrick-174215797.html

Mother of NASCAR driver Matt Kenseth dies at age 63 after battling Alzheimer’s …

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Article source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/othersports/autoracing/mother-of-nascar-driver-matt-kenseth-dies-at-age-63-after-battling-alzheimers-disease/2012/02/02/gIQAv2OmkQ_story.html

Don’t lag: Mid-race leader will earn $200k at Daytona 500

By Chris Graythen, Getty Images

The checkered flag is waved at the 2011 Daytona 500, which was won by Trevor Bayne.

Article source: http://www.usatoday.com/sports/motor/nascar/story/2012-02-01/Mid-race-leader-will-earn-200k-at-Daytona-500/52921548/1

Tim Tuttle>INSIDE NASCAR

David Gilliland’s third-place finish in the Daytona 500 last year was the first ever top-10 for Front Row Motorsports, founded in 2004 by owner Bob Jenkins. Gilliland is chomping at the bit for the Sprint Cup season opener on Feb. 26, confident that the team has made quality improvements making it a contender to win NASCAR’s most prestigious race.

“It’s the best chance we’ve ever had as an organization and that’s exciting,” Gilliland said.

Gilliland also finished ninth at Talladega in 2011 and he’s had poles for the Daytona 500 in 2007 and Talladega in October 2008. He’s shown the ability to run up front at the two tracks where restrictor plates put a premium on drafting and making the right move at the right time.

This offseason, Front Row hired David Ragan, giving the team two skilled racers at Daytona. Ragan will provide a drafting partner for Gilliland and help the team develop handling. The former Roush Fenway driver won the 400-mile race at Daytona last July and was leading late in the 500 when NASCAR penalized him for an improper lane change on a restart.

“Working with David will be great,” Gilliland said. “He’s an asset to the organization.”

Front Row uses front-line Ford engines from Roush-Yates, and while its cars are older Fords purchased from Richard Petty Motorsports, which is supplied by Roush Fenway Racing, they remain competitive.

“Our cars for the draft stuff and restrictor plate races are the best we have in the organization,” Gilliland said.

Gilliland’s ninth at Talladega was his other top-10 in 2011 and the second-best finish in Front Row’s history. He was 12th on the road course at Infineon Raceway, giving him the top-three finishes in team history. He finished 30th in the points last season. His No. 38 and Ragan’s No. 34 were in the top 35 in owner points last year, guaranteeing them starting positions for the Daytona 500.

Gilliland believes Front Row is an upwardly mobile organization.

“We’ve taken some pretty big steps and are going forward as a company,” Gilliland said. “We’ve added some different pieces to the puzzle.”

This will be Gilliland’s third season at Front Row.

“It’s good to be with an organization that believes in you and believes you make a difference,” Gilliland said. “I’m proud to be here and to be a part of building the team. You’d like to be in contention on a weekly basis. Maybe not this year, but it’s something you’ll see in the future. You’d like to do it now, but you have to do it at your own pace.

“I think if David and I get into the top 25 in points, it will be a successful year. It would be something to build upon.”

Gilliland will have a new crew chief in Derrick Finley, the team’s former competition director.

“Derrick is a great engineer,” Gilliland said. “Our pit crew is strong. Our road-course package was definitely very good and our short track wasn’t bad last year. Our biggest struggle and downfall last year were the mile-and-a-half trac ks. Ford is helping us with some wind tunnel time and we’re tweaking the bodies within the limits of the rules to get the aero stuff better.

“You have to have considerable resources for the mile-and-a-halves. Hendrick and Gibbs have 300 people; we have 50 for three teams. They can afford a dedicated guy going to the wind tunnel; we can’t. But everybody we have at Front Row has fire in their stomach. We’re all trying to win races.”

The 35-year-old Gilliland crew chiefed for his father Butch’s championship team in NASCAR’s Camping World (now K N) West in 1997 and won races at the development levels on the West Coast, including the Toyota All-Star race in 2005 at Irwindale, Calif. Those accomplishments led to owner Clay Rogers hiring him for a part-time Nationwide schedule in 2006.

Gilliland won at Kentucky in his seventh start in the series and it earned him a promotion to Robert Yates Racing for the final 14 races of the season. But he joined the team when it was beginning to decline. Gilliland was 28th in the points in 2007 and Yates retired at the end of the season.

Doug Yates, Robert’s son, and Max Jones bought the team and ran it, retaining Gilliland, in 2008. Gilliland was 27th in the points. The team merged with Richard Petty Motorsports after the season and Gilliland had to go job hunting in 2009. He drove in 25 races for TRG Motorsports and also drove three races for Joe Gibbs Racing and one each for the Wood Brothers, Robby Gordon and Phoenix Racing.

Front Row, which has been funded by Jenkins’ Taco Bell, Long John Silver and A W restaurants and has added ModSpace this season, hired Gilliland for 2010 That year he was 32nd in the points.

Last year’s third at Daytona was a breakthrough for the team and ended a long top-10 drought for Gilliland. He’d gone 82 straight races since finishing second on the road course at Infineon Raceway n 2008.

“I want to get back to winning races as soon as possible,” Gilliland said. “You build your career winning races and being competitive on a weekly basis and it makes it tough [to not win]. You have to be patient. The patience I’ve learned has made me a better race car driver.

“I’ve finished second, third and fourth in Cup [races]. It would mean the world for me and Front Row to win a Cup race. It would take the team to another level.”

Gilliland in Victory Circle at Daytona on Feb. 26? It may seem improbable, but nobody imagined Trevor Bayne would be there last year. And Gilliland wasn’t far behind. It’s possible his first Cup win could be in the biggest NASCAR race of them all.

Article source: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/racing/news/20120201/david-gilliland-daytona-500/

Should NASCAR give Danica Patrick a free pass to Daytona?

With the Indy Racing League firmly in her rear-view mirror, Danica Patrick is all set to make a full-time move to NASCAR in 2012. She’ll be running most of her races in the Nationwide series for Stewart-Hass Racing, but will still get 10 starts in the Sprint Cup, including a place in the field for the 2012 Daytona 500.

And that’s where things are getting a little sticky for Patrick. Normally, Patrick would have a tough time finding a place in the field owing to the fact that she didn’t run any Sprint Cup races last season (though she did acquit herself well in the limited number of starts she had on the Nationwide and ARCA circuits last year).

Using an arcane NASCAR rule, Patrick’s team has essentially bought a place on the starting grid from Tommy Baldwin Racing (TBR). Under NASCAR rules, every team that finished in the top 35 in the Sprint Cup last season is guaranteed a spot on the grid. And since TBR finished 33rd last season behind driver Dave Blaney, Patrick will get her first start in the Great American Race on February 26, barring accident or injury.

It’s all perfectly legal under NASCAR rules, and has been used before to get a driver into the Daytona 500. Steve Wallace, the son of NASCAR hero Rusty Wallace, got into the 500 last year using the same loophole and finished 20th.

But while that exemption might have flown under the radar, Patrick and her publicity machine isn’t getting a pass. While she was in IRL, she was easily the circuit’s most popular driver, and reportedly banks somewhere north of $10 million per year in endorsements. Over at The Sporting News, David Whitley wrote, “If she wants to prove she’s not just another pretty face, using a man’s hard work is no way to start.”

Eric McErlain blogs at Off Wing Opinion, a Forbes “Best of the Web” winner. In 2006 he wrote a “bloggers bill of rights” to help integrate bloggers into the Washington Capitals’ press box. Eric has also written for Deadspin, NBC Sports and the Sporting News, and covers sports television for The TV News. Follow Eric on Twitter.

Article source: http://dailycaller.com/2012/02/01/should-nascar-give-danica-patrick-a-free-pass-to-daytona/

In brief: JGR blazes; Martin tweets; Mayfield appeals

Fire drama at Joe Gibbs Racing

Ten people were treated and released for smoke inhalation after a fire broke out inside the Joe Gibbs Racing complex in Huntersville, N.C., on Tuesday.

It’s believed that a laser cutter caught fire in the machine shop, with observers saying that smoke poured from the complex until the emergency services were able to take care of it.

“The fire department was called and the fire was quickly contained and extinguished,” the team said in a statement. “A few of our employees received treatment on site for issues related to smoke inhalation. All employees were able to return to work within the hour to continue preparations for the 2012 NASCAR season.”

JGR spokesman Chris Helein added that “We’re going through [the damage] now. I think it was isolated to that one piece of equipment.”

The team had a similar emergency last year when a fire caused serious damage to the engine assembly area in February 2011, but without resulting in any injuries.

NASCAR focusses on online development

The sanctioning body of NASCAR is putting a renewed focus on digital and online activity as key to the series’ future.

The organisers announced at the end of January that they had reached a deal with Turner Sports, who have run NASCAR’s official website since 2001, to take back the online rights a year earlier than originally planned under existing contracts. That means that from the start of 2013, the series will take back control over online streaming of races, live statistics, archive information, video and photos.

“We will be taking a very, very active role, already are, and not just us but the rest of the industry,” said NASCAR Chairman Brian France. He added that it was “very important for us to manage those rights carefully in the future. Obviously between digital and social media, it’s the new medium to develop that deep relationship with our fans and communicate with them.”

As part of the trade-off involved in the new arrangements, Turner Sports will continue oversee advertising and sponsorships across NASCAR’s digital platforms through 2016.

NASCAR organisers are also highlighting social media activity as key to their strategy of tackling a downturn in audience figures for the sport and are already encouraging all drivers and teams to get active on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

Article source: http://www.crash.net/nascar/news/176392/1/in_brief_jgr_blazes_martin_tweets_mayfield_appeals.html

Penske Racing’s new 1-2 punch

Jared C. Tilton/Getty ImagesBrad Keselowski stepped up his leadership role at Penske Racing following Kurt Busch’s departure.

How much more dynamic a duo could you ask for, to go out and fight the dark forces of humdrum at Cup level, than Bad Brad and the Dinger?

Brad Keselowski and AJ Allmendinger, together, are sure to make Penske Racing the most entertaining it has ever been.

“He’s got a lot of personality, a lot of energy — just like I do,” Allmendinger said. “And it’s gonna be fun.”

For everybody — right on up into the grandstands and out into the living rooms.

[+] Enlarge

“He is, I think, more of an extrovert than I am,” Keselowski said — and when I glanced at him to see where his tongue was implanted in his cheek, he stuck it in even deeper. “I don’t consider myself an extrovert.”

Please.

And as pure drivers, they just might bring Roger Penske his first NASCAR championship. Maybe even this year.

Some of you hooted a few weeks ago when I picked Keselowski to win it all and Allmendinger to make the Chase. The Dinger is, after all, winless in Cup — but only thus far. Bad Brad has four Cup wins — but three last summer.

What we see now is both at the brink of stardom. Neither Keselowski, who’ll turn 28 this month, nor Allmendinger, 30, has even remotely peaked.

Not since Rick Mears in Indy car racing have I sensed Roger Penske believing so completely in a driver as he does Keselowski. And Brad K. adds more pizzazz for Penske’s sponsors than the methodical Mears did.

Keselowski is “a great commodity for us; a great product; he’ll be a great star,” Penske said.

Primary sponsor Miller Lite would seem to agree, re-upping on the Blue Deuce through 2015.

In hiring Allmendinger, Penske looked deeper than the results, to “the basic performance, and looked at his curve …”

The Dinger has been knocked around hard in NASCAR since leaving Champ Car in 2006 with a five-win season, including three in a row. But we saw in his time with Richard Petty Motorsports that, as he puts it now, “I’ve learned how to run up front. Hopefully now at Penske I have the opportunity to learn how to close these races.”

[+] Enlarge

Although in a different form of racing, Allmendinger got back into a winner’s mindset this past weekend, co-driving to victory in the Rolex 24 at Daytona.

Driver compatibility? Penske’s No. 1 consultant in hiring Allmendinger to replace Kurt Busch, who left under tension after last season, was Keselowski.

“I would never hire another driver to replace Kurt without having a lot of conversation with Brad, and most certainly Brad was in the decision-making,” said Penske, who then sent Keselowski recruiting.

“He was instrumental in talking to AJ about coming to the team, giving him some insight,” Penske said.

On Allmendinger’s résumé, “You gotta like the progress,” Keselowski said. “I think that’s what this sport’s all about.”

Penske never really stops thinking about the Indy 500, which his drivers have won 15 times, so he seemed to be only half-joking when he said of the NASCAR hiring process, “Secretly I said if they have the double [an arrangement whereby a driver can compete in the Indy 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte on the same day], maybe I could get him to run at Indianapolis because he’s a NASCAR guy who can drive open-wheel.”

“I have big shoes to fill,” Allmendinger said. “Kurt is one of the best guys out there. For sure, when it comes to outright speed, outright driving a Sprint Cup car.”

Keselowski can and will help Allmendinger get there.

“The biggest thing to me,” Allmendinger said, “is that he’s here to help. He’s not just about himself, trying to make sure he shows everybody up and he runs well.”

Keselowski and crew chief Paul Wolfe have gotten more and more synchronized since their Nationwide Series days together. How compatible are they?

“You see what [Chad] Knaus and Jimmie Johnson have done,” Penske said. “And I think that’s what we’ll see with Paul Wolfe and Brad.”

My only qualm about picking Brad K. to win the title was that Penske is a two-car team — the only two Dodges in Cup at that — up against the four-car armadas of Hendrick Motorsports and Roush Fenway. (Rick Hendrick already has said flat-out that he’ll be disappointed if HMS doesn’t put all four cars in the Chase and win the championship.)

But Keselowski’s reasoning is persuasive.

“There are no four-car teams in NASCAR,” he said. “There are a lot of two-car teams, a few one-car teams, and a couple of pairings of two-car teams. … Just look at Hendrick. You go up there and there’s two separate shops (of two-car units). … There are no four-car teams. It’s not a successful model. It doesn’t work.

“

I’m a race driver, not a psychiatrist. Kurt was a very good teammate. And he didn’t get a lot of credit for that. He really didn’t. And so I’m not about to kick a man while he’s down.

”
– Brad Keselowski on Kurt Busch

“Each team takes roughly 100 people to run it. You cannot get 400 people to work together. It doesn’t happen. They’re running all different directions. It’s a struggle in itself to get two teams to work together.

“So I feel zero competitive disadvantage to four-car teams. Zero.”

That’s the highly assertive sort of leadership that makes Keselowski not just clearly the new leader at Penske with Busch gone but also an emerging leader of all Cup drivers.

Yet Keselowski is never really shooting from the hip — he just gives that illusion.

Somebody asked him why Busch is “so angry.”

“I’m a race driver, not a psychiatrist,” Keselowski said. “Kurt was a very good teammate. And he didn’t get a lot of credit for that. He really didn’t. And so I’m not about to kick a man while he’s down.”

Last fall, Penske put both Busch and Keselowski into the Chase. At one point, Brad K. was at the brink of charging from behind to make a serious run at the Cup. On paper, he fell off in the last four races to finish fifth in the standings.

But beneath the surface, it wasn’t so much a fall-off as an aggressive mistake. After falling behind in the points, going down the stretch run of the Chase, “We probably took a step too far out on the ledge [in car setups] to trying and get it back — which is what you have to do,” Keselowski said.

“We could have stayed back and run a normal approach, and that probably would have gotten us third in the points.

“I wasn’t interested in that. Third or fifth, there’s maybe a little bit of money difference, but the trophy was about the same to me. I was interested in doing what we could to make a run at winning it, and we overstepped a bit and we fell off a couple races.”

He had made the Chase off a strong and gutsy summer, three wins — two of them after suffering an ankle fracture in a crash in testing. And perhaps his most impressive performance of 2011 was finishing second at Watkins Glen, doing all that clutching and braking on a road course with the bad ankle.

I’ve said all along that Keselowski’s aggressiveness on the track is in the mode of the young Dale Earnhardt. And to find more pizzazz and innate leadership in a driver personality, you have to go all the way back to a young Darrell Waltrip. Add to that a bootstraps background in a hardworking racing family that the grassroots fans can relate to.

What more could NASCAR ask for, in this, the year it strives for a great revival in interest?

And who better as his sidekick than Dinger (he likes that nickname, because his surname is such a handful), whom Richard Petty once chewed out for being too aggressive too early?

Holy roaring crowds, Batman! The dynamism of this duo will be dazzling.

Ed Hinton is a senior writer for ESPN.com. He can be reached at edward.t.hinton@espn.com.

Article source: http://espn.go.com/racing/nascar/cup/story/_/id/7524449/nascar-brad-keselowski-aj-allmendinger-penske-racing-dynamic-duo