Pro Cal Racing News

1-8-08 – Betty Little is on a campaign

She’s not trying to get elected.
She’s just trying to save a building.
It’s a building that’s vital to motorsports history -- namely NASCAR stock car racing.
At one time, Betty Little and her husband, Fletchel, operated the Apollo Restaurant in this building which sits on the west corner of Morehead Road and U.S. Highway 29, across from Lowe’s Motor Speedway. The building is owned by Betty Little’s brother-in-law, Buck. Four Little brothers own the entire section which includes the Apollo Mobile Home Park.
The building is alive with motorsports history.
When the Apollo Restaurant was up and running, it was the site just about every morning for breakfast conversation about racing , featuring some of the all-time greats like the late Harry Hyde, the late Robert Gee, racing mechanic Tommy Johnson, mechanics and crew chiefs from race teams in the area too numerous to mention.
If you were anybody in racing and you wanted to know anything about motorsports, you showed up at the Apollo and listened to the conversation, right outside the kitchen.
There was racing memorabilia in the restaurant.
When the Littles were running the Apollo, D.K.Ulrich had his race shop located in the end of the building which now faces the Speedway Center, a two-story office building. Brian Butler, who now engineers ButlerBuilt racing seats, and Dick May also had offices in the building. The late Tim Richmond got his start in NASCAR Cup as a driver, running a car owned by Ulrich which came out of this shop, like a lot of other drivers.
The Littles decided to get out of the restaurant business in the early 2000s.
Since the restaurant went under, many have occupied the space where the Apollo stood, including the NASCAR Racing Wives Auxiliary. Red Wing Shoes now has a business in the building.
Now that the City of Concord and Cabarrus County has opened up its pocketbook to Lowe’s Motor Speedway’s Bruton Smith for all types of improvements in and around the speedway, Betty Little is afraid the building might not be spared.
They’re talking about putting in a spur road from some place, just south of the old Apollo building to cross over to Speedway Boulevard (now Bruton Smith Boulevard), coming out somewhere around the Tom Johnson Camping RV complex where Smith plans to open up a drag strip later this year. How much land that will require and exactly where, nobody knows.
"They haven’t told us a thing, yet," said Fletchel Little. "They’ll just come in one day and take what they need and that’ll be all there is to it. Nobody can do anything about it."
There are plans for a couple of new walkover bridges somewhere near Morehead Road and U.S. 29 and they plan to reconfigure and widen U.S. 29 in front of the speedway. They also are going to put in a couple of underground pedestrian tunnels some where on Morehead Road.
All that work might all of a sudden engulf the building that once housed the Apollo in a moment‘s notice.
Gone is a part of motorsports history.
Gone will be the building that heard legendary tales spun by Hyde and Gee.
It’s where the motorsports world first found out that Rick Hendrick had decided to join the ranks of Cup car owners, taking over Hyde’s property, not far from where the Apollo once was, transforming it into an empire.
"We need to make that building a historical building, so they can’t tear it down," said Betty Little.
"Motorsports is so important now to North Carolina and this area, in particular. So many things happened in the Apollo when we were there."
It seems like only yesterday when Hyde won his first Cup race with Hendrick, coming home to find just about every tree in the neighborhood wrapped in white toilet paper as a welcoming home gesture.
The Apollo Restaurant stories go on forever.
Save the building, if possible…

DON’T FORGET -- We’re in a new year and it’s a new name for NASCAR’s top series. It’s now the NASCAR Sprint Car Series, replacing the Nextel Cup Series. Nationwide Insurance also takes over the sponsorship of the Busch Series which now becomes the Nationwide Series…

TESTING UNDERWAY -- Jimmie Johnson, the defending Sprint Car Series champion, was the fastest in the first day of pre-season testing on Jan. 7 at the 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway where the season opens next month. Driving the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Lowe’s Chevrolet, Johnson, who started last season with a victory in the Daytona 500, posted the fastest lap on the first day of NASCAR preseason testing for the Sprint Cup Series cars with a lap of 184.782 mph in the morning session. Rounding out the top three were Johnson’s teammate, Casey Mears, now driving the No. 5 Chevrolet, at 184.475 mph and Kyle Busch in his new Toyota ride at Joe Gibbs Racing at 184.064. The test session is the first shake down that NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams have had with the new winged car (Car of Tomorrow) at Daytona International Speedway in preparation for the 50th running of the Daytona 500 on Feb. 17. For Johnson, the test has been productive so far. "I can’t tell you how happy I am to get off the couch," Johnson said. "If I sit around and eat any more food, drink any more beer, I won’t be able to get back into my suit and my race car. We’ve enjoyed the off-season, celebrated the championship. I’m excited to get back at the track." Those that didn’t participate in this first session will test next week, starting Jan. 14, including Dale Earnhardt Jr., who’s making the switch from the Dale Earnhardt, Inc. (DEI), No. 8 Chevrolet to the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. Formula One veteran and former Indy 500 winner Jacques Villeneuve is making his first appearance at Daytona International Speedway during this week’s test session. Villeneuve is driving the No. 27 Toyota for Bill Davis Racing. ..

RACING AT THE ROCK -- Scores of INEX Legends Car and Bandolero drivers pulled into the garage area at Rockingham Speedway (N.C.) on Jan. 6, each with visions and hopes of ushering in the next generation of Rockingham during the first on-track events at the historic facility since 2004. Every team and driver combination hoped to be the first to visit Rockingham’s victory lane since Matt Kenseth won the final NASCAR event there. Only one would do so -- BDI Racing of Concord, N.C., and 21-year-old driver Matt Harris. Harris, originally from Winchester, England, paced himself using techniques that he acquired during years of successful road racing overseas to gain the lead with three laps remaining and score his first career Legends Car victory and the first win of the 2008 season for the BDI Racing team. This was a warm up for the Carolina 500 ARCA/ReMax event on May 4 for Andy Hillenberg, who now owns the 1.017-mile track…

NEW JOB -- Chris Carrier, 47, takes over as crew chief for the No. 77 Penske Racing Dodges to be driven by Sam Hornish Jr. Carrier comes to Penske from Morgan-McClure Motorsports in Abingdon, Va.

12-17-07 – Don Miller and Stocks for Tots

The Marines have their annual Toys for Tots program where toys are donated to needy families at Christmas time.
They might not be the almighty Marines, but the annual Stocks for Tots, each December here, does a pretty darn good job of getting toys to abused children in the Iredell County (N.C.) area and North Carolina, through the SCAN (Stop Child Abuse Now) program.
Don Miller, who just stepped down as president of Penske Racing South, got Stocks for Tots up and running in 1989 at the National Guard Armory here as a way for the stock car racing community to get involved in helping need children and families.
For the next 16 years, Stocks for Tots was held at the Lakeside Business Park, the home of numerous racing teams, here.
Two years ago it was moved to the Charles Mack Citizen Center here on Main Street where it was conducted the night of Dec. 12.
It doesn’t seem that long ago when the late Angela Crawford, Judy Collins, Deb Williams and yours truly were meeting, along with others, three-four times a month for a couple of months to get that first Stocks for Tots up-and-running.
It was a labor of love and that’s what it was been since.
It had a lot more air about Christmas and its purpose than the 19th annual event had the other night. It was too spread about and people attending were crowded into tight spaces, but a lot of new toys were amassed, along with a little money, through a silent auction and some other small-money makers.
It’s just not right that those legend racing stars like Dick May, Jabe Thomas, Travis Tiller, Tiger Tom Pistone and Ken Ragan be separated from the other drivers. It’s like the legends are a bunch of cast outs, not the ones who helped to get NASCAR stock car racing off and running like they did. Without those people, there wouldn’t be any Kurt Buschs or Jeff Gordons of today
if it continues, it needs to be back at Lakeside Business Park and, then, make sure the race teams that are still located in the business park get involved, putting up Christmas lights and decorations and helping to host the event.
Done right, with some organization, Stocks for Tots can become a guiding light to Christmas events in the area.
Miller, who was awarded the Home Depot’s first humanitarian award earlier this month during the NASCAR awards banquet in New York City, is too involved to realize and know the organization behind Stocks for Tots is very lax and non-caring, at times.
There needs to be some community amnesties in Stocks for Tots.
Over the years, more than $400,000 and countless number of toys have been raised and donated to the SCAN families. It’s still a worthwhile project when it comes down to those two aspects, but the popularity of the event bodes of much more.
That’s not a paltry sum, by any means.
"I get a little concerned every year that it’s not going to be as good as it was the year before or as good as it ought to be," Miller, who didn’t have time to talk to the media during the event, said beforehand. "But somehow, it always comes off."
It almost didn’t this time, though.
Very few people connected with the event knew where anything was or what was transpiring, when or where.
That’s not a way to keep something going that’s been so successful previously.
Miller says that now he’s retired from Penske Racing, he’ll have more time to worry about making future editions of Stocks for Tots better.
Let’s hope it’s not too late to make that come true.
It would be a shame to see Stocks for Tots to suffer.
All it needs is a few good men to rival the Marines for Toys for Tots...

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR: Michael Waltrip Racing has hired crew chiefs Ryan Pemberton (David Reutimann, No. 00), Paul Andrews (who’ll work with Waltrip, No.55) and Bill Pappas (who’ll head up Waltrip’s third team). Pemberton was working with Mark Martin at Dale Earnhardt, Inc. (DEI), but was replaced in that position by Doug Richert…NASCAR has given car owner Roger Penske its approval for Penske to use the car owner points from 2007 for former champion Kurt Busch in the first five races in 2008 for newcomer Sam Hornish Jr. to be able to compete in at least the first five races…

HOW’S THIS FOR A BIT OF HISTORY: Stock cars will be running again at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway on Labor Day weekend, but it won’t be in the Southern 500. It’ll be David Pearson, Darrell Waltrip, Buddy Baker, Junior Johnson, Bud Moore, Cotton Owens and others in the Darlington Historic Racing Festival, Aug. 30-31, 2008. Track president Chris Browning says the festival will bring together more than 100 vintage race cars, ranging from the 1950s to the 1970s, to NASCAR’s oldest Superspeedway. Tickets are $25 for weekend (1-800-459-RACE)…

From everyone at PRO CAL: Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and we’ll see you again in 2008!

12-03-07 – A Great Season for Rookie David Ragan

Car owner Jack Roush figures up-and-coming NASCAR Nextel Cup driver David Ragan just as easily could have been a crew chief as a driver.
"Robert Yates (the longtime Cup engine builder and car owner who retired at the end of this season) got us interested in David," said Roush, whose Roush Fenway Racing organization owns four Cup teams. "We were doing one of our driver’s tests with the trucks and David was there. Well, there was some commotion there between the crew and drivers, so I figured I’d better have a look-see.
"It was David, telling the crew chiefs what to do with the spring and chassis setups. He knew as much about those things as the crew chiefs did. I had to tell him, they were there to get their job done, just like he was expected to drive. I didn’t know if I had a driver or a crew chief on my hands.
"It’s something he has had to learn."
David Ragan, just 22, figures it was a lesson he learned in 2007 when he competed for Raybestos Brakes Rookie of the Year honors in the NASCAR Busch and Nextel Cup series.
On Nov. 21 here at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, Ragan was honored at a Raybestos Brakes luncheon tradition, started in 2000, along with Willie Allen (NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series) and Juan Pablo Montoya (Nextel Cup), as the top rookie in the Busch ranks.
According to Camp & Associates’ Jimmy White, who has become NASCAR’s "Mr. Rookie," Ragan, son of Ken Ragan, the former Cup-ARCA/ReMax driver from Unadilla, Ga., who now runs the 600 Racing program for Legends Cars, out of Harrisburg, N.C., David Ragan came awful close to wrapping up both the Cup and Busch titles. He would have been the first ever to do that, if he had done it. Ragan finished 24 points behind Montoya.
"David had his opportunity to take both titles," said White. "But it seems, when Montoya would slip up, opening the door for Ragan, that’s when Ragan would have troubles, too. David just couldn’t close the deal when he needed to do so."
Since Raybestos brand brakes became the title sponsor of the NASCAR rookie program in 1998 in Cup, Busch and trucks, 10 Roush Fenway Racing drivers have earned Raybestos Rookie of the Year honors. Ragan gives Roush his third consecutive rookie title in the Busch Series and fourth since 2001.
"He’s the youngest I’ve dealt with," said Roush. "But he knows a lot for his age."
Ragan was given the task of driving the No. 6 Fords for Roush Fenway, the same car number utilized by Mark Martin for so many years with Roush.
"Now I’m sure everyone is aware of how I feel about that No. 6 and how important it is to me, but I’ve had no regrets of putting David into that car," said Roush. "I think we’re just beginning to see and recognize the talent he possesses.
"(Greg) Biffle, (Kurt) Busch and (Carl) Edwards all were older when I was dealing with them as rookies, than David."
Ragan says he and crew chief, the veteran Jimmy Fennig, are set to make a run for Nextel Cup championship title honors in 2008. "We already have five-six of the new cars ready to go," said Ragan. "We’re way ahead of last year at this time."
David Ragan could have been a pretty fair country football player if had decided to follow that sport in high school at Unadilla, instead of following his dad in auto racing. His uncle, Marvin, who now runs a small speedway near Cordele, Ga., also was active in motorsports during David’s younger years.
Ragan said the one thing his father taught him, growing up, was to always believe in what he thought was right.
"I guess, that’s something I’m having to learn the hard way," said David Ragan.
"I’ve got to start listening to these crew chiefs to be a better driver."…

DOMINATING THE AWARDS: Hendrick Motorsports, just like it did during the season, dominated the annual awards banquet the night of Nov. 30 at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City with two-time champion Jimmie Johnson and runner-up Jeff Gordon, the four-time champion, leading the way. Johnson, driver of the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, took home $15,313,920 ($7,646,421 from the 2007 season’s points fund), while Gordon, who drives the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet, gave car owner Rick Hendrick another $10,926,687 ($3,280,915 from the points fund). During the season, Hendrick Motorsports drivers won 18 of the 36 races -- Johnson 10, Gordon six and Kyle Busch (No. 6 Kellogg’s Chevrolet) and Casey Mears (No. 25 National Guard Chevrolet) one each. This was Hendrick’s seventh Cup championship in NASCAR since he started in 1984, winning more than $250-million. The other 11 drivers in the "chase" for the championship also were given big checks during the banquet, along with 13th-place finisher Ryan Newman (No. 12 Penske/Alltel Dodge) and Raybestos Brakes Rookie of the Year Juan Pablo Montoya (No. 42 Ganassi/Texaco Dodge). Johnson shared the stage with crew chief Chad Knaus, who has been with him since Johnson became a full-time Cup driver in 2002. Chevrolet presented Knaus with keys to a 2008 Corvette. There was a moving tribute by longtime TV anchorman and France family friend Tom Brokaw, who said Bill France Jr., who passed away in 2007 at the age of 74, was the "personification of the American dream." Another special moment came when longtime broadcaster Barney Hall was given the Bill France Award of Excellence, named after France Jr.’s father. Other awards presented: Most popular driver -- Dale Earnhardt Jr., fifth straight year; Myers Brothers Award -- Bill France Jr.; Buddy Shuman Award -- Robert Yates; Home Depot Humanitarian Award -- Don Miller, retiring president of Penske Racing; Manufacturers Championship Award -- Chevrolet, winners of 26 of the 2007 season’s 36 races; and Engine Builder of the Year -- Earl Wheeler, $100,000, Hendrick Motorsports, who builds engines for the Nos. 24 and 48 teams…

MAKING CHANGES: Dodge will use its Charger model in 2008 in the NASCAR Sprint Car Series…Don Miller, 68, says he’s retiring as president of Penske Racing, winning 75 Cup races and more than $90-million in winnings since 1990...Penske also said Roy McCauley will be Ryan Newman’s crew chief in 2008...Jeff Meendering, the car chief for Jeff Gordon’s No. 24 Chevrolet, is leaving Hendrick Motorsports to take over as crew chief of Bobby Labonte’s No. 43 Dodge in 2008. Meendering has been with Hendrick since 2001...Labonte will drive Chevrolets for Richard Childress Racing in 15 Nationwide Series races in 2008...

STOCKS FOR TOTS: The annual toy drive, organized by Don Miller and Penske Racing to raise toys and money for needy-abused children, will be Dec. 11, starting at 4 p.m. at the Citizen's Center in downtown Mooresville, N.C. The price of admission is a new toy and a $10 donation which grants all attendees all the autographs of all drivers-celebrities on hand. More than $400,000 has been raised in the years of the program, along with a countless number of toys. Stocks For Tots moved from Lakeside Business Park to the downtown location to present a more feasible site for fans.

11-20-07 – Old School Racing Champions Tour

What a lot of people have envisioned for a number of years finally has been formalized by Gene Weaver.
Weaver is a managing partner in the Old School Racing Champions Tour scheduled to make its debut May 18 at Concord (N.C.) Motorsports Park.
Weaver says David Pearson, Dick Trickle, Harry Gant, Geoffrey Bodine, Dave Marcis and James Hylton are among the drivers who already have signed up to compete in the first season.
"I have been an ARCA/ReMax truck series owner for many years and we have a few wins under our belt," said Weaver. "But Old School Racing is the most exciting thing I’ve ever been involved with."
Former winners in NASCAR’s top three series -- Cup, Busch and trucks -- are eligible to compete in the seniors tour as former Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA), IndyCar, Championship Auto Racing Teams champions or former Indianapolis 500 winners are, too, as they are not racing full time in any of those series.
"Those drivers are legends in auto racing and I hope that OSR (Old School Racing) can provide a platform that will allow us to show them how much we appreciate what they have done for the sport," said Weaver.
Races will be run on tracks which are three-quarters of a mile in length or less. The first season in 2008 has dates scheduled at Concord, Hickory (N.C.) Motor Speedway, South Boston (Va.) Speedway and Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio.
Each driver can compete in six of the 10 events and the points will be determined by a driver’s best five finishes. Each driver will represent a charity and half of each race’s purse will go to those charities.

CLOSING THE CHASE: Jimmie Johnson won his second straight NASCAR Nextel Cup championship when he finished seventh on Nov. 18 in the Ford Championship 400 at Homestead-Miami (Fla.) Speedway in the season’s final race. Driving the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, Johnson provided team owner Rick Hendrick by with seventh Cup title. Teammate Jeff Gordon, who co-owns Johnson’s team, finished fourth in the race and was the runner-up in points, 77 behind Johnson in the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet. It was Gordon’s 30th to-10 finish in 2007, enabling him to break the Cup record of 29 for a single season, set by Dale Jarrett in 1999. Clint Bowyer finished third in the points as Matt Kenseth, driving the No. 17 Roush/Dewalt Ford Taurus, won the race, giving crew chief Robbie Reiser a victory in his last race with the team. Reiser becomes general manager at Jack Roush Racing in 2008 with Chip Bolin taking over for Reiser. Johnson joins Carl Edwards (Busch Series) and Ron Hornaday Jr. (Craftsman Truck Series) as 2007 champions in NASCAR’s top three series. Hornaday wrapped up the truck title on Nov. 16 at Homestead-Miami, edging out Toyota’s Mike Skinner, who drives for Bill Davis Racing. Hornaday Jr. drives Kevin Harvick’s No. 33 Chevrolet Silverado truck…

LAST RUNS: There were a number of lasts at Homestead-Miami this past weekend…Among them were -- Busch’s last race as the sponsor of that series which becomes the Nationwide Series (get used to it) in 2008; Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s last race with Dale Earnhardt, Inc. (DEI), the team his late father founded to get him started; he moves to Hendrick Motorsports in 2008 to drive the No. 88 Chevrolet; J. J. Yeley’s final run in the No. 18 for Joe Gibbs Racing, he goes to Haas CNC Racing; Kyle Busch leaves Hendrick Motorsports to replace Yeley at Gibbs in 2008; the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series becomes the NASCAR Sprint Car (not the Outlaw Sprints) Series in 2008; it was Robbie Reiser’s last race as crew chief of Matt Kenseth’s No. 17 Ford Taurus, stepping up to general manager of all of Jack Roush Racing; and it was the last NASCAR Cup race for driver Ricky Rudd and car owner Robert Yates, Rudd was driving Yates’ No. 88 Ford, Doug Yates takes over his father’s team in 2008 with consultation from Roush Racing…

CAR OWNER DIES: Billy Hagan, 75, who was born in Lafayette, La., and came up in the old industry, died Nov. 16 in the Concord, N.C., area where he was residing. Hagan was the owner of Terry Labonte’s No. 44 Piedmont Airlines Oldsmobile team when Labonte won the Cup title in 1984. Hagan was fond of road-course racing and he and Labonte teamed up to compete in several of those type races, winning numerous ones, including the 24 Hours of Daytona in a Chevrolet Camaro…The husband of Roberto Hood, the capable secretary in the office of public relations at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C., was seriously injured in an automobile accident last week in Midland, N.C. He’s in Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, N.C., and, reportedly, is lucky to be alive…

A THANKSGIVING TURKEY: Cabarrus County (N.C.) and Concord (N.C.) officials say they expect Bruton Smith to make a decision by Nov. 23 (Thanksgiving Day) as to whether he’ll moved Lowe’s Motor Speedway from Concord to some other location within the Charlotte, N.C., region. Cabarrus and Concord officials have put together a package, with proposals totaling more than $70-million, to keep Smith and Lowe’s at its present location. Smith was angered by Concord’s decision to prevent him from building a drag strip on the speedway’s property.

11-12-07 – Two Legends Step Down

The last race of the 2007 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series on Nov. 18 at Homestead-Miami (Fla.) Speedway is more than just to determine the champion of 2007.
The Ford Championship 400 is more than being the last race for the present-day race car model, ushering in the Car of Tomorrow (COT).
It’s the last race for two of the nicest guys who’ve ever graced this sport.
The NASCAR Nextel Cup Series will long rue the day that Robert Yates and Ricky Rudd decided to bow out of the business.
You’ll be hard-pressed in the future to find two more honest or hard-working guys than Yates and Rudd.
It just so happened that Rudd had to be driving Yates’ No. 88 Ford when they both decided it was time to retire from careers which can’t be forgotten or probably never will.
It doesn’t seem that long ago when Robert Yates, one of the best engine builders ever in NASCAR stock car racing, came running through the garage, yelling that Harry Ranier had sold him the No. 28 team for $1.
Seems Ranier had to return to Kentucky to take care of some family business and couldn’t be worried about a race team any more. He and Yates had built the No. 28 into a formidable, dominant team at the time.
It was only fitting that Ranier turn the team over to Yates.
In the years since that transaction in the ’80s, Yates built Robert Yates Racing (RYR) into one of the most powerful and respected teams in the business through his engine building proweress. Along the way, Yates not only tasted success, but there were moments of sadness with the untimely deaths of drivers Davey Allison and Kenny Irwin Jr.
It makes one wonder what Yates really might have accomplished had Allison and Irwin Jr. been around for the duration. Likely more than just Dale Jarrett’s championship in 1999. Yates already had accomplished one championship in 1982 with Allison’s father, Bobby, as the engine builder for the DiGard team.
Along the way, Yates relayed all his engine building knowledge to a gifted son, Doug, who’s assuming control of RYR (RYR), as Robert steps down, and combines his engine-building skills with Jack Roush.
Now, the one thing missing from Rudd’s resume is a championship. That’s something the man from Chesapeake, Va., doesn’t need to leave his legacy in this sport. Rudd’s honesty and humility speaks for itself.
There are few (count ‘em on one hand) drivers in this sport I can say never lied about anything to me. Rudd was at the top of the list of being a totally honest and up front guy.
If he didn’t know or just plain couldn’t tell you, because of the business involved in the matter, Rudd would make sure you understood before letting you walk away. It mattered a lot to Rudd to maintain that reputation; to others it didn’t matter at all.
It was in the early ’80s and Rudd was competing in one of the first Bud Shootouts (or Classics or whatever they called that non-points race back then) at Daytona International Speedway. We were watching the race that Sunday afternoon at the house of Rudd’s sister, Carolyn, here in Concord. That’s when Rudd was involved in one of the most violent wrecks I ever remember seeing, spinning, flipping through the air several times, and seeming like the car totally coming apart at the seams.
Carolyn Rudd, at the time employed in the public relations department at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, was worried about her brother. The next time any of us saw her was a week or so later. She had taken off immediately and got herself to Halifax Hospital in Daytona Beach, Fla., to find out how her brother, Ricky was doing. She knew that was the only way she’d find out the real truth.
Well, Bud Moore, who owned the No. 15 blue and yellow Wrangler Ford that Rudd was driving at the time, and the doctors had to use tape to keep his eyelids open, but Rudd was back in the car a week later at Richmond, Va., where he won the race.
That was almost like the race in Sonoma, Calif., in which he out-dueled Davey Allison to win, only to be denied by NASCAR. And Allison was driving for Robert Yates at the time.
It seems like certain things have an ironic way of coming full cycle.
And now Robert Yates and Ricky Rudd are stepping down at the same time.
It’s a sad and tragic day in the history of NASCAR stock car racing…

THE CHASE IS OVER: Mathematically 10 of the 12 drivers have been eliminated from the NASCAR "chase" from the championship for 2007 now that Jimmie Johnson has an 86-point lead over Hendrick Motorsports teammate and co-car-owner Jeff Gordon. Johnson, driving the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, won for the 10th time this season and fourth in a row on Nov. 11 at Phoenix (Ariz.) International Raceway in the Checker Auto Parts 400. Johnson was the first to win four races in a row since Gordon did it in 1998. After Johnson won and Gordon finished 10th, his 29th top-10 finish this season and losing 56 points in the process, Gordon said of his chances to pull out his fifth championship at Homestead-Miami (Fla.) on Nov. 18, "It’s over, man. He’d have to wreck on the first lap and we’d have to win the race and lead the most laps for us to even have a chance. Those guys are running too good right now for something like that to happen. So, as far as we’re concerned, it’s over." It’s happening the same way as it did in 2006 when Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus won their first championship…

CHANGING JOBS: Doug Randolph, crew chief for Bobby Labonte in the no. 43 Dodge, is leaving Petty Enterprises to join Dale Earnhardt, Inc. (DEI), in 2008 where he’ll become crew chief for Paul Menard…Richard Petty announced Nov. 9 in Phoenix, Ariz., that Petty Enterprises has made plans to buy Robert Yates Racing’s shop in Mooresville, N.C., and would be leaving the family compound in Level Cross, N.C., during the off-season to relocate in Mooresville…Another open-wheel competitor made his Nextel cup debut at Phoenix on Nov. 11 when Sam Hornish Jr. drove a Roger Penske-owned car. Hornish Jr. will be in Penske’s No. 77 dodge fulltime in 2008, joining Juan Pablo Montoya and others. Dario Franchitti and Scott Speed also are expected to try Nextel cup in ’08...When Kyle Petty started at Martinsville, Va., on Oct. 21 in the No. 45 Dodge, it was his 810th start, moving him into fifth place on the all-time list behind his dad, Richard (1,184), Ricky Rudd (904), Dave Marcis (883) and Terry Labonte (851).

11-5-07 – Remembering Lost Friends

There’s an old saying that things, good or bad, occurs in threes.
After what happened from Oct. 9 to Oct. 21, I’m convinced there’s a lot of truth in that old adage.
During those two weeks in October, three close friends passed away -- Bobby Batson, Ray Cooper and Shav Glick.
All three were talented at what they did and attributed to motorsports during their brief time on this earth.
Batson, besides being a journalist and a college sports information director at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C., was the director of information at Lowe’s Motor Speedway and Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Cooper started off as a sports writer at The Greensboro (N.C.) News & Record before becoming a manufacture’s public relations rep for Chevrolet and Dodge. Cooper set the benchmark for the industry in that category.
Glick was one of the best writers, bar none, I've ever read. He could do things with the English language in his reporting of motorsports stories which were heads and heels over his competitors in the business.
He worked for The Los Angeles Times for the large part of his career.
Glick’s writing will live forever.
Batson died in Concord, N.C.; Cooper in Greensboro, N.C.; and Glick in Los Angeles.
While I ran with Batson and Cooper, and have stories of each I’ll remember, it was Glick who was the most interesting and intriguing.
A lot of people never got to read any of Glick’s work because there was very little circulation of The LA Times in the south or the east. We got to read his stuff when we went west for races.
Some of us were more fortunate.
At one time, Union Oil, through its 76 brand, sponsored the Union-76 Panel of Experts, consisting of motorsports writers, who would, from time-to-time, predict the outcome of certain NASCAR Winston Cup (before Nextel Cup) races.
Glick was a member of that panel which disbanded when Union pulled out of the sport.
Each February, prior to the Daytona 500, Union-76 would host a private dinner for members of the panel.
That gave Glick and Chris Economaki, editor of National Speed Sport News, a chance to share war stories.
What Economaki covered on the east coast and Midwest, Glick covered it on the west coast and the southwest.
Between the two they had motorsports covered from coast-to-coast and their stories were interesting and worth listening to.
Norm Frosher, a writer from Gainesville, Fla., and also a member of the 76 panel, introduced me to Glick.
With Frosher, Glick, Steve Earwood (now running the drag strip in Rockingham, N.C.) and a couple of others, we set out one night from Daytona Beach, Fla., to the race track at New Smyrna Beach (Fla.) Speedway. I don’t think we were all that interested in what racing there was, but it was more of a chance to socialize and drink a couple of beers. It was fun to see Dick Trickle battle the late Richie Evans.
Earwood almost wrecked the car I was driving, bumping me from behind, until Frosher reminded him it was my personal car, not a rental like Earwood’s.
From there, I played golf with Glick on several occasions after that and he was much more the golfer than I ever hoped to be.
At one time, Tom Higgins, who retired from The Charlotte (N.C.) Observer, and I covered ever NASCAR Cup race for about 15-16 years, more than any other writer in the country.
Well, every time, during those Union-76 panel dinners, Glick, Economaki and I would sit together.
Frosher tried to figure out, at one time, how many races the three of us had covered, but couldn’t come up with a figure.
I’ll guarantee you, I couldn’t hold a candle to Economaki or Glick and never will try.
They’re two of the best.
So were Ray Cooper and Bobby Batson…

CHASING THE CHASERS: Jimmie Johnson, driving the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports/Lowe’s Chevrolet won the Dickies 500 on Nov. 4 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas, for his ninth victory of the season and third in a row. That propelled Johnson into the lead by 30 points over Hendrick teammate Jeff Gordon in the NASCAR Nextel Cup "chase" for the championship. Gordon, driving the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet, had led by nine points going into the race at a 1.5-mile where he and Johnson had never won previously in their Nextel Cup careers. This was Gordon’s 28th top-10 finish in 34 races this season, leaving him one shy of the record 29 which Dale Jarrett had in 1999. Two races remain this season -- Nov. 11 at Phoenix, Ariz., and Nov. 18 at Homestead-Miami, Fla. Drivers in positions 12th-seventh were all mathematically eliminated from the "chase" after the Dickies 500...

SHORT LAPS: Racing returns to North Carolina Motor Speedway at Rockingham, N.C., with new owner Andy Hillenberg announcing that the ARCA/ReMax Series would run the Carolina 500k at the 1.017-mile on May 4, 2008. Hillenberg also announced that the Hooters Pro Cup Series would run its final race in 2008 at "The Rock," the American 200, a 200-lap race on Nov. 1...Bruton Smith, who’s still threatening to move Lowe’s Motor Speedway from Concord, N.C., on Nov. 2 announced he had purchase New Hampshire International Speedway from Bob Bahre for $340-million. While NASCAR announced there would be no date changes in 2008, speculation is that Smith eventually will move one of New Hampshire’s two Nextel Cup dates to Las Vegas, Nev., and change the Texas Motor Speedway date to an earlier Fall date than the November date it now occupies…Carl Edwards won the NASCAR Busch Series title on Nov.3 at Texas Motor Speedway…With two races remaining, Mike Skinner now leads the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series by 57 points over Ron Hornaday Jr. … DEI is remaining with Chevrolet after signing a multi-year agreement, said DEI general manager John Story…Thirty-nine-year-old Jeremy Mayfield moves from Bill Davis’ No. 36 Toyota to replace Jeff Green in the No. 66 Haas CNC Chevrolet, with Best Buy leaving the No. 66 and going with Elliott Sadler in Ray Evernham’s No. 19 Dodge. Scott Riggs is joining Mayfield at Haas CNC with Johnny Sauter taking the Yellow Freight deal and heading over to Robby Gordon, making that a two-team deal…Doug Yates says he has sponsorships lined up for David Gilliland and Travis Kvapil for 2008, but he’s not ready to announce either, yet…Steve Hmiel has departed Dale Earnhardt, Inc., and taken over as director of competition at Chip Ganassi Racing. Ganassi has told people, before he’s through, he’ll have an all foreign team of drivers. He’s two-thirds of the way there, adding Dario Franchetti to go along with Juan Pablo Montoya…Patrick Carpentier put on a No. 10 Montreal Canadians hockey jersey, symbolic of where the native of Canada will drive in 2008, replacing Riggs in Evernham’s No. 10 Dodge…

HOLY TOLEDO!: Did anyone besides me roll over in their grave last week. NASCAR’s appeals commission did something absolutely unprecedented and unheard of in this. The appeals board overturned two fines that had been imposed by NASCAR, restoring points and fines in each case. One incident had to do with a Rick Hendrick Chevrolet in a Busch Series race and a manifold which Hendrick contended had been used for three years and passed NASCAR inspection without any problems. Seldom are the appeals ever overturned, making this a monumental moment in NASCAR history!

10-22-07 – Eddie Wood

Finding Eddie Wood the night of Oct. 13, prior to the Bank of America 500 here at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, was an easy task.
Wood was in the garage area, directly behind the No. 21 Ford team’s car hauler, where one will find him most of the time.
He was talking with someone, but he didn’t seem to mind being interrupted.
The question for Eddie Wood had to do with all the recent mergers of teams and businesses in NASCAR Nextel Cup.
It’s no big secret that the Wood Brothers from Stuart, Va., now with their team’s shop in Harrisburg, N.C., on N.C. 49, are struggling a bit of late in an attempt to keep up with the Childresses, Hendricks, Gibbs, Evernhams and Roushes.
So, the question for Eddie Wood was: Why don’t you guys consider a merger with Petty Enterprises?
The Pettys have expressed a desire of late of moving from Level Cross, N.C., to somewhere in the Charlotte, N.C., where the motorsports work force is more plentiful. Richard Petty, the leader of the Petty clan, has made it plain and simple in recent weeks that in order to keep his team going and competitive, he’s got to have an investor.
Much like the Wood Brothers.
Merging the Wood Brothers and Petty Enterprises would be the magical moment in NASCAR history.
It would be putting the two teams together that have been around the sport longer than any others and bringing the two teams together that have the winningest drivers of all-time -- Richard Petty, 200, and David Pearson, 105. There are 10 Cup titles between Petty and Pearson.
After hearing the proposal, Eddie Wood summoned for someone standing just off to the side of the team’s hauler.
Calling him by name, Eddie Wood said, "Now tell him what you and I were talking about a year ago." The answer was a Wood Brothers-Petty Enterprises merger.
"Now," said Eddie Wood, "why don’t you write it, just like we’ve talked about it. I think it would be interesting to see what people think about it and if it really would fly. Why couldn’t they still drive Dodges and let us still drive Fords, if that’s what they want? We’ve certainly got a building, right now, that’s big enough for both of us, for sure. We could add to it, if needed.
"Bring ’em on, we’ll take ’em. Heck, maybe we’ll wind up switching to Dodges. Who knows? Didn’t Richard drive a Ford one time when he went to drag racing?"
Even Robbie Loomis, the vice president over at Petty Enterprises, had a wry smile on his face when questioned about the merger possibility between the Wood Brothers and Pettys. "You’ll be sure and include me in those plans, won’t you?" was Loomis’ answer, somewhat jokingly.
Okay, now that’s settled, a broker is needed to complete the deal, someone with connections to Honda or Nissan.
Don’t you know that NASCAR would like to Honda and Nissan to follow Toyota in Nextel Cup. What better way to make an entry than with a Wood Brothers-Petty team?
And don’t you think STP and Purolator would be far behind with some type of sponsorship-memorabilia campaign, at least for a few races.
It’s a natural!
At least a merger like this would protect NASCAR’s history and not see the Pettys and Wood Brothers go by the wayside like Bud Moore, Holman & Moody, Robert Yates, DiGard and the Stavola Brothers.
Do you think this is how mergers actually are brought together?
Someone just comes up with a master plan and it all takes off from there...

…MAINTAINING THE CHASE PACE: Jeff Gordon didn’t win the Subway 500 on Oct. 21 at Martinsville (Va.), but he finished third, behind Hendrick Motorsports teammate and race-winner Jimmie Johnson to remain in the points lead with four races remaining in the chase for the NASCAR Nextel Cup championship. Gordon’s ahead of Johnson by 53 points and with Clint Bowyer dropping farther behind the pair of Chevrolet drivers, it appears now that the title will be settled between Gordon and Johnson, the defending Nextel Cup champion. Now it’s on to Atlanta Motor Speedway on Oct. 28, followed by Texas Motor Speedway, then it’s Phoenix, Ariz., ending the season in mid-November at Homestead-Miami Speedway…

…BLUFFING FOR NOT: Bruton Smith is playing this deal right down to the end for everything it’s worth. The City of Concord has reversed its trend and now says Smith can build is $60-million drag strip. But Smith says he’s not convinced the Concord officials appreciate him and he’s still 90 percent certain he’ll rebuild Lowe’s Motor Speedway somewhere within a 20-mile radius of the Charlotte, N.C. To get him stay at the present location, the Concord officials are offering Smith all kinds of incentives, including improving the existing road structure around the 1.5-mile facility that has been responsible for developing this area of Cabarrus County. Without the speedway staying where it’s now located, there’s no telling what would happen to the area…

…ANOTHER LOSS: One of the most respected journalists in the motorsports industry died the morning of Oct. 22. Shav Glick of The Los Angeles Times covered motorsports for more than 50 years. He was well liked and respected by everyone. No funeral arrangements were announced but friends said there would be a memorial service of some type to celebrate his life.

10-17-07 – Tony Stewart’s on a back slide

With five races left in the NASCAR Nextel Cup chase for the championship, the driver of the No. 20 Home Depot Chevrolet is fourth in the point’s standings and fading by the week.
A three-week stretch that includes bad luck, mental error and a simmering feud with Paul Menard in the No. 15 Chevrolet has drooped Stewart from two points out of first to a distant 198 points behind leader Jeff Gordon, winner of two straight races in the No. 24 Chevrolet.
"It isn’t over until you tell me mathematically we can’t do it," said Greg Zipadelli, Stewart’s crew chief, after the Bank America 500 the night of Oct. 13 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway here where Stewart finished seventh for Joe Gibbs Racing.
A personal grudge with Menard boiled over during the 327-lap race at the 1.5-mile track.
Stewart and Menard collided as Stewart was leaving pit road.
"The blame is I don’t think (Stewart or Menard) have any respect for each other," said Zipadelli of the incident. "The 15 car was a minor thing and then everybody got to hollering on the radio and we never saw (Kasey Kahne, No. 9 Dodge). That’s what did the damage, the 15 just scraped the paint off."
Stewart was too angry to answer questions after the race had ended.
That left Zipadelli, for the third week in a row, to try and make all the excuses for the team’s slide.
Stewart and the No. 20 team are not out of things yet, but Stewart must get his heart and head back into it in order to make a run at Gordon, teammate Jimmie Johnson, in the No. 48 Chevrolet, and Clint Bowyer, driving the No. 07 Chevrolet, to have a chance for his second title.
Gordon takes a 68-point lead over Johnson into Martinsville (Va.) Speedway on Oct. 21.
Gordon‘s victory at Lowe‘s was the 81st of his career, only two behind Cale Yarborough on the all-time list...

…BRUTON’S BLUFF: Bruton Smith says he’s 90 percent certain he’ll move Lowe’s Motor Speedway and build a new track somewhere in the Charlotte, N.C., likely in the Fort Mill, S.C., or Salisbury, N.C., areas where he’s been offered property and tax incentives to move. Concord and Cabarrus County officials now are back-tracking and offering to let Smith build his $60-million drag strip which started all the controversy two weeks ago…

…GONE: Bobby Batson, a NASCAR manufacturer’s public relations rep and the former director of public relations at Lowe’s Motor Speedway and Atlanta Motor Speedway, died Oct. 10 in Concord, N.C. He was 66. Two days later, Ray Cooper, a former sports writer and Chevrolet-Dodge team publicist, died in Greensboro, N.C. Cooper was 53. Cooper covered 467 consecutive races over a 15-year span and twice was honored by the National Motorsports Press Association for his reporting...

…CHANGES: Michael Waltrip says he’s taken on Robert Kauffman, who lives in Europe and has a background in finance and business, as an equal partner. Dale Jarrett will step away for Waltrip’s No. 44 Toyota team in 2008 after he runs five points-paying races, finishing in March at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway. David Reutimann will replace Jarrett in the No.44 and Waltrip says he’ll have a three-car team in ’08, naming a third driver at a later date… Former Champ Car and Indy Racing League driver Patrick Carpentier of Quebec, Ont., Canada, has completed a deal to replace Scott Riggs in the Gillett Evernham Motorsports No. 10 Dodge. Riggs is moving over to Haas CNC Racing… Armor All has entered into a sponsorship agreement with Tony Stewart for 2008.

10-07-07 – North Carolina Motor Speedway

Everyone around, when the final bid was announced, swore it was a "steal" for Andy Hillenburg.
When all was said and done, at a public auction here on Oct. 2, Hillenburg outbid eight others to take control of North Carolina Motor Speedway, better known as the "The Rock," for a paltry sum of $4.4 million.
He bought it from Bruton Smith’s Speedway Motorsports, Inc. (SMI), which bought the 1.017-mile facility in 2004 for $100,000 from International Speedway Corp. (ISC) and moved the one of the two dates to SMI‘s Texas Motor Speedway. ISC gave the other date to California Speedway.
Hillenburg, 44, a race car driver who owns the Fast Track Driving School, operating out of Harrisburg, N.C., outbid the others, including Bill Patterson, the business manager for Richard Childress Racing of Welcome, N.C., who was bidding in behalf of Childress, a NASCAR Nextel Cup car owner.
The speedway includes 244.2 acres, located at a corner apex of U.S. 1, about 10 miles north of Rockingham. The assessed value of the speedway was $30.2, according to the National Auction Group, which conducted the auction.
At first it was thought the one-time NASCAR Cup track, which opened in 1969, might bring a bid for around $10-million.
That never happened.
It made Hillenburg a little uneasy.
Was he the biggest money-man in the bidding?
"Not even close," said Hillenburg, who drove in the last Cup race at the track and finished 34th in the Subway 400 on Feb. 22, 2004.
"I was worried about Childress’ man driving up the price on me and me not being able to get it."
Patterson indicated Childress wanted the track to use it for a testing facility for his race teams. Besides his three Cup teams, Childress has a couple of Busch teams, a NASCAR Craftsman Truck team and a couple of developmental teams. Kevin Harvick, who drives for Childress, also owns a couple of Busch race teams and a truck team with his wife, Delana.
Hillenburg has big plans for "The Rock."
"Now if I can afford it," said Hillenburg, who sipped a champagne toast in the track’s infield media center after the sale had been completed.
"You’ve got to be careful to walk before you run."
The cost of replacing furniture and maintenance equipment, as well as the ongoing expenses of utilities and taxes, easily could exceed the sale price.
For the time being, Hillenburg will move his Fast Track Driving School from Morehead Road in Harrisburg to Rockingham. Ken Ragan, who runs 600 Racing for SMI in Harrisburg, is going to setup a Legends cars business at "The Rock." Look for Hillenburg to open the track for testing to the NASCAR Nextel Cup, Busch and truck teams, along with the Hooters Pro Series and ARCA Re/Max Series team with which he has great rapport and is liked and admired by many drivers and teams.
Then, there’s Hillenburg’s piece de resistance.
"The green flag will drop on racing here again in 2008," says Hillenburg.
It won’t be a Nextel Cup event, but look for Hillenburg to lineup an ARCA Re/Max race for 2008.
He’d be wise to include the Hooters Pro Cup on whatever date he comes up with and make it a one-day show on a Saturday afternoon, qualifying and running both races on the same day. Make sure it’s an off-date and he’ll get 10 or so Cup drivers to participate, for sure. Keep the cost of the deal within reason.
And I can’t help but believe NASCAR wouldn’t give Hillenburg a Busch and a truck race, which he could treat the same way as ARCA and Hooters, a one-day, two 150-lap features. Anything over 200 laps at "The Rock" is going to be boring.
"I’ve got to let a little water go under the bridge first," said Hillenburg. "Then I’ll see if I’ve got a realistic five-year plan or a 10-year plan."
Rockingham Mayor Gene McLaurin hopes Hillenburg’s in Richmond County for a lone time.
"We’re happy to have someone get control of the track that knows about and cares about racing," said McLaurin. "We’ll work with him any way we can."
Andy Hillenburg was a successful race-car driver.
He made a success out of his driving school.
Don’t expect anything less out of him as a race track owner…

…REGAINING THE CHASE LEAD: After four of the 10 races in the chase for the NASCAR Nextel Cup championship, four-time cup champion is back in the lead. He leads Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson by four points after Gordon’s victory Oct. 7 in the Ford UAW 500 at the 2.66-mile Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. It was Gordon’s fifth victory of the season in the No. 24 DuPont-Pepsi Chevrolet and the 80th victory in his Cup career. Johnson was leading by eight points going into the race. Clint Bowyer is third and Tony Stewart rounds out the top four in points. Next chase race is the only night race in the chase on Oct. 13 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. …

…WELCOME ABOARD: Tera Hollenbeck, wife of ARCA Re/Max Series driver Jim Hollenbeck gave birth to the couple’s second child, a girl, early the morning of Sept. 19 at a Kalamazoo, Mich., hospital. Hailey Aspen Hollenbeck arrived at 9:30a.m., central Time. She weighed in at 7.9 pounds and 19 inches long. Both mother and daughter are doing fine. The couple also has a son, Logan. Jim Hollenbeck is a second-generation ARCA Re/Max Series driver and competes on a limited basis behind the wheel of his familiar Spectra Contracting Ford Fusion. He has competed in two ARCA events this season…Richmond (Va.) International Raceway’s extended family grew a little larger Oct. 4. Jillian Margaret Turner, daughter of the track’s director of public relations, Aimee Turner, and her husband, Matthew Turner, entered into the world at 11:36 a.m. Jillian tips the scales at six pounds, 12 ounces and stretches 18-1/2 inches. She’s the Turners first child…

…ROOKIE DOUBLE: David Ragan, driver of the No. 6 Ford for Roush Racing, is trying to become the first driver in NASCAR history to win the Nextel Cup and Busch rookie titles in the same season. The son of former driver Ken Ragan leads the Busch rookie points, but trails Juan Pablo Montoya in the Nextel Cup Series with four races remaining this season…

…CHANGING NAMES: Nationwide Insurance has signed a seven-year, $12-million-a-year deal toe replace Busch beer as sponsor of the Busch Series, starting in 2008. Nationwide offers a variety of insurance plans, featuring its coverage of automobiles…Robert Yates Racing is likely to move its operation from Mooresville, N.C., to Concord (N.C.) Regional Airport, next to Jack Roush Racing which will help Yates starting in 2008...Driver Scott Riggs is leaving Ray Evernham Motorsports at the end of this season to join Haas CNC Racing…Mars North America with its M&Ms, Snickers and Pedigree as the primary sponsor agreed to a three-year deal to sponsor the No. 18 Toyota of Kyle Busch for Joe Gibbs Racing, starting in 2008...

…BLUFF OR NOT?: Don’t be surprised if Bruton Smith, who heads up Speedway Motorsports, Inc. (SMI), which owns Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C., decides to move the 1.5-mile facility to a better location because of his disagreement with Concord city officials, who wouldn’t allow him to build a drag strip at the facility on U.S. 29. This may just be the incentive Smith needed to make the move, if he gets a good enough offer, since he was looking at outlaying $200-million in upgrades to the facility, much of which have been there since the track was built in 1960 and are old and antiquated..



		10-01-07 – G.C. Spencer G. C. Spencer was the patriarch of the Owensboro, Ky., racing crowd. And there was a bunch of them. At one time, David Green, one of three driving brothers (his two younger brothers are Jeff and Mark) from Owensboro, David estimated there were at least 50-60 people -- drivers or mechanics -- from Owensboro involved in the NASCAR Nextel Cup and Busch series. Besides the Green brothers, other drivers include brothers Darrell and Michael Waltrip and Jeremy Mayfield. Spencer, who died the morning of Sept. 22, due to complications from emphysema, led the flux of folks from Owensboro to the Cup level. Spencer, 82, never won a Cup race in 415 races between 1958 and 1977, but he did finish second seven times and had 55 top-five and 138 top-10 finishes. He was living in Johnson City, Tenn., at the time of his death. When Spencer retired as a driver-car owner in after his final race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Larry McClure of Abingdon, Va., purchased Spencer’s equipment, forming Morgan-McClure Motorsports. Darrell Waltrip, a three-time Cup champion, considers Spencer his hero. Many times Waltrip said, "G.C. might not ever won a race, but the things he did with the lack of help he had made you appreciate those guys back then. "We didn’t have that many places to race around Owensboro and Nashville (Tenn.) was the closest major track for us. Once G.C. got established over there (at Nashville fairgrounds raceway), it made it easier for the rest of us to follow." It was guys like Spencer, Dick May, Bill Champion, Buddy Arrington, Roger Hamby, Tommy Gayle, J.D. McDuffie, Cecil Gordon, James Hylton, Frank Warren, Henley Gray, Lennie Pond and Tommy Ellis who regularly showed up during the ’70s and ’80s as independents to make sure the NASCAR Cup races had full fields each week. Without them, NASCAR might never have survived… …IT’S OFFICIAL: Dale Earnhardt Jr. will drive the No. 88 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports with Pepsi’s Mountain Dew Amp energy drink and the National Guard as his primary sponsors…Joe Gibbs Racing has switched from Chevrolets to Toyotas for the 2008 season with drivers Tony Stewart, Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin. Now, Gibbs is talking to M&Ms as the sponsor for Busch’s ride…Budweiser goes to Kasey Kane as the sponsor of Ray Evernham Motorsports’ No. 9 Dodges… …TITLE RUN BETWEEN TEAMMATES: After three of the chase for the championship’s 10 races, it’s shaping up to be a dogfight between Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet teammates Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. And if that’s the way it comes down, then how can Gordon lose since he co-owns Johnson’s No. 48 Lowe’s team with Rick Hendrick. Gordon, driver of the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet, is going for his fifth NASCAR Nextel Cup title and Johnson, now six points in front of Gordon, after both finished in the top five behind race winner Greg Biffle in the No. 16 Ford on Sept. 30, is seeking his third championship. Clint Bowyer is third in the chase points in the No. 07 Chevrolet, owned by Richard Childress, with his runner-up finish at Kansas Speedway… …GOING TO THE OPEN WHEELS: From all the talk of late, it sounds like a whole host of those open-wheel drivers, like Sam Hornish, Dario Franchetti, and Scott Speed are going to try their hand at Nextel Cup racing. There could be others, too, before 2008 gets underway… …DRAG RACING NOTES: NHRA founder Wally Parks died this past weekend in Indianapolis, Ind. …Drag racing driver John Force is recovering from injuries suffered in a mishap with Kenny Bernstein on Sept. 23 at Ennis, Texas. Reports are that Force will recover fine…Art Harris, a member of Michael Waltrip’s No. 55 NAPA Toyota team, was treated and released from a Dover, Del., hospital on Sept. 23 after being hit in the back of his helmet by an errant tire and knocked down. The tire came off of David Ragan’s No. 6 Ford.



		09-13-07 – Morris Lee Metcalfe Morris Lee Metcalfe, regardless of how one looks at it, was a NASCAR pioneer in all sense of the word. Graduating from the University of Miami (Fla.) with a bachelor’s degree in science, Metcalfe learned everything he could about NASCAR’s timing and scoring from the late Joe Epton in the late ‘40s and ‘50s. It didn’t take Metcalfe long to take over as NASCAR’s chief of timing and scoring, a position he occupied for 40 years before retiring in the ‘90s. He refused to retire until his careers spanned 1900 to 2000, even though he had turned most of duties over to others by that time. Prior to that, Metcalfe, who obtained his masters degree from Texas Technical College, was a senior industrial engineer with Western Electric for 30 years. Metcalfe loved to travel with his wife, Jeanne, to NASCAR races during the days of the R. J. Reynolds sponsorship, through its Winston brand, in that red-and-white van. He didn’t mind flying, but he preferred to drive so Jeanne, who passed away a few years ago, could accompany him. For the longest, Metcalfe campaigned for electronic scoring in NASCAR. He used to tell anyone, who’d care to listen, how great electronic scoring was working in Indy Car racing and the sports car ranks and that NASCAR was working on bringing in its own system. "Billy (France Jr., the late president-ceo of NASCAR) doesn’t want it (electronic scoring) until we are sure all the bugs have been worked out," Metcalfe, who lived in Winston-Salem, N.C., where he died at the age of 81 on Aug. 30, once said. "He doesn’t want us putting in a system that we couldn’t protect if we had a problem with it." Metcalfe worked on that electronic scoring system for some 20 years with various systems such as Timex and others until it was perfected to NASCAR’s liking. Now, today, that system is considered one of the best in the motorsports industry. "While we were trying to figure it out, we had to have human backups, just in case the system crashed," said Metcalfe, who not only worked for France Jr., but also William H.G. "Big Bill" France Sr., who founded NASCAR, father of France Jr. Often Metcalfe and NASCAR were criticized during controversial times that NASCAR didn’t want electronic scoring so it could maintain some type of control over the sport. "We were being accused of fixing races and being on the take," said Metcalfe. "There was nothing ever further from the truth than those two accusations. It would have been simple for us to readjust a lot of things for them to come out in our favor, but we never did. I had plenty of opportunities for that to happen." Metcalfe took pride in being challenged by a driver or a team or whatever over some phase of scoring during a NASCAR Cup race. He would get out that set of scoring cards from a particular race and recreate the race for the complainer. It didn’t matter how long it took to do that, Metcalfe always was there for such protests, which used to come more often than not. There was only a certain amount of time allowed, once a race had ended, for someone to file a protest against timing and scoring. In order to do so, they were required to post a certain fee which was refundable, if you won your protest. Very few people won their protests. It was easy to misspell Metcalfe’s last name, usually dropping the "e" off it. When that happened, Metcalfe always would complain. "How many times have I told you that my last name ends with an ’e,’ " Metcalfe would say, handing you one of his business cards with the correct spelling on it. Well, Morris Lee Metcalfe, I got it right, this time. And, thanks to all your hard work and preservation, NASCAR finally got electronic timing and scoring in the ’90s… …Whiskey River: Dale Earnhardt Jr. plans to open a bar in downtown Charlotte, N.C., before end of 2007 and it’ll be named Whiskey River, after the bar in the basement of his home. Earnhardt Jr. is partnering with Chris Epstein in the business adventure. It’s supposed to open in December in a 10,000-square-foot space across from the main entrance to the Bobcats Arena, home to the NBA Charlotte Bobcats… …Numbers Game: Did anyone happen to notice the number of the two cars involved in a couple of violent accidents I n the Busch race and the Nextel Cup race the weekend of Sept. 2 at California Speedway? Both cars were No. 88; just a coincidence, I guess…Now that Hendrick Motorsports has moved Casey Mears from the No. 25 Chevrolet to the No. 5 for the 2008 season, car owner Rick Hendrick says he’s close to finalizing a sponsorship deal and deciding on what number will be on Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s Chevrolet next season. Hendrick has shown interests in Nos. 28, 38, 51, 58, 81and 82. Sources say it’ll be the No. 28 with some form of Pepsi-Mountain Dew sponsorship… Dale Earnhardt, Inc. (DEI) says Mark Marin and Aric Almirola will share the No. 8 ride in 2008... …Stepping Out: Robert Yates announced his retirement at the end of this season and said he’s turning over operation of the Nextel Cup team, based in Mooresville, N.C., to his son, Doug Yates. Robert Yates Racing won 57 Cup races and a championship in 1999 with Dale Jarrett as the team’s driver… …Sponsor’s Back: The legal dispute over sponsorship of the No. 31 Chevrolet, driven for Richard Childress Racing by Jeff Burton, ended Sept. 7 with a deal that allows AT&T as the primary sponsor on the cars through next season… …Briefly: David Stremme is now a free agent since Coors announced it won’t return to the No. 40 Chip Ganassi Dodge in 2008. Coors is evaluating its position…Funeral services were Sept. 9 in Mooresville, N.C., for Terry Allen "Slick" Mayfield, 56, a native of Owensboro, Ky., and father of Nextel Cup driver Jeremy Mayfield. Terry Mayfield died Sept. 5 at his home in Mooresville…J.J. Yeley, 30, has joined Hall of Fame Racing, replacing Tony Raines in the No. 96 car in 2008...Joe Gibbs Racing made it official Sept. 5, announcing it’s switching from Chevrolets to Toyotas in 2008.



		8-30-07 – It's Like the Old Days Bobby Allison and Pro Cal Professional Decals, Inc. are working together again. "I've got an '85 Buick Regal that Pro Cal is helping me restore," said Allison, the former resident of Hueytown, Ala., now residing in the Lake Norman, N.C., area with his wife, Judy. "It's just like the '83 championship car." Driving for DiGard, Allison, older brother of Donnie, also a former NASCAR Cup driver, Bobby Allison won the title in 1983 when the series was known as the Winston Cup (now Nextel Cup). "I needed some trim work done to the car and Pro Cal is making sure everything's done and done right. "They even took and put the No. 22 on top because it was hard to reach or do otherwise." The '85 Buick belonged to a Miller distributor in Atlanta, Ga., and that's how Allison acquired the car. "They've repaired some other stuff on it for me, too," said Allison. "Got it looking just like the '83 car in which I won the championship." "It's got the No. 22 and its red-and-white, just like it was when Miller (beer) was sponsoring us." Allison now is taking the car on various trips and putting it on display. "We had it at Bristol (Tenn.) recently for the Cup race and people got a big kick out of it," said Allison. "I'll have it at some more places in the future. "We'll probably have it set up some place during the Bank of America 500 at Loweís Motor Speedway (Concord, N.C.) in October. "Pro Cal has been a big help to me and I appreciate it very much." There's no truth to the rumor that Allison is flying his own plane again. "I'd sure like to, but I can't get a license, so I'm spending, a lot of time, unofficially, getting some time in a co-pilot's seat," said Allison. "Judy and I went out to Ed Negre's 80th birthday celebration in July in Washington, but we went commercial. "It was sort of like a vacation. Ed's wife, Faye, and all of us are big friends from the days when we raced against each other. "We stay in touch through Ed's son, Norman, who works for Gene Haas Racing." • Another restoration project: Dick Bear, a NASCAR fabricator, inventor, tinkered, has restored a 1969 McLaren MSB Can-Am car in his Winston-Salem, N.C., shop. "A learning experience," says Bear • Things I don't like to write about: John Blewett III, 33, was killed in a NASCAR Whelen Modified tour race the night of Aug. 16 at Thompson (Conn.) Speedway. The wreck involved Blewettís younger brother, Jimmy. John Blewett III died in a Webster, Mass., hospital. Max Helton, who founded Motor Racing Outreach (MRO) in 1988, a ministry that serves the racing industry throughout North America, including NASCAR, has been diagnosed with brain cancer. To help defray his medical costs, make donations to Max Helton/Prepare International, care of Ron Pegram, 1530 12th Fairway Dr., Concord, N.C. 28027... • Losing out: NASCAR Nextel Cup car owner, who's building a wind tunnel near the Concord (N.C.) Regional Airport, has pleaded guilty to defrauding the government of more than $34 million in taxes. Haas has agreed to pay more than $70 million, the U.S. Attorney's office said in Los Angeles. Haas also faces two years in federal prison. Joe Cluster, general manager at Haas Racing, now is listed as the team's owner and Rick Hendrick Motorsports is helping to keep Haas' motorsports and other interests going, too. Jeff Burton's No. 31 Richard Childress Racing's Chevrolet now is running without the AT&T logo. The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that San Antonio, Texas, based AT&T lacks standing to challenge NASCAR's decision, remanding the case to the U.S. District Court in Atlanta for dismissal. AT&T has asked the court for clarification of its ruling. Dale Earnhardt, Inc. (DEI), officials say Mark Martin and Aric Almirola, will share the driving duties in the No. 8 Chevrolet in 2008, a number which is being used by Dale Earnhardt J., who moves to Hendrick Motorsports in 2008. Owner Rick Hendrick is trying to make a deal with Robert Yates Racing to acquire the No. 38, which would be a combination of the 3 -- used by Dale Earnhardt Sr. -- and the 8 -- used by Earnhardt Jr.'s grandfather, Ralph.



		8-22-07 – Say it with Flowers Okay, they convinced me. They need something about me for those of you who don't know. I've written motorsports for longer than I care to remember. I covered my first race in 1954 at Montgomery, Ala., a race won by the late Buck Baker in one of those Chrysler 300s. I spent about 30 years in the daily newspaper business, primarily in sport, covering every sport imaginable, most of the time in Florida. Leaving the daily newspaper field in 1980, I started fulltime in motorsports, writing for Grand National Scene (now NASCAR Scene). I've been around ever since and only recently semi-retired when Speedway Scene, which I wrote for more than 20 years, folded and went out of business. Now I'm gonna try my hand at writing for the Pro Cal website and, with your help, we can get it done. Just remember to email your news information to jack flowers@procal1.com.



		8-23-07 – Racing News With three races to go at Bristol, Tenn., Fontana, Calif., and Richmond, Va., don't look for much to change as far as the drivers for the "chase for championship" goes. As far as I'm concerned, it looks like, with Jeff Gordon leading the way, the current top 12 in the NASCAR Nextel Cup points standings are locked in for the 10-race "chase" starting in September at New Hampshire International Speedway in Loudon, N.H. I don't see anyone with a chance of cracking that top-12 list. Dale Earnhardt Jr. is just too far behind to make it and the top 12 all run good at Bristol, California and Richmond. It'll take a miracle for Earnhardt Jr.'s "red nation" to rise up. The guy I'm favoring, once the "chase" starts is Gordon in that No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports/Dupont Chevrolet. He'll be going for his fifth championship and I'm thinking he's going to be hard to overcome. At this stage of his career, the 36-year-old Gordon is very settled and is focused on what he needs to do. In the season's first 22 race, Gordon had 20 finishes in the top 10. Now, that's saying something in this day and age. RAY COOPER, a long time friend in the business, is battling cancer. Cooper started out, writing motorsports for The Greensboro (N.C.) News-Record before joining General Motors and lately he's been aligned with Dodge, handling the teams' at-track public relations. Send your cards, whatever, to: Ray Cooper, 4014 Sassafras Court, Greensboro, N.C. 27410... A couple of strong rumors. On the merger front, don't be shocked if Petty Enterprises and the Wood Brothers join forces. They're the two oldest teams in the business and had the two winningest drivers in the history of NASCAR -- Richard Petty (200) and David Pearson (105) The other. Look for Joe Gibbs Racing to switch from Chevrolet to Toyota next season. The money's just too good and Hendrick Motorsports and Richard Childress Racing has General Motors sewed up. Pit stops: Kyle Busch has decided he'll drive for Joe Gibbs Racing in 2008...Shortly after Petty Enterprises let Paul Andrews go as crew chief of the No. 43 Cheerios Dodge, he was working in his shop at home and fell off a ladder, suffering a concussion, along with other injuries. Doug Randolph replaced Andrews with the No. 43...Christian Stuart Elder, 38, a native of Minnesota and winner of two NASCAR Goody's Dash Series races, died Aug. 12 at his home in Cornelius, N.C. He was a project manager for Elder-Jones, Inc. ... Jeremy Mayfield says he won't be back to drive the No. 36 Toyota for Bill Davis Racing in 2008...Kyle Petty is recovering from a broken right hand suffered in the team's hauler after the Aug. 12 race at Watkins Glen, N.Y. .. Something I'd like to do. On Sept. 4, they're gonna celebrate Darlington Raceway's anniversary by giving fans, who make a donation to the Darlington County Humane Society or adopt a pet, a piece of the track's old surface. Old asphalt from the track, opened in 1950, will be sold later in mounted sections at www.darlingtonraceway.com.



		8-17-07 – Jack Flowers teams up with ProCal This was supposed to have been about me, but that’s enough about me. In the long run, this is all going to be about you. The ProCal Decal website, which is being launched, can’t be successful without you’re input, regardless of who’s doing the writing for the website. It’s our intentions and desires to provide the best and most professional website out there and we can do it, providing we have your help. Supply us with any information you might consider newsworthy for such a project by sending your tidbits of information to jackflowers@procal1.com. From there, I’ll handle it. That’s where more than 40 years of writing about motorsports and more than 30 years in the daily newspaper business comes into play, along with a column name I’ve utilized for years, "Say It With Flowers." I’ll assemble your information into what I hope is a readable and enjoyable format. We’ll feature, from time-to-time, ProCal employees and what they do and, like any other race team, we have our own drivers, who utilize the ProCal products and services and we’ll do our best to pass along information about those teams to you, our website readers. Help us make this the best website possible by getting involved and send bits of information to us.



		8-17-07 – A little bit about ProCal Charlotte and Bob Hogue have spent 26 years in making ProCal the best in the motorsports industry. From pin-striping vehicles in the car dealerships in the Charlotte, N.C., metro area, along with other specialty vehicles, the Hogue’s have been involved in every facet of the decal industry, offering the latest technology in graphic designs and applications for all grades of vinyl, fabrics and other materials. Twenty-nine dedicated employees work out of the 40,000-square-foot facility in Rock Hill, S.C., of which the Hogue’s are natives. The Hogue’s have invested back into the company in order to stay abreast of the latest innovations and technology in the decal industry. ProCal continues to update equipment and printing processes on an annual basis. Motorsports is the centerpiece of ProCal, which is a leader in multiple industries, supplying decals to numerous businesses outside of motorsports.. ProCal serves NASCAR’s three divisions -- Nextel Cup, Busch and Trucks -- along with NHRA, IRL, ASA, USAC, off road, driving schools and car manufacturers, including such key teams as Hendrick Motorsports, Evernham Motorsports, Robert Yates Racing, Haas Racing, BAM Motorsports, Schrader Racing, Wyler Racing, Team Rensi, General Motors and NHRA’s Greg Anderson, Jason Line, Hillary Will and Kalitta Motorsports.



		FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Joe Whitley jwhitley@procal1.com Phone 1-800-554-0023 “PRO CAL PROFESSIONAL DECALS LAUNCHES NEW WEBSITE” August 17, 2007 (Rock Hill, SC) – PRO CAL Professional Decals, Inc., a leader in vinyl graphic and specialty cover applications for the motorsports industry for over 25 years, is launching its new website today. “We are excited, to say the least” says Bob Hogue, founder and owner. “While we continually stay abreast of the latest in vinyls, fabrics and printing technology to produce the finest products for our customers, we felt that it was necessary to create a website representative of our standards and quality, which is also exciting and informative. We feel that we have accomplished that goal,” he added. PRO CAL works with many agencies turning concepts and designs into reality for a broad spectrum of clients from corporations, entertainers, race teams to race team sponsors. The new website exemplifies the quality and workmanship that goes into every PRO CAL product. Visitors to the site will experience the latest in cutting edge technology and printing capabilities, from high gloss and ultra metallic vinyl finishes to vibrant colors on a variety of durable fabrics. “We are also very excited to announce that the legendary motorsports writer, Jack Flowers, will be contributing to our Racing News section,” said Hogue. “We do so much business in NASCAR and motorsports; we felt that putting a new twist on presenting the racing news would be refreshing. Jack has a unique ability to get you thinking while adding a lot of human interest to his stories. We hope everyone will enjoy reading his segments,” he continued. PRO CAL invites you to visit its new home page and flip the power switch to see some of the latest designs it has produced for valuable clients like you. Just go to www.procal1.com to begin your experience. PRO CAL Professional Decals, Inc, located at 2061 Mt. Gallant Road, Rock Hill, SC has been providing decals and installation to championship teams in all forms of motorsports for over 25 years. For more information, please visit www.procal1.com or call us at 1-800-554-0023.