NOTES Sept '05 Archive

September 22, 2005

Mulligans

It's been said that each team in the Chase will be allowed a single mulligan with the logic that each team got one last year...but will it happen again?

Sure it will. But will it make the team stumble? That's the question.

Of the Rousch contingent, I only see Kurt Busch likely to have problems if he stubs his toe. Last week's small explosion after being tripped on Lap 3 was a small example of possible emotional difficulties. Otherwise the Rousch boys have their game faces on.

Newman. We all know this. He's either very, very good or very, very bad. There is no in between. So, unless he gets some fairy dust sprinkled on him, he's not likely to be seeing the Top 5 at the end. He'll stumble and hit hard.

Rusty--he's not called a veteran for nothing. Perhaps he's mellowing, but I haven't noticed much of anything shaking him lately. He's not complaining as much. Maybe he just isn't interested anymore. So, this leaves me with an eh-eh feeling about 'Does he have it? Is the killer instinct still there?' Hence, I doubt if he'll be at the top. He'll trip and possibly decide it's just not worth it.

Tony. The Man. Smoke. Mr. Stewart has his battle set out before him. If he maintains his focus, and his focus appears to be like granite this year, he will be the team to beat. Stubbed toe? Pshaw! That's just a scratch...

Jimmie Johnson. It's all about cycles in Jimmie's career. He's on the upswing again. He needs a victory to settle him down. If he falls at Dover or Talladega, it will be over for the #48. Momentum he ain't got at this time.

And finally Mayfield. He's a lost cause. He will stumble. He will falter. He will be #10. Evernham needs Miss Crocker to help his stable shine. Jeremy, while finishing well, is only holding the place card.

And that's all...

PS Whoever was placing the bogus bids on e-bay...I can't decide whether I like your style or can't believe you thought it was worth your time...
 

September 20, 2005

The below is my journal from the track this past week.  Got questions?  Give me a holler!

Well, here we are in the Chase. Without a JG or a Lil' E. And I'm not too sure I care. Jeff didn't have the season he needed to compete at the top. That's that. Anybody who's crying over the lack of the Dupont Chevy needs to get a grip. Racing is about being the best. Jeff lost that bit of brilliance this year. Let's give him these 10 races to get it back. During the Richmond race the sheer frustration in Jeff's voice said it all. He was feeling Loomis did not get him the car he needed to win. And now Loomis is gone. I guess both guys could only take so much. Change is good. Let's work through this.

In the #8 camp similar moves were made. Dale got Eury Jr. back on top of the box and finished with a very snazzy 5th in Loudon. The magic is back? or Jr. was just feeling good with the posse back in town...we shall see.

Meanwhile, the Rouschketeers are spelling it out for the rest of the field. You could call this boring. I call it history in the making. I'm cheering! Biffle could do this! And with the finishes of the last couple races being Rousch Speed Specials, that Rousch Top 5 doesn't look too impossible.

Mikey will be announcing his deal with Bill Davis Racing on Friday Night. Stay tuned for the details. (told 'ya- Toyota!)

Fines were handed down last night. The fact that Robby and company are still racing this upcoming weekend is incredible.  What Robby did was stupid, asinine, idiotic (I'm running out of synonyms here...) and most of all, possibly dangerous to the field and track workers. $35k just doesn't do it. What did the points mean anyway when he's at the bottom of the heap?

Well, I think that's all for now. I've got to finish updating all my other work...

Catch ya'll later!
 

Sunday at the Races!

Again with the temper tantrums.

If it wasn’t enough that Jimmy Spencer got all bent out of shape yesterday afternoon spinning half the field and then saying some rather unsavory things on screen; today we got the full impact of drivers’ ire gone haywire.

It started when Scott Riggs in the #10 Valvoline ran up the hill into Kurt Busch’s #97. Kurt was so incensed by the bad manners demonstrated by a non-Chase car that Kurt climbed from his car behind the wall and visited the #10 pits. All came to naught, and eventually Kurt returned to the track to accumulate needed points.

Then, Kyle Busch gave Kasey Kahne a tap in the rear bumper that sent Kasey backing into the wall and into the air. Kasey then grabbed a gear and sought out the #5 Kellogg’s Chevy and rammed Kyle during yellow laps. Now, we all know that was not called for. And we all know that a trip to the Oval Office was required. But at that moment I was chalking it up to youthful exuberance.

But, when Mike Waltrip failed to back off coming out of Turn 2 after Bliss and Nemechek met up, it resulted in Robby Gordon slamming into the back stretch wall. One of the hardest hits I’ve seen at NHIS. I was actually wondering if Gordon would be able to climb from his squashed car. But then he tried backing his car into Waltrip’s oncoming vehicle during caution laps. Sort of like a strange demolition derby. You’d think that would have been enough. Nope. Gordon then climbed out of his car and took a credible shot at Waltrip’s car with his helmet. Needless to say there were more verbal fireworks after Gordon was directed to the infield.

Both Waltrip and Gordon are denying that this potentially lethal situation was either of their faults. Stupid!!! It simply would not have happened at all if they had stopped racing when that yellow came out. End of story. I can see week or two suspensions coming down for Kahne, Waltrip, and Gordon. Own up to it gentlemen!

OK! I think that’s all for this week’s race. If you want to know who won, check out the usual places. There was lots of action that related to the Chase, but the boys being bad was much more fun.

Catch ya later!
 

Saturday Races and Qualifying

We enjoyed pancakes before heading over to the track for Cup qualifying at noon. Once we picked out our seats, it was determined that the scanner had been left behind at the trailer. Ack!

Fine. I trotted the half mile back to the camp to retrieve said piece of electronics and returned in time for about the tenth car. Good. Life should be all better for the rest of the afternoon.

Tony Stewart took the pole, inching out Jeff Gordon on the front row. Woo Hoo! Jimmie Johnson qualified in the top 15. Nothing big. Teddy Christopher made the race on time in the #34 unsponsored deal. Something else to watch for the afternoon. No sign of Ryan Moore anywhere in truck or cup. Some other day perhaps.

After qualifying hubby announced that the headset to the scanner was broken again. Grrr. This happens every year. Every year we solder the things back together. I went a bought a new pair. Hopefully this set will last longer than 6 years. The nice people at Racing Electronics set us up again, as they have in years past.

The truck race:

Rick Crawford in the #14 won. But that is to say that was only the guy that took the checkers. The fight between Setzer (#46), Musgrave (#1), Skinner (#5), Kyle Busch (#15) was one for the DVD shelf. Repeated swaps for the lead with two trucks on the leader’s bumper throughout the second 100 laps was thrilling, edge of your seat excitement.

Jimmy Spencer (#2) reminded us all why he got nicknames like Spinning Spencer and the Bumpin’ Hump in days of old. He managed to spin four times while missing the wall in each instance. The final time was lap 199 where he moved Todd Bodine’s (#30) truck out of the way. The fireworks in the pits afterward are probably worthy of Monday night video and points deductions. That’s Entertainment!

Ricky Craven fought all afternoon with a #99 truck that would not work for him. Kenny Schrader just kept all the bumpers on.

Oh! And did I mention there was three wide racing, passing in all turns and in general a race well worth coming out for. Once again, the Craftsman Truck Series proved it is possibly the home to the best racing in NASCAR.

Tonight, the sky is overcast, it’s cool and the fires are cranking. We’ll see what happens in party world.

Catch ya’ll tomorrow!
 

Nascar Notes
Friday September 17, 2005
Results of races and at the track

Micheal Waltrip was at his hauler, yet again, signing stuff for his adoring public before the final Cup practice.

We scored tickets to have Ricky Craven sign stuff for us. But it meant missing half the Whelan Modified Race He was pretty much down to business. I asked him what he was going to be doing next year and he replied, “You’ll find me up at Moosehead Lake. Beyond that, I really can’t say at this time.” Hmmm…does that mean he has plans? It sounds like it to me. But perhaps Ricky is being the gentleman that Busch and McMurray decline to be. How about Ganassi? Hmmm…perhaps Ricky would bring the maturity to that rookie club.

Teddy Christopher! What a day. The boy managed to win both the Busch North and the Whelan Modified race. This has not happened at NHIS since 1990 when Mike McLaughlin. Teddy remains at the top of the Whelan Modified points and managed to frustrate the top points boys in the Busch North Series by using his fenders to move Brad Leighton, Ryan Moore and Mike Ewanitsko out of his way to allow Ted to take the checkers in a weather shortened New Hampshire 125. He and Mike Stefanik traded the lead in the Whelan race for well over 20 laps. A great race!

It rained on and off through the entire day. We watched the campfire burn from under the comfort of the awning (yes we are sightly pathetic). The rain did actually suppress the partying. We’ll see if that extends over tonight.
 

8:40AM Friday September 15, 2005

The New Hampshire Rain

It came down, washing away qualifying for the Whelan Modifieds and the Busch North Series on Thursday. The lightning strike directly behind us was a wake-up call and yet ever so expected. Fortunately for us, our flag pole and RV remains intact. Of course, watching the small river rise over its banks outside our door was a unique experience. But it’s gone now. The weather did not make the front page of the local paper this morning. So, we are one up on the micro-burst in July. Unfortunately the forecast is for continued cloudiness and showers for the next two days. Even if the weather is not overly dramatic, it might be frustrating.

We get to watch races today (if the showers cooperate). At the very least friends and family will be arriving for the weekend. So, bored we will not be.

Catch you later!