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Tag: Barney Visser

  • Furniture Row Racing will cease operations after 2018 season

    Furniture Row Racing will cease operations after 2018 season

    In what may be the most shocking news of the silly season in NASCAR, Furniture Row Racing has officially announced that their organization will no longer compete in the stock car series in 2019. Despite winning the championship in NASCAR’s top series, the Monster Energy Cup Series, the Denver-based team will close shop one year later.

    “This is not good for anybody,” said team owner Barney Visser. “The numbers just don’t add up. I would have to borrow money to continue as a competitive team and I’m not going to do that. This was obviously a painful decision to arrive at knowing how it will affect a number of quality and talented people.

    “We’ve been aggressively seeking sponsorship to replace 5-hour ENERGY and to offset the rising costs of continuing a team alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing but haven’t had any success. I feel that it’s only proper to make the decision at this time to allow all team members to start seeking employment for next year. I strongly believe that all of our people have enhanced their careers by working at Furniture Row Racing.”

    Driver of the No. 78 Toyota, Martin Truex Jr., added, “While I am saddened by today’s announcement, I totally understand the decision. Barney Visser, Joe Garone and the entire Furniture Row Racing team took me in while my career was in a bad place, and together we reached the pinnacle of the sport. I will forever be grateful to each and every one of them, and also to Furniture Row, Denver Mattress and the Visser family.

    “But make no mistake this is not the immediate end. We still have unfinished business to attend to and that’s to give everything we have to successfully defend our Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship. Right now that is foremost on my mind as it is with the entire team.”

    Through the penultimate race of the 2018 regular season, the little organization that could has placed a stellar mark in NASCAR’s history books and statistics, including 18 wins. over 6,000 laps led and their 2017 championship with Truex. They also have visited victory lane in some of NASCAR’s iconic races, including the 2011 Showtime Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway with Regan Smith.

    In a press release, Visser shared the story of Furniture Row Racing, his gratitude of his relationship with his team and partners, and explains further his decision to shut down the organization.

    “I’ve always felt that we could be a competitive team and run for a championship even when it seemed like a pipe dream to many racing insiders, but to be successful in any business you need to assemble the right people and make a strong commitment to succeed. We achieved what we set out to do and feel like we climbed Mount Everest. To continue with anything less than a competitive team would not be acceptable.”

    Visser added, “I had a wake-up call last year (heart attack) and while I feel great I need to make the best decisions that will have an impact on myself and my family. My wife Carolyn and the entire Visser family have been supportive of our racing journey and it’s been one incredible ride for all of us.

    “There are so many people I want to thank because without them winning a championship and being competitive would never have happened: Joe Gibbs Racing for our technical alliance, Toyota and TRD (Toyota Racing Development), Bass Pro Shops, 5-hour ENERGY, Auto-Owners Insurance, Furniture Row and Denver Mattress.

    “A heartfelt thank you to Joe Garone, Martin Truex Jr, Cole Pearn and all of our team members for their talent, dedication and sacrifices they made along the way. To the Furniture Row and Denver Mattress employees I want to express a special thank you for always having my back from the early years of our race team to our championship run.

    “I also want to thank the fans, the Denver community, NASCAR, International Speedway Corporation (ISC), Speedway Motorsports Inc. (SMI) and independent track owners for providing and maintaining the venues that we compete at. A special tip of the hat to the media and to NASCAR’s broadcast partners – FOX, NBC, Motor Racing Network (MRN), Performance Racing Network (PRN) and SiriusXM Radio. We’ve always been treated fairly by members of the media and I appreciate their hard work in one of the most demanding schedules in major league sports.”

  • Martin Truex Jr. Shines Under the California Sun, Wins Auto Club 400

    Martin Truex Jr. Shines Under the California Sun, Wins Auto Club 400

    Martin Truex Jr. breaks Kevin Harvick’s win streak in the NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series and takes the checkered flag for the Auto Club 400.

    Truex started on the pole, swept both stages and had lapped up to 10th place by the conclusion of the event. This is the third time Truex has swept all stages in a race and is the only driver to do so under NASCAR’s current stage format (Vegas and Chicago in 2017, and now California).

    “Winning just feels good!” With a big grin on his face, Truex addressed the media during his press conference. “To get our first California win is unbelievable. I feel like we’ve been getting better here the last couple years, just haven’t been able to put it all together. For us to get our first win of the season today, it’s definitely special. To get it here, finish off the West Coast swing with a win, feels great.”

    Team owner Barney Visser, who suffered a heart attack on November 6, said he was feeling great and it was nice to be back at the track. Cole Pearn, crew chief for the No. 78 Toyota Camry, shared his thoughts after seeing the incident with Kevin Harvick, explaining how his focus was still locked in on his team’s performance.

    “In this sport, you can only do what you can do to yourself,” Pearn declared confidently. “You’re focused on your own program. You know those guys are really good. Obviously, they’ve been really successful so far this year. Whether they were in the race or not, I don’t think we would have played anything any different. You just got to do the best you can for yourself. That’s the only chance you have.”

    Kevin Harvick was attempting four wins in a row, a feat that had not been accomplished since 2007 with Jimmie Johnson. While he still had one of the most dominant cars of the weekend, an early race incident with Kyle Larson caused his No. 4 Ford Fusion to crash into the outside wall.

    On pit road after the race, you could sense some frustration from Kevin Harvick, who finished 35th overall, but he admitted it was his fault.

    “I went down to side draft and he was coming up, and we touched and it just knocked (the car) to the right and just spun out,” Harvick explained after finishing nine laps down. “I don’t know that’s (Kyle Larson’s) fault, I think that’s my fault for coming down the race track right there and trying to side draft. Then as we touched right there, it just came back up the race track, just trying to get a little too much right there knowing the stage end was coming. Just my fault back there.”

    Defending race winner and recent inductee for the track’s Walk of Fame, Kyle Larson finished second after a late race charge through the field. Larson enjoyed racing Harvick in the first stage, but a slip by Harvick caused the two to collide and virtually end Harvick’s day early.

    “I respect Kevin a lot, and I think he respects me a lot too,” Larson said as he shared his thoughts on the incident. “I was pretty amped up on the radio there right after just because I felt like at the time maybe he let his frustration build and kind of just ran into me down the backstretch and wrecked himself. I thought he would be mad at me or something like that, which I knew I didn’t do anything wrong at the time.

    “A couple minutes later, they let me know he was taking the blame for it on the radio, which was nice. I was able to chill out some.”

    Kyle Busch gets his third consecutive top-three finish with a third-place result, with Brad Keselowski finishing fourth.

    “I’m not really sure why I’m here. I finished fourth,” Keselowski said smiling. “We kind of got the most we had out of it today. We had some decent short run speed that could run and keep those guys honest. But after about five laps, we were just kind of holding on, running it out, trying to hope for a late race yellow or something to have something for them.

    “All in all, a decent weekend. We unloaded really not very good at all, looked like it was going to be a really long weekend. Made some good improvements through practice and qualifying and all those things, got to where we were good enough to run there back half of the top-five. Just have a solid day, and that’s what today was.”

    Joey Logano, who won yesterday’s NASCAR Xfinity race, rounded out the top-five with a fifth-place finish.

    “I was in front of (Truex) for about five laps and I was like, ‘Hey,’ but it was short-lived,” Logano shared with his brief experience leading the field before being overtaken by Truex. “Overall, it was a good weekend. We got a top-five here and a win yesterday is great.”

    Denny Hamlin, Erik Jones, Ryan Blaney, Jimmie Johnson and Austin Dillon were the only other cars on the lead lap and rounded out the top-10.

    As for the race, Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Busch primarily led laps in the first stage, with Jamie McMurray leading one lap during the green flag pit cycle. Joey Logano was the first to dive onto pit road, which ended up being a smart move. When he entered pit road, he was roughly seven seconds behind the leader. After the field cycled through their pit stops, the No. 22 Ford was less than two seconds behind the leader.

    After pit stops, the major turn of events that caught many off guard took place during the second half of Stage 1. Kevin Harvick, who started in the 10th position, had battled his way into the top-five. While battling Kyle Larson for the third position, Larson drove the exit of Turn 2 aggressively and started to side draft the No. 4 car. This caused Harvick to get slightly loose, and on the backstretch, Harvick turned into Larson and bounced off his car into the outside wall. Harvick slid all the way across the track, and narrowly missed the inside wall. The heavy contact seemed to knock the toe slightly with the right front tire, but the team was able to repair the damage and Harvick did continue in the race.

    Quite a few analysts stated at the time that it seemed Harvick was showing some displeasure at how Larson was racing him so early. Jeff Gordon, a broadcast analyst for FOX Sports, shared during the television, “Harvick seems to not let many people into his head, but it looks like that changed today.”

    In the closing laps of the first stage, Ryan Blaney who had driven up to the eighth position got loose coming out of Turn 4 and made mild contact with the outside wall. His team addressed this during their pit stop when the stage concluded, as Truex was over Kyle Busch and Joey Logano. When the field pitted, Logano won the battle off pit road and took the green flag on the restart.

    Logano, Truex and Kyle Busch led laps in the second stage. Larson was the first to pit during a green flag pit cycle. He was outside the top-five, but gained well over four seconds and was up to second after the field finished their pit stops.

    With 11 laps to go in the second stage, Trevor Bayne and Ryan Newman were racing at the exit of Turn 4. Bayne attempted to pass on the outside, but Newman wasn’t able to get him enough room in time and pinched Bayne into the outside wall. A couple of laps later, that exact incident caused Bayne’s fender to cut down into the tire and blow a right front tire. His No. 6 Ford Fusion smacked the outside wall while racing through Turns 3 and 4, suffering substantial damage when he visited pit road and he was not able to continue in the race.

    “That’s the hardest hit I’ve ever had in my life,” Bayne shared after he was evaluated and released from the infield medical care center.

    Paul Menard also visited pit road during the same time and seemed to begin having some engine issues, but continued in the race event.

    Stage 2 concluded with Truex winning back to back stages with Keselowski, Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin and Erik Jones in the top-five. Kyle Busch won the battle off pit road, but Larson felt a mishap with one of the wheels on the car, and came in a second time for additional service and restarted at the end of the lead lap.

    In the final stage, a few laps after the initial restart, David Ragan slid up in the exit of Turn 4 and scraped the outside wall. A lap and a half later, the No. 38 car blew a right front tire and hit the outside wall in Turn 1, almost collecting the No. 00 car of Jeffrey Earnhardt. At this point, the leaders came to pit road and fans saw a few various strategies. William Byron’s team took only right side tires and left pit road ahead of those who took four tires. Kasey Kahne, who was announced as the new Lefty’s Kid’s Club president earlier this weekend, inherited the race lead by electing to stay out. However, none of the front two drivers was a match for Kyle Busch as he got right around the two and took the lead throughout the opening laps of the restart.

    Just passed 50 laps to go, Matt DiBenedetto scrapped the wall through Turns 1 and 2 with minimal damage. He brought the car down to pit road from the 31st position and was able to return to race competition. He started in a career-best 18th spot at this track and had a fortunate and unique turn of events at ISM Raceway with a new one-race sponsor, Zynga Poker.

    Green flag pit stops started with 41 laps to go. Jimmie Johnson, Kurt Busch and William Byron, who took two tires on his previous stop, were some of the first drivers to come down pit road. Kyle Busch, who led most of the final stage, was recently passed by Martin Truex Jr. when the two came to pit road for service, bumper to bumper. Kyle’s team was able to service his car quicker, and he inherited the lead at the exit of pit road. However with 32 laps to go, the No. 18 car got loose in lap traffic on the exit of Turn 2, so Truex took advantage of the situation and drove by for the race lead and never looked back, winning by a margin of 11.685 seconds, the largest of the year.

    The NASCAR Monster Energy Cup series conclude their West Coast Swing and now heads back east to Martinsville Speedway on Sunday, March 25. To watch the race in person, visit the website for tickets to the STP 500.

  • The Final Word – Homestead sees the end of the Junior era, as another Junior wins it all

    The Final Word – Homestead sees the end of the Junior era, as another Junior wins it all

    It was an amazing two weeks. In that time, Kevin Harvick locked his way into the final four, along with Kyle Busch and Martin Truex Jr. We got to see Matt Kenseth win, spoil things for Chase Elliott, and allowed Brad Keselowski to round out our championship contenders. During that time, I was among eight family members enjoying 80 plus degree temperatures in Hawaii.

    I know you did not click in to let me reminiscence about our time in paradise, but I do have one question. When did WestJet, what had been a very special, passenger orientated airline, become just like Air Canada? It appears that if you want to fly the friendly skies in comfort these days, you need to be Leonardo DiCaprio winging his way to Europe on a private jet to pick up an environmental award…but I digress.

    Less than 24 hours after arriving back to the land of snow and ice, once again I could witness palm trees and 80 plus degree temps under the sunshine as NASCAR wrapped up its season in Homestead, Florida.

    Of course, more than four would have our attention. Dale Earnhardt Jr. was in his final race as a full-time driver, though by the end of the second stage he was outside of the top twenty. Danica Patrick will be in the Daytona 500 and the Indianapolis 500 next season, but she failed to make the end of this one when she crashed out. Kenseth’s career might be coming to an end, and after winning last week he concluded this campaign with a top 10 result. As for the next face of the sport, Elliott finished fifth at Homestead, giving in him a top 15 in 10 of his final dozen events. His time is coming, and right soon.

    All that was left to decide was the championship, and all four contenders were in the top five heading down the stretch. Keselowski faded to seventh, while Harvick would wrap things up in fourth. That left a duel between Truex and Busch. Truex held the lead as the laps counted down, but Busch had pit strategy working in his favor. Well, he did until his brother Kurt brought out the caution with less than 40 laps remaining.

    Busch remained within a second of his rival from that point onward. However, the closest he got was 0.20 seconds…as they crossed the line. Martin Truex Jr. won his eighth of the season, just the 15th of his career, to become the 2017 Cup champion. It is his first, and the first for team owner Barney Visser and Furniture Row Racing out of Denver, Colorado.

    It was a satisfying conclusion to the season. As for the broadcast, well, you cannot win them all. In 2007 I was part of another group of family members who flew in to watch the Daytona 500. Harvick beat out Mark Martin at the line while Clint Bowyer ended the race on his lid. It was an amazing experience. We flew in on WestJet, even watching the Duels run live on the television provided for each and every passenger. It was an amazing experience. That was in 2007. Those were the days of “how bad have you got it.” I sure miss those days.

     

  • Barney Visser to Miss Final Two Races after Undergoing Surgery, Following Heart Attack

    Barney Visser to Miss Final Two Races after Undergoing Surgery, Following Heart Attack

    Barney Visser, team owner of Furniture Row Racing, won’t attend the final two races of the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season after suffering a heart attack this past weekend.

    Visser said he felt ill and experienced numbness, prompting him to check into a hospital on November 4. Two days later, back in Denver, he underwent successful bypass surgery.

    The team says Visser is expected to be released from the hospital by the end of this week or early next week.

    According to a release sent out by the team, the recovery time for a bypass surgery means Visser will miss this weekend’s Can-Am 500 at Phoenix Raceway and next week’s Ford Ecoboost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, where Martin Truex Jr. is vying for the Denver-based organization’s first series title.

    “It’s a chance of a lifetime to be in position to win the NASCAR Cup Series championship,” said Visser. “I hope to be in touch with Martin and Cole (Pearn, crew chief) leading up to Homestead and participate without too much excitement.”

     

  • Hot 20 – Mr. Hamlin, what races do you suggest we remove, reduce, or reschedule?

    Hot 20 – Mr. Hamlin, what races do you suggest we remove, reduce, or reschedule?

    As NASCAR swings into Chicago and begins the Chase, I can not help but notice that Denny Hamlin, and now Danica Patrick, have made mention that the season is too long. Reduce some races in length, reduce some altogether, run some mid-week are among their suggestions. I am cool with that, but in my mind there are a dozen races on eight tracks that cannot be touched. Ever.

    Daytona, Talladega, Bristol, and Charlotte continue with their two each with no changes to race length. If 600 miles to too long at Charlotte, stay home. You can not tinker with the two road courses at Sonoma or Watkins Glen. The Southern 500 should never again be violated at Darlington. Same goes for the Brickyard at Indianapolis. The racing there might be questionable at Indy, but it has become a crown jewel event. Touch any of them, and more than a few of us fans will be gone. NASCAR simply can not afford to see too many more of us on our way out.

    As for the other 24 contests on the other 15 tracks, go for it. However, you risk some upset folks at Martinsville, Richmond, and Atlanta where tradition means something to some people. Remove those tracks, and you remove fans. Texas, Michigan, Las Vegas, Fontana, and Chicago are not going anywhere. The trio of northeast venues, Pocono, Dover, and Loudon, would be tough for NASCAR to abandon. I could not care any less for Kansas or Kentucky, but I am sure there are others who do not share my sentiment.

    As long as NASCAR refuses to brand each of its events so they might each become something special, traditional, and untouchable instead of nothing more than a spot to park a sponsor’s name for yet another generic race, a lot of them can disappear, be moved, or reduced in length without much fanfare. I mean, this weekend in Chicago we have the legendary and prestigious Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 400. Good bloody grief! What these two drivers are proposing works in theory. However, the devil is in the details, and we should leave it to Mr. Hamlin and Ms. Patrick to toss out a few specifics until we go ballistic. You know we would, no matter what they come up with.

    As for the Chase, eight organizations are represented by the 16. Joe Gibbs has all four of his outfits in the running. Stewart-Haas goes with three, missing only Patrick. Roger Penske and Chip Ganassi both came through fully loaded with their two car teams. Barney Visser was also perfect, going one for one with Martin Truex, Jr. We have a pair from Rick Hendrick’s stable, Richard Childress has his grandson, and Bob Jenkins has his surprise entry. Some did not make it, even those with past success. Jack Roush came up empty, despite three entries. Neither of Richard Petty’s cars made the grade.

    A dozen veteran Chasers joined by a quartet of first-timers. Austin Dillon and Kyle Larson are joined by rookies Chase Elliott and Chris Buescher. How might they do? As 2014 champion Kevin Harvick lays it down, “Are you happy to be there or do you want to win?” If they want to win, they could do fine. Like the seven former champions back for another drink from the well.

    Heading into the Chase, NASCAR has decided to be kinder, gentler to those crew chiefs who break the rules. One loose lug nut does not a suspension make. Now it will take three, and then he is gone along with 35 points. So much for kinder and gentler, and this is a new rule change that goes beyond the Chase and into next season.

    Failure to get the winning car successfully through the Laser Inspection Station by a significant amount, and you keep the win, but it won’t mean much. Up to 35 points gone and during the Chase that win might not count toward a free pass into the next round. With the points penalty, that just could kill the season. It is the kind of penalty that cost Ryan Newman 15 markers heading into Richmond.

    Newman might not be in the Chase, but after what happened last week, he could wind up being a factor. We will have to wait to see how hot he might be at one member of our Hot 20 heading to Chicago.

    1. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 2012 PTS
    Tied for wins with Kyle, second only to Harvick in points. Brad might be thirsty again.

    1. KYLE BUSCH – 2012 PTS
    Imagine having to race all 36 races to win the title. Last season seemed so much shorter.

    3. DENNY HAMLIN – 2009 PTS
    You can shorten the World 600 in Charlotte…or you could to go-cart racing as an alternative.

    4. KEVIN HARVICK – 2006 PTS
    His Chase attitude is to “worry about the consequences when all the dust settles.” Game on.

    4. CARL EDWARDS – 2006 PTS
    Is this the year he can finally put that brides-maid dress away?

    4. MARTIN TRUEX, JR. – 2006 PTS
    Has led the pack this season for 1,664 miles. If you are going on a trip, here is your driver.

    4. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 2006 PTS
    Seeking a new nickname. Maybe something that rhymes with “Seven Time.”

    4. MATT KENSETH – 2006 PTS
    There is nice Matt and there is Chase Matt. You don’t want to make Chase Matt angry.

    9. JOEY LOGANO – 2003 PTS
    Last year, guess who upset Chase Matt.

    9. KURT BUSCH – 2003 PTS
    He has a title. Younger brother has a title. All older siblings know that just does not cut it.

    9. KYLE LARSON – 2003 PTS
    Over his last three races, has finished first, third, and second. That is called momentum.

    9. CHRIS BUESCHER – 2003 PTS
    Not everyone gets to live in the penthouse. even for what most predict will be a short stay.

    9. TONY STEWART – 2003 PTS
    Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? Newman knows!

    14. AUSTIN DILLON – 2000 PTS
    A truck title. A XFINITY crown. There is room on the shelf for one more.

    14. JAMIE MCMURRAY – 2000 PTS
    Could former winner of Daytona 500, Brickyard 400 win the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 400?

    14. CHASE ELLIOTT – 2000 PTS
    Again, the nickname says it all. Would like to change that to “Champ” if he can.

    17. RYAN NEWMAN – 633 PTS
    Who is considered Public Enemy No. 1 in Chicago? Ask Newman; he might have an answer.

    18. KASEY KAHNE – 633 PTS
    If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again next season.

    19. TREVOR BAYNE – 586 PTS
    Unlike some, Bayne is determined to leave any at-track tantrums to his toddler.

    20. A.J. ALLMENDINGER – 583 PTS
    Racing in Chicago, but might have more interest in how the Bears do Monday against the Eagles.

  • Hot 20 – The Truex Triumph at Pocono Deserves an Encore at Michigan

    Hot 20 – The Truex Triumph at Pocono Deserves an Encore at Michigan

    You need a multi-car operation in order to be successful. At least, that seems to be the prevailing wisdom of the day, but just do not let Barney Visser and his Furniture Row team in on it. Other teams might not like what they would see.

    Marching to the beat of their own drummer is just what they do. For example, while most teams call the Charlotte area home, the auto driven by Martin Truex Jr. is prepared in Denver, Colorado. Starting part-time in 2005, Furniture Row has been a Top 30 entry ever since they ran the full schedule with Regan Smith in 2010. They even won a race the next season, but hitting the Top Twenty by year’s end was a struggle.

    Their dedication reached fruition in 2013 when Kurt Busch came over for a year, with 11 Top Fives launching them to a 10th best season. Still, no wins, and when Truex joined the outfit last year they dropped again to also-ran status in the standings. That proved to be just a blip on their radar as Cinderella got another shot to go to the ball and wear those glass galoshes.

    Last Sunday, Truex gave Furniture Row just its second victory ever when he was the class of the field at Pocono. This was no surprise outcome for a usual also-ran, as they are easily the best team in points amongst the single win teams. In fact, they are second only to Kevin Harvick in points for the season, period. Single car teams are not supposed to do that. In fact, no single car team is supposed to do what Alan Kulwicki did between 1987 and his championship of 1992 these days. It seems to me that those mountain men and women are putting up another solid argument that the prevailing wisdom of the day is not their way, at least not yet.

    While a teammate might not be to too far off in the future, Truex has had some success of his own at Michigan. He had three Top Tens racing for Michael Waltrip, and a pair of runner-up finishes for Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 2007. After last season’s annus horribilis, this appears to be a year of new beginnings and new successes, for both the team and its driver. Of course, he is among…

    …our Hot 20 heading into Michigan.

    1 – JIMMIE JOHNSON – 4 WINS (481 pts)
    If Chad and Jimmie were girls, they wouldn’t talk for months after a race.

    2 – KEVIN HARVICK – 2 WINS (559 pts)
    Fourteen races. Two wins. Ten times finishing in second place. Don’t worry, be Happy.

    3 – MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 1 WIN (520 pts)
    Finally.

    4 – JOEY LOGANO – 1 WIN (480 pts)
    Starts dead last after rear-end gear change, then gets a pit penalty, yet finishes fourth at Pocono.

    5 – DALE EARNHARDT JR. – 1 WIN (465 pts)
    You would have thought he, not his buddy, won the race.

    6 – BRAD KESELOWSKI – 1 WIN (441 pts)
    Brought the beer to the Truex party. while Junior sent some post-celebration head pain relief.

    7 – MATT KENSETH – 1 WIN (415 pts)
    Family joined the Johnsons and Dillon boys for a Taylor Swift concert. Perks of the profession.

    8 – KURT BUSCH – 1 WIN (379 pts)
    Took the pole, finished fifth. Just another day at the office.

    9 – DENNY HAMLIN – 1 WIN (379 pts)
    The way he qualified at Pocono, one would have thought he was Bowyer.

    10 – CARL EDWARDS – 1 WIN (368 pts)
    Not as good as Newman this season…except for that little ole win he has.

    11 – JAMIE MCMURRAY – 427 POINTS
    Has completed 96.8 percent of his career laps at Michigan, but fourth in 2004 his best result.

    12 – KASEY KAHNE – 417 POINTS
    Impromptu body work from Junior helped neither car last weekend.

    13 – JEFF GORDON – 411 POINTS
    So, Alan and Jeff swore at each other. Am I the only one who notices they are both guys?

    14 – PAUL MENARD – 385 POINTS
    Caught speeding, got caught again on the drive through, then got a flat. Not a good day.

    15 – ARIC ALMIROLA – 379 POINTS
    Pocono was not a pointless exercise for Aric. He did pick up a single point for his efforts.

    16 – RYAN NEWMAN – 374 POINTS
    After just earning five himself, Newman not feeling the love after being Allmendingered.

    17 – CLINT BOWYER – 354 POINTS
    Billy Scott to replace Brian Pattie atop the box at Michigan. Let the magic begin.

    18 – GREG BIFFLE – 343 POINTS
    Twelfth was twelve better than teammate Trevor Bayne, which means they still have work to do.

    19 – KYLE LARSON – 333 POINTS
    Third at Dover, eighth at Pocono and eighth last spring at Michigan. The time is now.

    20 – DANICA PATRICK – 328 POINTS
    Deserved a better fate last Sunday.

  • NASCAR BTS: Furniture Row Racing Team Members Reflect on their Service for Veteran’s Day

    NASCAR BTS: Furniture Row Racing Team Members Reflect on their Service for Veteran’s Day

    While NASCAR is indeed patriotic and wounded warriors and troops are often brought to the track, there are veterans in the midst of the sport that not only service their race teams but have also provided distinguished service to their country.

    In celebration of Veteran’s Day, this week’s NASCAR Behind the Scenes focuses on two veterans on the Furniture Row Racing team, Chuck Lemay, who served in the Navy, and Charlie Krauch who served in the Army.

    “I am the Director of Transportation for Furniture Row Racing,” Charlie Krauch said. “My main focus is to make sure the truck drivers get to the race tracks, unload and load the trucks every week, get the cars ready to go, make sure that they leave on time for the race, testing and going back and forth to North Carolina to the wind tunnel.”

    “I was in the United States Army from 1971 to 1973,” Krauch continued. “I was in Vietnam in 1971 and 1972.”

    “I’m not a rah-rah veteran type of guy,” Krauch said. “I think that goes back to my days in the service when it was not a very popular occupation to be in.”

    “I very seldom tell people that I was in Vietnam and to this day as well just because of the way things were back then,” Krauch continued. “Today, I’m thankful that people are recognizing those in the military.”

    “They need to be recognized and I’m really happy that they are,” Krauch said. “I know how it was on the other hand.”

    “You have to understand that these are basically kids in the service right now, with probably the average age of around 18 or 19 years old,” Krauch continued. “You take them from coming out of high school to putting them in the service and sending them overseas and having them see and do what they need to do over there, it’s pretty traumatic I would think.”

    “I know it was for me and I would think it would be the same way for them.”

    “When I’m having a bad day, I sometimes think about the time that I spent in the military and reflect back on that,” Krauch said. “And I realize that things could be a lot worse like it was back then.”

    “I sometimes use that as a focus for myself to bring myself up a little bit every now and then.”

    “For me, Veteran’s Day is not about me,” Krauch continued. “It’s about the guys and gals who are serving now and those who are coming back from whatever conflicts they are coming back from.”

    “They are the ones that need to have the focus of Veteran’s Day,” Krauch said. “I also think about the older veterans that we are losing every day, like the World War II guys.”

    “I think there is a big role for them as well,” Krauch continued. “I think the focus needs to be on the troops we have now more so than in the past.”

    “They are the ones that are doing it now and they really need to be the focus.”

    Krauch’s colleague Chuck Lemay, hauler driver for the No. 78 team, agreed with that assessment as he reflected on his own service in light of Veteran’s Day.

    “I was in the United States Navy from January of 1975 through January of 1978,” Lemay said. “I signed up for a two years overseas program and I was stationed in Sasebo, Japan.”

    “I was in kind of a related situation to what I do know as I was a quartermaster, which dealt with navigation,” Lemay continued. “I was on the USS White Plains, named after White Plains, New York.”

    “When we were at sea, we kept the ship’s position with our charts and celestial navigation by the stars all the way up to the latest technology that just came out,” Lemay said. “But nothing is more precise than the stars you know, like the days of Galileo.”

    “My ship was a supply ship so we would pull alongside other ships,” Lemay continued. “We would steam alongside the other ships and transport goods across on wire cables.”

    “So, I’ve kind of come full circle you know, because now I’m steering the hauler, or ‘Raven’ as I call her,” Lemay said. “She is a real pretty truck and I steer her down that highway now.”

    “Veteran’s Day, the older I get, the more I appreciate it,” Lemay said. “My father was in the Battle of the Bulge and he was a POW in World War II.”

    “He has since passed, but he was my hero,” Lemay continued. “My brother was in Vietnam and he was a machine gunner on the helicopter.”

    “So, here I was the baby of the family so I thought that I should do that too,” Lemay said. “They sold me on that commercial, ‘Join the Navy, and See the World.’

    “I thought I needed a little discipline in my life so I joined up with the Navy,” Lemay continued. “And it was the best three years of my life.”

    “And I met my lovely wife when I was in the Navy and we are still married today 36 years later.”

    Both Lemay and Krauch will be working on Veteran’s Day, even after their team scored a fifth place finish at Phoenix International Raceway. The two team members will be getting ready for the final race of 2014 as they prepare for their longest trip of the season, from Denver, Colorado where the team is based, to Homestead-Miami Speedway.

    “We have our biggest trip of the year coming up next week,” Lemay said. “Almost 40 hours to get that hauler from Colorado to Homestead.”

    “We’ll get back to Denver after Phoenix and then the other two drivers will flip the truck around and then we will come in Tuesday morning and take off,” Lemay continued. “Looking at world through a windshield, like the country song says, that’s what we are doing.”

    Both Lemay and Krauch will, however, take a moment to look at the flags flying in the shop, reflecting all branches of the service as they celebrate Veteran’s Day.

    “I think that’s really super to have the flags in the shop,” Lemay said. “History shows that we’ve never really treated our veterans really well.”

    “World War II, they had the big parade and the picture of the sailor kissing the girl in New York,” Lemay continued. “But after that, the Korean and Vietnam veterans didn’t really get anything.”

    “It is really nice to see this turn around lately and showing these guys respect,” Lemay said. “So, to see those flags flying in the shop, every day they catch my eye,” Lemay said. “I was part of that.”

    “It makes you feel proud.”

    Lemay and Krauch also expressed pride in working for their driver Kurt Busch, who has been so active with the Armed Forces Foundation, focusing on those veterans with hidden war wounds, such as post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury.

    “I want to first thank all veterans past, present and future for their bravery and sacrifices in preserving our freedom,” said Furniture Row Racing driver Kurt Busch. “I urge American citizens to make an extra effort on Veterans Day to thank those who served.”

    In addition to Krauch and Lemay, the No. 78 team has five other veterans who have served their country, including David ‘Bugzee’ Hicks (Navy), Andy Morgan (Army), John Parks (Marines), Craig Phillips (Air Force) and Barney Visser (Army).

    “It’s pretty special to have seven team members who are veterans, including our team owner Barney Visser,” Busch said. “I am very proud of them, as I am of all of our veterans.”

    Perhaps Lemay summed it up best as he reflected on his own service and the service of others, sharing how he recognized Veteran’s Day at Phoenix International Raceway this past weekend.

    “I just did celebrate Veteran’s Day a little bit ago,” Lemay said from the track. “A bunch of Marines came by and I just shook their hands.”

    “Everyone should shake the hands of anyone in the service, especially on Veteran’s Day.”

  • Kurt Busch Is Ready To Win Another Championship

    Kurt Busch Is Ready To Win Another Championship

    Kurt Busch will be a 2x NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) champion; it’s simply a matter of when it will happen. Although he and Furniture Row Racing are fast this year, I doubt his second championship will come in 2013 but I will be very surprised if they don’t make the chase and win at least one race. Kurt has matured so much as a driver in the last year and has shocked me with his abrupt attitude change. Yes, he will still get animated inside the racecar but if you listened to every driver’s scanner, they all do at some point. After every race, he gives a positive interview no matter what and tempers his emotions which we’ve never seen him do in the past.

    At Richmond, he was guaranteed a top three finish until a late race caution jumbled up the running order and he ended up 9th. On the final lap, Kenseth knocked him out of the way costing him a couple more positions and Kurt was obviously upset following the race bumping Matt on the cool down lap but that’s it. In fact, the usually calm Matt Kenseth was more fired up in his post-race interview than the strangely optimistic Kurt Busch. Kurt hasn’t made a single imprudent decision this year and there were multiple incidents when it would have been understandable to be upset.

    He’s led over 100 laps this year and has run up front in most of the races although a few of the finishes don’t show it. If this team can get their pit stop mistakes and mechanical issues fixed, then they will become a serious threat on the track. They could have won the All-Star Race if they had a faster stop and loose wheels/lugnuts have destroyed what would have been great races for them on more than one occasion this year. Once again, the elder Busch looked at the brighter side of things following the race instead of dwelling on all the bad moments.

    This much more mature Kurt Busch has taken Furniture Row Racing to the next level. Regan Smith was a good driver but Kurt is an extraordinary driver. Kurt’s probably the most versatile racer in the garage right now next to Tony Stewart and very few men throughout racing history have the ability to jump into different kinds of racecars and perform competitively like him. A couple weeks ago, he took a V8 Supercar around the Circuit of the Americas, then he drove an Indycar at 220mph passing rookie orientation and a few days later he shattered the track record at one of the most difficult tracks on the NASCAR schedule (Darlington). Not many people can kill the rear end of a car at Daytona during a crash and come back to win the race like Kurt did last July. Not many people can have their career slammed to the ground but somehow get back up again and be competitive. Not many people can completely change their attitude for the better in the matter of a year. Kurt Busch did.

    I have gained so much respect for Kurt recently and it’s paramount that he keeps it up. His temper has been holding him back and now that he’s got his Achilles Heel under control, the field better watch out. When I used to look at Kurt Busch, I thought of a highly aggressive racecar driver that had an uncontrollable temper and would be out of NASCAR soon. Now I look at Kurt and I can see him becoming a Tony Stewart or an AJ Foyt winning many many races and not just in NASCAR. He’s tested the waters of open wheel, took a V8 Supercar for a spin and I think sports cars will be on his radar soon as well. The 24 Hours of Daytona is a highly prestigious race and I’ll be surprised if he doesn’t compete in that event within the next couple of years.

    The No.78 may be a single car operation but there are no JTG or Swan Racing by any means. Barney Visser has some deep pockets so don’t mistakenly label this team as underfunded. If Kurt or crew chief Todd Berrier need something, they will get it. Their relationship with ECR engines and Richard Childress Racing is really helping them out this year too. Michael Waltrip Racing was the most recent team to work their way from the bottom of the totem pole all the way to the top of the food chain and I believe Furniture Row Racing will be the next to accomplish that feat. They have the driver, the crew chief, the money, the equipment; now all they need is the consistency which they will get eventually. You are doing a great job Kurt and good luck the remainder of 2013!