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  • Hot 20 – Pepsi and Coke be Damned…It is the Firecracker 400

    Hot 20 – Pepsi and Coke be Damned…It is the Firecracker 400

    It is the Firecracker 400, stupid.

    The distance run and the sponsors may have changed, but for thirty years the gateway to summer race at Daytona was known as the Firecracker 400 (250 for its first four runs). It might not be as big as the 500 or have the glamour of the Southern 500, but winning this one means something. Its name should mean something as well.

    This was a race won five times by David Pearson. Four times by Cale Yarborough. Multiple winners included Fireball Roberts, Richard Petty, Bobby Allison and A.J. Foyt long before NASCAR and the race track (pretty much one and the same) sold out to Pepsi. They dropped the Firecracker brand and then, less than 20 years later, we discovered why it is so stupid to re-brand a race to please a sponsor. Pepsi was gone, Coca Cola replaced it, and now we have the Coke Zero 400 Powered By Coca-Cola. What bovine excrement that is, and I’m drinking a damn Diet Coke as I type this. Love the taste but I wonder how much it would take me to sell out to become Coke Zero Thornton, Esq., powered by Coca-Cola.

    Then again, unless my wife or my mother gets paid off, I am guessing they would continue calling me by the name they have always done so. As Coke has not paid me a dime, forgive me for being a traditionalist. The Firecracker 400 it is.

    I do not mind change if it betters tradition. I think points earned over an entire season still best recognizes the best over the course of that season, not through a contrived playoff. I think wins should be worth more than they are, like 70 points instead of a maximum of 48. I think this Saturday night’s Coke Zero Firecracker 400 will be one hell of a good race to watch. I think someone working for Rick Hendrick is going to win it. As that is what has happened over the past three events raced there, I see no reason to think it is going to change this weekend.

    Yes, I guess tradition can be a bit of a pain sometimes, especially if you happen to be driving a Ford or a Toyota this Saturday night at Daytona.

    (Based on points, with winners awarded 25 bonus points, rather than 3)

    Pos – Driver – Points – Wins
    1 – Jimmie Johnson – 660 – 3
    2 – Jeff Gordon – 640 – 1
    3 – Dale Earnhardt, Jr. – 638 – 2
    4 – Brad Keselowski – 604 – 2
    5 – Carl Edwards – 580 – 2
    6 – Joey Logano – 563 – 2
    7 – Matt Kenseth – 555 – 0
    8 – Kevin Harvick – 553 – 2
    9 – Kyle Busch – 530 – 1
    10 – Ryan Newman – 514 – 0
    11 – Paul Menard – 488 – 0
    12 – Denny Hamlin – 477 – 1
    13 – Kyle Larson – 474 – 0
    14 – Greg Biffle – 474 – 0
    15 – Clint Bowyer – 473 – 0
    16 – Kasey Kahne – 465 – 0
    17 – Tony Stewart – 460 – 0
    18 – Austin Dillon – 455 – 0
    19 – Brian Vickers – 442 – 0
    20 – Marcos Ambrose – 438 – 0

     

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Bristol Food City 500

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Bristol Food City 500

    Just as in the Daytona 500, starting in day and ending at night due to extensive rain delays, here is what else was surprising and not surprising from the 54th annual Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

    Surprising:  Creating his own ‘March Madness’, the leader of the Stewart-Haas Racing team rebounded from having to use a provisional to get into the race to finishing in the top five.

    “To start 37th and end up fourth today, I’m pretty excited about that,” Tony Stewart said. “I’m really excited for Chad Johnston (crew chief) and everybody on this Bass Pro Shops/Mobil 1 team.”

    “We had a long way to go from Friday when we weren’t very good, and every day we just got better and better. So, I’m really proud of this team.”

    Not Surprising:  With a gladiator’s sword as the prize for the victor, it was appropriate that the race ended as a survival of the fittest contest. And the survivor of this race was indeed fit, as demonstrated by his back flip on a wet start finish line in the track known as ‘the Last Great Coliseum.’

    Carl Edwards, behind the wheel of the No. 99 Kellogg’s / Frosted Flakes Ford, scored his first win of the 2014 season, making him the fourth different driver to win in the season and qualifying him for the Chase. This was Edwards’s third victory and eighth top-10 finish at Bristol.

    “I just can’t believe it,” Edwards said. “We were terrible on Saturday, so I’m just glad we turned it around.”

    “We had no clue we were going to win this race.”

    Surprising:  While typically the action ensues when the green flag flies, in this race most of the intense crashing took place when the caution flag came out. There were two instances where the yellow flew yet two drivers were struck from the rear at fairly high rates of speed.

    The first incident occurred when Timmy Hill drilled Matt Kenseth from behind and the second occurred when Brad Keselowski was unable to slow down and hit Jamie McMurray in the rear.

    One of the more bizarre incidents occurred on pit road under caution when Danica Patrick attempted to pull out of her pit stall, got sideways and drilled Clint Bowyer’s machine.

    “It was an eventful night,” Patrick said. “I lost first and second gear and then finally third gear.  That’s why I hit Clint (Bowyer) in the pits.”

    “It wouldn’t go so I dipped the clutch and got sideways, and when it was about to spin around, I lifted, it caught and then it went straight and it wouldn’t stop.”

    “So, I hit him,” Patrick said. “I apologized to his crew after the race.”

    Not Surprising:  Kyle and Kurt Busch had an ‘O Brother Where Art Thou’ moment on lap 394 when Kyle spun out after losing his car in the marbles and big brother Kurt hit the wall trying to avoid him. As a result of that damage, Kurt Busch had to go back behind the wall to repair the right front suspension.

    Kurt Busch finished 35th and brother Kyle finished 29th.

    “Had a moment of brightness but it went downhill from there,” Kyle Busch tweeted after the race. “Really thankful no one hit me when I was sideways.”

    Surprising:  While the streak of top five finishes sadly ended for NASCAR’s most popular driver Dale Earnhardt Jr., another streak surprisingly was born.

    Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon scored his fourth consecutive top-10 finish, which the four-time champ has never been done before in his career to start the season.

    Not Surprising:  Bristol is one of the most physically demanding tracks so it was no wonder that Joey Logano was feeling the need to improve his upper body workout regimen. Logano lost his power steering prior to the rain delay but soldiered on to finish 20th in his No. 22 Shell Pennzoil For.

    “I was already huffing and puffing pretty hard trying to get the thing to turn,” Logano said. “It was intermittent for a while once we restarted and then it just went away.”

    Surprising:  Jimmie Johnson and his crew chief Chad Knaus must have remained in previous race Las Vega mode, gambling with taking left sides only early in the race and then cutting a right front tire down as a result.

    The tread on the No. 48 Kobalt Tools Chevrolet unwound, which forced him to the pits, losing several laps to the leader.

    “The tire still had air in it,” Johnson said. “It didn’t wear it out.”

    “Something made it come apart.”

    Not Surprising:   It was only a matter of time for these two drivers to have a bit of a break out in the Sprint Cup Series, both posting their career best finishes.

    Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., behind the wheel of his No. 17 Nationwide Insurance Ford, finished second, bettering his previous career high finish in third at Talladega in October 2013. And Aric Almirola, in his No. 43 Smithfield Ford Petty blue machine, finished third, bettering his previous career best at Homestead in 2010.

    “It helps our confidence for sure,” Stenhouse Jr. said. “We’re just slowly working and getting better and better.”

    “It was a good night for us,” Almirola said after the race was finally concluded. “It seemed like our car got better and better.”

    “I’m really proud of everybody on our team because they gave me a really good car.”

    Surprising:  A strange new hashtag on Twitter was surprisingly born after one of the most bizarre equipment malfunctions occurred. As a result, rookie driver Alex Bowman tweeted “#badluckbowman is getting freaking ridiculous. Solid top 20 car and the battery literally fell out. Now I get to ride around all day.”

    And with that tweet, the young Rookie of the Year contender picked up ad additional ten thousand followers of his Twitter handle @AlexBRacing.

    Not Surprising:  Speaking of rookie contenders, young Kyle Larson, piloting the No. 42 Target Chevrolet, finished top-10 and also was the highest finishing rookie of the race.

    “We had a really good run today,” Larson said. “Started off in 20th and got to the top ten pretty easily there in the beginning.”

    “Ran in second and third for a long time,” Larson continued. “Pretty much stayed in the top ten for the whole race and inched our way up to the front.”

    The Cup Series heads back across country next week for the Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California.

  • Daytona 500 and Olympics End With Similar Storylines

    Daytona 500 and Olympics End With Similar Storylines

    This past weekend, the 56th running of the Daytona 500 kicked off the 2014 NASCAR season, while the Winter Olympics wrapped up business in Sochi, Russia. Yet, as disparate as the competition was, from stock car racing to ice dancing, there were some surprisingly similar story lines when all was said and done.

    Gold Medal Pressure Packed Performances

    Both the Daytona 500 and the Winter Olympics undoubtedly featured gold medal performances, including the first US gold medal in Alpine skiing, as well as the Great American race win by NASCAR’s most popular driver.

    And yet interestingly enough for both competitors, Ted Ligety and Dale Earnhardt Jr. respectively, their gold medal, award winning performances ended up like weights being lifted off their shoulders.

    “This is the event I wanted most,” Ligety, the first American man to win two Alpine skiing gold medals, said. “It’s the event I’ve been putting so much pressure on myself to win, so to pull through is an awesome feeling. I’m super happy.”

    “It’s a big race and you want to win it so badly, and your team wants to win so badly,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “You realize at that moment that there are countless people watching on television and there are countless people sitting in the grandstands with your shirts and hats on, and your team is over on the pit wall and your family back home — there are so many people pulling for you and want to see you win.”

    “It was a heavy weight that was lifted.”

    Silver Medal Disappointments

    While the runner up position might feel like a triumph to many athletes, to the US Women’s Hockey team and to Joe Gibbs racer Denny Hamlin, second place was an absolute disappointment.

    The US Women’s Hockey team surrendered a two goal lead in the final period of the game, losing to their Canadian rivals, who scored the gold.

    “We were up two goals, so it’s heartbreaking and shocking that we didn’t win the game,” forward Kelli Stack said. “It feels like a bad dream.”

    Just like the US Women’s Hockey Team, who appeared to have everything going for them until the bitter end, Denny Hamlin, behind the wheel of the No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota, was having a stellar Speedweeks, winning the Sprint Unlimited and one of the Duels.

    But then along came the Daytona 500, where the driver had an almost catastrophic situation develop in that he had not radio communication with his spotter. Between the radio issue and the loss of speed, Hamlin finished a disappointing second in the Great American Race.

    “Our cars just weren’t as good as the week progressed,” Hamlin said. “Maybe we were the same, but the competition definitely got better. It wasn’t as easy to pass as it was early in the week.”

    “It’s a tough business,” Hamlin continued. “Our car was OK. Given the right circumstances, it was a race winner.”

    Cinderella Stories

    Another similar storyline that emerged from both the Daytona 500 and the Winter Olympics were those inspiring Cinderella stories. In the Olympics, one such story was Mikaela Shiffrin, who became the youngest slalom champ in Olympic history at age 18.

    Her run, however, was not completely smooth as she lost her balance a bit going through the gates and also lost her left ski which rose way too far off the course.

    She persevered and did not give up, moving from having what she described as a “terrifying” run to an Olympic gold medal run.

    “It’s going to be something that I chalk up as one of my favorite experiences for the rest of my life,” Shiffrin said. “But my life’s not over yet.”

    In the Daytona 500, another Cinderella story unfolded with rookie driver Austin Dillon, who was bringing the storied No. 3 car back to the track after being driven by the late Dale Earnhardt, Sr.

    Dillon actually started the Great American race from the pole position, battled some difficulties and some crashes throughout the race, yet finished in the top-10 as the highest finishing rookie.

    “I think the yellow stripe on the bumper (signifying a rookie) showed a little bit tonight, but we made it through it,” Dillon said. “It was fun. I had a blast. The car was fast.”

    Agony of Defeat

    Every Olympic athlete, as well as every NASCAR driver, goes into competition with the full intent on doing their very best. Unfortunately, things sometimes go awry and the defeat can be a most bitter pill to swallow.

    Both Shaun White, infamous snow boarder, and Martin Truex, Jr., behind the wheel of his new ride in the No. 78 Furniture Row Chevrolet, shared their own versions of the agony of defeat.

    White lost out on a medal after crashing in the halfpipe competition, ending his ‘three-peat’ effort.

    “I didn’t really get to break out everything, which is frustrating. Tricks were still in my pocket,” White said. “I definitely knew what run I wanted to put down, and my dream scenario was I was going to land that first run and then maybe have the opportunity to do something that hadn’t been done before. I tried to win. I went for it.”

    Martin Truex Jr. had a similar experience to White in that he started out with high hopes on the outside pole for the Daytona 500, only to crash out in the qualifying race, relegating him to the back of the starting field in a backup car.

    Then on lap 32, Truex’s backup car blew an engine and his hopes and dreams went up in smoke with the car.

    “It’s definitely a tough break for the team,” Truex said. “I went to bed the night before the race thinking this was my best chance to win the Daytona 500.”

    Just Happy to Be in the Show

    In both the Olympics and the Daytona 500, there are competitors that are just happy to be part of the even itself, no matter where they finished. And for the Jamaican bobsled team as well as for Michael Waltrip, sometime racer and broadcaster, that was just the case.

    “It’s a great race for the fans and it was really fun to be out there and to be part of it,” Waltrip said after finishing 41st in his No. 66 Blue-Def/AAA Toyota.

    The Jamaican Bob Sled team finished 29th in their two-man competition, yet remained as upbeat as ever, channeling their inner ‘Cool Runnings.’

    “We have the athletic ability. We have shown we can do it,” Chris Stokes, president of the Jamaica Bobsleigh Federation, said. “We just have to pull things together in Jamaica itself.”

    In the End, It’s All About Family

    Whether in NASCAR or the Olympics, the athletes and teams who compete only do so with the support of their families and extended families.

    For Olympic Skeleton racer Noelle Pikus-Pace, it was all about her loved ones as she slid to a silver medal, all with her family by her side. In fact, the mother of two, a 6 year old daughter and a 2 year old son, said that her children were her inspiration as she trained for the international competition.

    “After all of the hard work that not only I but my family put in to achieve this dream, it came in those minutes, those seconds,” Pikus-Pace, 31, told PEOPLE of her Sochi success. “It really was a fairytale ending.”

    The same fairytale ending was true for the Hendrick family in NASCAR, with Hendrick Motorsports driver Dale Earnhardt, Jr. in victory lane and HMS teammates Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson in the top-five.

    “Oh my God, I am so excited for the Hendrick family and Hendrick Motorsports right now,” Jeff Gordon said. “This team did an amazing job and gave me a great race car at the end of the show.”

    And so as the Olympic flame was extinguished and as the confetti flew at the end of the Daytona 500, the competitions ended with very similar storylines.

    For the Winter Olympians, there will be a four year hiatus and wait until the next big event. But for the NASCAR competitors, the next race is simply around the bend at Phoenix International Speedway next weekend.

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Daytona

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Daytona

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt withstood a long rain delay and held off numerous challenges to win his second Daytona 500, beating Denny Hamlin to the line. The win ended a 55-race winless streak and instantly qualified Earnhardt for the Chase For The Cup.

    “That six hour, 22 minute rain delay didn’t bother me at all,” Earnhardt said. “What’s 6:22 when I’m used to waiting 55 races for a win? And what better way to celebrate such a huge win than to join Twitter. By the time you read this, I should have 750,000 followers, and the best thing is, none will require a restraining order.”

    2. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin topped off a successful Speedweeks with a runner-up finish in the 500, making a bold move at the front befire finishing behind Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Hamlin won the first Gatorade Duel and led 16 laps in Sunday night’s race.

    “How about that piece of black plastic that clung to Dale, Jr.’s grill?” Hamlin said. “Some say it was the ‘Man In Black,’ Dale Earnhardt, Sr., making his presence known. NASCAR made an even more outlandish claim—that it was proof that their ‘Drive For Diversity’ program is actually working. Here’s the most interesting part: ghosts are a lot like NASCAR drivers—-mostly white.”

    3. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski, in the No. 2 car with the classic Miller Lite paint scheme, challenged for the win at Daytona and finished third behind Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Denny Hamlin.

    “I hear that Danica Patrick exceeded 1,000,000 Twitter followers,” Keselowski said. “That’s a lot, maybe too many for one web site to handle. I can see this ending in one way only—with a ‘crash.’”

    4. Jeff Gordon: Gordon finished fourth at Daytona as Hendrick teammate Dale Earnhardt, Jr. powered to the win. Gordon gave Earnhardt a boost on the final lap, helping Junior hold off Denny Hamlin at the end.

    “Dale deserved to win,” Gordon said. “His No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet was by far the strongest. This could very well be the year Junior wins the Sprint Cup. In other words, it could finally be when ‘A Little E Goes A Long Way.’”

    5. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson started 39th after going to a backup car and finished fifth after leading 15 laps. Last year’s Daytona 500 winner joined race winner Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Jeff Gordon as Hendrick Motorsports took three of the top five spots.

    “That rain just wouldn’t stop,” Johnson said. “And, trust me, I know long ‘reigns.’

    “I’m on a quest for my seventh Sprint Cup championship. It would be awesome to be mentioned in the same sentence with Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt, Sr. Contrary to what Tony Stewart says, six titles give you the right to ‘challenge’ Petty, not two.”

    6. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth started third after winning Thursday’s second Gatorade Duel and finished a long day at Daytona with a sixth-place finish. Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch finished second and 19th, respectively.

    “Did you see Kyle cross the finish line?” Kenseth said. “He did it in reverse. But that’s really no surprise. Just look at the sponsors on the No. 18 car—it’s got ‘good backing.’”

    7. Austin Dillon: Dillon survived involvement in three accidents at Daytona and put the Richard Childress Racing No. 3 Chevy in the top 10 in the return of the “3” made famous by Dale Earnhardt, Sr.

    “That ‘3’ on the side of my car means a lot,” Dillon said. “At Daytona, it indicated the number of crashes I caused.”

    8. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.: Stenhouse led the way for Roush Fenway Racing with a seventh at Daytona, joining teammate Greg Biffle, who finished eighth, in the top 10. It was Stenhouse’s best finish ever in the 500.

    “That was one of the best Daytona 500’s of all time,” Stenhouse said. “I can’t wait to catch a replay of the race, and neither can Dale Earnhardt, Jr. fans. That’s the only way their favorite driver will have multiple wins this season.”

    9. Greg Biffle: Biffle battled Dale Earnhardt, Jr. over the final laps at Daytona before the mad scramble relegated him to a finish of eighth.

    “How about Madison Rising’s performance of the national anthem before Saturday’s Nationwide race?” Biffle said. “They claim to be America’s most patriotic band. I certainly agree. Their music is best listened to with a hand over the heart, and two over the ears.”

    10. Kevin Harvick: Harvick finished 13th at Daytona in the No. 4 Chevrolet, the highest finisher among the Stewart-Haas Racing stable.

    “Tony Stewart challenged Richard Petty to race Danica Patrick,” Harvick said, “and the ‘King’ accepted. But really, what does King Richard stand to gain with a win? The last thing he needs is another feather in his cap.”

  • The Final Word – Earnhardt wins at Daytona and all is right with the world

    The Final Word – Earnhardt wins at Daytona and all is right with the world

    Jeff Gordon is correct. Now that Dale Earnhardt Jr has claimed his second Daytona 500, all is right with the world. Now, what on earth has made a 20 race winner, one who has won exactly three races in the past 279 events, all that popular?

    A movie script career has as much to do with it as any. The son of a legend who won his first two races in 2000 with the team owner, his dad, joining him in celebration. Then came 2001, his father’s death on the sport’s biggest stage, Junior’s victory in Daytona that summer, his six wins in 2004 including the Daytona 500 to match the Intimidator in just his fifth attempt. Then came the drama and the disappointment of the next decade.  His fans, and the driver himself, needing one more flash of sunshine, and ironically it came on a day when the race would go through a six hour rain delay. It came in a race that began with a slant No. 3 leading the way on the pole, its first appearance since that tragic day in 2001. It came as a black sheet of tape left Ryan Newman’s car to find a place on the front grill of Earnhardt’s auto, making it possibly even faster over the final few laps.  It came, finally. We long needed a happy ending to the script, and on Sunday we got it.

    Earnhardt’s total joy at victory swept along his fans, and maybe a few not part of Junior Nation. Hoots, hugs, and fist pumps for all. Of course, it is just one race, but if you are going to win just one, this is the one to win. For a week, at least, all is right with the world.

    Steve Letarte will begin his new career with NBC next season as a Daytona 500 winning crew chief. That has a nice ring to it.  The 34-year old leaves an employer he has been with since he was 15 to take a job that will have fewer demands and allows him more time with his wife and two children. In short, he gets to have a life. Now, being known as a season championship crew chief has an even nicer ring to it. To borrow from Robert Frost…

    To the broadcast booth he’ll soon leap
    But he still has promises yet to keep,
    And miles to go before he’ll sleep,
    And miles to go before he’ll sleep.

    Rick Hendrick had a very good day, as both Six-time and Four-time also managed Top Five finishes. Denny Hamlin won the Sprint Unlimited, won his duel race, but was first loser when it counted, finishing just behind Junior. Brad Keselowski rounded out the Top Five.

    Even the pole sitter had a Top Ten, but the No. 3 had a rather interesting day. It is better to give than receive, and Austin Dillon did his best to do unto others. After leading the first lap, he drifted back. With 55 laps to go, the 23-year old got caught up in the same mess that took out Danica Patrick (40th) and Michael Waltrip (41st). With 38 to go, Dillon spun fellow rookie Kyle Larson into a ten car wreck to end the Target car’s day. With seven left, Dillon got team mate Ryan Newman out of shape and seven more cars needed work. Friends? Who needs ‘em? The last guy who drove that number did not seem to have many of his own in the early going.

    If Hamlin was first loser, outside pole sitter Martin Truex Jr was last loser, as his engine blew up 30 laps in. He was gone before the 6 hour rain delay. He could have been home before they got restarted. Clint Bowyer stayed at the track, only to blow up 90 laps after they returned, to wind up 42nd. Sometimes good things do not happen to those who wait.

    Larson was already in the midst of an adventure before Dillon mercifully ended his race. He had a right front go down as his car bounced off the wall twice within the opening three laps. Not the start the rookie wanted. Then his right rear went soft. Later, Dillon arrived and Larson finished 38th.

    Fuel pump issues left Tony Stewart 35th and hoping his 17th Daytona 500 might be the charm. While such contenders as Matt Kenseth and Greg Biffle had Top Tens, Joey Logano (11th), Kevin Harvick (13th), Carl Edwards (17th), Kurt Busch (21st), and Ryan Newman (22nd) are hoping for better things in Phoenix. Kyle Busch won the Friday truck race, was fourth in Saturday’s Nationwide event, but 19th was his fate on Sunday. Then again, a win in Arizona this weekend and all will be forgotten.

    Seven years ago my sister and I, and other family members, were in the stands to see Harvick win. On Sunday, she watched the race from the couch with her daughters at her side. They were bored. I mean, even at three and one, the girls know a repeat when they see one. After about ten minutes, so did their mother. Others were not as quick, as FOX covered up their six hour broadcast hole with a replay of the 2013 event.  It would appear thousands did not notice the difference, or the fact some drivers were in cars they were not supposed to be in.  For the record, the outcome did not change. Jimmie Johnson still won.

    A new season has dawned, a familiar face has returned to a familiar place, and all is right with the world. While the fair weather, fickle, big event fans may have wandered off until Talladega, the rest of us have a Sunday date coming up courtesy of Phoenix International Raceway.  Qualifying goes Friday night, and that should be something different.

  • Dale Earnhardt Jr. & the Intangible That’s Stopped Him From Reaching His Full Potential

    Dale Earnhardt Jr. & the Intangible That’s Stopped Him From Reaching His Full Potential

    February 18th, 2001 … the final lap of the 43rd annual Daytona 500 …. the black No. 3 entered turn three in third position, but never made it to the tri-oval. 13 years and five days later, the iconic number finally exited that corner, and it did so as the leader of the Great American Race. The No. 3 was back. A side note of this historic occasion is that it would have been the 86th birthday of the Earnhardt family patriarch, Ralph. This day would not belong to that venerable number and rookie Austin Dillon though, but rather another third generation racer, who carried the surname of Earnhardt. This Daytona 500 belonged to Dale Jr. … and I can still hear the rapturous cheers from Jr. Nation two days later. His unequivocal understanding of plate racing and sheer determination against a snarling pack of cars led to yet another Harley J. Earl trophy for the pied piper of Daytona, as Mike Joy put it.

    On the ten year anniversary of his first triumph over Daytona International Speedway, the stars aligned once again for NASCAR’s most popular driver. After an enthralling late-race duel with the likes of Johnson, Biffle, Edwards, Gordon, and Hamlin; Jr. held on and emerged as a Daytona 500 champion for the second time in his career. It was a combination of a powerful race car, luck, a plate racing ace behind the wheel, and fate that led to this very popular and widely celebrated victory.

    I don’t know Jr. personally, but those who do would agree …. Dale is more confident right now than he’s ever been before. He is a different driver, and a different person. He’s got that swagger that he showcased in the early 2000’s back. In the 500, he drove aggressively and gave no quarter as he just about single-handily held off two lanes of cars late in the event; denying charges mounted from some of the best drivers in the sport. He sliced and diced from the outside wall to the inside apron at speeds upwards of 200mph without trepidation or hesitation, only instinct.

    He walked into the media center that night with a pep in his step as he howled triumphantly before sitting down. One of the first statements out of his mouth was that he and his No. 88 team are “going for the jugular this year.” If you didn’t know any better, you’d think we were listening to Brad Keselowski or Tony Stewart … not the somewhat reserved and timid Dale Earnhardt Jr. we’ve seen on TV in the past. He hasn’t stopped smiling since the victory, and I doubt his enthusiasm will wane any time soon. Jr. has been giving funny, engaging, and well-spoken interviews to every media outlet he’s talked to thus far, and even joined Twitter! The clandestine life of NASCAR’s most popular driver is now being broadcast photo by photo, on social media. One of the first tweets he sent out was of him standing with the statue that immortalized his late-great father outside of the speedway.

    He is a driver whose demeanor usually corresponds with his performance on the track, so this is a very good sign for the legion of Earnhardt Jr. fans out there. No, he’s not on the level of Gordon, Stewart, or Johnson; nor will he obliterate the competition in 2014. But, he is perfectly capable of being a formidable championship opponent and confidence can go a very long way for a race car driver …. just ask Denny Hamlin. What happened Sunday night at Daytona International Speedway epitomizes just how empowering a win at Daytona can be, and it will certainly leave an indelible mark on Jr.’s career. The raw, uninhibited emotion from him after the win resonated with the NASCAR community and is quite refreshing to see. It’s almost like that endearing feeling we get when an underdog captures the checkered flag, even though the driver of the No. 88 is nowhere near underdog status.

    Or is he? The tumultuous career of Dale Earnhardt Jr. is one that will make you feel a wide range of emotions from all across the spectrum. He’s driving equipment that is superior to most of his competitors, he is a perfectly capable driver, has plenty of money, and has battled a different kind of adversity in his career. Himself. Imagine being a young kid, the world at your feet, and then you lose one of, if not the most influential person in your life. In this case, his father. Suddenly, millions turned to him to fill Dale Sr.’s shoes and presumed that he’d be as good as, if not better than his dad. Imagine the immense pressure he must have felt. How does one deal with that?

    As if that wasn’t enough to bring him down, he watched the team his father created fall to pieces before his very eyes. Think about looking at everyone around you, knowing that they all expect you to be something you’re not, and never will be. Think about all those who constantly and relentlessly asked Jr. why he wasn’t meeting their unrealistically high expectations for him. After the barrage of unanswerable questions, he was left to cogitate about all those he disappointed, who felt he wasn’t good enough, and labeled him a failure. If you keep piling weight on someone’s back, they will not grow stronger; they will break, and consequently, never reach their true potential.

    But now, Dale realizes that it’s not incumbent of him to attempt to emulate his famous father and repeat his successes in order to suffice the contingent of people out there who yearn for the second coming of “The Intimidator.” No longer does he worry about disappointing those who unfairly expect him to be just like Sr. He just wants to be the best that he can be. The mindset has changed from what does everybody else want from me, to what do I want from me? Now that he’s done that, he can be a Sprint Cup champion.

    I only see more good things coming from Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 2014. He’s confident in himself and is comfortable with where he’s at in life. That’s been the missing piece all these years. He’s always had the equipment and the talent, but the intangible that is self-confidence is what will take him to the next level. Dale Earnhardt Jr. has always had the will to win, but he’s now got the complete package, and can finally, after so many years, attain his full potential as a race car driver.

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: The Daytona 500

    Surprising and Not Surprising: The Daytona 500

    In spite of the unusual happenings that perpetually occur at Daytona, this year a six hour plus rain delay with tornado warnings, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 56th running of the Great American Race.

    Surprising:  With so much focus pre-race on the return of the No. 3, formerly driven by Dale Earnhardt Sr. and now by rookie Austin Dillon, the son of the Intimidator and NASCAR’s most popular driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. instead stole the show with his second Daytona 500 victory.

    This was Junior’s 20th victory in the Cup Series and, with the win, he joined Bill Elliott, Michael Waltrip, Sterling Marlin, Matt Kenseth and Jimmie Johnson as two-time Daytona 500 winners.

    “I’ll never take this for granted,” Junior said. “We’re two time Daytona champions.”

    In addition to the coveted win at Daytona, Earnhardt Jr. had a big weekend overall. The team bearing his name, JR Motorsports, won the Nationwide Drive4COPD 300 race with driver Regan Smith at the wheel.

    Not Surprising:  In spite of several on-track incidents, the driver of the aforementioned No. 3 for Richard Childress Racing, did quite well for himself, starting from the pole and finishing ninth.

    Austin Dillon was also the highest finishing rookie of the race, taking the early lead in a Sunoco Rookie of the year battle.

    “That’s what this year is about — experience, trying to finish races and getting better each week,” Dillon said, “We have a long year ahead of us, I’d like to use some of this momentum going forward. I know it’s going to be a long, tough year, and hopefully we’ll be there at the end of these races and try to learn something.”

    Surprising:  Goodyear had a little scare early in the race when both Kyle Larson and Greg Biffle had tire problems, causing hard hits into the wall for the rookie and veteran racers.

    Larson, in the No. 42 race car formerly driven by Juan Pablo Montoya, actually hit the wall twice in the opening laps, going a lap down and soldiering on to finish 38th.

    In spite of his blown tire early in the race, Biffle had a much better finish than Larson, taking the checkered flag in the eighth spot in his No. 16 3M Ford.

    “It was a good night,” Biffle said. “We had a really strong car but the 88 was real fast. We just couldn’t hold him off.”

    Not Surprising:  With the combo platter of the rain delay, potential for additional weather coming in, and the pent up energy of the first race of the season, it was not surprising that there were a number of pit road incidents that created some major mayhem for several drivers.

    Early in the race, Matt Kenseth had contact on pit road and ended up spinning to pit backwards in his box. Both Kyle Busch and Aric Almirola removed equipment out of their pit boxes and had to serve costly penalties.

    And then there was one of the more controversial calls, with Kasey Kahne called for speeding, all of which he did in an effort not to get hit by Michael Annett who had lost control of his vehicle coming to his pit.

    Surprising:  After dominating most everything during Speedweeks, from the Sprint Unlimited to the second Duel race, it was a bit surprising that Denny Hamlin did not claim the big prize. He did, however, come home in the runner up position in his No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota, which was his best finish ever in the Daytona 500.

    “I thought — the Duels and the Unlimited — I felt like our car didn’t have quite the speed,” Hamlin said. “It was a solid run for us and really it was a fun race.”

    Not Surprising:  Given the manufacturer change to Chevrolet and a new alliance with Richard Childress Racing, it was not surprising that Casey Mears and his GEICO No. 13 team had a great run in the Great American Race.

    In fact, team GEICO finished in the top-10, getting their driver and crew chief Bootie Barker off to a great start for the season.

    Surprising:  The Labonte brothers, Bobby and Terry, not only made the race but had surprisingly good finishes, 15th and 20th respectively.

    Brother Bobby extended his consecutive start street for the Great American Race to 22 while elder brother Terry most likely ran his last Daytona 500 competition.

    Not Surprising:   Because it was after all Daytona, there were several big crashes, collecting many good drivers, to no one’s surprise. One of those hard hits, however, impacted the only female in the field Danica Patrick.

    “I think more than anything I am just upset because the GoDaddy car felt really good and it was the best car that I had all Speedweeks,” Patrick said. “I felt like everything was going pretty well, so it’s just upsetting.”

    “It’s a bummer, but you know that is the excitement of speedway racing that anything can happen, and it was unfortunate that I was on the short end of the accident.”

    Surprising:  With a more than six hour rain delay, some of NASCAR’s finest were up to some surprising activities to pass the time away. In fact, several of the racer dads were busy with their children, from Jeff Gordon making Lego creations to Keelan Harvick suiting up in his dad Kevin’s fire suit.

    Probably most novel, however, was David Ragan, still clad in his own fire suit, who went out to pick up pizza for his team during the break.

    Not Surprising:  While Junior reigned triumphant in Victory Lane, just like in the Olympics, there was some agony of defeat in this year’s running for the Great American Race.

    Most agonizing were those drivers impacted by engine or fuel pick up woes, including Clint Bowyer, Martin Truex, Jr. and Tony Stewart.

    “If it was going to blow up, I wish it would have blown up four hours ago,” Clint Bowyer said. “I could have been home watching.  Just disappointing — the guys work so hard for this race.  Everybody is out there having fun and we broke our toy.”

    “It’s definitely a tough break for our team,” Martin Truex Jr. said. “I went to bed thinking this was my best chance to win the Daytona 500.”

    The Cup Series moves on next to Phoenix International Raceway in Avondale, Arizona for The Profit on CNBC 500 on March 2nd.

     

  • Dale Earnhardt Jr. Promises to “Seize the Moment” After Winning his Second Daytona 500

    Dale Earnhardt Jr. Promises to “Seize the Moment” After Winning his Second Daytona 500

    After a rain delayed start, Dale Earnhardt Jr. earned a hard fought victory in a thrilling Daytona 500 under the lights at Daytona International Speedway. The joy on his face was unmistakable as he took a victory lap around the track to celebrate with thousands of his fans.

    This was Earnhardt’s second Daytona 500 victory but that did not diminish the excitement level of the celebration. And although he could not decide which win was more satisfying, he savored every moment.

    “When I crossed the finish line, I was relieved that I’ve done it again and I’ve done it with the people I’m with,” he said. ”Initially the reaction was, this is better because I’m back in Victory Lane. It’s different because it’s the people, you know. I was talking about that earlier.  It’s better because you had a taste of it before. To win it the first time, you are blown away and sort of overwhelmed.  The experience is a blur.  It doesn’t sink in. You don’t absorb much of the whole thing. I can’t even remember half of it even after the fact, what we did that week. I don’t even remember going over and putting the car in there. It was just all so much of a flash.

    “So now I realize that. I’m surrounded by so many great people. We got a great team. So many people are able to enjoy this.  I’m reminded to let it sink in, reminded to enjoy it. I really enjoyed driving down in front of the fans there.  I was having the time of my life inside that car going down the front straightaway.

    “When I got to Victory Lane, I couldn’t wait to hug everybody, just enjoy it. Didn’t do that the first time ’cause you’re just blown away.

    “So this one’s funner.”

    This victory may also signal the beginning of a “new” Dale Earnhardt Jr., one who is willing to do whatever it takes to win.

    This victory may also signal the beginning of a new era in Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s career as he seems to have found the missing ingredient

    “There were a couple laps where I had to run Jeff Gordon right on the fence, down the turns, the straightaway, right on his door, to keep him from drafting by me. I hate to do that to my teammate. I hate to do that to anybody. But that’s what it took. That’s what you had to do,” he explained.

    Earnhardt recounted conversations with crew chief Steve Letarte as they struggled last season to capture those elusive wins.

    “I talked to Steve about how we were not in the right place at the end of these other races. We’d make a move and finish second. We knew we didn’t have a shot at winning, knew we didn’t have a shot at the leader at the end.  Why? What do we need to do?” he asked.

    “Tonight,” Earnhardt continued, “it was all about not giving an inch, not running fifth, not sitting there in fifth place all night and being okay with it.  We wanted to be in the lead every lap, be in first every lap. That’s what my motive was.”

    The victory at Daytona also means that he is guaranteed a spot in the Chase as long as he enters the next 25 races of the NASCAR Sprint Cup regular season and remains in the top 30 in points.

    But even as he celebrates this victory, Earnhardt is anticipating a season of continued success.

    “We have a lot of confidence coming off such a strong year, obviously winning this race. Our confidence couldn’t be higher,” he emphasized. “Confidence is a great thing.  It’s half of the battle, you know, being confident in what you’re doing.  When you have the most, you’re in perfect situations to have some good things happen, so hopefully we can seize the moment.”

    This is only the first race of the season but for Dale Earnhardt Jr. fans, it doesn’t get much better than this.

     

  • NASCAR BTS: Jim Beichner Embracing New Role as Team Penske Athletic Director

    NASCAR BTS: Jim Beichner Embracing New Role as Team Penske Athletic Director

    With an eye to increasing that ever important fitness level for drivers and crew alike, Team Penske recently announced the hiring of Jim Beichner as their new Athletic Director. And Beichner could not be more excited as he embraces his new role in the sport.

    “It’s a completely new role for me,” Beichner said. “While I’m just learning about the responsibilities, what I can say is that I work with great people.”

    “I work for Roger Penske and the Team Penske so it’s an exciting, great new opportunity for me.”

    Beichner has certainly had quite the journey to his new position, from race fan as a youngster to wrestling coach as an adult and throughout much of his career.

    “I’m originally from western New York,” Beichner said. “I grew up on a couple hundred acre farm just outside of Jamestown, New York, where Lucille Ball was born and raised.”

    “I was a race fan and my family was involved with all kinds of different forms of racing, from stock cars, motorcycles and whatever has an engine attached to it,” Beichner continued. “So, I grew up around the sport.”

    While Beichner was a race fan, he fell in love with another sport, wrestling, which he has been involved in throughout his life. And while he loved the world of coaching, he augmented his skills in the administrative area at Clarion University, where he earned a degree in Business Administration and Marketing, as well as the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Buffalo where he coached.

    “While at the University of Buffalo, I took on as many administrative duties as I could,” Beichner said. “I was Director of Compliance at the University of Buffalo and then got involved with student housing and some other administrative activities.”

    “So, the University of Buffalo afforded me opportunities to not just be a coach, of which I’m very appreciative,” Beichner continued. “I knew that I wasn’t going to retire a coach. Somewhere down the line I wanted to be a manger of people and I’m very fortunate that Roger Penske and his group picked me to do this.”

    Beichner did not have an inside track on the position. In fact, he saw the job posting like so many other regular job-seekers.

    “I saw the job posting and the more I read it, it sounded like me is the best way I can explain it,” Beichner said. “As I read the posting, I said to myself, ‘Jim, that sounds like you.’ All the things that they were looking for in an AD just spoke to me.”

    In his new AD role, Beichner is responsible for supervising the pit crews, including the coaches, the strength coach, others in the shop that work with the pit crew.

    “So, I’m the manager of people and I feel like that’s one of my strengths,” Beichner said. “I can cross boundaries and relate to just about anybody. Also, I’m a fair and honest person and that’s what they get from me.”

    While Beichner is thrilled with his new role and the people with whom he works, Beichner is also excited about the facilities in which he and his staff have the privilege to work.

    “I can tell you, our facility is beautiful,” Beichner said. “We have state-of-the art equipment so I couldn’t ask for a better place to be than working.”

    While Beichner has been used to training Division I wrestlers who have a certain mentality that they will do whatever they need to get the job done, he readily admits that those he is training at Team Penske demonstrate the same attitude and commitment.

    “I see, hear and feel the same dedication with my pit crew members here at Team Penske,” Beichner said. “I’m very impressed with the fact that as a new person coming in with new ideas, which I’ve shared with the coaches, and everybody has bought in and is working hard.”

    “I’m very impressed with their attitude,” Beichner continued. “It’s really a great crew to work with. Our coaches are top notch and our athletes are top notch.”

    “Our administration is great and through the changes that we are doing, they have bonded in a way that I had hoped they would respond.”

    While Team Penske is involved with NASCAR, they are also involved in other forms of motorsports including the IndyCar Series. Given that, Beichner may be called upon to expand his work from just focusing on the world of stock car racing to open wheel racing as well.

    “I do what my bosses ask me to do,” Beichner said. “When they ask me to get involved in Indy, as far as their pit crews are concerned, then I get involved.”

    “Whatever they want or need me to do, I’m the kind of person that is a company guy,” Beichner continued. ‘Nothing is out of bounds for me. If they ask me to do whatever, I will do that thing that they are asking me to do so I can achieve our goals and help them achieve their goals.”

    All of the new changes and challenges excite Beichner but what he is most excited about is getting to the race track to see the fruits of his labors. And he intends to be at the Daytona 500 to kick off the race season in celebration of his new responsibilities.

    “I’m really excited about race days,” Beichner said. “That’s probably what everybody would be excited about.”

    “I want to see our guys compete at the highest level and I want to see them do great,” Beichner continued. “I believe they are prepared very well and each one of those guys has a good reason to feel excited about race days. I’m excited about getting to those tracks and being out there and watching our guys perform.”

    Although Beichner has had quite a career in sports, from wrestling to NASCAR, he admits that he is simply in awe of his new opportunity with Team Penske.

    “You’re working for Roger Penske, a legend in motorsports,” Beichner said. “Where else would you rather be if you are a fan of racing than with Roger Penske and Team Penske?”

    “I don’t know what else to say,” Beichner continued. “This is where I’d rather be to help them ultimately to achieve their goals.”

    “I’m excited to see our Team Penske drivers, Keselowski, Logano and Blaney, out there as a team and I hope we help them achieve more victories than they already have,” Beichner said. “That’s what I’m excited about ultimately is to see those guys win races.”

    ‘I can’t speak highly enough of Team Penske, Roger Penske and this organization,” Beichner said. “And I can’t tell you how excited I am to have this opportunity.”

     

  • It’s Not Just a Number

    It’s Not Just a Number

    The No. 3 has been looming in the shadows for the past thirteen years. We saw it on the back windows of cars, on the shirts of long-time fans, on flags in the infield, but now, we will see it where it belongs…leading the pack in the Daytona 500.

    On pole day, rookie Austin Dillon took the “Return of the Three” moniker to new levels when he asserted himself as the fastest man in Daytona, and in doing so, conjured up memories of the days when “The Intimidator” once ruled over the massive super-speedway.

    Some fans were delighted to see the three earn pole position, others were appalled. A few even declared that no one should care because, and I quote, “it’s just a number.” That erroneous, shortsighted, and somewhat audacious remark got my attention and is what led me to put together the proceeding article.

    The three is the mark of an icon….a symbol of a legend who’s untimely and tragic death only helped further solidify his place among racing’s immortals. It represents the legacy of a man who changed the sport of NASCAR forever with what he did on the track, and also with what he lost on it. The No. 3 stopped being “just a number” the day Dale Earnhardt entered turn three on the final lap of the 2001 Daytona 500.

    The No. 3 has been personified far beyond the simplistic and modest form of any other digit. The three to NASCAR is like a flag to a nation, or a coat of arms to a family. It may be a simple stroke of a paint brush or the cutting out of a vinyl sticker that creates it, but the second it takes the shape that Farrell Hinker and Richard Childress once envisioned so many years ago, it instantly becomes so much more than a simple number on a car.

    It has a certain mystique about it that can’t fully be explained.  The three is like a torch, that only a few are worthy to carry. When the No . 3 races, it doesn’t just carry a driver, but a story and the hearts of millions of fans with it. There are intense emotions, and for some like myself, childhood memories tied to it. Numbers in their most fundamental form don’t make people cry, but the three does.

    The No. 3 is a salute we give with three fingers, to commemorate a fallen hero….an allegory for what NASCAR racing was, is, and always be.