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  • Goodyear Pronounces New Tire Success at Atlanta and Ready for Kansas

    Goodyear Pronounces New Tire Success at Atlanta and Ready for Kansas

    This past weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Goodyear, the official tire of NASCAR, debuted a new tire technology utilizing multi-zone tread technology.

    And after several tests, as well as during the race with multiple green flag stops with no major issues, Goodyear has pronounced their new tire good.

    “Without question, the debut of our multi-zone tread technology at Atlanta was a success,” Greg Stucker, Goodyear’s Director of Racing, said. “The right-side tire, with the firmer, heat resistant compound on the inboard portion of the tire, and the more tractive compound on the outboard, enabled the cars to put on great races in both the NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series.”

    “Certainly this confirms our plan to utilize this technology for the October ace weekend in Kansas, and actively evaluate its application at other tracks.”

    “I would agree that the new tire debut at Atlanta was a complete success,” Justin Fantozzi, Marketing Manager for Global Race Tires for Goodyear, said. “Folks here are very proud of the result.”

    While the technology is certainly different, the process of development for the new tire was different as well. With this new tire technology, the concept came from the passenger vehicle side to the racing venue, which is opposite of how most tire advances take place.

    “Normally, it is track to street but this was one of the technologies that was street to track,” Fantozzi said. “This technology was used in our triple tread passenger tires for dry, rain and snow.”

    “So, for the racing tires, the idea was to balance durability and heat versus grip and traction whereas on a consumer tire, it is all about the weather balance.”

    “Since we don’t race in the rain, we had to balance the durability and heat instead.”

    One of the other challenges for the new tire was to ensure that the zones where positioned where they needed to be.

    “You have to be very diligent that the zones go where you need them to go,” Fantozzi said. “But for us, that’s very simple because the yellow letters are only on one side of the tire and they are always facing out.”

    “So, we know exactly which zone has the firmer compound on it and which zone has the more tractive compound.”

    What most fans may not realize is that the development of this particular new tire technology has been two years in the making for Goodyear.

    “There isn’t a call center or an 800 number that the crew chiefs and drivers call to get to a customer service representative for the tires,” Fantozzi said. “We actually send our development team to the race track.”

    “There is a one-to-one relationship so that if someone has an issue at the race track, we get the feedback as we develop the tire,” Fantozzi continued. “At the same time, there are folks who don’t travel that are working on developing the new technology.”

    “So, that’s how it all started.”

    After the Goodyear scientists worked their magic in the lab, the tire actually was tested not just once but twice before showing up at Atlanta.

    “We brought it to the race track in a couple of tests,” Fantozzi said. “The first test was the development test, which was about 65 days ago.”

    “And then we felt that a change was enough that each and every team needed to feel it,” Fantozzi continued. “So, we went back to Atlanta with a confirmation test thirty days before the event.”

    “At the development test, we had one of each of the manufacturers there and at the confirmation test, we invited one of each one of the teams,” Fantozzi said. “So, we had 13 vehicles at the confirmation test.”

    “Then we were ready to take it to the track,” Fantozzi continued. “We had three fuel stops at Atlanta with no issues so everybody was pretty proud of that and we’ll continue the cadence on the development side and see where else the technology can fit and become a solution at the race track.”

    Goodyear also had the challenge of not only developing their new tire technology but also melding that into the new Gen 6 race car. And while Goodyear had to balance speed and safety, they also had to deal with a new challenge, heat.

    “The other part of it that we’ve seen with the new car is the heat,” Fantozzi said. ”And it doesn’t come in the traditional sense that the faster you go, the more heat you have.”

    “We’re seeing a lot of the heat not only in compartment where the tires are but in the race car itself,” Fantozzi continued. “So, the crew chiefs are balancing off the heat as well.”

    “That’s probably the biggest change with the car,” Fantozzi said. “It is different from a dynamic standpoint when the tires are able to seal off and there is no air flow through the tire compartment or in the car because that’s where the challenge comes.”

    Surprisingly, Goodyear did not have to bring extra personnel to the Atlanta Motor Speedway to assist with the new tire. But for Goodyear, they always come with an extensive cadre of staff and engineers, ready to assist with any and all tire issues that may occur.

    “We had a couple more engineers on site at Atlanta than we would normally have but not extreme,” Fantozzi said. “I think we had just one or two more folks.”

    “Because of the cadence we keep every weekend, with the mounters, changers and engineers and those on the business side of it, there can be sixty folks on the ground carrying the Goodyear banner,” Fantozzi continued. “So, we didn’t need to bring too many more folks.”

    “One of the guys that doesn’t travel but has worked eighteen or twenty-four months on the tire wanted to see it, so he came,” Fantozzi said. “It’s those type of folks who joined us in Atlanta.”

    While there were no doubt a few Goodyear nerves on pit road, all was dispelled after the race got underway.

    “You can test as much as you want to but at Atlanta, when we got through the first set of green flag stops, the confidence level went up with the assurance that what we had brought to the race track was proven,” Fantozzi said. “We were very, very happy with that first green flag run and then we ended up having another set and a third and that just led to even more confirmation.”

    “We have pride in what we bring to the race track.”

    Although Goodyear pronounced the new tire good, there were plenty of drivers and crew chiefs who concurred as well.

    “I think Goodyear did a good job there from my perspective,” Dave Rogers, winning Atlanta crew chief, said.

    “It ran pretty good for me,” Joey Logano, driver of the No. 22 Penske Ford, said. “Every time we had a pit stop Todd (Gordon, crew chief) came on the radio and said that the tires look good.”

    “It seemed like it was a pretty solid tire,” Logano continued. “It hung in strong and I thought it put on a good race.”

    Goodyear confirmed that it will next race the special zone-tread tires at Kansas Speedway.

    “We waited until after we got confirmation in Atlanta that the concept was valid,” Fantozzi said. “And so we’ll have a multi-zone tire, a different one, for the Kansas fall race.”

    “And that is in the cadence of development for 2014 and we have to get to the race track to get that balance and then see where else it will fit into the race events.”

     

  • NASCAR Finding It Is Easy Being Green

    NASCAR Finding It Is Easy Being Green

    In a sport known for gas guzzling, big engine stock car racing, NASCAR has taken very aggressive steps to address its own carbon footprint in the world of racing. As the sport enters its fifth year of environmentally sound initiatives, NASCAR is indeed finding it easy to be green.

    Just two years ago, NASCAR addressed the fuel emissions issue in the sport head on. They forged a partnership with Sunoco, the official fuel of NASCAR and the American Ethanol industry, using Sunoco Green E15, a renewable fuel grown from corn.

    This new fuel, utilized by all three of NASCAR’s top series, emits 20 percent less greenhouse gas emissions than unleaded gas. On top of that, the new fuel actually helped the performance of the engines, with teams reporting an increase of up to 10+ horsepower.

    “There was a significant degree of caution from the start,” Dr. Mike Lynch, managing director for NASCAR’s Green Innovation, said. “We had to take all the risk out through hard work, time and careful analysis.”

    “We needed performance without compromise and we’ve ended up with all the good things and no negative trade-offs,” Lynch continued. “We as an industry have made a ton of progress in terms of green practices and initiatives.”

    One of NASCAR’s most exciting green initiatives is the new, energy efficient power at many of its race tracks. Headlining the solar power effort is Pocono Raceway, whose solar farm just hit a major milestone, the production of 10,000,000 kilowatt hours.

    Pocono Raceway’s solar farm is comprised of 39,960 American-made photovoltaic modules that will ultimately produce over 72 million kilowatt hours of energy over the next 20 years. This will generate enough power to not only light up the track, but also provide electricity to over 300 homes in the area.

    “This is another important milestone for Pocono Raceway”, Brandon Igdalsky, President and CEO of Pocono Raceway, said. “Pocono Raceway strongly believes in the commitment to operate in a more environmentally responsible way and is proud to be the first race track to power our sport with clean, renewable sunlight.”

    “This project demonstrates real sustainability and proves that any business that truly wants to ‘Go Green’ can do it.”

    From solar power to the power of tree planting, NASCAR and its partner the Arbor Day Foundation are helping the sport go green just in time for Arbor Day, Earth Day and National Tree Planting Day.

    In the spirit of the trees, one of NASCAR’s corporate sponsor partners, the 3M Company, just announced that they have just committed to fund the planting of 2,350 trees, one for every lap of the Cup and Nationwide Series racing in the month of April.

    These trees will also serve a restorative purpose as many are being planted in areas hard hit by hurricanes, such as the northeast after Super Storm Sandy; tornadoes, such as in northern Alabama; and areas damaged by fires, such as in Minnesota and Texas.

    Another one of NASCAR’s most intensive green initiatives has been recycling and, from bottles and cans to tires to electronic devices, the sport has been making great headway in reducing its carbon foot print.

    Beverage producers and NASCAR sponsors Coca-Cola and Coors Light have teamed up to not only get their bottles and cans into recycling bins but also to educate fans at the track about the benefits of recycling. Freightliner even provides a BlueTec equipped clean-Diesel rig to transport the Coca-Cola Portable Processing Center at track, which processes 1,000 containers per minutes at the various venues.

    The official tire supplier of NASCAR, Goodyear, also has a recycling program for all NASCAR stock cars as well as the trucks. After every race weekend, tires are transported to Charlotte, NC and recycled for use in power generation and asphalt mixtures.

    Almost 121,000 tires from the Cup, Nationwide and Truck Series in NASCAR are recycled by Goodyear every year.

    NASCAR also recently announced another tire recycling partnership, this one with Liberty Tire Recycling, now the Official Tire Recycler of NASCAR Green.

    “By recycling more than 140 million tires annually, we reclaim nearly 1.5 billion pounds of rubber for innovative, eco-friendly products,” Thomas Carter, Liberty Tire Recycling Vice President of Alternative Fuels, said. “We look forward to enhancing NASCAR Green’s best-in-class recycling program by keeping its discarded tires out of landfills and transforming them into smart, sustainable products that improve people’s lives.”

    Liberty Tire Recycling will also provide GroundSmart Mulch™ to enhance the landscaping of trees that are donated to areas of need throughout the country. The benefit of this rubber mulch is that it lasts longer and prevents the soil from washing away.

    Finally, Liberty Tire Recycling announced that its products, such as rubberized asphalt, will be used to repave race tracks and parking lots at NASCAR venues across the USA.

    “Adding the nation’s premier tire recycling company to our group of Official NASCAR Green Partners will further enhance NASCAR’s position of leadership in sustainability across all sports,” Jim O’Connell, NASCAR Chief Sales Officer, said. “We are pleased to work towards a common goal of reducing the environmental impact of our sport.”

    Other recycling efforts include Safety-Kleen Systems, Inc., who ensures that all oil and lubricants used in racing are recaptured and re-used. Safety-Kleen re-purposes more than 200,000 gallons of race-used oil annually and also provide absorbent products used for cleaning up fluid spills inside the NASCAR garages.

    Finally, NASCAR’s title sponsor, Sprint, is also a partner in green initiatives with their “Recycle for Victory” program. This wireless recycling effort benefits Victory Junction, one of NASCAR’s important children’s charities.

    Sprint is present at every track, in their now famous ‘Sprint Experience’ providing pre-addressed, postage-paid envelopes that fans can use to recycle their old cell phones, batteries and other accessories. Since 2001, Sprint has recycled more than 24 million phones, equaling more than 2,600 metric tons of material.

    One of the most unique green initiatives, however, occurs at Infineon Raceway. At that race track, there are 3,000 sheep living on the property to maintain the grassy areas and the fire lanes around the facility.

    The track also built 15 owl boxes where birds can nest to prey on gophers and other rodents, eliminating the need for pest control.

    While NASCAR as a corporate entity may be finding going green positive and exciting, its drivers and team owners are enthusiastic as well.

    “I think it’s great that we’re looking in these areas on how to make a difference,” Jimmie Johnson, five-time NASCAR champ, said. “Racing is a great proving ground for new technology that can help the country and world to go green.”

    “So, I am excited to see new things coming along and hope there are many more to follow, and really use motorsports as a testing program for that.”

    “The nature of our business is one that we use gas and metals, but that doesn’t mean we should ignore the environment,” Jack Roush, team owner, said. “We have an obligation to the global community to give back.”

  • Goodyear and The World of Outlaws part ways for 2013

    Goodyear and The World of Outlaws part ways for 2013

        Goodyear and World of Outlaws End Tire Supply Agreement

        Teams to remain on Goodyear tires through end of 2012 season

       

    Akron, Ohio — August 14, 2012   — The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company and the World Racing Group announced today that Goodyear will not continue as the official tire supplier of the     World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series beyond the 2012 season.

    “For three years, Goodyear’s high quality tires have helped to to maintain the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series as the most exciting and competitive     series on dirt. We wish the World of Outlaws continued success in the future,” said Justin Fantozzi, marketing manager for Goodyear Racing.

    “Goodyear has been a tremendous supporter of sprint car racing both financially and in terms of product development,” said Ben Geisler, Chief Marketing     Officer for the World of Outlaws. “After three great seasons, though, we have both decided that it is in our best interest to pursue other opportunities     for the 2013 season and beyond.”

    Goodyear employs about 73,000 people at manufacturing plants and facilities in 22 nations. Based in Akron, Ohio, Goodyear is among the largest tiremakers in the world and is the world-wide leader in race tire innovation. For more information about Goodyear’s racing efforts please visit    www.racegoodyear.com.

    The World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series was founded in 1978 and is owned by the World Racing Group based in Concord, N.C. Campaigning 82 races across 24     states and 3 Canadian provinces, the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series is the premier sprint car racing series in North America. For more information     visit www.worldofoutlaws.com.

  • Aric Almirola Pushes Patriotism with Petty Partnership

    Aric Almirola Pushes Patriotism with Petty Partnership

    [media-credit name=”CIA Stock Photo” align=”alignright” width=”227″][/media-credit]On the weekend before the Fourth of July, the driver of the famed No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports car, Aric Almirola, is celebrating a new partnership with Eckrich and Operation Homefront at Kentucky Motor Speedway.

    “I’m excited to be sporting the colors of Eckrich at Kentucky for our first of three races for them,” Almirola said. “It’s always fun to have new paint schemes and new partners on our car.”

    Eckrich, part of the John Morrell Food Group, a subsidiary of Smithfield Foods, specializes in providing premium-quality meat products to families throughout the country. This is the first race of a three-race program where their colors and logo will be on Almirola’s race car.

    “The paint scheme’s really nice,” Almirola said. “It’s hunter green and brings out a lot of the Eckrich colors and logo.”

    “It’s a nice looking car and it will pop out really well on the race track.”

    In addition to his dedicated sponsor, however, the young Petty Motorsports racer is also thrilled with the new patriotic partnership with Operation Homefront,  a national nonprofit that helps over 590,000 military families in need.

    “More importantly is not only our involvement with Eckrich, but also our involvement with Operation Homefront through Eckrich,” Almirola continued. “It’s a neat deal and a great way to give back to our military families.”

    “Anytime you look at the fact that we get to wake up every morning and do whatever we want because of people out there fighting for our freedom is pretty cool,” Almirola said. “The military families make huge sacrifices for us to do that.”

    “For Eckrich to give back to military families and donate money and donate food and product to help out those in need, it’s just a great cause.”

    “I think a lot of people take for granted the sacrifices made so that all of us to not worry about bombs flying over our heads,” Almirola continued. “We live in a protected and free country and it all has to do with the people in our military and their families.”

    “To have a group like Eckrich, who gives back to an organization like Operation Homefront, I’m just glad to be a part of it.”

    Many fans may also not realize that for Almirola, this patriotic partnership is personal.

    “I was actually born in Eglin Air Force base in Panama City,” Almirola said. “My dad was in the Air Force when I was born and when I was growing up.”

    “So, I have lived being in a military family.”

    Almirola is also excited about the promotion at the track as a part of this new partnership between Petty Motorsports, Eckrich and Operation Homefront. He is particularly pleased with the specially designed tire bank to collect change to help military families in need.

    “The people at Richard Petty Motorsports put together a tire bank from the tire we raced over Memorial Day weekend,” Almirola said. “It’s a Goodyear tire that has on the sidewall ‘Support Our Troops.’

    “We took one of those tires and made a bank to put out at the track,” Almirola continued. “Hopefully, when fans are walking by they can put a nickel, a dime or a quarter or anything they have into the bank to help Operation Homefront.”

    “We’re looking to add to the cause.”

    While Eckrich kicked off the campaign with $200,000 in donations from their product sales, both Almirola and Richard Petty put 43 cents into the tire bank to get that effort started.

    “That’s what we’re looking for, that everyone who walks by that tire bank will put in 43 cents,” Almirola said. “43 is a special number to Richard Petty, RPM and me so that’s the key number we’re looking for.”

    “But at the end of the day, if you don’t have 43 cents, if you have a nickel or a dime or three pennies, we hope you stick it in there,” Almirola continued. “Ten cents can really make a difference when you start adding them together.”

    Almirola’s team owner echoed his driver’s sentiments when it came time to share the spare change to benefit Operation Homefront.

    “I’m always looking for a place to throw my spare change and thought this racing bank was just about perfect,” Petty said. “We’ve always been a family and race team that wants to give back to the people who sacrifice so much for us.”

    “Hopefully the fans will keep filling up this bank as a simple way to say, ‘thanks’ to all our military families.”

    Almirola also has another special event planned at the race track this weekend. He will be entertaining one special military family in his pit stall.

    “The family is from right here in Kentucky and we plan on showing them a good time,” Almirola said. “That will be our way of thanking them for all their sacrifices.”

    With patriotism on his mind, Almirola also revealed his plans for the upcoming Independence Day holiday.

    “I think we’re going to be celebrating that day at Richard Petty’s birthday party,” Almirola said. “They’re having a 75th birthday party for him down there at Daytona.”

    “We’re planning on celebrating the Fourth of July with RP so that will be a lot of fun.”

    “Independence Day to me is about truly that,” Almirola continued. “It’s about the fact that we live in a country that is independent and free and that we get to do what we want.”

    “I get to drive a race car for a living,” Almirola said. “It’s incredible to be able to think that is even reality.”

    “I’m just very thankful to live in the United States and I’m proud to be an American citizen.”

     

  • After four years and millions of tears, Jr. nation sees victory lane again

    After four years and millions of tears, Jr. nation sees victory lane again

    [media-credit name=”Dan Sanger” align=”alignright” width=”246″][/media-credit]Well after 143 races, rumors of conspiracy, alien abduction, and sabotage, Dale Jr found victory lane again today at Michigan International Speedway. As big a story as that is it is questionable whether it is the biggest story of the weekend. But it is without question a much bigger story than what his girlfriend thinks of his win or the fact that he kissed her in victory lane.

    Let’s take a look at the other stories the weekend brought to us. The first and probably the most important was the tire situation. Although Goodyear tested tires on the new surface at MIS in April the tire compound that they brought to Michigan was not suitable for the new surface in the heat of summer. The speeds and the ambient air temperature and the heat of the new pavement caused the tires to blister badly.

    A tire builds heat inside. That heat has to dissipate. If it has a thin enough face, or the surface of the tire that is on the track, the heat dissipates harmlessly through the face. If the face is too thick it dissipates through the face and blisters the layers of rubber, or it dissipates through the side walls. A tire that face blisters is at risk for blowing out. A tire that dissipates through the side wall will blow out.

    Goodyear recognized the problem on Thursday afternoon. They instructed teams to scuff in the tires and put them through a heat cycle in order to harden the surface of the tire. It was a logical solution and sound in principle. NASCAR was sure the speeds would drop as the weekend progressed and that would cool the tire down.

    But the speeds didn’t drop. In the heat of the day on Friday, Greg Biffle turned a mock qualifying lap of nearly 205 mph. The tires on his car were badly blistered. With qualifying to be the next afternoon, Goodyear could chance waiting no longer. They announced a tire change would take place on Saturday and there would be an emergency practice session on Saturday after the Nationwide Series race.

    The practice session was a chaotic mess of drivers who were limited in practice time because of engine concerns, drivers whose cars were vastly changed because of the new tire, and drivers who damaged engines seriously by practicing on the new tires. The outlook was bleak to say the least. The drivers were reduced from skilled pilots to helpless bystanders as crew chiefs and engineers scoped engines and designed changes and researched performances and histories. Many were unnerved and unhappy about it. But it was the same for all of them. No one would truly know what they had until the green flag dropped on Sunday.

    When the green flew there were a lot of cars that simply wouldn’t adjust to the new rubber. Then came the shock, the new tires fixed the left side of the car but not the right. Teams were blistering right rear tires now instead of the left side tires. After two competition cautions, the cards had been dealt. You had what you had or what your crew could give you.

    It was familiar faces that rose to the top of the mountain, Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth, and the days super hero Batman. Dale Jr climbed to the top of the mountain after falling back to 37th and he never looked back. Tony Stewart would challenge but would fall short in the long run.

    The Nationwide race was story number 2. Although they had no tire problems they seemed to have difficulties in getting cars to handle at those speeds. Danica Patrick would spin 3 times finally causing large amounts of damage to the Go Daddy car after spinning while being passed by Austin Dillon. Although there was no contact between the two cars the aero pull, pulled Danica into a spin when she sought the lower line while Dillon was going by on the low side.

    The three spin day prompted response from her crew chief Tony Eury Jr saying she wasn’t getting respect from other drivers because they didn’t like getting beat by her. He endorsed the Dale Earnhardt School of driving and response for his driver to take the respect he felt she deserved.

    Sadly, the skills needed for that school of competitive driving are severely lacking on the part of his driver whose statistics do not show her to be a proficient driver nor a good judge of competitive driving skills. A driver who claims to not be able to read a tachometer and to not know whether stock cars can roll over is probably not going to be accepted in the school or on the track until those skills are improved.

    The final story of the weekend was a bit sadder. When a TV broadcaster makes inappropriate comments about a driver’s girlfriend/wife/significant other on live TV, the professionalism of the journalism becomes zero. When a professional print journalist asks a question of a highly competitive driver who has just finished second if he is happy he finished second so another driver could win. The intelligence factor involved in that just hit the zero mark. When the driver being asked is known for being the king of deadpan humor and sarcasm what answer would you expect to get? For fans and journalists to then react negatively to that driver is unimaginable.

    First of all, as a journalist the lack of bias involved was phenomenal. Much more so than someone clapping and shaking a first time winner’s hand at the Daytona 500.

    Second, for fans of a driver who is known for his level of respect for other competitors and fans of those competitors to react with such venom and ugly was completely uncalled for.

    Third, for anyone to believe that every driver in that garage was not happy to see Dale Jr win is ridiculous. If for no other reason than they wouldn’t be asked if he was going to win anymore.

    Was the win of NASCAR’s legacy the biggest story of the weekend? Maybe but it certainly wasn’t alone on the top of the mountain, any more than Dale Jr was alone in victory lane.

    That said, to all the competitors in all the series thanks for giving us everything you have to give, you are our heroes. Most importantly, thanks to all the families who shared their loved ones with us so we could cheer our favorite driver and favorite teams. You are the true heroes of the sport and we are forever in your debt.

  • Pocono Preps for Tire Test and First Race without Patriarch

    Pocono Preps for Tire Test and First Race without Patriarch

    [media-credit name=”Photo credit: Pocono Raceway” align=”alignright” width=”200″][/media-credit]Pocono Raceway, thanks to the mild winter, has been abuzz with activity, including a total track repave and preparations for the upcoming tire test at the end of this month.

    Yet all of these activities have been undertaken with an eye to heaven and under the watchful eye of the late ‘Doc’ Mattioli, the track patriarch who passed away earlier this year.

    “The repave was pretty much a top to bottom reconstruction of the track,” Brandon Igdalsky, President & CEO of Pocono Raceway and grandson of ‘Doc’ Mattioli, said. “We went all the way down to the base of the track and put three or four more new layers.”

    Similar to the recent repave done in Michigan, Pocono track officials realized that, after sixteen years of wear and tear, it was time to get some new asphalt down on the ‘Tricky Triangle.’

    “The asphalt had just lived its life and it was just time to do it,” Igdalsky said. “It was 16 years old and a lot of use on it with the race and all the other events throughout the year.”

    “That all adds up over time, as well as the freeze/thaw cycles we get each year takes its toll.”

    While Igdalsky checked out the pavers used by some of the other tracks, he finally decided, for many reasons, to use someone closer to home for the repave.

    “We talked to the pavers that did the ISC and the SMI tracks,” Igdalsky said. “There’s a couple companies out there that both of them use.”

    “But with all the scheduling of the other tracks getting done, it wasn’t going to work out,” Igdalsky continued. “We have a relationship with a local, major paving operation here in Pennsylvania.”

    “They came in and did a fantastic job.”

    And was the repave costly?

    “It cost a lot,” Igdalsky said simply, with a chuckle. “It’s a hefty chunk of change. I’ll leave it at that.”

    But best of all, the repave has made the 2.5 mile track even faster than it was before.

    “I took a lap on the new surface and it’s smooth and fast,” Igdalsky said. “I can put my Tahoe into Turn One a lot faster than I could before.”

    “If I can do that in my Tahoe, I can’t imagine what they’ll be able to do in a Cup car.”

    While Igdalsky predicts the repaved track will be fast, Igdalsky refrained from predicting exact speeds that may be reached on the new asphalt.

    “The grip in Turn Three is so much better now,” Igdalsky said. “So, if they can get through Three and get a nice smooth run and they were hitting that 205 mph speed before, I can see them running at least five miles an hour faster.”

    “When we repaved in 1995 and when they came back that following June, they were seven miles an hour a lap faster on average,” Igdalsky said. “So, if we can get five or six miles per hour on the new asphalt per lap, the average lap time will be good.”

    “I’m excited to see what they’re going to do when they get here in two weeks, especially seeing the speeds they were getting in Michigan.”

    While Igdalsky may be excited about the speeds, he admitted that he has been a bit worried about getting the repaving done in time for the scheduled Goodyear tire test.

    “It definitely kept me up at night,” Igdalsky admitted. “I’ve been worried about getting the repaving done before the tire test and we got it done.”

    “Now it’s a matter of how it will react to the test and how the drivers are going to like it.”

    The all-important tire test has been scheduled for April 24th and April 25th at Pocono Raceway. Goodyear engineers will test a variety of compounds that will determine the best tires to be used for the June 10th Pocono 400.

    The drivers tentatively scheduled to participate in the Goodyear tire test at Pocono are Jamie McMurray, Kasey Kahne, Joey Logano, A.J. Allmendinger, and Aric Almirola. The drivers will represent all of the major teams, from Hendrick Motorsports to Richard Petty Motorsports.

    The test is open to the public and fans will be permitted to watch both days of testing from the grandstands free of charge.

    “We’re going to do some stuff with the drivers coming in but we don’t know how the schedule will go,” Igdalsky said. “It’s Goodyear’s show and they dictate what we do and don’t do.”

    “Goodyear is all about getting these tires tested and figuring out what they’re going to use and not use,” Igdalsky said. “It’s a pretty busy day for the Goodyear guys as well.”

    As the Pocono President and staff prepare for the tire test, they are also in full preparation mode for the race. Yet all of these preparations are being done with somewhat heavy hearts as everyone at Pocono continues to fill the void left by the passing of patriarch ‘Doc’ Mattioli.

    “As we move into a new chapter at Pocono Raceway, everyone is excitedly nervous,” Igdalsky said. “We’re all biting our nails for good weather but we’ve got some help with my grandfather up in heaven.”

    “He’ll do his best come June 10th to give us a nice, exciting weekend.”

    Igdalsky said that it has certainly been different at the track without the dominant presence of his grandfather.

    “Strange is an understatement,” Igdalsky said about the atmosphere without ‘Doc’. “I really miss my weekly sit-downs with him and going over everything with him.”

    “Personally, I miss him more than anything in the world,” Igdalsky continued. “And I know as a staff we miss him terribly.”

    “That first race is definitely going to be hard for everybody,” Igdalsky said. “Not seeing him up there on the Victory Lane stage for the start of the race will be like nothing we’ve ever experienced before.”

    In spite of the grief, however, Igdalsky and his family take great comfort in knowing that although ‘Doc’ is gone, Rose Mattioli will still be present throughout the race weekend.

    “We’re putting her to work this year,” Igdalsky said of his grandmother. “She will definitely be there.”

    “Once we’ve past the tire test, we’re into worrying about the race and the show it’s going to put on,” Igdalsky said. “So, June 10th at 7:00 pm when all is said and done, I’ll be happily cracking a bottle of champagne, toasting the heavens, and celebrating.”

  • Let’s Count the Reasons Bristol’s Attendance Was So Poor

    Let’s Count the Reasons Bristol’s Attendance Was So Poor

    [media-credit name=”Barry Albert” align=”alignright” width=”294″][/media-credit]Many were shocked as the Nationwide Series race approached at Bristol Motor Speedway. Why? No one I talked to could ever remember there being that many empty seats as the race began. It got worse on Sunday as the Sprint Cup drivers were entering their cars to go racing. Empty seats were everywhere and huge chunks of the stands sat empty. The “official” estimate was 120,000, but common sense told most people that it was closer to 90,000 fans in the stands. That had to be disappointing for the track and the drivers, but what was the reason? Is it the economy, the reconfiguration of the track, or the price of gasoline? It’s probably all of the above plus something else.

    Yes, the economy, though improving, is doing so slowly. Yes, people miss the old Bristol track where excitement happened on every lap. That doesn’t happen anymore unless you’re a racing purist, and let’s face it. Most fans, especially in the numbers that NASCAR attracted in the last three decades, are not racing purists. They want to see action, as in beating and banging. It just didn’t happen much, especially in the Sprint Cup race. And yes, the price of gasoline on the trip down ranged anywhere from $3.75 – $3.45 per gallon. But that’s less than the prices of a few years ago.

    I think in addition to the reasons mentioned earlier, it’s also the hype and what the economy has done to corporate sponsorship. Someone who might know told me this weekend that corporate sponsors usually took over 20% of the tickets (about 32,000) to give away to employees, customers, salespeople, and friends. That’s not happening these days. Another reason is the constant advertising on what a knock-down, drag-out race the Jeff Byrd 500 was going to be. Ever since the track was resurfaced, it hasn’t been that kind of race. It reminds most fans of a smaller Charlotte Motor Speedway. Giving the drivers another lane to race in was a popular idea…with the drivers, NASCAR and the media. It’s not so great with a lot of the fans who loyally came to Bristol in huge numbers for years to see beating and banging, but there’s another angle that is confusing.

    It doesn’t cost anything (except maybe your cable bill) to watch the race on television. Folks stayed away on Sunday. Several theories have been brought forth, and they go anywhere from the sunny day, the beginning of spring (both of which could lead to outside activities), and even the fact that Kyle Busch dominates races at Bristol these days. Whatever the reason, viewership was down 7% in early reporting. That’s a bunch for what many call “The Bristol Race.” Maybe by August, the economy will improve, gas prices will drop, and drivers will start using the “chrome horn” again because they can. Maybe corporate sponsorship will return, but I doubt they’ll be changing the track back to what it was before progressive banking was installed in the high-banked turns. The new Bristol is different, and we might as well get used to it. Besides, this Bristol is much better than no Bristol at all!

    BITS AND PIECES

    Strange as this may sound, there was lots of action at Bristol this weekend, but most of it was not during the race (which is an unfair assessment—there was some good racing in both the Nationwide and Cup Series races).

    Goodyear decided the tire they brought to Bristol was simply not going to work, so they did something that was both heralded as brilliant and stupid in one stroke. After all the teams had practiced and qualified on the new tire, Goodyear decided to use the right sides from last year, essentially negating all the practice times teams had logged in. Since the tire company had to mount a lot of tires, teams were only given one set to use in practice on Saturday. The result threw several teams for a loop. Pole-sitter Carl Edwards didn’t find the right setup until the last 50 laps of Sunday’s race, and he finished second. Kudos should go to Goodyear, however, for correcting what might have been a bad situation if tire failures continued.

    Jennifer Jo Cobb didn’t start Saturday’s Nationwide Series race after a disagreement with her car owner. Both sides disagree on what happened, so we’ll leave it at that. Car owner Rick Russell said that starting and parking was in the plans all along. Cobb said that she first heard about it 10 minutes before the race. The result was Cobb refused to drive the car, saying that she had a commitment to her sponsors, NASCAR, and her fans to not start and park. Watching the drama as the race started with Cobb’s shiny red Mustang parked in the infield at the start of the front stretch pits was drama at its best. Apparently Cobb no longer drives for Russell’s team. Stay tuned.

    Finally, in on-track news, Brad Keselowski got the ire of Jeff Gordon on Sunday. Keselowski had problems early in the race that took him out of contention. He got back on the track and was trying to have a good finish. Jeff Gordon had fallen back from his top-10 starting position, but was at the edge of the top 10 when trying to pass Keselowski, who was three laps down. Then, while Gordon was attempting his pass, Keselowski “door-slammed” Gordon, making his march to front short-lived. “I’ll just tell Brad that the next time I’m three laps down, and he’s on the lead lap, just expect the same out of me, you know?,” Gordon said. Keselowski finished 18th, and Gordon finished 14th.

  • Bristol Tire Fiasco

    Bristol Tire Fiasco

    (BRISTOL, TN) Carl Edwards turned in the fastest lap of NASCAR Sprint Cup qualifying to earn the Pole for the Jeff Byrd 500 (presented by Food City).Edwards’ teammate Greg Biffle secured the #2 spot for an all Ford all Roush Fenway Racing front row but that effort was overshadowed by the tire woes experienced Friday at Bristol Motor Speedway.

    [media-credit name=”Barry Albert” align=”alignright” width=”283″][/media-credit]From the beginning of the first NASCAR Nationwide Series practice Friday morning, it became obvious that there was a problem with tire wear. As NNS teams reported excess tire wear Goodyear was quick to acknowledge that something was amiss with the tires brought to the track.

    In addition to the excessive wear, another problem also became evident. The track surface did not ‘Rubber up”, a build up of rubber imbedding into the track surface. That was obvious to all as the normal blackening of the track was not at all occurring. That lack of build up effects the long term wear of the tires as, under normal conditions it cushions the tire wear and reduced the ability of the track surface to grind rubber off the tires.

    Goodyear was quick to notify NASCAR that it intended to bring an entire compliment of new tires to the track on Saturday. The scheduled practices continued with the current tires as did the NASCAR Sprint Cup qualifying. The only major victim of the wear Kevin Lepage in the NNS #24 car who had a right front tire go down putting him into the wall. The damage to the car was extensive and the crew was working feverishly to read a back up car.

    With the new tires arriving Saturday morning, and the Nationwide Series not having any practice on the new tires, NASCAR decided that it would be best to conduct qualifying on the old tires. Both the Scotts EZ SEED 300 and the Jeff Byrd 500 will have a NSACR mandatory competition caution early in the race to check tire wear on the new tires.