Welcome to Milwaukee/ Sarah Fisher Back in the IRL/ Kinser and Past Champion Setzer Swap Crew Chiefs/ SPEED News Changes
Welcome to Milwaukee
WEST ALLIS, Wis. – Good afternoon from the Milwaukee Mile, sight of this weekend’s USAC and IRL races. Today was load in day as both IRL and USAC Midget and Silver Crown haulers made their way into the infield of the Milwaukee Mile
We have a good number of midgets on hand for this weekend’s events and about the same number of Silver Crown cars as we had two weeks ago at Chicagoland. I will post the entry lists when I receive them. USAC National Midget Series teams were working hard today to set up their areas as they hit the track early tomorrow morning. The USAC Silver Crown Series presented by K&N teams were not in a hurry. They do not hit the track until Saturday morning. Jerry Coons Jr. brings the National Midget series lead into Milwaukee, a track where the Wilke Pak team has performed well. Look for Coons and his team to be in the championship hunt at the end of the season.
The Arizona native is one of several teams and drivers that will either fly or drive back and forth from Milwaukee to Indiana for Indiana Sprint Week this weekend. Dave Steele has got to be one of the favorites this weekend in the Silver Crown division after leading all 100 laps at Milwaukee in 2005. Steele is third in points behind Bud Kaeding and Brian Tyler. With Tyler and Kaeding performing well on the dirt in past seasons, Steele must make the most of the final pavement races of the season.
Sarah Fisher Back in the IRL
According to a report in today’s edition of the Detroit Free Press, Sarah Fisher will return to the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series at Michigan. Mike Brudenell http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060720/SPORTS16/607200307 reports that Fisher will drive for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. In 2002, the only woman to sit on the pole of an IndyCar race took the lead at Michigan with 10 laps to go. She was passed and Thomas Scheckter. If Sara Fisher and Danica Patrick started the race, it would be the first time in IRL IndyCar history that two women have competed in the same race.
Danica Plays Ball in Hometown
Roscoe, Illinois native (see next story) Danica Patrick played a little baseball the other night in Rockford. Danica made an appearance at MDA Night at the Rockford Riverhawks baseball game. Danica sold books, donating $5 from each to the MDA. She autographed about 400 of them. She then through out the first pitch wearing shorts and flip flops. There was also a live auction of the game-worn jerseys that were designed to resemble her driving uniform.
Danica Patrick a Fib?
Last season, some of the fans at the Milwaukee Mile took issue with Danica Patrick’s hometown. Patrick calls Roscoe, Illinois home and attended High School there before heading to Europe to train. Some of the fans at the Mile say she was born in Wisconsin and should claim the Badger state as home. (I can not verify if she was born or has ever lived in Wisconsin.)
Kinser and Past Champion Setzer Swap Crew Chiefs
Kraig Kinser will have a new pit crew as well as a crew chief when the Indiana native returns to his home state to race next month. Morgan-Dollar Motorsports announced today that Kinser will remain in the same No. 46 truck but will now have Eric Phillips and Dennis Setzer’s pit crew working with him. Former NASCAR Craftsman Trick Series Champion Setzer will get crew chief Randy Goss and his handpicked crew. Goss also has a NCTS championship as well as a NASCAR Busch Series championship to his credit.
“It’s been a tough season for us this year,” said Setzer. “We’ve had some great runs that we just didn’t finish off. I’ve been able to lead some laps and most recently we dominated the race at Memphis Motorsports Park, but had problems on the last pit stop that took us out of contention.”
Kinser will make his 14th start in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at O’Reilly Raceway Park on Friday night August 4th at *:45pm eastern on SPEED.
I have to give Dennis Setzer a pat on the back for the way he handled himself after the race at Memphis. Media members were dreading having to go interview a driver that had the race in his hands, only to see a bad pitstop ruin his chances at winning. Instead of being angry or refusing to talk to the media, ala Kyle Busch in 2004, Setzer talked with the media in a calm and professional manner. Was he upset, heck yea but he was professional enough to not berate his guys in front of the media or loose his cool. That’s why the former champ will be a champion again soon. That is also why Kraig Kinser was paired with Stezer, so he could learn about truck racing from a champ.
Duchess Jane
Wednesday in my update, I told you about Duchess Jane, a fellow bloger who also loves racing and linked to this website.
She is going to run in Boston to raise money for the Susan G. Komen Foundation for Breast Cancer Research. She has dyed her hair pink to stir up support for her quest. For more on the Duchess and her quest, you can visit
http://www.duchessjane.com/blomit/index.php?/categories/1-Racing.
No Side by Side for NASCAR
Josh Stewart in today’s edition of the Long Island Press http://www.longislandpress.com/?cp=93&show=article&a_id=9152 is reporting that ABC/ESPN will not bring the Side by Side feature on the IRL’s telecasts over to NASCAR in 2007. Stewart says that NASCAR has forbidden its TV partners from marketing that kind of advertising. The article says ABC/ESPN is interested in exploring the split screen option but the final decision rests in NASCAR’s hands.
SPEED News Changes
Now that SPEED News has changed anchors, the network is changing the name of the program to The SPEED Report. The new name as well as a new set will make its first appearance on August 6th at 8pm eastern.
Drew Johnson and
Nicole Manske will anchor The SPEED Report. Open Wheel favorite Ralph Sheheen will report from race venues. Neil Sullivan is the Coordinating Producer of the program and Pate Neal is the producer of The SPEED Report. James Chiappelli is the News Director at SPEED.
All images in this update courtesy of RE Technologies, SPEED and ABC.
WEST ALLIS, Wis. – Good afternoon from the Milwaukee Mile, sight of this weekend’s USAC and IRL races. Today was load in day as both IRL and USAC Midget and Silver Crown haulers made their way into the infield of the Milwaukee Mile
We have a good number of midgets on hand for this weekend’s events and about the same number of Silver Crown cars as we had two weeks ago at Chicagoland. I will post the entry lists when I receive them. USAC National Midget Series teams were working hard today to set up their areas as they hit the track early tomorrow morning. The USAC Silver Crown Series presented by K&N teams were not in a hurry. They do not hit the track until Saturday morning. Jerry Coons Jr. brings the National Midget series lead into Milwaukee, a track where the Wilke Pak team has performed well. Look for Coons and his team to be in the championship hunt at the end of the season.
The Arizona native is one of several teams and drivers that will either fly or drive back and forth from Milwaukee to Indiana for Indiana Sprint Week this weekend. Dave Steele has got to be one of the favorites this weekend in the Silver Crown division after leading all 100 laps at Milwaukee in 2005. Steele is third in points behind Bud Kaeding and Brian Tyler. With Tyler and Kaeding performing well on the dirt in past seasons, Steele must make the most of the final pavement races of the season.
Sarah Fisher Back in the IRL
According to a report in today’s edition of the Detroit Free Press, Sarah Fisher will return to the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series at Michigan. Mike Brudenell http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060720/SPORTS16/607200307 reports that Fisher will drive for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. In 2002, the only woman to sit on the pole of an IndyCar race took the lead at Michigan with 10 laps to go. She was passed and Thomas Scheckter. If Sara Fisher and Danica Patrick started the race, it would be the first time in IRL IndyCar history that two women have competed in the same race.
Danica Plays Ball in Hometown
Roscoe, Illinois native (see next story) Danica Patrick played a little baseball the other night in Rockford. Danica made an appearance at MDA Night at the Rockford Riverhawks baseball game. Danica sold books, donating $5 from each to the MDA. She autographed about 400 of them. She then through out the first pitch wearing shorts and flip flops. There was also a live auction of the game-worn jerseys that were designed to resemble her driving uniform.
Danica Patrick a Fib?
Last season, some of the fans at the Milwaukee Mile took issue with Danica Patrick’s hometown. Patrick calls Roscoe, Illinois home and attended High School there before heading to Europe to train. Some of the fans at the Mile say she was born in Wisconsin and should claim the Badger state as home. (I can not verify if she was born or has ever lived in Wisconsin.)
Kinser and Past Champion Setzer Swap Crew Chiefs
Kraig Kinser will have a new pit crew as well as a crew chief when the Indiana native returns to his home state to race next month. Morgan-Dollar Motorsports announced today that Kinser will remain in the same No. 46 truck but will now have Eric Phillips and Dennis Setzer’s pit crew working with him. Former NASCAR Craftsman Trick Series Champion Setzer will get crew chief Randy Goss and his handpicked crew. Goss also has a NCTS championship as well as a NASCAR Busch Series championship to his credit.
“It’s been a tough season for us this year,” said Setzer. “We’ve had some great runs that we just didn’t finish off. I’ve been able to lead some laps and most recently we dominated the race at Memphis Motorsports Park, but had problems on the last pit stop that took us out of contention.”
Kinser will make his 14th start in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at O’Reilly Raceway Park on Friday night August 4th at *:45pm eastern on SPEED.
I have to give Dennis Setzer a pat on the back for the way he handled himself after the race at Memphis. Media members were dreading having to go interview a driver that had the race in his hands, only to see a bad pitstop ruin his chances at winning. Instead of being angry or refusing to talk to the media, ala Kyle Busch in 2004, Setzer talked with the media in a calm and professional manner. Was he upset, heck yea but he was professional enough to not berate his guys in front of the media or loose his cool. That’s why the former champ will be a champion again soon. That is also why Kraig Kinser was paired with Stezer, so he could learn about truck racing from a champ.
Duchess Jane
Wednesday in my update, I told you about Duchess Jane, a fellow bloger who also loves racing and linked to this website.
She is going to run in Boston to raise money for the Susan G. Komen Foundation for Breast Cancer Research. She has dyed her hair pink to stir up support for her quest. For more on the Duchess and her quest, you can visit
http://www.duchessjane.com/blomit/index.php?/categories/1-Racing.
No Side by Side for NASCAR
Josh Stewart in today’s edition of the Long Island Press http://www.longislandpress.com/?cp=93&show=article&a_id=9152 is reporting that ABC/ESPN will not bring the Side by Side feature on the IRL’s telecasts over to NASCAR in 2007. Stewart says that NASCAR has forbidden its TV partners from marketing that kind of advertising. The article says ABC/ESPN is interested in exploring the split screen option but the final decision rests in NASCAR’s hands.
SPEED News Changes
Now that SPEED News has changed anchors, the network is changing the name of the program to The SPEED Report. The new name as well as a new set will make its first appearance on August 6th at 8pm eastern.
Drew Johnson and
Nicole Manske will anchor The SPEED Report. Open Wheel favorite Ralph Sheheen will report from race venues. Neil Sullivan is the Coordinating Producer of the program and Pate Neal is the producer of The SPEED Report. James Chiappelli is the News Director at SPEED.
All images in this update courtesy of RE Technologies, SPEED and ABC.
posted by Blake Johnson at 6:45 PM
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