Champ Car Dukes it Out while the IRL Sloshes through their Raceday plus Ashley Judd

Champ Car Dukes it Out while the IRL Sloshes through their Raceday plus Ashley Judd
Who ever was the genius that scheduled the IRL and CCWS head to head on an off weekend for NASCAR needs to be fired. If you aren’t going to unify, you need to at least try to not fight over what fans you have between each other. But I digress. Ok, we only have 2.5 hours to get this thing in on over the air broadcast TV so lets light this puppy. But wait, it seems Mother Nature is going to make sure the two series do not go head to head. Over on ABC it is raining at Michigan. It looks like the IRL will have to run a clean race to finish on ABC.

Click. Over to NBC for the CCWS. They are in sunny California.

CCWS unveiled their new car for 2007. Who better to introduce us to the party than Michelle Beisner who is showing off her guns (arms).

Nice but she needs to do something with her hair.

Hey it looks like they are about to go green in San Jose.

AJ Allmendinger runs into Sebastien Bourdais and breaks his wing.

While AJ is in the pits Will Power (wasn’t he a GI Joe action figure?) punts Bruno Junqueira. Under yellow in SJ.

Click. Back to Michigan where the talking heads are waiting out the rain delay. Waiting for Rusty to say “I gotta tell ya” or “hot rod.” No joy, back to SJ.

Click. Lady Katherine has a flat tire. Click. Over on ABC Jamie is interviewing Helio Castroneves. Watch out for her killer pony tail Helio.

This rain delay has gone too long. Jack Arute has resorted to wearing goofy stuff on his head.

Click. From having a tire go down on her to hitting the tire barrier, Katherine Legge is having a bad day.

Speedy Dan is speedy no more as his car lost its gearbox.

Paul Tracy misses a turn and comes back from a run off road and

runs right over Alex Tagliani’s nose ending both drivers day. But it wasn’t over there.

Alex gets out of his car and goes to find Tracy.

They exchange pleasantries and the f-word several times and then,

Ding! Ding! Ding!

It’s on like Donkey Kong! Fight Fight!

This is great TV.

Better than watching the track dry on ABC.

To the Tracy interview where he is bleeding. He has a cut to his head. (We assume it was from the fight.) Dude this is better than the WWE!

Andrew (go go power) Ranger is in the wall. This program is beginning to be like Saturday morning TV.

Sea Bass easily wins and extends his points lead. Wow, the race is over at 4:26pm central and they are scheduled to stay on the air until 5pm.

Time to interview everyone and give sponsors TV time that they were cheated out of earlier this season.

Sebastien Bourdais does doughnuts. To see what he did when he went to victory lane, please visit our sister website, http://tvvictorylane.blogspot.com/.

Click. Thanks to the weather, (despite the schedule makers) we should see both races today. They are cleaning up the weepers and we should be ready to go but I am not holding my breath. Down to Dr. Jerry Punch and some eye candy. Ashley Judd is asked where her husband Dario will be in 2007.

She says she doesn’t care and will support and follow him wherever he races. Talking about their home race in Nashville where she had the whole family there, she says her family gets “jacked up” about Dario’s racing.

Now the bad news, over two hours of watching the track dry and now we are told that they are going off the air at 6pm eastern time and will have a complete airing of the race at 11pm central time on ESPN2. Well I feel screwed. They try to make the viewers feel better by telling us that we can watch updates on ESPN News and Sports Center. That’s just great. At least I saw a exciting WWE style CCWS race. At 5:10pm central time they start the engines at Michigan. Dam. Time to turn in the IMS Radio network online and find a blank video tape.

CCWS San Jose Results
1. Sebastien Bourdais
2. Cristiano de Matta
3. Justin Wilson
4. Nelson Philippe
5. Mario Dominguez
6. Will Power
7. AJ Allmendinger
8. Oriol Servia
9. Charles Zwolsman
10. Nicky Pastorelli
11. Jan Heylen
12. Katherine Legge
13. Andrew Ranger
14. Alex Tagliani
15. Paul Tracy
16. Dan Clarke
17. Bruno Junqueira

Images appearing in this blog courtesy of Indy Racing League, IMS Productions and ABC, NBC and CCWS.

Edwards Wins STL Busch Race/ Team Penske on the Front Row Again/ Sea Bass on the Pole

Edwards Wins STL Busch Race

Carl Edwards won the NASCAR Busch Series race tonight at Gateway International Raceway, just across the river from his home state of Missouri.

Edwards took the lead away from Denny Hamlin with nine laps to go and never looked back.

The Silver Crown car owner treated the home crowd to a back flip and a big smile. The win was Edward’s 4th of the season.

The race was delayed by rain for about an hour. To find out what happened in Victory Lane, please visit our sister website http://tvvictorylane.blogspot.com.

Busch Series Results Gateway
1. 60 Carl Edwards
12. 77 Burney Lamar
19. 9 Erin Crocker
26. 10 John Andretti
33. 38 Jason Leffler
35. 11 Paul Menard
36. 30 Mike Bliss
37. 18 J.J. Yeley

Team Penske on the Front Row Again
Like a broken record, Team Penske is on the front row again. Helio Castroneves took the pole today for Sundays IRL IndyCar Series race at Michigan turning a time of 33.2138 at a speed of 216.777mph. His teammate will start outside the pole. The race airs Sunday at 2:30pm central on ABC. Our friends over at www.TracksideOnline.com have given their prediction ofr the 2007 IRL schedule which includes stops at Iowa Speedway as well as possibaly more Saturday night races. Visit their website for more on this story.

Michigan Qualifying
1 Helio Castroneves
2 Sam Hornish Jr
3 Tony Kanaan
4 Ed Carpenter
5 Scott Dixon
6 Vitor Meira
7 Dario Franchitti
8 Tomas Scheckter
9 Dan Wheldon
10 Buddy Rice
11 Danica Patrick
12 Bryan Herta
13 Scott Sharp
14 Kosuke Matsuura
15 Buddy Lazier
16 Jeff Simmons
17 Marty Roth
18 Jeff Bucknum
19 Marco Andretti

Sea Bass on the Pole
Sebastien Bourdais is on the pole for Sunday’s Champ Car World Series race at San Jose. The Frenchman grabbed his 23rd career pole setting a new track record of 48.989 at 106.040 mph. Paul Tracy will start outside the pole. A.J. Allmendinger will start third. The race will go head to head with the IRL race Sunday again. The CCWS race will air at 2:30pm on NBC. (This head to head stuff has got to stop.)

Images appearing in this blog courtesy of TNT and NASCAR Images.

Shepherd 4th at Gateway/ Carl Edwards to Drive at ORP/ Chicagoland on TV

Shepherd 4th at Gateway

With Carl Edwards in the broadcast booth, Peter Shepherd finished 4th at Gateway International Raceway Friday night. It was Shepherd’s first ARCA/ReMax Series race driving the No. 39 Griddly Heads Board Games Ford for Roulo Brothers Racing. Edwards joined SPEED’s broadcast crew providing commentary on the race. Burney Lamar did not fare as well falling out on one of the many restarts that plagued the end of the race.

Erin Crocker also had a tough night hitting veteran Bobby Gerhart and touching off this multicar pileup.

Carl Edwards to Drive at ORP

USAC Silver Crown team owner, Carl Edwards is slated to drive the No. 199 Carl Edwards/ R.E. Technologies Racing Silver Crown car Thursday night at O’Reilly Raceway Park. Shepherd will return to the No. 199 at Iowa Speedway.

Chicagoland on TV

The Chicagoland Silver Crown race airs on the Outdoor Channel Saturday night at 4pm central.

Images appearing in this blog courtesy of R.E. Technologies, ARCA/ReMax Series and SPEED.

Milwaukee Leftovers/ The Saga of Bop Em Bob/ Hockey and Racing/ We Need More Umbrella Girls/ New Faces in the Series/ Media News

Milwaukee Leftovers

You know after you’ve had some good food, it is always a smart idea to save what you didn’t eat for lunch the following day.

Well that is what I am doing today in regards to the USAC weekend at the Milwaukee Mile.

There were some stories that I didn’t get to tell because of time. Now that everyone is back home from the Mile, it’s time for some leftovers.

The Saga of Bop Em Bob

This was probably the most under reported story of the weekend. No one gave much thought to the punching doll when he showed up in the pits of the No. 00 Reutimann Motorsports team on Friday. There he was, smiling with his toothless grin.

Did he know something that we didn’t? Bob em Bob hung around waiting for some action.

He got his wish when the USAC National Midget Series took to the Milwaukee Mile Saturday and put on a great show, which ended with Bobby Santos III in victory lane.

The grin on Bob’s face seemed to foreshadow something.

I couldn’t put my finger on it at the time but now I see what he knew.

Sunday was race day and before it was all over, there would be more bopping on the track and it wouldn’t be with Bob but it would affect the out come for his team.

Bop em Bob didn’t really have time for an interview with the Outdoor Channel’s Brienne Pedigo.

His team was running up front in an exciting race. The last laps battle between Brian Tyler and Aaron Pierce were incredible. Tyler was leading when the white flag came out only to have Pierce turn him. Under caution Brian Tyler let him know that he was not happy.

When the race resumed Brian Tyler could only get back to third. Pierce won or so we thought.

Following the victory lane ceremonies and the post race news conference, USAC announced that they penalized Pierce one lap for “unsportsmanlike conduct.” They declared Wayne Reutiman the winner and Tyler finished second. Aaron Pierce was scored finishing fifth.

Wayne Reutimann Jr. had won his first USAC Silver Crown race. Bob’s team went to Victory Lane but where was Bob?

No worries, he was probably working, getting ready for the next race at O’Reilly Raceway Park.

Hockey and Racing
I am a University of North Dakota hockey fan and I will usually pull for a WCHA team as long as they are not playing UND.

It was good to see fellow conference rival and 2006 NCAA Men’s Hockey Champs, Wisconsin honored at the Milwaukee Mile on race day. The team had the honor of giving the command to the Silver Crown teams to start engines while the head coach was the honorary starter.

One thing was interesting. During the IRL race, the hockey team found themselves in the lobby of the media canter soaking up the air conditioning with the track’s umbrella girls. Needless to say, more of the player’s eyes were on the umbrella girls that the race on the TV monitors.

We Need More Umbrella Girls

I really don’t care for F1 after the 2005 disaster at IMS but they do one thing right, umbrella girls. Well the Milwaukee Mile, also has umbrella girls. The ladies act as ambassadors for the track assisting visitors as well as promoting events. They also look good. But back to the matter at hand. It was one of several good moves that the management of the Milwaukee Mile made that ensured that the weekend would be a success. The Milwaukee Mile brought out the best in race fans over the weekend. Folks could participate in autograph sessions and fans of all ages seemed to enjoy the events. Good job folks. I look forward to returning to the Mile in 2007.

USAC Schedules

Speaking of 2007, it is way to early to be discussing the 2007 schedule but Phoenix International Raceway has already stirred the pot by announcing that the Copper World Classic would move to November of 2007 from the traditional January date. The rest of the 2007 Silver Crown schedule will probably not come out for a while. I am hearing that the series could add two new tracks for 2007. USAC traditionally has to wait on the IRL and NASCAR to announce their schedules before announcing the dates that they share with the two larger series.

New Faces in the Series
I am also hearing that there could be a new team in the Silver Crown Series as soon as ORP. I also have it on good authority that a NASCAR Nextel Cup driver will compete with the series at ORP.

New USAC Hauler

USAC’s new hauler made it’s maiden voyage this past weekend to the Milwaukee. The new hauler built by United Trailers hosts a larger lounge and meeting area than their older one still on the road. It also has more space for spec parts for the Silver Crown Series as well as storage for a pace car, golf carts, scooters, scales and supplies.

IRL Delphi Safety Team

The Indy Racing League has the best safety team in the business. There is no one that I would rather have taking for me if I were injured than them. They along with the Milwaukee Mile Safety Team were on call all weekend to make sure that everyone got the attention they needed. Fortunately, they were not needed that often.

Milwaukee Images
All of the images from this past weekend have been uploaded into our Flickr website http://www.flickr.com/photos/92448439@N00/sets/72057594134006261/

That’s it for the leftovers. I hope you are full.

Mistress of the Dark in Memphis
A couple of years ago Memphis Motorsports Park would just host races, not events. Over the past few years that has changed. The track is more fan friendly than ever is always looking to do something different to get the fan’s attention. Memphis Motorsports Park is bringing in Elvira, "Mistress of the Dark" for the October 28th race. The track will again host a showcar parade on Beale Street as well as Fanfest on Thursday before the teams hit the track Friday. John Schneider and the “General Lee” will also make an appearance. Schneider will also sing the national anthem. We will be there to cover our Open Wheelers.

Media News
Andretti 3 hits the boob tube this weekend. The reality series follows Marco Andretti at the Indy 500 in this episode. Andretti 3 airs at noon eastern Sunday on ESPN2. Danica Patrick will appear on ESPN Radio’s “Mike & Mike in the Morning” and “The Dan Patrick Show” on July 28. Check your local listings for the ESPN Radio affiliate in your area.

Images appearing in this blog courtesy of R.E. Technologies.

IRL to Test at Iowa/ Danica not going Anywhere/ Sarah Fisher may still run Michigan/ Tracy Hines Resigns from FitzBradshaw

IRL to Test at Iowa Speedway

Image courtesy of Neumann Brothers and IowaSpeedway.com (Image shot 7/14/06)
The Indy Racing League confirmed today that both the Indy Pro Series and the IndyCar Series will conduct a compatibility test on Aug. 2 at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa. Scott Dixon and Wade Cunningham will be behind the wheel for the session on the new 7/8 mile oval. The IRL has conducted compatibility tests at all new venues, which have played host to either the IndyCar Series or an Indy Pro Series event. The goal of the test is to see how IndyCar Series cars react to the racing surface and to determine what changes, if any, are needed for IndyCar Series or Indy Pro Series cars, engines, chassis or tires to race at the facility.

“We look at everything from the track surface, pit lane to race track transitions, the walls and pit and paddock areas.” John Lewis, IRL vice president for league development said. “Whether the track is in Motegi, Japan or Newton, Iowa the Indy Racing League conducts such tests to assure the best product available is delivered to our fans.”

The 2007 Indy Racing League schedule has not been released. Iowa Speedway will host it’s first race weekend in 52 days (as of Tuesday). USAC National Midget, Sprint and Silver Crown Series will help christen the new facility on September 16-17.

Confirmed, Danica is not going Anywhere

Well at least not leaving the IRL. The media that normally cover NASCAR have been casting lots over the past two weeks to which NASCAR team, Danica Patrick would land with in 2007. Patrick confirmed what we have been saying all along, that she will not leave the IRL but will switch teams in 2007. The sophomore IndyCar Series driver announced today that she will drive for Andretti Green Racing. (Ok we gave her a 40 percent chance of going to AGR.) AGR in their announcement said there will field four cars in 2007. The team currently fields four cars. That means someone will be bumped off the island at the end of the season. Andretti Green Racing won the 2004 and 2005 IndyCar Series championships, the 2005 Indianapolis 500 and is the winningest team in IndyCar Series history.

No word if her cowbell was part of the deal.

Sarah Fisher may still run at Michigan

Our friends at Trackside Online www.tracksideonline.com report that Sarah Fisher may still pilot a car for Dreyer and Reinbold Racing at Michigan this weekend. The website says the team is working on sponsorship for that race and two more IndyCar Series events on the 2006 schedule.

For more on this story, please visit www.tracksideonline.com.

First Danica in FHM, Now Helio in Maxim
Instead of posing spread eagle on a car in the August issue of Maxim, Helio Castroneves test drove four high-performance sports cars for the men’s magazine. The Brazilian gives his take on the Saleen S7 Twin Turbo, a Lamborghini Gallardo, an Aston Martin V8 Vantage and a Porsche Cayman S. The Penske Racing driver test-drove the four cars at his home track, Homestead-Miami Speedway and gives tips for getting around the track.

Tracy Hines Resigns from FitzBradshaw
USAC veteran Tracy Hines announced today that he has decided to resign his duties as a part-time driver for FitzBradshaw Racing. According to a news, the decision was made after Hines was pulled from the No. 12 car before this weekend's race at Gateway.

"I've been fortunate to have the opportunity to drive for FBR in the Busch series this year, but it's time for me to move on and look for something else," Hines said. "I'd like to find another ride with a team in NASCAR, either in the Truck or Busch series. I feel like I can be an asset to any team."

Hines, who has competed in both the NASCAR Busch Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, will most likely return to running USAC races until another seat opens up for him in the NASCAR ranks.

"It's frustrating to be in a situation where we're constantly losing team members to other teams and I feel like I'm just waiting my turn for the driver's seat to open up," Hines explained. "Each race that I drive, I feel like I'm continually trying to prove myself behind the wheel. We've had some decent runs this year. Bristol was probably our best, especially considering we were running on a very low budget for that race. FBR isn't a Cup-backed Busch team, so it is hard to compete with teams that have million dollar budgets at their disposal. We gave it a good try for these last six months, but I don't feel like my skills are being used to the fullest at FitzBradshaw. Dodge Motorsports has been very good to me for a number of years and I'm grateful to them for helping me obtain this position at FBR. I'm looking forward to an ongoing relationship with Dodge in the future and hopefully, we'll be able to find something that benefits all of us a little better."

The early entry sheet distributed by NASCAR for this weekend has Chip Ganassi Racing w/ Felix Sabates development driver Kevin Hamlin in the No. 12 at Gateway. Tracy Hines is a gifted driver and I hope he gets another chance in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck or Busch Series.

Open Wheeler Busch Entries for Gateway
10 John Andretti
11 Paul Menard
18 J.J. Yeley
30 Mike Bliss
38 Jason Leffler
60 Carl Edwards
77 Burney Lamar

Peter Shepherd to start first ARCA Race
According to the entry list for this weekend’s ARCA race at Gateway International Raceway in St. Louis, Peter Shepherd will start his first ARCA Re/Max Series race driving for owner Russ Roulo. Shepherd is scheduled to drive the No. 39 Canadian Board Game-LaQuinta Inn-Reliance Tool Ford entry. He is not the only Open Wheeler on the entry list. Erin Crocker and Burney Lamar are also scheduled to compete. Crocker is tied with Shawna Robinson as the highest finishing females in ARCA RE/MAX Series history. She finished second at Kansas in July and earned the Pork Pole Award at Kentucky the following week. The race is scheduled to go green Friday night at 9pm eastern on SPEED.

An Open Wheel TV Show on SPEED?

I was digging in the SPEED archives today and found this excerpt for a live SPEED.com chat with Robin Miller dated Tuesday, July 18.

Question: “Has Speed TV looked into having a 1/2 show for us?”

Miller: “Bless you. I worked on a pilot to do a show called The Truth (mostly open wheel) but it's kinda just sitting there and I'd love to host a half hour show once a week on open wheel only (IRL, Champ Car, USAC, WOO, SCRA, ect). SPEED is experimenting with different programming so maybe they'll give me a shot. But feel free to write a letter to SPEED and get a couple thousand signatures. I know the open wheel audience pales in comparison to NASCAR but there's still a few hundred thousand who care and want news, rumors, facts and opinion.”

There you go, break out the pen and paper and get to work folks. Let them know that you care about Open Wheel racing. By the way, Robin Miller is scheduled for another SPEED.com chat session on Thursday August 3rd from 1:30-2:30pm eastern. To view the complete archived chat session that the quotes were taken from above, please follow this link. http://www.speedtv.com/chat/index.php?action=viewarchivedchat&chat_id=27

Coming Tomorrow: More leftovers from Milwaukee including hockey and racing, schedules, a new team is coming and the grid girls. If we are lucky, I will also have the photo gallery from Milwaukee complete.

Images appearing in this blog courtesy of R.E. Technologies, Newman Brothers, IowaSpeedway.com, SPEED, FX, NASCAR Images, ABC, ESPN and the Indy Racing League.

Reutimann Wins Exciting Race 3:30pm

Reutimann Wins Exciting Race 3:30pm

WEST ALLIS, Wis. – Wayne Reutimann Jr. won an energy packed USAC Silver Crown race today at the Milwaukee Mile. The race had wheel to wheel action in the final laps that brought the fans to their feet and also had a little bit of controversy. Josh Wise started on the pole of the event and led the way for the first 13 laps. On the restart Bud Kaeding took the lead away from Wise. The two time Silver Crown winner this season held onto the lead until last year’s winner Dave Steele took the lead on lap 35. Steele would go on to dominate the next 51 laps before teammate Brian Tyler took the lead on lap 87. Two laps later, Steele’s engine gave up its ghost. On the restart, Tyler would do battle with Aaron Pierce with the Indiana native taking the lead only to have the Michigan native charge back and regain the lead one lap later. On the final lap, Pierce and Tyler made contact in turn three with Brian Tyler going for a spin. Aaron Pierce finished the race in first but was penalized one lap for unsportsmanlike conduct. That gave the win to Wayne Reutimann Jr. Reutimann started the race in 6th and patiently worked his way to the front waiting for an opportunity.

“If you work hard and are in the right position, sometimes the ball falls your way,” said the Florida native.

Wayne Reutimann Jr. gave credit to his sponsors for giving him a chance to live his dream.

“If it weren’t for my sponsors, I’d be your local parts distributor,” Reutimann said. “By the grace of God, they gave me the support and helped me be a racecar driver.”

Brian Tyler was credited with second place and Dave Darland finished third, a best for his team this season. Full results can be viewed in the Live Trackside portion of the RE Technologies Racing website http://www.retechracing.com/. Tyler is now tied with Bud Kaeding in the points race. Wayne Reutimann Jr. is in third in points. The USAC Silver Crown Series presented by K&N will tackle the shortest paved oval of the year on August 3rd during the J.D. Byrider 100 at O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis.

Welcome to Race Day at Milwaukee 8am

Welcome to Race Day at Milwaukee 8am

WEST ALLIS, Wis. – Good morning and welcome to race day at the Milwaukee Mile for the USAC Silver Crown Series. Josh Wise is on the pole for today’s race. Wise was .084 seconds faster than Jay Drake who will start outside the pole. Today is a big day for A.J. Foyt racing, Josh Wise’s car owner. The legendary USAC driver will have a large number of guests from his IndyCar Series sponsor ABC Supply here for both the USAC and IRL race today. ABC Supply is also the title sponsor of the IndyCar race. The company is the primary sponsor on Foyt’s No. 14 Silver Crown car this weekend as well. Right now teams are working on their cars and drying off their work areas. The track had a pretty good rain storm last night but it should not affect today’s schedule. USAC Driver Introductions are scheduled for 10:15am and the race is set for 10:45am. The IndyCar Series follows at 12:45pm on ESPN.

Wisconsin loves their winter sports. Last year gold medalist Bonnie Blair was the grand marshal. This year the track is recognizing the University of Wisconsin at Madison’s men’s and women’s hockey teams. Both teams claimed NCAA Championship crowns this past season. That is all for now. I will post the results following the race. A final story will follow.

Photo courtesy of R.E. Technologies

Wise on the Pole at Milwaukee 2:45pm

Wise on the Pole at Milwaukee 2:45pm

WEST ALLIS, Wis. – Josh Wise grabbed the pole for tomorrow’s Milwaukee 100 at the Milwaukee Mile. Wise turned a time of 28.795 in his ABC Supply Company A.J. Foyt entry. Jay Drake will start outside the pole after turning a lap of 28.923. Bud Kaeding was third quick with a time of 28.990. The full qualifying results can be viewed in the Live Trackside portion of the RE Technologies website www.retechracing.com.

Bobby Santos Claims Toyota USAC Midget 25 3:20pm

Bobby Santos Claims Toyota USAC Midget 25 3:20pm

WEST ALLIS, Wis. – Bobby Santos held off Billy Wease to win the Toyota USAC Midget 25 Saturday at the Milwaukee Mile. When the green flag dropped Santos was in the lead but a hard charging Wease took the spot away from him on an early restart.

The driver of the No. 4 kept on fighting and passed the No. 80 driven by Billy Wease on lap 12 in turn 1 to regain the lead. Santos would not give it back and led the final 13 laps to win.

Wease finished second and Dave Darland came in 3rd. The 3rd place finish puts the USAC veteran only 17 points behind leader Jerry Coons Jr. Coons finished 6th after starting 10th. Friday’s quick time of 27.999 eclipsed the old track record of 28.261 set by JJ Yeley in 2004.

USAC National Midget Series Feature Results Milwaukee
1. 4 Bobby Santos
2. 80 Billy Wease
3. 9 Dave Darland
4. 05 Brad Loyet
5. 19 Dave Steele
6. 11 Jerry Coons Jr.
7. 7 Cole Carter
8. 97 Darren Hagen
9. 67 Jay Drake
10. 5 Tom Hessert
11. 21 Levi Jones
12. 22 Ron Gregory
13. 82 David Gaugh
14. 37x Michael Lewis
15. 88 Scott Thoman
16. 19 Ryan Durst
17. 57 Kevin Studley
18. 48 Steve Thinnes
19. 36 James Anderson
20. 20b David Byrne
21. 33 Davey Ray
22. 74 Brad Kuhn
23. 4x Terry Ahern
24. 20 Josh Wise
25. 41 Josh Lane

Images courtesy of R.E. Technologies.

Josh Wise/ Santos Fastest in Practice at Milwaukee 10:15am

Josh Wise/ Santos Fastest in Practice at Milwaukee 10:15am

WEST ALLIS, Wis. – Josh Wise was fastest this morning in the USAC Silver Crown practice session. Wise turned a top time of 28.810 seconds at 124.957 mph in his ABC Supply A.J. Foyt entry. Jay Drake was second quick turning a time of 28.834. Bud Kaeding was third quick with a time of 28.907. Full practice results can be viewed in the Live Trackside section of the RE Technologies Racing website www.retechracing.com . This This was their only practice session of the day. Qualifying for the series is scheduled for 2:15pm.

Bobby Santos timed in fastest in the morning warm-up here at Milwaukee. The pole sitter for today’s USAC midget race turned a time of 28.280 at 127.298mph. Dave Steele was second quick at 28.563 and Darren Hagen was third quick at 28.788.

USAC National Midget Series Warmup Results Milwaukee
1. 4 Bobby Santos 28.280
2. 19 Dave Steele 28.563
3. 97 Darren Hagen 28.788
4. 05 Brad Loyet 28.813
5. 80 Billy Wease 28.837
6. 20 Josh Wise 28.901
7. 74 Brad Kuhn 28.945
8. 21 Levi Jones 28.956
9. 20b David Byrne 28.971
10. 67 Jay Drake 28.995
11. 9 Dave Darland 29.011
12. 7 Cole Carter 29.045
13. 5 Tom Hessert 29.153
14. 37x Michael Lewis 29.167
15. 88 Scott Thoman 29.265
16. 11 Jerry Coons Jr. 29.278
17. 82 David Gaugh 29.403
18. 19 Ryan Durst 29.614
19. 57 Kevin Studley 29.977
20. 33 Davey Ray 30.161
21. 41 Josh Lane 30.178
22. 36 James Anderson 30.267
23. 48 Steve Thinnes 30.350
24. 4x Terry Ahern 32.771
25. 22 Ron Gregory NT
26. 20s Tom Schnabel NT
27. 37 Mario Marietta NT

Images courtesy of R.E. Technologies.

Copper World Moves to November in 2007 8:45am

Copper World Moves to November in 2007 8:45am

WEST ALLIS, Wis. – Phoenix International Raceway announced that the Copper World Classic will move to November in 2007. The historic Open Wheel event will be paired with the NASCAR weekend and is scheduled for Thursday November 8, 2007. The event will remain a USAC National Midget Series and Silver Crown show but should enjoy larger crowds being paired with a NASCAR “Chase” weekend. Since the event was moved back to January a few years ago and paired with a NASCAR regional series, the attendance has appeared to drop. The track believes and I agree that the new date should bring larger crowds which should benefit USAC drivers, teams and sponsors. I will miss the winter date as it always drew media attention but the new date should draw as much attention or more. The 2007 Copper World Classic will be run under the lights in it’s 30th year.

I am off to shoot photos of midgets and Silver Crown.

Race Day for Midgets/ Qualifying for Silver Crown 8am

Race Day for Midgets/ Qualifying for Silver Crown 8am

WEST ALLIS, Wis. – Good morning again from the Milwaukee Mile where the temperatures are comfortable and the skies are beautiful and clear. The USAC National Midget Series will be first on the track this morning with a warm-up session at 8:45am. The USAC Silver Crown Series follows with a 30 minute practice session at 9:15am. This is their only practice session of the weekend so the drivers and teams will have to make the most of their time setting up their cars for the race. The midget feature is scheduled for 1:30pm and Silver Crown qualifying is set for 2:15pm.

Images courtesy of R.E. Technologies.

Hoosier Wins Sprint Week/ Double Duty for Tiago/ Milwaukee Photos Posted/ Sarah Fisher may not Race Michigan/ Danica on Danica Bobblehead

Hoosier Wins Sprint Week
WEST ALLIS, Wis. – Jon Stanbrough became the first Indiana driver since Dave Darland in 2001 to win Indiana Sprint Week Stanbrough was named winner after rain forced the race organizer to cancel the last night of Indiana Sprint Week. The Jamestown native won the final three races of the series at Tri-State, Kokomo and Gas City I-69 Speedways to claim the title.

Double Duty for Tiago

USAC Silver Crown driver Tiago Medeiros is doing double duty racing this weekend in both the Silver Crown and IRL Indy Pro Series. Medeiros is filling in for Alex Lloyd who is out with health issues.

USAC Silver Crown Entry List
1 Dave Steele
2 Pablo Donoso
8 Bryn Gohn
14 Josh Wise
17 Dave Darland
18 Tiago Medeiros
21 Brian Tyler
26 Aaron Pierce
28 Tim Barber
29 Bud Kaeding
41 Jay Drake
96 Rodney Weesner
00 Wayne Reutiman Jr.
199 Peter Shepherd

Milwaukee Photos Posted

Images from today’s qualifying session are posted in our photo section. http://www.flickr.com/photos/92448439@N00/sets/72057594134006261/


Sarah Fisher may not Race Michigan

I spoke today with the PR rep for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. He said contrary to reports in Thursday’s Detroit Free Press, the team has not announced a driver for Michigan yet. They expect to announce a driver sometime this week but they are looking at several drivers. She is one of the drivers under consideration but they have not come to a decision just yet. The spokesperson for D&R said that the rumor started because she is often seen hanging around with the team. Her fiancé is a crewmember on the team and she often travels with him and wears team gear. Current driver Ryan Briscoe will be unable to run at Michigan because he is driving an Australian V8 SuperCar.

Andretti Green Teams Lead Day One at Milwaukee
Dario Franchitti showed that he deserved a new contract with Andretti Green Racing today by leading IndyCar Series practice at the Milwaukee Mile. The 2004 Milwaukee race winner topped the charts with a lap of 21.569 seconds, 169.409 mph. Marco Andretti was right behind Franchitti at 169.293 mph in the afternoon session. Panther’s Vitor Meira was third and Tony Kanaan fourth quick.

Danica Patrick on Danica Patrick the Figurine
(About having figurine): “I feel very special.” (Does it look like you?): “It has long dark hair. And the suit and the helmet looks just like mine. The eyebrows are a little high and short and my lips are a little more glossy color than pink or red.

I feel very lucky that I have a figurine. I don’t think anyone else here has one. Do any other drivers have a figurine? I hope that it gives people another reason to come to the race.

We have great racing. It’s just a matter of bringing people in to see it. And as I’ve been told by my friends and family and other people, ‘Once you see it, you’re hooked.’ We just need to hook them.”

Open Wheeler Cup Qualifying Michigan
1. (11 Denny Hamlin)
3. 9 Kasey Kahne
5. 24 Jeff Gordon
13. 20 Tony Stewart
16. 99 Carl Edwards
18. 21 Ken Schrader
21. 18 J.J. Yeley
24. 22 Dave Blaney
29. 7 Robby Gordon
31. 42 Casey Mears

All images in this update courtesy of RE Technologies and ESPN.

Santos on the Pole at Milwaukee/ Drivers Bound for Terre Haute

Bobby Santos on the Pole for Midget Race 3pm

WEST ALLIS, Wis. – Massachusetts native, Bobby Santos put his Klatt Enterprises Beast Ford on the pole for tomorrow’s USAC National Midget Series race. Santos turned a time of 27.999 seconds at 128.576 mph around the one mile historic oval. Billy Wease was second quick with a time of 28.296. The qualifying was done in groups. Point’s leader Jerry Coons Jr. will start 10th.

USAC National Midget Series Qualifying Results Milwaukee
1. 4 Bobby Santos 27.999
2. 80 Billy Wease 28.296
3. 37x Michael Lewis 28.308
4. 9 Dave Darland 28.308
5. 19 Dave Steele 28.341
6. 7 Cole Carter 28.506
7. 05 Brad Loyet 28.558
8. 5 Tom Hessert 28.573
9. 22 Ron Gregory 28.574
10. 11 Jerry Coons Jr. 28.623
11. 97 Darren Hagen 28.628
12. 21 Levi Jones 28.691
13. 82 David Gaugh 28.711
14. 67 Jay Drake 28.761
15. 20 Josh Wise 28.799
16. 74 Brad Kuhn 28.861
17. 88 Scott Thoman 28.995
18. 20b David Byrne 29.035
19. 33 Davey Ray 29.447
20. 19 Ryan Durst 29.459
21. 36 James Anderson 29.705
22. 57 Kevin Studley 29.999
23. 41 Josh Lane 30.423
24. 4x Terry Ahern 33.828
25. 20s Tom Schnabel NT
26. 37 Mario Marietta NT

Drivers Bound for Terre Haute
USAC drivers boarded an IRL jet this afternoon for tonight's USAC Sprint Car Indiana Sprint Week race at Terre Haute. You can track the jet by clicking on this link.http://flightaware.com/live/flight/N1RL

Bobby Santos Paces Midget Practice 11:42am

Bobby Santos Paces Midget Practice 11:42am
WEST ALLIS, Wis. – Welcome back to our coverage of USAC from the Milwaukee Mile. This morning Bobby Santos paced the morning practice session turning a time of 28.070 at 128.251 mph. Dave Steele was second quick with a time of 28.192. Dave Darland was third quick at 28.336. The one hour and a quarter practice session is the only practice session of the weekend for the series. Twenty-six cars took time in the track this morning of the twenty-eight entered. Qualifying is set for 1:15pm.

USAC National Midget Series Practice Results Milwaukee
1. 4 Bobby Santos 28.070
2. 91 Dave Steele 28.192
3. 9 Dave Darland 28.336
4. 37x Michael Lewis 28.370
5. 05 Brad Loyet 28.430
6. 11 Jerry Coons Jr. 28.528
7. 74 Brad Kuhn 28.560
8. 20 Josh Wise 28.598
9. 67 Jay Drake 28.604
10. 7 Cole Carter 28.615
11. 22 Ron Gregory 28.650
12. 5 Tom Hessert 28.692
13. 21 Levi Jones 28.775
14. 80 Billy Wease 28.819
15. 97 Darren Hagen 28.833
16. 82 David Gaugh 28.919
17. 20b David Byrne 28.925
18. 88 Scott Thoman 28.928
19. 19 Ryan Durst 29.485
20. 36 James Anderson 29.941
21. 57 Kevin Studley 30.076
22. 33 Davey Ray 30.198
23. 41 Josh Lane 30.995
24. 4x Terry Ahern 32.221
25. 20s Tom Schnabel 33.388
26. 37 Mario Marietta 36.392

I will add the USAC Silver Crown Series entry list soon so check back for updates.

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.

Krista Voda Uncovered/ Where did Connie LeGrand Go?/ More on Nicole Manske/ Thanks for the Link/ Where in the World is Robin Miller?

Krista Voda Uncovered
There is one female reporter in SPEED’s lineup that stands above the rest. Not only does she have spunk and good looks, this gal is a journalist.

Yes boys, she is not wearing a ring. I had the opportunity to briefly speak with her this past weekend at the truck race in Memphis. Krista Voda was born in Clinton, Iowa. She has always wanted to be a storyteller.

. She graduated from the University of Northern Iowa but did not hit the big time immediately. She started like most of the good reporters doing local sports. She worked as weekend sports anchor at WLEX in Lexington, Kentucky paying her dues.

She joined the FOX family of networks and her love for journalism immediately showed. She was there for the big stories like the Nextel Title Sponsor Press Conference and the Dale Earnhardt Tribute concert, reporting like someone who had years of experience. I have been around a lot of reporters; too often cute females try to get the job because they enjoy being on TV. Not Krista Voda. The now Pennsylvania native can be seen during NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races running through the pits, gathering information sometimes using hand signals to communicate with teams. Her goal is to make the viewers feel like they are right there.

Even though she grew up in Iowa, she is not from a racing background but yet has adapted to her surroundings so that you would think that she was born into it. Yes Krista Voda is a good-looking pit reporter but more than that, she is a storyteller.

Where did Connie LeGrand Go?

I have receive tons of emails on this subject and I have some bad news for you. A SPEED Channel spokesperson confirmed to me today that Connie LeGeand’s contract was not renewed. Born in Columbus, Ohio, LeGrand received a degree in Marketing from Clemson and a Master’s degree from Georgia before she headed into the broadcast world.

Like Krista Voda, she also worked her way up the broadcast ladder working at local broadcast affiliates before co-hosting Speed News on the SPEED Channel. According to the Wikipedia, Her last broadcast was on June 25, 2006. Non-renewal of a contract is not unusual in the broadcast world. A lot of times local television stations and networks are looking to shuffel the deck or add new faces to their lineup and the easiest way to do that is to let current anchor’s contracts expire and not renew them.

Connie LeGrand should land on her feet. She has spent a lot of time behind the anchor desk in the Carolinas and should be a welcome addition to any television station in the country. She was replaced by Nicole Manske.

More on Nicole Manske

Miss Illinois Teen USA 1998 Nicole Manske is the newest face at SPEED but she is not that new to Indianapolis TV viewers and IRL fans. Prior to taking over the anchor chair for Connie LeGrand, Nicole Manske was a sports reporter for WISH TV and a pit reporter for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network. During here time at WISH, she made waves when she showed up on the arm of Dan Weldon at the 2005 ESPY Awards in Los Angeles. The Indianapolis Star reported that August that Manske and Weldon were dating. Indy Star reporter Susan Guyett http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050805/COLUMNISTS04/50805025 then questioned Nicole Manske’s reporting because Manske could be reporting on someone she was dating. In an email to Guyett, Manske called the romance a "personal matter" and said that she believed that she could do her job without bias. Nicole Manske’s old bio can still be found at http://www.wishtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=1782313 According to the bio, Manske hailing from Danica Patrick’s alleged hometown of Roscoe, Illinois. (Even though fans at the Milwaukee Mile say Patrick was born in Wisconsin but that is a story for another day.)

Courtesy pagent.com
According to http://www.pagent.com/, Nicole Manske is a former Miss Illinois Teen USA in 1998, former Miss Rockford and second runner up in the Miss Illinois Pageant.

Thanks for the Link
I would like to thank a female race fan for linking to this site. Duchess Jane tells about what is going on in her life on her blog http://www.duchessjane.com/blomit/. She appears to be an avid race fan and has a thing for Helio Castroneves.

Feel free to link to me. Drop me a line at johnsonbjv@aol.com to let me know you did.

Wease Tests for Penske
Kentucky Speedway reports that USAC standout Billy Wease tested for Penske Racing Tuesday at the 1.5 mile oval. Wease tested the Penske R&R car. The Indiana native finished third last year in the USAC National Midget Series race at Milwaukee.

Where in the World is Robin Miller?

SPEEDTV.com is reporting that Robin Miller will be in Edmonton covering the Champ Car World Series this weekend. The great one was in Milwaukee covering the IRL weekend there in 2005.

Good Job IRL and CCWS
In the middle of the reunification process, the Indy Racing League and the Champ Car World Series has scheduled races that run at almost the same time together. CCWS starts their timed race at 1pm eastern and the IRL hits the tube at 1:30pm. If that is not bad enough, NASCAR goes green at 2pm. Whoever thought this was a good idea needs to find a spot in the shade because you are suffering from heatstroke. I guess I should just be glad that these series are on TV.

TV Listings
July 21
3:30 pm NASCAR Nextel Cup Qualifying Pocono (LIVE) SPEED
July 22
1:00 pm ARCA RE/MAX Series Pocono (LIVE) SPEED
3:30 pm NASCAR Busch Series Martinsville NBC
7:30 pm Speed News SPEED
July 23
1:00 pm Champ Car from Edmonton CBS
1:30 pm IRL IndyCar Series Milwaukee ESPN
2:00 pm Nextel Cup Race - Pocono TNT
7:00 pm Speed News SPEED
9:00 pm Wind Tunnel with Dave Despain (LIVE) SPEED

Images appearing in this blog courtesy of R.E. Technologies, Pagent.com, SPEED, ABC, ESPN, Indy Racing League and NASCAR Images.

Danica Patrick Forecast/ Meeting of the Minds/ Super Tex Returns/ Milwaukee Coverage/ Milwaukee vs Indiana Sprint Week/ In or Out

Danica Patrick Forecast

One of my hobbies is weather, specifically forecasting weather. I did not study meteorology any formal form but I enjoy it nonetheless and I am usually accurate. So I guess it is time for me to give a forecast or prediction on where Danica Patrick will land in 2006. The following predictions are based on published news reports and my gut instinct. I do not have any inside information on this.

Rahal Letterman Racing 45%
Danica Patrick is the breadwinner for RLR after the passing of Paul Dana. She is the one who will keep the sponsors coming. The question is, can RLR pay her fee? I think there is a 45% chance of here remaining with Rahal Leterman Racing.

Besides, good performances = TV appearances on Late Night With David Letterman.

Penske Racing 0%

No vacancies here with Helio and Sam in the stable, Mr. Penske is here to win, not to look pretty.

Chip Ganassi Racing 0%
Mr. Ganassi is also quite serious about winning.

We will see Juan Montoya in a Target or Texaco Dodge before we see Danica with Target Dallara.

Now if only we can get umbrella girls in the IndyCar Series.

Andretti Green Racing 45%
Why not, Bryan Herta is reportedly on his way out the door at AGR, opening up a seat with top-notch equipment and a top-notch team. Andretti Green’s sponsors read like a Who’s Who of consumer goods marketed to women. Don’t forget back at Richmond, Patrick and Dario Franchitti’s wife, Ashley Judd were chatting together in the pits and were mobbed by fans, so many that the track had to send in security.

That would double the AGR babe factor.

Vision Racing 0%

While the great Robin Miller says Tony George needs to do what ever it takes to keep Danica Patrick, I don’t think putting her in a Vision Racing car is the answer. Although she might help Ed Carpenter have more of a personality.

NASCAR 10%

Courtesy of the Milwaukee Mile
The 10% I am giving NASCAR is kind of like when the forecast calls for 10% of rain even when you know it is not going to rain. Its called covering you fanny. I don’t believe any of the baloney that I have read in the NASCAR media about Patrick going to Roush or any other organization. She may go to NASCAR some day but not in 2007.

Meeting of the Minds

Photo courtesy of Ron McQueeney and the Indy Racing League
Indianapolis 500 winner Sam Hornish Jr. and team owner Roger Penske stopped by the White House today to meet with President George Bush. The President had just returned from the G-8 Summit in Russia. Hornish who brought his wife Crystal minus the good luck jeans, says he was pretty nervous about the meeting.

“You can't really prepare for that,” said Hornish. “There aren't too many people I come in contact with that I can't find the words to spit out of my mouth on what I want to tell them, but that was one of them.”

I want to know what the Captain, Roger Penske had to say to the President.

Photo courtesy of Ron McQueeney and the Indy Racing League
”I think it's a real honor for the president to take the time to meet Sam and our team,” said Penske. “It's a credit to IndyCar racing and the status it's achieved in the sports world. To me, it's a demonstration of how open our political leaders are with their constituency.”

This was not Penske’s first rodeo, the 1991 Indianapolis 500-winning team owner visited the White House that year with then driver now team adviser Rick Mears. Hornish presented the president an autographed helmet and a jacket.

Photo courtesy of Ron McQueeney and the Indy Racing League
”That will look real good in the presidential library,” Bush said about the helmet, and the president said about the jacket, “Just right for those cool Texas mornings.”

The President also talked about the importance of ethanol. The IRL will use 100 percent fuel-grade ethanol in 2007. Sam Hornish returns to the Milwaukee Mile this weekend where he won the 2005 race as well as the pole.

Super Tex Returns
Afer having surgery on both knees, A.J. Foyt is scheduled to return to the race track for the first time this weekend at Milwukee for the ABC Supply Co./A.J. Foyt 225. Foyt is a four-time winner at Milwaukee as a driver.

Milwaukee Coverage

I am headed to Milwaukee to cover the USAC Silver Crown Series and National Midget Series at the Milwaukee Mile this weekend. We will start updates at www.retechracing.com Friday morning at 9am. I will also try to post photos and updates on this website when I have time but RETechRacing.com should be your primary website.

Milwaukee vs Indiana Sprint Week

Several USAC drivers will have a very busy week traveling back and forth from Indiana to compete in Indiana Sprint week and the Milwaukee Mile for the Silver Crown and Midget races. Last season, teams used the IRL’s jet to travel from Milwaukee to Terre haute and back. Here is a link if you would like to track the driver’s trip this season. http://flightaware.com/live/flight/N1RL

In or Out

I have no clue what is going on over at FitzBradshaw Racing. The preliminary entry blank that was released Monday showed Tracy Hines in the No. 14. Now a news release from FBR issued Tuesday says otherwise. It appears that former Cup driver, Ricky Craven will now drive the No. 14 this weekend instead. Hines is chasing his dream and the team appears to be playing musical chairs on him. I hope he gets back in the car soon.

Busch Series Entries for Martinsville
9 Boris Said
10 John Andretti
11 Paul Menard
14 Tracy Hines er Ricky Craven
18 J.J. Yeley
34 Mike Bliss
38 Jason Leffler
60 Carl Edwards
77 Burney Lamar

Coming later this week, Krista Voda Uncovered and Race Babes make Their Return.

Images appearing in this blog courtesy of R.E. Technologies, SPEED, The Milwaukee Mile, FHM, Ron McQueeney and Indy Racing League, World Wide Pants, CBS and NASCAR Images.

Open Wheelers Gaining Ground at Memphis/ Rocket Man on the Pole/ Weldon on the Pole in BNA/ Chesson Out for the Weekend/ 2007 IRL Schedule

Open Wheelers Gaining Ground at Memphis

MILLINGTON, Tenn. – Welcome back to Memphis Motorsports Park and our coverage of this weekend’s O’Reilly 200. Our Open Wheelers were improving as the practice sessions went on Friday. Temperatures topped out at 97 degrees in the shade with a heat index of 105. I am sure it was even hotter in the trucks but as the final practice session of the day came, darkness fell and the track cooled. Teams scrambeled to make adjustments for the conditions they will see Saturday night. Aric Almirola topped the final practice charts at 115.706mph. Mike Bliss was 6th at 114.767. Earlier in the day, Bliss led the first practice session of the day. Scott Lagasse led the rookie practice at 113.089. Boston Reid was 4th at 112.561. Erin Crocker was 5th, Peter Shepherd was 7th, Bobby East was 11th and Kraig Kinser was 14th.

The drivers took a break between rookie practice and final practice to sign autographs for the fans right on the front stretch. Virtually everyone in the grandstands came down to get autographs from almost all of the drivers. It was a scene straight from grass roots Open Wheel racing on a Saturday night. All of the drivers were hot and the fans were hot but there were only smiles. Kudos to the track, series and drivers for making it happen. Photos of the session as well as images of the rest of the day’s activities can be found over on the Truck Series.com website. Here is the link to that gallery http://www.truckseries.com/photog/thumbnails.php?album=326&page=1.

Charles Krall of Trackside Live! interviewed Peter Shepherd, here is the link to the interview http://www.truckseries.com/cgi-script/bot/uploads/54/06r14_Prac_Shepherd.mp3.

Iowa based MUSCO Lighting is here this weekend providing the temporary lighting for the race. They did a great job last year and it is breathtaking to see the track lit up at night.

A heat advisory is in effect for today for the area surrounding the track. That means drink plenty of liquids. Drivers were seen all day Friday with water and energy drink bottles in hand. There are still tickets available for tonight’s race.

At the close of the day Friday, the track hosted a BBQ and Blues party for all the participants. The hard working crews were treated to some of Memphis’s best BBQ and there was also a live band on hand. Of course the crews were all smiles.

The smiles will probably go away today as the teams will be all business. The garage opens at 2pm and qualifying is at 5pm. Driver Introductions are at 7:45pm and the green flag is expected to fall at 8:15pm. The race is scheduled to air on SPEED at 8pm central time Saturday night. I will be at the track today to bring you all the information on our Open Wheelers. Because I am working for the track this weekend, I will not update until after I leave the track. My good friends at http://www.truckseries.com/ will have live coverage throughout the weekend.

Rocket Man on the Pole
Ryan Newman is on the pole for Sunday’s Cup race at New Hampshire.

Cup Qualifying New Hampshire
1. 12 Ryan Newman
5. 20 Tony Stewart
7. 24 Jeff Gordon
11. 9 Kasey Kahne
17. 99 Carl Edwards
20. 18 J.J. Yeley
21. 21 Ken Schrader
28. 22 Dave Blaney
29. 42 Casey Mears
34. 7 Robby Gordon

Weldon on the Pole in BNA
Dan Wheldon scored the pole at Nashville Superspeedway for Saturday night’s Firestone Indy 200. Sam Hornish, Jr. will start outside the pole. Weldon also led the final practice session of the day.

IndyCar Series Qualifying Results Nashville
1 Dan Wheldon (10) 203.293
2 Sam Hornish Jr (6) 202.362
3 Scott Dixon (9) 202.194
4 Helio Castroneves (3) 201.995
5 Dario Franchitti (27) 201.896
6 Tony Kanaan (11) 201.628
7 Vitor Meira (4) 200.819
8 Scott Sharp (8) 200.801
9 Tomas Scheckter (2) 200.426
10 Danica Patrick (16) 200.283
11 Buddy Rice (15) 200.274
12 Kosuke Matsuura (55) 199.744
13 Ryan Briscoe (5) 199.607
14 Ed Carpenter (20) 199.512
15 Jeff Simmons (17) 199.457
16 Bryan Herta (7) 199.386
17 Jeff Bucknum (14) 198.450
18 Marco Andretti (26) 198.311

Chesson Out for the Weekend
Trackside Online.com reports that James Chesson is done for the weekend after crashing at Nashville Saturday morning. The website reports that the Indy Pro Series team could return for the Kentucky and Chicagoland events.2007 IRL Schedule
Our friends at http://www.tracksideonline.com/ are also reporting that Iowa Speedway will host an IndyCar Series race in 2007. The website says the official schedule could come out in a few weeks and will have as many as 18 events, 12 of which will be ovals. For more on this story and complete coverage from Nashville, please visit http://www.tracksideonline.com/ and join.

Driving Force
Our final story of the day is not about an Open Wheeler but a racer that is probably one of the most charismatic guys in racing today. NHRA modern day legend, John Force will now have his life documented on TV. Driving Force is a new series that will follow the NHRA champ and his three daughters as he shows them the ropes of drag racing. The program premieres Monday and 8pm central on the A&E network.

Images appearing in this blog courtesy of R.E. Technologies.

Open Wheelers Ready to Tame Short Track/ Kroger and P&G Renew/ Chicagoland Images Added

Open Wheelers Ready to Tame Short Track

MILLINGTON, Tenn. – Hello from Millington, Tennessee and Memphis Motorsports Park, site of this weekend’s O’Reilly 200 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race. Memphis is a short track much like Richmond. It is banked like Richmond and this weekend will have the humidity and heat like Richmond. With a heat advisory issued by the National Weather Service a big key to winning this weekend will be hydration. The track has brought in temporary lighting and the race will be run at night so that should provide some comfort.

Terry Cook, 8th in points, will become the series record-holder for most consecutive races with 211 in a row Saturday night. The husband of Amy East Cook (Open Wheeler by marriage) finished second at Memphis in 2002. He has three top tens at the facility. Mike Bliss is not a fan of the .75 mile oval at Memphis. The Open Wheeler who is 11th in points had a battery come unplugged four times there.

“It is a motor track, more than anything, you need a motor,” said Bliss. “Off Turn 4, you get dogged down, and you need something to accelerate, and if you have a good motor that has good torque, you can pass people there.”

The rest of our Open Wheelers may not be happy with Memphis either. The track has not been kind to rookies. The best finish by a rookie in eight Craftsman Truck Series races at Memphis is fifth by Carl Edwards in 2003. Edwards is the only first-year driver to log a top-five at the track.

Boston Reid will try to better Edward’s record. The Indiana native has a lot of mileage on the .75 mile oval. Reid spent time testing there and racing there in 2004, while driving for Carl Edwards/ R.E. Technologies Racing. Boston Reid estimates that he's made somewhere around 2,000 laps on the track. The team uses the oval as their home test track. Reid led his first laps of the season last weekend at Kentucky. The 24-year old driver tied his season's best finish of 14th at Kentucky.

“I've been to Memphis before in a Silver Crown car in 2004,” said Reid. “I love this track. My Silver Crown car was based in the area, so we tested there all the time. It'll be nice to go to a track that I'm familiar with, even though I've never raced a stock car there. I think that the Silver Crown experience will play to my advantage when it comes time to practice the truck.”

Current Carl Edwards/ R.E. Technologies Racing driver Peter Shepherd will attempt his first Truck Series start this weekend. Like Reid, he has also tested a PRA Big Car Series car at Memphis. Shepherd tested there this spring when he was trying out for Edward’s Silver Crown ride. The Canadian is coming off of a second place finish last weekend at Chicagoland. Vancouver based Griddly Headz Board Games has joined Roush Racing to sponsor the No. 50 that Shepherd will pilot this weekend. Peter Shepherd will have to race his way in due to the team not having enough owner’s points. Thirty six trucks are entered this weekend.

Bobby East also has experience at Memphis in a Silver Crown car. East finished second there in the Big M Motorfest in 2004. He also piloted a Busch Series car there in 2005, finishing 17th.

Fellow rookie Kraig Kinser will see the Memphis track for the first time Friday. He will rely on teammate Dennis Setzer for lessons on how to get around the .75-mile oval. Setzer is the right man to ask. The veteran has a 3.6 average finishing position at the Tennessee track. Being a rookie has become more difficult than past seasons.

“With NASCAR's new testing and tire rules, it is tougher for these young drivers when they are continually going to new tracks and have limited time to get comfortable with the track and get up to speed, said Setzer. “Kraig has been a sponge all season about asking questions and listening to everyone he can to get information about each place, but there is just no replacing laps and experience.”

Unlike Kinser, Erin Crocker also has experience at Memphis. She finished 29th in the Busch Series race at Memphis last fall. The race is scheduled to air on SPEED at 9pm Saturday night. I will be at the track today and tomorrow to bring you all the information on our Open Wheelers. Because I am working for the track this weekend, I will not update until after I leave the track. My good friends at http://www.truckseries.com will have live coverage throughout the weekend. Today’s schedule calls for rig parking at 2pm, Practice 1 at 5:00pm, Rookie Practice at 6:00pm and Final Practice at 7:45pm. Qualifying and the race are set for Saturday. Please check back later tonight for updates.

Kroger and P&G Renew

Kroger and Procter & Gamble will remain on the USAC cars fielded by Hoffman Auto Racing through June of 2007. The companies have been with the USAC championship winning teams for the past eight years. Congratulations to Kroger and P&G on renewing with one of the best teams in the business.

Chicagoland Images Added

After almost a week of being on the road, I have finally had time to add the images from Chicagoland. You can find them in the Open Wheeler photo album or by clicking on this link. http://www.flickr.com/photos/92448439@N00/sets/72057594134006261

Images appearing in this blog courtesy of R.E. Technologies.

What is Better? Before or After the split?/ Memphis Trucks Coverage/ Hornish to visit White House

What is Better? Before or After the split?
NEW RICHMOND, Wis. – My methods were not scientific and my work is not journalistically correct but the split between the World of Outlaws Sprints and the National Sprint Tour is not helping at the gate.

I attended the WoO visit to Batesville (Ark.) Speedway earlier this season and the NST trip to Cedar Lake Speedway Monday night.

Before I go any further, I must let you know that I failed to speak with the promoters of either tracks or the sanctioning bodies to get their take on my observations so journalistically speaking; I have not done my job. Continuing on with my observations... the World of Outlaws stop at Batesville seemed to attract a good crowd although some in the pits thought it might have been down a little from previous years.

It was my first visit to the Arkansas track so I can not confirm that firsthand. The show was a good program and the good crowd seemed to enjoy it. At Cedar Lake Speedway Monday night, the crowd was down from previous years. There were empty spaces on the campgrounds, suites and lower seats that were full in previous years. CLS has added seating, suites and other amenities over the years so a low crowd for them would be a great crowd for other tracks. The date, which usually falls immediately during the 4th, fell several days later after most people just returned from their vacations.

Still the crowd was down. Before the split, the track was teaming with fans. It was the place to be and you couldn’t move in the pits after the 2005 WoO show there. Now we have two major winged sprint organizations.

I am sure that not having Steve Kinser at Batesville or not having

Donny Schatz or Craig Dolansky at Cedar Lake contributed to a few staying at home. It was too bad because both facilities saw a great show. Yes, it was better before the split. Better drivers, a larger car count and more fans. The two series have brought about competition for media attention, tracks and fans.

This has improved the way fans can follow the series and one would assume that negotiating for a race is now easier for a promoter than it was before. (I have not promoted or looked into promoting a WoO or NST event so I have no first hand knowledge.) The split has improved some things but standing there Monday night, I wished that it was all one family again. I missed not seeing Schatz, Brooke Tatnell or Dolansky on the track with the Dude and the King.

Life goes on.

Memphis Trucks Coverage
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series rolls into Memphis this weekend and it is my intention to bring you coverage of our Open Wheelers from Memphis Motorsports Park. Today we will look at how Mike Bliss is approaching this weekend’s race at Memphis. The former Silver Crown star has not had the best of luck at MMP.

“Memphis has not been a very good track for me,” said Bliss. “I have qualified well, but when I ran the truck for Dave (Fuge, Team Owner) we were running really well until we had a battery come unplugged four times. I think our short tracks, and all of the tracks. I am looking forward to going there and hopefully winning a race.”

The track is tough on drivers with it’s Richmond like size and banking as well as the bumps on the backstretch right under the crossover bridge.

“Yeah, it is a tough and rough, and I like that,” said Bliss. “ I would rather be there than, somewhere else. It is just different, like nothing else we race on. It is a motor track, more than anything, you need a motor. Off Turn 4, you get dogged down, and you need something to accelerate, and if you have a good motor that has good torque, you can pass people there.”

This week, the weather forecast calls for hot temperatures and high humidity. Even though it is a night race, the 2005 event was so hot, NASCAR stopped the race and brought water to the drivers. The key, hydrate, hydrate, hydrate.

“You just have to know that it is going to be hot there, so you just do the same thing that you do every weekend, just drink lots of water.”

We will hopefully hear from more Open Wheelers this week as they prepare for Memphis.

Hornish to visit White House

Sam Hornish Jr. will visit with President George W. Bush at the White House on Tuesday, July 18. The visit is a reward for the Defiance, Ohio native winning the Indy 500. His team along with owner Roger Penske will also make the trip.

TV News

Gordon and Montoya Tradin Paint Revisited
In 2003, Juan Pablo Montoya and Jeff Gordon switched cars and raced around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway roadcourse. Following up on the Columbian’s move to NASCAR, SPEED will reair the at 10:30pm/et, immediately following a replay of Nextel Cup Series qualifying from New Hampshire International Speedway in Loudon.

TV Listings
July 14
3:00 pm NASCAR Nextel Cup Qualifying New Hampshire (LIVE) SPEED
10:30 pm Gordon/Montoya Tradin' Paint SPEED
July 15
10:00 am NASCAR Nextel Cup Final Practice New Hampshire (LIVE) SPEED
11:00 am NASCAR Busch Qualifying New Hampshire (LIVE) SPEED
3:00pm Busch Race Race - New Hampshire TNT
7:30 pm Speed News SPEED
8:00 pm Tradin' Paint SPEED
9:00 pm NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Memphis (LIVE) SPEED
9:00 pm IRL Race Nashville ESPN
July 16
1:30 pm Pre-Race New Hampshire - New Hampshire TNT
2:00pm Nextel Cup Race - New Hampshire TNT
7:00 pm Speed News SPEED
9:00 pm Wind Tunnel with Dave Despain (LIVE) SPEED

All images in this update courtesy of RE Technologies.

A Visit to the NST/ Silver Crown Driver gets Chance in NASCAR/ Montoya May Race Before Memphis/ Contract Time for Danica Patrick

A Visit to the NST
NEW RICHMOND, Wis. - Last year a group of World of Outlaws Sprint drivers formed their own series which eventually evolved into the National Sprint Tour.

Last night the NST visited Wisconsin for their only spot of the season in the Badger state. In 2005, prior to the split, Cedar Lake Speedway traditionally scheduled a WoO stop the Monday following a 4th of July weekend.

This year the crowd was down from 2005 but that is a story for another day. A vocal crowd did greet the 24 car field with the biggest cheers going for Steve Kinser,

Danny Lasoski and Paul McMahan. Crashes and yellow flags were the norm, not only in the NST race but also in the mate model race. It must have been the full moon as even the King spun collecting Lasoski. The field made three laps under caution while the two stars made quick repairs to their cars. It wasn’t just Lasoski and Kinser but there were enough cautions to cause NST officials to throw a red flag so crews could add fuel.

The red flag brought back memories of the 2004 WoO race at Cedar Lake Speedway that ended around 2am. The feature took 2 hours to run as the series waited for teams to make repairs to their cars. It wasn’t that bad this year but there were groans in the crowd when the red was thrown. The show ended before midnight this season but was not as smooth as the 2005 WoO sanctioned event. Bottom line, it was still a good show. Tim Karding won the event by starting 5th in the 11k. It was the points leader’s 9th win of the season. Jason Meyers came from the mid pack to finish 2nd. Paul McMahan was 3rd.

Steve Kinser grabbed 10th and Danny Lasoski 11th, recovering from contact. After the race the pits were full with people but it was not as crowed as before the split. It

It was a good program. There is not too much that Cedar Lake Speedway could do about all of the cautions. I guess the full moon brought out the mistakes by the drivers. The NST could tighten up the ship a little bit to get the show over quicker but again, with a good number of push trucks and teams cooperating with officials, it was no where near the 2004 WoO debacle. It was a good program, I did enjoy it more before the split.

Coming tomorrow: My take on the crowd.

Silver Crown Driver gets Chance in NASCAR

USAC Silver Crown rookie, Peter Shepherd will aim for his first start in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series this Saturday in Memphis, Tennessee, the home track of Carl Edwards/ R.E. Technologies Racing. The Roush Racing development driver must race his way into the O'Reilly 200 because of points. Shepherd finished second Friday in the Silver Crown race at Chicagoland for Carl Edwards/ R.E. Technologies Racing. It was his best finish of his young Silver Crown career and the best finish by a Canadian in the Silver Crown Series. Prior to joining the series, Shepherd was selected as one of the 25 finalists for Roush Racing's Driver X competition in 2005.
He will also race in selected ARCA events with the Roulo Brothers No. 39 entry.

"I'm really happy to head to Memphis to make my first start in the Craftsman Truck Series," said Shepherd. I got to test at Richmond last week with Erik Darnell and Michel Jourdain, Jr. and I learned a lot there that will really help me this weekend. I'm thrilled to have this opportunity to drive for Jack Roush and everyone at Roush Racing.”

We will have complete coverage of all of our Open Wheelers from Memphis Motorsports Park this weekend.

Open Wheelers Truck Entries
10 Terry Cook
16 Mike Bliss
21 Bobby East
25 Boston Reid
46 Kraig Kinser
50 Peter Shepherd
98 Erin Crocker

Montoya May Race Before Memphis
Word out of Europe came today that Juan Pablo Montoya is no longer employed by McLaren. Test driver Pedro de la Rosa will replace him. That means the Columbian could make a start in the Busch Series in the very near future.

Contract Time for Danica Patrick

I don’t believe one word of the stories about Danica Patrick leaving the IRL for NASCAR. Roush Racing says Danica’s parents were given the pit passes to Chicagoland as a courtesy and no one had called offering her services. She is in a contract year and the best way to drive up your price is to expand your market.

In Richmond, she stated that she would like to get paid more if she ran more races. I don’t think she will leave the IRL. I do think that she could leave Rahal Letterman for Andretti Green.

Don’t think for one moment that Rahal Letterman is going to sit idle while others try to steal their superstar. Look for a good bidding war but I would be shocked if she was to hop to NASCAR for 2007.

Ryan Briscoe Back with D&R
Ryan Briscoe will drive for Dreyer & Reinbold in three of the remaining six events on the IRL schedule this season beginning this weekend at Nashville.

Giaffone Out
Felipe Giaffone is out at A.J. Foyt Racing. No driver has been named yet to replace him.

All images in this update courtesy of RE Technologies, ABC, ESPN, World Wide Pants, CBS and FHM.

Montoya Could Start NASCAR Career at Memphis/ Juan-Pablo Montoya to NASCAR

Montoya Could Start NASCAR Career at Memphis
Montoya could begin getting his feet wet in NASCAR by racing in the Busch Series as soon as this fall when he finishes the F1 season with the McLaren-Mercedes team at Brazil on October 22. That means his first race could be the Busch Series race at Memphis on October 28. The other Busch Series races after the F1 Season ends are November 4th at Texas, November 11th at Phoenix and November 18th at Homestead. There are six Busch events that are not on F1 weekends but one would have to believe McLaren-Mercedes would keep Montoya out of the Busch Series until the end of the F1 season.

Juan-Pablo Montoya to NASCAR
Leave the pinnicle of motorsports for fendered racing? Yes, that is what Juan-Pablo Montoya is going to do. Chip Ganassi racing announced this morning that the former Indy 500 winner and now F1 driver will drive the No. 42 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series car in 2006. Montoya drove for Ganassi in CART winning the championship in 1999 and the Indy 500 in 2000. He was one of the most popular F1 drivers when I visited the 2005 F1 debaccle at IMS. The Miami, Florida resident raced Jeff Gordon’s Cup car on the IMS road course a few years ago when the two drivers switched cars during an exhibition event. TNT reported during their broadcast today that is was Montoya that called Ganassi to ask about the opening. The F1 star’s contract was up at the end of this season and there was no high profile opening suitable to the Columbian. Juan Montoya will replace Casey Mears, who will drive for Hendrick Motorsports next season.

Aaron Pierce Scores First Silver Crown Victory/ Riley Success/ Owner’s Points/ NASCAR Drivers Take Note/ USAC 300/ Spotter Carl/ Good Crowd

Aaron Pierce Scores First Silver Crown Victory - Final

JOLIET, Ill. – Aaron Pierce battled USAC veteran Jay Drake and went the distance to win his first USAC Silver Crown race Friday night at Chicagoland Speedway. Pierce had one of the fastest cars of the day turning in the top time of the 1.5 hour morning practice session of 30.932 seconds. Wayne Reutimann Jr. was second quick at 31.051 and Jay Drake was third quick at 31.119. Several teams including the No. 199 Carl Edwards/ R.E. Technologies Racing team had mechanical gremlins near the end of the practice session. To fit in with the NEXTEL Cup and Busch Series activities, qualifying immediately followed the practice session and five cars missed qualifying due to the gremlins. Their starting positions were set by their practice times. Pierce continued to be error free; capturing the pole with a time of 30.982 or 174.295mph. Jay Drake grabbed the second spot at 31.089 in his second weekend in the No. 41 car. Reigning USAC Silver Crown Champion Dave Steele qualified third with a time of 31.520. The teams then went to work on their cars during a seven hour break while NASCAR was on the track. The long break didn’t bother Aaron Pierce.

“Being here with Busch and Cup will be good,” said Pierce following qualifying. “Hopefully we can pull one off tonight in front of everyone.”

The Muncie, Indiana native was prophetic with his statement. Starting upfront, Pierce led the first 14 laps before Jay Drake passed him. Aaron Pierce took the lead again on lap 26 only to have Drake take it back two laps later. Jay Drake then turned up the heat and pulled away from the No. 26. On lap 60, the USAC veteran’s luck changed as smoke appeared from the No. 41. Jay Drake pulled to the low side to allow Pierce to pass and the 32 year old never looked back. Meanwhile, two rookies were making their way through the field. Peter Shepherd moved from 11th to 2nd, taking advantage of others problems and passing at the right moment. With team owner Carl Edwards as his spotter, Shepherd would go on to finish 2nd, making USAC history as the best finish for a Canadian driver in the Silver Crown division.

“Carl told me there was a possibility to catch the leader,” smiled Shepherd. “I think we were one caution short of giving the leader a run for the race.”

Fellow rookie Bryn Gohn started 9th but was able to also run a smooth race and take advantage of other’s misfortunes to gain his career best finish in the series. The yellow flag only flew twice Friday. Once for a spin involving Josh Wise in turn 4 early in the race. Wise did not make contact and finished 6th, 7 laps down. The second caution came out on lap 21 for a water bottle in turn 4. Reining Silver Crown champion Dave Steele finished 4th. Points leader Bud Kaeding was forced to retire early with engine problems. Brian Tyler leave Chicagoland only 6 points back of Kaeding. Tyler finished 5th Friday. For a complete rundown, please visit www.retechracing.com and click on the Live Trackside icon.

Top 5 Unofficial Owner’s Points
No. 29 BK-Leffler Motorsports 408
No. 21 Team Six-R 402
No. 1 Randy Steenbergen/Team 354
No. 199 Carl Edwards/RE Technologies 345
No. 00 Reutimann Motorsports 344

Riley Success

Friday night was the first win for the Riley Chassis in the USAC Silver Crown Series presented by K&N. The Riley Chassis dominated the weekend, grabbing the two top qualifying spots. Two of their cars driven by Jay Drake and Aaron Pierce battled for position during the USG Fiberock 100 all night with Pierce winning.

NASCAR Drivers Take Note

As Pierce pointed out, Friday was a good time for the Silver Crown drivers to show their stuff in front of NASCAR teams and owners. It also gave Open Wheel drivers and admirers a chance to see the cars in action. JJ Yeley, John Andretti, Ryan Newman and Kasey Kahne spent time on pit road Friday.

“I kind of like the format for the week with everything moved back a bit,” said Kahne. I get to watch the USAC race tonight. I think it is going to be a pretty cool race to watch.”

Even non-Open Wheeler David Stremme was looking forward to the action and watching Wayne Reutiman Jr.

“I think it will be neat for the drivers and the concept where they are going,” said Stremme. “I look forward to when we go to the Brickyard here and going to (ORP) and watching them, so I think it’ll be a pretty good show.”

USAC 300

Friday’s Silver Crown race was the 300 Silver Crown race in the history of the series. Prior to the start of the event, participating drivers and officials got together in victory land for this photo op.

Spotter Carl
Carl Edwards took some time from the Roush Busch and Cup teams to go work on the Silver Crown car he owns Friday. He grabbed some tools and joined his crew who were making repairs to the No. 199 Carl Edwards/ R.E. Technologies Silver Crown car. Later, following Busch Series practice, he came back to the team to spot for them and driver Peter Shepherd. From there he guided the young driver around the track, using lines that worked for him.

Good Crowd

About half the massive grandstands at Chicagoland appeared full during NEXTEL Cup qualifying Friday. About half of those stayed to watch the USAC Silver Crown race. The crowd appeared larger for the Silver Crown race than past IRL Indy Pro Series crowds but smaller than what the IRL’s IndyCar Series draws. The crowd was quite vocal responding to passes made by the leaders and the finish.

Surprise, UPS to Michael Waltrip Racing
In other news from the Media Center at Chicagoland, UPS announced that they would be leaving Robert Yates Racing to move with Dale Jarrett to Michael Waltrip Racing in 2007.

Crocker Scored the Pole but Wrecked at KY
Erin Crocker scored her second pole in the ARCA ReMax Series at Kentucky. When the green dropped on the race, she stayed up front until pitstops. Later in the race, she slammed the wall after making contact with the Matt Hagans. She finished 27th.

All images in this update courtesy of RE Technologies.

USAC Pits not in a Lull/ Media Coverage/ What’s the Mood?/ IMS Corp. Owns Chicagoland/ Race Fans Could Hate Ricky Bobby

USAC Pits not in a Lull 2pm
JOLIET, Ill. – Just because the USAC Silver Crown Series has a six hour break between qualifying and the race, doesn’t mean the teams have idle time. Every team in the pits seems to be busy tweaking their cars and working to solve problems.

Five of the cars missed qualifying due to mechanical errors. All are expected to start the race. For some teams, it is changing air pressure. The No. 17 team is making Dave Darland’s seat more comfortable. Meanwhile, the Carl Edwards/ R.E. Technologies Racing team is finishing up repairing broken bolts in the bell housing. Most of the teams are inspecting their cars, looking for anything that could prevent them from winning the 67 lap USG Fiberock 100. Teammembers from the Busch and Cup Series have visited the USAC pits today when they have had time. JJ Yeley and John Andretti were on pit road visiting friends during qualifying today.

Media Coverage
The CBS affiliate in Lafayette, Indiana was also out there. They were working on a story that could air either tonight or tomorrow. Both the NBC and ABC affiliates from Indianapolis, Indiana and both Kurt Cavin and Steve Ballard from the Indianapolis Star are also here at Chicagoland.

What’s the Mood?
There is some Open Wheel media here this weekend that is here mainly to cover the Silver Crown Series. The folks that cover the NASCAR seem pretty interested in the series and our drivers. This is the first time that the Cup Media has been at the same track that the Silver Crown Series has been running on the same day. There are a lot of questions about horsepower, how the series is going and what drivers are doing well.

IMS Corp. Owns Chicagoland
From the “I did not know this” department, International Speedway Corporation is not the sole owner of Chicagoland Speedway. ISC owns 37.5 percent, the founding owners of Route 66 Raceway own 25 percent and Indianapolis Motor Speedway Corporation owns 37.5 percent. No wonder the IRL runs so well here.

Race Fans Could Hate Ricky Bobby
If you are a race fan or like NASCAR, you may not like Talladega Nights, the Ballad of Ricky Bobby. The movie company is doing a huge push to sell their movie this weekend. As we noted Thursday the company has purchased billboards like this at the speedway.

They also did a press junket (media tour where the movie stars were interviewed by the media to promote the movie.) They had a preview for select members of the media last night. In talking to those that attended, the movie is not a racer’s movie. According to those that saw it, don’t go see it thinking you are going to see a racing movie because it is not a racing movie. It is a typical Will Ferrell silly movie. In fact some of the folks that attended told me that NASCAR fans probably will be offended by the stereotyping in the movie. There also is a lot of male to male kissing. I think I will wait until it comes to network TV.

All Open Wheel top three as Kahne Leads Busch Series Practice
Open Wheeler and former USAC star, Kasey Kahne led Busch Series practice today turning a time of 31.112 at 173.566mph. Carl Edwards was right behind him at 31.184. Dave Blaney was third quick at 31.211.

Vickers Paces Cup Practice
Brian Vickers paced the first Cup practice today. Vickers made it around the track in 30.117 seconds at 179.301mph. JJ Yeley was 4th quick. Kasey Kahne was 11th.

Before we wrap up this update, here is the starting lineup for today’s Silver Crown race:

26 Aaron Pierce 41 Jay Drake
1 Dave Steele 29 Bud Kaeding
18 Tiago Medeiros 00 Wayne Reutimann Jr.
17 Dave Darland 21 Brian Tyler
8 Bryn Gohn 28 Tim Barber
199 Peter Shepherd 2 Pablo Donoso
14 Josh Wise 96 Rodney Weesner

Pierce on the Pole 12:30pm

Pierce on the Pole 12:30pm

JOLIET, Ill. – USAC veteran Aaron Pierce is on the pole for today’s USG Fiberock 100. Pierce turned a time of 30.982 or 174.295mph on the 1.5 mile oval. This is the Indiana native’s second pole of the season.

“Car was good in practice,” said Pierce. “The speeds are slower than the test because it is hotter. Tonight we are going to save our tires and stay out of trouble to try to win. Drafting will be a big deal here tonight.”

Even though, today’s schedule is elongated by the NASCAR Nextel Cup and Busch Series, running with NASCAR could pay off.

“Being here with Busch and Cup will be good,” said Pierce. “Hopefully we can pull one off tonight in front of everyone.”

Jay Drake will start outside the pole tonight. Drake turned a time of 31.089 in his second weekend in the No. 41 car. Reigning USAC Silver Crown Champion Dave Steele qualified third with a time of 31.520. Five cars did not qualify due to mechanical issues. All are expected to start tonight.

Chicagoland Qualifying
26 Aaron Pierce Sam Pierce 30.982
41 Jay Drake Jim Paternoster 31.089
1 Dave Steele Randy Steenbergen-Team 6R 31.520
29 Bud Kaeding BK-Leffler Motorsports 31.727
18 Tiago Medeiros PDM Racing 31.830
00 Wayne Reutimann Jr. Reutiman Motorsports 31.864
17 Dave Darland RW Motorsports 31.924
21 Brian Tyler Team 6R 32.251
8 Bryn Gohn Stauffer-Adams Racing 32.351
28 Tim Barber Ken Pierson NT
199 Peter Shepherd Carl Edwards/ R.E. Technologies Racing NT
2 Pablo Donoso Racing Team, Inc. NT
14 Josh Wise A.J. Foyt Enterprises NT
96 Rodney Weesner Weesner Motorsports NT

Pierce Leads Chicagoland Practice 11:30am

Pierce Leads Chicagoland Practice 11:30am
JOLIET, Ill. – Aaron Pierce had the fastest time in the practice session today as several cars encountered mechanical problems. The practice times are posted in the Live Trackside section at www.retechracing.com.

Good Morning from Chicagoland 8am

Good Morning from Chicagoland 8am

JOLIET, Ill. – Well good morning from Chicagoland Speedway where USAC Silver Crown crews are putting the final touches on their cars before practice. The gates of the garages swung open this morning at 7am. Teams scurried about to get ready for their 9am practice session while the drivers headed off to their drivers meeting at 8am. USAC’s only practice session of the day is an hour and a half (9am-10:30am). Qualifying will follow at 10:45am. Then there is a lull un the USAC action until driver introductions at 6:10pm and the race at 6:20pm. Fourteen teams are entered for today’s event. Because practice runs back to back with qualifying, I may not have a chance to update the website until practice is over. There is a seven hour break between qualifying and the race, obviously enough time to update the website and start a photo gallery so please check back throughout the day.

Chicagoland Entry List
1 Dave Steele Randy Steenbergen-Team 6R
2 Pablo Donoso Racing Team, Inc.
8 Bryn Gohn Stauffer-Adams Racing
14 Josh Wise A.J. Foyt Enterprises
17 Dave Darland RW Motorsports
18 Tiago Medeiros PDM Racing
21 Brian Tyler Team 6R
26 Aaron Pierce Sam Pierce
28 Tim Barber Ken Pierson
29 Bud Kaeding BK-Leffler Motorsports
41 Jay Drake Jim Paternoster
96 Rodney Weesner Weesner Motorsports
00 Wayne Reutimann Jr. Reutiman Motorsports
199 Peter Shepherd Carl Edwards/ R.E. Technologies Racing

Nice Weather at Chicagoland Speedway/ Ricky Bobby at Chicagoland

Nice Weather at Chicagoland Speedway

JOLIET, Ill. – Well hello everyone from Chicagoland Speedway and welcome to our coverage of the USG Fiberock 100. USAC Silver Crown teams moved in today under clear skies and comfortable temps and that are the expected for the rest of the week. It doesn’t get any better than this weather wise. Hoosier Tires Midwest showed off their new truck today.

Teams spent the day unloading and working on their cars while the Busch and Cup haulers parked. There is already a large number of fans that have gathered for this weekend’s activities. The fans in the infield know how to have a good time and have erected elaborate setups in the infield.

I was able to spend some time there this evening and they had a good time but didn’t get too crazy. Tomorrow will be a long day beginning at 8am with the driver’s meeting. The teams have their only practice session of the day at 9am and qualifying at 10:45am. USAC will then take a break so NASCAR’s Cup and Busch Series can take the track. The USAC Silver Crown Series race is scheduled for 6:20pm. I have added photos to our photo gallery of action from today. http://www.flickr.com/photos/92448439@N00/sets/72057594134006261/ See you tomorrow beginning at 9am.

Ricky Bobby at Chicagoland
Hollywood is here this weekend with Will Ferrell who is shamelessly promoting the movie, Talladega Nights. The movie company has logoed up this car and has purchased advertising around the speedway.

Ferrell will be taking a spin in the dreaded segment Wally's World. That part of the NBC broadcast features celebrities going around the speedway in a two seater screaming their heads off. The most pointless segment of the broadcast if you ask me. Never fear though, NBC begins it’s final season of broadcasting NASCAR races Sunday. TNT’s portion of the season begins Saturday with the Busch Series. This week, the Goodyear Blimp will provide the eagle eye shots. The TNT NASCAR announcing stable will include Bill Weber (pre-race host and play-by-play), Benny Parsons (analyst), Wally Dallenbach (analyst), Allen Bestwick (pit reporter), Dave Burns (pit reporter), Marty Snider (pit reporter) and Matt Yocum (pit reporter).


Images courtesy of R.E. Technologies.

Chicagoland Coverage/ Bobble Danica Patrick/ Robin Miller Lights the Candle/ No Pain for Stewart/ SPEED Serving Up some Crocker/ TV Listings

Chicagoland Coverage

I am headed to Joliet to cover the USAC Silver Crown race Friday. We will start updates at www.retechracing.com Friday morning at 9am. I will also try to post photos and updates on this website when I have time but RETechRacing.com should be your primary website.

Bobble Danica Patrick

(Image courtesy of the Milwaukee Mile)
Last season Danica Patrick made waves at the Milwaukee Mile when she was given her own line for autographs prompting a boycott of the session by Andretti Green Racing. This year the Milwaukee Mile is again using the IRL’s best know driver to cash in. The track is giving the first 10,000 fans through the gates for the ABC Supply/AJ Foyt 225 IRL Indy Car Series race on July 23, a limited-edition Danica Patrick bobblehead. Good news for Silver Crown fans, come early, pick up your bobblehead and see the Silver Crown race which starts at 10:45am.

Robin Miller Lights the Candle
SPEED’s Robin Miller is back doing something that should make you NASCAR and F1 haters smile. The columnist took the sledgehammer to the two sanctioning organizations. He also has some great comments on Open Wheel racing. Here is the link. http://www.speedtv.com/commentary/27952

No Pain for Stewart

Earlier this season Tony Stewart hit the wall “a ton” at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. In response to his pain, Goody’s Headache Powders has stepped up and will sponsor his DEI entry at the fall race in CLT.

Busch Series Entries for Chicagoland
9 Kasey Kahne
10 John Andretti
11 Paul Menard
18 J.J. Yeley
32 Dave Blaney
33 Tony Stewart
38 Jason Leffler
42 Casey Mears
60 Carl Edwards
77 Burney Lamar

SPEED Serving Up some Crocker

Fresh off her second place finish at Kansas, Erin Crocker is scheduled to race Friday at the ARCA Re/ Max Series event at Kentucky Speedway. The race will be televised live on SPEED at 9pm eastern. You can also see her and our other Open Wheelers in the truck race on SPEED Saturday night at 8pm.

Open Wheeler Truck Entries for Kentucky
10 Terry Cook
15 Kyle Krisiloff
16 Mike Bliss
21 Bobby East
25 Boston Reid
46 Kraig Kinser
98 Erin Crocker

TV Listings
July 7
4:30 pm NASCAR Nextel Cup Qualifying Chicago (LIVE) SPEED
9:00 pm ARCA RE/MAX Series Kentucky (LIVE) SPEED
July 8
11:30 am NASCAR Nextel Cup Final Practice Chicago (LIVE) SPEED
12:30 pm NASCAR Busch Qualifying Chicago (LIVE) SPEED
4:00pm Busch Race Race - Chicago TNT
5:00pm USAC Silver Crown Series Kentucky Speedway (Taped) Outdoor Channel
7:30 pm Speed News SPEED
8:00 pm NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Kentucky (LIVE) SPEED
July 9
3:00pm Nextel Cup Race - Chicago TNT
7:00 pm Speed News SPEED
9:00 pm Wind Tunnel with Dave Despain (LIVE) SPEED

Images appearing in this blog courtesy of R.E. Technologies, SPEED, The Milwaukee Mile, FX and NASCAR Images.

Happy Birthday America!

Happy Birthday America!

One of my favorite things to do besides racing, is to watch a good fireworks show.

I traveled to two shows this week put on by my good friends at High Tech Special Effects.

The photo above is from the Arkansas side of the Mississippi River looking back on downtown Memphis.

I was getting eaten alive by all of the bugs in the soybean fields on the east side of the river so my Memphis pics didn't turn out too well.

My Somerville, Tennessee images turned out alot better. To view them, click on this link
http://www.flickr.com/photos/92448439@N00/sets/72057594138592329/ .
Go to the photo section and turn on the slideshow mode and then put on some patriotic music, you will have a pretty good show. Enjoy!

It has got to be the Jeans/ Nicole Manske Replaces Connie LeGrand?

It has got to be the Jeans
A little over a month ago, Crystal Hornish wore here luck jeans to pit road to watch her husband race. That day Sam Hornish won the Indy 500.

Last weekend Hornish wore them to Richmond same result. Did she have them on at Kansas? Ya you betcha.

When the green flag dropped, it was Dan Weldon on the pole, the beginning of a great battle between the Brit and the man from Defiance, Ohio.

Soon after the green flag dropped, ABC news dropped in an alert that NASA would delay the space shuttle launch until the 4th of July. Now back to the terrestrial rocket ships.

ABC’s Side by Side paid off as it captured a lucky accident by Helio Castroneves.

Castroneves spun, backing in to the wall and damaging only his rear wing assembly. The Brazilian brought his car to pit road several times for repairs.

While making one of those stops there was some miscommunication between Tim Cindric and Castroneves that almost resulted in disaster as he almost ran over a crewmember. The team recovered and Helio would score a sixth place finish.

The TV crew did their best to give all of the cars and their sponsor’s airtime by running through the field in a segment titled “up to speed.”

Rusty Wallace lamented the flooding this week of his former boss’s IRL “hot rod” shop in PA.

It was actually an interesting story as Roger Penske bought flooded land in 1972 to help out the town. He built his racing shop there and was still using it although the team is in the process to moving to Charlotte.

Ok back to racing. Scott Sharp reportedly had a tire go down which resulted in this wreck and

Buddy Rice followed Sharp into the wall a few laps later. Both drivers were ok.

Weldon and Hornish dueled it out but it was Sam Hornish that took the win on his birthday.

Rusty Wallace quickly called Hornish on his radio but the broadcast was running out of time. No response so ABC tossed to women’s golf.

Baby its 2pm. No time for interviews or to see what the winner looks like or to see if he can show emotion, we have better things to do like watch two anchors banter back and forth about nothing.

Wait, this isn’t the women’s tour. Oops. Quick change over to ESPN News to see if they gave Sam a trophy or if it melted in the Kansas hot sun.

See what happened after the checkered flag fell by visiting our sister website http://tvvictorylane.blogspot.com/.

IndyCar Series Results Kansas:
1 Sam Hornish
2 Dan Wheldon
3 Vitor Meira
4 Scott Dixon
5 Tony Kanaan
6 Helio Castroneves
7 Thomas Scheckter
8 Kosuke Matsuura
9 Marco Andretti
10 Jeff Simmons
11 Danica Patrick
12 Dario Franchitti
13 Bryan Herta
14 Eddie Cheever
15 Buddy Lazier
16 Ed Carpenter
17 Buddy Rice
18 Scott Sharp
19 Philippe Giaffone

Nicole Manske Replaces Connie LeGrand?
Blonde bombshell Nicole Manske is now the latest to anchor Speed News on SPEED.

Manske is a former television sports reporter from Indianapolis. She did a good job her first weekend behind the SPEED desk but one has to wonder what happeened to Connie LeGrand? LeGrand, who likes bubblebaths, finished third in our Race Babe poll. The poll may have not mattered to SPEED management as he bio is no longer on the television network’s website.

Images appearing in this blog courtesy of ABC, IRL, PGA and The Reading Eagle.

Tony! Tony! Tony!/ Mosh Pit/ VP Dick

Tony! Tony! Tony!

That is what the crowd chanted following Tony Stewart’s repeat victory at Daytona. It was one year ago that Stewart began his drive to the Championship with the win at Daytona.

A late caution flag on the last lap gave Stewart the win when the field was frozen. But that really didn’t matter to the fans who mobbed the Open Wheeler after

he made his signature fince climb into the flag stands. Tony Stewart led more times than any other driver tonight.

Several other Open Wheelers were having a good night until Greg Biffle got loose in front of JJ Yeley and he turned

Biffle into Mark Martin taking out Carl Edwards and Jeff Gordon.

It is important to note that it was Kyle Busch that pushed Stewart to the front before the yellow flag came out.

Mosh Pit
Tony Stewart didn’t realize what he got himself into. Admitting to FOX in victory lane that following his fence climb, he thought he could just climb down out of the flag stand into the mobscene below and exit out of the gate that is usually under the flagstand at most tracks.

Tony must not have surveyed the scene very well because it to law enforcement officers, NASCAR officials and Tony’s crew playing offensive line (think football)


to get the Open Wheeler to a hole in the fence so he could get to victory lane. Oh yea, check out these brilliand people climbing the fence too.

You gotta love drunk racefans.

See what happened after Tony made it through the mosh pit, visit our sister website http://tvvictorylane.blogspot.com/.

VP Dick

Vice President Cheney was on hand Saturday evening to praise the troops and send his best wishes for a safe race.

Cup Results Daytona
1. 20 Tony Stewart
4. 60 Boris Said
7. 42 Casey Mears
11. 12 Ryan Newman
12. 21 Ken Schrader
14. 7 Robby Gordon
25. 9 Kasey Kahne
27. 22 Dave Blaney
37. 18 J.J. Yeley
39. 99 Carl Edwards
40. 24 Jeff Gordon

Images appearing in this blog courtesy of FOX and NASCAR Digital Entertainment.