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Posted on 03/21/2007 5:44:32 PM PDT by glock rocks
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Please pray on this day, and every day, for our Patriot Armed Forces standing in harm's way around the world in defense of our liberty, and for the families awaiting their safe return.
Jr does a fine job on his radio show on XM - if I could ever remember to tune in to it.
Neato!!
When they took it away, did they put it in a velvet bag??
BTW, Same Q pts as you.
Nah. Just drug it back into the hauler. He did fire it up and cruised the parking lot though. I tried to talk him out of his CR cap for ya, but no deal.
Well thanks for thinking of me. For years after I quit, those bags I had hanging around held fishing reels, pennies, small nuts and bolts, fossils, you name it. It would be neat if they made a hauler to look like one and had a gold drawstring on the back end. ;)
Toyota will stand a whole lot of it - $$$ - but the team sponsors is another story.
NAPA is already upset..no show for the last 4 races. You know that UPS has to be looking at the situation, DJ has been in the races but how much face time for the logo? I like Mikey too, but looking back, I think it was because of the commercials. Lately, way too much Mikey on the airwaves.
How does that saying go, "You can talk the talk but can you actually PRODUCE RESULTS ? :)
I refer to Mikey's little announcement last week that he's asked for TRD engineers to now be present in the shop....
FTW - ?
Now, NOW you ask for them - ?
just don't know what to say......
I'd root for Ricky Rudd except for the fact that he inherited the same crap that DJ had to deal with for 3 or 4 years.
The media was all jazzed about a RYR front row at Daytona..."RYR is BACK!", and all that hype.......
How is RYR doing at the intermediate tracks - ?
Same as last year....and the year before...and the year before that....etc.
I'm gonna have to do some serious trimming on the luggage rack to get that wing installed......
Fat Back, you busy...........?
He sings - ?
Thanks, but they came from a friend. ;)
Thanks for the heads up, its a reality check at what the ultimate cost can be for our entertainment
Off to see if Lake Powell survived the winter, see y'all Sunday...
LOL!
ya and I got enough cocktaol fixins that'll need ice and suntan lotion with me if its not.
BBS
Mikey is in real trouble with sponsor's.
I'll go back looking, I think I know which article you are referring to...
Not so's you could tell it. It's him and some of his buds shooting the breeze. And sometimes another driver comes in and they talk about stuff
Waltrip team trying to get out of neutral
Published 03/24/2007 By DAVE ONGIE (Kingsport Times News)
BRISTOL, Tenn. - Michael Waltrip has said just about all he wants to say about Toyota's slow start on the Nextel Cup circuit.
He's tired of telling the media how sad he is, he's tired of telling his sponsors how sorry he is and he's tired of telling himself how he'll get 'em next week.
There's only one thing that can solve all of his problems. It's as simple as finding a way to qualify on Fridays and race on Sundays, but that is much easier said than done.
"I'll be honest with you," Waltrip said. "I did not think we would struggle the way we have because we have all the support we need from Toyota."
Though he is only about two months into his inaugural season as the owner of Michael Waltrip Racing, he already is battle-tested.
Trying to develop a brand-new three-car team into a competitive organization has been tough enough, but Waltrip also has spent a good deal of his time fighting misconceptions. He spent the offseason trying to convince fans that having Toyota in the Nextel Cup Series is a good thing and dispelling rumors that the manufacturer had enough money to buy its way into victory lane.
The reality is that Waltrip hired 200 employees last August, essentially building a race team from the ground up in a matter of months. When bringing together 200 people from various backgrounds, communication and coordination will certainly be an issue - and it's shown. Waltrip qualified for just one of the first four races, the Daytona 500, and his troubles continued Friday at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Waltrip and teammate David Reutimann both came up short of making the Food City 500, the fourth race in a row that Waltrip will miss.
But now, Toyota's rough start has altered the misconception. Waltrip can only shake his head at the claim that the automaker was focusing on the Car of Tomorrow all along and will have an advantage in the future.
"I didn't get the memo that the current car wasn't a priority," he said.
"We race that car more than we race this car."
Waltrip has been a fan of the CoT since it was proposed, but is under no illusion that it will be a magical cure-all.
"It's just a race car," he said. "There's no tricks, there's no shortcuts, there's no getting an advantage over anyone."
Waltrip is going back to the drawing board, re-evaluating his plan of attack and restructuring his troops in the areas where he feels it is necessary. He's also bringing in Toyota to help him get the most out of his equipment.
"We're looking at how our competition side operates, and we're making adjustments," Waltrip said. "We have strong people, but maybe they all weren't in the right places."
For what it's worth, Toyota has been through this before. When the manufacturer entered the truck series a couple years ago, the Toyota teams struggled to be competitive. But through steady improvement and the passage of time, Toyota's teams are now close knit and very competitive week in and week out.
Bill Davis Racing also can provide Waltrip with some light at the end of the Toyota tunnel. Dave Blaney is part of an established team, and he's appeared in every race and run well at times.
"The experience they gained in the truck series allowed (Toyota) to show up in the Cup series ready to race," Waltrip said. "Now it's just a matter of judging how they stack up in Cup.
"Sure, it helps us be better prepared because of the truck experience, but now that they're in it, they learn more every day."
So Waltrip will take the knowledge gained in Bristol with him to Martinsville next week. He'll take two laps next Friday like he always does in hopes of getting his shiny blue Camry into the field, moving him one small step closer to where he wants to be.
"Hopefully we'll come out the other end with a better race team," Waltrip said.
Suspended crew chiefs rejoin teams
Published 03/23/2007 By DAVE ONGIE (Kingsport Times News)
BRISTOL, Tenn. - For Matt Kenseth, seeing his crew chief in the infield at Bristol Motor Speedway on Friday morning was fun. For Kasey Kahne, it was a sight for sore eyes.
Robby Reiser, crew chief for Kenseth's No. 17 Ford, and Kenny Francis, crew chief of Kahne's No. 9 Dodge, returned from four-week suspensions issued for rules infractions during qualifying for the Daytona 500.
Each was back at the track for his first race weekend of 2007, but the two came back to vastly different situations.
Kenseth, who is fifth in points, said he couldn't wait to get in a jab about Reiser's forced vacation.
"I went up and asked who the new guy was, and he said that was a dumb joke, he's already heard it 15 times," Kenseth said. "So that was about the whole conversation."
Reiser said the suspension allowed him to spend a lot of time at the shop working on the Car of Tomorrow, which makes its debut in Sunday's Food City 500.
"Anytime you get to stay back and work on stuff and you've got more time, you can be a little bit more prepared," Reiser said. "But with NASCAR changing the rules every three minutes and not knowing what to expect, I don't really know if it helped us that much."
Francis, on the other hand, rejoined a team trying to make the top 35 in points in order to avoid having to qualify on time next week at Martinsville.
Kahne finished seventh at Daytona, but a blown engine and a couple accidents have dropped him to 36th in points heading into the Food City 500, where he will start on the front row opposite pole-winner Jeff Gordon.
"We're sweating it out, trying to jump a couple of spots here at Bristol and get back in the top 35," Francis said. "We're just trying to get better and hopefully we can come out of Bristol with a decent finish."
HUGGING IT OUT: Thanks in part to modern communication, everything is cool between Jimmie Johnson and Tony Stewart following their incident last week in Atlanta. Stewart took exception when Johnson passed him in the closing laps, forcing the No. 20 car to scrape the wall and settle for second.
Despite the heat of the moment, Johnson couldn't help but be impressed as Stewart managed to save his car from crashing and deliver a message via sign language in the direction of the No. 48 car.
"There's no doubt that Tony is a talented driver," Johnson said. "He's very talented to shoot me the bird right inside the car and keep going straight."
Following the race, Johnson sent Stewart numerous text messages in an effort to mend fences with his fellow driver.
"Once we had a chance to talk about it, we didn't (have an issue) and I knew leaving the track that we were in good shape," Johnson said. "Word made it from his people to my people that it was fine."
Johnson and Stewart also made appearances on each other's radio shows in a further attempt to bury the hatchet.
CONFUSED CLINT: Clint Bowyer seemed a bit befuddled when asked about Todd Bodine's comments following last week's Craftsman Truck Series race in Atlanta.
After that race, Bodine said, "We didn't want (Bowyer) to win, and if I had to push somebody I'd rather push my friend than a guy that won't even talk to you when you walk by."
"I guess I've got to send him a card or something," Bowyer said Friday at BMS. "I don't even hardly know him. I think I talked to him one time, in the Busch banquet two years ago. He obviously don't know me very well because I'd talk to a tree."
LAST LAPS: Kevin Lepage, David Reutimann, Michael Waltrip, Joe Nemechek, Johnny Sauter and Paul Menard all failed to make Sunday's field. … Daytona 500 winner Kevin Harvick and Kurt Busch, last year's Food City 500 winner, were two of three drivers who made the field on owner points due to poor qualifying runs.
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