Posted on 11/21/2008 5:30:10 PM PST by WestCoastGal
Ditto!!!!
Well, I'm really happy to hear that Bobby has a full time ride now. LOL - I even got t-shirts with an 8 on them so I can (sorta) show my support. LOL - only some of 'em say something about the Jr. on them.
I think there is going to be far more of this going on this year than we would really like.
Sadly there will be teams that just flat close their doors.
I like this DAKAR rally stuff. Thank God for the DVR!!
I was totally shocked to see a top contender like Al Attiyah just completely blow off his race course book. His co-driver, Tina Thoerner, is one of the best in the business, and I’m shocked she let him do this.
I like DAKAR, but C’MON FEBRUARY! I just wish I could be done in Florida for Speedweeks again. The warmth, the smell of the oranges, and more impoartantly, the RACING!!!
I HATE WINTER!!!
Maybe guys like Mike McLaughlin and a few other low budget teams will be able to qualify, earn some prize money, and keep on going without the high-buck teams filling the field.
There’s something about a privateer making it that really makes me smile. All these kids who jump into the game in big buck riades don’t do much for me, I like the grizzled short-track veterans who pull it off, especially if they come from a dirt track background.
Maybe it will revert to the original racing, but that remains to be seen. I think far too many are addicted to the big money.
I don’t expect it to ever go back the way it was, but I still like rooting for Shelmerdine, McLauglin, you know, the guys who love racing, and pretty much re-mortgage the house every January and load up the trailer for a couple weeks in Fla. The guys with the dirty fire suits spinning wrneches are the cools ones, to me, not the manicured kids who spend more on shocks in a weekend than the entire annual operating budget for the regular guys whole team.
I agree, but I still think this year will hit a lot harder than many think and it will be the small team that crumble first with even a few big ones also biting the dust.
So, I take it you are a rider, eh? I cannot believe how well these guys ride. I mean, i know they are at the top of their class, but the things they do, and get away with are incredible. Navigating while riding offroad at close to a hundred miles per hour is one admirable feat, plus the amazingly variable terrain, and the long days, too. All this on a very heavy bike. Nuts! I wish like crazy I had the guts (and money) to do this back when my body could have handled it, though.
Wonder if there will be enough teams to field 43 cars every race?
Wish I had a crystal ball. :)
There’s a lot of resrvation about the upcoming year, not just in the racing circles.
Former Sprint Cup Series champion Bobby Labonte is poised to join Earnhardt Ganassi Racing and drive the organization’s No. 8 Chevrolet in a move that includes several shakeups in that organization for the 2009 season, The Observer has learned.
Driver Juan Pablo Montoya is expected to continue to drive the No. 42 car again next season but should pick up the Target primary sponsorship, which has formally been with the No. 41.
Martin Truex Jr. will continue to drive the No. 1 car. However, his primary sponsor, Bass Pro Shops, has greatly reduced its role with the team and the organization is searching for sponsorship for upwards of 15 or more races for the No. 1.
Aric Almirola, who was scheduled to drive the No. 8, will drive a fourth car, which currently does not have sponsorship. It remains unclear how many races the team will run or what number the car will use.
Some of the sponsorship plans remain in flux, but the driver changes have for the most part been finalized for the 2009 season, sources said.
Among other changes on the horizon are the expected departures of Max Siegel, president of global operations for the former Dale Earnhardt Inc., and John Story [WOW], who has most recently served as vice president of motorsports operations for DEI, sources said.
It appears the competition side of the Earnhardt Ganassi Racing team will be run by co-owner Chip Ganassi and Ganassi president Steve Lauletta.
http://www.thatsracin.com/topstories/story/21705.html
Gordon an impressive third in Dakar’s ninth stage
Strong performance keeps the NASCAR star fifth overall
By NASCAR.COM
January 12, 2009
04:10 PM EST
type size: + -Carlos Sainz now leads the Dakar Rally by nearly 20 minutes following his victory on the ninth stage of the event from La Serena to Copiapo, his third consecutive stage win.
The Spaniard was nearly two minutes quicker than VW team-mate Mark Miller, with Miller moving up to second place overall. NASCAR driver Robby Gordon was third, just two minutes behind Sainz. This is the third stage of the nine run that Gordon has finished third — his highest finish in a stage this year.
I wonder if Bobby is bringing along a sponsor or two???
Thanks for the Dakar update. ;) Crash is still on a roll!
ROTFLMBO.
wait.......if 0Bama has his way......oh crap.....
Cool....thanks for the update!
Hollywood stuntman goes to Indy 500
Stanton Barrett has performed stunts in movies such as Dante’s Peak and Spiderman.
MOORESVILLE, N.C. — Stanton Barrett has already made the big screen, now he’s hoping to make the big time by competing in the Indianapolis 500.
One of Hollywood’s leading stunt men, Barrett has performed stunts in over 200 films and television shows, including The Dukes of Hazzard, Spiderman, Batman, Jurassic Park, Volcano, and Dante’s Peak. And when Barrett wasn’t dodging punches, falling out of buildings or crashing cars, he performed in NASCAR, in both the Nationwide and Sprint Cup Series.
His move to the IndyCar Series with Team 3G, which stands for “3 Guys,” is a partnership between long-time IndyCar independent car owner Greg Beck, marketer Steve Suddler and Barrett. It’s the culmination of a dream Barrett had in the 1990s, when he wanted to compete in the Indianapolis 500 and the races in the old CART series.
“I wanted to run IndyCars prior to the split, and when the split happened there was so much uncertainty,” Barrett said. “People were leery of investing their marketing dollars in that. I had some chances that were pretty close, but it didn’t happen so I stayed with NASCAR.”
In Barrett’s mind, though, the tide has changed.
“Right now, NASCAR is getting so expensive. You have to have a lot of money to run over here,” he said. “IndyCar provides a world platform for auto racing. It is one of the most reputable sports and it is very feasible for sponsors to have a presence in motorsports and fulfill their marketing and entertainment needs.”
The “on-the-edge” style of racing is something that attracted Barrett to IndyCar racing.
“There is a different aggression to driving an IndyCar than in NASCAR,” Barrett said. “From the style of car and the racing, it’s a different feeling all together. They are exciting and they are technologically advanced and they are super cool to watch. The sounds and the speeds are phenomenal. They are the fastest cars in the world other than a drag racer. I’m really excited. I love the road course racing and I love the downforce in those cars and the type of tire they use. It’s really exciting and a lot of fun. I hope I have a very good feel at that.”
That should be fun. Good luck, Stanton!
Nascar_News Nascar News: Gordon 21 seconds short of first stage win at Dakar: Spain’s two-time rally world champ.. http://tinyurl.com/8a3dlh
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