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Posted on 11/21/2008 5:30:10 PM PST by WestCoastGal
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Seems like they’d have more money available now!
Per Jayski
GM rethinks Daytona sponsorship: General Motors Corp. has not decided whether to renew a decades-long sponsorship of the Daytona International Speedway and its signature stock car race, the Daytona 500, despite the deal’s expiration in three weeks. GM has a multiyear agreement that ends Dec. 31 to serve as the official car and truck provider of the speedway and the Daytona 500, NASCAR’s most prestigious event, speedway spokesman Andrew Booth said Thursday. The race is Feb. 15. GM said discussions are under way about the Daytona sponsorship but the automaker has not reached an agreement. The Daytona sponsorship dates to the early 1970s. GM provides fire and safety vehicles, pace cars and other vehicles for use during the race, as well as a July race at the track. GM did not disclose how much it spends on the Daytona deal or NASCAR sponsorships. Scaling back motorsports sponsorships is seen as a risky move because the auto industry and racing are closely linked and give automakers a prime marketing opportunity to reach customers who buy domestic vehicles at a rate higher than the national average. Race fans, particularly stock car enthusiasts, are loyal to the sport’s sponsors and advertisers. The heritage and loyalty runs so deep that NASCAR Chairman Brian France recently lobbied Congress to support a financial bailout of the auto industry. NASCAR sponsorships are a wise investment because each race attracts about 120,000 fans, said Terry Dolan, manager of Chevy Racing. GM often creates a showroom environment on the speedway grounds, giving spectators an intimate look at its model lineup. The 2008 Daytona 500 attracted 33.5 million television viewers and is the top-rated motorsports telecast in North America. This year, GM had sponsorships at 12 tracks that feature NASCAR events, including the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, though three of those sponsorships have not been renewed. Chevrolet also is the official vehicle sponsor of the Chevy Rock & Roll 400 held in September at Richmond International Raceway in Virginia. That sponsorship expires next year.(Detroit News)(12-12-2008)
SPENCER: If Dale Was Here
Written by: Jimmy Spencer
12/10/2008 - 10:34 AM
http://nascar.speedtv.com/article/spencer-if-dale-was-here
I took an inadvertent trip down memory lane last week that left me wishing we could turn back the clock on this disaster.
When I drove past Dale Earnhardt Inc., or what used to be Dale Earnhardt Inc., a few days ago, I got a lump in my throat and a terrible feeling in the pit of my stomach. In a matter of seconds, images flashed through my mind of what DEI was under Dale Earnhardt Sr.’s leadership, but I was immediately smacked with the harsh reality of what has become of his company since his death. Old Man Earnhardt never would have let DEI meet the fate it has suffered the past couple of years.
Anyone who knows me or has watched me over the years knows how much I loved and respected Earnhardt, and despite your opinion of me, you cannot deny my admiration for the man I considered a great person and the best race car driver ever.
My impromptu trip past DEI greatly disturbed me and has been eating at me ever since. NASCAR has changed so much in the almost eight years since we lost Earnhardt, and judging by events in recent months, it certainly wasn’t
all for the better.
If only Dale was still here. He was the fearless leader of the garage and the man who could mobilize the drivers, represent them and their car owners, stand up to NASCAR and make things happen.
But now we are without a leader who wields the influence and respect Earnhardt did. For a while, people thought that mantle had passed to Jeff Gordon or Jeff Burton whether they wanted it or not Both men are greatly respected but they’re not Earnhardt and don’t command the admiration and audience he did. Earnhardt’s death left a void in driver and owner representation and I think this is where many of our sport’s current problems lie.
People listened to Earnhardt. Even NASCAR listened to him. On the flip side, how many times this year did someone say NASCAR doesn’t listen to anyone? Probably several. You don’t recall hearing that about Earnhardt, do you? Ever heard stories about NASCAR doing whatever necessary to finish races amidst rain conditions because Earnhardt had plans the next day?
I cannot believe that in barely eight years, Earnhardt’s vision for his company and his legacy is no more. Having known him as well as I did, I am disturbed that people’s egos and pride interfered and allowed DEI to crumble in this manner. The parties involved didn’t consider or appreciate who they were working for and who built the organization, and look what has become of what he entrusted to them. It’s a travesty that DEI is a shell of its former self. Sure, the organization is still in operation but now finds itself amidst significant layoffs and a merger with Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates.
When Dale Earnhardt’s company merges to survive while the Petty family also faces the same move, what’s left of the sport?
If Earnhardt was still around and running his company, do you think DEI would be without sponsors and facing layoffs? Do you think Dale Jr. would have left? Hell no.
I can almost guarantee Earnhardt wouldn’t have merged with Chip Ganassi or anybody else. Earnhardt was a savvy enough businessman and racer to anticipate the direction in which the sport was headed and meet with the owners to formulate a plan to prevent potential problems he saw on the horizon for them and the sport. But there is no owner today willing to step up to the plate in the capacity Earnhardt did.
If it wasn’t for Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt, we wouldn’t be where we are today. We wouldn’t be racing. Unfortunately, The Intimidator is gone and we’ve forced to forge through without him. But we could at least try to figure out what he might have done in these situations, although with Earnhardt, we might not be in this gargantuan mess to begin with.
Aack, another car where it will take me half the race to recognize. LOL
Morning! I thought that the car sponsor was “OOPSIE” instead of “PEPSI”!
More cold, wet, damp rain, sleet, freezing rain.
Spring Training Trip is set for March.
Daughter turns 21 today...yeow, how time flew!
Merry Christmas!
Premiere on CMT at 9PM ET tonight.
This movie is about all the different families in the Nascar and what a close bond they have with each other whether it's family or friends or teammates. One of the most touching parts of the whole movie is a conversation between Rick and Jr. He said you can see so clear the very close bond that they have and how much they love each other.
I’m still not used to the Pepsi car either. LOL
I wonder, never really thought I’d see Petty doing what they’re doing.
It’s going to be a very hard year on a lot of people, but don’t worry, Obama will fix everything.
Longtime sponsor Jim Beam back with Robby Gordon
By David Poole
dpoole@charlotteobserver.com
Saturday, Dec. 13, 2008
There’s good news for Robby Gordon’s fans.
Jim Beam announced Friday that it will continue its relationship with Robby Gordon Motorsports for the 2009 Sprint Cup season.
Gordon will have Jim Beam, which makes the world’s No. 1-selling bourbon, as the primary sponsor on the No. 7 car for 13 races next year. Jim Beam will also be an associate sponsor for the rest of next season’s races.
“With so many teams merging or taking on investors, Robby Gordon represents a one-of-a-kind driver and owner in NASCAR’s top racing series,” said Brian Gallagher, Jim Beam’s motorsports marketing manager. “His tenacity and commitment shows he has the competitive spirit, that our customers value and respect. We are proud to continue our support of Robby and his race team as they demonstrate true character and achieve success on the track.”
Jim Beam will be the primary sponsor for Gordon at Daytona, California, Las Vegas, Texas, Talladega, the Sprint All-Star Challenge, Charlotte, Michigan and Chicagoland, second Atlanta, second Richmond, second Phoenix and Homestead-Miami.
“Jim Beam has been with me since the beginning,” Gordon said. “To have them back with us for a fifth straight year is exciting and a credit to everyone here at RGM.
“It’s challenging being one of the few single-car teams remaining, and yet we have shown we can still be competitive. With Jim Beam’s continued support for the No. 7 team, we can focus on improving our race program and build our way toward a successful 2009 season.”
Weather does look horrible up there!
Hope the birthday was great. :) And, yes time does fly.
Sadly the Petty’s haven’t been competitive which results in loss of sponsorship.
0 can’t fix his own paperwork let alone the trials and tribulations of our country.
12/11/2008
What’s up, everyone,
I hope you are enjoying the off-season. I’m enjoying a little vacation myself. Aside from going to New York last week for the Myers Brothers Awards Luncheon, I’ve been laying low and chilling out. The off-season gives me plenty of time to spend on the Internet. I just finished up a blog for the .ORG folks. I use a .ORG domain for the Dale Jr. Foundation Web site and I just wanted folks to know how valuable those domain names are to me and the people who use them. You can go check out that blog here.
I also want to thank the fans for voting me NASCAR’s most popular driver for the sixth straight year. It’s always an honor to win that award, and this one was no exception. I hope we give the fans more to cheer about in 2009. I know Tony Jr. and the guys are working hard this off-season. I was at the Hendrick Motorsports shop a week or so ago, and was pleased to see all the hard work being put into the new cars.
Thanks for checking out GoDaddy.com. Have a great week!
Dale Jr.
That was an amazing movie. Great history of the sport, so many great moments and sad ones too. It replays again today, don't miss it.
Things must be rough in the delivery industry cause my FedEx guy has lost his sense of humor too. My sweetie ordered me a new greenhouse for my Christmas present this year. But, he ordered it last month because we were due some early freezing weather.
When the FedEx guy came I was excited and told him, "You've brought my Christmas present from my boyfriend! Thank you, you are being Santa this year."
His reply was so dry, "No ma'am, I from FedEx and I have a package for you from Flowerhouse."
I replied, "Well the Flowerhouse is my Christmas gift, and you're delivering it so that makes you Santa."
"No ma'am, I'm with FedEx." Was exactly like Tommy Lee Jones in Men In Black, "We're with the FBI, we have no sense of humor that we're aware of."
Was just TOO funny!
~gulp~ There are a lot of things out of kilter in the world right now. This one hits pretty close to home for NASCAR and us fans. Those kinds of sponsorship are gonna be tough to lose if it happens.
Spencer sure hit the nail on the head with that. And left my eyeballs leaking a bit. He succinctly described the situation I was thinking of the other day when I posted rambling speculation about whether Jr. would want to try and buy DEI if it's available.
It's pretty emotional to think of DEI failing after being an Earnhardt fan for almost 30 years now. The man Spencer is describing as such a leader and businessman, to whom NASCAR would listen, is exactly the reason that his company folding provokes a gut wrenching reaction for many of us. Back in the 80's my fanship switched from Yarborough/Petty to Earnhardt, but there's just not a driver that equals that driven personality to me since Dale Sr.'s gone on. Well, Jimmy Spencer just captured a lot of my feelings about it in what he wrote.
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