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We had a question in yesterday’s Ask The Insiders Wednesday about what appears to be a growing drug problem in NASCAR, and I wanted to take a little bit more space and expand on my answer to reader Tony.  The question was no doubt spawned by the announcement on Tuesday this week that yet another crew member had been suspended for violating the sport’s substance abuse policy.  Chris Moore, the gas man for AJ Allmendinger’s #43 Ford at Richard Petty Motorsports is the latest offender.

NASCAR took a much tougher stance with their drug policy before the beginning of the 2009 season.  They started requiring drug testing for drivers and crew members to obtain a NASCAR license, and they implemented random testing during the season.  The change in policy was the direct result of the admission by driver Aaron Fike that he’d used heroin before driving in a Truck Series race at Memphis a few years ago.

Since then, NASCAR has indefinitely suspended no less then 19 crew members and drivers for violating the substance abuse policy.  Here are the names and teams, in no particular order:

• Chris Moore #43 Cup
• Randy Lajoie, ex-driver, spotter, TV
• Matthew Huffstetler #01 Truck
• William Keith #38 Cup   
• William Hileman #76 Truck
• Kenneth Luna #23 NNS 
• William Wheeler #57 Truck
• Jeremy Mayfield, driver
• Ben Williams #16 NNS 
• Paul Chodora #41 Cup   
• Mark Norman #09 NNS 
• Clint Carter #46 Truck
• Jeremy Wilbert #95 Truck
• Ryan Sebek #76 Truck
• Richard Henninger #6 Cup   
• Gary St. Amant #99 Truck
• Mike Hennessy #99 Truck
• Andrew Crnkovic #07 Truck
• Richard Gray #77 NNS

From this, you’ll see that one current driver, one ex-driver, four Cup guys, four NNS guys, and nine Truck guys have been busted.

What’s interesting to note however, is that only three of these offenders worked for major teams.  The rest worked for much smaller operations.  And many were temporary employees for part time teams who were tested at the track to obtain their license to work for the weekend.  If any teams are going to be more susceptible to this type of problem, you would expect it to be the smaller teams, as they don’t have the necessary resources to run their own comprehensive drug testing programs like many of the larger organizations have.  At most of the big teams anymore pre-employment drug screens are required of all new hires.

With a little bit of estimating and some quick math, we can safely say that somewhere between 1,500 and 2,000 people come to the track each weekend as crew members for Truck, NNS, and Cup teams.  Comparing our 19 violators to this number of total crew members shows us that somewhere around 1% have failed.  That is a very low number.

Don’t get me wrong though, I understand that there are more out there who just haven’t been caught, but I think this is a very small group.  Don’t forget that everyone with a license has already passed at least one drug test, and NASCAR randomly tests as many as 15 people each race weekend.  For those that have made bad choices, it’s only a matter of time before they are caught.

Looking over the information, I think it appears that NASCAR doesn’t have any more of a problem with substance abuse then any other sport or business for that matter.  It’s completely unrealistic to think that nobody does it, but I also think it’s unfair to say this is a major problem.  NASCAR certainly waited way too long to put together any sort of real policy, and their current version could definitely use some improvements, but I believe progress has been made.

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Randy Lajoie made a stupid decision. And he got caught. He quickly admitted to it, and deftly handled the situation.

Thankfully everyone seems to be moving on.

From the outset, Lajoie took his crisis management skills into overdrive. He skillfully got in front of the story, and was able to effectively shape the message. There was no time for speculation, and he gave interviews to explain his side of the story.

While I certainly don’t condone the behavior, I respect Lajoie for taking responsibility for his actions. The fact is, none of us are perfect – we all do stupid things sometimes. I think we all can empathize with how difficult it is to admit our mistakes. And I’d be willing to bet none of us has had to admit a mistake on such a public stage.

In an industry where we so often see people try to pass the buck or make excuses when they do something stupid, I think this was a remarkable, and refreshing event.

In stark contrast, for example, earlier this week Front Row Motorsports, during their penalty appeal, argued that ‘rogue elements of the team’ developed the bleeder valves. Rogue elements? I didn’t know a crew chief could be a rogue element. Shockingly, the commission didn’t buy the story. I digress.

I know there are some out there who don’t buy Lajoie’s story. And that’s fine. I even found a story today that made some pretty serious, but of course unsubstantiated innuendos about the event (sorry I’m not linking to it). I think the person who wrote that though, and all those concerned with the back story, are completely missing the point. It doesn’t really matter what led up to the bad decision. What matters is what happened after Lajoie got caught.

Before I go, let us recap the lessons of this suspension. First, if you know there is a chance you’ll be taking a random drug test at some point in the not too distant future, don’t use controlled substances. Second, if you have a crisis like this, make sure you tell your story before someone else does. And finally, no matter what anyone else does, honesty is always the best policy.

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As I sat here this evening trying to decide what I was going to write about I couldn’t help but think of the almost daily bad news coming down on Jeremy Mayfield. Now I’m not going to talk about his guilt or innocence here. It is frankly irrelevant to the post. But I thought it might be interesting to look at what Mayfield is now facing.

On May 9 Jeremy Mayfield was suspended indefinitely by NASCAR for failing a drug test administered to him at Richmond. NASCAR refused to name the drug/s Mayfield tested positive for.

As the week progressed Mayfield claimed he failed the test over a mixture of Claritin-D and a prescription drug. NASCAR drug test administrator Dr. David Black of Aegis Sciences Corporation said that was impossible.

Fast forward, Mayfield and attorney Bill Diehl filed suit against NASCAR seeking among other things a temporary restraining order that would allow Mayfield to compete. A Mecklenburg County judge heard the case May 29. He denied Mayfield’s request. During the hearing we learned the driver was taking Adderall for ADHD and Claritin-D. According to NASCAR there was a third drug they did not name. Mayfield’s attorneys did not submit the toxicology report.

Prior to bringing the case before a Mecklenburg County judge the following week NASCAR requested the case be moved to Federal Court. The request was granted.

On June 5, NASCAR countersued Mayfield in Federal Court claiming willful violation of the substance abuse policy, breach of contract, and defrauding competitors of earnings. The suit claims Mayfield failed to notify Dr. David Black of his change in prescriptions in accordance with the drug policy and also that he defrauded his fellow competitors of $150,000.

ESPN the Magazine’s Ryan McGee, reported on June 9 that he had confirmed with two independent sources that the illegal drug Mayfield tested positive for was Methamphetamine. This allegedly was the third drug that showed up on Mayfield’s failed test.

This week chassis and engine builder Triad Racing Technologies filed suit in North Carolina Superior Court against Jeremy Mayfield Motorsports for $86,000. They claim they were not paid for parts and services rendered.

On top of this, NASCAR filed a motion in federal court on Tuesday alleging the expert witness used in Mayfield’s lawsuit lied about his credentials. Among other things NASCAR claims Dr. Harvey MacFenerstein did not have medical degrees or certifications he claimed to have. MacFenerstein claims he told Mayfield attorney John Buric the qualifications listed in the affidavit were incorrect and Buric assured him they would be corrected. NASCAR is asking for reimbursement in defending itself against Mayfield, that MacFenerstein’s testimony be dismissed, and that Mayfield’s attorney’s be sanctioned for failing to conduct a reasonable inquiry into MacFenerstein’s credentials.

Now I’m no legal expert, but I think it’s fair to say Mayfield is in it up to his neck. He has one lawsuit against NASCAR (which looks now to be on very shaky legs) and two separate lawsuits against him. Not to mention Mayfield’s means for making money has been cut off. On top of this he is financing a legal team headed by Bill Diehl which I can tell you is not cheap.

They say hindsight is 20/20 and I’m guessing Mayfield is beginning to wish he hadn’t taken on NASCAR. This is a company that has its own legal department with half a dozen+ attorneys. On top of their own team working on this they have Winston-Salem attorney Paul Hendrick and his team. Also working in NASCAR’s favor is their unendingly deep pockets. They can afford to drag this case and their own case out for months. I highly doubt Mayfield can.

Long story short, I’m glad I’m not Jeremy Mayfield.