Nov 30th, 2009 by T.C.
After a nice (but brief) vacation, both myself and Journo are returning to action this week. As Journo said last week, we are going to cut down our posting frequency during the off-season to a post for Monday, Ask The Insiders on Wednesday, a post for Friday, and the Saturday links post. If something interesting pops up along the way, you might certainly see us add to this schedule. But those will be the standard days moving forward. Once we get closer to the start of the season, we will go back to our normal schedule.
I want to take a quick second to thank everyone that stopped by the site, dropped us an email, or hit us up on Twitter over the last week or so. We got a ton of messages from people, and I just want to say that it’s been a pleasure running this website and we are glad people are enjoying it. It’s always great to hear that we are doing a good job! On top of that, I hope everyone enjoyed their Turkey Day.
By the time most of you read this post, it will already be Monday. This will be the first full week of the off-season, and many guys will be back to work after some vacation time (like us!). For many team employees, tomorrow could be an anxious day, as many don’t know what their own future holds within their respective organizations. It will certainly be an interesting and pivotal week for many teams and the sport in general.
With 2009 in the rearview, teams now shift towards preparing for 2010. Many questions still exist for some teams with sponsorships, drivers, and crew members in limbo. Even for teams that have solid sponsor and driver plans, changes will take place.
I think at this point, most race fans have heard about the situation regarding the Richard Petty Motorsports/Yates Racing merger. With the teams combining, as many as 200 employees are either gone, or will be gone very shortly. Going from six teams down to four will require cuts anyway, but the newly formed organization will be looking for ways to streamline, and cutting salaries is one way to do it.
While more cuts and layoffs are certainly on their way, probably this week, one team didn’t wait to start making changes. I heard last week that Roush Fenway Racing had already begun shedding employees, particularly at their Nationwide/Truck Series shop. Since RFR will end their Truck Series program before the 2010 season, cuts were in order. I don’t know an exact number, but I do know a few of the guys who lost their jobs. I just want to say good luck to them, I hope they land on their feet somewhere else.
The Silly Season this year was more subdued than it has been in the past, partly because of the down economy, and partly because of the lack of free agent drivers. But even so, there are still many pieces of the 2010 NASCAR puzzle that are yet to be put into place. Expect teams to continue making announcements regarding sponsorship and driver plans for the future. This will especially be true for smaller teams. Those in the Nationwide and Truck Series still have much to figure out.
I encourage you to stay tuned to your favorite racing news organization over the next several weeks to see what develops. While I don’t think it will be as bad as last off-season, this could again be a very tough winter. And as the 2010 picture becomes more clear, The NASCAR Insiders will be right here to answer your questions and break it all down. Only 76 days remain until the Daytona 500!
