I got an email from a reader on Monday pointing out something I hadn’t put much thought into. He wrote asking us to talk about the Toyota engine program and how in five years the teams using Toyota built motors, Michael Waltrip Racing and Red Bull Racing, only had one win not decided by weather or fuel mileage (David Reutimann’s at Chicago last year; Joe Gibbs Racing builds its own engines – they’ve scored 33 wins since switching manufacturers in 2008).
Though I’m not going to talk about that with this post, with Red Bull’s recent decision to exit NASCAR in the news I couldn’t help but think about how connected the two are. Just Marketing CEO and founder Zak Brown told USA Today:
“They never really had the level of success (in NASCAR) that I’m sure they were hoping for. And on the flip side, you have enormous success around Formula One. I’d probably say it’s a combination of both, and I’m not sure there was ever the same level of excitement and passion (for NASCAR). (Red Bull owner) Dietrich (Mateschitz) is a winner, and he’s not going to go on forever if he doesn’t get the results… If Red Bull had won a bunch of races and were competing in the Chase (for the Sprint Cup), I think you’d still see them in the sport.”
I couldn’t agree more.
This issue of performance is interesting because Red Bull never really made serious lasting changes to fix the problem.
Since the team began they’ve had the same guy in charge of competition former F1er Gunther Steiner (UPDATED) The team has been through several competition directors; a string of so-so crew chiefs (Doug Richert, Randy Cox, Kevin Hamlin, Jimmy Elledge, Ricky Viers), and they’ve burned through two drivers, never giving either the time they needed to develop.
And then there is the much lauded Jay Frye who replaced Marty Gaunt pretty early on. He brought to Red Bull a, well, spotty track record. He ran the very mediocre MB2/MBV, and then was at the helm of Ginn Racing. Though the collapse of Ginn wasn’t Frye’s fault, he didn’t always help matters. The team was notorious for its spending and it struggled to find sponsorship. That spending mentality ended up at Red Bull, and was in full effect until this season. To his credit Frye did help drag the team out of the gutter, but with his personnel decisions he’s really done nothing more than turn it into MB2/Ginn 2.0.
Mix the above with the team’s continued commitment to Toyota’s less than stellar engine program and it’s no wonder the team never performed very well.
From Austria to Mooresville, leadership was severely lacking. This is an organization that had a ton of potential to succeed but was never given the time, patience or the right resources to do so.
Red Bull’s demise is surprising, but not completely unexpected – it just couldn’t continue on the same path indefinitely.
Oh, what could have been.
TheNASCARInsiders.com Follow the Insiders on Twitter or be a fan on Facebook!
Thinking about starting a NASCAR team? There is a lot to consider. You need sponsors, the right driver, a good crew chief, and the best equipment and personnel you can get. But, as history shows, if you screw up the name on the sign out front, you might as well kiss any success goodbye.
This week’s reports about the possible return of Foster Gillett to NASCAR with driver Kimi Raikkonen and ICE 1 Racing got Journo and me talking about NASCAR team names. Think about the current powerhouse teams. What names come to mind? Hendrick Motorsports, Richard Childress Racing, Joe Gibbs Racing, and Roush Fenway Racing. What do all of these teams have in common? They are all named after their owner.
What’s my point with all this? When you look back over the recent history of the sport, arbitrarily named teams often struggle to find any measure of success. Why? Who knows?
Think about some of the current and defunct teams that were not named in some form or another after their owner(s): Phoenix, Front Row, Red Bull, 2nd Chance, Faith, Go Green, Furniture Row, Red Horse, Panhandle, Green Light, Turn One, Competitive Edge, Eel River, PPI, Bang!, Diamond Ridge, Innovative, and the list goes on. For most of these teams, success has and was difficult to come by. Some have scattered wins, or a few top fives and top tens here and there, but not much more than that.
When was the last time a team not named for it’s owner won a Cup Series championship? You’ve got to go back more than 20 years to 1989. Rusty Wallace won the Winston Cup championship that year driving for Raymond Beadle’s Blue Max Racing team. Since then, the Cup Series has been dominated by team owner named organizations.
After Blue Max, only one other non-owner named team has won a national series NASCAR championship. Driving for Jim Smith’s Ultra Motorsports, Ted Musgrave won the 2005 Truck Series championship. As a sidenote, Ultra was closed a short time after they were crowned champions.
The reasons why these teams often struggle to succeed or even survive are completely inexplicable. Many have had top flight drivers and sponsors. Maybe it’s some sort of weird psychological phenomenon holding them back. Or maybe it’s just a really strange coincidence. Either way, it appears it may be all in the name.
So to you future NASCAR team owners out there, let me caution you. When it comes to naming your team, choose wisely…
Ever since this story first leaked out over the weekend, there has been a ton of discussion about Kasey Kahne’s move to Red Bull for the 2011 season. While the official announcement from the team answered a few questions for Kahne and Hendrick going forward, it created a bunch more for Red Bull. Looking over what we know about the deal, it appears to me that the only party who is benefiting from this move is Hendrick Motorsports.
Think about it. Hendrick found a way to bring Kahne in when the team was ready for him, supposedly not pay a dime for Kahne’s temporary seat, and keep Mark Martin in the #5 for the remainder of his deal. Put a nice big red bow on it, and you’ve got yourself a nice little package.
Here is why this deal doesn’t really help anyone else out.
First, what exactly is Red Bull getting out of having Kasey Kahne for one season? Red Bull’s GM Jay Frye attempted to compare this deal to when the Vikings brought in Brett Favre, saying the team will benefit from having a proven winner driving for them. That would be all well and good if Red Bull actually had the pieces in place to win. From what they’ve shown all season though, it appears as though that isn’t the case. The #83 team had a very solid 2009 season, winning a race with Brian Vickers and making the Chase, but that success from last year did not equate to continued performance this season. In the 11 races Vickers drove before the blood clots forced him out, his average start and average finish were down significantly from the previous year. He did have two top ten finishes, but he also had four finishes of 29th or worse, including two DNFs. And with Scott Speed’s struggles, and the driver merry-go-round in the #83, it will be very difficult to gain any momentum or make gains for 2011.
I also think it’s important to note what this means for Red Bull’s teams and drivers for the future. If Vickers cannot return and Kahne fills the seat in the #83, where does Red Bull go after 2011? If Speed is released, and Kahne takes his ride, who replaces Speed for 2012? In both cases, Red Bull loses a year of developing a driver and his chemistry with the team for the future. If Red Bull starts a third team specifically for Kahne, what happens to that bunch after Kahne leaves? Is it really worth opening a team for one year, just to shut it down?
For Kahne, the whole reason for him leaving Richard Petty Motorsports was to join a team that would make him a perennial contender. Obviously HMS is an upgrade from RPM; but Red Bull arguably is not. So what good does this deal do for him if he gets in a Red Bull Toyota next year and struggles worse then he did in RPM equipment? With the way the #83 and #82 have performed this season, it’s difficult to believe this team will make the quantum leap into real contention next season. And don’t expect Red Bull to get any support from HMS. While Kahne could certainly use the help, it would be a very bad deal for Hendrick to give Red Bull anything, seeing as how they are competitors and they don’t share a manufacturer. So what Kahne ends up with is a throw away season that is just serving as a place holder until he moves to HMS. Not good for a driver’s confidence or his brand.
It’s also not good that Kahne is essentially under contract with HMS, but is going to work for a team that has ties and partners that conflict badly with those at HMS. Most notably Red Bull vs. Pepsi and Toyota vs. Chevy.
So while I do give kudos to Mr. H. for finally finding a spot for Kahne, and doing it to his advantage, on the other side I think it’s a mistake. This deal just doesn’t make a ton of sense, and it appears it could be another in a long line of questionable calls made by Jay Frye and Red Bull’s management.
Filed under: Brian Vickers, Kasey Kahne, Sprint Cup, Gillett-Evernham Motorsports, Scott Speed, Red Bull Racing, NASCAR
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
Spin (verb): to cause to have a particular bias; influence in a certain direction
For those of you unfamiliar with the term or it’s usage, I’ll tell you it’s generally considered a pejorative – though not all spin is bad or unethical. In NASCAR, some have a tendency to use spin when confronting difficult issues. It’s not always an effective or advisable tool.
I’m not sure what was in the water these last couple of weeks, but the NASCAR team PR spin machines were in full force – more so than usual. From the laughable, to the cringe-worthy, they definitely ran the gamut.
That Was Kind of Low KBM
“Kyle Busch Motorsports (KBM) is designed to give up-and-coming drivers a chance to advance through the ladder system of NASCAR’s top-three national touring divisions. Thus far, its mission has been accomplished as KBM officials announced that Tayler Malsam will depart the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team to accept a ride in the NASCAR Nationwide Series driving the No. 10 Braun Racing Toyota” – Kyle Busch Motorsports/True Speed Communications
Kyle Busch is in over his head and losing a lot of money. He forces, or receives an opportunity to save money by shutting down the #56 team. You’re part of his PR team, what do you do?
A. Tell the truth – put out a press release saying the team is shutting down and Tayler Malsam is moving on
B. Color the truth – use it as an opportunity to tout you’re record for advancing young drivers
C. None of the above
If you chose answer B, congratulations! You’re on your way to becoming a spin doctor!
For the dozen plus guys who no longer have a job, I’m sure it was comforting to their wives and family members that they helped a young driver advance. Something tells me it was little consolation.
This was the cringe-worthy release of the week. There is just one line in the entire release saying the #56 will be shut down – no discussion of the ramifications, nothing. Not unethical, but far from appropriate. Unfortunately, the collateral damage (the laid off employees) in this whole thing was completely over looked.
A Unified Effort? Or an Effort to ‘Extenze’ Conway’s Cup Run?
“Using a unified approach to give its three-car team the best opportunities to continue to succeed as a whole, Front Row Motorsports announced changes to its NASCAR Sprint Cup Series line-up effective this week for the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway… The changes are aimed to optimize all three teams’ ability to score more points and strengthen the organization.” – Front Row Motorsports/Breaking Limits PR
I was trying to think of something more clever, but I figured I better keep it PG. This was actually one of the better spin jobs of the week.
I think at this point just about everyone knows what Front Row is doing – rotating their drivers numbers to keep all their cars in the top-35. The truth of the matter is they’re rotating everyone through so Kevin Conway doesn’t have to qualify.
Can we call it a unifed effort? Absolutely, and frankly it’s a nice way to look at things. Though I know Travis Kvapil wasn’t thrilled with the move and I can’t imagine David Gilliland is excited to get to the track every weekend knowing he has to qualify on time, the move seems to have worked.
The team was able to bump Robby Gordon out last week, and Conway has been able to stay out of the very precarious position of having to qualify his way in. It’s good he has sponsor money on his side.
Frye’s Last Stand
“Current circumstances presented the opportunity, and Red Bull Racing Team acted Tuesday with an experimental approach, swapping crew chiefs and support personnel for this weekend’s Sprint Cup race at Pocono Raceway and beyond.” – Red Bull Racing Team PR
The way they’re pushing this one, I think they’re trying to convince themselves more than they’re trying to convince the rest of us.
Let’s be honest, things have not been going well at Red Bull. In fact they’ve been going so not well I wrote on the subject just a day before the team announced these changes.
As much as they want to say they’re just experimenting (which they certainly are), what I see is Jay Frye’s last stand to keep his job. He’s responsible for what that organization looks like and he’s soon going to have to answer to the powers that be in Austria.
This looks to me like a spin job that had to happen. Unfortunately this makes it appear as if they were a weak team from the get go. The original release quotes Jay Frye as saying, “Due to the circumstances of our current situation, we have an opportunity to experiment with different personnel combinations.”
Vickers was certainly a big loss, but he’s just one guy. Apparently without Vickers, the season is a complete loss for the whole team. It’s a head scratcher. Red Bull’s a two car team that doesn’t seem to have much faith in their second team (or rather driver I guess).
This one is definitely going to be one to follow as the season progresses.
Race week in Charlotte is in full effect. Fans will descend on the QC this week to watch the Coca Cola 600 and to check out all there is to see in the center of the NASCAR universe. In case you are coming to town and are looking for stuff to do, we’ve put together a nice list to get you started (see it here). If you don’t know what this post is, we answer any and all reader questions every Wednesday, right here. So if you’ve got one, click on the ”Ask the Insiders” tab at the top of the page and send one to us. On to the questions…
1. From Bill:
With Bruton Smith offering up $20M to run in and win both the Indy 500 and Coke World 600, I got to thinking… It obviously wouldn’t be possible to run the Grand Prix of Monte Carlo, the Indy 500, and the Coke World 600. But, could someone run in Monte Carlo and Charlotte in the same day?
Well the Monaco Grand Prix took place this year on May 16 (Red Bull’s Mark Webber won). Last year it was the day before the 600. If they fell on the same date would it be possible? The race starts at 8 a.m. eastern standard time (Monte Carlo is six hours ahead). If the race lasts, say two hours (and you figure another hour to get to the airport and take-off – flying private of course), and the flight is about 9 hours (so the Internet tells me) that would put you back in Charlotte at 8 p.m. – too late to make it in time for the start of the 600 (which is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m.). – Journo
2. From Sue:
Does it really make a difference for team morale when a driver shows up at the shop daily or weekly vs those who rarely do?
I certainly don’t think a driver coming into the shop regularly is a bad thing. Guys know the drivers are busy and some, like Montoya, don’t even live in Charlotte, so shop visits aren’t always realistic. But the occasional visit is good for everyone, I think. – T.C.
3. From Gabi:
The cameras at the track record in 720p format or in 1080i? Thanks.
I believe the cameras Fox and ESPN use shoot in 720p, but don’t quote me. Maybe someone else knows for sure? – Journo
4. From Bristol_B:
First of all, thanks for sharing your insight, and perspective. Your website is a must read for any race fan! Now, I’m confused about the All-Star Race eligibility. Is it the car or the driver? Brad Kesekowski won last year in James Finch’s #09, but that car is not entered. Keselowski is entered in the #12 Penske car. Red Bull has entered the #83 with Casey Mears as the driver in place of recovering Brian Vickers. So if it’s the car why isn’t the #09 entered, does Finch need special dispensation due to a driver change? Thank you in advance for clarification!
All Star race eligibility is based on the driver’s accomplishments, not the team or car’s. With the situation surrounding Brian Vickers, NASCAR made a special exception to allow Casey Mears to pilot Red Bull’s #83 in the race. That is why Keselowski is in the race, and the #09 Finch car is not. – T.C.
5. From Christopher:
Cup teams generally bring two cars to a race, correct? What if they outright total both of them during practice? I know this is a stretch, but I could see it happening at Talledega, where you do have to practice dangerous drafting moves. Secondly- has this ever happened?
If I remember correctly, this happened a couple of years ago when Casey Mears was driving for Hendrick. He wrecked both his backup and primary at a race. I believe he ended up using one of his teammate’s backup cars in the race. This also happened to Ryan Newman at Daytona last year. He wrecked his primary in the 150 qualifier and his backup in final practice. I believe a third car was brought from Charlotte for Newman to race with. So if they are close enough, a car could be brought from the shop, if not, a teammate’s backup would work. - T.C.
6. From Steve:
Your thoughts on Vickers/Red Bull/Mears? Given the investment Red Bull has in both Vickers and Speed, would you agree that Red Bull needs Mears to do badly, at least worse than Speed does and worse than Vickers was doing? Any better, and it raises the question of why they wouldn’t keep Mears next season. And yet while Red Bull doesn’t want Mears doing too well, Mears knows this is a great shot at impressing people to earn a ride next year – a bit of a conflict, perhaps?
I don’t think that’s necessarily the case. Casey Mears has seven full Cup seasons under his belt (all together 255 series starts) and one full Nationwide season (with a total of 93 starts). Scott Speed on the other hand has 52 Cup starts, 13 Nationwide starts, and 16 Truck starts. I would hope Casey performs better than Scott. Speed is very much a driver in development (not at all the case for Casey), so I think it’s like comparing apples and oranges. Speed still has the potential for growth – with Casey I think what you’ve seen is what you get. It is true however that this is Casey’s fourth opportunity with one of the sports top teams (recall Ganassi, Hendrick and Childress) to show he can be competitive (I’m not holding my breath). – Journo
7. From Melissa:
Between the All-Star Race and the Coca-Cola 600 weekend do the haulers return to their shops or do the crews replenish what they need and switch out cars using other transports?
Being so close to home, and seeing as how there is no track activity all week, the haulers go back to the shops. The Cup haulers will return to the track on Thursday to park for the weekend. – T.C.
8. From Emanuel:
When we’re watching the race at home, they allow us to “ride along” with the car, with the roof mounted cameras. Sometimes junk ends up on the lens, and you can see the lens rotate, and tada!, no more junk. Does the lens constantly spin, or does it “sense” when it get junked up, and then rotate itself to get the junk off the lens?
There is a little tape mechanism inside the cameras (it’s clear and in front of the lens) that allows the production crews to ensure the view from the camera is always clear. Check out this great NASCAR.com article for everything you wanted to know about onboard cameras. – Journo
And that brings yet another “Ask The Insiders Wednesday” to a close. Thanks to everyone who sent in questions. And remember, if you’d like to be a part of next week, click on the ”Ask the Insiders” tab at the top of the page and send your question in!
When a driver becomes a Cup Series champion a certain amount of gravitas is permanently attached to him. Being a champion puts a driver in the league with the sports all-time greats and marks him permanently in the annals of history in the sport. He’ll forever be introduced as a Cup Series champion. I digress.
There had been rumblings for a while that TRG would begin starting-and-parking. Given their limited sponsorship and their history with the practice it seemed incredibly likely that it would happen again this season. The one caveat I heard though was Bobby Labonte would not participate in the practice.
Unfortunately on Sunday Bobby did just that. After 65 laps, the TRG car pulled into the garage and ended its day early citing “electrical” issues. I think we all know what that means.
After 19 seasons, 594 starts, 21 wins, and one championship Bobby Labonte deserves better. He owes it to himself and to his legacy to not ever start-and-park again.
Now a lot of drivers have had less than spectacular years toward the end of their careers. Think Dale Jarrett, Darrell Waltrip and others. Still they went out with their dignity intact, knowing that they left nothing on the table. It’s just not realistic, especially in this day and age, to leave the sport (or any sport) on the very top, Ned Jarrett-style. What Bobby Labonte did though was far below not making races or running in the back.
At age 46 Bobby Labonte isn’t going to have a Mark Martin or Jeff Burton-esque rebirth or renewal. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. I feel comfortable in saying Bobby Labonte’s best years are behind him. That said, I don’t have a problem with the guy continuing to race if that’s what he wants to do. He deserves better than a start-and-park ride with a mediocre team though.
As good a guy as he is, I’d much rather see him retire or look for opportunities in lower series, than to see this continue. Here’s hoping Bobby Labonte, the man and the Cup Series champion, realizes he and his legacy deserve better.
Casey Mears Is In the All-Star Race? What!?
If I was James Finch at this moment I would be furious. I would be on the phone wearing out Mike Helton, John Darby and anyone else who would take my phone calls. Why you ask? Because NASCAR allowed Casey Mears to sub for Brian Vickers in the All-Star race – something Casey neither earned nor deserved.
This puts James Finch in exactly the same situation as Red Bull – both had teams that won a race, but don’t have the winning driver in the car. Red Bull is allowed to sub a driver, Finch and Phoenix are not.
Don’t get me wrong, I understand the seriousness and unexpected nature of the situation at Red Bull. It stinks for the #83 team that Brian Vickers is unable to compete because of his health. Certainly this was beyond Team Red Bull’s and Vickers control.
Still, NASCAR has a duty out of fairness to every competitor to uphold their rules (note these are THEIR RULES). If something unexpected happens the sanctioning body should not change set rules or guidelines to accommodate a particular organization or driver.
This is a admittedly a bit of a stretch, but NASCAR didn’t give Denny Hamlin his position back this past weekend after he was wrecked under caution by Clint Bowyer. Hamlin couldn’t control what Bowyer did – it certainly was unexpected. But there is no precedent for giving a driver his position back and it would have been unfair – NASCAR didn’t do it. This situation should not, in my opinion, be any different.
My point here is, it is ridiculously unfair to change the rules in the middle of the game and not make concessions for others in a similar position. Incidents like this do absolutely nothing to help the credibility of NASCAR as a sanctioning body – let’s be honest it makes them look wishy-washy. It says they’ll change the rules depending on who you are and whatever unfortunate extenuating circumstances you may be facing. Bad move NASCAR.
It’s a bit of a weekend off for teams, as even though we will be at the track this week for the All Star and Truck races, at least we get to sleep in our own beds. If you are in Charlotte for the races, don’t forget that the Pit Crew Challenge is tonight at Time Warner Cable Arena in Uptown Charlotte! Before it kicks off though, here is the 75th edition of ATIW to help you get through your hump day. If you don’t know what this post is, we answer any and all reader questions every Wednesday, right here. So if you’ve got one, click on the ”Ask the Insiders” tab at the top of the page and send one to us. On to the questions…
1. From Ron:
Excellent site. Withthe new spoiler package they are controlled and dispensed at each event by NASCAR. How is it that some cars have their’s color matched if they are distributed randomly? I would think the teams wouldn’t know what spoiler[s] they would get each race.
Unlike the now extinct wing, NASCAR does not issue the spoilers to the teams. They are put on at the shop and then teched when they get to the track, just like they used to be. That’s why some teams have color matched pieces. - T.C.
2. From Jerry:
Guys what happens if Brian Vickers car owners points make the chase but his own drivers points don’t. Are Chase births given to the car or the driver.
Great question! There are actually two Chases. One for the driver championship and one for the owner championship. It’s no different then when Carl Edwards won the Nationwide Series driver championship in 2007, while RCR took home the owner championship. We don’t often see another driver run a car that is so high in points, so to this point, it hasn’t been an issue. - T.C.
3. From Kim:
This may be the silliest question you’ve gotten, but when a driver like Casey Mears subs for different drivers, what firesuit do they wear? Do they quickly doctor up a suit with the appropriate sponsor logos?
There are no silly questions here. Casey actually wore a generic firesuit at Dover. I would imagine if he continues to drive the #83 that he would have a Red Bull firesuit going forward. It really depends on how much time the team has. If they have some advance warning, they can get a firesuit ready. If not, the sub driver either has to wear one of their own, or hope they fit into one of the current driver’s suits. – T.C.
4. From Christopher:
At Darlington, Jeff Burton was penalized for running over the air hose. I’m curious- what is the rationale behind this type of penalty? I understand speeding on pit road- it’s a safety issue with other drivers, and it gives you an unfair advantage. But driving over a hose doesn’t give you any advantage, and can only really hurt yourself.
Running over an air hose is a definitely a safety concern. The combination of an impact and the hose getting kicked up by the tires can be very dangerous. If an impact were to hit someone, it could do some serious damage, and the air hose is connected to a Nitrogen bottle that has 2,500 lbs of pressure in it. – T.C.
5. From Kyle:
What do you know about the ownership situation at Red Bull Racing? There are rumors the company wants to move into a sponsorship only role. Any idea what team the sponsorship would go to if this were to happen?
The team is wholly owned by Red Bull owner (or perhaps more accurate, majority stakeholder) Deitrich Mateschitz (just like the Red Bull F1 team). So short of Red Bull deciding, without Mateschitz, that they no longer want to be in the NASCAR sponsorship business, it’s not too likely. Though I suppose if you looked at it from it’s purest form Red Bull really is just a sponsor now (albeit a very large one). – Journo
6. From Christopher:
When people talk about start-and-parkers, they often complain that they’re keeping better (serious) drivers off the track. If money and sponsorship were no issue, which drivers could be competing well in the Sprint Cup?
That’s a good question (it’s not something I necessarily buy into). Start-and-parkers are filling a void. Certainly there are exceptions every now and then but in the absence of the start and park teams we would likely have less than full fields. If money and sponsorship were no issue? That’s tough and I’m no driver development expert – this is something even the best driver development people have failed at (ex. Reed Sorenson, Casey Mears). Sorry. – Journo
7. From Allen:
Who makes the call to hand down penalties or park a car in the middle of a race? Brian France? Mike Helton?
Those calls generally come from the series director – Wayne Auton in the Truck Series, Joe Balash in the Nationwide Series and John Darby in the Cup Series. When drivers get to the trailer though, they sometimes get to meet with both the Series Director and Mr. Helton. – Journo
8. From yankeegranny:
Ok, what’s the story; was there a steering problem with the 88 at Dover, or not? If there was, what was it, and if there wasn’t has my fav driver become delusional? Seriously, what could be wrong with the car to make a driver say he had to turn the wheel 90 degrees to the left to get it go straight on a straightaway? Did he hit something/someone early in the race to knock something loose?
It is my understanding that there was, in fact, no problem at all. The marbles at Dover can be pretty bad, and if a driver picks them up on his tires, he can think all manner of things are wrong. It is not uncommon for drivers to think they have a flat tire or some mechanical issue. That’s why you see drivers swerving back and forth under caution to clean their tires. Dale Jr. isn’t crazy, and he wasn’t the only victim of the marbles this weekend. It’s just another example of the horrible luck and circumstances that continue to keep this team down. – T.C.
9. From Sann:
With all the drivers that get right front flats and smack the wall, would it be possible to run a liner in just that tire to prevent hitting the wall?
At Dover, Goodyear runs inner liners in all of the tires. When a tire blows out though, there isn’t much that is going to stop a car from heading straight for the wall, inner liner or not. The inner liner may make the hit not hurt so bad, but it’s inevitable. – T.C.
10. From yankeegranny:
In this age of mega teams with mega bucks, simulators, windtunnels, and 7-post whatever they ares, how can a team unload a car that misses the needed race setup completely. Some cars seem to be pure garbage from the time they come off the truck and nothing seems to improve them. On whose shoulders do we lay the blame..somehow it seems that this is one that we can’t blame on the driver?
Well it depends what team/s you’re talking about. Lesser funded teams don’t have the resources to spend a lot of time at the wind tunnel or at the 7-post – many of those teams are also running sub-par and used engines. When you see these teams run like garbage it’s often because their using sub-par equipment (having Chad Knaus on the box and Jimmie Johnson in the car wouldn’t do them any good). In the case of well funded teams you can blame the driver and/or the crew chief for missing the mark. Something to consider too is changing conditions. If a team practices in sunny/hot conditions and they race in cold/cloudy conditions their setup is going to get messed up. – Journo
11. From Walt:
When a driver says that they are tight or pushing in one corner and then tight or pushing in the next corner how can you adjust for both corners?
Usually, just adjusting for the overall tight condition will help in both corners. At a place like Darlington, where 1 and 2 are different then 3 and 4, a happy medium has to be found. It’s very difficult to make the car run well through both sets of corners. – T.C.
They don’t get any TV time and you have probably never heard most of their names, but a position within the race teams that continues to gain in importance is the pit crew coach. Many teams have full time coaches, while others have part time or contract coaches. But no matter the level of employment, these guys can really help set a team apart from the competition.
Since they don’t get much coverage, I will throw a few names at you of coaches at the bigger teams: Richard Childress Racing has Matt Clark; Mike Lepp coaches at Joe Gibbs Racing; Greg Morin, Mark Mauldin, and Walt Smith lead the Hendrick crews; Eric Wilson and Andy Ward lead the Petty/Roush conglomerate; Greg Miller is at Michael Waltrip Racing; Lance Munksgard coaches Red Bull; and Trent Cherry coaches at Penske.
During the week, coaches spend their time breaking down the film of the pit stops from the previous weekend and running practices. Some will also work with their pit crews in the gym, leading workouts and training sessions. At the race track, (if they don’t go over the wall themselves) they will be looking over the tape of recent pit stops and helping with advice or small adjustments during the race.
Coming up in your career, you encounter all different types of coaches. And just like any other sport, some coaches are really good, and some are not. Many come from athletic training backgrounds, while others are ex-changers, carriers, and/or jackmen.
As is the case in most sports, you learn to absorb as much as you can from the really good coaches, and try really hard to not let a bad coach screw you up completely. The good coaches are the guys that can watch just a few stops and be able to see the small things that either make you good or hold you back. They know when to step in with some coaching, and when to say nothing. The bad coaches are just the opposite. They could watch pit stops for days and never be able to tell you definitively what you are doing right or wrong. All these guys are good for, is holding the stop watch.
Coaches do have a tough job, because they are often the first person a crew chief or manager searches out when a stop goes wrong. They have to be able to take the flak from an angry crew chief and translate that into advice or adjustments that will help the crew be better. And like I said earlier, some are better with this stuff than others.
For me personally, it can be very difficult to listen to a coach who has never been over the wall (trust me, some haven’t). Racing is such a different sport, that the coaching means a lot more coming from a guy who knows what it’s like to step off the wall during a green flag stop, while your driver is leading. I’m not saying actual race experience is essential, because some coaches are good at what they do even without that knowledge, but it certainly helps.
As the Cup and Nationwide cars head to Bristol this weekend, I would encourage you to really watch the pit stops during the races. Bristol’s pit road can get interesting, because of the setup and small pit stalls, and pit stops will be very important to success at Thunder Valley. When your favorite driver’s team busts off a 12.60 stop and sends him out in the lead, don’t forget about the pit crew coach who helped them do it.
So I returned from another busy weekend of racing to discover (thanks to the Internet) what many in the NASCAR media have been fronting for weeks; that all of NASCAR is finally starting to implode! OH MY GOD! WE’RE ALL GONNA DIE! SAVE YOURSELVES! EVERYBODY PANIC!!!
A quick look around the Internet today and you would have seen the following headlines: RCR is dropping to two teams, Kasey Kahne will be in a Toyota by August, Toyota is pulling their support from the NNS and CWTS, Red Bull is leaving Toyota, and there could be spec engines coming to the NNS and CWTS.
Whew! That’s some scary stuff. Until you actually read what was said by the important people.
Richard Childress actually said he plans on having four teams next year, but some sponsorship stuff is still up in the air. The Shell and Jack Daniels deals need to be renewed, but even if they aren’t, it’s not necessarily the end of the line for the #29 and #07 teams.
Lee White (head of TRD Operations) denied the Kasey Kahne rumor, but even if he’s lying, there are too many moving parts here. Something smells fishy. Why would an organization build Toyota’s for one team, and Dodge’s for the other three? I know the COTs are similar, but there are some differences. I’m just not seeing the logic here.
Also, while a cutback may be coming for next season, Toyota has no plans to change its involvement in the NNS and NCWTS for 2009. And it appears that only Detroit is interested in the spec engine program, as the story itself says NASCAR executives have shown little interest.
And finally, I don’t understand why Red Bull would walk away from Toyota and its funding to self fund a Chevrolet alliance through Hendrick Motorsports. Red Bull’s problems have less to do with Toyota and more to do with what is going on inside Red Bull. Getting Hendrick horsepower isn’t going to solve that, and it’s going to cost them some serious coin to switch.
So, now that we know the world isn’t ending, can somebody please tell me what the hell is going on? Maybe we are part of the problem (feel free to say if we are), but I feel like a lot of these Internet writers are trying to either fabricate a silly season or scare people out of their minds.
Comparing the last few years, this season has been pretty light on free agent rumblings (sans Martin Truex Jr.), and the economy continues to be a major factor in the future of many teams, but these “almost” stories are crazy. I understand that some of these sites depend on big traffic numbers, but creating a story where there is no story seems wrong.
And this might not be a new thing, but I don’t know when it became news for somebody like Tony Stewart to come out and say that if the situation were right, he’d add a third team for next year. Couldn’t you really say that about every team?
”This just in: Robby Gordon may be a four car team in 2010 if three funded drivers approach him before February.”
Gimme a break.
Is the sport struggling some? Yes. Are the manufacturer cutbacks going to hurt the teams? Yes. Is it tougher then ever to find sponsors? Yes. Are teams going to have to get creative to fight through this tough time? Yes. Are we going to lose a few teams? Yes.
But, even though many will try and convince you otherwise, is the end near? No.