It’s Kez at Michigan!

The Kez whips them at home!!!!

Jr. Motorsports driver Brad Keslewoski flat put it on the 2 Toyota drivers of Brian Vickers and Kyle Busch today in the Nationwide series race at Michigan. Man what a race, not much til the last 4 or 5 laps but that alone made it worth while. I now have a new found respect for Brian Vickers that boy can drive a race car! He had the 32 Dollar General stores Toyota slideways the last 5 laps in every turn and Busch would reel him in only to have Vickers drive away. All the while the Kez was a coming and coming hard, while the 2 Toyota’s battled and fought for the win the Go Daddy.com car rolled up and took it! Kez only took 2 tires on his last stop and everyone else took 4 but Tony Eury Sr. knew what he was doing putting the Kez up front with the track position that the 2 tire stop gave him. And as the trio came to the white flag , Keslewoski held his line driving up top high wide and handsome and drove around the 2 leaders, and he didn’t have to hold them off coming to the checkered since the 32 of Vickers was holding the 18 of Busch off on his own. While they battled Kez went on to win on his home track in front of home town fans for the first time.

After the race Busch with his usual childish temper slid into the 32 car and jumped out running over to scream at Vickers before Vickers could get out. But once Vickers was out Kyle Busch grabbed his visor then walked away, at a fast pace….he did stick around for the T.V. Interview and no he wasn’t happy as he name called Vickers calling him “stupid”, but he did admit he was whining and crying. All the while Brad Keslewoski was driving to Victory Lane.

Now if the Cup guys can put on a show like this on Sunday then we are in store for one hell of a race!

Cya@the races.

The dr.

My aunt used to say……

My aunt always said “if you can’t say nothin nice, then don’t say nothin at all” well, I am not one to argue with my aunt but I don’t think my aunt knew who David Stremme was. This man is a crash waiting for a place to happen. But let’s give him the benefit of the doubt for a second, and look at how he has done this year.

He has finished on the lead lap 3 times during the year, he hasn’t started any higher than 11^th coming into the Glen, he hasn’t finished any higher than 13^th in any race this year. But if you got points for causing a wreck, spinning out, hitting another car, then he would surely be leading the points. Face it the only reason he got the ride was he was the R&D driver for Penske last year since he couldn’t find a ride of his own, Penske had him on payroll and Justin Algaier wasn’t quite ready for the seat yet, and since Stremme was the 2003 ROY in Cup I guess Penske figured he can’t be “that” bad. Well this is one time “the Capitan” was wrong. I mean look at his resume , yeah it looks good, …..Stremme’s first stock car victory came in the early 1990’s at New Paris Speedway, while behind the wheel of his mother’s street stock ride. He won in Moma’s car!!!!! guess she had a good set up in the car for him cause he sure didn’t know how to do it. His highest finish ever in cup was an 8^th and that was in 2006, a year where he didn’t make either of the two road races, then he was replaced by Dario Franchitti of all people.

Now seriously I hate to bash a driver, I know how hard it is to run at that level,but this just can’t get it done. Last year he decided he would do like lot’s of the Cup drivers and buy a dirt team, well he went looking during the off season and wound up buying the dirt team of Randy “the dream “ Weaver, had all the cars painted up with Stremme Motorsports, then couldn’t pay the bills, leaving a top dirt team to try an find a sponsor at the start of the year before the first race!

And this year he has been a moving chicane, will he have a ride for next year?? I think not.

A tip of the hat to Tony Stewart on his win today at The glen, and a really big “atta boy” to the Marcos Ambrose team for making the announcers look stupid for them saying at the first round of pit stops that he was doomed using the stratagy he was using, guess that’s why they are in the booth in stead of being on top of a box in the pits or in a seat on the track.

After the hit that the 24 of Jeff Gordon took today I think his days as a driver are getting real close to being over, but hey it has been a good run ,he has won ton’s of races got a few Cups on his wall, weathered a divorce, got him a super model(even if she is a foot taller than him)got a beautiful little girl, he don’t need to race much longer the man has made his mark. And a high mark it is.

Another tip of the hat to a couple drivers who had days they might of liked to forgotten, Dale Jr, who lost his brakes and creamed the 43 of Reed Sorenson getting into a turn, but he was man enough to say he was sorry, and he started to run over to the 43 car to say he was sorry when the 43 car drove off, poor Dale Jr’s car was stuck in the fence.

And a big tip of the hat to another driver Kasey Kahne, who got loose coming off the turn and got into Sam Hornish which caused the huge pileup that got the 24 of Gordon, among others. Kahne told his crew over the radio to go tell Hornish he was sorry,and he also went and told him in person after the race.

Not a bad race even if it was run on Monday, now we go back to round -y-round racing!

And for those of you who have wrote me asking bout the wrist and the surgery thanks for your kind words and it is almost back to 100%.

CYA @ the races!

The dr.

SHAKE UP AT RPM??

Shake up at RPM coming?

RPM spokesperson told reporters that there may be some personel shifts going on in the coming weeks in all “except “ the team that is in the chase.

Lets look at what they have to work with over there……

19 Team Kevin Buskirk who has worked with Sadler before, and it was thought that the chemistry these 2 had would help bring Sadler and the 19 car back from the dead. Hasn’t worked.

43 Team Mike Shiplett they thought he could work the magic with the 43 team and Newcomer Reed Sorenson, that he did with rookie wonder Kasey Kahne in 2006 when he lead the team to 6 wins. He is also the one who blasted Patrick Carpentier last year for not trying to get the car in the field at ‘Dega. Hasn’t worked here either.

44 Team Sammy Johns he came to RPM in 2001 as a testing and research team leader, then stepped in and guided rookie Casey Atwood to a pole but that was bout it, he then served as Jeremy Mayfield’s crew chief in 2002, at various times he has served as Tech director, r&d team leader, now he is trying to get A.J. Almendinger in the 44 car to run good. Hasn’t worked here either.

Now can playing musicial chairs here do any good? Who knows….. but it don’t seem all is lost over there. The 9 car is in the chase, for now.

Now the word gets out that the 2 crew chief’s from the 43 and 44 will swap crews and crew chief’s …hummmmmm now that may work, Shiplett will get A.J. Fired up like he did Kasey Kahne, when Kasey won 6 races.

Will Sammy John be able to get thru to Reed Sorenson? I doubt it, but this trade does make sense for one team.

And what about the 42 car of JPM??? this man is possessed…. he has been on a roll like he has never had in his 3 years of NASCAR. And he is focused on the chase , and that is what it is gonna take him to get there and stay there. Here is a driver who come from F-1 and learned the hard way how to get one of these cars to go…but now he has it figured out he is getting pretty dangerous, he might even win the chase. He is that good but is he that lucky? Got to have some luck along the way.

CYA@THERACES

the dr.

the dr is back!

After a long time away due to surgery … the dr is back!

Today we are going to talk with local race car driver John Publick, who has been racing for 20 years mostly out of his own pocket and with a lot of help from a whole list of small sponsors.

I drove over to John’s shop and found him and his crew of volunteers taking the car off the trailer, John greeted me as I got out, we made our way into the shop where the crew and John all pulled up chairs made sure everyone had a “cold drink” and the talk begin……..

Paul Lemon who has been with John from the first race all those years ago speaks up “ now dr if your gonna write a story bout John, you brought way to much paper”he said looking at my legal pad” it won’t take but bout half of one off them sheets ya got there” the tension was broken as everyone, even John laughed.

I got out my list of questions and here is what followed….

the dr: John what got you started racing?

John: Well we tried running the Daytona in the yard on bicycles when I was bout 10 and have been wanting to race something ever since.

The dr: How many classes or divisions have you driven in?

John: All together,5 I started out in front wheel drive but sold the car after the first race , then I met Paul and we pooled our junk and put a bomber together, we ran bomber for 3 years and moved up to “A” hobby and ran there for a long time, won a few races and one championship. And now we run limited late model. I have driven a couple super late models but never run a full season.

The dr.: What is your goal? Are you wanting to go up the ranks to say…NASCAR?

John: Years ago yeah that was the route I was really wanting to go, but with the way the economy is now and the way NASCAR is run today … well….I think I will just stay here and race for real..

the dr.:What was your budget for last season?

John: Budget?? what budget? We race out of out pockets most times every now and then a sponsor will buy my fuel or a tire or oil…. we ain’t got no sponsor, shoot most of my guys pay their own way in to races….

the dr.: How many sponsors do you have on your car now , this season?

John: I got 5 names on there, but one of them is from last year just didn’t have money for paint to cover it up and he is a good guy too…….

the dr.: What was the biggest sponsor you have had?

John: I had a local burger joint that gave us 400.00 at the start of the year and on Saturday’s when we went to the races if we stopped by his place with the car we got to eat for free just leave the car parked out front.

The dr.:Who does all the work on the car?

John : My crew, these guys come over here almost every night during the week and make sure things are right and that nothing is bent or cracked, if it is we either pass the hat for parts money or we make one our self.

the dr.: What do you call a good season?

John: Any season that I don’t have to look for a new car and I don’t owe to many people, if my car comes home on one trailer and we can fix whats wrong for next season with out much money then its a good year. I have never intended on making any money in racing, you never do unless your a suck up in NASCAR but them guys don’t race anymore they just follow the leader and do what they are told to do….

real race car drivers are the guys I run with each and every night, the guy who does it not for the money but for the fun! Thats why we race, not for the fame or fortunes as they say but for the thrill, the rush of running wide open sideways…. thats what racing is all about….

“Damn right “ chimed in the crew, Rod Eschew looked at each member sitting around and then he spoke” look we all have our spot, whether its where we sit in the shop or what area we tend on the car, we all know each others job but we do this for fun and to help a buddy out, not to get the glory or the pic’s in the paper thing but just because we love it. It is like a drug or a woman…..why you think they name race cars after women? But really we just love racing..

I looked around the shop, I saw 20 years of memories, a piston with a intake valve embedded in the top of it, sitting on the shelf, a tire from bristol when they won tickets to a nascar race, the first trophy they had won sat up high where it could be seen…But it was then I saw the real meaning of racing …. the true desire that fuels so many fires, yeah some call it a hobby……. but some of us know better.

Yes this is a bogus interview, as in not real , made up… But I want you to look at it, it describes hundreds of shops across the country in all walks of life, you get bite by the racing bug, yours done, there is no hope your lost, one way at the other, don’t matter if you drive work on then or just watch, your bitten , your bitten for life. This could have been your favorite local driver or a stranger but the fact remains …. racing is a love and it bites each of us fans differently and that no matter what we all love racing! It don’t matter if you pull for this driver or that one just as long as you like racing your a fan!

Now my forey into creative writing is over next post we will be back to writing about racing…

cya@the races.

The dr.