With the All-Star race upon us, we cannot always count on great racing but we can count on some sa-weet paint jobs out on the track.  

Look no further than the "lickable" (and I quote Kurt's PR guy there) Miller Lite "Taste Protector" Blue Duece. 

Here are some early shots from the Penske garage.

This bad boy will be looking good under the lights and under the checkers!   Feel free to add your favorite All-Star paint schemes in the comments.

 

Sunday, SUNDAY, Sunday -- means it is race day at Talladega!

The FOX broadcast has begun and it looks to be an extended one...the big stories of the day seem to be:

• Will Dale Jr remember where his pit is and drive into Victory Lane to make it four for four at HMS?
• Will Smoke rise to expectations and get his first win as an owner/driver?  (and get a little extra push from his angel Cindi?)
• Will the start-n-parkers bother to run even 49 laps here?  The track is much longer and will take up more gas and tires to even get that far.
• Can HE IS JUAN get us to a clean start?
• Who will trigger the BIG ONE?
  

Looking forward to chatting with you all!  Thanks to SpeedBeagle for handling the chat the last few weeks...I have a feeling the tag team approach will be in effect all season!  

Let's go RACIN!

In my quest to continue to bring you the human side of the super stars of NASCAR, I wanted to share a couple of stories about Kurt from the Phoenix race weekend.   I know he got a lot of backlash after Martinsville for the radio exchange with The Captain.  When you ask his crew how they put up with it, over and over they say they all stand 100% behind him because they would much rather have a driver who is passionate and angry when the car isn't good than be complacent and accepting of a top 20 finish.  Make no mistake about it -- Kurt and the Brew Crew are in it to win it.

Some of you may have read the CNNSI article on Kurt last week where the author said that the chemistry on the Brew Crew was bad -- "I've seen more cheerful funerals" was the quote.    Not sure what was going on when he wrote this but those guys have some of the best chemistry in the garages - as evidenced by their ability to stick together through the rotten year they had last year.   The Brew Crew somber?   No way - not my guys! Maybe they were just sad I wasn't there yet! 

Our crew has some seasoned members - our new car chief was the car chief for most of Rusty's career, our new engineer, Dave, has been around the block and the rear-end mechanic, Steve is one of the elder statesmen in the garages.  True, they don't joke around like some of the young guys on other teams --the reporter compared them to the #48 team - but Johnson's team is hardly performing their best with three pit road errors on Saturday night alone.  I think that reporter needs to remember that "happy/joking" doesn't always equate to being focused or having good chemistry.

As for the rumor the CNNSI article put out there about other teams going after Kurt - yea, I've heard some rumors suggesting Kyle is trying to get his brother over to the Toyota camp.   But to Gibbs?  Really, you think Kyle and Kurt would want to compete with each other for top dog status and be around each other all the time?   No way -- another Toyota team maybe and there is only one that fits the bill (and it is not the 55 car.)  

Ok - onto some stories about Kurt from the Phoenix race weekend...

Kurt always goes to the media center for his NASCAR mandated interviews (most of the drivers make the media come to them and stand outside their haulers) so I followed Kurt in for his session on Friday afternoon before qualifying.   None of the media had any questions for him except for this female reporter (remember her she will come up again) who asked Kurt about In-N-Out Burger. 

Seemed like a pretty odd question and apparently by everyone's reaction she and Kurt had discussed this before.  Kurt reiterated his love of the Double Double with cheese, no tomato, no onion - which happens to be my fav burger there as well - and then went on to explain the secret menu to the media.   Clearly a slow news day and easy to see why some drivers go bonkers with some of the questions they are asked but Kurt took it in stride and got us all a little hungry in the process.   Word is he wouldn't mind having In-N-Out Burger on the quarter panel of the Blue Deuce but personally I think it would be a better sponsor for Smoke.

Shortly before qualifying, I found Kurt was in the Miller Lite garage - no, not checking on the car but cleaning it.  Billy (a championship winning IRL car chief in his own right) is the mechanic in charge of the interior of the car, the windows, and keeping Kurt's helmet clean.   Well, with the Arizona sun blinding many drivers, Kurt was out there showing Billy how to properly clean a window.   Not only was Kurt doing his best gas station attendant impression, he had the entire crew in stitches ripping on Billy.   Kurt took a good ten minutes to "properly" clean both sides of the windshield.  Then while instructing Billy on where to put the sun-blocking stickers they use, he decided the best bet would be to just stick one to the brim of his baseball hat and call it good.   People don't do this at funerals do they? 

  

After qualifying, Kurt was interviewed by "older than dirt" Dick Berggren for his third-place effort and prior to the start of the interview the two of them decided to exchange glasses.   Kurt did the entire interview dead pan wearing Dick's granny glasses perched on his nose while Dick was looking sporty in Kurt's wrap around mirrored glasses.   I kid because I care...but seriously, can you imagine JJ doing this?

On the warm up laps, not sure how many of you caught DW talking with Kurt?   Did you catch the exchange?  "Kurt this is DW - you got me?"   "10-4 DW dude..."   Funny!

Back in the media center after the race Kurt was talking about the book his mom got him a few years ago by Mark Martin called "Strength Training."

He was mid-sentence when that same female reporter interrupted him and asked very seriously for the name of the book again.   Kurt spoke nice and slow "Strength...Training" and Smoke, sitting next to Kurt, might have actually hurt himself with the eye roll he gave the woman and the two of them shared a laugh.   See they are Frenemies!

Finally, The Country Music Channel (CMT) has been airing "Cribs" this year featuring several NASCAR drivers.   Kurt taped an episode earlier this year and it is ready to air this week.    Look for the official premiere on Saturday, April 25th with repeats running for the next week.   Along with Kurt's crib, the episode will also feature Dale Earnhardt Jr's and Martin Truex, Jr's cribs.  Should be good, check it out!

Saturday -  Race Day!

The crews got to sleep in today -- good thing since a few of our guys had one too many margaritas the night before -- as the garages opened around noon today.  My day started off on an autograph hunt since I did not have a chance on Friday to get the Kurt Busch hat autographed that HoosierRacer won for naming the backwards Victory Lap the "Unwind Lap."   Pat Tryson was in the hauler so that was easy but Kurt was in his coach and was unlikely to come over until race time so TR (Kurt's PR guy) walked me over to the coach lot (my first time ever in there!) and we hung out for a bit watching the Alabama crimson and white scrimmage on TV until Kurt popped out and did the deed.   Mission accomplished Hoosier!         

TR is a HUGE 'Bama fan and was glued to the TV so he trusted me to "let myself out" of the coach area.   Given that I was dressed in my usual Miller Lite garb I was hardly inconspicious so I did a brief run around the coach area but it was impossible to tell the coaches apart.  Saw lots of drivers out and about but not the one I was really looking for...LOL

After safely tucking the autographed hat away I headed out to pit road to see the pit crew.  They had flown in that morning and had the pit box all set up already.  I caught up with the guys and asked them about the problematic longer studs.  

There appears to be two issues.  First, the reason some teams are having more problems than others is that they were cutting back on the threads. So rather than having 6 threads holding the lugs on some teams were down to two threads (not the Penske teams of course -- you might recall some other teams losing wheels last year...now you know why).   The longer studs ensure that teams cannot skimp on the threads which is obviously a pretty dangerous modification.   Neither Jay (Front Tire Changer) nor Travis (Rear Tire Changer) said the longer stud affected their rhythm much but some teams are having much slower stops now because of this issue.

The second issue has been more widely reported on, which is the glue problem.  Teams are experimenting with different glues and how far in advance to glue the lugs onto the wheel wells before the race.  If it is too sticky they it gets the lugs all gummy and clogs up the air guns but we are also seeing lots of lugs popping off when they slam the tires on.  Penske has found something they like.

I then had to get back to my tool box pulling duties since the crew had the Blue Deuce ready to go through inspection for the final time.   We were nearly the last car out which is unusual for this crew and were stuck waiting baking in the sun for nearly an hour and half!   During that time the future of Penske Racing popped by...

Yup, thats "lil Gator" -- Justin Algier, Penske's NW driver with Billy whose job it really is to pull the toolbox!    I was also able to get to know Dave Winston, the new team engineer much better while we waited.   He used to work on Biffle's team when Kurt was still at Roush and then moved to Red Bull Racing before coming to Penske.  He has clearly made a huge difference and is one of the main reasons the team has figured out how to get that COT to turn better for Kurt. 

We had a "camber issue" on our inital pass through the height/weight inspection site and had to circle back around after fixing it which put us nearly last pushing out onto the grid...nearly last...we cleared the final inspection area that measures the wheel base and checks to see how offset the chassis and suspension are and who is stuck parked next to the final inspection spot?  The 88 team looking glum...guilty?

We pushed the car out all they way up to the third starting spot on pit road -- I tell you that is a good workout! 

 

I headed back to the hauler to grab a quick bite to eat as driver introductions were only about 10 mins away.   As I was stuffing down some steak and baked potatoes off the grill out came the Gordon family!  (Personally I really like her hair short...)

 

On my way back out to the track I passed by the final inspection site and sure enough, the 88 was still on the template and Tony Eury Jr was having a heated discussion with several officials. 

 

    

I asked the crew, "Isn't that kind of an odd inspection site to get stuck at?" and they all agreed it was very odd.  The best they could guess was maybe the car was too wide or the suspension was offset too much.   By the looks of the conversation Tony Eury Jr. was having I thought Junior might not ever make it out on the track.  

Driver introductions were already in progress and I managed to get out to our pit box in time to get some good pictures.   Of course you all know it is tradition for me to have at least one funny photo of a driver in a compromising position so here it is...Junior's crotch shot! 

 

And then comes another favorite part of mine...lining up with the crew for the prayer and anthem...

Just before the start of the race, the Ray (Jack man) was sweeping our pit stall and this adorable tiny baby bird (morning dove?) haphazardly flew into our pit.  The tiny thing was clearly trying to learn how to fly and RAY swept him out of our pit and he ended up inside the outer pit wall!   The HORROR!!   

He walked along the wall until I couldn't see him anymore and God only knows what happened to him after the first round of pit stops.   That poor bird!  

Something I had not seen before...we had an Official in Training in our pit stall for the night.   He is the one taking notes.  He worked our pit while the veteran official supervised.   I am sure it takes a while to learn, they keep track of everything the team is doing from the pit stops themselves to every air pressure change in the tires.   

I staked out a great spot right up against the pit wall in the opening next to our pit stall.  Matt Yocum was next to me the whole night and the Fox cameras were shooting our pit stall just over my shoulder.  Perhaps I should have pulled  a "Digger" and popped up in front of them!   

We had stellar pit stops most of the night...

 

 

and had a happy crew as a result... 

Course we all know who won...

As Mark drove down the pit road to Victory Lane, I headed down pit road to the post race interviews.   Many of you saw me on TV walking behind Kurt during his interview..

And sneeking up to take Jimmie's picture as well.  (Really I think the beard looks fantastic on him..) 

I followed Kurt to the media center for his post race print media interviews and on the way he made a detour to Victory Lane to congradulate Mark.  Of course, I did not hesitate to follow him right in!

 

 Then he settled in next to his best bud for more interviews...

And finally, I headed back out to the garages where the Brew Crew was busy tearing down the #2 for the officials.  They had several hours of work left before flying out making it a very long two days but two very good ones at least! 

Thats it - I'll have another blog up more focused on Kurt and the Miller Lite team in a few days...Kurt was in rare form this weekend and funny as heck so I'll share some of those stories next time!

Finally here is the inside scoop from my time in the garages at Phoenix!   I will get the Saturday Garage report out soon and also have a blog focusing on Kurt and the Brew Crew at Phoenix.

Friday - Practice and Quals

The teams arrived in Phoenix on Thursday and had the cars already through initial inspections so they would be ready to roll onto the track for the 10a first practice.   I arrived at the track around 9a, grabbed my credentials and found the Brew Crew already hard at work. 

(From left:  Jeffrey (new car chief), Steve (rear-end mechanic), Billy (windshield/interior) and Darren (engine))

As Steve. the rear-end mechanic likes to say to me with a smile,  "If you can't get there on time, get there when you can."   As they toiled in the hot Arizona sun I made my rounds to say hello to the rest of the crew and others in the garages I have gotten to know.   The first practice was a marathon 2 hours and started with a scare for the Brew Crew as the Miller Lite Dodge shut itself off just as Kurt pulled out for practice.   The crew went to work immediately correcting the problem -- I think something with the ignition box and got the Blue Deuce out on the track.

While they were practicing I made my way over to the now famous Start and Parkers to snoop around.   It was a sad sight to see these teams with little to no equipment, no visable hauler, one small tool box and most of the teams don't even have uniforms.   Brandon Ash's crew was working in jeans and matching T-shirts.   Here we have a shot of Blaney's #66 Prism Motorsports Toyota. 

My sources tell me that owner Phil Parsons has no intention of finishing races, the crew does not even get paid (Blaney or who ever is driving does) and that the officials are not going after their bogus reasons for dropping out of the races because if they make the start and parkers tear down their cars then they would have to tear down the legit cars and they don't want to make the legit teams work that hard (or the officials don't want to work that hard).  

I told my source that fans would be highly disappointed to hear that Blaney was okay with this and the resopnse was "well if Blaney was a better driver he wouldn't be in this situation, sorry truth hurts."  OUCH!   So since these crews aren't even getting paid I decided to stick with my job of pulling the tool box through inspections for the Brew Crew instead.

There was only a half an hour in between practice and Happy Hour and it seemed all the drivers were doing their media interviews during that time.    Everywhere you looked --drivers drivers everywhere.   Here is our very own Lee Spencer getting the scoop on Junior's new diet...

 

I was peeking in on Carl Edward's interview and wasn't really paying attention to whose hauler area I was standing in and out pops "THE SHOW" to grab an icy cold beverage... 

  

Of course, Smoke had to blow off some fans asking for autographs on his way to talk to his teammate after practice to compare notes.   He and Ryan talked the entire time in between practices and had fans drooling with delight.     

     

And as SpeedBeagle so graciously pointed out -- The #2 hauler was right next to Gordon's hauler in the garages (remember that they line up according to points and the current Champ always gets the first spot) so I have lots of pictures of Jeffy poo...and yes, also a few of those uber-important, heavy little golden lugs too(!)   

          

After Happy Hour the crews had a few hours to get the cars through inspection before qualifying.  I asked them if anything was new on the car other than the longer studs and they said this antennae -- no one on the crew really knew what it was for but they thought it had something to do with the TV cameras.

Also new this year are the super cute new engine vent covers (ok I don't really know what that part of the car is called so feel free to chime in).    NASCAR is making the teams provide them now and some of the teams are getting pretty creative!      

The sleek Mobil 1 pegausus...

The cuddly Aarons Dream Machine pup...

and of course the obvious Miller Lite six-pack!

We pushed the Miller Lite Dodge out on pit road and lined up for qualifying.   I just love this  because I am "with the team" and can stay on pit road where only the broadcast media is allowed -- so I can get cool pictures like this...

and chat with the Penske teammates and get them to pose for a picture.

And snap this shot for our very own RA6AN...

Kurt laid down a great qualifying lap, picking up a lot of speed from practice.  The crew was only expecting a top 15 starting spot.  Must have been the pep talk by the Captain just before Kurt went out on the track that did the trick.

After qualifying was over, I did not stay for the Nationwide race but instead hit the road to visit with my family.    I have much more to come in the next blog about race day including more info on those pesky longer studs, even more problems with the 88 team, and a poor baby bird!    Stay tuned!