ZuDfunck

Dan Patrick a NASCAR Fan?

ZuD is always curious of who is and isn't a true NASCAR fan. Mr Patrick being the consummate interviewer makes it difficult to judge, but based on the rapport he has with some of these dudes, I would say he is. Click on the image to hear his interview and you be the judge.

Now that Dan Patrick has aligned with Sports Illustrated, he has an all new website. There is a lot going on on the site, beyond the ability to listen to his show live from 9 to noon EST, there is on demand options of interviews, among them are several NASCAR Drivers:

Dale Earnhardt Jr Billboard Revised

In advance of the Samsung 500, Texas Motor Speedway promoted the race with billboards. Humor gave in to political correctness and we now have this:

Where its' predecessor had more of a bite:

Thanx to Greg at RacingWin.com

ZuD's View on HBO's The Wire, Salem Witch Trials and 2008 Presidential Primary

Forgive the off topic, some say inappropriate and in bad taste post:

When I look at what's happening on the Wire
And see what is about to happen
The ill begotten wire tap frees Marlo and his Crew
I think back to why we need these constitutional protections

It wasn't that long ago in this country
If a man suspected a woman of being a Witch
all he had to do was claim it
and BOOM! One less woman in town

Say today
If Obama was to loose his cool on some debate tactic gone wrong
He could yell to Brian Williams
WITCH!

Hillary would be off the stage
Up for Trial
And Bill Clinton would be partying the next day
at some local TGIF, picking up strays.

NASCAR Themed Wedding Captured in YouTube Video

Jay Busbee at Yahoo Sports Blog 'From the Marbles' posted this Video and captioned it with:

You've gotta love it when NASCAR mania bleeds into your brain, like it has with the happy couple below, who take their love of NASCAR to a ridiculously high level at their wedding.

There's so much to love about this video -- the NASCAR-style introduction of the wedding party, the ultradorky ushers sliding in, the choreographed entrances of the bridesmaids and groomsmen (leapfrog at a wedding: ALWAYS welcome), the Eddie Van Halen wannabe on the straight-outta-the-80s guitar, the bride and groom entering to "Kickstart My Heart," the vaguel holy-crap-what-did-I-get-myself-into look on the groom's face during that first dance ... folks, this wedding is some kind of awesome. I'd lay odds that the marriage will last at least two full Cup seasons.

Lets all wish these folks that the energy displayed at the wedding translates into a long and happy bond:

NASCAR Fantasy Racing Resource: RotoWorld.com

Now ZuD has played Fantasy Football for giggles maybe the last three years and regretted it by week 4 but with NASCAR Fantasy Racing if you were to be able to lock on to the Hendrick team for example, you could have a delightful run. Don't know if that is possible, to have all the drivers of a particular owner and what's involved in drafting drivers, but it could be a tortuous run if you had some so so snake bit driver.

Saw this site RotoWorld that is certainly a prime resource for football it might be of some guidance for NASCAR. If you've had experience in this, drop a comment.

Fantasy Cheat Sheet:

Top 5

No. 48 Jimmie Johnson:  Johnson has won the past three Las Vegas races…enough said.
No. 24 Jeff Gordon: Gordon has three consecutive top five finishes at Vegas.  He should be in the lead pack again this weekend.
No. 17 Matt Kenseth:  Kenseth has won two of the last five races at Vegas.  He is a great bet to crack the top five again this weekend.
No. 18 Kyle Busch:  Busch has three straight top 10 finishes at his hometown track.  He is a great pick this weekend.
No. 20 Tony Stewart: Stewart has been a top five finisher at Vegas four times. There is a great chance he could find his way to victory lane for the first time at the track this weekend.

Kevin and DeLana Harvicks' Dog 'LO' Recovering

Being the thorough NASCAR Blogger that I am after hearing DeLana wasn't with Harvick at the tortuous weekend that was held at AutoClub Speedway this past weekend I did some serious googling to find this quote from Kevin in the Star Telegram from Speedweek in Daytona:

"The dog's doing fine," said Harvick, reporting on the condition of LO (for Little One), the family chihuahua. "She had surgery on her spine this morning and everything went good. [Wife] DeLana's at home with her. We've spent more time apart this week because the dog's been sick."

Then having found his website there is this from DeLana:

We have had many emails regarding LO, so we sat    down with DeLana to get the scoop and a few pictures!
 
   KH.com: How did surgery go?
   DeLana: The surgery went very well. They    were able to get 6, 2mm screws to fuse her 1st and 2nd vertebra together. The    doctor said they are all very secure and they are really pleased.
 
   KH.com: Are the doctors optimistic of a    full recovery?
   DeLana: There is a 60 percent recovery    rate, but LO is a tough little girl and we hope and pray she will make a full    recovery.
 
   KH.com: Has mom and dad been pampering    her?
   DeLana: Everyone has been pampering her –    Mom, Dad, Grandma, Anya (D’s Aunt) and all the wonderful people at the Vet!    There is certainly no shortage of attention as far as she is concerned.
 
   KH.com: Anything you want to share with    us?
   DeLana: She will have to stay in the body    cast for several more weeks. But, that’s a good thing to keep her as stable    as possible and give the bones the best chance to fuse together.

No story is complete without a picture:

When NASCAR's the Boss, There's No Way to Challenge A Call

Some decisions are just bad. Such as Sunday nights decision to go ahead and start the Auto Club 500 when by all accounts the seepage of water had increased. From Kathy's Pit Stop:

NASCAR in their infinite wisdom decided to start the race shortly after 6PM ET even though the track still had seeping in turns three and four.  Because of this we sit under a red flag after a bad wreck because of that seepage, thank God all the drivers involved are OK, especially Casey Mears who ended up getting flipped by Sam Hornish Jr.

I was listening to the scanner before the race and drivers were talking about the seepage in turns three and four while they were under the pace laps, many saying that they need to fix it before they start the race.  But, NASCAR started it anyways and there have been two cautions in just 21 laps and a red flag because of it.

NASCAR should have just postponed both races until tomorrow.

So ZuD may have to put his thinking cap on, as you folks out there as well and figure out how a sanctioning body should have to be accountable for such a move. It isn't as simple as in the NFL where a coach can throw a challenge flag and question the infinite wisdom of NASCAR. But there should be some dialog taking place. Now as I recall they did have a few drivers go out and scope out the seepage area but I think that was after it was a little too late. Mears, Hornish and Junior were already staring at their wrecked cars figuring out what next. I have been impressed with NASCAR's ability to make the right call most of the time. It's just that Sunday's decision was so obviously wrong it will take awhile to recover.

Do NASCAR Fans Watch HBO's The Wire

Every Monday nite I hurriedly access Comcast's on Demand and watch a sneak peak of The Wire, If you are a fan you know by now that Omar got popped buying a pack of Newports and all hell is about to break loose for the Good and the Bad guys. I wanted to post about this show as I have in the past but was concerned as to whether or not NASCAR fans can be HBO drama fans, such as The Wire, John from Cincinnati or the prematurely shelved classic Deadwood.

So I'll open it up in the comment section and you give me your thoughts. Right off you're entertainment dollars might be going to DirecTV or Trackpass and don't have monies left for HBO, or digital cable. Yes ZuD does recognize all is not good for many of us. But if we can put aside that Magilla, What Do You Think?

And here is an image of my boy Omar, who I thought could have had a spin-off series once the Wire ends one episode from now:

California Racing This Weekend Non-existent, Watch the Oscars

Don't know about your weekend but ZuD is about ready to switch over to ABC and watch the Oscars cause this California racing weekend has been one incredible Bust! Here this big fella is going to give the OK and we will be off racing. Think of the drivers who have to do double duty today. Lots of driving.

Give the Fox Gopher Cam a Name

Fox is looking for You to provide a name for the little gopher click on Image to go to it.

Television's never-ending goal is to bring the viewer as close to the action as possible," said FOX Sports Chairman David Hill. "We've had great past success with Catcher-Cam and Diamond-Cam in our MLB coverage and Grass Cam and Wall-Cam in NASCAR on FOX broadcasts.

"However, Gopher Cam, and forgive us for having some fun with the name, is different. These are HD cameras developed specifically for this use. The pictures are phenomenal, and the audio that the mikes provide is mean and loud. It's a tremendous complement to our Emmy-caliber NASCAR broadcasts."

In fact, there's just one problem: The poor gopher doesn't have a name.

But that's where you come in.

Send us your best suggestion as to what we should call the little fella. We'll sort through the best and come up with a name.

Until then, the gopher will continue to provide the most unique perspective the sport has to offer ... anonymously.

Ashley Judd's Website And Dress Uncovered

ZuDfunck has done extensive research on Ashley Judd and as a result uncovered this site devoted to her various achievements in film and life. The sites main image ain't that hard on the eyes either:

Ashley has a Website wherein the Dress is Cited...

Does Judd's dress cross line? by: David Newton ESPN Blog Entry:

NASCAR exec Jim Hunter, dressed slightly more conservative in his signature sweater-vest and golf shoes, wasn't any more diplomatic. Seems all of these guys are more interested in how Judd's attire could boost ratings than they are safety.

Yes, safety.

Imagine if a car flies by at a high speed and blows Judd's dress up, a la Marilyn Monroe. Imagine all the accidents that could cause as drivers and crew members are more focused on those famous legs than what's happening around them.

It could be a disaster

Anger at Teresa Earnhardt Explored

Far be it for me to open up Old Wounds but I think it's important to not let go of the role Teresa Earnhardt played in the fact there is a Car # 88 and Mark Martin driving Car # 8. I was never that hooked up to Junior, I don't own memorabilia that is now obsolete, but apparently this dude feels for those who do:

But they should not be angry at Dale Earnhardt Jr. Their anger should be directed at one person – Teresa Earnhardt, Dale Sr.’s widow and Junior’s stepmom.

It is because of her that Dale Earnhardt Jr. had no choice but to leave DEI and will now wind up driving for another Chevrolet team.

So when you have to throw away your red No. 8 T-shirts and buy new Junior gear (with part of the proceeds going to Richard Childress Racing or Joe Gibbs Racing or Hendrick Motorsports, and not into the Earnhardt coffers at DEI), don’t blame Earnhardt Jr.

It’s Teresa Earnhardt who just cost you money and spit on your loyalty.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. driving for the family team his father founded was one of the most special relationships in sports. Not anymore. Now it’s being busted up like a bad marriage.

Awaiting California Events to Begin, ZuD Looks Ahead

As we look ahead in the schedule to upcoming races I am most excited about the short track events, Bristol Sat, Mar. 15 & Sun, Mar. 16 and the Talladega Superspeedway Sat, Apr. 26 & Sun. Apr. 27. Then the Night races that follow in May. Here's a sample with the focus on the Nationwide Series:

Sat, Mar. 1 4:30 PM ET	NASCAR Nationwide Series at Las Vegas Las Vegas Motor Speedway		Tickets Travel
Sat, Mar. 8 2:00 PM ET	NASCAR Nationwide Series at Atlanta Atlanta Motor Speedway		Tickets Travel
Sat, Mar. 15 2:30 PM ET	NASCAR Nationwide Series at Bristol Bristol Motor Speedway		Tickets Travel
Sat, Mar. 22 3:00 PM ET	NNS at Nashville presented by Tractor Supply Company Nashville Superspeedway		Tickets Travel
Sat, Apr. 5 3:00 PM ET	NASCAR Nationwide Series at Texas presented by Yamaha Texas Motor Speedway		Tickets Travel
Fri, Apr. 11 9:45 PM ET	NNS at Phoenix presented by Cici's Pizza Phoenix International Raceway		Tickets Travel
Sun, Apr. 20 2:00 PM ET	NASCAR Nationwide Series at Mexico City Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez		Travel
Sat, Apr. 26 3:00 PM ET	Aaron's 312 at Talladega Talladega Superspeedway		Tickets Travel
Fri, May. 2 7:30 PM ET	NASCAR Nationwide Series at Richmond Richmond International Raceway		Tickets Travel
Fri, May. 9 7:30 PM ET	NASCAR Nationwide Series at Darlington Darlington Raceway		Tickets Travel

NASCAR Driver Tony Stewart Thrown from Car

Well in a TV commercial that is, actually it was voted the most popular ad during the Daytona 500. I missed it somehow and if you did also, it's on this page entitled: 'Toyota Fancontroller'

NASCAR Hotties: Chandra & Jimmie Johnson

Now depending on your gender or sexual orientation you'll go for the Hottie on the left or right but Answer This has both covered. Her Flickr Slideshow is something to behold. Josh Walker has a detailed anaylsis of Hotties albeit minus photos in his post Twelve suggestions for a ‘Women of NASCAR Hottie Calendar’
So that should keep ya for now...

Dale Earnhardt Jr Grew Up Drinking Mountain Dew

The back story from NASCAR.com on how Pepsi signed up Junior paying 25 to 30 million to sponsor the #88 car per year. The rationale for Junior, he's 'been doing the dew' all along:   

The first of those constellations in motion was that Junior grew up drinking Mountain Dew, a Pepsi-owned brand since 1964. In addition, Pepsi had a successful relationship with Junior's new team, Hendrick Motorsports. One of its star drivers, Gordon, has been sponsored by Pepsi since 1996.

For Pepsi, getting Gordon's buy-in was key. Given its longtime relationship with him, Pepsi approached the four-time NASCAR champion before it ever spoke to Earnhardt directly, seeking Gordon's blessing, if not his permission, to sign the driver who had raced under the Bud flag for nearly a decade.

"It's kind of like A-Rod and Jeter," Genesco CEO John Tatum said. "You don't want to ruin the dynamics in your locker room, even if you are adding a superstar. But Gordon was behind this from the start; [he] figured it was just another teammate for him in the race."

But the impetus for Pepsi to empty its wallet for America's top motorsports attraction derived from a different race. While full-calorie sodas have been bubbling out of fashion over the past decade, energy drinks, most notably Red Bull, have become a $6.5 billion market -- and one with considerably better margins than carbonated soft drinks.

Pepsi is accustomed to being first or second within beverage categories.

But within energy drinks, it has a somewhat haphazard portfolio: SoBe's No Fear, some Starbucks-branded beverages and Amp, which has a market share of around 6 percent depending on the data source.

Unaccustomed and tired of riding the fifth horse in a five-horse energy drink race, Pepsi's senior management decided early last year that it would spend against this growing market and it knew that to challenge competitors, it would have to ramp up Amp.

Every energy drink has action sports endorsers and many have motorsports ties of some kind. But none had a driver near Earnhardt's stature.

Before Earnhardt's defection from DEI became public last May, Pepsi executives knew that was where they wanted to spend behind Amp.

NASCAR on TV This Weekend 2/22-2/24/08 Updated Fri 8PM

Hooray, did you folks realize the California Nationwide will be under the lights? Didn't realize Fontana had lights or is it the time difference? Anyway a quick look at what's in store for this weekend on the ZuD's Panasonic:

Friday: NASCAR Nationwide Series, Stater Bros. 300, Fontana, Calif., practice, Speed Channel, 12:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.; NASCAR Sprint Cup, Auto Club 500, Fontana, Calif., Speed Channel, practice, 3 p.m.; pole qualifying, 6:30 p.m.; NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, San Bernardino County 200, Fontana, Calif., pole qualifying, Speed Channel, 4:30 p.m.

Saturday: See Below for Update NASCAR Sprint Cup, Auto Club 500, practice, Speed Channel, 11:30 a.m. and 5 p.m.; NASCAR Nationwide Series, Stater Bros. 300, pole qualifying, Speed Channel, 12:30p.m.; race, ESPN2, 7:30 p.m.; NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, San Bernardino County 200, Fox, 3 p.m.

Sunday: NASCAR Sprint Cup, Auto Club 500, Fox, 3:30 p.m.

Via

UPDATED FRI 8PM: The revised schedule now has Nationwide Series final practice beginning at 12:30 p.m. ET, followed by the Craftsman Truck Series San Bernardino County 200 at 3 p.m. The Stater Bros. 300 is set for 7:30 p.m.

The latest weather forecast shows partly cloudy and a high near 60 for Saturday, but another front is expected to reach Southern California by late Saturday night.

VIA Cup, Nationwide, Truck quals all canceled with Friday rain

 

Auto Club 500 at California Speedway Primer

I have always found this listing from America's Great Sports Page the best spot to whet my beak on upcoming races and Driver reports:

NASCAR FAST FACTS
What: Auto Club 500, second of 36 races on NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule. Where: California Speedway, 2-mile D-shaped oval in Fontana, Calif. When: Sunday, 4 p.m. ET TV: Fox, 3:30 p.m. ET Weather: Conditions, forecast Track tidbits: Veteran Mark Martin is scheduled to make his 700th start in NASCAR's top series. ... Matt Kenseth has won the last two runnings of California's February race. ... In 15 races since the 2-mile track began hosting the Cup series in 1997, the pole winner has never gone on to win the event.

Daytona 500 TV Coverage: Ad's, Drivers and Graphic Breakdown

Now I know there are folks out there who complain about commercials cluttering up a broadcast, or the graphics for sponsors getting in the way, but what follows from Cheryl Walker at CawsnJaws is stunning.
She details it thoroughly in Commercial breakdown, driver focus, and links related to the 2008 Daytona 500:
A Sample:

Total number of commercials: 122 

Total number of companies or entities advertised:  65

Total number of brief promos of products/services during the race broadcast:  37

Total number of companies or entities advertised in brief promos or crawlers: 26 (companies:  Subway, Sprint, Budweiser, DirecTV, NAPA, Ford, Allstate, ‘Home Depot Ask the Pros’ at FoxSports.com, Chevy Malibu, FedEx, Auto Zone, Claritin, AutismSpeaks.org, Auto Club 500 race at California Speedway, PepsiStuff.com, PepsiCo/EnAble, Coke Zero, Radio Shack, ‘Semi-Pro’, GoodYear, Gillette, UPS, AT&T, State Farm, ‘You Decide 2008 on Fox News’)

Total amount of time these brief promos take during broadcast:  app.  4 min. 35 

Also, there are the following race statistics during the broadcast, sponsored by companies:

Fox ‘Gopher Cam’
Fox ‘Pit Watch’
NASCAR on Fox ‘Race Analysis’
NAPA ‘In-Car’
FedEx ‘Race Trax Question’
FedEx ‘In-Car’
Chevy ‘In-Car’
Ford ‘Moves of the Race’
Toyota ‘Top Performers’
AT&T ‘In-Car’
DirecTV ‘Aerial Coverage’
AT&T ‘Race Break’
NASCAR on Fox ‘Fox Weather Station
Claritin ‘Clear to Drive Restart’
AMP Energy Drink ‘In-Car’
Budweiser ‘In-Car’
Sears ‘Race Summary’
State Farm ‘Safety Report’
Allstate ‘Good Hands Driver of the Race’
NASCAR on Fox ‘Crank it Up’

Start time to record race/commercial periods: 3:20 PM 
End time to record race/commercial periods:  6:58 PM 

Total minutes: 218 

Robby Gordon, Earnhardt Jr, Lead List of Penalized Drivers from Daytona

Good Lord, NASCAR threw the rule book at Robby Gordon, Junior and a few lesserknown teams in attempt to crack down on violations:

NASCAR penalized a total of 10 teams and crew chiefs from its three national touring series Wednesday due to infractions discovered during Speedweeks at Daytona International Speedway.

Penalized in Sprint Cup was the team of    Robby Gordon, owner and driver of the No. 7 Dodge. The car's nose violated Sections 12-4-A (actions detrimental to stock car racing); 12-4-Q (car, car parts, components and/or equipment used do not conform to NASCAR rules); and 20-3.10A (unapproved front bumper cover). The violations were found during opening-day inspection for the Daytona 500 on Feb. 8.

Gordon was penalized 100 driver and 100 owner points. Crew chief Frank Kerr was fined $100,000, suspended for the next six events until April 9 and placed on probation until Dec. 31.

Penalized in the Nationwide Series were:

Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the No. 5 car, and crew chief Chad Walter. It violated Sections 12-4-A; 12-4-Q; 20A-3.1.1E (1) (the rear ends of the spoiler did not meet the specified height); and 20A-3.12.1A (altered rear spoiler after passing template inspection to enhance aerodynamic performance). The violation occurred following practice Feb. 14.

Earnhardt was docked 50 driver points, while car owner Rick Hendrick was docked 50 owner points. Walter was fined $25,000 and suspended for the next six NASCAR Nationwide Series events until April 9, and placed on probation until Dec. 31.

The No. 0, No. 1, No. 14, No. 64, and No. 77 cars that violated Sections 12-4-A; 12-4-Q; and 20A-8.4C (the oil reservoir tank cover was not fastened securely). The violations were discovered during post-qualifying inspection Feb. 15. Each of the cars' respective drivers and owners —Kertus Davis/Johnny Davis for the No. 0;    Johnny Sauter/James Finch for the No. 1;    David Gilliland/Carl Haas for the No. 14;    David Stremme/Ed Rensi for the No. 64; and    Cale Gale/ DeLana Harvick for the No. 77 — were docked 25 driver and 25 owner points.

Crew chiefs Gene Allnutt (No. 0); Newt Moore (No. 1); Bob Edwards (No. 14); Steve Darne (No. 64); and Charlie Wilson (No. 77) were each fined $15,000 and suspended for the next six races and placed on probation until Dec. 31.

Jerry Baxter, crew chief for the No. 99 car, received a $5,000 fine and was placed on probation until July 9 for violating Sections 12-4-A, 12-4-Q and 20A-5.10.1B(3) (carburetor venturies exceeded the specified size). This infraction took place during opening-day inspection Feb. 12.

Via Mark DeCotis, Florida Today via USA Today