Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Kenny Wallace Links

Kenny Wallace Racing 2007 - Home Kenny Cruise 2007 · Kenny and Coastal 181 Produce a New Book: "Inside Herman's World" · Driver Kenny Wallace on the Hood of #78 at Darlington Raceway ...
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Herman Store - www.kennywallace.com/store.htm
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Kenny Wallace Racing 2007 Hanging With Herman: Missing Michigan · Story: No stranger to dirt tracks, Schrader, Wallace · Danger KW.COM is Moving · Dirt: Kenny Wins at Macon ...
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Kenny Wallace - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia After Walkins Glen in 2007 Kenny Wallace stepped down as the driver of the number 78 Furniture Row Racing chevy. On August 22nd 2007 it was announced that ...
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NASCAR.COM : drivers : Kenny WallaceKenny Wallace. Previous A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | Y | Z Next ...
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FOX Sports on MSN: Kenny Wallace Kenny Wallace pictures, video, news, stats, fantasy info, scouting, awards, game logs, hometown, college, birth date and more for Kenny Wallace.
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Kenny Wallace News - Topix News on Kenny Wallace continually updated from thousands of sources around the net.
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Kenny Wallace - NASCAR - Yahoo! Sports The latest stats, facts, news and notes on Kenny Wallace.
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Kenny Wallace (Topic list) - Motorsports Lounge - Powered by Fusion BB Kenny Wallace, Kenny Wallace, Kenny Wallace, Kenny Wallace, Kenny Wallace. Welcome KW fans! ... Kenny Wallace KMOX Book of the Month Club to be rebroadcast ...
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Kenny Wallace : Rotoworld.com - Kenny Wallace Biography from ...Kenny Wallace - Kenny Wallace Biography from Rotoworld.com. We have the story on Kenny Wallace. All the Kenny Wallace updates, Kenny Wallace news - all at ...
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Auto Racing Kenny Wallace - CBSSports.com Nextel Cup Home · Results · Standings · Box Score · Schedule · Drivers. Kenny Wallace, Kenny Wallace. Born: 08/23/1963 Hometown: St. Louis, Mo. ...
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Thursday, August 23, 2007

Rain...rain...rain...

Well, after long last the NASCAR Nextel Cup race at Michigan finally ran on Tuesday.

What was the deal with starting the race UNDER YELLOW when there was obviously a blanket of fog on the track? I liked how first they commented that NASCAR was making sure the track was dry...then making sure the spotters could see...then making sure the tower could see.

I think the commentators make it up on the fly at times. lol

And the whole Kevin Harvick/Juan Pablo Montoya thing is kind of old...Kevin. I mean come on...Montoya did a good job of keeping the car off the wall. But even if he'd crashed it up big time...is that really a good time to actually gloat on the radio?

You know...the whole he who laughs last thing...

It was a wreck. It happens. Move on.

Oh yeah...Kurt Busch won the race.

Bah.

Saturday, August 18, 2007

NASCAR....Crime and Punishment

Hmmmmm....not responding promptly to a black flag earned Robby Gordon a suspension from the Cup race...yet state your desire to kick someone's ass on national television......no problem. "Good for the sport"..."boys being boys".....

NASCAR's rules seem to have no rhyme or reason.

By definition....A threat is a declaration of intention to inflict punishment or harm on another. It will often be conditional upon a particular course of action on the part of the recipient.

oh well....whatever.

Montoya, Harvick feud not over

Montoya, Harvick feud not over

By Diego Mejia Saturday, August 18th 2007, 03:11 GMT


Kevin Harvick and Juan Pablo Montoya met today with NASCAR officials at Michigan International Speedway to talk about their incident at Watkins Glen, but apparently peace was not made between the pair.

Montoya crashed into Harvick after being pushed from behind by Martin Truex Jr on a restart with 17 laps to go last Sunday at Watkins Glen. They had a verbal exchange and pushed and grabbed each other after climbing from their wrecked cars until being split by officials.

NASCAR said earlier this week that no penalties would be imposed on either driver. In their meeting today at Michigan, Montoya and Harvick were told that they would not be allowed to go further than they went at Watkins Glen, as Montoya confirmed.

"Yeah, we went, both of us. And they said, you know, you've got to be careful guys, because that's the limit of things you can do," Montoya said.

When asked if he had called Harvick this week to try and clear the air over their incident, the Colombian replied he didn't need to apologize because he had done nothing wrong at Watkins Glen.

"No. If I would have done something wrong I would," Montoya added. "But in myself and in my team I don't think we did anything wrong. I would have screwed up on the brakes and spun by myself and taken him out, I'd say 'Hey, you're completely right' but it wasn't."

"When it's been my fault before, we got together at Daytona and it was my fault, I even called him and said, 'Hey, I'm sorry.'"

Montoya stated he would prefer to have a good relationship with Harvick and lamented that the Richard Childress driver was still pointing at him for causing the accident that later raised the animosity between them.

"It's a shame," the Ganassi driver added. "You know, I think he's a great guy, he's a great racer and it's a shame the position he's in. I think we're mature enough and big enough.

"I haven't been in this sport long enough but I've been racing all my life and I learned to get over things like this because we're going to meet again and again and again in the racetrack and it's a lot nicer and better when you have a good relationship."

Harvick criticized Montoya earlier on Friday and insisted he still has the same opinion about their crash.

"I've had a look at the tape and what I've seen is what I saw in my mirror: a car dart to the right, block and run into the side of me," said Harvick. "He drives like he doesn't know what he's doing, to be honest with you. He goes out, he can run fast but he's all over the place and every week it seems like he runs into a different person.

"In four weeks it's cost us a couple of hundred points and he shrugs it off like he doesn't really care about anybody or anything, that he's just here to race. You make him mad and it's: 'Well I've got a five-year contract and I'll just wreck you every week.' It's hard to talk to him and he doesn't really respect anyone around him."

The reigning Busch Series champion went as far as claiming that he was not alone on his opinion about Montoya.

"My opinion is pretty widespread. I'm not the only one with that opinion. Everybody's tired of tearing their stuff up for no reason," added Harvick.

To make things more interesting, they will be starting one behind the other on Sunday's race at Michigan. Montoya qualified ahead on 26th, while Harvick will be taking the start from 28th place on the grid.

Who is Chad Knaus?

Chad Anthony Knaus (pronounced kuh-NOWSE) (born August 5, 1971 in Rockford, Illinois) is a NASCAR Nextel Cup crew chief for Jimmie Johnson, who currently drives the #48 Lowe's Chevrolet Monte Carlo owned by teammate Jeff Gordon and operated by Rick Hendrick's Hendrick Motorsports.

Born in Illinois, Chad Knaus grew up around the racetracks of the Midwest helping his father race against the likes of Mark Martin, Alan Kulwicki, Rusty Wallace and Dick Trickle. By the time he was 14, Knaus served as crew chief during his father's Rockford Speedway championship season. The father-son combination also won the Great Northern Series championship and finished second in the Winston Racing Series. A few years and many victories later, Knaus moved to North Carolina in 1991 to pursue a job in national stock car racing.

After working with Stanley Smith's stock car team, Knaus landed a job working on the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports team led by crew chief Ray Evernham and raced by driver Jeff Gordon. From 1993 to 1997, Knaus advanced from a general fabricator to manage the entire chassis and body construction program for the No. 24 team. Serving as a tire changer on the original Rainbow Warriors pit crew, Knaus was an integral part of the 1995 and 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Championship teams.

Following the 1997 season, Knaus joined Dale Earnhardt, Inc. as car chief, where he worked with Steve Park, and later Michael Waltrip. During the 1998 season, he moved to Tyler Jet Motorsports, and in 1999, the call came that would lead Knaus to Dodge, Melling Racing and his ultimate career goal. Ray Evernham wanted Knaus to lead the Dodge Development team, an opportunity he quickly seized.

During two Dodge test sessions, Knaus worked with Melling Racing driver Stacy Compton. The two worked well together, resulting in Knaus' hire as crew chief for Compton in 2001.

Criticism
In early 2006, Knaus was accused of "cheating" after Jimmie Johnson's Daytona 500 qualifying run. Knaus made an illegal adjustment to the rear window, which resulted in his suspension from Cup events until March 22. Despite the loss of his crew chief, Johnson won the Daytona 500 with interim crew chief, Darian Grubb. While more accusations of cheating were made, the car passed NASCAR inspection.

On June 23, 2007, Knaus again found himself at the center of controversy. Knaus admitted to making modifications to the front fenders of the racecar to improve front downforce. These modifications were discovered and disallowed during initial inspection. [1] Johnson was not allowed to qualify the car, and he started at the back of the field. Knaus was fined $100,000, and was suspended for six races.

Unrepentent Knaus and Letarte back at the track, getting teams ready for Chase

Unrepentent Knaus and Letarte back at the track, getting teams ready for Chase

By MIKE HARRIS, AP Auto Racing Writer

August 18, 2007

AP - Aug 17, 7:57 pm EDT
More Photos

BROOKLYN, Mich. (AP) -- After finishing a six-week NASCAR suspension, crew chief Steve Letarte was back at the track and, apparently, feeling just a little strange to be there.

"Throughout the whole process, when we weren't on the track, we were on the phone with Steve and he was as much a part of it as he could be," said his driver, Jeff Gordon. "It's awkward for him because he hasn't been in the garage area. He almost feels like going to the bus to call us."

Since they were suspended in June, Letarte and fellow Hendrick Motorsports crew chief Chad Knaus have managed to stay busy. But that hasn't kept them from being frustrated.

"I'm not going to lie to you, it's tough," Knaus said Friday after rejoining reigning Cup champion Jimmie Johnson and his No. 48 team at Michigan International Speedway to prepare for Sunday's 3M Performance 400.

Knaus and Letarte, who works with the No. 24 of four-time Cup champion Gordon, were banned from attending six races after NASCAR technical inspectors found front fenders that were not approved on their entries before the June 24 race at Sonoma.

"It's very frustrating," said Letarte, who had never before been suspended. "I (could) do everything Monday through Thursday to prepare them, give them my notes, give them my ideas, this is how the last race went, this is how the next race might go. But, when they leave and come out to the racetrack, they're kind of on their own."

Knaus has had suspensions in the past -- and they don't get any easier.

"I've never done anything else my whole life and Steve's in the same boat," Knaus said. "In 24, 25 years of racing, I've been gone every weekend, every week I'm gone somewhere else, some other town going racing.

"When you instill that kind of competitive nature into your blood, it's kind of difficult to unplug yourself. But it's what happens, you just have to deal with it. I didn't enjoy it, that's for sure. It's good to be back."

Both teams have done a decent job in the absence of their leaders.

Gordon, leading the season standings, has posted top-10 finishes in all six races and increased his points lead over runner-up Denny Hamlin from 171 -- after NASCAR docked both Gordon and Johnson 100 points for "Fender-gate" -- to 344.

Johnson hasn't been quite as fortunate.

He was fourth, 366 behind his teammate after the points deduction. Heading into Sunday's event -- one of four races left before the 12-man field for the Chase for the championship is set -- Johnson is seventh, 595 points behind Gordon, who has already clinched a spot in the postseason.

There's little chance Johnson will miss out on the Chase, since he is still 356 points in front of 13th-place Ryan Newman. But momentum is key heading into the stock car playoff.

Crashes in consecutive races at Chicago and Indianapolis relegated Johnson to finishes of 37th and 39th and seriously slowed his team's progress. But he has since righted the ship, finishing fifth at Pocono and third at Watkins Glen.

Both teams greeted the return of their crew chief with a strong effort Friday, with Gordon winning his series-leading sixth pole of the year and Johnson qualifying seventh.

"I think that Steve just brings a little something special," Gordon said. "He's the guy who's gotten us into the situation, leading the points, winning four races and qualified for the Chase."

Since the crew chiefs were suspended only from coming to the tracks, Knaus and Letarte were able to take the lead in repairing Johnson's battered cars.

"We share a shop and the No. 24 has been fortunate," Letarte said. "We've had some pretty good luck all year. The No. 48 has been a little unfortunate, getting caught up in some of those accidents. So we've just been making sure that the two teams have a full stable of cars entering the Chase."

Johnson appeared relieved to have Knaus, the only crew chief he's had in his six seasons in Cup, back at the track.

"We're very proud of the team and the effort we've put out through all of it, but there's no doubt that we've been less of a team without Knaus at the track," the driver said.

Neither one of the crew chiefs was repentant about the technical violations that prompted the penalties.

"I'm sorry for what happened but, for the reason that it happened, I'm not sorry because what we did was not something that we thought was bad," Knaus said. "We didn't feel like we were breaking the rules.

"I don't feel any regret, remorse or anything like that. Am I sorry I missed the races? Am I sorry that I wasn't there? Absolutely. ... But regret or remorse, no, that's not even an option."

Letarte said he too is just ready to move on.

"If you're asking if I laid awake at night thinking about it, no," he said. "I'm not too worried about it. I kind of have bigger goals. I lay awake more at night trying to figure out how we're going to win a championship (rather) than for not being here for the last six races."

Friday, August 17, 2007

Driver John Blewett killed in Thompson Speedway crash involving brother, other cars

Driver John Blewett killed in Thompson Speedway crash involving brother, other cars

By STEPHEN SINGER, Associated Press Writer
August 17, 2007

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) -- A 33-year-old race car driver died in a crash involving his brother and several cars at the Thompson Motor Speedway.

John Blewett III of Howell, N.J., died Thursday night after he and Jimmy Blewett hit a wall in the 107th lap of the 150-lap NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour event in Thompson.

John Blewett's car ended up on top of his brother's car, said Woody Pitkat, who was behind the crash.

"Jimmy got out of his car. He was yelling and screaming. He was just a wreck," Pitkat said in a telephone interview Friday. "He was yelling at people to get (John) out of the car."

John Blewett, who suffered head and neck injuries, was extricated from the car and taken to Hubbard Regional Hospital in Webster, Mass., where he was pronounced dead, state police said.

It's being investigated as an untimely death, a state police spokesman said.

A NASCAR spokesman said the Blewett brothers were veteran drivers. Pitkat estimated the speed of the cars at more than 100 mph at the time of the crash.

"I was laying back because they were racing pretty hard," said Pitkat, whose car was hit from the rear.

Also at Thompson speedway, a professional all-terrain vehicle driver from Easthampton, Mass., was killed during practice laps in May 2006.

Two years earlier, race car driver Tommy Baldwin of Moriches, N.Y., was killed in a crash in a Featherlite modified race.

Sunday, August 12, 2007

Matt Kenseth's Fan at Watkins Glen

hehe...forgot about this earlier...

okay, the cars are all stopped on the track for the red flag while they are clearing turn 1 following the Harvick/Montoya/Burton clanger.

Shirtless dude CLIMBS over a little barrier ONTO the track toting a hat....wanting an autograph from Matt Kenseth.

DURING THE RACE... lol

It was funny, but it could of been ugly. Sheesh...what's NASCAR's policy on driver safety again? Good grief...

Wheel Hop de Bob...what is a wheel hop?

Wheel hop...wheel hop...wheel hop...I keep hearing it, so I had to look it up.

Definition: An undesirable suspension characteristic in which a wheel (or several) moves up and down so violently that it actually leaves the ground. Wheel hop can be caused by many problems, including excessive unsprung weight, insufficient shock damping, or poor torsional axle control.

Hmmmm... okay...

Will Harvick be Penalized for the Montoya Showdown?

Now, I don't know how NASCAR will rule...but it sure looked to me like Montoya was trying to walk away from Harvick while Harvick just kept after him.

It was Harvick who parked his car in front of Montoya and then beelined over to confront him.

Wasn't it Harvick that punted Pruett last week? Heck...Montoya didn't even cause it.

But him declaring in the interview that he was wanting to kick Montoya's ass....that was dumb on his part. Sheesh...the camera light was on! Montoya might be brutal on the track, but Kevin didn't help his cause when he documented his intent... dumb, dumb, dumb. :)

Watkins Glen Race Results... Stewart Wins after Gordon Loses It

Well...after that long red flag stop of the race following the Harvick and Montoya melee, the racing started back up. Don't know what Gordon was thinking...did his rear brakes take over? However he overdrove into turn 1 and spun himself out of the win.

Carl Edwards was all over Stewart then, but blew the corner while Stewart cruised to take the checkers.

Of course, Stewart had made the same mistake back on lap 30, but he had time to recover...unlike Gordon.

Now the thing between Juan Pablo and Kevin Harvick...goodness! Truex got into the back of Montoya. Truex caused that accident...the pushing and shoving afterwards looked a little silly. Loved Rusty blurting out that he wanted to see if they were gonna fight. ha!

Speaking of Rusty...his quote of the day had to be after the race when he proclaimed that he had NEVER seen a race like that in a long time! Now which is it Rusty...have you never seen a race like it...or just not in a long time? ;)

Monday, August 6, 2007

Busch wins at Pocono

Busch snaps winless drought; drives back into Chase contention

By DAN GELSTON, AP Sports Writer

August 6, 2007

LONG POND, Pa. (AP) -- Kurt Busch was desperately looking for a full-time crew chief to jolt his middling season. Pat Tryson longed for a second chance to show he could still lead a team to a Nextel Cup championship.

Once they got together, Busch and Tryson have been a perfect match.

With Tryson calling the shots, Busch dominated from start-to-finish and zoomed into championship contention with his first victory in 51 races Sunday at Pocono Raceway.

Busch's resurgence started when Tryson joined Penske Racing six races ago, the third crew chief the former champion has had this season. The win lifted Busch into the 12th and final spot of the Chase for the Nextel Cup standings -- one ahead of Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- with five races left until the championship races start.

``I don't know that I'm surprised because of how talented Kurt is as a race car driver,'' Tryson said. ``I didn't expect it to be this dominant.''

Busch, who turned 29 on Saturday, hadn't been in the top 12 in points since a 100-point penalty for reckless driving in June knocked him six spots down to 17th.

Now he's back and on his biggest roll of the season. He turned a 13-point deficit behind Junior into a seven-point edge.

``You know it's going to come down to the final race in Richmond,'' Busch said.

Busch, who had surged to 13th in the standings entering the Pennsylvania 500, led all but 25 laps and made his second career Pocono victory look easy. The 175 laps led was a Pocono record.

Not even a lug nut problem on pit road under caution late in the race and a hard-charging Earnhardt affected him very much. His No. 2 Dodge was clearly the car to beat all day.

Busch fell to ninth on the restart on the 143rd lap, but quickly made up ground and passed the revitalized Earnhardt for the lead with 47 laps left.

The 2004 series champion needs to keep his hot streak going -- three top 10s in four races -- if he wants to keep his spot for the 10-race Chase for the Nextel Cup championship.

It was Busch's first win since March 26, 2006, at Bristol, and he was second in both Pocono races last year.

``You never for one instant think you have the race in the bag,'' Busch said. ``The only time I really thought about it was coming to the checkered, lap 199 coming to 200.''

The race didn't include Robby Gordon, who was suspended by NASCAR early Sunday morning for his conduct at the Busch Series race in Montreal a day before.

Earnhardt was second and Denny Hamlin, who swept both races at Pocono last year, finished third. Points leader Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson rounded out the top five.

``We actually had a stronger car than the last time we were here,'' said Gordon, who won at Pocono in June. ``If the No. 2 car didn't exist today, then maybe some of us had a chance to win this thing. But wow.''

Tony Stewart had his two-race winning streak snapped and was sixth.

Busch led nearly the entire race except for a short stretch near the end when Earnhardt shook off early trouble with the No. 8 Chevrolet and temporarily took the lead. But Earnhardt, who failed to capitalize on his first pole since 2002, couldn't press him for very long.

``I don't want to finish 12th, I want to finish eighth or seventh,'' Junior said. ``We've got a few races, but I think we'll do fine.''

Certainly the 500-mile race wasn't as wild or controversial as the Busch Series race Saturday in Montreal. Robby Gordon upstaged the debut weekend for the series in Canada with his antics on the track, including his refusal to pull off the track as ordered and celebrating the same time as race winner Kevin Harvick.

NASCAR suspended Gordon for Sunday's race, and additional disciplinary action could come this week. P.J. Jones drove Gordon's car and finished 37th.

``I'll accept my penalty and I'll accept sitting out today's race,'' Gordon said.

Busch knows all about the consequences of stiff penalties after he was docked 100 points for reckless driving and endangering one of Stewart's crew members on pit road at Dover.

Busch said after qualifying second on Friday that he hoped those 100 points wouldn't be a factor in making the Chase. With the way he's driving the No. 2 Dodge, they won't matter.

``We've thrown away quite a bit of points this year,'' Busch said, rattling off a list of blown races. ``I'm not going to look back at those 100 points and think it's a deficit. It only made us into a stronger program.''

So did adding Tryson, who was available when he was let go as Greg Biffle's crew chief earlier this season. Tryson, a Malvern, Pa., native has given the Penske Racing a program a needed boost and settled the crew chief position that was filled by Troy Raker and Roy McCauley.

``I'm lucky enough to come in and work for these guys,'' Tryson said. ``They've accepted me and done everything I've asked.''

With these kind of results, why wouldn't they?