Archive for category NASCAR
‘Lotta Broadcasting – A Boy’s Dream – From Go-Karts to NASCAR Exclusive with Landon Cassill
Posted by 'lottasports in Exclusives, Lotta Sports on KWQQRadio, NASCAR on April 14, 2016
Part of my exclusive with NASCAR’s Landon Cassill during his recent visit in Texas.
This aired on 1610am 106.3fm KWQQRadio.com this week. Hope you’ll tune in for ‘Lotta Sports and Sports Snapshot — Daily on KWQQ Radio!
‘Lotta Happenings — Exclusive with NASCAR’s Chris Buescher
Posted by 'lottasports in Exclusives, Hill Country Happenings Articles, NASCAR on December 1, 2014
On Friday of race week was my interview with rookie Nationwide driver Chris Buescher. I was set up to meet Chris at Fuzzy’s on the infield. Fuzzy’s was packed and it was a gorgeous day, so I opted for an outside picnic table. There was no doubt when he approached the fence around Fuzzy’s that it was him. Like a baseball pitcher having that distinctive solid arm, Chris had the race car driver build. His 22nd birthday was two days before so I greeted him with a Tootsie Pop and apologized for it not being a Bit-O-Honey (Chris’s sponsor). We sat up on the picnic table with the wind occasionally flapping the umbrella behind us.
I congratulated him on his win in August at Mid-Ohio, one of NASCAR’s few road course races. I love road racing as it’s not the norm of “Turn Left.” It truly tests a driver’s racing skills on hills, curves and straightaways. The race Chris won was particularly exciting as he was on fuel conversation the final laps of the race. I shared with him that I was on my feet the last five laps — standing just a couple of feet away from my TV monitor when the announcer said he was racing on fumes. Chris laughed. “Yes, driving changes when you’re shifting fuel on each turn and each hill. Coast and save!” The last three laps seemed to last forever with his fuel pressure light flashing and Chris expecting to run out of gas at any moment! On the last turn, he jiggled the Mustang just right and crossed the finish line ahead of Regan Smith and Brian Scott. His crew greeted him from atop a barricade and shared in the jubilance of the driver’s first Nationwide win. “So, do you like racing road courses?” I asked the rookie. He laughed and replied, “I do now!” What was even more meaningful to him that weekend was bonding with the kids from Children’s Hospital, the race’s sponsor. Chris was paired with Patient Champion Luke Benner, a six year-old diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. The boy’s picture was displayed on Buescher’s car. I had predicted on Twitter for Chris to win that race. “You did?” he replied surprised. “Yes and I also picked Brendan to win the road course at Road America,” I shared. “So, how are you feeling about the Texas race?” he inquired. I smiled. With the Cup drivers participating, I felt a top 10 was a possibility. His hope was to do better than the Texas race in April where he was involved in an accident. I asked him if he had ever flipped over. He had but it was not in a stock car. One thing that fascinated me during our chat was when Chris explained how his driver’s seat is custom made to his body. It’s similar to how a cockpit is made in a fighter jet where the body is restrained and protected in case of impact. (However, the custom fit also has a disadvantage which was evidenced the following day when Elliott Sadler took ill before the race and the search was on for a driver with the same tall build as Sadler so they could replace him.)
When he’s not racing, Chris is consumed in his 1955 classic truck rebuild. It was evident he just loved wheels. He was already looking forward to attending an automotive show in Vegas and in his next life; he would come back as a race car driver. Unlike married-with-kids cousin James (also a racer), Chris is single but “in a relationship.” Although he didn’t share any details, I learned that she’s a Carolina Panthers fan and is trying to get Chris into following football. I couldn’t resist asking him about his cook when on the road — since it’s a friend of mine. “So, tell me… how is Eloy’s cooking?” I probed. “It has its moments…… but his French fries are on point!” he laughed.
‘Lotta Happenings — The Chase Comes to Texas
Posted by 'lottasports in Hill Country Happenings Articles, NASCAR on December 1, 2014
Last month NASCAR returned to Texas. The first sign of life at the track was the miniature city of RVs and tents which spouted up around the perimeter starting the week before. Wednesday night found the haulers for the truck series scheduled in followed by the ones for Nationwide the next morning — or so the published schedule claimed. I camped out on the pedestrian bridge early Thursday to gets pictures and hear the toot toot of my friend Eloy’s hauler. After an hour of no movement from the staging area, I texted Eloy asking how much longer it would be — I needed a bio break! He texted back, “LOL — well, I’m going to Walmart to do a little shopping – go ahead and pee.” It turned out the times had been changed to the evening. The wait was worth it as we watched the parade of lighted transporters against the backdrop of the setting sun and later the darkness.
Friday’s fun included watching practices and qualifying. With the purchase of our pit passes, we had a pretty good view as the cars zoomed out of the garage area and onto the track. However, as the day went on, the crowd cloned. Grown men literally knocked over women to get a look at their driver. On tippy-toes, I finally found safe haven and a good view from atop a barricade. Speaking of barricades, one separated me from one of my favs, Brendan Gaughan. “Hey! Brendan!” I shouted. When he saw it was me, he backed up and reached across the barrier giving me a bear hug. “Did you get a picture of my bear hug?” I excitedly asked my husband. “No, I was waiting to take one of Matt’s car. It was then I discovered we had way too many favorites.
The fun of race weekend is meeting other fans. While watching the cars practice, I chatted with a photographer standing next to me. I detected a Midwest accent so I asked him where he was from. “Hi… Larry…east side of Cleveland, “ he replied as he extended his free hand. I laughed and pointed at my husband. “Meet Rick….west side of Cleveland. They proceeded to talk Buckeyes and Browns football with Larry photographing the cars at the same time. There also was an “older” red-head who I spotted chasing down a golf cart containing Carl Edwards. Upon meeting her the following day, I found that Shirley was just as avid a motorsports fan as me. She was thrilled when I told her I had captured a pic of her with Edwards. My favorite fan was a little boy named Landon. I asked him who his driver was. “My uncle,” he replied. The uncle turned out to be Nationwide driver Jamie Dick who came over and gave him a hug. Since the race was during football season, there was a mix of fans wearing their favorite team or player jersey. Although, Jerry Jones claims to own “America’s team,” Cowboy fans were outnumbered by the Saints, Broncos, Texans, Bears, Packers and Steelers in the apparel wearing department. Those most fun to view were the couples who wore different NASCAR drivers apparel. Interesting combinations made for jabbing at their spouses in the stands. Although Rick and I are miles apart on football teams, we do like the same drivers.
Prior to the races, I talked to pit crews and officials as they set up and prepared their areas. As I entered pit row, I spotted my Twitter friend Chris Taylor, rear tire changer for Matt Kenseth. Despite being entrenched in a sea of tires, he snuck in a cute grin as our cameras clicked away. Further down, I spotted a female checking tires for the #66. During a quick chat, I learned from Liz that she was the only female on a Cup pit crew. A few yards away from her, I met up with Kevin, an official in a bright orange jumpsuit. He camps out at the pit in case of fire. I told him about witnessing a fire last year when Kenseth’s car had one during a pit stop. Yes, Kevin has job security. An interesting stop was at a computer display lined up with the start/finish line. NASCAR official Dona Harris explained that the equipment measured where each driver was in the race. She said it was the equivalent of a photo/finish shot at a horse race. Towards the end of our pit row stroll, I had my “This could only happen to me” moment. I got to a pit area which had a smaller number of tires and I turned to Rick and said, “This is one of the smaller teams not in the limelight.” A nice-looking tall, lanky guy approached us so I said, “Now, what is your job on the team?” He smiled… “I am the driver….” he replied. I composed myself. “Are you going to be changing into a racing uniform?” I asked while pointing at his black slacks. Hello to #33 Timothy Hill. Needless to say, the other crew member was amused. The rest of the day I kept thinking to myself, “Where do I know that Hill guy from?” (Upon googling I found that he had rear-ended MY driver during a caution earlier in the year!) On the way to our seats, I passed a display of the bracket for the Chase. The drivers’ names and numbers had Velcro backs so fans could post their individual predictions. After I reset the display, I posed for Rick. He handed me the camera saying, “Did the picture come out?” As I looked at the picture, up walked George Reba, sports with WFAA TV. As the cameraman filmed, Reba questioned me on how the bracket worked, and then asked me my favorite driver. Meanwhile, I still had Rick’s camera in my hand behind me frantically waving it to Rick in hopes of getting a picture with George! After the interview, George said he planned to run the segment on the late sports.
Our seats were in the center of the row and the people on each end were not very accommodating. One time I was forced atop the seat panel and I teetered with uncertainty with each step I took over the jackets, blankets and food on the bleacher. One guy reached over to help me and caught his heel in the bench, then fell into the next row. It’s probably the last time he will ever come to anyone’s rescue. The race itself was rather boring until the last five laps when Brad Keselowski wrecked crowd favorite Jeff Gordon. This led to a brawl on pit row with the two drivers and their crews after the conclusion of the race and our seats were right across from the melee! When I got home, I stayed up until after midnight to watch a rerun of the sports. Alas, the clips with George were axed to cover the fight on pit row.
‘Lotta Happenings — Love of Speed
Posted by 'lottasports in Hill Country Happenings Articles, Indycars, NASCAR on July 1, 2014
This is my July column published in Hill Country Happenings magazine.
June brought me another birthday and the NASCAR trucks and Indycars back to North Texas. Texas Motor Speedway dodged this year’s weekly NASCAR rain curse and instead steamy, hot temperatures and George Strait’s last hurrah in Dallas beleaguered the event numbers. Those choosing to battle the desert-like temperatures were an interesting combination of true diehard NASCAR devotees and the fast Indycar aficionados. The common denominator was a love of speed and racing.
The afternoon of the truck race, I met up with Jennifer Jo Cobb, the auburn-haired owner/driver of the #10 truck. She grew up watching her dad Joe race and found herself racing at Kansas’s Lakeside Speedway by the age of eighteen. Being owner in addition to driving puts more responsibility on the forty-one year old. It takes money to operate the car, get crews and equipment so on non-racing weeks, she works hard at getting sponsorships for her truck. If I wanted to sponsor her truck one race, the costs ran from $1,000 – $15,000 depending on extras like appearances. Perhaps if I win the Powerball…. As we talked, I learned that Jen is not in racing to be a “token” female. Instead she is in it because she loves it and wants to be respected as an equal. Her favorite track other than her home track Kansas Speedway? She laughed as she explained it would have to be Las Vegas because of South Point Hotel Casino’s full infield spa offering pedicures! At that point I spotted a pink chandelier hanging over her as she filed, then blew on her nails. She looked more like a model than a racecar driver and it was hard to visualize a helmet would be smashing the auburn locks in just a few hours. This is the fourth year that Steve Kuykendall has been her Crew Chief. She shook her head as she explained that he was currently using a crutch due to twisting his knee. Sure enough, we later spotted him hobbling on one foot as he pushed the #10 truck through inspection. Later that night, Jen finished twentieth.
The following day Rick was working so I gave my brother, Craig, his ticket for the Indycars. Poor Craig experienced the “Lotta Sports obsession with sports.” As usual, I was like a kid in a candy-store visiting with other fans, TMS workers, car crews and of course, driving the simulator. After losing me twice in the Indycar garage alley, Craig said “I’m putting you on a five-minute limit and no wandering!” I can’t help myself. With my flight attendant background, talking to strangers was my way of life. While in the garage alley, I met a father/son duo, Mike and Zach Jankelson from the state of Washington. Mike (dad) flies to North Texas every year for the three NASCAR race weekends. He is a diehard stock car follower. Last April, because of the rain one-day postponement, he found himself watching the race on an airport TV. Son Zach was a college student and a huge Indycar fan. Will Power was “his driver.” The Indycar organization offered an open garage to all those holding pit passes. It was thrilling to many of us to actually get feet away from the cars and their parts. The only drawback I noticed was because some fans were so zealous; it was pulling some of the garage team from their duties. At one car, the gal next to me was shouting, “Cameron! Cameron! One more picture! Let’s do a selfie!” Poor ruddy faced Cameron couldn’t say no and found himself posing repeatedly as she clicked away. I couldn’t help but laugh when his garage boss gave him “the eyebrow.” There’s a fine line between customer service and getting the job done. Adding to the excitement of the day was the last leg of the Triple Crown so at five pm, Craig found us with front-row stools at Fuzzy’s Taco Bar in the pit. There were two local radio guys doing their show and my brother watched nervously as I asked them if they would mind breaking away during the race. Fortunately, they wanted to see the race too. It was an exciting few minutes when the Belmont Stakes ran and we almost saw history made. Sadly, California Chrome was literally out of gas having raced the Derby and Preakness while some of his competition rested. A collective groan filled Fuzzy’s as we watched him come up short.
For every person who purchased a pit pass, we were allowed at the start-finish line for pre-race introductions. Waiting for the festivities to start were the Great American Sweethearts who would be announcing the drivers. I approached them and asked, “Is one of you friends with Donnave Abt?” (Donnave worked at Delta with me) A tall blonde named Katie, in a definitive Texas drawl proclaimed, “I am! My daddy works with her husband Jim!” (I wondered if she knew she made Rick’s day when he posed with her at Big Hoss’s debut.) During the ceremonies, it was great as we found ourselves standing by a guy with a loud voice. As each driver came out, he would shout their name and say something personable. The driver would look our way and wave back so it was as if they were posing for us. Except for Marco Andretti ‘s crash on the third lap, the race itself was rather boring — until the final twelve laps. Crowd favorite Will Power had a miscommunication and exited to pit row to find his crew not ready for his arrival. A collective gasp radiated from the crowd as he passed through without stopping. He tanked to eighth, however a caution and restart gave Power one final chance to win. The crowd stayed on their feet as Power sped his way back to the front. After dominating the entire race, Power finished second to #20’s Ed Carpenter. It was not a good weekend for ANY of my favorites!
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- Jun 2014
Click here to see Craig drive the Indycar simulator
‘Lotta Happenings – Playoff Mania
Posted by 'lottasports in Hill Country Happenings Articles, NASCAR, NBA, NHL on June 1, 2014
Why do the people who schedule athletic events make springtime such a challenge for sports fanatics like me? Somehow I found myself balancing NBA and NHL playoffs, the NFL draft, the run for the Triple Crown, a Rangers pitcher flirting with a no-hitter and a former NASCAR champion making a lot of enemies. To further complicate my life, I gave into peer pressure and added The Voice to watching American Idol, Dancing with the Stars, Castle and General Hospital. Thank goodness for two TVs and Internet capabilities or I would have lost my mind.
This was the year NBA record books were rewritten. For the first time ever, the Knicks, Celtics, and Lakers were all missing! As if the playoffs aren’t nail biting enough, a record eight of the first round games went into overtime! For my cousin Ann, her Memphis Grizzlies went into four straight overtimes with the Oklahoma Thunder, another NBA record! Another rarity was the first round of the NBA playoffs found all three Texas cities participating. I was thrilled as finally my Houston Rockets were showing signs of being champs again. I dug out my T-shirts from ’94 and ’95 and wore them for the games. I couldn’t find the shirt with an Interstate 10 decal for the Rockets and Spurs playoff series in the 90s. That should have been my “sign”. Game six was a “win or sit on the couch the rest of the playoffs”. The Rockets played with the look of rats lost in a maze, then looked like they had finally found the cheese. The Trail Blazers, Willard, who up until then had air balls, planted hit feet and hit his first three-pointer — on the buzzer! Rockets lost 99-98. There was no game seven. Coach Kevin Hale and I both buried our heads in our hands. I repacked the keepsakes and wondered what the heck happened to the Interstate 10 shirt. Cousin Ann’s torture was ended when her Grizzlies lost their game seven. Sadly for Dallas Mavericks fans, despite being four and one all-time in game sevens, the most Mavericks shots successfully made were during pre-game instead of during the blowout by the Spurs.
Things got interesting in the hockey playoffs too when I started a challenge email to some of my Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Rangers fans with a cc: to a couple of friends in New England. I simply put, “Well, well, well….. It’s the NY Rangers vs. the Penguins. Now what I want to know is WHO will win in this series AND in how many games ——— and will then hopefully meet the Bruins.” Little did I know that the innocent email would have more impact than Putin’s advancement into Ukraine! Two of the New York gals got a little zealous with their trash talking about the Penguins. It was good stuff like: “The Rangers can hold their own against the Penguins if they show up to play. I think they beat them twice this season and lost one game in a shoot-out. Personally, can’t stand Crosby or Malkin so I hope the Rangers kick butt.” “I’m certainly not looking forward to watching Crosby whine because he hurt his widdle pinky finger or got a boo-boo when someone dared to touch him. But he does possess an extraordinary amount of talent, and has the potential to do a lot of damage on the scoreboard. Hopefully we can contain him.” One of my guy friends responded, “Really, you ask me this? You know I bleed Black and Gold and I always will….Nuff said.” However, another Pittsburgh fan got her feelings hurt with the written attacks at her team. I quickly wrote everyone else an apology and encouraged deleting future threads. It was a long series going seven games with the Rangers moving on to the next round and me making a mental note not to ever do that again.
I find it really is hard to be a fan. It is a huge emotional investment and a crap shoot on the outcome. The hardest part is accepting that your team may not always win and dealing with it when they don’t. One of my favorite NASCAR drivers still hasn’t won this year. The other day someone posted, “He should be winning by now. Three more races without a win and he loses a longtime fan.” I immediately responded, “You’ve got to be kidding… you would dump Matt just because he didn’t win??? Hate that mentality… a true fan stays for better or for worse… like a marriage.” I wish schools had a course on sportsmanship. Unfortunately, kids are impressionable and our professional athletes can be a terrible example of a good sport. What message do the kids get when they see players kicking over Gatorade barrels, putting fists into dugout walls, brawls on the field or ice and deliberately crashing a car into another car after the race? It’s time to put respectably back into sports and be reasonable in our expectations as fans — of all ages.
My parents taught me that winning or being the best isn’t the requirement. Yep, I was lucky they felt that way since I was the one who fell off the vault, missed the balls in outfield, hit tennis balls over the back fence, knocked a windmill off a miniature golf course, did face plants in the snow ……
‘Lotta Happenings – Brendan Gaughan Exclusive
Posted by 'lottasports in Exclusives, Hill Country Happenings Articles, NASCAR on May 2, 2014
This exclusive with Brendan Gaughan appeared in the May Hill Country Happenings
The first time I met Brendan Gaughan was June 2013 when he was in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in Texas. It was my first truck series to cover and a press conference was held with him and Joey Coulter, fifteen years his junior. When I asked him what was considered as “old” in truck racing, he grinned and replied, “Me!” To me, mature drivers were more reliable and less apt to do something dumb “to make something happen.” I knew I had found “my” driver. Brendan did well during the race until he spun his tires on the last re-start and settled for 5th place. Our paths crossed again last November when NASCAR was back in North Texas. I was at Brendan’s truck and an inspector was clarifying to me that what I thought was the engine was actually the carburetor. I heard a snicker and turned to find Brendan standing there. Wanting to overshadow my naivety of car parts and knowing he had played basketball at Georgetown, I switched subjects to the hoops. I was defeated there also when Gaughan reminded me about how his Hoyas had taken the “slama” out of my Houston Cougars “jama” in the National Championship in 1984. He did very well in the race with a fourth place finish and ended the season in seventh place for the truck standings. For the year he had thirteen top ten finishes with ten of those in the top five.
I was pleasantly surprised when the announcement came that Gaughan would be driving fulltime in the Nationwide series this year. He was keeping his number 62 and his father’s hotel, South Point in Las Vegas, would be his sponsor. Last month when NASCAR returned to North Texas, I had the opportunity to sit down with Brendan and I learned there’s a lot more to him than his stock car racing. I began the interview with presenting him with my “Phi Slama Jama” tee-shirt from 1984 and a black sharpie. He chuckled as he scribed, “Hoyas AXA … Brendan 62 Gaughan .“ That out of the way, we started our chat. It was like two old friends at a high school reunion.
Growing up in Vegas, his dad, who dirt-raced as a hobby, took Brendan to desert races and the boy was immediately hooked on off-road racing. I asked him, “Have you ever flipped over and thought while airborne… now I’ve really done it!?!” His face lit up. His first rollover was at age fifteen. He not only turned upside down, he did it several times! “I knew, thanks to JC Dean, to get that seatbelt released right away!” Not only was Brendan into racing during his teenage years, he also was an All-American in high school football.
His college years found him at Georgetown University earning a business management degree. Between studies he shared the court with NBA great Allen Iverson when the basketball team made it to the Elite Eight. He also kicked for the Hoyas football team. He was their placekicker and very good … perfection almost every time the ball left his toe. “Almost?” I questioned. “I couldn’t believe it! I missed the last kick of my career!” he groaned. Brendan’s talents don’t end there; he is also certified to teach scuba diving. One of his favorite places to dive is Socorro Island off of Mexico. He showed me a picture of himself with a Manta Ray, an underwater creature which appeared much bigger than him. I cringed. I told him I still had my fear of man-of-war and jelly fish lurking in the gulf at Galveston. He assured me that the Manta Rays are not like that.
As you can see, Gaughan could have gone many directions with a career including working in the family casino business. Instead Brendan followed his passion for racing. How lucky to be making a living doing what you love, not many can. He loves it all – desert riding, dirt tracks, ovals and my passion, the road courses. He even likes the pesky bumps at Texas Motor Speedway at Turn 2 and between Turns 3 and 4 caused by the tunnels under the track. What he doesn’t love are re-paved tracks like Michigan’s. His Crew Chief, Shane Wilson, provides a seamless transition from trucks to cars, as the two worked in tandem last year. According to Brendan, the car is practically the same as the truck with the exception of the position of the windshield. Gaughan’s goal is to bring Richard Childress Racing their second consecutive championship. “Speaking of winning, what about times you have a teammate who is in position to get a win? Do you give them the push which will enable their victory?” I asked. “If I have a good enough car to win, I race to win,” he replied. “You earn respect,” he continued. “There are those out there that don’t have it.” “Any names?” I prodded. He shook his head sideways.
Although Brendan grew up listening to Classic Rock like the Doors thanks to his older brothers, his heart has always been with Classic Country. He also loves “spaghetti westerns” and treasures moments when he can catch Bonanza reruns. Off-season, he enjoys time with his wife Tatum and two boys Michael and William at their home in Vail. He bragged that his son Michael is already quite a skier. Athleticism has carried on to the next generation. In March, Brendan lost one of his biggest supporters. His grandfather, Jackie Gaughan, who was the last of the founding fathers of Las Vegas, passed away at the age of ninety-three. Jackie was buried in true Irish fashion with bagpipes on St. Patrick’s Day. As we got ready to end the interview, I asked Brendan what was on his bucket list. With a smile perfect for a toothpaste commercial, he responded, “Life is….”
‘Lotta Happenings — Turn Left!!
Posted by 'lottasports in Hill Country Happenings Articles, NASCAR on May 1, 2014
My May column which was in the May Hill Country Happenings.
My spring NASCAR experience this year came a month earlier than the race when Rick and I attended the unveiling of Big Hoss, the largest high-definition LED video board in the world. The Texas Motor Speedway infield area was filled with over eight thousand fans along with dignitaries, NASCAR driver Kyle Busch, Indy car driver Helio Castroneves and the stars of Duck Dynasty. While waiting on the event to start, I went wandering and discovered the TMS Great American Sweethearts autographing and posing for pictures. I felt it was my wifely duty to return with Rick. There was nothing more entertaining than watching him suck in his gut as he sneaked peeks at the obvious cleavage. I got my thrills too that night when I spotted myself on Big Hoss during an interview of a fan in front of us.
Before I knew it, race weekend was here. Thursday was the arrival of the Nationwide haulers. It was like seeing a little city develop as we peered through the wrought iron fences surrounding the garage area. Hauler drivers like my friend Eloy Trevino were busy setting up barbeque grills because many also serve as cooks for the teams. This activity was short-lived since it was soon time for my one-on-one with Nationwide driver Brendan Gaughan (see exclusive column) and then practice. Thank goodness everyone’s name was scribed over the driver’s window as there were so many changes from last year’s crop. On the way out, I signed the tunnel between the pit and the stands. My legacy joined thousands of others on the grooved wall and left me wondering if, on a return trip, I’d ever find where I had signed.
Friday turned into a long day …. according to our dogs who patiently waited at home. Our first stop was at OneMain Financial in Denton for an autograph/picture session with Elliott Sadler and his car. He laughed when I held out my lug nut from his race last year. I know …. It’s a lug nut fetish I can’t seem to control! While we were waiting in line, we found out from the couple behind us that Marcos Ambrose, my favorite road course driver, was signing at Wal-Mart in Roanoke. Meeting Marcos was fun and listening to his “down-under” accent was an added extra. That afternoon found us watching the Sprint Cup practice and Nationwide qualifying. We saw Brendan briefly and wished him good luck in the race. The rest of the pre-race found me talking to several pit crews and snapping photos of tires and gas containers. It’s the little things in life that make me happy. When we found our way to our seats for the Nationwide race, we were pleasantly surprised with their location — Turn 4 was to our left and the start-finish line to our right. The weather was ideal for night racing with only a lightweight jacket needed. It was an exciting race with the typical multi-car crashes because of so many novice drivers participating. Even more exciting was that a rookie, Chase Elliott, beat out a very experienced handful of Sprint Cup guys and won his first Nationwide race!
Saturday morning found me killing time before Sprint Cup qualifying with a visit to the tire change display. I was determined to better last year’s fifty-eight seconds combat with the lug nut installer. There I was in line with guys, some who worked at car shops for a living. There was a lot at stake –winning automotive gadgets as well as bragging rights. I was in it for the latter. My first attempt was over thirteen seconds as I had to coax my fingers into grasping the lug nut. Remember, I was still recovering from my accident in November. Back into the line I went and my second attempt was ten and fifty-two hundredths seconds. I even beat a couple of guys in line with me. Unlike the horse races, I quit while I was ahead. Later was Sprint Cup qualifying amid a light shower so I got to see the drivers substitute their helmets with umbrellas as the jet-dryers dehydrated the track. There wasn’t a race because of the Final Four in college basketball being that evening.
Severe storms woke us up in the wee hours with downpours all morning. We left for the track at the last minute and tromped through mud lots after parking. While weathering a four hour delay, our entertainment was watching Big Hoss which provided fan interviews in the stands, an episode of Duck Dynasty and promos about the concession stands. They finally postponed the race until the next morning. After a night of thawing and drying out, we were relieved to find sunny skies and pleasant temperatures for the race morning. Despite being a work/school day, there were about seventy-eight thousand fans there. During our pre-race visit in the pit, we met up with John Johnson, whose son is the “engine turner” for Matt Kenseth. He said to me, “Hey, I checked out your website last year after the November race and there was only older stuff.” When I explained about being out of commission for months after my accident walking the dog, he felt bad — for throwing my card away. I next met up with Chris Taylor, rear tire changer for Matt Kenseth. We follow each other on Twitter so it was fun meeting him in person. He had a beard similar to the ones that the Red Sox players had last year during their World Series run. Rick and I also watched the pit crews doing their limbering exercises. I think a prerequisite for the job is being tall, lanky and ambidextrous! As predicted when we headed to the stands, I couldn’t find my signature in the tunnel. It was an unusual start for the race with the cars under the caution flag for several laps as the jet dryers completed drying the track. Things immediately got contentious as wind from one jet dryer affected several cars including last year’s champion, Jimmie Johnson. Once they were racing full speed, fan favorite Dale Earnhardt Jr. slipped into the grass and plowed across the track into wall. He caught on fire, but was able to escape before the car was engulfed in flames and black smoke. I could not believe I had my video running when the wreck occurred. What are the odds of that?!? Many Aggies were present as Jeff Gordon’s car was trimmed in maroon and white with Texas A&M logos. It became evident he was destined to win the race until there was a caution flag the last few laps. Gordon took two tires and said on the radio, “Please tell me the others didn’t take four.” Much to Jeff’s chagrin as well as John Phillips, a Gordon fan seated next to us, the other contenders took four. Gordon was engulfed in the restart and Joey Logano took the checkered flag. <sigh> Maybe in my next life I’ll be a stock car driver …. or better yet since I never exceed the speed limit, be on a pit crew.
‘Lotta Fun — NASCAR at TMS in the Spring
Posted by 'lottasports in NASCAR on April 15, 2014
NASCAR weekend is not complete without real action!! Thanks to EJ Coleman and Jimmy Hurd of Ingersoll Rand for helping me with the lug nuts experience. click here for the action. (and there are more videos at the end of the pictures)
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EXCLUSIVE
There’s more to RCR’s Brendan Gaughan than just racing! My fun one-on-one with the South Point driver will be in the May issue of HCH. Here’s a preview!
IN THE PIT
BEING A FAN IS WHAT NASCAR IS ALL ABOUT
IT’S ALL ABOUT RACING
CARS, CARS AND MORE CARS
Check out these action videos!
Nationwide
Restart under the lights.
Sprint Cup
Unusual Start — Race started with track still being dried
The track is dry — Let’s go racing!!
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‘Lotta Happenings — Accidental Happening
Posted by 'lottasports in Football, Hill Country Happenings Articles, NASCAR on January 1, 2014
It seemed ions ago that I had my accident. I’ll never forget the day. It was hours from the Super Bowl of NASCAR and my driver had a chance to pull the upset for “The Chase”. Poor Rex, my youngest Boxer, got so much bad press as being the cause of the accident. Since moving to the house, Rex had been apprehensive even going off the back porch. What happened on this beautiful day was, Roxie was out back with Rick and I decided to take Rex for a walk. I saw Shelley who works at my doctor’s office unloading a moving truck with her husband. I decided to go over and welcome them to the neighborhood. While I talked to them, Rex appeared fidgety. As I left, Rex walked faster then broke into a run. I couldn’t keep up. I finally let go of the leash and fell over the curb and into the street. I saw the back of Rex’s legs running away as I screamed, “Rex! Come back! Wait!” After I hit the street, I felt intense pain in my left arm and saw bulges below my elbow. I also felt pain in right arm. I smelled blood and found out later I had busted my chin open. Images of people standing above me and homes were faint and the horizon turned white. Shelley and her husband were trying to secure my neck with a box and keep me conscious. I just wanted them to find Rex. Shelley ran to our backyard, introduced herself and quickly updated Rick. Rex was found on our porch shaking. It seemed like forever for EMS to find the new street and get me loaded. I understood the definition of excruciating pain. It was another forever for the painful ride across the back roads to the hospital as we hit every pothole enroute.
Once at ER, details were sketchy as I drifted in and out of consciousness. I asked Rick to find The Chase on the TV. I remember a voice saying, “I need to cut off your shirt” and heard the snips as the scissors destroying my lucky black ‘Lotta Sports T-Shirt. I was wearing it that day since Matt Kenseth, my driver of choice, had won several races when I wore it. At one point Rick said, “Matt’s in second” and the announcers were talking about Jimmie Johnson much further back. There was hope for an upset! I was whisked away to X-ray. I am screaming in pain as X-ray technician positioned both arms. What part of broken did the radiologist not understand? Following this fiasco it was back to ER. A voice said they were starting morphine. I begged them not to as my mom died at that same hospital after having morphine administered. I drifted off and on. “We need to move you to another hospital in Plano. “ “That’s so far for Rick! Can’t I go to Grapevine or Southlake?” “It’s a sister facility.” I looked up at the TV and Jimmie is celebrating a sixth Chase Championship. More sleep until I was awakened by people repositioning me to a board and gurney. It was dark as they loaded me in an ambulance. Another long ride but this time, it was all highway. I missed Sunday Night Football. I awoke the next morning. A doctor was standing at my bedside and said that they were waiting on parts for my elbow. The surgery wouldn’t be until the next day. More sleep. I woke up and Rick updated me. They had located the elbow parts. The left elbow was shattered, the right shoulder was broken, I had stitches in my chin and three fractures in my jaw. Surgery was scheduled for three that afternoon.
Prior to surgery I was wheeled to the holding area where I met my orthopedic surgeon. I immediately liked Dr. Jeffery Lue as we shared the same goal — having surgery done by the start of Monday Night Football with New England and Carolina. Although we were for different teams, I agreed to root for Carolina since I had two fantasy football players with the Panthers. I rationalized that it made more sense to stay in Dr. Lue’s good graces. It turned out neither of us saw the majority of game. The elbow had two fractures and the bone split, now making four pieces. The second bone in the elbow was shattered and that was where the replacement part went. I regained consciousness five hours later to see Panthers quarterback Cam Newton throwing a 25-yard touchdown pass to Ted Ginn Jr. with less than a minute left to take a 24-20 lead. My easy-on-the eyes Tom Brady charged down the field and the game ended with a controversial interference call in the end zone. Carolina held off New England. Dr. Lue was a happy man.
For me, a tough road to recovery and rehabilitation was about to begin. I had no use of the upper limbs and simple things like going to the restroom as well as getting dressed, brushing my hair and eating required assistance. It would prove to be a challenging time finding new ways to survive with my disabilities. It would have been an opportune time to give up and just accept the hand dealt. However, I didn’t… I refused to let this sideline me without a fight. (to be continued)
‘Lotta Happenings — Showdown in Texas
Posted by 'lottasports in Hill Country Happenings Articles, NASCAR on December 1, 2013
Last month was the final month in the Chase Championship for NASCAR, and Texas Motor Speedway was host to the third from the last race. The two leaders, Matt Kenseth and Jimmie Johnson, were tied and it was apparent that the stage was set for a showdown in Texas. A media center display of all the contenders titled DEADLOCKED with #20 and #48 barrels positioned to blow up conveyed the importance around the TMS race. Needless to say, this sportswriter was beyond “in her element” with one of her favorite drivers right in the mix!
DEADLOCKED
Day 1 — Unlike June when only the trucks and Indy cars were there for the two garage areas, the trucks and their humongous haulers took over the Infield Parking Paddock leaving media parking at slim pickins’. Because of a further walk to the Media Center, this necessitated my carrying everything I might need throughout the day. Due to anticipated temperature changes throughout the day, I looked like I needed my own hauler as I started the trek from my car with my “stuff.” Once settled in my work area and after perusing the schedule, I retraced my steps to the “garage” area and watched the process for NASCAR inspection of the trucks.
Truck Inspections
There were inspectors everywhere — some measuring the trucks and some under hoods inspecting parts. Parts were sealed and once qualified the truck was impounded until the race the next day. I paused at Brendan Gaughan’s truck as an inspector finished scrutinizing a large part. “Did his engine pass?” I inquired. The inspector grinned. “This here is the carburetor” and then went into a long explanation of what he was looking for. I heard a snicker and turned to find Brendan standing there. Wanting to overshadow my naivety of car parts and knowing my favorite truck driver had played basketball at Georgetown, I switched subjects to the hoops. I was defeated there also when Gaughan reminded me about former Hoya coach John Thompson and company taking the “slamma” out of my “jamma” Houston Cougars.
My favorite truck driver, Brendan Gaughan
Following inspections, there were two truck practices. We bailed during the second, as we needed to get home to give out the seven bags of candy to our six Trick or Treaters!
Day 2 — The morning started out sadly with the announcement of Atlanta Motor Speedway’s Marketing Director Marcy Scott’s battle with cancer ending in her passing. Not only had she interacted with several of my peers in the media, but at one time was Matt Kenseth’s PR person. The sharing of Marcy stories ended with the arrival of Sprint Cup driver Martin Truex, Jr. He was there to end weeks of speculation of whom he would be driving for next year — Furniture Row. The next arrival was Matt Kenseth. One of the questions asked was how he felt knowing that “some fans are rooting for you to win the championship because they’re rooting against Jimmie Johnson.” He smiled and explained that’s how sports are and went into how some fans root for a dynasty and some for the underdog. He looked across the room. The “dynasty” had just entered – Jimmie Johnson. Matt fielded some more questions, and as he left the room, the two shared a friendly handshake. Despite the demeanor some other drivers portrayed in competition, those two men had the upmost respect for each other, both on and off the track. As with Matt, the reporters’ hype with Johnson was around the “intense battle.” Jimmie assured all he and Matt were friends off the track and shared many of the same values including family, being laid back, and foremost, respect for each other when it came to racing. Following JJ was Kyle Busch. I wanted to ask him how it felt being booed during introductions but thought better of it. Instead, my fascination was on how he hoped to sweep all three races at Texas. The interviews ended just as Andy Hall, PR at ESPN, arrived to take Rick and me on a tour of the ESPN Production Complex located outside the race stands.
ESPN Production Booth
Our first stop was the area containing wardrobe for all the on-air personalities as well as the roving pit reporters for ESPN. Each garment bag was neatly labeled and contained different colored outfits for each day. I found out that roving reporter Dr. Jerry Punch was really a medical doctor who had saved driver Rusty Wallace’s life back in 1989. Now the two were working alongside each other at ESPN. Attached to the large tent was a hauler containing offices and a conference room. Adjacent were several haulers containing massive rolls of cables. We climbed the stairs to one of them and found ourselves inside the “brains” of the production. Lined on one wall were seventy-five monitors for HD cameras positioned for the races. These supported in-car cameras, manned cameras, handheld, robotic on-track, robotics in Pit Studio, Crewcams, pit overheads, Jib cameras, Grasscam, POV cameras including the announcing booth, race control, flag stand and Chopper Cam. Monitors were dedicated to the leaders as well as competing drivers, in-car and pit stalls. There were two rows of seats where the producer, director and staff monitored all the camera shots for their immediate use on live TV. Even though there was nothing going on while we were in there, I felt the still air of intensity in the room. Andy pointed out that the challenge in covering motorsports was that there were no breaks in the action like in baseball between innings and football with halftime. He explained that in addition to catching all the action, there had to be a balance when running ads. That is why you rarely see shots of people in the stands. Andy also explained how the sun can cause disruption with the satellites especially in the fall. From there, we headed back into the pit area to the production hauler for on-air personalities. We climbed up the stairs and entered into the actual set for Countdown to NASCAR and the race. I timidly asked if I could sit in Nicole Briscoe’s chair. Once settled in, I smiled at the three cameras positioned and felt right at home.
Nicole’s Chair
Andy and Rick chuckled when I offered to sit in for Nicole, who was going out on maternity leave. After the tour was a working lunch and more interviews with Darrell Wallace, Jr., Jeff Gordon, Danica Patrick and Nationwide Championship Leader, Austin Dillon. I felt the generation gap during Darrell’s interview when he shared that he didn’t even have a driver’s license when he started racing. He said the coolest thing he had experienced so far was being asked to appear on Arsenio Hall (and not knowing who he was) as well as being followed on Twitter by Tyler Bates. The rest of the afternoon was busy on the track with qualifying for the trucks, the Sprint Cup cars and final practice for Nationwide cars. Meanwhile pit row was sprouting up crew chief stands for the truck series that evening. In qualifying, the spring’s race winner, Jeb Burton, grabbed the pole for trucks. Later Carl Edwards won his first Sprint Cup pole at Texas.
Truck Race
A fall chill encompassed the air as the truck drivers took to the track for the WinStar World Casino race. Ty Dillon dominated the race leading all but seventeen laps. Brendan finished fourth.
Day 3 – The morning was spent roaming the Nationwide garage during inspection, watching those cars qualify and the Sprint cars practice twice. Easy on the eyes Travis Pastranais (and 17-time medal winner at the X Games) was being interviewed in the Nationwide garage area after qualifying 39th. “I really need a win” he told FOX Sports’ Herme Sadler. I am not the Einstein of racing, but I thought to myself, “He needs to quit being in the wrong place at the wrong time,” collecting six DNFs (Did not finish) this year.
Travis & Herme
Also, during my garage visit, I met the oldest active driver in NASCAR, Morgan Shepherd. The rough faced seventy-one year old looked discouraged as he climbed out of his #89. Unless there were a couple of wrecks during qualifying, he would not see action in the race. Back at the media center, there was a collective gasp while we were monitoring on TV the practice session as Jimmie Johnson’s car brushed the wall. I bolted out of my chair and back up to track to assess the damage. The champion had dodged a bullet.
JJ’s brush with disaster
Thank goodness the Nationwide race was in the afternoon, as I was already worn out trying to keep up with who was doing what and when. Several drivers were participating in both the race that day and the Sprint Cup the next day. Last year’s cup winner, Brad Keselowski ,a participant in all three Texas races, won the Nationwide race later that afternoon.
With Matt’s Nationwide car
Day 4 – Despite gaining an hour of sleep with the time-change, I didn’t get much rest since Rick had to be back at the track early for his pace-car ride with Landon Cassill, a driver for both car series. Claire B Lang of SiriusXM rode in the front seat interviewing Landon as they did laps around the track. Unfortunately, there were cables crossing the track for the pre-race ceremonies so they did not get up to the high speeds I experienced in the spring. I found a crew member setting up the crew chief stand for Matt Kenseth. I always wanted to sit in one. The next thing I knew I was climbing the vertical ladder with the guy pleading for me to be careful. All I can say is the view is much better from Jason Ratcliff’s chair!!
I wanna be a Crew Chief when I grow up!
Crew Chief Jason Ratcliff
We headed next to the Sprint Cup garage where inspections had started. Surprisingly, many of the crew chiefs and crews were approachable. I had my picture taken with Jason Ratcliff and several of the cars waiting for inspection. One thing I discovered was that the headlamps and taillights were actually decals instead of the real thing. Multitudes of fans were gathering in the garage area and NASCAR rep Laura Finley was caught in the middle of the crowd control. “Please, if you’re not with the team, stay behind the yellow line.” As I started to step back, she said, “You’re fine.” I thought to myself, “I love this job!” The next hour was spent back at the media center posting pictures and updates on Facebook and Twitter. It was then I found out that Claire had aired my post-race question to Brad the night before on SiriusXM. I was so glad that inquiring about changing shadows and the setting sun on the track wasn’t such a dumb question after all! It was soon race time so it was back out to the track for pre-race ceremonies. Rick positioned himself at the photographers’ well at Turn 1 while I wandered up and down the pit. During the race, I ventured up to the grandstands to look for Hill Country’s Denise LeMeilleur attending the race.
Hill Country’s Denise LeMeilleur & Me
Out of breath from the long climb to row sixty, I reached her row to find she was not there! On the return trip, I ran into Denise coming from her car carrying blankets. Yes, the cold front had arrived! Back in the warm media center, I watched the rest of the race. The media center crowd is supposed to remain unbiased during the race, but it was hard to miss the massive groan when contender Kenseth received a speeding penalty on pit row on Lap 175. This meant him repositioning to the end of the cars on the lead lap. This would come back to haunt him by race’s end. Despite his fast car, Matt could not make up the lost time the rest of the race. His fourth place finish saw him plunge to second place in the Chase, making strong finishes and preferably wins imperative at Phoenix and Homestead for the Chase title. Jimmie Johnson won the race.
Jimmie & Chad post-race
How does the story end? Brendan & I are now twittering back and forth about college basketball, Travis “retired” from his brief stint in NASCAR and Jimmie added another title to his racing resume, never looking back after leaving Texas. A disappointed Kenseth ended up the bridesmaid and left his fans thinking “What Ifs” around the Texas race. I am still eating Halloween candy. And Nicole’s vacated ESPN chair? <sigh> Mike Massaro sat there instead of me.
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