Full Throttle

I have it from a very, nearly reliable source the press is being ferried around Charlotte in Scooby’s van but until I can verify it I stand by my Beatles ref in the title. But you have to admit, the figure in the blue dress does resemble Lee Spencer, a little.

Unfortunately the image fails to show the rear of the van in a lowered posture which would indicate the presence of David Poole.

In a week long event that lends itself it to more than enough cow pies being dropped within your path it’s interesting Bulls were subject matter worthy of media notice Thursday.

The first was an “announcement” of new pitcrew members for David Ragan’s #6 AAA Ford Fusion. Sean Willingham, J.B. Mauney and Brian Canter completed their first test under fire with a stop of 33.03 seconds. Roush Racing pit coach Wayne Deloria said the time was not bad considering they had little practice time.

Getting practice time may hinder their development, they all have other full time jobs. They spend their days, in 8 second bursts (or less), on the backs of one ton bulls as professional bull riders.

In an example of “turn about is fair play” Ragan gets his chance on the back of a bull Friday. I don’t have much interest in the YouTube fad but a video of Ragan’s “new ride” would be worth a couple minutes of time. If only to see Ragan bite the dust and verify whether the bull has a AAA logo on its flank.

I also wonder if Ken Schrader will be cheering for the bull from the sidelines.

Team Red Bull is also in the news, literally. ABC’s World News Tonight paid a visit to the Toyota teams race shops. Producers of the program plan to do a short feature on the new Toyota teams some time later this year.

Warning… watchout Red Bull. I remember the last time a MSM outlet went on a search for a NASCAR bigot using Muslim stunt doubles. To add to my skepticism is this allegedly Big Time media outlet only gave Red Bull a 30 minute notice they were arriving at the race shop.

Hmmm… I smell a rat, reporter. As an aside, stop by and check out the pics of A.J. Allmendingers recent wedding.

The hottest news, based on coverage, was the “trickle down effect” on NASCAR due to the financial troubles at U.S. auto makers. CBS Sportsline, MSNBC, Orlando Sentinel and the Canadian Press, to name a few all published stories. I won’t go into detail, for the most part them all quote various industry sources poo-pooing any thoughts of NASCAR being hurt very badly, if at all.

There is one quote out of all the coverage I thought was a bit comical. It comes from Ray Evernham noting Roush Racings soon to be announced financial partnership with Boston Red Sox owner.

“No matter what we try and do, the expense is going up and up and up, and I need to concentrate on competition,” Evernham said. “And find a partner that plays golf with billionaires to [sic] they can bet on shots and get us some money.”

As I put on my Snark Hat, with Pheasant feather, let me note this headline (while on the subject of Evernham): Evernham’s essentials: A title, the right partners.

Would that be professional or personnel partners Ray?

NASCAR, NEXTEL Cup, Sports, Evernham Motorsports, Toyota, Red Bull, Auto Racing, Motorsports, Full Throttle