http://www.usatoday.com/sports/motor/nascar/2010-11-21-jimmie-johnson-nascar-sprint-cup-champion_N.htm
Jimmie Johnson's drive for five yields NASCAR title, respect
Jimmie Johnson celebrates after winning his fifth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup championship after finishing second in the Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Nate Ryan, USA TODAY
11-21-2010
HOMESTEAD, Fla. — As the championship coronation began for the fifth consecutive time, Jimmie Johnson seemed briefly dumbstruck while gazing through a shower of confetti and up at the crowd at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Several thousand fans, lingering in the frontstretch grandstands to salute NASCAR's king, bombarded Johnson with noise that hasn't always greeted his No. 48 Chevrolet.
Cheering — and much of it from those clad in the multihued garb of rivals who openly said Johnson's reign is hurting the popularity of stock car racing.
"I can hear you guys up there, that's right!" said Johnson, 35. "You might not be a 48 fan, but you saw something special today."
With a second-place finish in Sunday's Ford 400 (won by Carl Edwards), the Hendrick Motorsports driver outdueled Kevin Harvick and Denny Hamlin to capture his fifth consecutive Sprint Cup title. On the list of title winners, Johnson stands only behind the two Hall of Famers most synonymous with NASCAR: seven-time champions Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty.
Now the question becomes whether Johnson — competing in an era of what's regarded as tighter competition because of better, more well-funded teams and more talented drivers — might be poised to leapfrog both — if he hasn't already.
"JJ is the greatest of all-time. period!" three-time champion and Fox analyst Darrell Waltrip tweeted Sunday evening, echoing Hall of Fame champion Bobby Allison, who said Saturday that Johnson would be viewed as the greatest NASCAR driver ever.
But a more tepid viewpoint came from the drivers whom Johnson has whipped with regularity since 2006. Several, including Harvick and Hamlin, have said Johnson's dominance is hurting the popularity of a sport whose audience seems in decline. Television ratings were down in the first nine Chase for the Sprint Cup races, and the estimated crowd of 67,000 was the 27th in 36 races to decrease from last year, according to NASCAR.
Though "Jimmie Johnson" ranked as high as fourth on Twitter's trending topics Sunday night, many of the tweets spewed vitriol about a driver some fans have said is too vanilla.
Johnson needed 327 races to win five titles — fewer than Petty (654) and the late Earnhardt (390). But he admittedly doesn't possess the boundless charm of "The King" nor the swagger of "The Intimidator," and his title reign was met Sunday mostly with begrudging respect.
"What they have accomplished is remarkable," Harvick said. "But they are also vulnerable."
Edwards, who won his second consecutive race after ending a 70-race winless skid, said, "They have proven that they are able to win more races and championships than the rest. We just have to figure out how ... they let the other guys make the mistakes."
Season in miniature
Hamlin entered Homestead with a 15-point lead and ended up 39 points behind after finishing 14th. He spun on lap 24, and his damaged Toyota never was as fast afterward.
"Coming this close is tough," he said. "There's a lot of things we can do as a team to be better."
Harvick couldn't have beaten Johnson with a win but still had to rally for third after a pit-road speeding penalty (it nullified his chances of applying pressure with 70 laps to go).
Johnson had to overcome errors (there were two slow stops by teammate Jeff Gordon's crew, which replaced Johnson's two races ago), but his runner-up finish was a microcosm of his season — he wasn't always quickest but still outplaced competitors.
"At times we didn't have the most speed, but we had the most heart," Johnson said.
Much of the credit is directed to crew chief Chad Knaus, who called a flawless race after outsmarting Hamlin's team on fuel mileage a week earlier to close the gap. But Knaus deflected the attention to Johnson: "(He) really hasn't gotten the praise he deserves. Finally, finally, I think he'll get the respect he needs."
That Johnson clinched the 10th Cup championship for team owner Rick Hendrick with a grind-it-out, blue-collar effort (leading one lap) was fitting for a driver who has battled the perception of being stock car racing's ultimate silver spoon, gifted a ride with the best team.
The son of a heavy-machinery operator and a school bus driver was raised in a trailer park in El Cajon, Calif., north of San Diego. With a background in motocross and off-road racing, Johnson was a late bloomer who moved to pavement racing 15 years ago and was a "C-class driver," winning one NASCAR race before entering Cup in 2002 after being plucked from obscurity by four-time champion Gordon.
"I just hope the fans now really believe — the naysayers of Jimmie," said his dad, Gary Johnson, who carried a dozen championship caps as he left the stage Sunday. "You can't say he's not great.
"Now we're going for a six-pack. We need a beer sponsor."
Different mind-set
Johnson is not as famous for an off-track persona that includes being a wild partier, but he sometimes comes across as wooden in interviews after a lifetime of learning that politically correct speed pleases the sponsors who fund the sport.
His public demeanor, though, seemed to change last week as he entered the finale behind. It was a first during his five title runs, yet he seemed looser than ever.
At a Thursday news conference, he needled Hamlin about feeling the pressure ("I'm just trying to remind Denny he has everything to lose. Nothing to fret about, Denny"). Johnson played the trash-talking role of Muhammad Ali to such a T, veteran Jeff Burton compared the title battle to a heavyweight fight. Hamlin's crew chief, Mike Ford, took shots at the Hendrick organization after a win, leading Knaus to say after Sunday's race, "Our team and organization is better than what they've got at (Joe) Gibbs (Racing). Just the facts."
Normally polished but somewhat reserved in interviews, Johnson cracked jokes with the news media Friday before outqualifying Hamlin and Harvick. Before the race, he smiled as he cradled 4-month-old daughter, Genevieve Marie.
"It was fun to not be worried about the championship," he said. "We didn't have to protect (a lead). It completely changed my mind-set."
ESPN analyst Ray Evernham said it might change fans' minds.
"This could be the championship that really makes everyone appreciate Jimmie Johnson," said Evernham, a three-time championship-winning crew chief. "Everyone says it's been too easy. Now we see Jimmie fight for it and doing in-your-face stuff.
"But it's going to be hard to be the greatest ever because of Petty and Earnhardt. In the end, it's about numbers."
Sunday was mostly about emotions for Johnson, who called his fifth title the sweetest and said he soaked in the experience — even with the so-called "haters of the 48" who boo him during driver introductions and victory lane celebrations.
As Johnson climbed onto a stage for a Speed interview on the front straightaway, he got a thumbs up from someone wearing an "I hate the 48" T-shirt, and dozens of fans pressed up against the nearby catchfence. "Come on, get rowdy!" Johnson played to whoops from the crowd.
Later, he said he appreciated the reaction but ultimately didn't need it to feel better because his achievement would be respected sports-wide. "It's tough for fans to appreciate what we accomplish," he said. "They want their guy to win. People tell me they hate me, but they respect me. That's always cool."
Showing posts with label NASCAR. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NASCAR. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Saturday, January 2, 2010
NASCAR's Johnson wins male athlete of the year
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gjzazqedJdJp0IxgBe_jdjgCYBDQD9CNV8280NASCAR's Johnson wins male athlete of the year
By JENNA FRYER (AP)
12-21-9
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — There was little recognition outside the racing world when Jimmie Johnson won his first NASCAR championship.
Same with his second, and again with his third.
But four straight championships? That's a different story.
Johnson, the first driver in NASCAR history to win four consecutive titles, earned mainstream recognition Monday when he was honored as the Male Athlete of the Year by members of The Associated Press.
Johnson received 42 votes from editors at U.S. newspapers which are members of the AP. Tennis star Roger Federer (30 votes) and Olympic sprinter Usain Bolt (29) were the only other athletes with totals in the double- digits.
Although Tiger Woods was named Athlete of the Decade, the golfer received only nine votes for Athlete of the Year. He was tied with NBA star Kobe Bryant and slugger Albert Pujols in fourth place. Woods, who was ranked No. 1 in his sport but failed to win one of golf's majors this season, was never a top contender — even before the sex scandal that unraveled his personal life following a Nov. 27 traffic accident.
For Johnson, the first race car driver to be named the AP's Athlete of the Year in its 78-year history, the award is the validation he's been waiting for since he began his historic run in 2006.
"We'd been wondering the last few years, 'When is this going to hit?'" he said. "It seems like the answer is now. The wave is finally peaking, and we don't know where it's going to take us. The fourth straight title takes it out of our sport and makes it a point of discussion — like, 'Wow, a race car driver won this thing.'"
The 34-year-old Californian again schooled the competition, winning four of his seven races this season when the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship began in September. Two-time champion Tony Stewart dominated the "regular season," but it was Johnson and his No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports team that turned it up when the stakes were highest.
In the 10 Chase races, Johnson finished outside the top-10 only once: when he wrecked at Texas with Sam Hornish Jr. three laps into the eighth race. The crash proved Johnson's mettle, as he sat inside his car, helmet on, for more than an hour as crew chief Chad Knaus led a total rebuild of his Chevrolet so that Johnson could return to the track.
Although the 38th-place finish decimated his cozy lead in the standings, he shrugged off any potential challenge by rolling into Phoenix the next week and leading 238 of the 312 laps en route to a victory that turned the season finale into a low-key Sunday drive for Johnson.
"I'm pretty sure that dude's Superman," said teammate Mark Martin, who finished second in the standings, 141 points behind Johnson.
The march into the record books has attracted attention for Johnson far beyond NASCAR's insulated garage. HBO Sports' award-winning "24/7" program has tabbed Johnson for a four-episode series that will chronicle his preparation for the 2010 season-opening Daytona 500.
And he received widespread attention earlier this month when he donated $922,000 in educational grants to 26 schools in California, North Carolina and Oklahoma.
Now comes the AP honor, which Johnson said reinforces what he's always believed — that even though he's a race car driver, he's "100 percent" an athlete.
"I've looked at other sports, particularly baseball, and I've seen plenty of out-of-shape, fat players," said Johnson, who counts among his close friends former NFL player Jason Sehorn, and MLB players Brian and Marcus Giles.
"So to anyone who wants to go head-to-head with me in athletic ability, let's go. I talked a lot with Jason Sehorn about this, and I don't know how exactly you measure athletic ability, but I know my 5-mile run time will destroy most NFL players."
As Johnson boasted of his personal best — 34 minutes, 55 seconds — his wife, Chandra, yelled "Overachiever!" in the background. It's a bit of a joke between the two since Johnson gave a two-year commitment to a New York City-based trainer he calls "the Chad Knaus of the body."
His focus can be fanatical, but Johnson still finds time to maintain his work hard/play hard attitude — and proved it with a raucous South Beach celebration after the season-finale. The bash left him admittedly weary during the next few days, during a round of media appearances. And when the New York City mayor's office designated a "Jimmie Johnson Day" earlier this month, the champion suggested "everyone should have the day off and go have margaritas."
It's a balance between play and work that he's mastered, and firmly believes he can ride to a fifth title. Johnson recently signed a five-year deal to drive for Hendrick through 2015, and Knaus has predicted the team can keep up its rate of success over the next several years.
"The cool thing," Johnson said, "is we're not done yet."
12-21-9
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — There was little recognition outside the racing world when Jimmie Johnson won his first NASCAR championship.
Same with his second, and again with his third.
But four straight championships? That's a different story.
Johnson, the first driver in NASCAR history to win four consecutive titles, earned mainstream recognition Monday when he was honored as the Male Athlete of the Year by members of The Associated Press.
Johnson received 42 votes from editors at U.S. newspapers which are members of the AP. Tennis star Roger Federer (30 votes) and Olympic sprinter Usain Bolt (29) were the only other athletes with totals in the double- digits.
Although Tiger Woods was named Athlete of the Decade, the golfer received only nine votes for Athlete of the Year. He was tied with NBA star Kobe Bryant and slugger Albert Pujols in fourth place. Woods, who was ranked No. 1 in his sport but failed to win one of golf's majors this season, was never a top contender — even before the sex scandal that unraveled his personal life following a Nov. 27 traffic accident.
For Johnson, the first race car driver to be named the AP's Athlete of the Year in its 78-year history, the award is the validation he's been waiting for since he began his historic run in 2006.
"We'd been wondering the last few years, 'When is this going to hit?'" he said. "It seems like the answer is now. The wave is finally peaking, and we don't know where it's going to take us. The fourth straight title takes it out of our sport and makes it a point of discussion — like, 'Wow, a race car driver won this thing.'"
The 34-year-old Californian again schooled the competition, winning four of his seven races this season when the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship began in September. Two-time champion Tony Stewart dominated the "regular season," but it was Johnson and his No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports team that turned it up when the stakes were highest.
In the 10 Chase races, Johnson finished outside the top-10 only once: when he wrecked at Texas with Sam Hornish Jr. three laps into the eighth race. The crash proved Johnson's mettle, as he sat inside his car, helmet on, for more than an hour as crew chief Chad Knaus led a total rebuild of his Chevrolet so that Johnson could return to the track.
Although the 38th-place finish decimated his cozy lead in the standings, he shrugged off any potential challenge by rolling into Phoenix the next week and leading 238 of the 312 laps en route to a victory that turned the season finale into a low-key Sunday drive for Johnson.
"I'm pretty sure that dude's Superman," said teammate Mark Martin, who finished second in the standings, 141 points behind Johnson.
The march into the record books has attracted attention for Johnson far beyond NASCAR's insulated garage. HBO Sports' award-winning "24/7" program has tabbed Johnson for a four-episode series that will chronicle his preparation for the 2010 season-opening Daytona 500.
And he received widespread attention earlier this month when he donated $922,000 in educational grants to 26 schools in California, North Carolina and Oklahoma.
Now comes the AP honor, which Johnson said reinforces what he's always believed — that even though he's a race car driver, he's "100 percent" an athlete.
"I've looked at other sports, particularly baseball, and I've seen plenty of out-of-shape, fat players," said Johnson, who counts among his close friends former NFL player Jason Sehorn, and MLB players Brian and Marcus Giles.
"So to anyone who wants to go head-to-head with me in athletic ability, let's go. I talked a lot with Jason Sehorn about this, and I don't know how exactly you measure athletic ability, but I know my 5-mile run time will destroy most NFL players."
As Johnson boasted of his personal best — 34 minutes, 55 seconds — his wife, Chandra, yelled "Overachiever!" in the background. It's a bit of a joke between the two since Johnson gave a two-year commitment to a New York City-based trainer he calls "the Chad Knaus of the body."
His focus can be fanatical, but Johnson still finds time to maintain his work hard/play hard attitude — and proved it with a raucous South Beach celebration after the season-finale. The bash left him admittedly weary during the next few days, during a round of media appearances. And when the New York City mayor's office designated a "Jimmie Johnson Day" earlier this month, the champion suggested "everyone should have the day off and go have margaritas."
It's a balance between play and work that he's mastered, and firmly believes he can ride to a fifth title. Johnson recently signed a five-year deal to drive for Hendrick through 2015, and Knaus has predicted the team can keep up its rate of success over the next several years.
"The cool thing," Johnson said, "is we're not done yet."
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Man vs. big food
http://www.lasvegasweekly.com/news/2009/jul/16/man-vs-big-food/
Man vs. big foodThe verdict’s in: NASCAR Cafe’s Bunyanesque entrees and not-so-subtle roller coaster are more fun with a sexy woman nearby
E.C. Gladstone
Thu, Jul 16, 2009
Elliott Kleven attempts to eat the B3 burrito at the NASCAR Cafe at the Sahara. The burrito weighs six pounds and has only a handful of conquerors.
What can i tell you? the signs said “Come Get Pounded.” Naturally, I had to invite Laura Croft.
Oh stop. Laura, Playboy’s Miss July 2008 (and becoming even better known as “Holly Madison’s roommate”), talks about loving greasy food and roller coasters so much you’d think she was sponsored by the Tomboys Against Anorexia lobby. Seeing NASCAR Café’s boldfaced ads, with lines like “Our BLT is Heart-Stopping” and “The B3 Burrito/It’s Child Size. Literally,” you could hardly criticize my eagerness to give the girl what she wanted. A lot of it.
Because, even in a town where one-upmanship is a given, the Sahara’s eatery-cum-amusement experience tops them all. Huge finish-it-and-it’s-free foods have been around for decades in the world of novelty nutrition, but one would think, in the face of America’s government-acknowledged obesity epidemic, that they might be fading.
Nuh-uh. Sure, the Plaza hotel has retired its legendary 9-pound burger. But the Peppermill still delivers its eight-to-10-egg omelets. Hash House A Go-Go griddles weapons-grade pancakes. Napoli Pizza offers a healthy 30-inch pie. And in the ever-changing big-burger contests, deal in Cheeburger Cheeburger (20-ounce) and Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar and Angioplasty (32-ounce). For sure there are others.
But none holds a candle to the NASCAR Café’s mega-menu. Yes, they have a 2-by-4 burger (two meats, four cheeses) made with two half-pound ground rounds. And a BLT with a full pound (post-cooking weight, mind you) of bacon. And a 180-ounce beer tower. But nothing tops the B3 6-pound burrito. This is a serious contest: Clean your plate solo in 90 minutes, and you get not only a winner’s T-shirt (guess what size it comes in?) but also—heh-heh—two unlimited ride passes to Speed, that roller-coaster thingy that sticks out of the front of the building.
All these are the brainchildren of one dangerous man, Sahara’s Tim Emert (a Certified Executive Chef, thank you very much), who can’t quite explain how he landed on six pounds, but estimates the calorie count as somewhere in the 8,000-9,000 range ... or about a week’s worth for your average thinspo. The one he and an assistant made us (yes, it takes two) was roughly the 250th. To date, four people have won the challenge.
“NASCAR fans really love to eat,” said Emert, straight-faced. “So we figured, ‘Eh, let’s give ’em something to eat.’”
Was Laura up to taking on the whole burrito? Perhaps, especially with understudy eater Keltie Colleen (one of Peepshow’s three little piglets) … before Emert brought out all the other items, too, and then his top-selling appetizer sampler, sporting a toasted sourdough ball filled with spinach artichoke dip, Italian sausages, jalapeno-cream cheese poppers, hot wings, mozzarella sticks, chicken tenders and onion rings, atop their signature curly fries. “I drank a cup of pickle juice, cheese whiz, somebody’s loogie, egg, guacamole and beer for a hundred dollars once,” says Croft, unconcerned about testing her impossibly flat stomach.
“This is obscene,” Emert admits—though not a bit apologetically.
To my surprise, the food wasn’t just big, but actually not bad. The burrito’s top round beef was stewed slowly with peppers and spices. The Angus burger was solid but savory … the BLT (which took the biggest hit in our blitzkrieg) had crisp lettuce, ripe red tomatoes and thick-cut applewood-smoked bacon perfectly cooked to that decisive moment between chewy and crisp. The Italian sausage on the sampler plate was good enough for mama’s Bolognese.
But the pièce de resistance was the pound of chipotle-seasoned curly fries topped with chocolate and pineapple. Yeah, let the expletives fly. Then try them. Chef Tim may be, as Keltie called him, an off-season Santa. But clearly there’s a bit of Satan in the man. And Satan has discovered a taste fusion that is … well, kinda sexy. It would work better with crushed instead of chunk pineapple, but that’s nit-picking. “That burrito is so five minutes ago,” said Keltie, digging in with a vengeance.
We of course finished our afternoon—as alcohol, insulin and lipids coursed through our arteries like a microbial biker gang—with a necessary spin on Speed, the ride best described as a roller coaster on ADD. The way Speed shoots off instead of slowly climbing, you don’t have time to panic. But my stomach sure gave me a big “WTF?” as we got aboard. It ended, honestly, too fast to cause hurlage. Another round and I would’ve been there for sure. Laura admitted to feeling badly—but only about not eating more. She confessed to pulling her punches. “I have a nude photo shoot this weekend.”
Excuse me? Most women wouldn’t eat this way a month before a nude photo shoot. But 72 hours?! Clearly, Daisy Dukes-wearing, beer-loving, NASCAR- and UFC-endorsing Laura Croft was created in a frat basement laboratory by Spuds McKenzie’s evil med-student disciples. Either that, or cloned from Kelly LeBrock’s character in Weird Science. And though she was awarded the loser’s pink “weenie” T-shirt instead of the black B3 “winner” one on her way out, Croft was unflappable.
“I like weenies.”
Check. Please.
The B3 Burrito Proportions
Flour tortilla - 20 ounces
Rice - 18 ounces
Refried beans - 20 ounces
Cheese - 10 ounces
Lettuce - 6 ounces
Shredded meat - 12 ounces
Ranchero sauce - 5 ounces
Diced tomato - 2 ounces
Guacamole - 4 ounces
Sour cream - 6 ounces
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
COMBOS(R) Brand Releases Manliest Cities
http://sev.prnewswire.com/food-beverages/20090305/CG7842305032009-1.html
COMBOS(R) Brand Releases Manliest Cities in America Rankings With Nashville at Top and New York at Bottom
To Launch Its Ultimate Man Zone Sweepstakes, COMBOS(R) - Man's Favorite Cheese-Filled Snack - Partners with the Expert Behind Multiple Best Places Rankings to Reveal 'America's Manliest Cities'
HACKETTSTOWN, N.J., March 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Step aside men of Motown, Sin City and the Big Apple. Nashville now ranks as the manliest city in America. Mars Snackfood US announced today the release of "America's Manliest Cities" - a study commissioned by COMBOS(R) Brand in partnership with Bert Sperling, the research expert behind the popular "Best Places to Live" studies.
Via the "America's Manliest Cities" study, COMBOS(R) - the hearty, pretzel and cracker snack made with real cheese - examines what makes a city manly and then ranks 50 major metropolitan areas using criteria such as number of professional major league sports teams, popularity of tools and hardware and frequency of monster truck rallies. Cities also lose ranking points for emasculating characteristics like the abundance of home furnishing stores, high minivan sales and subscription rates to beauty magazines.
The manliest ranking comes as COMBOS(R) launches its Ultimate Man Zone Sweepstakes, an opportunity for guys to improve their favorite hangouts and win prize packages to upgrade their tailgating, grilling, home theater or gaming "zones." And also thanks to COMBOS(R), women now know where to find the manliest men around.
"As the ultimate hearty snack, COMBOS(R) created the Ultimate Man Zone Sweepstakes to give guys the opportunities to improve their favorite hangouts," said Craig Hall, general manager, Mars Snackfood US. "Through our COMBOS(R) 'America's Manliest Cities' study, we want to let guys know where their hometowns stack up against their brethren coast-to-coast when it comes to manliest."
Manly Study Highlights
Nashville is the Mecca of manliness. With its high number of NASCAR enthusiasts, popularity of hunting and fishing and concentration of BBQ restaurants, the Music City stands alone atop the mountain of manliness.
Despite high ratings in the "bowling" category, New York City ranks 50th out of 50 in the study due to low scores in manly indicators such as "fishing," "home improvement" and "drag racing."
If you're in the Midwest and looking to enjoy a game with a cold beverage, look no farther than St. Louis, which has the highest concentration of sports bars in the country.
Grand Rapids, Mich. has more monster truck rallies, per capita, than any other U.S. city.
Philadelphia and Chicago, with low scores in the "hunting" category fail to crack the top 25 (ranked 30th and 46th respectively).
The men of Oklahoma City know how to snack with gusto. Their city owns the highest purchase rate of salty snacks, such as COMBOS(R).
Got chainsaws? What about hammers and power drills? The men of New Orleans do. The "Big Easy" boasts more hardware stores per capita than any other U.S. city.
The Manly Methodology*
The rankings were determined using 50 of the largest metropolitan areas as defined by the United States Census Bureau, which includes a central city and the surrounding county (or counties).
Each metro area received a manliness rating between 0 and 100 based on how well it performed in each of the study's manly categories. Factors used to determine the manliest city rankings included the number of U.S.-made cars driven in the city, number of sports bars and BBQ restaurants, number of home improvement and hardware stores as well as manly salty snacks consumption. All data was adjusted by the current population of the cities to arrive at "per capita" figures, providing an accurate comparison between cities of varying sizes.
"America's Manliest Cities"
Nashville, Tenn.
Charlotte, N.C.
Oklahoma City, Okla.
Cincinnati, Ohio
Denver, Colo.
St. Louis, Mo.
Columbus, Ohio
Kansas City, Mo.
Indianapolis, Ind.
Toledo, Ohio
Memphis, Tenn.
Richmond, Va.
Columbia, S.C.
Orlando, Fla.
Dayton, Ohio
Salt Lake City, Utah
Milwaukee, Wis.
Minneapolis, Minn.
Cleveland, Ohio
Detroit, Mich.
Jacksonville, Fla.
Phoenix, Ariz.
Birmingham, Ala.
Grand Rapids, Mich.
Tampa, Fla.
Harrisburg, Pa.
New Orleans, La.
Las Vegas, Nev.
Pittsburgh, Pa.
Philadelphia, Pa.
Louisville, Ky.
Atlanta, Ga.
Providence, R.I.
Dallas, Texas
Buffalo, N.Y.
Rochester, N.Y.
Baltimore, Md.
Boston, Mass.
Houston, Texas
Seattle, Wash.
Sacramento, Calif.
Miami, Fla.
San Diego, Calif.
Oakland, Calif.
Washington, District of Columbia
Chicago, Ill.
Portland, Ore.
San Francisco, Calif.
Los Angeles, Calif.
New York, N.Y.
The Ultimate Man Zone Sweepstakes
While it's too late for men to raise their city's manliness ranking this year, men from every city still have the chance to raise the level of their man gear by entering the COMBOS(R) Ultimate Man Zone Sweepstakes at www.COMBOS.com. The entry deadline is May 31, 2009.
Fueling American Manliness Across the Country
COMBOS(R) - the "Official Cheese-Filled Snack of NASCAR" - is road tripping around the U.S., stopping at NASCAR races and other man-friendly sporting events encouraging men to enter for a chance to win one of the Ultimate Man Zone packages.
The Ultimate Man Zone mobile tour makes stops in Daytona, Fla.; Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Orlando, Fla.; Atlanta, Ga.; Bristol, Conn.; Martinsville, Va.; Baltimore, Md.; Talladega, Ala.; Richmond, Va.; Darlington, S.C.; Concord, N.C.; Charlotte, N.C.; and Dover, Del.
A complete schedule of the Ultimate Man Zone tour can be found at www.COMBOS.com, as well as additional info on COMBOS(R) and the Ultimate Man Zone Sweepstakes.
About Mars Snackfood US:
Mars Snackfood US is the United States snack operations of Mars North America. With more than $7 billion in annual sales in the United States, Mars North America includes food, snack and pet care segments, which are a symbol of excellence for quality brands. Headquartered in Mount Olive, N.J., Mars North America employs more than 12,000 associates in the United States, with 54 facilities nationwide. Mars Snackfood US, headquartered in Hackettstown, N.J., includes some of the world's favorite brands such as DOVE(R) Brand Chocolate, M&M'S(R) Brand, MILKY WAY(R) Brand , SNICKERS(R) Brand, 3 MUSKETEERS(R) Brand, TWIX(R) Brand and more. Additional popular brands in the petcare and food segments for Mars North America include UNCLE BEN'S(R) Brand, PEDIGREE(R) Brand Food for Dogs, and WHISKAS(R) Brand Food for Cats. Please visit www.mars.com.
* For detailed methodology and rankings on each of the factors in the Combos(R) "America's Manliest Cities" study, please request a copy of the extended "Manliest Cities" rankings broken down by factor.
Website: http://www.mars.com/
COMBOS(R) Brand Releases Manliest Cities in America Rankings With Nashville at Top and New York at Bottom
To Launch Its Ultimate Man Zone Sweepstakes, COMBOS(R) - Man's Favorite Cheese-Filled Snack - Partners with the Expert Behind Multiple Best Places Rankings to Reveal 'America's Manliest Cities'
HACKETTSTOWN, N.J., March 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Step aside men of Motown, Sin City and the Big Apple. Nashville now ranks as the manliest city in America. Mars Snackfood US announced today the release of "America's Manliest Cities" - a study commissioned by COMBOS(R) Brand in partnership with Bert Sperling, the research expert behind the popular "Best Places to Live" studies.
Via the "America's Manliest Cities" study, COMBOS(R) - the hearty, pretzel and cracker snack made with real cheese - examines what makes a city manly and then ranks 50 major metropolitan areas using criteria such as number of professional major league sports teams, popularity of tools and hardware and frequency of monster truck rallies. Cities also lose ranking points for emasculating characteristics like the abundance of home furnishing stores, high minivan sales and subscription rates to beauty magazines.
The manliest ranking comes as COMBOS(R) launches its Ultimate Man Zone Sweepstakes, an opportunity for guys to improve their favorite hangouts and win prize packages to upgrade their tailgating, grilling, home theater or gaming "zones." And also thanks to COMBOS(R), women now know where to find the manliest men around.
"As the ultimate hearty snack, COMBOS(R) created the Ultimate Man Zone Sweepstakes to give guys the opportunities to improve their favorite hangouts," said Craig Hall, general manager, Mars Snackfood US. "Through our COMBOS(R) 'America's Manliest Cities' study, we want to let guys know where their hometowns stack up against their brethren coast-to-coast when it comes to manliest."
Manly Study Highlights
Nashville is the Mecca of manliness. With its high number of NASCAR enthusiasts, popularity of hunting and fishing and concentration of BBQ restaurants, the Music City stands alone atop the mountain of manliness.
Despite high ratings in the "bowling" category, New York City ranks 50th out of 50 in the study due to low scores in manly indicators such as "fishing," "home improvement" and "drag racing."
If you're in the Midwest and looking to enjoy a game with a cold beverage, look no farther than St. Louis, which has the highest concentration of sports bars in the country.
Grand Rapids, Mich. has more monster truck rallies, per capita, than any other U.S. city.
Philadelphia and Chicago, with low scores in the "hunting" category fail to crack the top 25 (ranked 30th and 46th respectively).
The men of Oklahoma City know how to snack with gusto. Their city owns the highest purchase rate of salty snacks, such as COMBOS(R).
Got chainsaws? What about hammers and power drills? The men of New Orleans do. The "Big Easy" boasts more hardware stores per capita than any other U.S. city.
The Manly Methodology*
The rankings were determined using 50 of the largest metropolitan areas as defined by the United States Census Bureau, which includes a central city and the surrounding county (or counties).
Each metro area received a manliness rating between 0 and 100 based on how well it performed in each of the study's manly categories. Factors used to determine the manliest city rankings included the number of U.S.-made cars driven in the city, number of sports bars and BBQ restaurants, number of home improvement and hardware stores as well as manly salty snacks consumption. All data was adjusted by the current population of the cities to arrive at "per capita" figures, providing an accurate comparison between cities of varying sizes.
"America's Manliest Cities"
Nashville, Tenn.
Charlotte, N.C.
Oklahoma City, Okla.
Cincinnati, Ohio
Denver, Colo.
St. Louis, Mo.
Columbus, Ohio
Kansas City, Mo.
Indianapolis, Ind.
Toledo, Ohio
Memphis, Tenn.
Richmond, Va.
Columbia, S.C.
Orlando, Fla.
Dayton, Ohio
Salt Lake City, Utah
Milwaukee, Wis.
Minneapolis, Minn.
Cleveland, Ohio
Detroit, Mich.
Jacksonville, Fla.
Phoenix, Ariz.
Birmingham, Ala.
Grand Rapids, Mich.
Tampa, Fla.
Harrisburg, Pa.
New Orleans, La.
Las Vegas, Nev.
Pittsburgh, Pa.
Philadelphia, Pa.
Louisville, Ky.
Atlanta, Ga.
Providence, R.I.
Dallas, Texas
Buffalo, N.Y.
Rochester, N.Y.
Baltimore, Md.
Boston, Mass.
Houston, Texas
Seattle, Wash.
Sacramento, Calif.
Miami, Fla.
San Diego, Calif.
Oakland, Calif.
Washington, District of Columbia
Chicago, Ill.
Portland, Ore.
San Francisco, Calif.
Los Angeles, Calif.
New York, N.Y.
The Ultimate Man Zone Sweepstakes
While it's too late for men to raise their city's manliness ranking this year, men from every city still have the chance to raise the level of their man gear by entering the COMBOS(R) Ultimate Man Zone Sweepstakes at www.COMBOS.com. The entry deadline is May 31, 2009.
Fueling American Manliness Across the Country
COMBOS(R) - the "Official Cheese-Filled Snack of NASCAR" - is road tripping around the U.S., stopping at NASCAR races and other man-friendly sporting events encouraging men to enter for a chance to win one of the Ultimate Man Zone packages.
The Ultimate Man Zone mobile tour makes stops in Daytona, Fla.; Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Orlando, Fla.; Atlanta, Ga.; Bristol, Conn.; Martinsville, Va.; Baltimore, Md.; Talladega, Ala.; Richmond, Va.; Darlington, S.C.; Concord, N.C.; Charlotte, N.C.; and Dover, Del.
A complete schedule of the Ultimate Man Zone tour can be found at www.COMBOS.com, as well as additional info on COMBOS(R) and the Ultimate Man Zone Sweepstakes.
About Mars Snackfood US:
Mars Snackfood US is the United States snack operations of Mars North America. With more than $7 billion in annual sales in the United States, Mars North America includes food, snack and pet care segments, which are a symbol of excellence for quality brands. Headquartered in Mount Olive, N.J., Mars North America employs more than 12,000 associates in the United States, with 54 facilities nationwide. Mars Snackfood US, headquartered in Hackettstown, N.J., includes some of the world's favorite brands such as DOVE(R) Brand Chocolate, M&M'S(R) Brand, MILKY WAY(R) Brand , SNICKERS(R) Brand, 3 MUSKETEERS(R) Brand, TWIX(R) Brand and more. Additional popular brands in the petcare and food segments for Mars North America include UNCLE BEN'S(R) Brand, PEDIGREE(R) Brand Food for Dogs, and WHISKAS(R) Brand Food for Cats. Please visit www.mars.com.
* For detailed methodology and rankings on each of the factors in the Combos(R) "America's Manliest Cities" study, please request a copy of the extended "Manliest Cities" rankings broken down by factor.
Website: http://www.mars.com/
Friday, March 6, 2009
Vegas casino sells 2-foot, 6-pound burrito at cafe
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jlLpoVZ0CdW1mUSC2N-vVaolbkAAD96K4PTO2
Vegas casino sells 2-foot, 6-pound burrito at cafe
2-27-9
LAS VEGAS (AP) — A Las Vegas casino cafe is rewarding patrons who can put away a 2-foot, 6-pound burrito with a most logical prize — free unlimited rides on a roller coaster that runs in both forward and reverse.
The offer comes with a caveat, though: Those who accept the challenge but can't finish "The Bomb" burrito have to take a picture with an extra small, pink T-shirt that says "Weenie."
The NASCAR Cafe at the Sahara Hotel & Casino began selling the cheese-and-guacamole slathered burrito on Thursday for $19.95.
Those who can finish the monstrous entree get it for free, along with two unlimited coaster passes and a T-shirt proclaiming they "Conquered the Bomb."
Vegas casino sells 2-foot, 6-pound burrito at cafe
2-27-9
LAS VEGAS (AP) — A Las Vegas casino cafe is rewarding patrons who can put away a 2-foot, 6-pound burrito with a most logical prize — free unlimited rides on a roller coaster that runs in both forward and reverse.
The offer comes with a caveat, though: Those who accept the challenge but can't finish "The Bomb" burrito have to take a picture with an extra small, pink T-shirt that says "Weenie."
The NASCAR Cafe at the Sahara Hotel & Casino began selling the cheese-and-guacamole slathered burrito on Thursday for $19.95.
Those who can finish the monstrous entree get it for free, along with two unlimited coaster passes and a T-shirt proclaiming they "Conquered the Bomb."
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Rocket Racing League announces August takeoff
http://www.news.com/8301-13577_3-9917928-36.html
April 14, 2008
Rocket Racing League announces August takeoff
Posted by Caroline McCarthy
A Rocket Racer lifts off for a test flight.
NEW YORK--Top Gun and Ender's Game fans take note: Rocket Racing is here.
It'll be like Formula One or Nascar in the sky, or at least that's what the leadership of Rocket Racing said at a press conference at the Yale Club here on Monday morning. The aeronautics entertainment start-up announced the debut of its long-awaited Rocket Racing League, which will have its first exhibition race on August 1-2 at the EAA AirVenture air show in Oshkosh, Wis.
The science fiction-like Rocket Racing pits aircraft called Rocket Racers against one another in a high-speed dash around the sky. The pilots are equipped with 3D helmets and navigation panels to visualize the virtual "raceway" they follow, and spectators on the ground and at home will have access to footage from remote and rocket-mounted cameras. This is accomplished through "cockpit-based augmented reality," which the Rocket Racing League ultimately wants to bring into general aviation as a way to make navigation easier and more efficient for pilots.
Rocket Racing, which hopes to have a formal racing season in 2010, simultaneously announced the acquisition of Florida-based Velocity Aircraft to produce the frame for all its aircraft.
"If you're going to race Ferrari in your league, why not own Ferrari?" Rocket Racing CEO Granger Whitelaw said of the acquisition.
In a hypothetical Rocket Racing event, up to 10 pilots will be racing at a time in a 90-minute race. The aircraft can fly up to 350 miles per hour. "It's great for TV," Whitelaw said. "It'll be very fast, very thrilling. It's all about competition." There will ideally be Rocket Racing video games released to fans in conjunction.
The company also plans to hold exhibition races at the Reno National Championship Air Races in September, the Aviation Nation event in November, and the 2008 X Prize Cup. Six teams have already signed up for the Rocket Racing League's first season, and Whitelaw said that two television networks have already offered deals.
But the announcement itself was a long time coming, and Rocket Racing's short history has been rife with delays. "It's almost now three and a half years since we announced the concept to the media and the world and I've very proud of the incredible progress that's been made by this team," Rocket Racing League co-Chairman Peter Diamandis, who also serves as the CEO of the X Prize Foundation, said at the press event via videoconference. "We waited quite a long time to unveil this, until we were ready."
Indeed, after launching in 2005, "we were very optimistic in hoping to race in 2006," Whitelaw admitted in the press conference. "I take full responsibility for missing our target date. We're about 15 months behind schedule." Ultimately, the Rocket Racing League didn't have its first successful test flight until November 2007.
And the Federal Aviation Administration has not yet given the league the green light. "We have no reason to believe they won't," Whitelaw said. But this is key to the company's promises of safety, which Whitelaw reiterated to an audience that seemed mildly skeptical at the prospect of rocket-powered planes zipping around the sky with spectators on the ground below. "Every plane in every air show has to be approved by the FAA," Whitelaw explained. He added, "We will never be flying directly at (spectators)."
Rocket Racing filed an extensive safety-related patent on Monday."We have the technology today," Whitelaw said.
And on the subject of environmental friendliness, he explained that "we like to say that 95 percent of our fuel is grown on trees." He provided the example of IndyCar, which now powers its vehicles with ethanol, but admitted that some of the Rocket Racing aircraft engines' technology does run on kerosene. But the company is currently looking at using more biofuels "to be as environmentally friendly as possible, and we'll be introducing those when we can."
Topics: NewsTags: aviation,aeronautics,Rocket Racing,Rocket Racing League
April 14, 2008
Rocket Racing League announces August takeoff
Posted by Caroline McCarthy
A Rocket Racer lifts off for a test flight.
NEW YORK--Top Gun and Ender's Game fans take note: Rocket Racing is here.
It'll be like Formula One or Nascar in the sky, or at least that's what the leadership of Rocket Racing said at a press conference at the Yale Club here on Monday morning. The aeronautics entertainment start-up announced the debut of its long-awaited Rocket Racing League, which will have its first exhibition race on August 1-2 at the EAA AirVenture air show in Oshkosh, Wis.
The science fiction-like Rocket Racing pits aircraft called Rocket Racers against one another in a high-speed dash around the sky. The pilots are equipped with 3D helmets and navigation panels to visualize the virtual "raceway" they follow, and spectators on the ground and at home will have access to footage from remote and rocket-mounted cameras. This is accomplished through "cockpit-based augmented reality," which the Rocket Racing League ultimately wants to bring into general aviation as a way to make navigation easier and more efficient for pilots.
Rocket Racing, which hopes to have a formal racing season in 2010, simultaneously announced the acquisition of Florida-based Velocity Aircraft to produce the frame for all its aircraft.
"If you're going to race Ferrari in your league, why not own Ferrari?" Rocket Racing CEO Granger Whitelaw said of the acquisition.
In a hypothetical Rocket Racing event, up to 10 pilots will be racing at a time in a 90-minute race. The aircraft can fly up to 350 miles per hour. "It's great for TV," Whitelaw said. "It'll be very fast, very thrilling. It's all about competition." There will ideally be Rocket Racing video games released to fans in conjunction.
The company also plans to hold exhibition races at the Reno National Championship Air Races in September, the Aviation Nation event in November, and the 2008 X Prize Cup. Six teams have already signed up for the Rocket Racing League's first season, and Whitelaw said that two television networks have already offered deals.
But the announcement itself was a long time coming, and Rocket Racing's short history has been rife with delays. "It's almost now three and a half years since we announced the concept to the media and the world and I've very proud of the incredible progress that's been made by this team," Rocket Racing League co-Chairman Peter Diamandis, who also serves as the CEO of the X Prize Foundation, said at the press event via videoconference. "We waited quite a long time to unveil this, until we were ready."
Indeed, after launching in 2005, "we were very optimistic in hoping to race in 2006," Whitelaw admitted in the press conference. "I take full responsibility for missing our target date. We're about 15 months behind schedule." Ultimately, the Rocket Racing League didn't have its first successful test flight until November 2007.
And the Federal Aviation Administration has not yet given the league the green light. "We have no reason to believe they won't," Whitelaw said. But this is key to the company's promises of safety, which Whitelaw reiterated to an audience that seemed mildly skeptical at the prospect of rocket-powered planes zipping around the sky with spectators on the ground below. "Every plane in every air show has to be approved by the FAA," Whitelaw explained. He added, "We will never be flying directly at (spectators)."
Rocket Racing filed an extensive safety-related patent on Monday."We have the technology today," Whitelaw said.
And on the subject of environmental friendliness, he explained that "we like to say that 95 percent of our fuel is grown on trees." He provided the example of IndyCar, which now powers its vehicles with ethanol, but admitted that some of the Rocket Racing aircraft engines' technology does run on kerosene. But the company is currently looking at using more biofuels "to be as environmentally friendly as possible, and we'll be introducing those when we can."
Topics: NewsTags: aviation,aeronautics,Rocket Racing,Rocket Racing League
Friday, February 22, 2008
Hello, Newman
http://www.boston.com/sports/other_sports/autoracing/articles/2008/02/18/hello_newman/
Hello, Newman
With a little help from a friend, he wins first Daytona 500
By Michael Vega, Globe Staff
February 18, 2008
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - With three laps remaining in the 50th running of the Daytona 500 yesterday, it was apparent any number of drivers had a chance to win NASCAR's most prestigious race for the first time.
Unlike the legends of yore, these contenders were jockeying for the right to be welcomed into Victory Lane at Daytona International Speedway as winner of the golden anniversary of the Great American Race.
There was race leader Jeff Burton, driver of the No. 31 Chevrolet; there was Tony Stewart, who looked so strong all week in his No. 20 Toyota; and there was the No. 18 Toyota of Kyle Busch, Stewart's Joe Gibbs Racing teammate.
Then there were the Dodge Boys, Kurt Busch and Ryan Newman.
The Penske Racing pilots had tried to fly below the radar all week in their Dodge mounts. Once the dust settled from Busch's brouhaha with Stewart in a Budweiser Shootout practice last Friday night, which earned both drivers a six-race suspension, Penske was content to let the spotlight fall upon Dale Earnhardt Jr., the Hendrick Motorsports and Gibbs Racing camps, and Toyota.
And so, when the checkered flag fell and Daytona swung open its doors to Victory Lane, who was standing there waiting to be greeted?
Hellooooo, Newman.
All hailed Newman, the Golden Boy from South Bend, Ind., as the winner after the driver of the No. 12 Dodge snapped an 81-race winless streak which dated to a Sept. 9, 2005, triumph at New Hampshire. Newman got timely draft support from Penske teammate Busch to surge past Stewart on the backstretch of the final lap.
"Don't even have the words," said Newman, who acknowledged being awestruck during the drivers' meeting at the assembly of former 500 winners, which included Junior Johnson, A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti, Bobby Allison, Cale Yarborough, and Richard Petty.
"It's awesome," he said. "It's probably one of the most awesome things that's ever happened to me."
Newman and Busch's 1-2 finish gave owner Roger Penske, whose name is synonymous with unparalleled excellence in open-wheel racing, his first Harley J. Earl trophy to go along with the 14 Borg Warner trophies he's won at the Indianapolis 500.
If he hadn't won yesterday? "I would have come back next year and tried again," Penske said. "It was special for me. Obviously, we've tried for many years. We've had great drivers. We've been very close many years. But, again, we never executed at the end."
Until, that is, the opportunity presented itself at the end of yesterday's race.
After Casey Mears tagged the wall in Turn 1 and brought out the race's seventh and final caution, the field bunched behind Burton's car but quickly gobbled him up on the restart with three laps to go.
"I would say the leader was a sitting duck on every restart," Newman said. "I didn't think [Burton] had the greatest car all day. We were fortunate that when they split apart that I got the chance to push Tony. That made a difference because that lane moved, and it gave Kurt the opportunity to run the high line, which he wanted to."
After pushing Stewart to the front with one to go, Newman said "the moons just aligned" when Stewart decided to dive low into Turn 3.
"When I pushed Tony through [turns] 1 and 2, I was hoping he was going to hang onto it, because I was pushing as hard as I could," Newman said. "We broke free. Kurt came up behind me off 2 and just gave me the push from heaven."
Busch, who started 43d after experiencing a malfunction during Thursday's Gatorade Duels, had sacrificed so much for the team. At Penske's behest, Busch sacrificed his standing (No. 7) in the owner's points to allow rookie teammate Sam Hornish Jr. the peace of mind to know he had a spot locked up in the field, and used a past champion's provisional to secure his spot in the field.
Then, after getting hit with a pass-through penalty for exceeding the pit road speed limit on Lap 122, Busch worked his way back to the front to be there at the end to sacrifice himself again for Newman's sake.
"I was emotional pushing him across the line," said Busch. "It felt incredible to have a Penske 1-2 finish today. To have Newman jump up in front of me, I thought that was the most beautiful thing in the world because I knew one of us Penske cars was going to win at that point.
"I'm just very happy. I'm not bitter at all for finishing second."
Stewart, however, was crestfallen. He went from first to third on the last lap, marking his fifth top-10 result in his last six Daytona 500 starts. "It's probably just one of the most disappointing moments of my racing career," he said.
After re-creating those last four eventful corners of the last lap, Stewart paused.
"I just want to take a second to congratulate Ryan," he said. "He's a fellow Indiana boy. If we couldn't win, I was glad to see him. I was hoping it would be a Joe Gibbs Racing car to win this thing, but I'm happy for Ryan. He's a good guy, a good friend of mine."
After the win, the world beat a path to Victory Lane to offer Newman similar sentiments.
"It was awesome," Newman said. "Listening to my dad [Greg] on the radio spotting for me, all the other things, all the other emotions, all the hard work, people that gave me a shot racing quarter midgets, midgets, Sprint cars, Silver Crown cars, I have to thank everybody."
Michael Vega can be reached at vega@globe.com.
Hello, Newman
With a little help from a friend, he wins first Daytona 500
By Michael Vega, Globe Staff
February 18, 2008
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - With three laps remaining in the 50th running of the Daytona 500 yesterday, it was apparent any number of drivers had a chance to win NASCAR's most prestigious race for the first time.
Unlike the legends of yore, these contenders were jockeying for the right to be welcomed into Victory Lane at Daytona International Speedway as winner of the golden anniversary of the Great American Race.
There was race leader Jeff Burton, driver of the No. 31 Chevrolet; there was Tony Stewart, who looked so strong all week in his No. 20 Toyota; and there was the No. 18 Toyota of Kyle Busch, Stewart's Joe Gibbs Racing teammate.
Then there were the Dodge Boys, Kurt Busch and Ryan Newman.
The Penske Racing pilots had tried to fly below the radar all week in their Dodge mounts. Once the dust settled from Busch's brouhaha with Stewart in a Budweiser Shootout practice last Friday night, which earned both drivers a six-race suspension, Penske was content to let the spotlight fall upon Dale Earnhardt Jr., the Hendrick Motorsports and Gibbs Racing camps, and Toyota.
And so, when the checkered flag fell and Daytona swung open its doors to Victory Lane, who was standing there waiting to be greeted?
Hellooooo, Newman.
All hailed Newman, the Golden Boy from South Bend, Ind., as the winner after the driver of the No. 12 Dodge snapped an 81-race winless streak which dated to a Sept. 9, 2005, triumph at New Hampshire. Newman got timely draft support from Penske teammate Busch to surge past Stewart on the backstretch of the final lap.
"Don't even have the words," said Newman, who acknowledged being awestruck during the drivers' meeting at the assembly of former 500 winners, which included Junior Johnson, A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti, Bobby Allison, Cale Yarborough, and Richard Petty.
"It's awesome," he said. "It's probably one of the most awesome things that's ever happened to me."
Newman and Busch's 1-2 finish gave owner Roger Penske, whose name is synonymous with unparalleled excellence in open-wheel racing, his first Harley J. Earl trophy to go along with the 14 Borg Warner trophies he's won at the Indianapolis 500.
If he hadn't won yesterday? "I would have come back next year and tried again," Penske said. "It was special for me. Obviously, we've tried for many years. We've had great drivers. We've been very close many years. But, again, we never executed at the end."
Until, that is, the opportunity presented itself at the end of yesterday's race.
After Casey Mears tagged the wall in Turn 1 and brought out the race's seventh and final caution, the field bunched behind Burton's car but quickly gobbled him up on the restart with three laps to go.
"I would say the leader was a sitting duck on every restart," Newman said. "I didn't think [Burton] had the greatest car all day. We were fortunate that when they split apart that I got the chance to push Tony. That made a difference because that lane moved, and it gave Kurt the opportunity to run the high line, which he wanted to."
After pushing Stewart to the front with one to go, Newman said "the moons just aligned" when Stewart decided to dive low into Turn 3.
"When I pushed Tony through [turns] 1 and 2, I was hoping he was going to hang onto it, because I was pushing as hard as I could," Newman said. "We broke free. Kurt came up behind me off 2 and just gave me the push from heaven."
Busch, who started 43d after experiencing a malfunction during Thursday's Gatorade Duels, had sacrificed so much for the team. At Penske's behest, Busch sacrificed his standing (No. 7) in the owner's points to allow rookie teammate Sam Hornish Jr. the peace of mind to know he had a spot locked up in the field, and used a past champion's provisional to secure his spot in the field.
Then, after getting hit with a pass-through penalty for exceeding the pit road speed limit on Lap 122, Busch worked his way back to the front to be there at the end to sacrifice himself again for Newman's sake.
"I was emotional pushing him across the line," said Busch. "It felt incredible to have a Penske 1-2 finish today. To have Newman jump up in front of me, I thought that was the most beautiful thing in the world because I knew one of us Penske cars was going to win at that point.
"I'm just very happy. I'm not bitter at all for finishing second."
Stewart, however, was crestfallen. He went from first to third on the last lap, marking his fifth top-10 result in his last six Daytona 500 starts. "It's probably just one of the most disappointing moments of my racing career," he said.
After re-creating those last four eventful corners of the last lap, Stewart paused.
"I just want to take a second to congratulate Ryan," he said. "He's a fellow Indiana boy. If we couldn't win, I was glad to see him. I was hoping it would be a Joe Gibbs Racing car to win this thing, but I'm happy for Ryan. He's a good guy, a good friend of mine."
After the win, the world beat a path to Victory Lane to offer Newman similar sentiments.
"It was awesome," Newman said. "Listening to my dad [Greg] on the radio spotting for me, all the other things, all the other emotions, all the hard work, people that gave me a shot racing quarter midgets, midgets, Sprint cars, Silver Crown cars, I have to thank everybody."
Michael Vega can be reached at vega@globe.com.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
