I’m a little late on this but I had to post this press release about a local (to me in the San Francisco Bay Area) woman who races and is a part of NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity program.
Jessica Helberg Earns Third-Place Finish For Drive For Diversity Program
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (April 3, 2007) — Jessica Helberg, driving for Bill McAnally Racing and the Richard Childress Racing Development program, gave the Drive for Diversity program its first top-three finish of the season last Saturday night in front of a capacity crowd at All American Speedway in Roseville, Calif. Drive for Diversity participant Paulie Harraka, also driving for Bill McAnally Racing, finished the race seventh.
Saturday night was the first race of the 2007 season for Harraka and Helberg, who race in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series. Helberg, of Rohnert Park, Calif., qualified strong and started seventh. She made the most of the abbreviated 55-lap race, crossing the line with a solid third-place finish.
“It was a great start to the season,” Helberg said. “I was able to keep my car clean and avoid the wrecks, and I’m really excited about the third-place finish.”
Congrats Jessica!
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It’s funny to me that Jeff Gordon is the current points leader for the Nextel Cup Series and yet nobody is talking about him, well some are but only to say that he’s probably not going to win the race this weekend at Texas.
That’s totally fine with me, I don’t want him to win, there are other people that need to win a race right now.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. needs to win one to keep his charge up the points standings going and to give his contract negotiations with DEI an extra sense of urgency. Not that it really needs it but DEI needs a slap in the face to realize that they need to just end all this damn suspense and just sign him, give him his majority stake and call it a day.
I’m sooo tired of all the media coverage surrounding the contract talks with Dale Jr., I rank it right up there with all the hype about Juan Pablo Montoya joining NASCAR. Big whoop.
In other news…
Because it’s Friday the 13th here’s a video of NASCAR crashes I found on YouTube. (Need something to blog about? YouTube baby! it’s gold!)
I’m posting this because:
1) Who doesn’t love crashes?
2) I dig Chris Daughtry (an American Idol alum, that’s his song “Crashed” playing in the background)
3) Because I have nothing else to talk about (but you still love me)
It’s official. Dale Earnhardt Jr. has signed Supercross superstar — and hottie –Jeremy McGrath to his JR Motorsports team. McGrath will be racing late model cars sponsored by Monster Energy Drink.
Here’s more from the press release:
MOORESVILLE, N.C. (April 11, 2007) — JR Motorsports introduced seven-time Supercross champion Jeremy McGrath as its newest late model driver on Tuesday, pairing one of the most popular Supercross stars of all time with NASCAR’s four-time most popular driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr.
The announcement was made at the grand opening of the team’s new 66,000-square foot shop. McGrath will compete in a limited 10-race schedule in a Chevrolet late model stock car sponsored by Monster Energy Drink, with R&B Auto Body Transport Refinishing as an associate sponsor. His first race is slated for April 21 at Southern National Raceway Park in Kenly, N.C.
“This is something I’ve always wanted to try, and I’m really grateful that Dale Jr. is giving me this opportunity to drive one of his race cars,” McGrath said. “We are going to test this week, weather permitting. I’ve got a lot to learn when it comes to racing something with four wheels, but I’m confident I can pick it up pretty quick.”
The addition of McGrath and the Monster Energy car gives JRM its third late model entry. Scott Young and Curtis Truex Jr. currently compete in full-season touring schedules in late model cars sponsored by R&B. JR Motorsports also fields a full-time NASCAR Busch Series team with driver Shane Huffman and full-time USAR Hooters Pro Cup team with driver Richard Boswell. All of these teams operate out of the new JR Motorsports facility located in Mooresville, N.C.
“I’m proud to have Jeremy here, and it’s cool to see how excited he is about getting into one of these late models,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “I like his approach, his mentality, and the energy he brings to this shop. I know this isn’t just some fleeting interest on his part. He is as serious about this as anyone I’ve ever been around.”
McGrath is easily one of the most recognizable motorcycle racers of all time, as he dominated Supercross from 1993-2004, compiling 74 main event victories and seven titles. He also won the gold medal in the 2004 X-Games Step-Up competition, and earned silver in the 2005 X-Games Supermoto.
“I’ve been fortunate to have a lot of success in Supercross, but this is a new type of racing for me,” McGrath said. “I want to succeed at this. It’s not like I’m coming in here and saying that I’m going to be a Nextel Cup driver or anything like that. I want to focus on this chance.”
JR Motorsports
JR Motorsports, a Mooresville, N.C., based company solely-owned by NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series driver Dale Earnhardt Jr., is a growing team in NASCAR Busch Series, USAR Hooters Pro Cup Series and late model stock car competition. Founded in 2002, the team is entering into its second season in the NASCAR Busch Series with the U.S. Navy and driver Shane Huffman. In addition to fielding the No. 88 Navy Accelerate Your Life Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS in the NASCAR Busch Series, JR Motorsports also fields the No. 88 Champion Chevrolet in the USAR Hooters Pro Cup Series with driver Richard Boswell. Scott Young and Curtis Truex Jr. are a part of the R&B Late Model Driver Development Program in the Nos. 71 and 73 R&B Chevrolets and compete at short track across the Southeast. For more information on JR Motorsports, visit www.jrmotorsport.com.
Dale Jr. still wants to own the majority of DEI, duh, and I think the acquisition of McGrath to his JR Motorsports team proves that he’s really into growing a team, putting together a solid foundation for the future. For DEI there is no future without Junior as far as I’m concerned, if they don’t give him the majority stake in the team then they’ve got nothing.
In a semi-recent interview with Sports Illustrated Dale Earnhardt Jr. said that he may not be the marrying kind. Here’s an excerpt:
SI: Do you hope to get married one day?
Earnhardt: If it happens, it happens. It’s a hell of a commitment. Can’t you just hang with them? Do you have to get married? I imagine marriage changes the atmosphere of the relationship for the worse.
And millions of women around the country cry into their Dale Earnhardt Jr. licensed pillows.
In other news…
Carl Edwards has set out on a campaign to prove that he is the most buff and athletic NASCAR race car driver that has ever lived. Lately he’s been on the cover of Men’s Fitness, and Men’s Health. Maybe this is his way of proving to the sports world that NASCAR is indeed a legitimate sport that requires strength and training, or maybe he’s just trying to prove that he’s hot shirtless. I’m thinking it’s a combination of both.
So now the question is which cover is better??? I’m going with ESPN.
Now that I commute to the City (aka San Francisco) everyday on BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit, for those of you not in No. Calif. that’s our version of the Subway system in New York, ours is waay better btw) I make sure that I have a book to read during the ride.
This week’s BART book was “On The Edge” by Pamela Britton. I’ve written about Pamela before, even did a mini email interview with her last year, talking about how much I enjoyed her first book in the new Harlequin/NASCAR partnership called “In The Groove.”
These books are romance novels set in the world of NASCAR racing. Being a woman, a single woman at that, reading these books is so much fun for me. There are never any bodice-ripping sex passages but there are enough details to make me grin a little while pouring over the books on BART.
You could say the books are a “guilty pleasure” but there’s nothing to really feel guilty about. Pamela writes with clarity and attention to detail. She’s done her homework on the mechanics of racing so you’re also learning about the sport as well as whatever romantic entanglements the characters find themselves in.
So for whatever its worth — and that’s a lot — I give “On The Edge” two thumbs up!
Is it just me or does anyone else wonder why Kyle Petty bothers racing anymore? He’s never in contention to win any of the races in the Cup series. I’m probably committing some sin by just talking about this but when do you call it quits? I can’t remember the last time I saw him in the top ten at the beginning, middle or end of a race.
This year Petty announced that he wasn’t going to run in 5 Cup races in order to do some TV stuff. I say, Kyle, take all the time you need, do more TV work. Because if he’s out of it then maybe Michael Waltrip or those guys on the Red Bull team can qualify for more races, ya know, people that might be able to finish in the top ten.
