NASCAR OFF SEASON WITHDRAWAL AND THERAPY THREAD

Local and Internet ^ | 12/10/2014 | Self

[mabarker1]

USAF Thunderbirds to Perform Flyover for the Daytona 500: For the fifth straight year, the world-renowned U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds will provide the flyover for the 57th annual DAYTONA 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season opener on Sunday, Feb. 22. The Thunderbirds, officially known as the U.S. Air Force Air Demonstration Squadron, will fly their signature "Delta" formation over the "World Center of Racing" during the finale of the national anthem for "The Great American Race." The Thunderbirds have visited Daytona International Speedway to perform the flyover for the DAYTONA 500 for the past five years. In addition, the Thunderbirds also provided the flyover in 2008 for the historic 50th running of the DAYTONA 500. "The flyover by the Thunderbirds is a signature moment in the pre-race festivities for the DAYTONA 500," Daytona International Speedway President Joie Chitwood III said. "We're proud and honored to be able to host this elite flying team and the thousands of race fans and the millions more watching on FOX Sports are looking forward to seeing them soar over Daytona International Speedway."
"We have a long-standing relationship with the Daytona 500," said LtCol Greg Moseley, the squadron's commander and lead pilot. "We're grateful to the Speedway for allowing us to share the Air Force story with race fans." The Thunderbirds feature six F-16 Fighting Falcons, the Air Force's premier multi-role fighter aircraft. Assigned to Air Combat Command, the squadron is composed of 12 officers and more than 100 enlisted Airmen serving in about 30 Air Force job specialties. Since the unit's inception in 1953, more than 350 million people in all 50 states and more than 60 countries have witnessed the distinctive red, white and blue jets in thousands of official aerial demonstrations. Tickets for the 57th annual DAYTONA 500 are on sale now and can be purchased by calling 1-800-PITSHOP or visiting daytonainternationalspeedway.com.(DIS)((12-10-2014)

[mabarker1]

Buy one, get one at Atlanta: For one week only, Atlanta Motor Speedway is making an unbelievable discount offer available to fans for the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 on Sunday, March 1. Race fans can purchase "buy one, get one," or "BOGO" Lower Champions Grandstands or Upper Winners Grandstands seats located on the AMS front stretch. This offer presents a 50 percent discount off the normal value and allows purchasers the opportunity to get two front stretch tickets for the price of one. Lower Champions Grandstands tickets, normally $99 apiece, will be available for $49.50 each, while Upper Winners Grandstands tickets, regularly priced $135, are on sale for $67.50 each. The BOGO promotion is only available while supplies last and will end at 5:00pm on Monday, Jan. 26. Fans are strongly encouraged to act quickly before the limited inventory runs out. All BOGO tickets must be purchased in pairs.(AMS)(1-20-2015)

[mabarker1]

New company developing NASCAR video game: A NASCAR game for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC is in development at a newly announced studio, DMi Games. As of January 1, the North Carolina-based DMi Games had acquired the license to develop and publish games in the series from previous custodian Eutechnyx. The change in ownership was said to be complex due to the complexity of the licence agreements. DMi Games president Ed Martin explains: "Just to give you some context, a contemporary NASCAR video game has more than 1,000 licensed and approved properties in it. That's a lot of stakeholders and people to get organized!" Martin, who has been working on NASCAR games since the early '90s, announced the new deal in an open letter to fans. "We are already hard at work on several new games including an all-new NASCAR racing sim created by DMi for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC that we expect to release in 2016," he explained.(GameSpot)(1-20-2015)

[mabarker1]

Veterans' Charity plans to buy Rockingham Speedway: The troubled Rockingham Speedway could soon have new life. A judge gave owners a Jan. 1 deadline to find a buyer or put the property up for auction in March. A veterans charity called Help-Vets.Org told Channel 9 that it plans to buy the track and the property and turn it into a reintegration center for veterans. "What's key about this property is Camp Mackall, the training center for Special Forces, is six miles down the road -- Fort Bragg is right here," Help-Vets.Org Executive Director Craig Northacker said. Northacker has big ideas for a $50 million investment, including housing, vocational training and even schooling. Richmond County Community College spokesman Andy Cagle told Channel 9 that the office met with Northacker. "RCC has always taught classes in off-campus locations across our service area, and would welcome any viable opportunity to support our veterans, the local economy and continue the rich traditions of racing in Richmond County," Cagle said. City and county officials are skeptical. Richmond County Manager Rick Sago said he hasn't seen any real financing plans. "We'll see when the rubber hits the road what really happens. Bottom line is, it is a speedway, it has been since the '60s and that's what we want is a racetrack," Sago said. "We have talked to JP Morgan Chase," Northacker said. "There is another financing group in Florida, and we're speaking with Royal Bank of Canada." According to Northacker, the group is in the process of getting the property appraised and hopes to close on the property in mid-March. Channel 9 spoke to one of the speedway owners, Andy Hillenburg. He acknowledged conversations with Northacker but said he couldn't comment on the ongoing legal matter.(WSOC)(1-20-2015)

[mabarker1]

Goodyear tire test at Las Vegas UPDATE: The first NASCAR test of the 2015 season is scheduled to take place Monday when four Sprint Cup Series teams participate in a one-day Goodyear tire test at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The teams of #41-Kurt Busch (Stewart-Haas Racing) and #47-AJ Allmendinger (JTG Daugherty Racing) will be on hand as representatives for Chevy; #20-Matt Kenseth (Joe Gibbs Racing) is the Toyota entry while Brad Keselowski (Team Penske) and his #2 Ford team will be on hand to round out the test teams and vehicles. According to a Team Penske representative, Keselowski's teammate Joey Logano, crew chief Todd Gordon and several members of the #22 Team Penske group will be on hand as well to help and observe. In previous years, tire tests haven't generated a great deal of interest. Now that NASCAR no longer allows private team testing, however, track time is considered more valuable. Goodyear has scheduled 14 tests for the upcoming season; Monday's trip to Las Vegas is the only one currently on the schedule that does not dovetail with a team test. Others will be either one- or two-day tires tests followed by a single-day team test. For now, only a stop next month at Atlanta will see teams test prior to a Goodyear tire test at the facility. Teams will be given a four-hour window for testing one day before the start of that track's race weekend. A two-day Goodyear tire test will be conducted at the track on March 2-3 after the completion of the Sprint Cup event. In all other cases, the team test will come after the Goodyear test is completed.(NASCAR.com)(1-19-2015)
UPDATE: Monday's Goodyear tire test at Las Vegas Motor Speedway took on added importance for drivers #20-Matt Kenseth and #2-Brad Keselowski because of a slew of rules changes put in place this year by NASCAR. Kenseth and Keselowski were joined by fellow Sprint Cup Series drivers #41-Kurt Busch and #47-AJ Allmendinger for the one-day test on the 1.5-mile LVMS speedway. Although all Cup drivers will have to adjust to a number of changes this season, including a reduction in horsepower and a modified aero package, the biggest change will be NASCAR's ban on all private testing in 2015.
"I think any track time you get is really important with the new testing rules, banning all off-season testing, which I think we all like, but you've really got to take advantage of the tests when you get them and try to gather as much information as you can - hopefully useful information that you can use down the road," Kenseth said. "For us, we didn't run particularly well last year and we've got a new nose on the Camry this year and new rules changes and aero package and all that stuff, so we're just trying to get it sorted out and try to find a baseline and hopefully find something that drives good so we've got something decent when we come back here (March 6-8).
Keselowski, the defending winner of both the Kobalt 400 Sprint Cup Series race and the Xfinity Series Boyd Gaming 300 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, said he agreed with Kenseth. "More so than the changes to the car, the testing ban makes every test you do have that much more critical because you have so much less," Keselowski said. "In that light, a lot of what testing is isn't always developing the car, but you're developing your people, developing your techniques. We added two or three more people to our team so we're trying to develop them and get them up to speed, so it's really a great time for us as a team to have a test."(Las Vegas Motor Speedway)(1-20-2015)

[Tom Pain]

Yahoo has opened up the 2015 Fantasy NASCAR sign up!!

Has anyone set up a league for the 2015 Free Republic NASCAR league yet?
If so, what ID # do we need for the league?

Thanks!
Ward Burton’s Translator (Tom Pain)

[mabarker1]

I’m not sure who/what/where is in charge of that. I don’t do it. IIRC I saw that the Champion from Last Season is in charge of getting things going this Season.

PING!!! for details- Anybody!?!?!?

[Chode]

wouldn't THAT be something... win/win/win

[John W]

That’s usually how it is done but believe there have been times another took it on for various reasons. I would have no problem doing it if no one else steps up, it’s fairly simple. (Lime City Racing for many years)

[mabarker1]

I’ll leave this up to those that do the FRFL to decide.

ICBI- You got any input here?

[mabarker1]

Yes, that would be great. Praying that it works out.

[ican'tbelieveit]

No preference. John W, are you volunteering? Tom Pain?

[happydogx2]

Jeff Gordon going to retire after the 2015 season:

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2338717-jeff-gordon-discusses-future-racing-plans-for-post-2015-nascar-season?utm_source=cnn.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=editorial

[John W]

I would be glad to do it this year.

[mabarker1]

Thanks HDx2- I've been dealing with Grandma Today (not all here mentally anymore)

Jeff Gordon to be on SportsCenter: ESPN announced via Twitter that #24-Jeff Gordon will be live on ESPN's SportsCenter with Lindsay Czarniak around 3:10pm/et today.(1-22-2015)

• Jeff Gordon to run final full-time NASCAR season in 2015: Jeff Gordon will compete in his 23rd and final full-time Sprint Cup Series season in 2015. He announced his decision this morning to the #24 Hendrick Motorsports team he has driven for since November 1992. "As a race car driver, much of what I've done throughout my life has been based on following my instincts and trying to make good decisions," Gordon said. "I thought long and hard about my future this past year and during the offseason, and I've decided 2015 will be the last time I compete for a championship. I won't use the 'R-word' because I plan to stay extremely busy in the years ahead, and there's always the possibility I'll compete in selected events, although I currently have no plans to do that. I don't foresee a day when I'll ever step away from racing. I'm a fan of all forms of motor sports, but particularly NASCAR. We have a tremendous product, and I'm passionate about the business and its future success. As an equity owner in Hendrick Motorsports, I'm a partner with Rick (Hendrick) and will remain heavily involved with the company for many years to come. It means so much to have the chance to continue working with the owner who took a chance on me and the incredible team that's stood behind me every step of the way. Racing has provided a tremendous amount of opportunity that's been extraordinarily rewarding and fulfilling in my life. The work we're doing with the Jeff Gordon Children's Foundation will continue to be extremely important to me. Outside the race car, my passion is pediatric cancer research, and my efforts will remain focused there when I'm no longer driving. I'll explore opportunities for the next phase of my career, but my primary focus now and throughout 2015 will be my performance in the No. 24 Chevrolet. I'm going to pour everything I have into this season and look forward to the challenge of competing for one last championship. To everyone at NASCAR, my teammates, sponsors, competitors, friends, family, members of the media and especially our incredible fans, all I can say is thank you."
  Gordon, 43, has earned four career Cup championships, 92 points-paying race wins and 77 pole positions, all for longtime car owner Rick Hendrick. He is third in all-time victories behind only NASCAR Hall of Fame drivers Richard Petty (200) and David Pearson (105). One of the most versatile drivers of his era in any auto racing discipline, Gordon's résumé includes three Daytona 500 victories and a record five Brickyard 400 wins. He is the sport's winningest road course driver with nine victories, stands alone as the all-time leader with 12 restrictor plate wins and has won at every track on the Sprint Cup circuit with the exception of Kentucky Speedway.
  "There's simply no way to quantify Jeff's impact," said Hendrick, who first noticed Gordon during a race at Atlanta Motor Speedway in March 1992. "He's one of the biggest sports stars of a generation, and his contributions to the success and growth of NASCAR are unsurpassed. There's been no better ambassador for stock car racing and no greater representation of what a champion should be. I will never be able to properly express the respect and admiration I have for Jeff and how meaningful our relationship is to me. I'm so grateful for everything he's done for our company and my family, and I look forward to many more years together as friends and business partners." Hendrick Motorsports will announce plans for its 2016 team alignment at a later date.(Hendrick Motorsports)
  AND while nothing has been announced and it mentions in the above PR that HMS will "announce plans for its 2016 team alignment at a later date", most are speculating that Chase Elliott, the 2014 Xfinity Series Champ and son of NASCAR legend Bill Elliott, would replace Gordon in a fourth HMS Chevy starting in 2016. Elliott supposedly will run some Sprint Cup Series races in 2015 in a fifth HMS entry (a fifth team is allowed for a rookie driver).(1-22-2015)

[mabarker1]

PING for NASCAR FRFL!!!

Looks like John W is going to start the ball rolling for Signup in the League this Season.

Pinging the NASCAR News List for Ya, ICBI has the Big NASCAR List.

[ColdOne]

My fav driver. I started watching NASCAR around 1995.

[mabarker1]

I kinda wish he would stay and 6whine leave.

As MLK said- I have a dream...

[John W]

I will post a separate thread for this but here we go:

Group ID# 2669

Group Name Free Republic Racing

Group Password jimrob

[mabarker1]

And now NASCAR Screws the Independent Sellers on the Circus.

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NASCAR Selects Fanatics to Operate At-Track Merchandise Business: NASCAR, NASCAR Team Properties (NTP) and Fanatics jointly announced today a 10-year agreement for the sport's at-track merchandise business that will deliver fans an enhanced, experiential shopping environment. As part of the agreement, Fanatics has acquired certain exclusive rights from NASCAR and NTP that will make the company the primary retailer of NASCAR, team and driver merchandise at all 38 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race weekends. Fanatics, the market leader for officially licensed sports merchandise, powers the e-stores for hundreds of the top sports leagues, teams and schools, including a long history running NASCAR's e-commerce business. The NASCAR at-track deal expands Fanatics' growing in-venue partnerships. The new trackside retail model will be phased in at NASCAR events over the course of 2015. It will evolve from using solely haulers for each specific team or driver to displaying all merchandise in a climate-controlled superstore retail environment supported by, in instances, smaller satellite retail touch points around the track. The new model will have the following enhanced benefits and added options for fans:
· Ability to offer the largest at-track selection of NASCAR merchandise ever
· Selection to include a major expansion of women's and kids' items
· A more functional way to browse, shop and interact with merchandise
· Separate stores within the footprint for teams, drivers, memorabilia and collectibles
· Dedicated area for driver appearances
· An interactive customization center where fans can create their own personal NASCAR gear
Fanatics Apparel, the company's manufacturing and customization division, will also produce merchandise to complement the already extensive product line that will be offered by authorized licensees. "A merchandise center will provide a more personal, organized, comfortable and convenient shopping environment for our fans," said Steve Phelps, NASCAR executive vice president and chief marketing officer. "Partnering with an industry leader in Fanatics allows us to offer a comprehensive and seamless shopping experience for our fans - whether it is in-venue, online or on mobile devices." The new trackside retail model will utilize the latest innovations and initiatives in retail promotional design. According to a study conducted by Experian Marketing Services (Simmons National Consumer Survey, Fall Full Year 2013), NASCAR fans are at least 20 percent more likely than non-fans to notice various types of promotions while shopping, including: video monitor displays, signs on merchandise racks or shelves, and advertising on the floor - among others.
"Fanatics is extremely excited to partner with NASCAR and NASCAR Team Properties to greatly expand their at-track retail presence," said Ross Tannenbaum, president of Fanatics Authentic. "We have taken the time to listen to what the fans, teams, drivers and NASCAR were asking for and look forward to using our market-leading scale, technology and production capabilities to deliver an improved and entertaining shopping experience for years to come."(NASCAR)(1-22-2015)

[ColdOne]

LOl he was pathetic when he found out his x wife was going to get half.