good coverage of the Nascar race on Navy Base Coronado, San Diego's military base in the middle of the bay. Right off... they found ta manhole cover was too high, struck by a car, and went through a radiator of another car

A Pennsylvania man faces felony fraud, theft, and deception charges after state police discovered he disguised a NASCAR race truck as street legal. Photos show the truck when it ran at the NASCAR Bristol dirt race in 2023. It looks almost identical now,

https://www.thedrive.com/news/police-arrest-man-for-trying-to-pass-off-nascar-race-truck-as-street-legal-chevy-s10

Kyle Busch, one of the greatest

He has won a race on every active NASCAR Cup Series track. 

He was the all-time wins leader in both the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (102) and the Craftsman Truck Series (69)

He is ranked ninth all-time for Cup Series victories (63), with two championships (2015 and 2019).

https://www.racingjunk.com/news/kyle-busch-nascars-winningest-driver-dead-at-41/

Twelve days prior to his death, Busch had complained of sinus issues while racing at Watkins Glen and asked for a doctor to visit him in his hauler after the race. However, he continued to race afterward, even winning a Truck Series race in Dover, Delaware, one week ago. 

He died of pneumonia leading to sepsis, resulting in rapid and overwhelming associated complications

https://sports.yahoo.com/nascar/article/kyle-buschs-cause-of-death-revealed-severe-pneumonia-sepsis-152333480.html

unrestored

https://www.facebook.com/groups/271369098360517/permalink/1394179129412836

tickets for the new Nascar venue in San Diego at selling for between 270 and 6000 apiece. Not worth that unless you're getting to ride in a race car, just my opinion

https://www.eventticketscenter.com/nascar-coronado-tickets/1226845

https://www.ticketmaster.com/nascar-san-diego-cup-series-coronado-california-06-21-2026/event/0A006331CD633384?landing=c

when 1986 Daytona 500 winner Geoff Bodine was invited to visit the Lake Placid Olympic training center in the early ‘90s he became fascinated by the bobsleds. In 1992 he founded Bo-Dyn Bobsled Project, Inc. In 2002, they won silver and bronze, in 2010, they made the fastest sled in the world, and won gold

  After hearing how the US was an also-ran entrant in the sport using borrowed technology from Europe, Geoff decided to bring his chassis designer Bob Cuneo ( I wonder if he is related to Terence or Joan? https://justacarguy.blogspot.com/search?q=cuneo  ) in to see how they could create the next level sled and lead the US to success.

https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=26038459269127880&set=pcb.26038459655794508
https://usopm.org/from-the-racetrack-to-the-winter-games-building-a-better-bobsled/

With Bo-Dyn technology, the U.S. won silver and bronze for the four-man race in 2002 but still lacked that little something extra to top the podium. 

After another eight years of cutting-edge innovation and development, the Bo-Dyn Bobsled Project unveiled “Night Train,” a $250,000 state-of-the-art American-made bobsled. Dubbed the fastest sled in the world

These advancements proved so successful that European teams began bidding for the sleds, a complete turn-of-the-table from the imported European sleds of the early ’90’s.

Bodine refused. “The money was dangled out in front of us to see if we would cave in and sell some of our equipment, but we said no,” said Bodine. “We didn’t do it for profit. We did it for our American athletes and no one else.”

in 2010, the U.S. Olympic Men’s Bobsled Team won its first gold medal since 1948, ending a 62-year drought

The push team included a New York Army National Guardsman, and a biological systems engineering PhD and middle linebacker for the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers.

(I've already touched on Olympic bob sled teams recruiting exceptional football athletes https://justacarguy.blogspot.com/2024/09/you-never-know-what-youre-going-to-find.html when I met Justin Orr, 2010 Olympics Bob Sled team)

https://www.npr.org/2010/01/14/122580366/u-s-sled-team-struggles-after-setbacks

“Cotton” Owens — with help from family, friends and a team of highly qualified craftsmen from the Spartanburg, S.C., racing community — built this 1964 Dodge Polara to replicate his original Polara race car.

But until you see a close up, you won't get a kick out of the headlight covers, maybe the coolest ones I've seen 

I think you'll agree, bitchin' spare parts use! 

https://www.oldcarsweekly.com/car-of-the-week-cotton-owens-1964-dodge-polara?utm_medium=email&utm_source=OCW+-+NL+-+Newsletter&oly_enc_id=5078E9132345F6J

"Hold My Beer and Watch This" was invented in 1986 when a fan attended the 1986 Winston 500 at the Talladega Superspeedway and took the pace car on a joy ride. He was chased for two laps before being stopping for state troopers by the track crew

It was the track officials who ultimately caught the pace car thief. They set up a roadblock on the track, forcing the guy to slow and stop. Once he did, they pulled Crowder out of the vehicle just as police pulled up.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1986_Winston_500

https://autos.yahoo.com/remember-time-someone-stole-nascar-203000480.html

Interviewing Marty Robbins

https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1467010205435331&set=a.717965483673144

very respected Hall of Famer Dale Jarrett was asked who should be in the Nascar Hall of Fame

see the video at https://x.com/ClaireBLang/status/2015056406659858592?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E2015056406659858592%7Ctwgr%5E703813b9729cf6153f820cb2a69eed351433c488%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fthesportsrush.com%2Fnascar-news-needs-to-go-on-the-ballot-dale-jarrett-makes-passionate-hall-of-fame-case-for-two-nascar-legends%2F

His answer was Jeff Burton and Jimmy Makar. 

“I lobbied hard for Jeff Burton the last two years for everything he has done for the sport. “You look at all the sports, and not everybody is the superstar Jeff Burton was. He was a star and still is to this day.” He has been nominated for induction into the Hall of Fame multiple times in recent years and is still awaiting his chance to get on that stage. 

 "Jimmy Makar unfortunately has not even made it to the ballot yet. Makar started and ran Joe Gibbs Racing, was the 1st employee, and a champion winning crew chief"

I really dig that the interviewer asked such a good question that dives into the thoughts of the person they interviewed, and exposed the cool respect that someone has for others, and can use that answer opportunity to shine a light on other people who deserve the recognition and respect

The tickets are on sale for the June Nascar race on Navy base North Island

https://www.nascarsandiego.com/

Peter DePaolo, winner of the 1925 Indy 500, (nephew of Ralph DePalma, winner of the 1915 Indy 500), in the 1925 Duesenberg race winner. Check out the sidewinder centrifugal supercharger (Thank you Steve!)

https://forums.aaca.org/topic/341211-period-images-to-relieve-some-of-the-stress/page/521/

In his obit, it's pointed out that he declared he'd win the Indy 500 after seeing the immense joy that his mother had when she saw her brother win, and he wanted to be the cause of that much joy. He did, and he was

He then worked for Firestone as a highway safe driving instructor

In 1934, while racing in the German Gran Prix at Avus, a con rod launched out of his engine, and smashed into a wood pillar next to Hitler's face. Narrowly missing changing the direction of WW2 in the European theater, and the fate of a 100 million people

During WW2, he was installed as a Lt. Col., and chief inspector of bombers and fighter planes that made emergency landings in Switzerland in November 1944 to inspect the condition of the bombers at the direction of General "Hap" Arnold, who thought that some of them might have made emergency landings without sufficient damage to escape the war.

Between 1943 and 1945, 166 American bombers sought refuge in Switzerland, of which 41 were destroyed in crashes or forced landings. 39 bombers sustained severe damage, and another 86 suffered minor damage. 

In November 1944, a five-member delegation from the United States arrived in Switzerland to advise our mechanics and specialists on aircraft maintenance. The head of the delegation, Lieutenant Colonel Peter DePaolo, described the condition of the parked aircraft as very good and determined that virtually all could be flown back after appropriate overhauls. 

The army quickly parted ways with DePaolo, as the result of his protest against the conditions under which servicemen had to return home in. When he arrived at Camp Beale with a train-load of weary GIs and publicly voiced his criticism of the conditions they traveled in and he was called to Washington DC and gave details of the cramped conditions.

 A week later he is a civilian. Good for him, integrity and leadership are only valuable to the military when they are not at odds with upper management - but that is not the core of integrity and leadership. He stood for what was right, and was canned. Proving that the military doesn't have the enlisted in it's priorities

DePaolo was instrumental in bringing a Ford factory team to NASCAR, which then led to the formation of the legendary Wood Brothers and Holman-Moody teams.

In 1956, as a team owner, he hired Fireball Roberts and Ralph Moody as drivers, and 

DePaolo’s Long Beach operation focused on USAC’s stock car division and featured drivers Troy Ruttman and Jerry Unser.

DePaolo Engineering still operated as the de facto Ford factory team and was known to support the private teams and drivers, usually in the form of free parts.

One of those happened to be Glen Wood, of the eventual Wood Brothers fame. After a convertible race win in April 1957 at Fayetteville, North Carolina, DePaolo reached out to congratulate Wood on the victory and asked him if he needed anything. Wood responded that he needed a set of tires for the upcoming race at Richmond. DePaolo sent six tires, and Wood won that race, too.

Eventually, DePaolo would help connect Wood to Ford and land Wood Brothers Racing as one of Ford’s premier teams. Without DePaolo helping him them get Ford support, Jensen said, Wood Brothers Racing may not have become the historic team that it did.

“That began a steady supply of parts to Glen, which would eventually include money,” Jensen said. “But, initially starting out, it was the support he needed, the parts and pieces he needed, to keep racing. That was really what kept the Wood Brothers in the game, and now, 75 years later, they're NASCAR's oldest continually operating team.”

DePaolo Engineering sold it's equipment and machinery to Holman Moody.

https://www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com/news-multimedia/news/2025/07/10/07-10-depaolo-brickyard

https://autohistorypreservationsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/1963-07-CL-Peter-De-Paolo-Bio-1-2.pdf

https://www.facebook.com/groups/8THAFHS/posts/6752213718161434/

https://www.b17museum.ch/news.php?id=10

https://d.lib.msu.edu/etd/23619

NASCAR unveiled the course map for the high-speed street race it's bringing to San Diego next summer. Tickets go on sale Nov 7th

https://www.axios.com/local/san-diego/2025/10/22/see-the-course-for-san-diego-s-nascar-street-race
https://www.nbcsandiego.com/video/videos/nascar-drops-2026-naval-base-coronado-race-map-animated-video-of-street-course/3918990/

I learned something intriguing, that really fast athletes can easily get hired to be professional pit crew in F1 and Nascar - for their strength, speed, and accuracy. I think I might have posted about it a couple years ago,

Journey Brown’s dreams of playing in the NFL were crushed when he received a career ending medical diagnosis. Now, he’s “essentially a fast mechanic.”

He transitioned from Penn State Football to Trackhouse developmental pit crew member

So did Marshall McFadden, a former NFL linebacker who played for teams including the Pittsburgh Steelers, Oakland Raiders, and St. Louis Rams, has successfully transitioned into a new career as a NASCAR pit crew member as a jackman for Trackhouse Racing,

Former NFL cornerback Bud Noel traded turf for asphalt—bringing his speed, precision, and discipline from football to the NASCAR Cup Series.

Now he’s in the pit crew, where split-second moves decide who takes the checkered flag.

Pierce-Brewster and McFadden are jackmen for Kaulig Racing, based in Welcome, North Carolina. Simply put, when their drivers hit pit road, it’s up to them to get the car up off the asphalt in a hurry so the tire changers can swap out either two or four tires and get the car back out onto the track as soon as possible. McFadden works for AJ Allmendinger, while Pierce-Brewster works with the Ty Dillon.

Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young engaged in a little of the latter on Thursday morning.

The former No. 1 overall NFL Draft pick spent his morning at the Hendrick Motorsports facility in northeast Charlotte, trying his hand at tire-changing.

Former NFL linebacker Jeremy Kimbrough went from blitzing Quarterbacks to carrying tires in the NASCAR Cup Series

https://www.inquirer.com/sports/nascar-pit-crew-football-players-marshall-mcfadden-josh-bush-trackhouse-racing-20250619.html

https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=nfl%20quarterback%20in%20Nascar%20pit%20crew

https://journalnow.com/sports/other/motorsports/article_94554822-4f77-4b99-88d9-8656d068a94f.html

https://www.on3.com/pro/news/bryce-young-joins-hendrick-motorsports-for-reps-as-nascar-pit-crew-member

https://www.syracuse.com/orangefootball/2025/05/former-syracuse-football-de-among-ex-nfl-players-who-change-lanes-to-become-nascar-pit-crew-members.html

NHRA just beat NASCAR in weekend TV ratings - 1.87M viewers tuned in on FOX, making drag racing the most-watched motorsport in America.

 

Skip the first 26 seconds

 

Dale Earnhardt in 1990 on Dave's Top Ten list, "why it took 20 years to win the Daytona 500" Thanks Mike!

It's a constant source of enjoyment to me to learn about cool late 60s stuff, like this rare Cyclone GT 500 sales promotion - The Atlanta 500 Driveaway Program, part of the NASCAR race track promotional programs Mercury ran back in 1968 and 1969.

the Atlanta sales region dealers offered a 1968 Mercury Cyclone GT 500 in either Wimbledon White or Calypso Coral with special badges.

If you purchased one of these specials you received two tickets to the Atlanta 500 on March 31, 1968, a Mercury race jacket and hat. The selling dealer drove the lucky buyers to the track where they would take delivery of their new car. There were 160 GT 500s delivered that day! 

Once at the track the new owners were treated to breakfast and photo opps with Cale, Lee Roy and Tiny Lund. The new owners took delivery on the track in front of the 80,000 race fans and then took two laps around the Atlanta race track with Cale Yarborough leading them!

https://www.legendarycollectorcars.com/2015/02/mercury-cyclone-gt-500-delivered-at-atlanta-500/

The Cougar GT 500 was taken to the NASCAR Charlotte 600 race on Memorial Day weekend in 1968.

https://justacarguy.blogspot.com/2018/01/a-couple-obscure-regional-special.html

nothing you see this week will beat the true sportsmanship of the #19 Chase Briscoe team jumping over the wall to help the #23 car of Bubba Wallace.... utter respect for the #19 pit crew. You're only as good as your best competition, and if they all aren't on the track, you haven't beaten them

the above shows the best part, but there is a longer video clip of the car in the #23 pit, and leaving it, see that full clip at https://www.facebook.com/watch?v=1255701382495067

I'm rewatching Days Of Thunder, damn, it's got a hell of a cast. The 1990 Tom Cruise movie, that omfg, was in theaters 35 years ago. By the way, it's better than you remember, funnier too.

Most of you know Fred Thompson, was a senator from 94-2003, and still made a lot of movies. He had graduated law school in 1967 for pete's sake. 

He was assistant U.S. attorney from 1969 to 1972, minority counsel to the Senate Watergate Committee in its investigation of the Watergate scandal (1973–1974).

In the 1980s, Thompson worked as an attorney, with law offices in Nashville and Washington, DC, handling personal injury claims and defending people accused of white collar crimes. He also accepted appointments as special counsel to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (1980–1981), special counsel to the Senate Intelligence Committee (1982), and member of the Appellate Court Nominating Commission for the State of Tennessee (1985–1987).

His clients included Japan's Toyota Motors Corporation.

Robert Duvall needs nothing from me to introduce him with, but younger people are probably more familiar with his similar role in Gone In 60 Seconds. 

I had no recollection that Cary (Princess Bride) Elwes was the 2nd string driver character for Tom Cruise's character. 

Nicole Kidman was Cruise's fiance at the time.

And Michael Freaking Rooker... I knew when I saw him in Walking Dead in 2010 that I knew him from somewhere, but had no recollection of where I remembered him from. Hell, younger people might only know him from Guardians of the Galaxy 2014, or Walking Dead. Damn, he's done a LOT of TV shows! He's been in a lot of cool movies too. 

And John C Reilly, damn, he had a role as a regular mechanic guy... with out any comedy. I had no idea he ever worked straight. 

And Margo Martindale! I think I only saw her for a moment, early in the movie at the practice race.... but ain't she a favorite of yours too? 

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099371/?ref_=fn_all_ttl_1