What To Read: The Weekend Starts on Wednesday by Andrew Giangola

If people are the glue binding a sport, NASCAR fans are Krazy Glue, not the milky wait-all-day-for-it-to-dry stuff. NASCAR fans can create strong, lasting bonds, and they do it fast without a whiff of pretension or self-confidence – Andrew Giangola

Each and every NASCAR fan has a story. A story of the moment they knew this was their sport. A story of the tracks they have visited and the friends they have made either in the infield or in the bleachers. A story of the time they convinced a friend to just “watch it and you will understand” and that friend became a passionate fan. A story of the time they climbed into the chair with dad as a child and became enamored with the bright shiny cars on TV. A story of the time they held their breath with hopes their driver would emerge from the wreckage in one piece. We use these stories to connect with other fans and they are usually part of the opening conversation with a fan we are meeting for the first time…well that and how much better our driver is than theirs.

At the beginning of the 2010 Season NASCAR “PR Man” Andrew Giangola published a book entitled The Weekend Starts on Wednesday: True Stories of Remarkable NASCAR Fans. From the moment I heard about the book I’ve been wanting to read it. I’d read reviews by other bloggers and had heard great things about it, but like and crazed NASCAR fan I wanted to read it for myself. I wanted to dive into the lives of other NASCAR fans just like me and learn their background and their passions.

Admittedly I have read a lot of NASCAR books in the last year. Some I have read for the site while others I have read for education. This one just looked like a fun read and I’m happy to say I wasn’t disappointed. Taking time away from his desk job, Giangola dived into the heart of NASCAR to get in touch with some of it’s most well known and not so well known fans. He spent countless hours in the infield of some of the most notorious party destinations on the circuit and spent time in the homes of some fans with museum-worthy NASCAR memorabilia displays. Giangola rubbed elbows with movie stars who claim NASCAR as their sport and spent time with a physicist who, along with trying to cure cancer, is attempting to make the science of NASCAR understandable to the fan sitting at home on the couch watching the broadcast. Along the way the author found out that what he had been hearing about NASCAR fans was true; they are indeed the heart and soul of the sport.

For me this book was like getting acquainted with new friends. Regardless of who they were rooting for, what they did to pay the bills, or how they became a fan, each person in The Weekend Starts on Wednesday was at their core a fan just like you and I. Some of the fans profiled in the book have experienced great tragedy and have used the sport as a way to grieve. Others have nothing buy joy in their lives and see NASCAR as an extension of that joy. These remarkable fans weren’t shy to share their stories and were not taken aback when a man in a NASCAR logoed shirt showed up on their campsite or doorstep unexpectedly. They did what most NASCAR fans do and opened up their hearts, their souls, and their grills.

For me the best part of The Weekend Starts on Wednesday was reading the stories of the female fans. While stores of female fans pepper the book, Part VII was undoubtedly my favorite. In reading the introduction to the "Ladies Love Racing” section I felt as if Giangola understood exactly what Skirts and Scuffs is about, even if he didn’t know we existed until last week. Giangola has this to say about female NASCAR fans:

…there are female fans who take apart engines and will take you apart if you have a problem with that; who are drawn to the danger and mystery of the sport; who watch races on TV to witness pure passion and unscripted emotion; who love the camaraderie of these family-friendly festivals; who feel the nervous anxiety of the lip-biting wives atop the pit boxes.

Giangola admits that some female fans are watching because of an attractive driver, but for most of us the looks are irrelevant. We want the speed and the emotion that make the sport of NASCAR amazing.

In all honesty I could go on and on about this book and dive more deeply in to the individual stories, but I’m going to leave that up to you. If you are looking for something to read on a hot summer day, a cold winter night, or a Sunday without a race pick up a copy of The Weekend Starts on Wednesday by Andrew Giangola and meet some new friends.

A special thanks to author Andrew Giangola who provided us with a copy of the book for review purposes.

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Track Travels: Pocono Raceway

Pocono Raceway is the most unique track on the NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule: three distinct turns, three distinct straightaways, and fan access to the inner-workings of a NASCAR garage beyond compare. I have attended the second race at Pocono Raceway since 2002, but decided to do things differently this year and only hit the track on Friday and Saturday. These are normally my two favorite days at the track anyway, and this year was the added bonus of the inaugural Camping World Truck Series race on Saturday, July 31st.

You may wonder why those are my two favorite days at the track. I can sum it up in two words: Pit Pass. The Pre-Race Pit/Paddock Pass invites fans into the garage area on race weekend (well, from behind a fence, but you can see a lot!), and is a must-do for any fan of NASCAR at least once. The pass takes you under the track (which is quite an experience when the cars are on the track!) and over to “the other side.” Fans can watch what’s happening in the garage area for the Sprint Cup Series, and may even catch an autograph from a driver, owner, crew chief, or two (this is not a guarantee, but I’ve had some good luck over the years – Michael Waltrip, Tommy Baldwin Jr., Joe Nemechek, and Todd Bodine to name a few). From “Garage-Vu,” take a walk out to pit road and see what the crews see on race day – the vast expanse that is the frontstretch of Pocono Raceway. This year, the Trucks were permanently pitted on pit road on Friday and Saturday (no room in the garage area, as the ARCA Racing Series was also on the card), and the Truck drivers were in general very gracious about signing autographs for the fans on pit road (a shout-out to Jennifer Jo Cobb for being so accommodating to the fans!).

The Truck Series race on Saturday was amazing: Elliott Sadler won the pole and the race, as one of three Cup Series regulars in the lineup (Kasey Kahne and Denny Hamlin were the others). It was great to see Sadler win after so many winless years, and the fans were happy to hear a “thank you” from the gracious winner.

I’ve heard many people (drivers, announcers, other fans) complain over the years about Pocono Raceway – the race is too long, the track is too dangerous, work needs to be done. From this fan’s point-of-view, however, the pit pass in itself makes this track tough to beat from a fan’s perspective.

Photo 1 - Todd Bodine was the first truck to take the track for practice.

Photo 2 - Cup series cars lined up in the garage.

Photo 3 - Jennifer Jo Cobb hits the track.

Photo 4 - Elliott Sadler starts his burnout after his Truck Series victory.

All photos Paula Thompson

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Dale Jr. goes one-on-one with Shaq, talks about title hopes

NASCAR'S most popular driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. goes one-on-one with NBA great Shaquille O'Neal on the racetrack in tonight's season premiere of "Shaq Vs." The reality show takes O'Neal out of his comfort zone as he competes against athletes, entertainers and pop culture icons on their own turf.

The show was filmed at Concord Motorsports Park in June. Although the results have been kept secret, we've seen some teaser photos, including this one posted on Yahoo's "From the Marbles" blog, which shows Shaq visiting Earnhardt Jr.'s race shop, JR Motorsports.

One thing I'm curious about: How can the 7-foot-1, 325-pound Shaq fit into a racecar? Turns out they built a special car that opened from the roof simply to get the superstar in.

During a Tuesday morning interview on "The Dan Patrick Show," Dale Jr. said, "When I was on pit road and we were getting ready to pull off, I looked over to my right at his car into his window and I could see his knees over his doortop, so they were almost at the top of the steering wheel. So I don't know how comfortable he was, but he got in there with no problem."

The athletes compete against one another in a pair of races. Junior said he was impressed at the effort Shaq made to learn as a driver.

"He put in the work, and I figured he would," Earnhardt Jr. said. "... The racecar was a different thing and that might throw him off a bit, and it was a little bit of a surprise to him. But he still put the work in and tried his hardest."

What we don't get to see on "Shaq Vs." is the free-throw contest Dale Jr. challenged Shaq to when the championship-winning player arrived at his house. Junior said they were tied at 3-3 before Shaq stepped it up to win.

"Once he saw he was about to lose, I think he turned it on," Junior said.

To see who prevails on the racetrack, tune into "Shaq Vs." tonight at 9 p.m. ET on ABC.


Dale Jr. and his championship hopes
On Tuesday's show, Patrick compared LeBron James' announcement to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers for the Miami Heat with Earnhardt Jr.'s decision to vacate his family's race team DEI for Hendrick Motorsports in 2007.

Earnhardt Jr. said like James, he got negative feedback on how he was handling the press conferences, such as that he was making too big of a deal. And like James, Earnhardt Jr.'s decision came with a lot of pressure.

"That was the reason you do it, because you want to be in the best position ... That's what you do in life. You're supposed to put yourself in the best position you can," Dale Jr. said. "I felt like at the time that I was the guy saying 'I want the ball.' You know, that's the kind of player that I want to be and that's the kind of player you want to pull for."

Earnhardt Jr. said he didn't expect to win his first Sprint Cup title right after moving to Hendrick. "I've been racing a long time, I knew how tough it is to win those." But he also said, "I thought surely by now we'd be challenging and in more competitive form" than the team is now.

Patrick asked Earnhardt Jr. how close the team was to a title. Dale Jr. said matter-of-factly, "We're not close.

"We're having a better year than we did last year. Last year was a disaster. This year is better. ... We're missing some things. You can't see these things, they're not tangible, obvious adjustments you know you need to make. You keep working hard, and working hard, and showing up each weekend and hopefully you flip the switch and it starts working. We're still a couple pieces away from where we need to be."

Earnhardt Jr. admitted a bad finish keeps him up at night. "This past weekend we had a pretty tough deal. It'll be until Wednesday before I'm OK, before I'm over it. You just get so upset about it. ... It's too hard for me to just let go of it."

Earnhardt Jr. finished 27th in Sunday's Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono Raceway after fighting an ill-handling racecar and engine troubles.

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Photo: Dale Earnhardt Jr. signs autographs at Pocono Raceway. (Chris Trotman/Getty Images for NASCAR)

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Sadler Wins First Truck Series Race at Pocono

As an Elliott Sadler fan, Saturday’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series win was the highlight of my year. It was definitely a well deserved and much needed win for Sadler. In only his seventh start in the truck series, Sadler grabbed the pole and the win all in one day, breaking his six year winless streak in NASCAR.

For a race at Pocono International Raceway, this was not a boring one. The excitement started on lap 2 with a single car spin by Bobby Hamilton Jr. After a cleanup lap, Sadler led them back to the green flag racing until lap 21 when Kasey Kahne took the lead. Kahne, along with Denny Hamlin and Todd Bodine battled for the lead with Sadler for most of the day.

A late race caution that was caused by Donny Lia and Chase Mattioli getting together helped bunch the field back up for a green-white-checkered finish. This first attempt was interrupted when Sadler’s teammate, Ron Hornaday Jr went for a spin. There wasn’t much of a battle for the lead when the green flag was waved again. Once Sadler got out front, he stayed there until the checkered flag.

To say that Sadler needed this win is a vast understatement. Tears welled up in my eyes once the white flag was waved because I knew that he had won it. I have been a fan of his for the past eight years and in his recent struggles, I have yet to give up hope in him. I believe that he is one of the best drivers out there and I know he could prove it if he was given the chance.

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The opinions expressed in this post are those of the author and do not reflect this site or its other contributors.

Photo: Chris Trotman and Drew Hallowell /Getty Images for NASCAR

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Roush upgraded to fair condition after plane crash

Roush Fenway Racing co-owner Jack Roush was upgraded to fair condition Sunday night at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., according to a release from Roush Fenway Racing.

Roush was in a plane accident last week at Wittman Air Field in Oshkosh, Wis. He was able to walk away from the crash, but suffered facial injuries and underwent surgery last Tuesday. Roush continues to receive treatment at the hospital for his injuries. No timetable has been set for his release.

The team owner was on the minds of many this weekend at Pocono Raceway and Iowa Speedway. When Greg Biffle captured the checkered flag in the Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono, the driver of the No. 16 3M Ford said, “This one’s for Jack." All of the organization's Sprint Cup and Nationwide cars were fitted with decals that said, "Get back to the track, Jack!" The Roush Fenway entries will run the decals again during the upcoming races at Watkins Glen, according to the team's Facebook page.

The decals will be available for purchase from Roush Fenway Racing starting Tuesday, Aug. 3. Cost is $5 plus tax. All proceeds will go to Speedway Children's Charities in Roush's name. To order, call 704-720-4350.

Fans who would like to send get-well cards can address them to Jack Roush’s attention at Roush Fenway Racing, 4600 Roush Place, Concord, NC 28027.

Updates on Roush's condition will be posted at www.RoushFenway.com and www.ROUSHperformance.com as they become available.

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Starting Lineup Pocono Raceway: The Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series returns to the Pocono mountains this Sunday for the Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500. The track known as the “Tricky Triangle” is a 2.5 mile tri-oval and is undoubtedly the most distinct shaped track on the circuit.

Starting from the pole is Tony Stewart who on Friday qualified with a time of 52.511 seconds (171.393 MPH). Stewart is looking for his first win in 2010 and is hoping to move up from 9th in the points.

Joining Stewart on the front row is Juan Pablo Montoya. Both will have to fight off Denny Hamlin who has won the last two races at Pocono.


Here’s the starting lineup:

1. Tony Stewart
2. Juan Pablo Montoya
3. Denny Hamlin
4. Jeff Gordon
5. Ryan Newman
6. Jimmie Johnson
7. AJ Allmendinger
8. Jeff Burton
9. Jamie McMurray
10. Mark Martin
11. Brad Keselowski
12. Greg Biffle
13. Kurt Busch
14. Kevin Harvick
15. Sam Hornish Jr.
16. Kasey Kahne
17. Joey Logano
18. David Ragan
19. Marcos Ambrose
20. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
21. Kyle Busch
22. Bobby Labonte
23. Paul Menard
24. David Reutimann
25. Carl Edwards
26. Matt Kenseth
27. Scott Speed
28. Martin Truex Jr.
29. Elliott Sadler
30. JJ Yeley
31. Reed Sorenson
32. Travis Kvapil
33. Joe Nemechek
34. Regan Smith
35. Landon Cassill
36. Michael McDowell
37. David Gilliland
38. Dave Blaney
39. Casey Mears
40. Clint Bowyer
41. Kevin Conway
42. PJ Jones
43. Todd Bodine

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Race Recap and Results: U.S. Cellular 250 – NNS Iowa

(July 31, 2010)
NEWTON, Iowa—Even when he doesn't get any practice, Kyle Busch still wins in the NASCAR Nationwide Series.

Busch won his ninth NASCAR Nationwide race of 2010, his sixth in his last seven starts and 39th of his career by dominating the U.S. Cellular 250 in front of 55,988 fans at Iowa Speedway.

"I really like these cars," Busch said. "It's fun, man. I've really grown accustomed to these things and have learned how to drive them. You can really drive the Nationwide cars hard because they don't have a whole lot of horsepower, so you can really try to make up a lot by being able to get more out of the car, driver-wise."

Busch missed Saturday morning's rain-delayed practice, making it to Iowa from Pocono in time for qualifying. In his first laps in the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, he earned the second position. Brad Coleman practiced Busch's car.



"It would've been better if I could've sat on the pole," Busch said. "Darn Trevor Bayne."

Bayne may have won the pole, but Busch's car was clearly dominant in the race, even without Busch practicing it. Busch led four times for 209 laps.

"It says a lot about the team, it says a lot about my confidence as a driver and my confidence in the team that they can prepare great racecars—and also (backup driver) Brad Coleman and what he does. I told (crew chief) Jason (Ratcliff) before the start of this thing, 'Man, if I win this thing, I just might not practice any more.' I think I screw it up more when I practice it."

Busch restarted sixth after a pit stop for four tires with 42 laps to go, passing four cars in one lap to move to second behind Kevin Harvick, who changed only right-side tires.

"We got five, six cars in between ourselves and Kyle, and that's really what we wanted to do," Harvick said. "We just didn't expect him to pass them all in one lap. That was our best chance, to try to get in front of him, and hopefully have him get caught up in traffic."

Busch passed Harvick with 24 laps to go and pulled away for the victory, spoiling Nationwide's Dash 4 Cash program. Since Busch was ineligible because he hasn't run all the Nationwide Series races this year, an eligible driver can win $75,000 if he wins at Texas Motor Speedway on Nov. 6.

Harvick ended up second, with Jason Leffler third, with points leader Brad Keselowski fourth and Bayne fifth. Sixth through 10th were Steve Wallace, Michael Annett, Justin Allgaier, Matt DiBenedetto and Carl Edwards.

Iowa's second NASCAR Nationwide race saw two red flags in the first 100 laps. The first red was for Reed Sorenson's wreck in Turn 1 on Lap 42, caused by a melted bead on the right-front tire. The second came 51 laps later, when Brian Keselowski nailed a prone Colin Braun in Turn 2.

Braun, who wrecked his primary car in qualifying, had spun off the corner before getting slammed by Keselowski. Three other cars were involved, but none of the drivers were hurt.

Bayne became the youngest driver in series history to win three consecutive poles as he claimed the top spot for the 250-lap race. Bayne is the fourth driver to accomplish the feat and the first in 18 years. The others were Sam Ard, Jeff Gordon, Mark Martin and Michael Waltrip.

Brad Keselowski extended his series points lead over Edwards to 231 points.

(Release courtesy of Lee Montgomery – Sporting News Wire Service)

Final Results:

1. Kyle Busch
2. Kevin Harvick
3. Jason Leffler
4. Brad Keselowski
5. Trevor Bayne
6. Steve Wallace
7. Michael Annett
8. Justin Allgaier
9. Matt DiBenedetto
10. Carl Edwards
11. Josh Wise
12. Shelby Howard
13. Michael McDowell
14. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
15. Drew Herring
16. Paul Menard
17. Mike Bliss
18. Steve Arpin
19. Joe Nemechek
20. Jeremy Clements
21. Kenny Wallace
22. Blake Koch
23. Robert Richardson Jr.
24. John Wes Townley
25. John Borneman
26. Jason Keller
27. Tayler Malsam
28. Mike Wallace
29. Tony Raines
30. Brian Scott
31. Brendan Gaughan
32. Colin Braun
33. Brian Keselowski
34. Mark Green
35. Morgan Shepherd
36. Reed Sorenson
37. Kevin Lepage
38. Danny O’Quinn Jr.
39. Brad Baker
40. Tim Schendel
41. Chase Miller
42. Dennis Setzer
43. Jeff Green

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