Show me the way to go home
Jeff Gluck, Staff Writer
AVONDALE, Ariz. - NASCAR driver Dave Blaney roared through the garage, a blur who moved faster than the wind.
Only Blaney didn't have any wheels underneath his feet. Dressed in full fire suit, Blaney had parked his race car, leapt out and broken into a sprint for his street car.
Welcome to NASCAR's race after the race, where some drivers try to beat the traffic - and each other - to make it back to their North Carolina homes faster than the rest.
After tonight's Subway Fresh 500 at Phoenix International Raceway, drivers will make a mad dash for the airport in a weekly competition that only has one winner.
Here's how the race after the race unfolds, according to an expert on the subject, Jimmie Johnson:
If a driver finishes the race outside the top five positions, he has no media obligations and is free to leave the track immediately. "So you race back (to the hauler) and change as fast as you can," Johnson said.
Most NASCAR drivers now fly to the airport via helicopter, so it's important to have a golf cart and driver standing by to whisk the driver to the helipad. "Then you're out there bartering with the helicopter service as to why you need to leave before anyone else,'" he said.
At the airport, Johnson said his team's pilots have learned how to park in precisely the right place and how to position the planes in order to roll onto the taxiway as fast as possible. "After that, you're in the hands of the air traffic controllers,'" he said.
To take it a step further, Johnson said, drivers and teams have invested in high-performance aircraft. The goal is "to beat each other back home so we can be standing on the tarmac in Charlotte or wherever it is, laughing at your friends as they pull up."
The best post-race racers include Kevin Harvick, Sterling Marlin and Matt Kenseth, according to their peers, although Harvick and Kenseth both brushed off the praise.
There are other good ones, too. As Kyle Busch pointed out, "I've never seen Elliott Sadler after a race. Never."
Johnson's preferred method is one way to do it, but even he admitted there is no clean exit strategy. With experience comes increased knowledge of back roads and the perfect parking spaces for an easy escape.
Sterling Marlin is one of those who still drives out of the track most of the time, since he finds the helipad too crowded for his liking.
"Probably five out of 10 times, I can beat the helicopter and save $350 a head," he said. "If you get there fast, you don't have to sit on the runway and burn jet fuel."
Of course, being a veteran is a huge advantage in the race home. Busch said he's left the track on his own several times, only to get beaten to the airport by his crew, which departed from the speedway after him.
"They know all the back roads and they get out a lot quicker and they're waiting on me," he said. "(Meanwhile) I'm getting all hissy and trying to fight traffic."
Busch has known about the race after the race for years. He used to be a spectator at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and called it "one of the funnest races to watch if you're a fan and you live around the area."
Not all drivers play the game. Some like to return to their motor homes to shower or get a bite to eat, digesting both food and 500 miles of racing.
Drivers Kasey Kahne and Casey Mears would rather take their time and cool down after hours of intense racing.
"What's another 30 minutes?" Kahne said. "It's not going to ruin our weekend."
Said Mears, "Everybody else tries to be in a hurry. To me, I'm going to get home that night regardless. A couple hours later doesn't really matter."
But to those who engage in the race after the race, every second matters. Maybe, it was suggested, it would be better to finish sixth than fifth to avoid the media obligations.
"I'm not sure it's ever crossed any of our minds," Johnson said. "But now that you bring it up, we'll probably think about it."
AVONDALE, Ariz. - NASCAR driver Dave Blaney roared through the garage, a blur who moved faster than the wind.
Only Blaney didn't have any wheels underneath his feet. Dressed in full fire suit, Blaney had parked his race car, leapt out and broken into a sprint for his street car.
Welcome to NASCAR's race after the race, where some drivers try to beat the traffic - and each other - to make it back to their North Carolina homes faster than the rest.
After tonight's Subway Fresh 500 at Phoenix International Raceway, drivers will make a mad dash for the airport in a weekly competition that only has one winner.
Here's how the race after the race unfolds, according to an expert on the subject, Jimmie Johnson:
If a driver finishes the race outside the top five positions, he has no media obligations and is free to leave the track immediately. "So you race back (to the hauler) and change as fast as you can," Johnson said.
Most NASCAR drivers now fly to the airport via helicopter, so it's important to have a golf cart and driver standing by to whisk the driver to the helipad. "Then you're out there bartering with the helicopter service as to why you need to leave before anyone else,'" he said.
At the airport, Johnson said his team's pilots have learned how to park in precisely the right place and how to position the planes in order to roll onto the taxiway as fast as possible. "After that, you're in the hands of the air traffic controllers,'" he said.
To take it a step further, Johnson said, drivers and teams have invested in high-performance aircraft. The goal is "to beat each other back home so we can be standing on the tarmac in Charlotte or wherever it is, laughing at your friends as they pull up."
The best post-race racers include Kevin Harvick, Sterling Marlin and Matt Kenseth, according to their peers, although Harvick and Kenseth both brushed off the praise.
There are other good ones, too. As Kyle Busch pointed out, "I've never seen Elliott Sadler after a race. Never."
Johnson's preferred method is one way to do it, but even he admitted there is no clean exit strategy. With experience comes increased knowledge of back roads and the perfect parking spaces for an easy escape.
Sterling Marlin is one of those who still drives out of the track most of the time, since he finds the helipad too crowded for his liking.
"Probably five out of 10 times, I can beat the helicopter and save $350 a head," he said. "If you get there fast, you don't have to sit on the runway and burn jet fuel."
Of course, being a veteran is a huge advantage in the race home. Busch said he's left the track on his own several times, only to get beaten to the airport by his crew, which departed from the speedway after him.
"They know all the back roads and they get out a lot quicker and they're waiting on me," he said. "(Meanwhile) I'm getting all hissy and trying to fight traffic."
Busch has known about the race after the race for years. He used to be a spectator at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and called it "one of the funnest races to watch if you're a fan and you live around the area."
Not all drivers play the game. Some like to return to their motor homes to shower or get a bite to eat, digesting both food and 500 miles of racing.
Drivers Kasey Kahne and Casey Mears would rather take their time and cool down after hours of intense racing.
"What's another 30 minutes?" Kahne said. "It's not going to ruin our weekend."
Said Mears, "Everybody else tries to be in a hurry. To me, I'm going to get home that night regardless. A couple hours later doesn't really matter."
But to those who engage in the race after the race, every second matters. Maybe, it was suggested, it would be better to finish sixth than fifth to avoid the media obligations.
"I'm not sure it's ever crossed any of our minds," Johnson said. "But now that you bring it up, we'll probably think about it."
posted by at 4/27/2006 05:30:00 PM
1 Comments:
MY QUESTION IS IF SAY MATT WAS TO GET BEAT BY SAY, HARVICK ON THE WAY HOME AND SAYS MOTHER FU--ER, WOULD HE GET FINED AND POINTS OR JUST FINED? AFTER-ALL THIS IS NASCAR.
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