MOORESVILLE, N.C. (Feb. 26, 2003) - For the record, it took only two
races into the 2003 NASCAR Winston Cup season for crew chief Tommy Baldwin and
driver Jimmy Spencer to have their first disagreement. Some feared this
might happen, but no one expected so soon. The issue - do dice have
feelings? Spencer says yes; Baldwin says no. The United Nations
Security Council says to give it more time - see if they can work it out.
It should be noted that the dice issue is really the only thing preventing the
two from total harmony. They both agree, for instance, on cab drivers,
cocktail waitresses, and the food in Las Vegas. They also agree that a
strong run in the UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday
could make up for any wages they've lost in Vegas casinos. "Hey,
motivation is a valuable tool," team owner Jim Smith says. "I
don't care where they get it."
As we prepare to go west for race three of 36 on the NASCAR Winston Cup
schedule, the driver and crew chief of the No. 7 SIRIUS Racing Team offers tips
on surviving Las Vegas. The Spencer & Baldwin School of Las Vegas is
now in session:
CAB DRIVERS
Spencer: "You better watch it or they'll take you on a
20-minute ride to a place only five minutes away. Always know where you're
going. They'll say, 'We're going to drive the interstate to avoid the
traffic lights.' I remember one (guy) drove us around, I'm gonna say, a
good 10-12 minutes longer than it took us to get to the same exact place the
year before. The year before the fare was $6, and this time it's $12.
I made him give me my change."
Baldwin: "Us New Yorkers know about cab drivers. Sometimes you
gotta watch them. Jimmy's right, make them think you know where you're
going. Even if you don't, act like you do."
COCKTAIL WAITRESSES
Spencer: "You've got those who look really good. You've
got those who wear a Hutchins Device for a uniform. And you've got those
who run off business. The last time I was in Vegas, this cocktail waitress
comes walking by, and I swear she reminded me of a guy who gassed my Busch car a
few years ago."
Baldwin: "Some of them could have more, and some of them could
have less. That's all I'm going to say."
GAMES
Spencer: "I pretty much stick to Craps and Blackjack."
Baldwin: "Blackjack, Roulette, and Craps. Those are my
favorites."
ADVICE ON PLAYING
Spencer: "You know what makes me mad - people who throw the dice too
hard. You've got to treat the dice with respect. Don't throw them
hard; just toss them with a little love and compassion. The dice have
feelings."
Baldwin: "No, dice don't have feelings."
Spencer: "You've got to talk to your dice. They got
feelings."
Baldwin: "It's Spencer who doesn't have feelings."
THINGS TO SAY TO THE DICE:
Spencer: "It depends on what I need. If I need to roll a four,
the dice like to hear me say, 'How do them ducks go to the water? Two-by-two.'
If I need to roll a nine, the dice like to hear me say, 'What did Johnny shoot
Jesse with? A forrrrrrrty-five."
Baldwin: "I just tell the dice, "Momma needs a new pair
of shoes, com'on!'
(Editor's note: team spotter Carl Barnes, known as "Red Dog" to
everyone but his momma, has just entered the room here at Ultra Motorsports and
would like to say that his favorite thing to say when he rolls the dice is,
'FEVER IN THE FUNKHOUSE, RUN BOY RUN!"
DINING IN LAS VEGAS
Baldwin: "A lot of good food. Great place to dine out with
your bride."
Spencer: "Don't plan on being on a diet when you get out
there."
RACING AT LAS VEGAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
Baldwin: "Since I've lost twelve grand there since 1988, it's about
time we win a race so I can catch back up. The way I figure it is we
better do well at the race track, because I'm not doing too good a job at the
casinos. Vegas is a track you need to have the all around package to do
well - the engine program, the handling, the pit crew, the driver, everything.
Track position is very important here, because the aero push makes it hard to
pass. It's a major factor."
Spencer: "I love racing at Vegas. I won here in the Busch
Series, and I've always taken a liking to the flat tracks. I think we need
to continue getting better. We had a good run at Rockingham, even though
we ran out of gas with two laps to go. We'll learn from that, and continue
to get better. People don't realize this is a process. We're still
getting familiar with each other, and that's something that only gets better
with time. I think it's obvious that we've already taken big strides in
just two weeks."
--30--
MOORESVILLE, N.C. (Feb. 28, 2003) - Leave it to NASCAR to bring rain to
the desert.
For the third straight week, rain showers put a damper on the day's racing
schedule, postponing practice and qualifying until the chilly evening hours.
But it didn't stop Team SIRIUS from busting off a qualifying lap worthy of a
top-15 starting spot. Jimmy Spencer drove the No. 7 SIRIUS Dodge around
the 1.5-mile Las Vegas Motor Speedway in 31.578 seconds - the 15th-quickest time
among the 45 qualifiers for Sunday's UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400. It gives
Team SIRIUS its best starting spot since July 6 of last year when it started
10th in the Pepsi 400 at Daytona International Speedway.
"I really felt we could run an awesome lap, but once we got under the
lights and the track cooled off, I wasn't sure," Spencer said.
"We were too free in the turns, but from what I hear so was everyone else.
I guess we'll know what to do next time we have to qualify under the lights here
at Vegas - tighten that thing up as much as we can."
Bobby Labonte won the Bud Pole Award with a track record time of 31.211 seconds
(173.016 mph). He was the 43rd of 45 attempted qualifiers Friday evening.
His lap knocked Jeff Gordon off the pole position to the outside of row one.
Ryan Newman qualified third, Dale Earnhardt Jr. fourth and Kurt Busch fifth.
John Andretti, Jeff Burton, Tony Stewart, Michael Waltrip and Jimmie Johnson
round out the top 10.
Spencer was the 38th driver to qualify, which put him at a slight disadvantage
with the temperature change on the track. Nonetheless, his time was an
improvement of nearly a tenth of a second quicker than his best practice time.
He ranked 19th in the afternoon practice, which lasted only an hour due to the
inclement weather.
"Qualifying in the top 15 is pretty cool," Spencer said.
"We tested here, but we never ran a qualifying run, so I think we've really
got something for them in the race. I'm really happy with my guys. I
can't tell you how happy I am with them. People will see. That's all
I got to say. People will see."
The UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 is scheduled to start at noon PST (3 p.m. EST).
--30--
LAS VEGAS, Nev. (March 2, 2003) - A hot streak early, a setback in the
middle stages, and a gamble at the end. And this wasn't even at the craps
table.
The No. 7 SIRIUS Racing Team recorded its first
top-20 finish of the season in Sunday's running of the UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400,
as Jimmy Spencer took the checkered flag in 17th place in front of an estimated
crowd of 140,000 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Spencer passed three cars in
the closing laps en route to the top-20 finish, which was somewhat uneventful
considering he had fought his way to seventh before being collected in a
seven-car wreck.
That accident, with 90 laps to go, brought damage to the rear spoiler and rear
quarter panel of the SIRIUS machine. And although not extensive, it was
still enough to deprive Team SIRIUS of what looked to be a sure top-10 and a
possible top-five day. A caution in the last 50 laps would've helped,
especially when crew chief Tommy Baldwin gambled by extending a green-flag run
while everyone else pitted. But the yellow never came. Spencer,
then, had to pit himself, giving up second place with 31 laps to go.
"We took a gamble at the end by trying to catch a caution, and that
probably cost us two or three spots because we stayed out on the track with old
tires," Baldwin said. "If there would've been a caution, we
would've been sitting in second place with a lap on most of the field. But
it didn't work out that way. We had a good day today. We're
continuing to make gains, and that's what we need to do. Jimmy did a heck
of a job out there today."
Sunday's effort was the first top 20 for Jim Smith's team since Aug. 6, 2002,
when it finished 18th in the Sharpie 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway.
"I'm real proud of the guys on this race team," Spencer said.
"I think we had a definite top 10 car today. Every driver in this
race knew we were here today, and that's just a credit to the team Jimmy Smith
has put together. We're having fun out here, yet we're all business.
I've been saying it all week - people will see. Tommy and I are still
trying to find that comfort level with each other, but we're communicating well,
and we're making progress. That's the key for us - continue to make
progress. You can't expect huge things right out of the blocks. But
we're making gains, and that's what we need to be doing right now."
Matt Kenseth won the race going away, beating runner-up Dale Earnhardt Jr., by
nearly eight seconds. Michael Waltrip finished third, Bobby Labonte fourth
and Tony Stewart fifth. Jeff Burton, Ryan Newman, Sterling Marlin, Joe
Nemechek and Steve Park rounded out the top 10.
CLOSE CALL: Having started 15th and promptly jumping into the top
10 thanks to a long, green-flag run to start the race, Team SIRIUS was peeling
off lap times as quick - sometimes quicker - than the leaders. But it
didn't mean Spencer was clear from traffic, and when a series of cautions began
coming out at lap 100, it left some dicey restarts and close-quarter racing.
During the third caution period, Spencer, Baldwin, and spotter Carl "Red
Dog" Barnes conversed about it over the radio:
Spencer: "The car is good right now, Tommy. Those last two runs
were the best I've had so far, and I like the way these two tires are feeling
(in reference to a previous pit stop in which Team SIRIUS put on right-side
tires only.) I'm telling you, these lapped cars are dangerous. I was close
to four-wide on that last restart."
Baldwin: "You're doing a heck of a job out there today, Jimmy. Real
good job."
Red Dog: "I would've paid a ticket to watch those last 20 laps,
Jimmy."
Spencer: "I don't think you would have paid for a ticket to sit where I'm
sitting on those last 20 laps."
Red Dog: "That's why we got you in the car, buddy. It's that 'Sperience
(Fox commentator Darrell Waltrip's modification of the word
"experience").
CLOSE CALL, PART II: Green flag racing resumed on lap 130, and
Spencer found himself in ninth place and building on a huge momentum swing.
Not three laps later, though, it almost came crashing down. Directly in
front of him, Steve Park hit Dale Jarrett from behind, causing Jarrett's No. 88
to spin out of control. Spencer was able to take evasive action - thanks
in large part to the guidance of Red Dog - and keep the fenders on the No. 7
Dodge. Jarrett, last week's Rockingham winner, eventually settled for a
40th-place finish.
HAMMER TIME: Merely laps after passing Jamie McMurray for seventh
place, the wreck of the day occurred when the lapped cars of Mike Skinner and
Rusty Wallace tangled in turn one. It ended up costing several contenders,
including Jeff Gordon, Kurt Busch, and Spencer. The No. 7 Dodge was sent
into a spin when it was hit in the right rear quarter panel while trying to
avoid the chaos. As a result, The SIRIUS crew made a lengthy four-tire
stop under caution to pound out bent sheet metal on the rear quarter panel and
fix the angle on the spoiler.
"Guys, don't tear anything. Be gentle," Baldwin reminded his
team prior to the stop.
DOWN THE STRECH: Spencer gave his belts an extra tug for the final
green-flag sprint, which saw him make up a straightaway deficit to catch and
pass Todd Bodine, Ricky Rudd and John Andretti in the closing circuits.
Spencer was again turning laps as quick the leaders, but he was out of time to
gain any more positions.
"We've got something to work off now for these flat tracks," Baldwin
radioed his driver after taking the checkers. "That wreck seemed like
it hurt us by knocking the tow off. But good job today, Jimmy."
FINAL TIDBITS: With his finish, Jimmy Spencer climbed four spots to
35th in the NASCAR Winston Cup points standings … There were seven cautions
for 30 laps, the first coming out at lap 100 … There were 17 lead changes
among 10 drivers … The Winston Cup Series will next visit Atlanta Motor
Speedway on Sunday, March 9, for the MBNA Bass Pro Shops 500 … That race is
set to begin at 1 p.m. (EDT).