The NASCAR Sprint Media Tour hosted by Charlotte Motor Speedway continued into day two. Though it was dreary outside, the outlook was sunny with owners, drivers and teams who wait for the start of Speedweeks in Daytona.
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[/media-credit]The morning started off with Michael Waltrip unveiling his new book, In The Blink of an Eye, and the new look on the NAPA car he will drive in the Daytona 500.
The book, which will be released February 1, deals with the life changing moments in Waltrip’s life. It speaks of how the tempered joy of his Daytona 500 win ten years ago affected his life when his boss and good friend, Dale Earnhardt, was killed on the last lap.
The car is a tribute to Earnhardt with it’s black paint, a departure from the blue and yellow NAPA colors that are only obvious on the hood and logos.
NASCAR Nationwide Series Director, Joe Balash, spoke of expectations for an exciting season in 2011 with the new style cars running a full season. Fans only got a peak at the cars during four races in 2010.
Cup drivers will not be running for the series title which will allow the up and coming drivers in NASCAR’s second tier to run for the championship.
The general consensus from Cup drivers, who will run in that series, is that they are there to race and win. The fact they are not eligible for the title is no big deal.
Charlotte Motor Speedway continues with construction of the largest high-definition video board in the world.
The 16,000 square-foot screen will be located on the backstretch of the speedway. Piers will be installed at the construction site to support the 500,000 pound steel frame that will hold the 165,000 pound video board.
Fans will have an awesome view of the board when it is lit up with the more than nine million LED lamps during each event beginning in the spring.
Charlotte Motor Speedway is never shy on new things including the record they hope to set with the “Light Up the Night” event that will take place May 21 during the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race.
Thousand of fans will be sporting LED Headlights with the help of Energizer. During pre-race activities, an attempt to break a world record will be monitored by Guiness World Record officials when fans “flash their brights.”
At Richard Childress Racing, Richard Childress announced, “Rome isn’t burning. This is still a great sport.” His comment reflects the upbeat attitude that continues to resound in the NASCAR community for the 2011 season.
Childress claims to have a gut feeling, RCR will knock NASCAR Sprint Cup Champion, Jimmy Johnson from his throne. Childress said, “Nothing lasts forever in life.”
The statement had a bit of irony, as members of the media questioned Childress on his feelings about the ten year anniversary of the death of his best friend and driver, Dale Earnhardt.
Childress was asked why he felt going back to a four-car team would work this time when it didn’t work too well last time. His response was, “We are a lot more prepared. You have to add personnel and we beefed up stuff.”
Paul Menard is the fourth driver to join the stable of Cup drivers for RCR alongside Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton and Clint Bowyer. He was asked what the biggest change was at RCR and said, “Everything under one roof, crew chiefs can explore and push forward.”
So as the media tour continues, it may be Marcus Smith of Charlotte Motor Speedway who best summed up the theme during the events of the week. Smith said, “2011 will be a springboard to the future of NASCAR.”
