Staying The Course
CORNELIUS, N.C. — He’s a kid from Emporia, Kan., who grew up racing motorcycles and sliding around dirt tracks. So it’s somewhat interesting that road course racing has proven to be one of Clint Bowyer’s strong suits since joining the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.
The circuit travels to the second of two road courses, Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International, this weekend. Bowyer has one top-five and three top-10 finishes at the 11-turn course. In all, his road course record includes one win, seven top-five and 11 top-10 finishes in 19 road course starts.
With the No. 15 Maxwell House Toyota team currently in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, Bowyer knows that every turn is important at a track where one wrong move can send you off course, possibly ending your day.
Why are you good at the road courses?
“Heck if I know. There’s just something about it that I kind of like. I’m not sure what it is though. They are just fun. There’s always something happening. You’re just through a corner and you already have to be thinking of how you are going to set up the next one. It’s just non-stop. You have to be really smart about how you race at road courses. It’s a different mind set. You can’t just go in and dive bomb someone and crash yourself and maybe that person. I think I’m a little better at Sonoma than I am at Watkins Glen, because they really are different kinds of road courses but really excited about going there. We definitely have some momentum and last weekend was definitely huge for us, we just need to keep putting ourselves in good positions and we will either get a win or have enough points to make this Chase.
How important was your finish last weekend?
“It was a real big deal. With Kyle (Busch) right there and a good shot that someone who doesn’t have a win could win this weekend, every point and position matters. We’ve been moving in the right direction and have had some good finishes here lately. A win is what we want to get these next few weeks but we need to keep finishing up front first and foremost.”
Crew Chief Billy Scott: Clint is a pretty good road racer. How are you approaching these next few races as you try to make it into the Chase?
“I don’t know how a dirt track racer from Kansas is so good on the road courses but he is. It’s one of the ones that we’ve had on our list where we could run well or even get a win. There are several tracks coming up that he’s good at. Everybody back at the shop is working hard pushing to improve. Right now, we are on the right path. You don’t want to do anything too drastically different to take yourself out of it. You might make a different decision at a Darlington or Richmond. Right now there’s no telling. Kasey Kahne won at the cut off race last year so anything can happen. Right now we are doing what we need to do. We are definitely shooting for the win but if we do our jobs right, the wins will take care of themselves.”
NO. 15 CREW ROSTER
Billy Scott
Crew Chief
Terry Spalding
Front Tire Changer
Allen Steele
Front Tire Carrier
Lee Cunningham
Rear Tire Changer
P.J. Briody
Rear Tire Carrier
Brian Chase
Jack Man
Evan Marchal
Gas Man
J.D. Frey
Car Chief
Brett Griffin
Spotter
Dax Gerringer
Race Engineer
Joe Bisson
Race Engineer
Adam Cooke
Shock Specialist
Travis Stock
Rear Mechanic
Chris Sherwood
Front Mechanic
Kyle Anderson
Interior Mechanic
James Davis
Tire Specialist
Gregg Huls
Engine Tuner
Ray Erwin
Truck Driver
Jeff Shano
Truck Driver
WATKINS GLEN STATS
