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It hasn't been this bad in a while
By Trent Cherry
Well, This is one of those days where I really hate writing on this thing. For the past two days I've been depressed about they way we ran at Las Vegas. The wreck was one thing, but our day was off to a bad start way before the wreck. Sunday was a field day for all the Penske Racing South doubters. We were out early and finished last and the 2 car ran like crap most of the day and managed to salvage a top 20. So right now we are looking pretty bad in the points and the whole 04'-06 Dodge thing is getting even bigger. As a crew member its hard to watch your car struggle on the track and know that everyone is doing everything they can and its just not working out like it should. Its not a lack of effort by anyone were just struggling right now. I'm not going to sit here and tell you that next week everything is going to be fixed or that the team is happy about the season so far. Were not, but that doesn't mean we cant get our stuff right and turn things around. Right now we are taking race by race and trying to get as good as we can and do what ever it takes to help our cars run better. Racing is very much a momentum sport. When your winning and everything is going good you feel like you cant go wrong. When things go bad, and start to snowball, it takes a while to get out of the funk and build back up. Were down but were now out, there's still 23 more races until the chase and we got 8 spots to make up in that time. Its off to Hotlanta this week.
March 14, 2006 in Race talk | Permalink
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In your opinion, why do you think ya'll are struggling so much? It seems like both Kasey Kahne and Casey Mears have found a way to get top 10s out of their chargers. Have ya'll thought about trying a charger out again or are ya'll pretty much dead set on running the 04 car. I'm a fan of all dodge drivers and it's not often that Ryan is getting lapped or hitting the wall(usually Kahne is the one blowing tires). Also do you know why your tire blew (both the 12 and 41 blew tires...both dodges, were they cause by the same thing.) Ok well enough with all my questions. Good luck this week.
Posted by: Jessica | Mar 14, 2006 9:06:01 PM
Trent
Just keep on keepin on, you're in good company in the points, Tony's right behind you. Still 23 races and not all of them are 1.5 milers. That was the worst race I have seen, not only did Ryan wreck out, but that damn 48 won again. Anyway, aleast Ryan has 6 straight poles at Atlanta, its not a win, but atleast its something.
Jessica,
I think both the 12 and the 41 blew the bead, since they were running poorly they were using more brakes which basically melted the bead. I think that was the case anyway.
Posted by: Alltel_fan | Mar 14, 2006 9:47:50 PM
Trent, we 12 fans really appreciate you coming here and getting us inside the 12 crew. We'll stand behind you and your team no matter what. Hey, this stuff happens. It's not like Ryan's not a great driver, he's proven it...but sometimes things happen, and this is one of those times. You guys will figure it all out. You work your butts off in the shop, there is only so much you can do and are in control of. Press on...Never Surrender...Move forward...Never Give Up...You guys deserve all the encouragement you can get...and double due to all the unnecessary criticism you get here!!!!
GO 12 GO!!!!!!!
Posted by: Toni | Mar 14, 2006 10:11:04 PM
Trent,
Didn't we start out running bad in 03? Daytona 43, Rockingham 14, Las V 7, Atlanta 10, Darlington 14, Bristol 22, TEXAS #1, Dega 39, Martinsville 38, Fontana 42, Richmond 39..... there's a few good runs in there.... plus, we crashed 4 times, well, crashed three and brakes on the other... that was all in the first 11 races.... 17 top 5, 22 top 10, still finished in the top 10 in points..... We won't talk about the DNF's... smile.... but all in all, that was a good year, which started out bad.... Keep your head up, yall will figure it out and get things turned around.... I have Faith in yall... It's gonna be alright... Mothers know best... so listen to me!!! smile.....
Posted by: Darlene | Mar 14, 2006 10:14:34 PM
Hey Trent,
Kudo's to you for at least making a post.
I hope that you can tell us that PRS is not "throwing away" a season, just to justify the switch from Dodge to Toyota. History has shown since the pontiac days that Mr.P makes changes in what seems to be an effort to get ahead of the competition. Such as getting a new front end on the ford, then leading the develop. of the Tarus. Gotta wonder if he is outsmarting the guy in the shaving mirror.
You can still dig out of this hole !! Wishing ya'll the best.
Go man, go.
Posted by: Larry | Mar 14, 2006 10:28:08 PM
Trent,
Your sounding a bit like Keanu Reeves doing the quicksand speech in "The Replacements"...The harder you fight the faster you sink...etc. It's just not so. I don't really even like the #12 or #2 but I've seen a lot to like on the season so far. Teammates who actually play nice together...that's a plus. The last 2 tracks are terrible race venues. You lost a few battles...You haven't lost the war. Now pick your goofy butt up and post positive...
Posted by: Keith | Mar 14, 2006 11:03:39 PM
In my opinion, the chargers are running a lot better this year then last. Busch and Newman have struggled every since they left Daytona. Busch has been the brighter spot for Penske with the pole at cali and the 3rd place start at vegas, but Newman is struggling. I think that Penske needs to go back to the Charger and get to work. The intrepids are now 2yrs old and that can not say much for the aero problems they are now facing with an older model. Busch is doing about as good as Rusty did in the blue duece, but wait till thye get to Martinsville, Darlington, Phoenix, New Hampshire, Bristol,and Dover. These tracks are where Mr. Busch and Mr. Newman are great at, plus they are not the high speed low banking tracks like cali and vegas. Look for Busch and Newman to be really strong at Atlanta because they can either run right against the wall or right on the white line, or anywhere in between. This is great for trying to perfect a setup on a car. I think only a few teams (Roush and Hendrick- Johnson/Kyle Busch) have the flat high speed track program down pat, so do not be surprised to see business pick up now that they are racing at some of the more banked tracks. Kurt Busch is a shoe in at Phoenix and Newman is going to be great at Dover.
Posted by: whyme? | Mar 15, 2006 1:24:54 AM
"Never give up. Never surrender." -- Commander Peter Quincy Taggart
You'll get there. I missed all the action this week, so I don't have much more input than that. Although, it's darn good input! ;-)
Posted by: Clair | Mar 15, 2006 9:53:03 AM
Even with Kasey Kahne running well, the Dodge charger's aero problems have not been healed. If they were, then you'd see 4 or 5 Dodge's amongst the leaders instead of just one or two.
I don't think Penske is throwing away the season, but they are obviously frustrated as the Dodge situation isn't getting much better. Toyota might be the way to go.
Posted by: 19jay12 | Mar 15, 2006 10:04:39 AM
Thanks for the comments, Trent! We can only imagine how frustrating it is for the team. It's only three races into the season - don't get down too much - like others have mentioned, there are some great races coming up where Ryan hasn't struggled in the Charger, and the loyal 12 fans look forward to those races!
Good job "interviewing" Matt Borland in the Alltel Podcast added yesterday! It was interesting to hear what you guys had to say - thanks to you both for taking time to do something special for the fans, we appreciate it. Best of luck this weekend in Atlanta!
Posted by: Janelle | Mar 15, 2006 10:19:57 AM
Hey Trent.
It's nice to see so far the people on here not bashing you to death. It's terribly immature and senseless to spew negativity on a blog that is written by a Team Alltel 12 member. If you don't care for Newman or his Team, get a life and go to another site and get your childish jollies.
Unfortunately, the massive growing numbers of affordable computers has opened the doors to every nut case wannabe in America. It's easy to set at a key board a million miles away invisible to all and spew written non sense on hating a driver or racing team. But a smart administrator will eventually step in and clean it all up!
Sorry about the off topic ramble Trent.
Us fans are willing to wait it out. Most of us are not in the business so we have no clue on the Dodge dilemma. Most of us are open fans that wear the hats and tee shirts and jackets so we are getting a lot of heat from other followers. It's no different than following a football team other than in racing, you have a shot at 36 races not 16. A little upsetting if your driver doesn't make it in the Chase but as a Newman fan, I don't have to worry about that!
Team Alltel 12 will pull out a win and all will be forgiven........right Trent?
Posted by: South Bend But Don't Break | Mar 15, 2006 12:58:09 PM
South Bend, dont jump off the band wagon yet. We still got lots of time to catch up. Everyone is calming down a bit over here and looking forward to Atlanta. Its all part of being in the business of racing.
Posted by: trent | Mar 15, 2006 1:24:59 PM
I love how everyone is so quick to hammer on a driver and how all of a sudden he forgets how to drive a race car when things are not going well with the team or the organization. I'm not a 12 fan but I think the man knows how to drive a car. I do not agree with PRS choice to use the Intrepid instead of the Charger for the races at Cali and Vegas. Those teams have put so much work into the Charger for the last year and a half and then they turn around and use a model they haven't driven since 2004.
Keep the nose to the grindstone Trent. At least you haven't gone through a whole season like these last 3 races.
Posted by: Mike | Mar 15, 2006 2:48:25 PM
Trent, what happened to the inter-team cooperation that was supposed to make the Dodge effort One Team? Ever since Ganassi effectively bought himself Dodge backing in 2001 the entire program has been messed up.
Posted by: Mike Daly | Mar 15, 2006 5:36:35 PM
Oh I'm not getting off the band wagon ....ever Trent!
No other team in Nascar has had to endure as much as Team Alltel 12. I mean since 2002 they have had to balance out 3 different cars with massive rule and tire changes. That's a lot to ask from any team! They had to put up with the negativity of one time owner Rusty Wallace who blabbed about the carburetor back in 2003 because of pure jealousy. You know it's true!
Trent knows but can't say do to his position in the company. I know for a fact a lot of Teams would like to speak there minds about a lot of topics but are censored contractually. Team Alltel 12 knows the answerers to the Dodge Charger but they keep getting there hands slapped by Nascar. There hands are literally tied at this point and it's a crying shame.
Ryan Newman would with out question already be a Cup Champion if it wasn't for all the hidden garbage from Nascar. But, it's there prerogative to run the show as they see fit!
How about an even playing field coming from Nascar's rules fellows. That would solve a lot of problems!
Posted by: South Bend | Mar 15, 2006 7:24:04 PM
South Bend,
AMEN....I have said from the beginning that if Ryan had the stability that some other top drivers have had as far as car makes and rules he would have had a championship by now. Imagine having to throw away your notes from the previous year TWICE in four years....and then only to have the new notebook rendered worthless by a rules change! All the fans who come on here and tell us we are blind for saying this is just SCARED TO DEATH that Ryan is going to get a handle one day and LOOK OUT, because nothing will stop him!!
;)
Posted by: J in PA | Mar 15, 2006 7:42:07 PM
Keep your head up Trent and you guys will have everything all together soon enough. All of us 12 fans are behind you and are looking forward to the next 83% of the season. I'm hoping if I put it like that we'll all know how far it is til the end of the season. Good Luck in HotLanta!!
Posted by: JeninIL | Mar 16, 2006 12:45:04 AM
South Bend,
What do you mean that the #12 team keeps getting their hands slapped by NASCAR? I wasn't aware of any penalties, if that's what you mean. The #12 team has always stayed within NASCAR's rulebook.
But once the #12 team gets the handle on Dodge, they'll be tough. You know, I'm not a Ford fan, but Newman would possibly have a championship ring if Penske would have stayed with the Blue Oval.
Posted by: 19jay12 | Mar 16, 2006 9:46:46 AM
coulda shoulda woulda
Posted by: Brad | Mar 16, 2006 9:59:18 AM
Trent,
The last thing you need is advise from a fan,but I am going to give it to your team anyway.Way back when I used to play football,on the first day of practice in high school the first thing you would do is practice your stance (The basics).When I got to college the first thing we did was practice our stance.I also free agented for an NFL team and guess what the pros do on the first day of practice,practice your stance.It might be time to go back to the basics and rebuild from there.
The easiest way to get back on the path is to return to the begining of the path....grasshopper.
Posted by: hostage94 | Mar 16, 2006 10:43:43 AM
It's because Team Alltel 12 DOESN'T cheat and adhere to the rules of Nascar that they are getting beat on Sunday. Besides the unbearable task of balancing the Charger. Team Alltel 12 was handed a "pig"(The Charger)and was asked to make it a dove! All they can do at this point is put lip stick on the "pig" and kiss it good luck till the powers that be pull there heads out. Everyone in the garages know who's doing what but you do take a risk when you stretch a rule. It doesn't seem to hurt all that badly to the what I would call,"The Nascar Favorites."
Pay attention to the announcers and media in general. There madly in love with Hendrick,Gibbs,Roush and DEI. Any other team is essentially a "field filler." Yes I am jealous. I wish they could spread a little more love in the direction of Penske but it will NEVER happen! Will it make them go faster? No! But good PR is better than negative.
19jay12...No, there not getting fined. There possibly the most honest Team in Nascar. Sometimes I wish they would cheat so they can get around Jimmie Johnson once in a while!
To sum it all up. Bending the rules and trickery have been in all forms of racing since the dawn of time. It just makes you wonder why who gets caught and who doesn't. I can't help but think that Nascar sends in there "legally blind" team of inspectors into the room of gloom on certain Teams? It sure is funny how much better some teams are than others........huuuum? Oh yea! It's the skill of the driver.......NOT!
Posted by: South Bend | Mar 16, 2006 10:51:48 AM
Hey Trent --
So...again...how's that Intrepid working for you? Great call on that one. That 9 team's Charger doesn't look so bad -- maybe Penske should run Chargers.
Keep diggin.
Posted by: Go Dodge | Mar 16, 2006 1:25:25 PM
I've been ranting this for over a year now and I'll say it again. The amazing thing to me is that nobody else seems to see it. The real "problem" with the Charger? I'll give a couple hints. It starts with a "B", ends with a "d", and has "orlan" in the middle. The guy needs to go. A pimple-faced 13yr old boy has a better handle on his pecker than Borland has on the Charger AFTER OVER A YEAR. Not to mention he has a tendency to throw away solid top 5 runs with boneheaded, braindead late race pit calls only to leave Ryan out there holding on for dear life just to salvage a top 15 at the end. The worst thing is that this wasn't a one-time occurance....he did it repeatedly. Reference: first half of last year. If Penske is unwilling to replace him, he needs to at least tell him to stop trying to win with a roll of the dice and just send Ryan back out on the track with a car he can RACE.
(For anyone who's not familiar with the reference to last year, Borland had a horrible predilection to go with 2 tires/no tires/no stop only to have Ryan railroaded on the restart by drivers who's crew chiefs weren't mentally retarded.)
Posted by: Timugen | Mar 17, 2006 12:24:25 PM
Oh yeah, I forgot...."holla back" if you happen to read this Roger. I'd be very interested in your perspective on this bonehead and why he still works for you.
Posted by: Timugen | Mar 17, 2006 12:27:55 PM
Timugen, I have received you resume and while we are willing to give qualified people a chance in our organization, you just aren't Penske material. 2 years of high school isn't anywhere near our required education level. Under 'experience' all you seemed to have put was "playing EA Sports NASCAR 2006 into the wee hours of the morning in your underwear". This simply isn't acceptable experience Tim.
While we appreciate your interest in the crew chief position we don't believe you are the correct indiviual that we need at this time.
Once again thank you for your interest and I am enclosing a copy of "Racing for Dummies" plus a signed Rusty Wallace Farewell Tour fanny pack.
Sincerly,
Rog
Posted by: Roger | Mar 17, 2006 1:12:47 PM
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