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Not a good night
I guess the easiest way to sum up lat night would be to say horrible. The night started out with a plitter brace coming apart from the car and forcing us to pit when we didnt want to and fix the splitter. After that we had a pit road penalty (which was my fault, the penalty was that the rear tire was not in control half way thru the box). So we had a drive thru penalty which put our driver in a bad spot and put the team two laps down. After that we fought our way back to get one lap down and we were getting ready to compete for the lucky dog when all hell broke loose. Some how we broke something underneath the car and had us behind the wall. The driver was pissed, the crew had a bad night, the mechanics were mad, and all we could do was just fix the problem and try and salvage everything we could. It was a bad night for points and everything else that could happen. Along with that there are even more rumors about where our driver is headed next year and none of them seem to be at penske. Its nothing anyone hasnt heard before but this week the chatter was a little bit louder. Hopefully ill have a post in a couple days and we ll talk pit competition. Holla
May 11, 2008 | Permalink
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Sorry man, I feel for ya...Momma said there be days like this...Just not so many in a row...At least your home for a few weeks!
Posted by: Fan #5 | May 11, 2008 9:55:39 PM
Hang in there, Sugar. You will be fine. You are just a little down, from a bad day at the office that lasts all week. I love Ryan, but wherever you have to go or stay, I will know that you are good at you job.
This is a grandma talking...lol...so that is Gospil......
Posted by: topcard | May 11, 2008 10:38:25 PM
Trent you need to get Kurt to ask his brother what the heck they did to the 18 car because he hit the wall about as much as I've ever seen a guy hit the wall and he still won the race. I didn't see the 12 that much but I'm guessing he hit the wall just like everyone else and I'm sure that contributed to stuff breaking. So if you can figure out what the 18 team did to keep that car in one piece then you can do the same next year to the 12 to make sure you guys don't have a repeat of last night.
Posted by: Ken | May 11, 2008 11:49:55 PM
Trent, it's not just been the pit crews fault, it's a number of things that has Newman shopping for a new home.
His luck with PRS since 2002 has not been all that good. If you add up all the mechanical problems, the high turnover of crew and manufacturer. Can you imagine graduating from the Cup class of 2002 with Jimmie Johnson and watching him win 2 Championships plus countless races knowing YOU were the Rookie Of The Year in 2002 then in 2003 Driver Of The Year! Drivers like to win races and Championships PERIOD!
Being a fan for so many years, I look at Ryan's career collectively. And collectively, he has had the worst luck of any driver in Cup history! What would you do after so many years of depressing disappointment? Yes I know, it's not the Teams fault when Ryan gets caught up in wrecks or possibly when his tires go bad but everything else is all PRS.
A lot of us have fallen in love with all you guys and it will be a sad day when Ryan announces his decision to leave. But, he wouldn't leave if he knew in his heart that PRS was giving him 100% support right? It's that doubt that's not good. Wait and see.
Posted by: 2001 fan | May 12, 2008 11:39:14 AM
I cant really disagree with what your saying. Pit crew guys are no different, there are places that some of our guys could go but they chose to stay here in hopes of winning a championship. I would just hate to loose a good driver that i believe has a chance of winning a championship, its a crappy situation to be in no matter what your role is on the team.
Posted by: trent | May 12, 2008 11:47:20 AM
Can you please explain what happened between Ryan the Vickers? It looked to everyone as though Vickers hit Ryan when they were pitting, but from what I have been reading Ryan said something broke on his car and he spun - is this the same incident? I have faith you guy will get this bad luck off your shoulders. Hopefully for the rest of this year and Ryan will get back into Victory Lane soon:)
Posted by: gs | May 12, 2008 12:57:55 PM
It's time to cut the losses on the 77 team and focus all the company's energy on the 12 and 2.
Posted by: grumpyoldman | May 12, 2008 1:25:20 PM
being on the team what rumors are you hearing about where ryan might go, or if you really think he'll leave?
Posted by: dan | May 12, 2008 2:36:46 PM
I would have mixed emotions about Ryan leaving Penske. It's hard to imagine anyone else driving the 12 car, and it would be nice to stay with one team your entire career, but on the other hand, a championship seems so far away at Penske, no offense Trent, it would be cool if you went with Ryan. I like the Penske organization, something is just off. Perhaps switching back to Ford would help?
Posted by: keith12 | May 12, 2008 3:18:37 PM
Ryans car was broke before he went onto pit road. i really havent seen what happend. all i heard was the spotter say we wrecked and that we were coming around to the garage. as far as the rumors go, pick a team and hes been rumored to go there. i hope he doesnt go any where because i dont think you can replace a driver like him. its just a matter to time untill he s gonna have another 5 win season and i hope its with us.
Posted by: trent | May 12, 2008 3:21:22 PM
I think what did it for me (and this is just my own observation) that in one of Ryan's articles on Yahoo, he said something to the fact that he wasn't going to discuss contract talks out of respect for his current team. That tells me right there that he is open to change. If he were committed to PRS, he would have said something more like "We are looking toward the future and a new contract, and Penske is my first priority..." or something of the sort.
I love the 12 team but I think that Dodge has really let us down as a manufacturer, and that Mr. Penske is NOT focusing on his Nascar program like he is, and its those things that stand out to me.
I want to see Ryan win championships, and if it means he has to go elsewhere, then I will accept that. I just wish he could take as much of the team with him as possible...lol.
Posted by: J in PA | May 12, 2008 3:41:40 PM
Sorry, that's "like he should be" and not "like he is" unless you say "like he is his other race teams."
Posted by: J in PA | May 12, 2008 3:43:41 PM
Thanks for the update on the Vicker/wreck deal. Sounds like it was not like it looked. I really do hope Ryan does stay with Penske and with you pit crew Trent. I also believe what David Poole wrote about the 12 team:
"Something tells me this team'll be stronger than you might think the next two weeks."
Posted by: gs | May 12, 2008 3:57:06 PM
I hate saying this but it has come to the point where Ryan has to go elsewhere. I have been a fan since watching him race at Winchester and he flat out needs better equipment. Everyone knows he is one of the 4 or 5 most gifted drivers on the circuit but without better gear he will be stuck. Let Tony leave JGR and see Ryan jump in the 20 (and take Trent and a few of the guys with). He's not getting any younger and he needs to get to a team that will give him a car to run with Hendrick/ RCR/ JGR. If he does that there is a much better chance at a championship.
Posted by: boyler | May 12, 2008 5:06:01 PM
I'd really hate to see the #12 team split up but I hate not seeing them in winner's circle! I agree with grumpyoldman, cut the 77 and pour the resources into 2 & 12. We all know and have seen what the #12 can do. How many poles & wins a few years ago?
Posted by: nutz4newman | May 12, 2008 6:30:05 PM
I agree with a lot of things you guys are saying. Agree with grumpyoldman, agree with J in PA. Really sucks that great people have to have such crap happen week after week.
May have missed it, but I think Roy is a hell of a CC and I'd hate to see that change too.
Posted by: Dave in the Bend | May 12, 2008 6:49:31 PM
Here is the reality of the situation. Me and Ryan are good friends and have been for 8 years. Outside of racing we hang out and do other stuff together. I would hate to see Ryan leave and go some where else but i cant blame him for what he decides. He is one of the top 5 drivers out there and he has had success at Penske over the last couple of years. The problem is that we have a very tight team over here. His wife is very close to a lot of the team members and its more like a family than any other team that i know of. So him leaving is not just replacing a driver, its replacing a guy that helped build a whole team. Like i said before, its all rumors right now, if you look back to last year everyone swore he was going to the 18 car and that didnt happen. So until it is official i guess we ll just wait and see. And as far as him taking other people with him, i dought it, teams want the drivers not the bagage that comes with it. Who knows.
Posted by: trent | May 12, 2008 9:07:42 PM
I feel for your team. I think it would be hard to focus with "Is he leaving" at he back of the teams mind. Saying goodbye is not easy when you have been together for a long time. So I do empathize with you and your team. But its never goodbye when you are real close.
I wish you luck at the all stars I have to say I am torn between three teams so hopefully one of you can get it done.
BTW how is your wife's pregnancy going? I hope all is well.
Posted by: Kendria | May 13, 2008 2:24:06 AM
Kendria, the wife is doing well. we found out last friday that we are having a boy. The little fella definately got his daddies genes, it took em about an hour to figure out if it was a boy or girl. poor fella.
Posted by: trent | May 13, 2008 7:28:23 AM
Congrats on your expected son. Felt awful for all of you after Darlington, it just wasn't fair to have so much bad luck at one race. Good luck with defending your title at the Pit Crew Challenge and having a good night at the All Star Race.
Posted by: Cheryl | May 13, 2008 10:55:34 AM
Does anyone know what happened to the RNO message board?
Posted by: keith12 | May 13, 2008 1:22:26 PM
here newmy newmy.we can find a home for you.
Posted by: freak | May 13, 2008 2:05:49 PM
It seems penske cant keep 2 teams running well never mind 3 or even the 4th team they say he might start. When Ryan runs well Kurt is no where to be seen and vice versa.
Its sad, but I just cant see Ryan sticking with penske when theres possibly some good seats opening up.
Trent, you might be bias but do you think Biffle or Newman is the better driver? I laughed at the story that ran recently saying biffle is the better "free agent". Hes such a huge suck I cant see how he can bring anything to a team. I thought he was going to cry when his car "broke" last week. When Ryan was having all that HORRIBLE luck last year I never saw him act like a 2 year old. I think that given the same equipment Ryan would be\is the better driver.
Posted by: smithfan | May 13, 2008 3:18:36 PM
Smithfan I agree with you. Roush figured out the COT and Biffle can't even come close to a win. Penske cars have been struggling and Ryan has found a way to win.
Therefore, Biffle is not the better driver.
Roush equipment is by far superior to Penske's yet Biffle is whining and throwing his team under the bus, while Carl rack up wins and Ragan seems to get better.
Biffle could not even diagnose what the problem was with the car he called in a loose wheel when it was a transmission problem. LOL
When I read that article about Biffle being more talented than Newman I almost choked. Just because a guy can save a loose race car does not make him more talented in anyway, every driver saves loose race cars, maybe not in dramatic fashion. This just tells me that he doesn't hold a steady wheel.
I am torn by the possibility of seeing Newman in a different car.
If the new Dodge engine becomes competitive to run with Toyota then he might regret the move. But in racing HP is not all.
Why did Penske re-sign with Dodge?
Newman fans want to see their driver compete for wins not battle for the lucky dog if Penske cannot give him competitive equipment then he has every right to go where he can be competitive. It is tough and I sympathize with you.
Ryan seems like a team player so any team will be lucky to have him.He seldom throws his team under the bus or complain so that says something about team stability and development. That's the difference between certain teams. There are teams that constantly change crew members/drivers and they never seem to grow competitively. The way the driver treats the crew reflects upon how the crew performs IMO.
Posted by: carfan12 | May 13, 2008 4:02:28 PM
so you guys doing anything special for the all star race? bringing the pimp hat?
better not see any stage diving though.
Posted by: dan | May 14, 2008 8:15:48 AM
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