Over The Wall

Pit Competition Update

  With only two weeks left until the PCC there are still teams fighting to get in.  The Miller Lite team is already locked in from a win last year and is currently first in the points.  As far as the 12 car goes, we are one of four bubble teams trying to make it in two spots.  With Brad winning Talladega it took one of the at large bids away and now we are down to two.  It should be interesting to see who gets in and who doesn’t.  I will say this, the 2 car has been practicing hard and I think they have a strong team and a good chance to do well in the competition.  Most of the guys on the 12 car are the same ones that won it two years ago.  I would love to see what we can do this year.  As far as the 77 team goes, they had a chance to make it going into Talladega and got caught up in the second big one and now they are mathematically alive but it will be tough for them to make.  Other teams that are on the bubble are the 1 car, 07, 47, and us.  I guess we ll just have to wait and see.  That’s all for now.

Close Competition

    The competition has started out a bit closer this year than in years past.  I could be wrong so don’t hold me to it, but from the looks of this year in comparison to last it seems there are a lot more drivers from different teams in the top 12 than in the past.  This year so far there are 8 different teams that are represented in the top 12.  I can remember a few years back there were 4 Roush cars, 3 Hendricks, 3 Childress and then a few others filling in.  As it stands now, there are Hendricks, Penske, Gibbs, Roush, Petty, Stewart Hass, Childress, and Michael Waltrip cars all in the top 12.  I think the COT’s are doing their job of making the competition more on the drivers and crew and in turn its making the competition better.  Don’t know how it looks from the fans point of view but each week from the pits you never know who’s going to win.  I like that.  That’s it for now.

The off weekend

    

                This week is always one I look forward to having.  Any time you get a chance to spend with the family is well worth it.  I guess this week I’m going to stay around the house and get some work done.  Keeping the wife happy is half of keeping me happy when I’m on the road.  Anyway, this week was another solid day for us at Penske.  We had three cars that had good finishes and gave us some momentum heading into the off week.  Not only are the Cup teams starting to get on a roll but the Nationwide team is now 5^th in points and heads to Nashville with high hopes of a good finish.  As far as our race went on Sunday, it was a pretty good day.  We had some good stops in the pits and the 2 and 77 had an even better days in the pits.  After watching the race on Tivo, I noticed how many teams are having trouble in the pits and how much pit road could effect the chase and even the championship.  It’s still early but with the new rule change, it has become a competition of who can stay more consistent than the next guy.  It’s always been important to do well on pit road but there have been a few races this year that have been determined by what teams do on the last pit stop.  With the points getting tight, it’s only going to put more pressure on crews.  Hope everyone enjoys the Nationwide race and that all for now.