NASCAR & Mother's Day!

Mother's Day is older than NASCAR. The modern Mother's Day holiday was created by Anna Jarvis as a day for each family to honor their mothers in 1912. You only need to walk down the pits of any NASCAR racetrack to understand just how important Moms are to the racers.

When Moses' started his 'career' as a racer, he was just twelve. I was a tad less than enthusiastic. Moms are different than Dads. We worry about the "what ifs." Of course the worst one is "what if" he/she is injured. Nevertheless, it was not long before NASCAR Race Mom joined the ranks of the track moms who spent the majority of their weekends in the pits helping out the team as much as possible. Moms fill in as media/press release consultants; score keepers; logistics manager ect . . . .

For over a decade, Jeff Gordon has driven his beloved No. 24 Chevrolet at the front of the pack at nearly every tack on the NASCAR circuit including this weekend’s Cup event at Darlington Raceway. Some attribute his success to natural skill. Some think it’s because of his work ethic. But, the one person who probably knows Jeff best is convinced her son’s racing tenacity has everything to do with a certain quarter midget race he competed in at the age of six.

“I remember a time when he (Jeff Gordon) was first racing quarter midgets, he got lapped during a race and when the race ended he said that he didn't like to be lapped and never wanted that to happen again. He was six at the time.”

In an exclusive interview with Gordon’s mother, Carol, she tells more of this story and other tales from his childhood that you might enjoy in light of the upcoming Mother’s Day weekend.

Additional stories are available from other moms of NASCAR stars including Ryan Newman, Brian Vickers, Reed Sorensen and Casey Mears. The interviews are available at Ask.com, the Official Search Engine of NASCAR. Just search NASCAR moms or click here.

After reading all those heart-warming stories, take time to remember your special "mom" Sunday.

The Long John Silver’s 200

News & Notes

The race … The Long John Silver’s 200 is the annual NASCAR Camping World Series East-West combination race. It marks the third event on the 2009 schedule for the NASCAR Camping World Series East and the fifth event of the year for the NASCAR Camping World Series West. It is the only East-West combination event this season for the NASCAR Camping World Series.

The procedure … The starting field is 44 cars, including provisionals. The first 38 cars will qualify through two-lap time trials. The remaining six spots will be awarded through the provisional process. The race will be 200 laps (175 miles).

The track … Iowa Speedway is a .875-mile paved oval with compound banking of 12-14 degrees in the corners, 10 degrees in the front stretch and four degrees in the back stretch. The facility, which opened for operation in 2006, is located east of Des Moines in Newton. This marks the third consecutive year for the track to host the East-West combination race.

The records … Qualifying: Kevin Harvick, May 20, 2007, 133.775 mph. 23.547 seconds, Race: Brian Ickler, May 18, 2008, 85.216 mph, 2 hours 3 minutes 13 seconds.

The Showdown … The overall winner of the Long John Silver’s 200 will earn a protected spot in the postseason NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown. Jason Bowles, Matt DiBenedetto, Eric Holmes, Brian Ickler, Greg Pursley have already earned spots with their victories this season.

On point … Championship Points will be awarded based on a driver’s finish versus other drivers in their series. For example, the top-finishing East driver will receive 180 points regardless of overall finish, and same for the West.

Busch Set To Race At Iowa

Just about every time Kyle Busch has taken to the track this year, he’s been a threat to win. The recently turned 24-year-old has eight wins in 24 starts in the three NASCAR national series. He will look to add another series to his win list at Iowa, as he is entered to run the No. 18 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing.

"We're teaming up with Toyota of Des Moines, they've been good supporters of mine,” Busch said in the national teleconference Tuesday. “We're looking forward to bringing it up there and hopefully winning a race on Sunday so they can sell more cars on Monday."

Busch will look to continue one trend and end another. Each of the past two years, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver to run at Iowa(Kevin Harvick in 2007 and Kasey Kahne in 2008), has won the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Challenge in Charlotte, N.C., the night before. But they have failed to win at Iowa. In fact, Busch’s current NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teammate, Joey Logano, made a big splash as a then 16-year-old when he outran runner-up Harvick.

“Hopefully we'll have a good enough car where we can do the same thing,” Busch said of Logano’s win. “I'm looking forward to it.”

Official NASCAR Release By Kevin Green

NASCAR Camping World Series East/West Challenge

Long John Silver's 200 Presented by A&W Restaurants: NASCAR Camping World Series East/West Challenge.

The NASCAR Camping World Series is the top level of the NASCAR Developmental Series and is made up of two regional tours, the East and West, competing with identical race cars.

Camping World, the country's largest RV and outdoor retailer, became the title sponsor for NASCAR Camping World Series beginning in 2008.

The East dates back to 1987 and races in key markets in the northeast, along the Atlantic seaboard. The West enters its 55th season and features events along the Pacific cost, and throughout several other western states. The two compete on separate schedules and for separate championships. They meet for a combined points event only once during the season: At Iowa Speedway in May. Both series run at a challenging combination of short tracks, intermediates, road courses, and speedways, with a number of races held in combination with NASCAR Spring Cup Series events.

The cars are similar in appearance and design to those cars used in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. The cars are powered by 350 to 358 cubic-inch V-8 engines.

Over the years, this series has helped launch the careers of many future NASCAR stars including current NASCAR Sprint Cup Series standouts Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr., and David Gilliland, along with two-time championship crew chief Greg Zipadelli.

As the new title sponsor, Camping World looks to continue the tradition of developing talented young drivers. Recent enhancements to the series included a schedule with an expanded geographic reach, new competition and cost-containment initiatives such as the new "spec engine" and compostie body, and lowered age-limit to 16 for drivers.

2008 Re-Cap:

Moses Smith, driver of the No. 16 HASA Pool Products Toyota Camry for Bill McAnally Racing was the fastest West Series’ driver in the final practice session at Iowa Speedway and only 2/10th off the record.

In a close qualifying session, Moses put the No. 16 HASA Toyota in row twelve. Only 44 drivers would start the 200-lap race. Smith gained positions with hard racing and great pit stops by the HASA team. He finished the race in sixth for the West drivers.

Information taken from the Iowa Speedway Website