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Give the Gift of Nascar This Holiday Season and Win over His Heart

Saturday, December 13th, 2008
nascar
Sarah Jones asked:


The holidays are coming up and that means only one thing: presents. Many people on your list can be pretty easy to buy for, while others can be a real challenge. For me, buying for the men in my life has always been a bit of a hassle. I wanted to find something that they liked and would get a lot of use out of at the same time.

Are you looking for a good gift idea for the man in your life? Are you never quite sure what to get him, and worry about buying the wrong thing? Does he have t-shirts and ties you have gotten him hidden in the back of your closet? Even if your man is hard to buy for, there are great ideas out there. If you cannot think of a good gift for your man or are tired of giving him the same old thing, consider a gift basket filled with his favorite goodies. Most men have some type of hobby- and our personal favorite is of course NASCAR.

You can purchase gift baskets online, but if you do not have enough time for it to be shipped, you can check your local stores. There may be stores that specifically make gift baskets listed in the phone book. If not, you might contact a local florist as many of them also make gift baskets for special occasions. If you cannot find a local shop and you do not have time to order online, do not panic. Making your own basket is easy enough. You can purchase a basket at any crafts store, use a blanket, apron, or paper to line it and stuff it full of goodies for your man!

Here is our favorite gift idea for the Nascar fan of the household:

NASCAR Gift Basket – NASCAR fans love almost anything NASCAR gift related. You can fill your man’s basket with his favorite driver’s toy replica cars or a coffee cup with his favorite driver’s number and colors. You can add to the basket a hat, t-shirt, bumper stickers, coasters, magnets, or a key chain. Does your man like to play darts? There are even NASCAR darts! If you really want to give him something extra special, order tickets to his favorite NASCAR race ahead of time and hide those in his basket.

You really have no excuse to get him something old and boring this holiday season. Nascar is hotter than ever and there are so many gifts centered around the sport, that you can easily choose something to keep him happy with! So start searching for fun Nascar goodies and give your man something this holiday season that he will really be proud to call his own. Enjoy!



Carolyn

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NASCARs Organizational Structure-Past and Present

Thursday, December 11th, 2008
nascar
Chris DiCicco asked:


Make no doubt about it, NASCAR is a business and is run like any other major corporation. NASCAR is a family-owned business with Brian France as the third-generation CEO. Brian France is the son of Bill France, Jr., who passed away at the age of 74 in June of 2007.

The current President of NASCAR is Mike Helton. What is interesting about Mike Heltons appointment as President of NASCAR in the NASCAR organization structure is that he is not a member of the France family. He was named as President in the NASCAR organization in 1999. That was a year that would see much change in the NASCAR organization in terms of safety because of the sudden death of Dale Earnhardt on the last lap of the 2001 Daytona 500 and it was because of this incident that NASCAR would begin to head numerous initiatives for the safety of drivers and fans.

The very nature of a family-controlled organization means that the family will control most of the proceeds. This has been a criticism by some who think NASCAR should be a joint owner-player type of profit sharing model. Other critics have made assertions that the NASCAR organization could do more for driver safety. And there have been accusations that the NASCAR organization is too monopolistic in its policies. But millions enjoy the sport promoted by this business and advertisers love the exposure they get. Plus, the championship prizes seem to be attractive to many drivers.

NASCAR is not publicly-traded on the stock exchange however its major sanctioning body is International Speedway Corporation which is publicly traded on the NASDAQ under stock symbol ISCA. ISC owns as well as operates 11 motor speedways plus is a major promoter of motorsports. Bill Frances sister Lesa France Kennedy and his uncle Jim France is the Vice Chairman of the Board and Chairman of the Board/CEO respectively.

Although not an organizational structure per se, NASCAR organization structure is built around three main events which could be thought of as three main lines of business: 1) The NASCAR Nextel Cup Series, 2) The NASCAR Busch Series, and 3) The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

And a fundamental part of the NASCAR organization structure is the promoters. Promoter sponsorship has drawn some criticism from the fan base because more and more it seems that NASCAR is more about commercials than it is about racing. However, in order for NASCAR to stay alive as an organization it needs the sponsors. Ticket sales alone will probably not bring in the revenue needed to stay healthy in business.

The Nextel Cup Series is the most prestigious of the NASCAR organization. This series starts with the Daytona 500 at the beginning and consists of 36 races in 19 states and on 22 different tracks.

The second premier event in the NASCAR organization is the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. This event started in 1996 and was previously known as the SuperTruck Series. Its roots come from a display of a NASCAR-style pickup truck at the 1994 Daytona 500.

And the last premier event in the NASCAR organization is the NASCAR Busch Series which is considered to be like the minor leagues of NASCAR.



Lloyd

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Nascar Tracks: Atlanta Motor Speedway

Sunday, December 7th, 2008
nascar
Chris DiCicco asked:


The NASCAR Atlanta Motor Speedway is in Hampton, Georgia (a suburb of Atlanta) and has a 1.54-mile oval track with turns banking at 24 degrees. Because these banks and their smooth surface, car speeds have been known to reach 190 mph on occasion. However these sustained high-throttle speeds make it hard on engines at the NASCAR Atlanta Motor Speedway. You will see a variety of action here as cars will race closely side-by-side along with a lot of pushing and cutting off. All this action at the NASCAR Atlanta Motor Speedway is made even more exciting by the high speeds.

The Atlanta Speedway offers a variety of options to see the races from premier seating to facilities for camping. The raceway’s premier seating is the Club One option. Fans purchasing this seating option sit in a location with a great view on top of the Winners Grandstand. It has 65 video screens along with a first-class bar and menu. Probably one of the most exciting features of Club One is the fans get a pre-race pit stop pass.

The Speedway can be rented for all sorts of group occasions too. They have custom packages for weddings, wedding receptions, theme parties, birthday parties, group meetings, and other special gatherings.

You can bring your recreational vehicle or popup tent and camp at the Atlanta Motor Speedway too. Shower facilities are available.

The Speedway’s website is excellent and has all the information you need. It even has a frequently-asked questions link where you can see the answers on subjects such as getting drivers’ autographs to bringing your cooler inside the track.

If you ever wanted to get into racing marketing, NASCAR’s Atlanta Motor Speedway gives you the opportunity through its internship program. This is an unpaid internship program but it gives you the experience needed to get into the career of NASCAR marketing by allowing you to gain working experience at the NASCAR Atlanta Motor Speedway. Plus, with this experience, one can be competitive in the market for the paid NASCAR marketing positions. The qualifications are that the person must be a college-level student (B.A. or B.S.) and a marketing communications major. You will help with the public relations, advertising, and event duties at the track.

The Atlanta Speedway is also the venue for numerous NASCAR driver schools where one can purchase a fantasy racing package and experience the thrill of being a NASCAR driver for a short time. Now these are not schools to train you to be a professional driver. There is no career path like that. These are schools for the amateurs who just want to do something different and experience the thrill of the drive. There are different levels and of course price ranges. It is patterned a somewhat after the Major League Baseball fantasy camps where you get to play games and train alongside Major League Baseball players.

Richard Petty, the King of NASCAR, runs a NASCAR driving experience school along with others who have their schools and use the Atlanta Motor Speedway track.



Esther

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Nascar – the Drivers Training

Saturday, December 6th, 2008
nascar
Chris DiCicco asked:


So maybe you are fascinated with NASCAR and would like to choose this as a career. How does one go about participating in race driver training so as to become a driver? There are drivers training schools but all are very expensive and there is no guarantee that you will become a real NASCAR driver. So what kind of training makes a professional driver?

Well, just as in other professional sports, the competition to be a driver is very tough. But more than that, the majority of people don’t get there because of a lack of driver training. It usually is because of who they know, who their family is, and where they started. These drivers start when they are very young and run the go cart circuits. Their fathers were probably race car drivers. They probably ran into a promoter or sponsor somewhere along the way that gives them their big break.

NASCAR driver training includes the physical portion and also stresses mental conditioning. Although to the fans it looks easy, a driver’s brain has to work very fast to be alert to other cars around him while trying to take the lead and maintain it.

The best training has been learned in the early years by most of these drivers when they were just children. Growing up around tracks and being able to drive the cars at young ages allowed the driver training to become somewhat instinctive. This is very important because later on during professional competition, the carbon monoxide levels can get very high inside of the driver’s compartment. Carbon monoxide can cause confusion. The way to overcome confusion is to depend on instinct. Training accentuates the instinct.

The physical conditioning of the driver is the subject for an article all its own but you can think about it as somewhat like an astronaut preparing for his or her first launch. The G forces are very significant for a race car driver and driver training includes getting conditioned to them. Astronauts experience significantly more G forces but the NASCAR driver should include conditioning for them nonetheless.

The training also includes the driver’s education from a young age. You might ask what non-driving education has to do with NASCAR driver training. Well, a driver is going to be promoting the products of some very large and prominent companies. That means that along the way he or she will have to give an endorsement of the products. If these guys get in front of the camera and cannot use proper grammar it would not look too good.

Another reason why education is important in NASCAR is because the driver won’t be able to drive forever. Once a driver gets into middle age, it becomes tougher. So he will need to be able to branch out into other aspects of the racing “business.” He’ll probably still be running the team but will have to think more of the business aspect of things. This is where business and marketing education would be most beneficial.

Many of the retired drivers such as Richard Petty operate driving schools as well as serious driver improvement programs when they’re offering NASCAR driving experiences for those wondering what it’s like to be as a NASCAR driver.



Barry

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The Physics of Nascar

Friday, December 5th, 2008
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Chris DiCicco asked:


Even though NASCAR started as a backwoods illegal race to run moonshine, it has today evolved into a sport that is not only entertaining but depends on physics too. The obvious element in the physics of NASCAR is the aerodynamic design required by these cars in order to achieve top speeds of near 200 mph with the minimum drag coefficient. But there are other forces involved too such as Newton’s Law of Motion and centripetal force.

Newton’s Law of Motion states that a body will remain in motion unless it is acted upon by some external force. In outer space for example, in the absence of gravity, an object will go on forever. So there are forces that resist the movement of a NASCAR vehicle such as wind drag and another known as centripetal force.

Centripetal force should not be confused with centrifugal force. However without getting too technical, you can think of centripetal force as a real force acting perpendicular to the motion of the moving body. Centrifugal force on the other hand is actually a fictitious force and what we feel as we are thrown outward from a moving vehicle is the reaction force.

Centripetal force in the physics of NASCAR is crucial to keeping a car on the track. The tires of the vehicle provide the friction which is part of the centripetal force. The centripetal force needed to keep the car on the track cannot exceed the square of the speed of the car. To put it in simple terms, if the car takes a turn too fast, the wheels leave the ground and an accident occurs. The physics of NASCAR dictates that turns on the racetrack must be banked in order to increase the friction (part of the centripetal force) to hold the car.

Another component of physics of NASCAR that serves to keep the vehicle with all four wheels on the track during the race is center of gravity. Center of gravity is basically the point where you could balance the car on the top of a flag pole (theoretically). Racing vehicles need low centers of gravity in order to keep the weight close to the track. If a vehicle has a high center of gravity then it can lose control when it hits a turn much faster. Think of an ambulance with a high profile patient area. If the ambulance took a turn too fast, it would topple over. But if its profile was not too high, it could take the turn faster because the center of gravity is lower.

An ambulance needs the high profile in order to get patients in and treat them but the physics of NASCAR dictate the low center of gravity in order to apply more centripetal force and keep it attached to the track on a turn.

Then there is the machining of engine components in the physics of NASCAR that are important for building horsepower with the minimum of friction. You want friction when it comes to centripetal force but you don’t want it inside of an engine. This is why internal engine parts are machined to within very accurate tolerances—much more accurately than automobiles for family and everyday use. Why? It is because you want to minimize friction inside the engine. When engines torque at these speeds, friction is a very dangerous enemy.



Ray

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NASCAR, There is More There Than You Think

Thursday, December 4th, 2008
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David Stargel asked:


As NASCAR racing has grown in popularity, more and more people are wanting to know more about all aspects of the NASCAR Circuit. A lot of people have heard of Dale Earnhardt Jr or Jeff Gordon. But there are a lot of things about NASCAR that many people don’t know. So here is a breakdown and some information about the different divisions.

The three national divisions of NASCAR are the Nextel Chase for the Cup, the Busch series, and the Truck Craftsman series. Most people who know something about NASCAR know about the Chase. With 26 regular season races and 10 Chase races, the Nextel Cup series is watched by hundreds of thousands of people across America weekly. In it’s third year, it continues to grow in popularity each year.

The Busch series is NASCAR’s second highest level series. It might be compared to the minor leagues in other professional sports. But the difference is that many Chase drivers also drive in the Busch series to gain extra practice on the tracks or to work on certain things. So the Busch series has a good mix of up and coming young drivers with veterans sprinkled in. Busch races are usually held the day before Cup races at the same location except for the races in Mexico and the upcoming race in Canada. The Busch cars are similar to the Cup cars with only small differences.

The Truck Craftsman series is the third level of NASCAR racing and is rapidly becoming well attended and popular with racing fans. It’s a different animal from the NEXTEL and Busch series and has it’s own fan base. Running a full schedule since 1995, the truck series drivers race nearly as often as the Cup series do. With 25 races each season, some Cup contenders are racing in the truck series as a part time job. And several well known Cup racers got their name recognized in the truck series and then carried that over into the Cup series.

NASCAR’s popularity is widespread and it has much more going on than you might think. Did you know that there are twelve racing series in NASCAR? The three national divisions get the most press, of course, but all over the country racers are struggling to make a name for themselves and gain national attention in hopes of moving up to one of NASCAR’s three top series. NASCAR seems to offer something for all audiences and gives a wide variety of drivers an opportunity to compete and possibly move up to the next level.



Teresa

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Nascar Reconnecting With Fans

Saturday, November 29th, 2008
nascar
Ally White asked:


Brian France, NASCAR chairman stated on Monday that chain officials will decrease the changes and clinch the sport instructions of the past during this season. He admitted two months ago that NASCAR was not connected closer to the nucleus fans sufficiently, especially after bad TV ratings and a decline in the audience attending the tracks for a second consecutive campaign.

The newspaper USA Today informed about the big losses NASCAR had in TV ratings and that this situation arose in the sports followers who profile an age of 55 and older and the constant changes meaning the sport’s interest has decrease.

“Change is good to a certain point and we’ve got all the change that the sport can stand and needs,” France said.

Some fans commended France’s declaration and questioned to the management of NASCAR last fall, saying: “We’re just… hoping something is going to make us interested and happy.” “That gives us hope, gives us promise, which remained critical of the series. We don’t see anything more than they can change right now.”

France faced numerous questions last year for the reason that the sport’s playoff scheme hadn’t formed a seal close since Kurt Busch won dramatically the title in 2004.

As France hasn’t produced big modifications, it doesn’t imply that the sport is not moving forward. For example: NASCAR top two series have new names this campaign. Also; the Car of Tomorrow was used only in half of the races last year, now it will run in every race this season. There will be also new drivers, mostly rookies this year.

However; on Monday NASCAR stated just slightly changes to take place. Some of the changes are that the teams will not be assured to classify despite initial good positioning instead the spot will classify them collectively at the end of the campaign. Moreover; The Cup teams will obtain only 200 tires (50 sets) for trying at non-NASCAR sanctioned tracks. Also; the teams can’t spin tires back to the pit wall during a stop. And the squads can’t push a car on pit road more than three pit stalls. The fines taxed by NASCAR will go to charity instead of the teams in the end season fund distribution.

Mike Helton ;NASCAR president stated officials are coming across of having more races starting at about a similar time. Meaning that the majority of Cup races could start before noon Pacific time and early afternoon in the East. NASCAR had moved the opening times later in the day so less races began before noon in the West. Also; some officials continue to examine increasing the bare minimum age for the drivers of the Sprint Cup from 18 to 21.

As NASCAR hopes to decrease major changes during the coming years, they are optimistic this can help the sport to boost popularity and fans crowds in the tracks. “We’d like, for the foreseeable future, next two years or three years, to have minimal changes and that would include the schedule,” “But we’ll have to see.” France said.



Eva

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Nascar Hall of Fame

Wednesday, November 26th, 2008
nascar
Chris DiCicco asked:


The NASCAR Hall of Fame was designated to be built in Charlotte, North Carolina on March 6, 2006 and groundbreaking began in 2007. It is projected to be opened for visitors in 2010. The Hall of Fame will be a welcome asset for tourism in Charlotte plus create jobs for the locals. It will have an office building that will house the business operations of marketing the NASCAR image and licensing. The NASCAR Hall of Fame has also adopted the words “Racing was built here Racing belongs here” as its slogan.

Besides being a very modern building that captures the spirit of racing, the NASCAR Hall of Fame has as its first mission to pick the first inductees. There are some unofficial Hall of Fame sites where people are taking polls and we’ll take a look at some of the popular drivers getting voted for.

Lee Petty

Lee Petty had 54 victories and is the father of Richard Petty. He raced during the 1950s an 1960s when NASCAR really began to take off. His home state is also that of the NASCAR Hall of Fame: North Carolina. He was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame, The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America, and elected to the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame.

Richard Petty

He is getting a lot of votes at unofficial NASCAR Hall of Fame sites and it is to no surprise. Richard Petty has 200 wins and 7 championship titles. He and Dale Earnhardt are the only two drivers in NASCAR history to have 7 championship titles. Richard Petty was dubbed the title of the “King of Racing.” He is the son of Lee Petty who was also a championship NASCAR driver.

Bobby Allison

Here is another well-known name is racing. He has 84 victories with 3 Daytona 500 championships.

Cale Yarborough

Cale Yarborough has 83 victories plus he’s famous as being the only driver to win 3 straight championships. He is ranked 5th in the All-time NASCAR winner’s list. He has also been the winner of the Daytona 500 four times.

Bobby Isaac

Bobby Isaac had to leave a race in 1977 because of heat exhaustion. During the time they were treating him he had a heart attack and died. In his short life of 45 years, he would achieve 37 victories. He would also set 28 world land speed records at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah (outside of the NASCAR competition). He would eventually be named as one of 50 of the all-time great NASCAR drivers. He is also a 1979 inductee of the National Motorsports Press Association Hall of Fame.

There are other NASCAR driver greats being considered including Buck Backer, Clay Earls, Tim Flock, and Junior Johnson.

Charlotte, North Carolina is a perfect location for the NASCAR Hall of Fame because there are over 50 teams of the Busch, Craftsman Truck, and Nextel Cup Series Championship competition all in close proximity to Charlotte. And Charlotte was the home of the first premier NASCAR race in 1949. That’s why they say racing started in Charlotte and should remain in Charlotte.



Ana

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The Budget Nascar Collectibles Solution for the Home

Monday, November 24th, 2008
nascar
Brian Connors asked:


Ever see the high-end stock car racing products for the home such as furniture or personalized plaques for the wall or other types of eye-catching collector memorabilia for the homestead? Do they look great? Sure thing. Affordable? This question many times can be answered with the common expression “Nope”!

Hey, reality checks often lead us to another expression that money doesn’t grow on trees. This basic truism will leave us with limited options on our stock car merchandise shopping list for personal purchases or for gifts to other racing fans. There is one choice, however, which might be the perfect compromise - NASCAR pillows.

Check these babies out when you get the chance. They are attractive and colorful items to have around the home. They can have your favorite driver and number on it or the NASCAR logo that we all know and love. You can even rest your weary head on these action packed collectibles. But best of all friends…They’re CHEAP!

C’mon people. We all have to live within our means. Extravagance can be a dirty word that might just put us into the ‘ol poor house. But is life worth living if we can’t on occasion spend a little bread for something nice? Nope! That’s why NASCAR pillows can be a frugal way for the racing fan to get his or her fix of the action.

Take my advice and you’ll get a happier home and a more sound bank account. You will have acted in a financially responsible manner while getting a piece of the passion that you live for. What’s not to love about that? NASCAR pillows truly allow the best of both worlds!



Katie

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Everything About Arizona Nascar Memorabilia

Monday, November 17th, 2008
nascar
Joseph Baylon asked:


Although there are numerous NASCAR races being held all over the year and in various parts of the United States, there are just times that these events are simply not enough to satisfy your craving for dizzyingly fast cars and the thrill of watching a high-pressured competition. During these times, only one other thing besides an actual NASCAR race can make you feel complete: Arizona NASCAR memorabilia.

How to Obtain Arizona NASCAR Memorabilia

With Arizona NASCAR memorabilia, you’ve got something concrete on your hands that can instantly make you travel back time and relive those glorious moments of unforgettable NASCAR races.

This type of memorabilia can be acquired by various ways. Firstly, you can purchase them outright from well-established stores and shops that sell sports memorabilia of all sorts. You can also purchase them from sports enthusiasts like yourself. These are often sold or auctioned off in various websites, forums, and online shops as well. And lastly, Arizona NASCAR memorabilia can be purchased by plain old working: finding a way to reach your favorite NASCAR driver and having him sign whatever it is you want to serve as your memorabilia.

If you wish to make your own autographed memorabilia, you can do this either by watching any of the races live and hope that you get close enough to your favorite NASCAR star or you can just tune in to the news and find out which places are considered hot by the NASCAR elites.

Types of Arizona NASCAR Memorabilia

NASCAR memorabilia can be any object possessing an authentic signature of any famous NASCAR driver. The term is also used to refer to products that bear the NASCAR logo such as checkbook covers, key chains, collectible coins, pins, die cast products, plaques, figurines and bobbleheads, refrigerator magnets, trading cards, street signs, wall graphics, stuffed toys, wallets, tankards, and money clips.

Tips for Purchasing Autographed Arizona NASCAR Memorabilia Online

Avoid purchasing anything that you can’t see firsthand. If this however proves unavoidable, always ask for a warranty wherein you can return the object for a 100% refund as long as no damage has been made to the object.

Always check the condition of the memorabilia thoroughly before paying anything.

As this is an autographed Arizona NASCAR memorabilia, make sure that it carries along a certificate of authenticity to provide evidence that the signature is indeed real and original.

Don’t buy the first thing you see. Browse around slowly and patiently to ensure that you’re paying the lowest price possible for the memorabilia. Bargain as much as you can.

Always check the feedback provided by other clients or buyers for a particular seller. This will give you an idea of what to expect from the seller, but remember to take every word with a grain of salt as well lest you become too affected.

Don’t reveal anything beyond what you know you need to like your shipping details. If you are paying by credit card, make sure that the payment handler is secure and accredited.

Double check the details of your transaction prior to the date of payment and delivery. Know when the expected date for you to receive your memorabilia is and what concessions the seller is prepared to make for delayed shipping.

Arizona NASCAR memorabilia always make a wonderful collection, but if you’re not interested in starting one, they can always serve an excellent gift for any soccer enthusiast you know!



Jill

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