Bleacher Report - Articles by C Wilson

Kyle Busch, David Ragan, and Bobby Labonte Are All Twitter-Pated

C Wilson — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 22:07:59 -0400

Bobby Labonte is celebrating his 18th anniversary, is a fan of the television show “24,” and just got a new F-150.

No, I didn’t have an exclusive interview with him—I follow him on Twitter.

I was skeptical about joining Twitter. I mean, who cares what I’m doing? I think my life is great, but it’s definitely not going to be made into a movie any time soon.

I signed up because all the cool kids are doing it, it’s free, and I thought it might be fun to see what other people tweet (twit?).

Then I saw Kara Martin’s article about NASCAR Twitter, with a list of Twitter-ers (Twats?). Now this is fun.

From today (Mar. 31):

Bobby_Labonte: “Been married to Donna for 18 yrs Sunday. Went out for dinner last night and then watched 24. Feels like we just got married. I got a good 1.”

Bobby_Labonte: “Got me a new truck today. King Ranch F-150. Big boy truck!”

Those comments about his wife are really sweet, I have to say. He also gave a link to a picture of his truck.

In the back of my mind, more skepticism: Is it really him, or someone pretending to be him? I don’t know, but I believe it is Bobby. I have no scientific evidence to back that up, it’s just a gut feeling from following so far. Try it and judge for yourself.

I really do believe that Max Papis is the real deal, mainly because he occasionally Twitters in Italian.

From today (Mar. 31):

maxpapis: “Amici twitter in italia dove posso trovare un cd di canzoni per bambini in italiano per download ?looking for an italian kids cd to download”

maxpapis: “Taking marco to school listening to along came the spider .....”

maxpapis: “Just finished my massage and adjusment @asf”

It almost seems stalker-ish to read these snapshots of his day and enjoy them just because he’s a celebrity, but he’s posting them to be read, after all.

Papis also posted some comments before and after the Martinsville Camping World Series truck race on Monday (in which he ran), and comments during the Martinsville Sprint Cup race on Sunday (in which he did not run). I especially liked his comment about Sunday’s winner, which I would encourage you to go and read.

The other two I’ve seen Twitter quite a bit are Kyle Busch and David Ragan. Now, I know these aren’t actually the drivers (since they were twittering during the Cup race on Sunday), but I have no doubt it’s someone closely connected to them.

The Twitter account associated with David Ragan (UPSRacing) is linked up with his page on UPS.com (which contains his video blog, which is also fun).

Both UPSRacing and RidinWithRowdy sent some really interesting twitters during the Martinsville Cup race on Sunday:

RidinWithRowdy: “Kyle is not happy with his car. Wanted to apologize to the 82 for collecting him with the spin”

RidinWithRowdy: “Kyle wants Steve to fix that tight late center. Prob also pulling the spring rubber back out of the left rear if he comes”

UPSRacing: “David radios: ‘I think there is debris in turn one and could be why everybody is cutting these tires.’"

UPSRacing: “Caution. Headed to pits. Going to loosen up the No. 6 this stop to be free through the middle.”

I thought it was fun to supplement the Fox Sports race commentators with the Twitters. I read them aloud to my husband so he could enjoy them, too. I suppose I could set him up on Twitter so he could follow on his own phone, but then I wouldn’t get to pretend to be DW!

An interesting thing happened on Monday (Mar. 30). UPSRacing asked if they could follow MY twitters! At first, my natural paranoid privacy thought that was a little creepy. But then, I realized that if I allowed it, I might be able to interact with UPSRacing.

Me: “@upsracing Is David having any autograph opportunities in Texas this week?”

UPSRacing: “@Cynthia_Wilson: Yep. He will sign at the merchandise trailer on Sunday. Will send out a confirmation of time later this week”

Cool! Of course, it would be even better if I was actually going to Texas this week…

(Please do not correct the spelling and punctuation in the quotes. They were copied and pasted directly from Twitter.com.)

Commentator Darrell Waltrip to Be Replaced by Digger the Gopher (Humor)

C Wilson — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 10:33:05 -0500

Fox Broadcasting Company is the latest company to take drastic cost-cutting measures in this uncertain economy. In a surprise announcement during the Daytona 500, Fox revealed that it is replacing long-time commentator and three time NASCAR Cup Champion Darrell Waltrip with Digger the Gopher.

Digger the Gopher made his television debut during the 2008 Daytona 500. He was initially fearful of the cars passing just over his hole, but has since gained confidence. During the Daytona 500 Digger was shown actually placing cameras for Fox.

Digger does not have the racing experience of the legendary Waltrip, but apparently Fox believes that his unique perspective on the races will be a positive addition to the Fox NASCAR broadcasts.

“We’ll be saving so much money that we have to try it,” said a high-ranking Fox employee, who asked to remain anonymous. “Travel costs, food, not to mention his salary. Digger finds his own food, doesn’t need to travel, and he agreed to half of Darrell’s pay. And we think he might actually raise ratings, to boot!”

When asked about his new virtual co-host, Chris Myers said, “Well, Digger is much better-looking than Darrell.” He quickly followed that statement with, “I kid because I care. I wish Darrell the best of luck.”

Waltrip is rumored to be in negotiations with power-house team owner Rick Hendrick to run a full season in 2010 for one last attempt at a fourth championship. Neither party would comment on this rumor.

NASCAR President Mike Helton praised the move to a virtual commentator and added, “Digger the Gopher could be a huge benefit to NASCAR’s bottom line as well. If we could cancel a couple of races and run ‘Digger and Friends’ cartoons instead, we could save the teams millions of dollars.”

Helton is encouraging fans to vote for their least favorite race as NASCAR considers this decision.

(I actually love watching Darrell Waltrip and hope he continues on Fox for many years to come!)

Sadler Proves No Hard Feelings Toward Allmendinger

C Wilson — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 09:39:56 -0500

Elliott Sadler may not be the fastest driver in the garage, but he demonstrated on Thursday why he is a fan favorite.

Elliott's Richard Petty Motorsports teammate, A.J. Allmendinger, had a bit of a shock when he arrived at Daytona for Speedweeks. Because of all the owner point swapping, the new driver of the No. 44 Dodge suddenly found himself outside the top 35, and not guanteed a starting spot in the Daytona 500.

"...that was one of the big reasons Valvoline signed on (as sponsor). They thought they were in the 500," said Allmendinger. "Coming down here to learn they weren't was tough."

So Allmendinger promised Valvoline that he would race his way in to the Daytona 500. A promise he might not have been able to fulfill if not for his teammates—Sadler and Reed Sorenson.

"I think early in the race Elliott had a chance to be up front. It looked like he had a chance to go win the race. I watched him fall back to come back to me," said Allmendinger.

"I dropped back and helped him," Sadler added. "... trying to do everything I could as a good teammate to get him in the Daytona 500. That's what good teammates do."

Allmendinger went on to make the Daytona 500 based on his finish in the second of the Gatorade Dual races.

This could be a nice, feel-good story about new teammates in a newly reoganized organization learning to work together. What makes this a great story that is catching media attention is the preseason history between Sadler and Allmendinger.

Just six short weeks ago, before the merger which brought in a fourth car, Gillette Evernham Motorsports had decided to replace Sadler with Allmendinger, despite the fact that Sadler's contract doesn't expire until 2010. Sadler threatened legal action against both GEM and Allmendinger. Sadler kept his seat in the No. 19, and Allmendinger was added to drive the No. 44 once the merger with Petty Enterprises was complete.

I wonder what it must be like to go to work every day for an organization who tried to get rid of you.

Elliott Sadler insists there are no hard feelings with Allmendinger. "We sat down when we first got down here—our buses are parked beside each other—and said, 'Look, we need to work together. We need to help each other. Let bygones be bygones.'"

"You've got to be a man about these things," Sadler continued. "Kasey Kahne is the flagship driver of Richard Petty Motorsports. But I'm the most experienced, the oldest...been here the longest. If I don't lead by example and set good ways for the drivers to go by, who will? A lot of times you have to be the bigger man—race the way that's not only good for you but your company—and hopefully everyone will benefit in the future. That's what I did [Thursday]."

Allmendinger chimes in, "Like I've said from day one, I've never had a problem with Elliott. I think he's a great race car driver. He's a great teammate. Obviously, there was a lot of stuff that happened over the last two months. Honestly, it was probably out of both of our hands. Really, neither of us could do anything about it. We happened to be the two guys put in the middle."

Elliott Sadler has something to prove this year; does he deserve to stay in the No. 19? Only time will tell if his finishes will improve from the last two years. However, if Richard Petty Motorsports needs a driver who will be a team player, they need to look no further.

*All quotes taken from NASCAR.com*