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Pep Boys Auto 500

Congratulations Kasey Kahne, winner of the Pep Boys Auto 500!!!

Where: Atlanta Motor Speedway
Race length: 325 laps / 500 miles
Last year's winner: Carl Edwards

SCHEDULE
Qualifying: Sat, Sep 5 @ 4:40pm (SPEED, 4:30pm)
Race: Sun, Sep 6 @ 7:30pm (ESPN, 7:00pm; PRN, 6:30pm)

TRACK FACTS
Length: 1.54-mile quad oval
Banking: 24 degrees in turns; 5 degrees on straights
Qualifying record: Geoffrey Bodine, 197.478 mph, Nov15, 1997
Race record: Dale Earnhardt, 163.633 mph, Nov 12, 1995

* all times are EDT

TIG Bits

What can a $10 investment do for you?

Not only will it give you the opportunity to help provide bullet-and-knife-resistant vests for K9 officers throughout the United States, but also the chance to win a potential cash prize valued at twenty-five percent (25%) of the total monies raised!

With the help of your $10 donation today, www.vest4k9.com, in collaboration with NASCAR drivers Tony Stewart and Greg Biffle, will raise funds to vest 192 K9 officers working in 32 states. And 25 percent of all cash raised will be raffled off to one lucky donor. So, the more money donated, the more you could win!

In July of 2008, the Tony Stewart Foundation vested all 30 Indiana State Police dogs, plus 10 additional dogs in 3 other states. Stewart’s philanthropic efforts called much attention toward Vest ‘N P.D.P.’s president and founder Susie Jean’s one-person shop and suggested a need for a national effort to raise funds to help these K9 officers. So far, 350 dogs in 38 states have been provided a custom-fit vest to protect them in the line of duty.

These custom-made bullet-and-knife-resistant vests are made from the same Kevlar material used in human officer’s vests and are personally embroidered for each K9 officer. Vests range from $1,200 to $1,500 per vest, which, according to Susie Jean, is “A small price to pay for our police dogs that protect their human partner as well as our communities.” Click on, “Buy Tickets” to Invest ‘n Vests! Each $10 donation enters you to win the cash prize. Don’t delay! Raffle ends June 14th!

To learn more about Vest ‘N P.D.P. visit Susie Jean’s Web site at www.vestnpdp.com.

To catch up with the philanthropic work of Tony & Greg, visit www.tonystewartfoundation.org and www.gregbifflefoundation.com. Don’t miss the Invest ‘n Vests information page through the Tony Stewart Foundation’s Programs page, including individual K9 and officer profiles, photo gallery and more!

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DIS Putting Dads On The Waters Of Lake Lloyd For Inaugural Father’s Day fishing tournament

Daytona International Speedway, NASCAR’s most prestigious track, is offering a unique way to spend Father’s Day – fishing on the 29-acre Lake Lloyd located inside “The World Center of Racing” in the inaugural Father’s Day fishing tournament.

Between 7 a.m. – 10 a.m. on Sunday, June 21, fathers and their sons and daughters of all generations will have the opportunity to fish the waters of Lake Lloyd and win prizes for the biggest catch.

Admission for the inaugural Father’s Day fishing tournament at DIS is $34 for adults and $29 for children age 6-12 and includes a Daytona 500 Experience Motorsports attraction ticket. Children 5 and under are free.

Tickets can be purchased at www.DAYTONA500EXPERIENCE.com or by visiting Daytona 500 Experience Guest Services.

Tickets also are available for the Independence Day holiday classic – the Coke Zero 400 Powered By Coca-Cola on Saturday, July 4. For tickets, call 1-800-PITSHOP or visit www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com

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McGrew named interim crew chief of No. 88 Sprint Cup team

Hendrick Motorsports today named Lance McGrew as interim crew chief of the No. 88 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team of driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. beginning with the June 7 event at Pocono Raceway. Team manager Brian Whitesell will lead the team this weekend at Dover, Del.

Whitesell and Rex Stump, Hendrick Motorsports' lead chassis engineer, have been assigned to support McGrew on a full-time basis. Whitesell, who won two of seven races as Jeff Gordon's interim crew chief in 1999, will join McGrew and team engineer Tom Stewart on the No. 88 pit box to assist with race strategy.

Tony Eury Jr. will move from the crew chief position into a key role with Hendrick Motorsports' research and development group. Eury posted one victory, one pole position, 19 top-10 finishes and 11 top-fives in 48 races with the No. 88 team.

McGrew, 41, earned the 2003 NASCAR Nationwide Series championship with driver Brian Vickers. He won the October 2006 Sprint Cup race with Vickers at Talladega, Ala., and most recently led Cup rookie Brad Keselowski to a seventh-place finish May 9 at Darlington, S.C.

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Roush Fenway Collects Over 7,000 Pounds of Food for Local Area Food Banks

With the generous help of their loyal fans, Roush Fenway Racing collected 7,267 pounds of food to help local Cabarrus County food banks during “Roush Fenway Fan Days presented by Citi” held last week. The team’s original goal of 1,000 pounds was far surpassed leaving company officials proud of their efforts.

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Ryan Newman on Racing at Dover

"Dover is one of my favorite if not my favorite racetrack," noted Newman, a 13-time tour winner. "It's a lot of fun to drive there, I really like the banking. Once you get a race car right there, it usually stays right all day. It's fast and I like the challenge of dropping off into the corners and the way it pushes you down in the seat when you're coming off the corners. Just a lot fun -- I enjoy qualifying and racing at Dover."

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Schwan’s Home Service Partners with Jeff Gordon Foundation to Fight Pediatric Cancer

Schwan’s Home Service, Inc. announced today a partnership with four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, Jeff Gordon to raise money to support the fight against pediatric cancer. Under the partnership, $1 from each sale of specially made ice cream tins featuring Gordon and his No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet will go to The Jeff Gordon Foundation to assist in the Foundation’s fight against pediatric cancer and support for the Jeff Gordon Children’s Hospital.

Each tin will be filled with one of Gordon’s all time favorite flavors, "Wide Open Mint Chip Swirl," a combination of mint ice cream, chocolate fudge and chocolaty chips. One in every 1,000 tins has been personally autographed, and customers who purchase the tins will receive a special Jeff Gordon Fan Club membership discount. The commemorative Jeff Gordon ice cream tin can be pre-ordered online at www.schwans.com/jeffgordon

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Bobby Labonte on racing at Dover International Speedway

"We’re starting our summer tour this weekend in Dover and I’m looking forward to climbing into the No. 96 Ask.com Ford Fusion there for the first time. It’s like baby steps. We’re getting there as a team and I feel like we’re slowly starting to round the corner. We were lucky enough to finish 12th on Monday with the rainout and I think we’ll have a good race this weekend at Dover. Dover is one of those tracks that is really good to the fans and it always makes for good racing. I like racing in Dover; it’s different and I think the Ask.com guys, Ben (Leslie) and myself are looking forward to racing there this weekend."

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Kurt Busch on Racing in the Indianapolis 500

Kurt made headlines last weekend when he mentioned to the media that he had an interest in getting a shot at racing in the Indianapolis 500. "Yes, I was sincere when I answered that question there in the media center last week," Kurt offered. "The way that it came out and was written made it sound like I wanted to just jump in there and do it. I’m smart enough to know that I’d have to really be committed to testing and getting to know so much more about that brand of racing and race car. The way our schedule goes with so many races and all the demands on our time, it’d be extremely hard to do it the way it needs to be done. I was just responding in general to the question I was asked. Yes, I’d love to race in the Indy 500. But, I’d also like the opportunity to compete in the Rolex 24 (endurance race) at Daytona again. And while I’m at it, I’d also like a shot at racing Pro Stocks in NHRA Racing. The bottom line, though, is that we’re dedicated to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and getting our Miller Lite Dodge into the Chase this season. That’s our full focus."

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Follow AJ Allmendinger on Twitter

AJ Allmendinger isn’t one to fall behind the times. The 27-year-old Californian designs his own apparel including his popular black AJ hats. Now he is branching out to embrace the digital age as the Richard Petty Motorsports driver has begun twittering for his fan club members.

Allmendinger has been posting his tweets since last weekend offering his take on practice, qualifying, the weather or anything else that happens to run through his mind at the time. To join Allmendinger’s fan club and receive his tweets visit www.ajallmendinger.com

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Balance Key To Success At Dover For Team DuPont

The right balance is needed at Dover International Speedway, and Jeff Gordon seems to have found it at the one-mile facility. The trick for the four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion is finding it again in this Sunday’s Autism Speaks 400. "Getting the car balanced right to maximize grip is pretty tricky here," said Gordon. "It’s a one-mile track that is high-banked, fast and action-packed. And you’re in the corners a lot here. "That makes it unique, which also makes it a lot of fun to race." While the racing groove of the track has not changed, there have been alterations to pit road since the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series last visited here. "I’m looking forward to seeing the changes that were made to pit road on Friday," said Gordon. "If I understand correctly, they have lengthened pit road and also widened it. It was always a tight pit road, so pit stall selection was crucial. "It’ll be interesting to see how much more room there is for the teams now."

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Reed Sorenson on Dover International Speedway

"Dover is a tough track. There’s a reason they call it the Monster Mile. Its got speed, banking and when things go wrong there isn’t a whole lot of room to avoid anything. I think the key to doing well there begins on Friday. Dover is a place where you need to make sure you get a good qualifying spot so you can pick a good pit stall. Once you do that, I think the key is to stay out front, make sure you avoid trouble in the pits and then get lucky you don't get into a problem on the track."

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Follow Elliott Sadler on Twitter

Elliott Sadler has officially become a member of the Twitter community. Follow Elliott’s updates by visiting www.twitter.com/Elliott_Sadler

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Elliott Sadler on the Autism Speaks 400 at Dover

"This has become such a big weekend for the No. 19 team over the last few years. Everyone on my team knows how important autism awareness is to me and my family, ever since my niece Halie Dru was diagnosed with autism at age 2, that we always try to do as much as we can to help the folks at Dover promote this race and the cause. I think it’s amazing that a racetrack has taken the name to its race and is now using it to help promote awareness for a good cause. I think that’s awesome! I wish more tracks would get behind programs like this. I know that racetracks use their race naming rights as a source of revenue to help the racetrack make money, but it seems like the folks at Dover have found a way to get the best of both worlds by choosing a cause and finding corporate partners that support the cause to serve as presenting sponsors."

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Jamie McMurray on racing at Dover International Speedway

"Dover is a very unique race track and I feel that it’s the fastest one-mile track we visit on the circuit. Entry into the corner is also very different from any other track we go to because at Dover you kind of fall down into the corners. The straightaways are pretty narrow, but you have the ability to run any line there, which helps when it comes to advancing through the field. Dover is a track that I’ve had a lot of success at over the last few years and one of the most important things about Dover is being able to qualify well. Our Crown Royal team had a pretty good qualifying run at Bristol, which is a fairly similar track, so I expect that we’ll be able to get comparable results this weekend."

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Reutimann’s Team Claims Tissot Pit Crew Award in Charlotte

David Reutimann’s No. 00 team won the Tissot Pit Crew Precision Award in Monday’s rain-delayed Coca-Cola 600 Sprint Cup race in Charlotte, N.C. It was a double win for the Michael Waltrip Racing team with Reutimann scoring his first career Cup victory. Reutimann’s crew became the 10th different winner of the Tissot competition in the 12 Cup races contested in 2009.

Reutimann’s pit crew consists of: Cory Quick (front-tire changer), Josh Houghton (front-tire carrier), Shannon Myers (rear-tire changer), Dwayne Moore (rear-tire carrier), Brian Chase (jackman), Danny Harrington (gasman) and Keith Koppenhal (catch can). The pit crew coach is Greg Miller and the strength coach is Kevin Sharpe.

The No. 00 team will receive $5,000 for the pit road win. The team with the most Tissot Pit Road Precision Award victories at the completion of the 36-race schedule will earn a $100,000 bonus plus Tissot watches for the crew and driver.

Jeff Gordon’s No. 24 crew leads in the Tissot standings after 12 races with three victories. There are nine teams tied with one win.

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Mark Martin on Why He Has Been So Successful at Dover

"I honestly don't know. There are just some tracks that the first time a driver is on them, it just instantly suits the driver's racing style. That's how Dover has always been for me. The first time I went to Dover, back in 1982, I remember Darrell (Waltrip) got the pole. He went something like 144 miles per hour. And everyone was like, 'Whoa!' We all thought that was so fast back then. Dover was just an impressive racetrack right from the first time I was there. It's really, really cool."

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Paul Menard on racing at Dover International Speedway

"Dover is a fun race track and one that I like racing at. It’s probably one of the fastest one-mile race tracks I’ve ever been on before. The way you drive off into the corners is so unique to any other track – you carry so much speed as you enter the center of the corner, it’s very important to have your car set up really well there. Along with a good handling race car is track position. It can be very difficult to pass at Dover, so making sure that you start up front can have a huge difference on your day."

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Michigan International Speedway Makes Fans the VIPs

Often, to get a garage tour, pace car ride or wave the green flag for a NASCAR event you had to be a VIP. Now, Michigan International Speedway is making the fans the VIPs by focusing on appreciating their loyal guests.

Under the speedway’s fan appreciation program, there will be two rounds of give-aways — Round 1 in advance of the race weekend on June 8; and Round 2 on race weekend, June 12-14.

In Round 1, all current registered account holders as of midnight June 5 will be entered into a series of drawings for several experiential prizes that range from waving the green flag during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series qualifying to attending the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver’s meeting on Sunday, June 14, before the LifeLock 400.

The first series of prizes will be awarded to fans prior to the June race weekend, with a drawing to be held on June 8. All ticket holders through June 5 are automatically entered to win.

Non-ticketholders may mail in a 3 x 5 card with their name, phone number, e-mail address and mailing address to be entered into the drawing. Cards may be sent to Michigan International Speedway, 12626 US 12, Brooklyn, MI 48230, attn: Fan Appreciation Program.

In Round 2, a second wave of drawings will be held for prizes that will be awarded during the June race weekend.

Everyone, even ticket-holders, who want to be considered in the second wave of drawings must register at the speedway’s Mobile Display Trailer in the New Holland Fan Display at MIS from June 12-14.

Prize winners will be posted at the MTO display beginning at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday, June 14, 2009, and announcements will also be made through the Fan Plaza PA System.

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Atlanta Motor Speedway Sells Out of Tent Camping, Opens New Campgrounds to Accommodate Demand

Having sold out of reserved tent camping, Atlanta Motor Speedway has opened two new campgrounds to accommodate fans attending AMS’ first NASCAR Sprint Cup night race on Labor Day weekend, Sept. 5 and 6.

The Legends Reserved Tent Campground and Elliott Reserved Campground have been created by Atlanta Motor Speedway to meet surging camping demand for Atlanta’s first full weekend of night racing.

Atlanta Motor Speedway’s Elliott Reserved Campground is located directly behind the Elliott Grandstand overlooking Turn 3 and will include two additional rows of camping for handicap patrons. The Elliott Reserved Campground also features a large number of sites adjacent to handicap camping for additional fans. Each RV spot is approximately 45 feet long by 25 feet and costs just $150.

Shaded by a tree grove, the Legends Reserved Tent Campground is located between Atlanta Motor Speedway’s main entrance and the Legends Campground. With more than 230 campsites with dimensions of 20 feet by 30 feet for $125, the Legends Reserved Tent Campground will be one of the most desired camping locations on the Atlanta Motor Speedway property.

For more information on camping or tickets to Atlanta Motor Speedway first Sprint Cup night race on Labor Day weekend, contact the Atlanta Motor Speedway ticket office at 1-877-9-AMS-TIX (877-926-7849), 770-946-4211 or visit www.atlantamotorspeedway.com.

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Brad Keselowski on Coming to Dover After His Top-10 Finish at Darlington

"I enjoyed my first Cup race at Darlington a few weeks ago, and we were fortunate to come away with a solid top-10 finish. I feel like it showed the win at Talladega (Ala.) wasn't just a one-time thing. It definitely gives me a lot of confidence coming into Dover, even though I've never raced there in the Sprint Cup Series. The more seat time I get in the Cup car, the more comfortable I get with it and the differences it has from my Nationwide Series car. Even though Dover is both physically and mentally challenging, it is a track I've been able to do pretty well at. I'm hopeful that this weekend will be no different and that we can get another solid finish for the folks at GoDaddy.com."

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