Mikey 25th at Loudon by Kellyanne Lynch
14 September 2008
The front end of the #55 Napa Auto Parts Camry was significantly better today than it had been so far this weekend. After ranking low in practice sessions at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Michael Waltrip finished 25th and one lap down in the Sprint Cup's Sylvania 300. David Reutimann picked up his third top fifteen in a row, finishing 15th in his #44 UPS machine. Rookie Michael McDowell came home 27th in the #00 Champion Morgage Camry, after getting into a few run-ins.
"You copy, Bobby?" spotter Ty Norris came on the radio at 2:11pm ET. "Hey, Bobby, do you copy?"
A crew member said Bobby didn't have his radio yet.
Ty said 55-13's radio was sticking.
"Yeah, we got him."
"Hello? 1, 2," Mikey came over the radio.
"Yeah, I got you, Michael," Ty replied.
"Yeah, sounds clear."
"Cool."
The call to start engeins came at 2:13pm.
"Michael, the oil temp gauge isn't broken. The oil's cold," someone said.
"Okay," Mikey replied.
"What's the word from NASCAR there, Ty?" crew chief Bobby Kennedy asked.
"They haven't really said anything yet," Ty replied.
"10-4, 10-4."
"Hey, Bobby, looks like on that truck race yesterday, they could get two and run good. So if we want to get two at the 35 lapper, I don't care," Mikey commented.
"10-4, that sounds good."
Ty warned Mikey about several safety truck on the apron as Mikey rolled onto the track. "They've asked you to stay single file for a little bit there."
"M-Dub, just so you know, Sprint build a show car to start the race, and they've got chrome wheels on them. Just to show you that chrome wheels can make anything good."
"Yeah. I know they make our cars look pretty. Napa likes them. That's the main thing to me. Aarons loves them, so we did something smart anyway."
"They're talking about three laps around. What do you think?"
"Hell yeah, it's ready now."
"Okay."
"Hey, you can probably go ahead ant turn your brake blowers off so we can put some heat in those things right away, and I'll tell you when to turn them back on," Bobby said.
"Okay. I've been warming them up now," Mikey replied. "They should be fine. They got on my nerves last week."
Ty said the cars were doubling up and pit road speed would be coming.
Bobby said pit road speed would be at 5200 RPMs and one to two green lights on the dash.
"All right, Ty, get him onto pit road, and I'll take him at the white stripe just before the white stripe," Bobby said. He said he'd get him in and out, "and then he's yours."
Ty said Mikey was the second box past the garage he'd been going in and out of all weekend. Bobby told Mikey which teams were around them on pit road.
Bobby asked Ron to ask the trucks to go slower so the cars could go faster. "Thank you."
"All right, bud, one to go when you get around here. One to go," Ty said. "It's the 41 again."
"All right, pull your belts tight. Make sure you have some heat in them. Coming to the green," Bobby also said the competition yellow was on lap 35.
Ty asked about pit road speed, if it sounded right.
"Yeah, it's perfect," Mikey replied.
"All right, bud, coming back to the green. Competition yellow lap 35."
Because the field was set according to owners points due to rain, Mikey would start 32nd. David was 27th, McDowell 35th.
Kyle Busch led the field to the green flag at 2:30pm.
"Pace car's off," Ty announced. "Ready? Green green green. Everybody's straight, one inside. Still inside. Got one all the way down on the apron. Still inside. Clear all clear. Half back. Clear. Inside, inside, inside. Slow one on the bottom, slow one on the bottom."
On lap 3, Carl Edwards looked for the lead from Busch's #18.
"Clear half back. Clear one back. All clear. Low. Inside."
"No forward bite at all," Mikey reported on lap 4. He was 34th. He lost another spot one lap later, when Edwards took the lead.
"Half back to the 96, half back. Coming low. Inside, inside," Ty said of Joey Logano. "Clear high."
David was 25th, and McDowell was 41st. Mikey was 34th. David guined a spot the next time around the track.
"Got another one looking low," Ty continued. "Clear. Nice... half back to the 7."
"31 flat," Bobby read off the lap time. Edwards was about twenty car lengths in the lead.
"Still there," Ty warned. "Clear. Nice corner. Nice job. Half back to the 96 up top."
Mikey had passed Logano on lap 9 for 33rd.
"Still clear, still clear. Still out there. Still there. Still out there on your bumper. Still there. Going to be there off the corner. Still there, still there. Still outside. Still there. Still out there on the bumper, still there, man. In this corner."
Mikey had passed Elliott Sadler on lap 11 but was passed back one lap later.
"96 is trying to peak outside with him," Ty observed. "Still barely there, still there. Clear up, clear up. Great job, great job."
On lap 13, David Gilliland got wiggled back when he got out of the groove by David.
"30.90, 30.90. Good lap," Bobby praised.
"That 38 real slow up against the wall. Come through low, come through low. Clear, clear."
Bobby said something about forward bite.
"Gotten a lot better," Mikey replied.
"10-4."
On lap 15, Mikey was 31st, and David was 23rd. McDowell was last.
"Still out there," Ty noted. "Still there, still there, still there. Clear now, clear. Nice job, bud!"
Mikey was 30th on lap 16, having passed Dave Blaney.
"95, 95," Bobby read off lap times.
Mikey passed Regan Smith for 29th on lap 19.
"Still clear half back to the 38," Ty said. "Still there, still there. Clear up, clear up. Nice job. Clear four back."
Kyle Busch was struggling a great deal and slowing on the track. He was trying to hold out until the caution.
"90, 30.90.
"85."
On lap 24, Mikey got around Paul Menard for 28th.
"Still out there. Still there, still there," Ty warned. "Still out there on your bumper. Still there. Still there, still there, still out there, still there. Clear up. All right, let's leave him now. Ten more til the competition yellow. One back, clear one back."
"95, 95," Bobby read off times. "85, 85. There you go! Real good, real good.
"85, 85. Leader a 70."
By lap 30, McDowell had passed Patrick Carpentier for 42nd.
"75, 75. Same as the leader."
"Just starting to skate the right front a little," Mikey commented.
"10-4, 10-4," Bobby replied. He said he'd adjust it. "80, 80. That's good lap times, bud. Top five times.
"85, 85. Leader 90."
"The 18's either broken or has a loose sway bar, so just be careful up there," Ty warned Mikey on lap 34. David had passed Kyle Busch's #18 for 22nd.
"31 flat, 31 flat. Leader 15.
"31 flat, 31 flat."
The competition caution came out on lap 36. Mikey was 28th, David 22nd, and McDowell 40th.
"All right, those were real good lap times right there. Very competitive. I'll just make a small adjustment on that right front."
"You think we should just get two?" Mikey asked.
"I don't know. We can outrun a bunch of them the way we are," Bobby said. He told the crew he may call them off in the middle, but they were going to take two. He said there would be trouble on the left.
"Come on around here and catch up. Come on," Ty directed. He warned Mikey that cars were checking up.
"Second gear, 52. It will be one to two greens. Around the 29."
"On pit road. 1, 9, 29."
"4, 3, 2. Right here, right here. Wheels straight, wheel straight. Tires, two tires, two tires, two tires. Got to help him out, go to help him out. Go go go go. Clear behind the 29, clear behind the 29," Bobby directed. "I changed him to two, because we would have been blocked in our pits and screwing with the 4."
Mikey said he'd seen that and didn't know what he could do.
Bobby said there wasn't anything he could do, that the car had slid in the box, probably because it was wet, and had gone long. He was referring to Kevin Harvick's #29. He said Mikey would be initially a sitting duck but would be all right. "Lap times were real good. You could run in the top eight with those lap times. What's your temps?"
"Twelve o'clock, one o'clock."
"10-4, 10-4."
"It's going to be one to go when you get here, one to go," Ty said. He warned Mikey about lapped cars coming up.
Kyle Busch spent a long time on pit road, and Joey Logano was sent back to pit road for spitting a part or tool when exitting.
"Here comes the 10," Ty said, i.e. the lucky dog. "The 12 will be coming to the back. Too fast exitting. Coming to the green."
Edwards led the lap 41 restart. Mikey was 21st, David was 24th, and McDowellw as 39th. Busch was lapped. Ty cleared Mikey one back, then half back.
"Outside, outside, outside. 19 outside," Ty warned. "Still out there."
On lap 42, Elliott Sadler's #19 had passed. Mikey was 22nd.
"That 17's outside. Clear up right there. Clear up if you want it. Inside, inside. 24 inside. Inside, inside. Still there."
Mikey and David were 21st and 22nd on lap 44.
"Still there, still there. Run on your bumper, run on your bumper. Still there. Still out there. Still out there. 66 took two. He's struggling on the top side in front of you. One looking inside, he's there. Clear low, clear low. Still there on your bumper. Still there."
On lap 48, Mikey and David passed Matt Kenseth. They were 20th and 21st.
"Still out there, still there. You're going to get him. Clear, clear. Clear one back to the 44. There you go, bud. Clear two back, clear two back."
One lap later, David fell to 23rd.
"Clear four back. Keep it up, buddy!" Ty encouraged.
"80, 80," Bobby read off lap times.
Mikey was 19th on lap 50. McDowell was 37th as David remained 23rd.
"Clear, all clear," Ty said as Mikey passed Scott Riggs. David had dropped a spot but was 23rd again when he passed Riggs too. "Clear half back to the 17. He's going to close it back up."
"95, 95.
"95, 95."
On lap 54, David passed Bobby Labonte for 22nd.
"Still clear half back, still clear half back. 17's been working the middle to the top," Ty said.
"31 flat, 31 flat," Bobby said.
David was 21st on lap 56.
"Clear four back, bud. Keep that rhythm rolling," Ty encouraged.
"90, 30.90. There you go."
"Clear up if you need it," Ty said. "Still there on your bumper, still there."
On lap 60, Mikey got around Brian Vickers for 18th.
"Still there, still there. Keep digging. Clear up, clear up, clear up. Good job, bud. Driving away."
"90, 30.90.
"89, 89. Leader 85.
"85, 85. Leader 80.
"95, 95."
On lap 65, David picked up 20th by getting around Kenseth. Jimmie Johnson took the lead two laps later.
"31 flat, 31 flat."
"Clear right back. Keep rolling, buddy. Nice job!" Ty praised.
"31.10, 31.10.
"95, 95.
"31 flat, 31 flat.
"95, 95. Leader 85."
Meanwhile, Tony Stewart was closing on the lead when he had started 8th.
"15, 15.
"31 flat, 31 flat.
"05, 05."
On lap 74, David passed Vickers for 19th.
"05."
Mikey got around Kevin Harvick for 17th on lap 77.
"Clear, all clear," Ty said. "Great job, bud. Bobby, he moved his line up to the middle there. See how his lap times are."
"He run a 95 the lap before. Sorry I haven't been giving lap times. I was talking the 29 car.
"15, 31.15.
"31 flat, 31 flat.
"31.05, 05.
"Lap times still real good. Only a couple cars faster than you. 31 flat, 31 flat. Second fastest car that lap.
"31 flat."
The second caution was on lap 84. Kyle Busch had spun. Jamie McMurray and David Ragan spun and got damage in the smoke.
"05, 05."
"Spin off Turn 2. Come up. There you go," Ty directed.
"10-4, it will be four..." Bobby said, as if responding to something said that didn't air.
"Okay, they're about stopped over there, Michael," Ty warned.
"What were you looking at, by the way?" Mikey asked.
"What do you mean, when he wrecked?"
"Yeah, it was just a long time. No big deal. Nevermind."
"All right, you've got that 29 behind you, so you get that free pit getting in," Ty said.
Bobby said they'd take four tires. Cars made stops under yellow. He led Mikey around the #1 and #9 to the pit box. "Go go go. All the way, all the way out."
"Golly! Son of a gun!" Mikey exclaimed after the stop.
"Uh, sorry about that."
"I know! We're all sorry. Golly! It just, it just, it's just half-assed! I mean, if you can't get pumped up for that pit..." Mikey faded out. "That wasn't a rhetorical question either."
Bobby said the tires that came off the car looked excellent. Meanwhile, Stewart went back to pit road after he sustained fender rub during his stop.
"Will be one to go when you get around here, one to go," Ty noted. "All right, you're on one to go. Watch the lappers coming under you. Here they come."
Johnson led the restart on lap 89. Mikey was 24th, David 18th, and McDowell 22nd.
"All right, man, be ready. Pace car's coming off. Ready? Green green green. Everybody's straight. Looking inside, looking inside. Looking inside."
Dale Earnhardt Jr passed his teammate and led lap 90. Mikey was 27th.
"Inside, 12 inside," Ty continued. "Clear there two back. Inside, inside. 01 looking inside. Clear, clear half back, clear half back. Diving low, inside, inside. Slow one on the bottom of the straightaway. Clear, clear half back. Still clear, still clear. Low if you need it. All clear. Coming inside, 15. Clear, clear."
On lap 96, Mikey passed Ryan Newman's #12 for 26th. Newman passed again one lap later. McDowell was 25th, and David was 18th.
"He's back on your bumper," Ty warned. "Clear, clear one back. Inside, inside. Inside, inside. The 15. All right, clear two, one and a half back. Clear one back."
"31.15, 15. Get your rhythm, get your rhythm," Bobby encouraged. "31.10, 31.10.
"05, 05."
"Clear four back to the 20. He's right there on the inside, 20's inside."
On lap 103, Tony Stewart dropped Mikey to 28th. McDowell was 26th, and David was 18th.
"20's half back and closing. He's got a big run. It's going to be clear behind him. Clear four back, three back to the 01."
Mikey passed McDowell on lap 104 for 27th. McDowell was 28th.
"Still down there. Clear."
David picked up 17th on lap 107 from Brian Vickers.
"Clear one back. Car up top is one lap down," Ty noted. "Still outside. Still on your bumper. Still there. Trying to come back. Still there. Clear up. Clear clear."
"05, 05."
"Just looser this time," Mikey commented.
"Okay, 10-4, 10-4," Bobby responded. "10-4. Stay with it. I'll make a small adjustment in the right rear. 05, 05.
"35, 35."
"Still out there. Clear there. Got the 01 on the bottom. He's got a run by himself. There you go. Back to clear."
"35, 35.
"35.
"15, 15. Leader now.
"25."
"Clear one back to the 6. He's been coming up there pretty good," Ty warned. "Still half back. Inside. Half back, back to clear. Inside, inside, inside. Back to clear."
"20, 20."
"On your bumper, inside. 6 is on your bumper, inside. There you go. All clear. One back to the 6. Leader's the 88 at the line... now.
"Still there," Ty continued. "Clear, clear the 22. Still half back to the 6, one back to the 6."
"The right front's built up," Mikey commented.
"20. 10-4 on the right front," Bobby replied.
Ty warned of a car to Mikey's door. "All by himself."
David Ragan passed on lap 128, moving Mikey back to 28th.
"Six cars between you and the leader. Let's keep it rolling, man."
"39, 39. Leader 15."
Meanwhile, David was reporting that the car starts off loose, then it's a little tight on exit.
"33, 33. Leader 17. The next car in front of you is the fastest car on track."
"Be 30 is harder to run than those flats were."
"05," Bobby replied. He told Mikey to hang with it and that he'd get Mikey snugged up and get some air.
"I'd think about getting two, or we're going to get lapped."
"10-4."
"Don't tighten me up any. I've gone way too tight."
"Okay, 10-4, 10-4. Your last three or four laps have been a whole lot better.
"15, 15. Leader a flat.
"05, 05.
"15, 15. Leader 85. Stay after it. That leader's about two-tenths faster than the whole field," Bobby said. "Your times are good compared to the rest of them. Stay after it.
"15, 15.
"15. Leader 05.
"20. Leader 05."
"Still clear two back to him, buddy. Keep working the 12," Ty encouraged. "Half back, to your bumper, to your bumper, to your door, inside. Clear."
On lap 146, Mikey passed Newman for 26th. Newman got back around him one lap later.
"Still clear one back."
"15, 15."
"Still clear one back."
"15."
"Half back, right there on your bumper. Half back. Going to have a run, right to your bumper. Looking low."
"15."
Mikey lost the lead lap on lap 151.
"Have a run, looking inside, inside to your door," Ty said.
One lap later, Mikey got back around Earnhardt Jr and unlapped himself. He was 26th.
"It's going to be clear right there, clear one back."
Mikey was 24th on lap 153 as green flag pit stops started. He was marked as lapped again.
"Be on your toes, guys. These guys are starting to pit. We're about ten away," Bobby told the spotter.
"10-4. Inside, inside to your door. Still there inside. Inside, pretty hot. Big run off the corner, one back to your bumper."
Mikey was still side-by-side with Earnhardt Jr.
"There inside, inside. Clear one back."
Mikey was 22nd on lap 137, on the lead lap.
"Clear two back to the 88. He's got the 38 inside him with two tires. 38's down there, inside, inside. Clear two back, clear two back."
"If the leader's pitting this time, we're going to be giving up a lot of track," Mikey said.
"Come back. Somebody walking on it."
Bobby decided to pit that time.
"Inside, the 6. Inside. 88's also coming, 88's also coming. Keep coming. 52 at the line."
Mikey pit on lap 159 with Earnhardt Jr.
"5200 at the line, 52."
"Right here right here right here. Wheels straight, wheels straight," Bobby guided Mikey to his box. "Go go go go go. All the way, all the way out."
"5200, 5200."
Vickers led lap 160.
"200 to the line," Ty said. "Let's roll hard here. Half back to the 10. Keep rolling, keep rolling. Going to be coming inside. Clear behind him."
Stewart was sent back to pit road for speeding.
"Three back to the 11," Ty warned. "Inside."
Biffle led lap 161. Mikey was 27th and lapped. David was 16th, and McDowell was 31st.
"Still there," Ty continued. "Looking back low, inside the 48. Clear clear one back. 48 and 11 side by side."
"70. That's your fastest lap of the race," Bobby noted.
"Half back to the 11. Keep rolling. Inside, inside to your door. still there, still at your door. He's got the 48 down there with him." The #11 was 3rd. "That 12 there is still the lucky dog in front of us. What's up with that 41 there."
Bobby said Reed Sorenson's #41 was still on the lead lap but hadn't pitted yet. "16's the leader there, Ty. 16."
"Yup."
"30.90, 30.90.
"55, 55. There you go. Great lap, great lap!"
On lap 167, Earnhardt Jr was back in the lead.
"85."
"Too tight," Mikey reported.
"85. 10-4 on the tight. 85.
"75.
"70, 70."
"One back to the 2," Ty warned. Kurt Busch's #2 was 5th.
"75."
"A run inside. Clear, half back. Inside, to your bumper. Clear one back to the 31."
"85."
"Inside, to your door. Clear half a straightaway behind that 31 if you need it."
On lap 176, Biffle reclaimed the lead.
"15, 15."
"I'm plowing," Mikey said on lap 177.
"10-4, 10-4. 31 flat, 31 flat."
On lap 178, David picked up 16th from Bobby Labonte.
"95, 95. Leader a flat.
"31.10, 31.10.
"05, 05.
"05." Bobby noted the 99 behind him was running 90's. "90, 90. Good lap!
"15."
"Still there, still there. Clear up, clear up."
On lap 185, Mikey was up to 26th.
"Keep it up, bud. We're going to catch that 12. Keep it rolling," Ty encouraged. "Still outside. Clear all clear, all clear.
"There you go. All clear."
"15, 31.15, same as the leader."
"12 just lost a cyllander. Keep rolling. We'll get him here," Ty said.
"25, 25."
On lap 192, Mikey passed Newman for 25th.
"25, 25.
"15."
"Still two back to that 99. Gonna take a look. Inside. He's on your bumper. Be clear half back to the 1. Clear up."
"39, 39."
David picked up 15th on lap 198.
"35. Stay after it." Bobby said they'd be pitting soon, and he'd take out air in the right front. "30, 31.30."
"One back to the 6."
"The right front is building up too much," Mikey commented.
"Yeah, 10-4, 10-4. I'll get you a little bit more on the enxt stop."
"Clear there," Ty noted.
"29, 29."
By lap 202, David was 16th again.
"19, 19. Good lap."
"Still there. Clear, clear. Keep it rolling, bud. Keep it rolling. We're doing okay in the big picture. 98 to go."
David was 15th again on lap 206.
"30, 30.
"29, 29."
"Inside. Inside, the 20. Going to be clear behind him if you need it. Clear four back to the 88."
"20 is for position. That is for position," Bobby noted.
On lap 209, Mikey was 26th after Stewart passed.
"Still going to be clear," Ty said.
"35, 35."
"Clear two back."
"15, 15.
"30, 30."
The third caution was on lap 215. Brian Vickers received the free pass.
"Caution's out, caution's out. We've got debris somewhere," Ty said.
"When I left the pit, I was neutral for five laps, and then I started getting tight," Mikey commented. "Now it's just plowing."
Bobby said he'd take some out of the right front.
Leaders pit under yellow.
"It will be second time by, second time by," Bobby said. "It will be four tires. We'll make an adjustment on your right front there. What's your temps there, bud?"
"11:30, 1 o'clock," Mikey replied.
Ty encouraged the crew to be fast so they could get the free pass. Bobby told the crew to move back the sign a little, because the #01 would be coming around them. "Four tires. 5200, two green, one to two green. Stop me short. 3, 2. Right here. Stop me short."
Mikey was in his pit box.
"Go go go go go. 52. All the way, all the way. Clear up."
"52, 52," Ty added. "All right, man."
"The 8, the 20, the 66 are on our lap.
"We should have got two, man. I don't know why we didn't," Mikey said. "It was an appropriate time to get two, try to hold it, and try to hold out for a caution. But shit, I can't think of everything. Maybe I'm wrong. Would have liked to have a gamble at it though. Is that what the 20 did, I guess? He's about four cars ahead of me now."
"Did not see what he did," Ty replied.
Jimmie Johnson was now in the lead.
"No, he got four. 20 got four."
"We should have got two, I think, but hell, it's too late now," Mikey said. "We can't go back in and take two off."
"10-4."
"How we doing on fuel? Are we good to go to the end if we need to, Bobby?"
"Negative. We're short five laps."
Mikey asked if he should pit again.
Bobby told him he was figuring that out right now, stretching the numbers.
"I think we're going to cost us a lot."
"Well that's green flag laps, so maybe we can get a caution here and stay out."
Mikey said someone should be black flagged that Ty said had passed the #21.
Racing resumed on lap 221 with Johnson leading, David 15th, Mikey one lap down in 27th, and McDowell was 28th.
Ty warned Mikey that cars were checking up. "Inside and outside. Still in the middle. Clear low, clear low. Both sides, both sides. 24's outside. Got a crash behind you, crash behind you. No caution yet. Caution's out, caution's out. Caution's out."
"That would have been a good time to be up front, but it didn't work."
"The car is right in the middle of the race track. You're going to have to come up by the wall."
"Cautions will make it so we can make it to the end there," Bobby noted.
The fourth caution was on lap 222 after Joe Nemechek had crashed hard into the wall. Stewart got the free pass. Denny Hamlin pit from second place.
Bobby told Mikey to save his fuel if he could, in case it went to a green/white/checkered.
"All right, buddy, one to go, one to go," Ty said. Hamlin came back in to top off on fuel again. He warned Mikey that "McDiddle" kept restarting three-wide.
"He'd better be away, if he hits me," Mikey said.
"Yeah, 10-4."
The restart was on lap 230.
"Look inside, inside, in the middle. Inside, the 90. Clear low if you need it. Still outside. Clear up behind the 1 if you want it. Clear back one if you want it. Outside now, outside. Inside, inside, both sides. Clear up behind the 24. Crash behind you, crash behind you. Caution's out."
"It's so loose right now, I can't hang onto it. I don't know what's going on," Mikey said. "I just wish we had gotten two. It drove good on two. It's really loose on two. It sucks. It's just real loose. I don't know what to do."
Ty said Turn 4 was blocked, so Mikey would be pitting in Turn 2. Bobby told Mikey to turn off the blower under caution.
The red flag came out on lap 232 at 4:44pm. McDowell had gone three-wide like Mikey said. Cars bottled, cars went four and five wide behind them, including with Mikey. Bowyer got knocked out of shape beside the #55. Sam Hornish Jr pushed up into Chad McCumbee. McCumbee spun. Kenseth, Gilliland, Vickers, and Mears were collected. Kyle Busch had a cone lodged in his nose.
"Am I ahead of the 7 or what?" Mikey asked.
"He's on our lap, he's on our lap. Ron, check with the official."
"For position. Are we ahead of him or what? I don't know where we were when the caution came out."
Bobby said he was checking.
David was 13th, Mikey was either 26th or 27th (depending on where Robby Gordon was), and McDowell was 25th.
"We're going to need to come get four," Mikey said. "There are about six cars behind us."
Mikey said to stick with the same air and move the track bar. Bobby said they would need to come.
Bobby noted they actually only had four cars behind them. "Four tires, same air, track bar down."
"I don't understand that 00, man. He just cuts down on the apron and goes on the restart. If I did that, I'd be so tight in ten laps."
At 4:55pm, the field was back to yellow.
"I never did hear on the 7," Mikey said.
"Did they give you an answer for the 7?" Bobby asked a crew member. He said they'd put on four when pit road opened.
Ty said it was still closed.
"All right, they're saying the 7 is ahead of you, 7 is ahead of you," Bobby said.
Ty said they were opening pit road for a quickie yellow.
"Of all those cars behind me, only four of them are behind me?" Mikey asked.
"Six. Six of them are on your lap. I was right the first time," Bobby replied.
"Five in front, six behind," Ty added. "Pit road's open. 5200, 5200."
"Three, two, one. Right here," Bobby said. "All right, go go go. All the way, all the way out. 5200. All the way."
"All right, one to go when you get around here, one to go. 75 laps in the race when you get restarted," Ty stated.
"See if you can go to the 7 car, to the 7 car."
"22's a couple laps down, right?" Ty asked.
"Which one?"
"22's a couple laps down, right?"
"Right, right."
"There you go. All right, bud. Pace car's off. Ready? Green green green. Checking up. Keep rolling. Clear either side, clear either side. Outside. Inside, the 9."
Mikey was 29th on the lap 236 restart. Johnson led, David was 11th, and McDowell was 22nd.
"Still outside, the 42. Three-wide, three-wide. Clear, whatever you need. 7 still outside. 20 going up there with him. Outside the 20. Still outside, the 8's outside. Still outside, the 6 there is also. Clear behind the 6. Got one down there. On your bumper. Clear low if you need to get around him, all clear. Still on your bumper, still inside. Both sides, both sides, both sides. Clear up, clear low. Still there."
On lap 242, Mikey picked up 28th from Robby Gordon.
"Still out there," Ty warned. "Still out there. He's going to have a big run, looking inside. Going to be three-wide. Clear low behind the 6. Clear low. Both sides. Clear high, clear high."
"77's next position, 77," Bobby noted.
"Clear either side. Sitll out there, still on your bumper. Still there. Going to be there off the corner. Clear, clear."
Mikey got around Hornish Jr's #77 for 27th on lap 244. McDowell was 21st, one lap down, which David was 11th.
"The 01 the next spot up. 30.95, 30.95," Bobby said. "05, 05.
"29, 29. You're catching the 01 about two-tenths of a lap."
"Still out there on your bumper. Still there," Ty warned. "Still outside, still there, still there. Still on your bumper, still there, still there off the corner, still there. Still on your bumper. Clear, clear. 01 looks like he's trying to come in. He's waving up here. 12's slow on the bottom, on the bottom. Still there, still there. All right, this guy was waving for some reason. Just concentrate. We'll get him."
"The 01 and 19 are for position," Bobby noted.
On lap 256, Mikey got around Smith's #01 for 26th.
"Still there. Clear, clear," Ty said.
One lap later, Mikey passed Sadler's #19 for 25th.
"Still outside on your bumper. Still there, still there, still there. Still outside to your bumper. Clear, all clear. Still clear half back. Good job, brother, good job! Drive away." Ty said the 70 and 84 in front of a group were the ones they were chasing.
"09, 31.09." Bobby said Mikey was catching the #70 quickly. "09."
"Clear, clear, clear."
"10, 31.10."
The sixth caution was with 34 laps to go when AJ Allmendinger's #84 crashed hard. McDowell had turned him into the wall when Allmendinger moved up into his line. Kasey Kahne barely made it through.
"Keep coming. Come down low, come down low, come down low," Ty said.
"Now what to do?" Mikey asked. "It's good, it's good." Mikey said he'd do whatever.
Ty told Mikey to come down on the bottom around the wreck. Mikey was now 24th.
"I might be ahead of the 70," Mikey said.
"I think we are. Pull up beside him so they know we're disputing it."
"Probably not a good idea to do that right now."
"All right, just when you get a chance."
Ty said pit road was open to lead lap cars. "They're going to be busy at the tower, but you might want to check down there, Bobby."
"Yeah, we are," Bobby replied.
"All right, we're staying out, right?"
"10-4. We're ready, in case something stupid happens."
"There you go, there you go," Ty said. "41, 00, 55 are our lap.
"All right, bud, one to go, one to go. If it clears up up top, do you want it, or do you want me to be quiet?"
"No, you can say whatever you want to," Mikey said. "I need all the information I can get. It's different here. It's hard to figure out who's where."
"All right, it will be 29 to go when you take the green here."
Johnson led the restart. Mikey was 22nd, McDowell 21st, and David 12th.
"Still outside, bunched up outside. Still outside, 2 car outside. Still outside, the 1. Clear up to the 1 if you want it, clear up by the 15. Inside, inside. Clear half back to the 24." Ty talked about cars side by side behind him.
Bowyer was dropping back fast after getting out of the groove.
"Inside, inside. Inside. You see them checking up in front of you. Keep rolling, keep rolling. The 2's touched the wall. Inside. All right, bud, lead lap cars are on the bottom here. Inside."
Mikey had been 24th but was 25th on lap 276. David was 11th, and McDowell was 21st.
"Inside, the 20. Clear there, clear one back to the 6. Still inside. Clear half back, 44 half back. Still there, still there."
On lap 279, Mikey was 24th. David was 12th, and McDowell was 23rd.
"6 is down there going three-wide with you and the 01. Still there," Ty warned. "Back to two-wide. The 01's still down there. 6 behind you."
The seventh caution was on lap 281. Ragan's #6 got loose in front of Mikey, and Mikey helped him around.
"Inside, the 6. Got a run. Clear half back to the 01. Stay up, keep coming. No caution yet, no caution yet. Caution's out."
"Yeah, I don't know what to do. How many's behind us?" Mikey said.
"01, 19, and 7."
"Four tires and a little bit of air I think is the call."
"We've got air up right now."
Ty said it was a quickie yellow.
"I hit that guy, but I don't think I did any damage. I don't see any trouble with my temperatures."
"Come on, come on. 5200."
"4, 3, 2, 1. Right here, right here. Wheels straight, put on the brakes. Wheels straight," Bobby directed. "Go go."
"One to go when you get here, one to go when you get here. Just follow that 15, the 00 and the 15 are on our lap. I'm sorry, the 15 got the lucky dog, so he got to escape that 00. The 00 is going to go up to that 7. In front of that 96. There you go."
"I guess you can pass to the left now. It used to always be that you couldn't," Mikey said.
"Pace car's off. Be ready. Ready? Green green green. Everybody's rolling. Back to the bottom, you're clear low. Come down low, come down low, you're clear, you're clear. No caution yet. Caution's out, caution's out."
The restart was with 17 to go, and Robby Gordon immediately spun out Patrick Carpentier. David was 12th, McDowell was 25th, and Mikey was 26th.
"Who'd that get?" Mikey asked.
"Uh, just the 10," Ty replied. "Looks like it was going to get three or four of them, but they all did a good job.
"All right, one to go when you come around." He said lucky dog, the #70, would be coming around to his outside. "All right, here comes the 70. All right, you got some room now."
Lap 288 saw the restart. Johnson led, David was 11th, McDowell was 25th, and Mikey was 26th. The #00 was black flagged for passing before the restart. Biffle took the lead.
"All right, buddy, here we go. Coming to the green. Ready? Ready? Green green green. Stacking up on the bottom. You're good, you're good. Still clear low, clear low. Two-wide, three-wide. Still three-wide. Still outside, still there. The 00 is about to have a penalty here. Clear up. Still clear up if you need it. Looking outside. You're clear up. Outside, outside. Still outside, on your bumper. Still there."
Mikey was 24th on lap 290. David was 13th, and McDowell was 27th.
"One back to the 11, one back to the 11. Two back to the 11. Corner clear, two back. Outside, outside, outside. On your bumper, still there. 19 is on your lap, he's two back on the bottom. Clear there. Clear three back."
"01 next position, 01," Bobby said.
"Half back to the 29. Outside. Still on your bumper, still there, still there. Still out there."
Sadler passed on lap 295. Mikey was now 25th. David was 14th.
"Still there. 19's out there also. Still there. Still outside. 9 up there with him, 9's up there with him. Clear, clear half back to the 9. Outside, outside. Outside. Clear up, clear up, clear up if you need it. Half back to the 07."
"Five to go, five to go."
"Inside. Inside, outside. Outside. 43 up there with him, and the 44. Outside, the 44. Still out there. Clear up there, clear up there. Half back to the 24. 66 is outside, outside. Not a position."
"Position at the line now, behind you. Two to go."
"Clear two back to the 28, not a position."
Greg Biffle won. Jeff Gordon passed David on the last lap, dropping the #44 to 15th. Mikey was 25th, and McDowell was 27th.
"Coming to the checkered, coming to the checkered right here," Ty said.
"What did it do there at the end on those tires?" Bobby asked.
"Loose," Mikey replied.
"10-4. Sorry about what we left on there on pit road today. We had a decent car. Sorry about that."
"Yeah, wasn't a good day on pit road, but I guess that's just the way it goes when you're learning."
"I guess I helped the front end some from where we were two days, I hope."
"Yeah, all the way up until we made our first pit stop, y'all did a hell of a job."
"10-4."
Next week, NASCAR goes to Dover. Coverage of the Sprint Cup's Camping World RV 400 begins Sunday at 1:00pm ET on ABC. The Nationwide Series' Camping World RV Sales 200 airs the day before, starting at 3:00pm ET on ESPN2.