Auto Club 500 - 2/22/09
Michael Waltrip Racing came from the rear of the field to finish in the top 15. Michael Waltrip's #55 Napa Auto Parts Camry finished 15th in the Auto Club 500, this evening's Sprint Cup race at California Speedway. His driver David Reutimann in the #00 Aaron's Dream Machine finished just in front of him in 14th. Meanwhile, Matt Kenseth won the second race in a row this season.
Due to issues with Toyota engines, Mikey, David, and pole winner Brian Vickers all had to drop to the rear of the field at the start of the race with engine changes.
"Got a copy?" crew chief Bootie Barker came on the #55 radio at 6:05pm ET. "How 'bout you, Ty? You got me?"
Hugh Laurie gave the call to start engines at 6:10pm.
"It feels like a giant ____," Bootie said. He asked Dwayne to get him something. After a long pause, he asked,"Michael, you copy me yet?"
"Yup," Mikey replied.
"Good. You sound nice."
"Thank you."
"Ty, you ready yet?"
"I'm ready, bud," Ty replied.
"Ty, I can see all the way to the grass, so however you want to take it."
Ty responded and told Mikey where his pit box was.
"Okay," Mikey replied as he yawned.
"10-4. And I'll definitely be talking with you." Bootie said he'd give lap times, unless Mikey were in a pack.
"Okay."
"B blower on. That's it."
"Okay. Sure is a good crowd, I think. I think the state of California is passing out IOUs to income checks."
Bootie commented on the track being good to Kyle "Rowdy" Busch. Yesterday, he won the truck race and then the Nationwide race, becoming the first driver to win both in the same day at the same track.
"That's awesome. I knew it would be a good crowd when me and Tracy got stuck in traffic."
"All right, bud, that should be pit road speed right there," Ty told his driver. "What are you shooting for, Bootie?"
"Well, what we're shooting for is 4850," replied the crew chief.
"All right, 4850. Does that sound okay, buddy?"
Mikey said it did. "I was passing people on pit road last night, because of our calculations, so this is sort of a ceremonial."
Bootie said they'd go with 4850 and would make an adjustment if need be.
"All right, plenty of people coming back there. The 83, the 88, the double not," Ty informed his driver of cars dropping to the rear of the field for the start. "They say you're supposed to pull up to the 34, the 34 on the outside."
"3, 2, 1. Hello," Bootie said as the #55 drove by the pit road box.
"Look how much further Joe Nemechek gets to start in front of me, because of all the cars on the one side having a hard time," Mikey commented. "Early mover."
"All right, buddy, be ready. You're going to be coming back around to the green," Ty prepared Mikey.
Jamie McMurray, who was slated to start 3rd, led the field to the green flag at 6:21pm. Mikey was 41st, and David was 38th.
"All right, bud, be ready. Pace car's off," Ty said. "Ready? Green green. Everybody's rolling. Still down there inside."
Jimmie Johnson led the first lap. Mikey was 39th, and David 36th.
"Still down there inside,' Ty warned. "Still down there on your corner, the 88. Clear there if you want it, clear there if you want it. Half back. Still clear half back. Looking inside, inside. Looking inside, the 43. Still there inside. Still there. Still on your door, by himself."
Mikey was 41st on lap 4, and David was 33rd.
"Clear low, clear low. Back to your corner, outside. Clear there, two back. Clear there, all clear. Still out there, still there. Clear up, clear."
"41.93," Bootie read off lap times.
The first caution was on lap 5. Johnson was still in the lead. Mikey was 41st.
"Caution's out. Caution's out for rain. Caution's out for rain," Ty said.
"I don't have very good grip either end. Um..." Mikey faded out. "Tight and loose both."
"10-4," Bootie replied.
"I mean, it's not terrible, but I guess mainly I feel like I'm a little loose, a little bit loose on entry, but it isn't bad, but a little bit tight in the centre, and then after I'm tight in the centre, then that gets me headed on the wrong direction on the way off. So I wouldn't want to be freer on entry, but I certainly want more grip in the middle."
"10-4. I'm talking to Paul. We're talking about an air pressure adjustment here. Paul, half right rear. 10-4, Michael, we made slight air pressure adjustments for the race." Bootie said they'd go back on some of that. He noted most people would probably stay on track.
"If they come, Bootie, do you still want to come?" Ty asked.
Bootie sighed. "Yeah. If everyone comes, we'll get two."
"All right, coordinate with that 5 car behind us there. Make sure, if he takes two, he's not coming out at the same time we do like last night."
"Well, I think that boy driving that car last night was retarded, but I bet Martin's a lot smarter than that," Mikey commented.
Bootie called for four tires. "Hit your sign, put on the brake. Let's get two. We're going to switch it to two, guys."
"4850, pit road."
"I've got you. 5, 4, 3," Bootie guided Mikey around an obstacle. The #55 pit, and Mikey came back out. Half the field had pit under this stop.
"4850 to the cone, or to the yellow line," Ty reminded his driver.
"That messed me up on the entry there, so I'm sorry. That didn't cost us anything, because there was nobody behind us."
"That's okay. That 34 basically stopped in the middle of pit road, so you did fine."
"Okay, there are ten cars behind us." Ty wondered if anybody would come back in for fuel and wanted someone to scan their frequencies.
Bootie said they'd stay regardless to hold the position.
"Watch the 39 coming," Ty warned. "He's going to get back in line behind the 19.".
"He lost... he lost his wind plate, Ty, his left side. I don't know what they're going to do about that," Bootie said.
Ryan Newman's #39 pit for a repair to that wind plate.
Ty reported that someone thought they'd lost the track to the rain. "What do you think, Michael?"
"I don't think they've lost the track at all. I just think that, um, the, the, the..." Mikey faded out. After a long pause, he said, "Kind of like a year ago."
"Hey, Bootie, word up here is the 31, 21, and the 88 are going to come in here to top off when it's one to go," Ty told the crew chief. "I'm just letting you know."
"No, that's good to know," Bootie replied. "Get a few more, and we might pit before they do. Keep listening. If we keep running laps, it will definitely be worth it. That's seven laps right there under caution. Art, just be ready, okay?"
"It's raining in turn 2. It ain't sprinkling," Mikey observed.
Bootie said he'd just seen the Napa ad during the commercial break on FOX. "I wanted to let you know, truly great," he praised. "The whole animation with your face, the lines, it was good work, man."
"I was trying to impress the chicks."
"I'm sure you picked up a few with that. That was good for sure."
"We're just trying to show America that we know our parts. How's Capps doing? I heard he's in the finals."
"He won. Tracy says he won."
"Two for two!" Mikey exclaimed, his voice cracking. "He's a fast learner. I taught him about parts. It only took him a year."
Bootie told Ty he was going to bring Mikey in to top off.
"Yeah, 10-4, I'll let you know when it's one to go," Ty replied.
"It's raining less than it has been. In one lap, it changes that much," Mikey said. "They're saying two to go."
"Okay, come on this time then, this time," Bootie said. "4850 and second gear there. Yeah, the 8 and 34 got us on that lap, but we're going to come on down."
"Uh, it's raining. It's raining again. It won't hurt us, we can come back in again. But it's raining again in Turn 2."
Bootie called Mikey in.
"Hey, uh, think about that tearoff." Ty asked Mikey if he needed a tearoff.
"Yeah, don't tear my tearoff off."
"Got you. 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2. Hit your sign, hit your sign."
"Don't slide 'em," Mikey reminded himself.
"Go go go. Go go go. All the way. Good job," said Bootie.
Ty reminded, "4850 to the cone."
"Not going to be one to go, by the way," Mikey said.
"Yeah, I know. Brett just told them it was getting heavy again." Ty was referring to the pace car driver, Brett Bodine.
"It's raining harder now than when they started the caution."
"All right, we're going to give you one to go again."
"It's... better," Mikey commented a few minutes later. "Are y'all there?"
"10-4."
"Yeah, it's
"I think, since we gambled, since we've got ourselves back here, we ought to come back in again one to go and hope it works again," Mikey said. "I believe, since we're going to be in the back, it's going to be a gamble. We really put ourselves in a position where we could get hurt by all of this, but that's the way it goes. We got to take chances. Columbus did, and he found America. He wasn't looking for it. But he's dead now, so it doesn't matter."
"10-4. Columbus probably liked low air pressure," Bootie replied.
"Be about one to go."
"They haven't said it yet, but be ready," Ty said.
Bootie told Mikey to come in anyway. "4850, second gear. Put on your brake. Hit your sign. Come on, come on. 4850."
"They are giving one to go. They are giving one to go."
"9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2," Bootie counted Mikey into his box. "Don't spin your tires. There you go. All the way. 4850."
"Well, they had six laps, but that's fifteen caution laps. So we'll see how that works out. 4850. We're going to be coming around to the green."
Johnson led the restart on lap 23. Mikey was last, and David was 25th.
"Well, the thing of it is, we started last about a half hour ago with the same tires and the same gas," Mikey observed.
"Pace car's off. Ready. Green green green. Outside only, outside only," Ty said quickly. "Still there, still outside. Clear up, clear."
"41.82."
Mikey was 42nd on lap 24. He had passed Jeremey Mayfield. David was 23rd.
"Still there," Ty warned. "Clear the 82, clear. One back."
Lap 26 saw Mikey pass Scott Speed for 41st.
"Could still be a little more grippier," Mikey said.
"10-4," Boote replied.
"Still down there on the bottom. You're going to see that 87. Clear clear. Clear there, all clear."
"87."
Mikey hopped up to 38th on lap 28. He had gotten around Joe Nemechek, Dave Blaney, and Joey Logano.
"68."
"There you go. Still there, still there. Clear the 88. Still outside. Clear up, clear."
Mikey was 36th on lap 29. He had passed Dale Earnhardt Jr and John Andretti. David was 22nd.
"Nice corner. Clear two back."
"96."
"Still there on your corner. Clear, all clear. Still down there. Still right in the middle. Go down if you need it. Clear down now behing the 7. Clear up, clear up. 8's still there on your quarter. Three wide. Two wide. 43's going to run on the bottom now. Clear. Nice job, man!"
"68."
By lap 32, Mikey was 32nd. He had passed Reed Sorenson, Jeff Burton, Aric Almirola, and Casey Mears.
"Outside. Clear up, clear up. One back."
"34, 22, 34."
"Clear three back. Use whatever you need.
Mikey got around Robby Gordon the next time around the track for 31st. Meanwhile, David was 25th.
"41."
"88's going to be inside," Ty warned. "There you go. Still there. Still there. Clear clear."
"46."
Passing Paul Menard put Mikey in 30th on lap 36.
"Still there. Still inside. Clear all clear."
"41."
Mikey was up to 29th on lap 37. He had claimed the spot from David Gilliland. David was 26th.
"28."
"Still on your corner. Clear clear."
Nemechek's #87 was pushed to the garage on lap 38. His was the first car off the track and off the lead lap.
"Back to clear. One back."
Mikey picked up 28th from Martin Truex Jr on lap 39.
"15."
"Still outside on your corner. Still there. Going to be there. Clear up behind him. Still outside. Clear up, clear up."
"46."
"Clear half back to the 19."
On lap 42, Mikey was 26th. He had passed Elliott Sadler and Scott Riggs.
"Clear three back."
The second caution was for rain on lap 43.
"Still down there on your quarter. Caution's out, caution's out for weather."
"Okay, what do you need, Michael?" Bootie asked.
"Uh, just overall grip is my guess, I mean, I'm running high and low and it's pushing it's loose. It feels balanced, you know. If we can just figure out how to get it a little bit more grip without hurting the other, that would probably be the best," Mikey said.
Bootie suggested an adjustment, and Mikey agreed. He said they'd drop both rights a half and would go with four tires and fuel.
"All right, pit road will be open this time."
"Okay, 96 and 55. 96 and 55. He's trying to get around you," Bootie told his driver. "The 8 will be coming around us, but he's well off of us, so hit your sign. 4850 and second gear."
"All right, we're on pit road."
"9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2. Okay, hit the sign, hit the sign. Hit the brake. Come on," Bootie guided. "It will be one lane, one lane, one lane. 00 coming, 00 coming, 00 coming."
"This thing doesn't take off very well," Mikey said. "Yeah, if we can have a lower first gear and we don't, we're not thinking real well. Bonneville or flats."
Bootie laughed and said he didn't think it was so much of an issue. "You were right though." He mentioned they'd worked on this.
"I know I"m right. I'm just mad that we don't have the right gear with us, so I had to run this gear."
"No no no. You have the right gear. We just need to run more."
"Okay. Nevermind. We'll talk about it on Monday."
Bootie told Mikey they'd dropped both rights. "We have plenty we could go down. Our right front is a limitted factor." He said they could still go down some.
"How many green flag laps was that?"
"19 green flag laps."
Reed Sorenson served a penalty for speeding on and off pit road.
Bootie told Mikey he was in 27th right now. "So keep cooking."
"One to go this time, one to go this time. No lappers," Ty said.
"10-4, fuel mileage looks good. Ron, you're 24th. Have at it," Bootie said.
Kurt Busch led the lap 47 restart. Mikey was 24th, and David was 21st.
"All right, here we go. Coming to the green," Ty said. "Right side only. Pace car's off. Green green green. Everybody's rolling. Clear half back. Clear half back to the 39. Looking inside, inside."
Johnson nosed out Busch to lead the first lap back to green.
"Inside, inside. 39's inside. 96 is trying to look down there with the 39. Behind the 39 if you need it. Clear down, clear down. Two back. Still outside, on your quarter. Clear the 44. Nice job. Clear one back. Checking up in front. Keep rolling though. They've got everything rolling. Clear two back."
"36.
"82."
Lap 51 saw David in 19th. Mikey was still 24th.
"It will be clear one back to the 96. Working the bottom, the 96. Looking low."
"15."
"Clear, whatever you need."
"12."
"Got one looking low. You're clear low if you need it. Inside now, 96. You're clear, clear, clear. 96 back inside. Clear half back."
On lap 54, David was 18th. Mikey was 24th.
"Nice run. That's our corner right there. Clear clear."
"18."
Mikey was 23rd on lap 55, having passed Travis Kvapil.
"Still there. Clear clear."
"It's just been a little loose. Maybe these airs are better, but I just need an adjustment," Mikey reported.
"10-4 on that. 15. 10-4," Bootie replied.
"Probably the right front's good. The left front might have made me a little looser."
"Okay. 10-4. 15. We might put the right front air back or do an adjustment, like you said. We're looking."
Mikey was 22nd on lap 57; he had gotten around Ryan Newman. David was 17th.
"15."
David was 16th one lap later.
"18. Michael, is it all the way through, or is it a specific part?" Bootie asked.
"It's a lttle loose everywhere, a little worse off when I put my foot off."
"All right. We're definitely going to do the air back. Track bar should be fine as well. 37.
"40."
"Looking low, the 39," Ty warned. "Clear two back."
"37."
David was 15th on lap 62 as Mikey remained 22nd.
"40."
Two laps later, David was 14th.
"06. That was a fast lap."
Mikey said something about a car beside him.
"65."
"There you go. Still on your quarter. Clear one back. All the way back down to the bottom, the 47. Clear half back. The 96 down there, inside. Clear. Still down there. Still inside. Still down there on your corner. Still there. Clear clear."
On lap 67, Mikey was 21st. He had passed Marcos Ambrose.
"Still on your corner. Clear the 12. Clear."
Mikey was 20th on lap 68. David was 15th.
"45."
"Still going to be clear behind him. Two back. Down there, 33. Still there. Clear now, clear."
"65."
Lap 70 saw Mikey move into 19th.
"Still clear three back. Nice job, bud."
"Maybe another half out of that right front." He said, just this lap, the left front was sliding.
Meanwhile, Scott Riggs went to the garage. Dave Blaney was already there.
Bootie called half out of right front, half in right rear, and half down on the track bar. "37.
"46."
"Still clear four back to the 88."
"75."
"Inside, the 88," Ty warned. "Clear. Three back."
"65. Good job. We're going to pit in 15 laps," Bootie told his driver. "65."
"Going inside, the 88. On your corner. Clear half back."
"53."
David was 14th on lap 77. Mikey was still 19th.
"Clear two back. Nice corner."
Jeff Gordon led lap 78 and was still running side by side with teammate Johnson.
"58."
"Inside, to your door. Still down there this time. Still there. Clear ten, fifteen back."
Earnhardt Jr passed on lap 80. Mikey was now 20th.
"75.
"74."
"Inside, bud. Leader's at the line... now."
"71.
"84."
"Starting to see people peal off, M-Dub. I'll let you know if this 88's going to be peeling off," Ty informed his driver.
"Ty, stay near that 5 car if you can. If he's around you, huddle up to him if you can."
"He's in the other tower."
Bootie laughed. He told Mikey he'd keep him updated.
Meanwhile, cars were making stops. Mikey was 18th on lap 85.
"Okay, guys, we're probably going to pit in three laps, three laps. 12."
"88's coming this time, 88's coming this time."
Gordon gave up the lead on lap 87 to pit. Mikey was 14th, and David was 24th as he pit. Greg Biffle was creditted with the lead.
"All right, still down there. Clear two back. Fresh tires."
Biffle pit at the end of the lap. Mikey was 5th.
"77's coming, fresh tires. Inside. Be clear behind him. This time, right, Bootie?"
"This time, this time. 4850."
"Clear there, clear."
Carl Edwards also led before he pit. Meanwhile, Ty prepared Mikey to make his stop.
"4850 at the yellow line, yellow line."
"Gotcha. Nice and smooth. 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2. Put on the brake this time. Put on the brake this time. Nice job!" Bootie guided. "All the way all the way all the way all the way. Nice job, nice job. 4850."
"4850 to the yellow line," Ty added. "All the way to the yellow line. All right, go hard, go hard. Stay below the yellow line until Turn 2. Clear by ten back right now. Clear by six back. Still clear by five back. We're fine right there."
Jeff Gordon was back in the lead on lap 89, after stops had cycled. Mikey was 20th, and David was 16th.
"Nice job, Michael," Boote praised.
"Leader's at the line now. You're in good shape," Ty said. "Still there. Still there on your corner. Still there. Still there on your corner. Right there. Clear half back, clear half back."
"47.
"56.
"49.
"41.
"56."
By lap 96, David was 15th. Mikey continued to ride 20th. Meanwhile, Gordon was over two seconds ahead of Johnson. Greg Biffle passed Johnson for 2nd. Lap 97 saw David move into 14th.
"87."
"Doing fine. Leader now."
"89."
Mikey told Bootie he wanted to go back up on the track bar. "I'm a little too tight right now. Give me a report on lap times and where I was last time after the same amount of laps."
"10-4. Yeah, we're faster right now. We're definitely faster right now. But we'll put it back the next stop."
"All right, if we're faster, let me figure out how to drive it then."
"10-4. 96."
"You gotta make sure the whole field is just faster."
"No. Jeff Gordon just ran a 99, so you're right there."
"Still there. Still there. Clear clear. Nice job, bud."
"12."
On lap 101, Mikey was 19th. He had passed David Stremme in the #12. David was 14th.
"93. Leader a 19, so you're actually faster than the leader. So keep driving your race. You're doing good," Bootie praised. "15.
"27.
"25."
"I'm too tight," Mikey reported.
"That's all right. We'll definitely get that track bar back up for you then," Bootie promised. "40."
"Still outside. Clear all clear," Ty said. "He's going to have a run on the bottom. There inside. There you go, back to clear."
Mikey was 20th on lap 108. David Stremme had passed.
"A run. Looking low again. Inside. Gordon the leader just now off of 2. One in the wall in Turn 3 and 4. No caution yet, no caution yet. Keep rolling. No caution. He rubbed the wall all the way in Turns 3 and 4. Be watching him in 1."
"In order for me to keep an eye on him, I would need to know who he is," Mikey replied.
"I know. 6." Ty was talking about David Ragan.
"70. Leader ran a 53, you run a 57. So keep going. You're going to be fine.
"51."
David was 13th on lap 112. Mikey continued in 20th.
"75.
"77."
"Still down there. Still there. Clear, clear. All the way back down again. Inside inside."
On lap 114, Mikey got back around Stremme for 19th.
"Still there on your corner. Still there, inside," Ty warned. "Four back to the 83."
Mikey was back to 20th on lap 116 when Stremme passed him again.
"81."
"You've got fresh tires two back, fresh tires two back. Slow one on the bottom. Still down there. Fresh tires right on your bumper. Clear high, clear high. Coming inside, inside. Got the 83 trying to tuck in there with him. 83 is down there with him. Clear two back to the 83. 24 is off of 4 now. Clear half a straightaway."
"Okay, guys, get ready. We're going to pit in about ten laps," Bootie told the crew.
"The 12's spotter is waving like he's going to pit this time," Ty warned. "83 still on the bottom, still on the bottom. Clear."
"Don't leave me out here and let that 24 pit," Mikey told his crew chief.
"10-4, man. We're on it. You're right. We're 100% with you," Bootie replied.
Mikey was 19th on lap 120 as cars pit.
"83's down there. Inside."
"Michael, do you want a half, or do you want a full round on the track bar."
"A half."
"10-4."
Mikey was 20th on lap 121; Brian Vickers' #83 had passed. Cars continuned to make stops.
"99. Five laps, guys. We're going to pit in five laps," Bootie told the crew.
"That 12 is four back with tires, four back with tires. Three back. Inside, inside. All by himself."
"02."
"That 82 there."
"Okay, Michael, let's do it this time, this time. 4850. Second gear."
Mikey was 19th on lap 124 when Bootie told him to come in.
"Still 20 back to the 24. 4850. You're going to be coming this time," Ty said. "Clear the 82. 50 at the yellow line. 4850."
"Gotcha. 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Put on the brake, put on the brake. Hit your sign," Bootie told his driver. The #55 pit. "All the way all the way all the way all the way. 4850. Good job, guys. All the way."
"4850 to the line," Ty added. "4850 to the yellow line. Leader at the line now. Got one coming outside. He cleared Mikey fifteen back to the 24. "Nice job. Slowest one's on top. Clear. Clear high. Clear there, clear. 77 has pitted, 87 has not. Still there. Clear the 83, clear. Clear two back to the 9. 24 pealed off."
Jeff Gordon pit on lap 127.
"Still there. Slow one on the bottom, slow one on the bottom. Clear clear."
"57."
"Clear four back."
Greg Biffle was in the lead after green flag stops on lap 129.
"We've got something messed up, man. I'm just too tight," Mikey reported. He was 19th, and David was 17th.
"... Now," Ty said.
"10-4. Too tight," Bootie replied to his driver.
"Clear clear."
"49."
Mikey was 17th on lap 130. David was 15th.
"Still down there. Clear of him. Clear two back to the 77," said Ty.
"Flat," Bootie read off times. "68.
"90. Biffle's the leader, and he's at the line now. But I know you're driving your ass off. You're doing good."
"All right, buddy, you're five back to the 77. He dropped off. You've got the 9 and 16 racing back there."
"Flat."
"All right, bud, you're four back to the 16. We're going to be racing the 9. If he gets to us, we're going to be racing the 9 behind us. Slow on the bottom. Looking low, looking low. Inside. Clear if you need it, clear if you need it. There you go. Clear the 31. Inside, inside. Three-wide for second. 24 up top with you. 16 inside."
Mikey lost the lead lap on lap 137. He was still 17th while David rode 15th.
"24's got a run on the bottom. Inside. All right, bud, you've got six, seven car lengths on that 9."
"31."
David was 14th on lap 139.
"Nice and smooth. They have a little while before they get to that 88 up there," Ty informed the driver. "Still 17th. Let's just keep rolling our race. Nice and smooth."
"21."
The third caution was for rain in Turn 3 on lap 142.
"Dig it hard now. They're talking about a little bit of rain. That's our guy there. We were ahead of him past the start/finish line."
Bootie said he'd check with an official. "We've got it, guys. We've got it."
"I got up high and got into some rain," Mikey said.
"It's all right. We've got him."
"I just got really really really tight here."
"All right, we've got it. You got the free pass here. We got it." Bootie said they'd pit with lapped cars.
"No, we're not. We can only take gas with the lapped down cars."
Bootie said he wanted to stay out as long as possible.
"But then we can't get gas under this caution." Mikey told Bootie to do whatever he wanted.
"I'm talking. Ty, talk to him."
"I don't need Ty to talk to talk to me!"
"I know, Michael," Bootie laughed. "I just mean for the lucky dog."
"Oh. Just 10-4 me that you've got all the information we need."
Bootie said they did. "You're doing great."
"Yeah, they won't score us
"Yeah, I just never lived in that kind of a situation before. I was trying to steal something, Michael," Bootie confessed. He called for a substantial air pressure adjustment and wedge.
"Easy in the rain. No trucks on the track right now."
Mikey pit under yellow. "It gave me grip. It just made me tight. It's like we needed the... it gave me the grip I was looking for, but it made it too tight."
Bootie said they'd take a chunk at it here, because he thought it would get loose but it hadn't. "You're doing a great job, man. You earned everything you got. Just be careful." He guided Mikey to his box. "Do everything right, guys. All the way out there. He's got the ol' Bonneville cruiser there. Yeah, we're working lap 144 with 106 to go."
"Well everybody did a really good job for me, so thank you," Mikey praised.
"You're welcome."
"That was a good call for him, because we gained a lot on the guys we're racing. Good pit stop. An important pit stop," Ty said.
"Yeah, 17 cars on the lead lap. We did a front air pressure adjustment and wedge. So we'll see what we've got," Bootie said. "Billy, come here."
"Do I have to start at the tail end of the lead lap or at the tail end of the longest line?"
Bootie said he didn't know but that he'd consult his "handy dandy cardboard pamphlet rule book."
"Yeah, you need to give one of those to the _____ team."
Ty said something about talking with the team from yesterday, when Mikey was spun in his box.
"Just know the rules, know the rules. If you're in your box, then you can pit the car." Mikey said he had served his penalty, but he didn't need to start last. "So I tell y'all that just so we know we need to tighten up on the rule book, make sure we don't lose anything on Sundays."
"10-4," Bootie replied.
"Boys, if you don't mind, I know we've got my nephew's name on my car," Mikey said. "I know my sister's listening, and I'm thinking about here. I've got Jason David Brinkley's name on my car today. And I'll be home tomorrow to give you a hug. I love you."
"10-4, man. I'm sure she appreciated that. To let you know, the 00 is 15th. And Marcos, he's having a good race. He's one lap down, but he's 25th. He's doing good," Bootie replied.
"All right, buddy. One to go when you get around here. One to go," Ty said. "Well, they called it off.
"10-4. Make sure you're at the tail end of the longest line. I know you know. "
"They didn't tell the flagman they called it off. Did they call it off?" Mikey asked.
"Well the lights are still on the car. Okay, one to go this time. One to go. 100 laps to go."
"What's our window?"
"I thought you were talking about fuel window. We have to stop two more times," Bootie replied. "We were just discussing that. We need to make it to lap 205 to stop one more time, and we're 14, let's call it 13 laps short of that."
"Go ahead and pull up to that 31." Ty said somebody was letting everybody go as this person was two laps down.
Matt Kenseth led the restart with 100 laps to go. Mikey was 17th, Davd 15th.
"Okay, pace car's off. Be ready. Ready? Green green green. Everybody's rolling. Clear. Still outside. Clear up there. Clear up. Tons of lappers on the bottom. Three wide there, three wide. Still got one all the way on the bottom. 34's still there, barely. Clear low, still outside. Clear up behind the 19 if you need it. Clear up half back. Both sides, both sides. Still outside. Both sides. Still outside, still both sides. Still down there, still both sides. Clear high behind the 19, clear high if you need it. 34 still there. Clear clear."
David was 16th by 96 to go. Mikey was still 17th.
"All clear, whatever you need. Inside, inside. Still there inside, still there. Clear high if you need it. Still on your quarter. Inside, the 8. Clear there, clear. Back inside, inside. Clear high."
"We got 'er back to free," Mikey reported.
"10-4," Bootie replied.
"Inside. Clear high."
On lap 156, David passed Stremme for 15th.
"Clear there. Clear clear. Still both sides. Still both sides. Both sides, the 8's there on your quarter. Still outside, still outside. Still there on your corner. Clear low. Still outside. 20 still outside. There you go, there you go. Inside. 20's inside. Clear low, clear low. Still outside. Clear right there, two back to the 19. Still outside, still there. Clear up, clear up. Half back to the 7. There you go."
"07."
"Three back."
"27."
"Still there. Clear, clear one back."
"34."
"Nice corner. Clear two back."
"Man, if you could get us somewhere between here and where it was," Mikey said with 88 to go.
"10-4," Bootie replied. "We may just go back on the wedge. We'll see.
"37.
"59.
"56."
"I'm just, I'm just spoiling the right rear bad. I can't get into the gas," Mikey said.
Bootie told him to turn off the B-blower.
"The 88 sounded like he lost a cyllander last lap," Ty observed.
On lap 169, David was 16th.
"Still there. Clear the 8. Clear clear."
FOX confirmed that the #88 was down a cyllander. Johnson was also slowing, as was Mark Martin.
"65."
The fourth caution was also for rain, this time on lap 170. Brian Vickers received the free pass.
"Clear up. Clear clear. Caution's out, caution's out for debris," Ty said.
"This thing will go, but it just won't, I can't go for ten or fifteen laps, and then right then, I was getting pretty good with it," Mikey said.
"Okay, Michael. We're going to stay out, stay out," Bootie said. "We're the last car essentially." He said they'd pit with one lap to go and talked about other cars being down on cyllander.
"The 88, 48, and 5 all lost a cyllander all within a lap of each other," Ty reported.
Leaders pit under yellow, and Kenseth was the first one off pit road.
"I'll let y'all know one second," Bootie said. "Yeah, it will be half. It will be right rear. Stay out, Michael, stay out. No. Stay out." He said he could talk a little bit now and asked how free is free.
"Well, I've been told I'm a little dramatic, but when caution came out and I got the lucky dog, it was 8 loose. Now it's five loose. It's going to be fast this little while. If we can somehow be able to land between the two, we'd be awesome."
Bootie called for half wedge out of left rear.
"It's my opinion that you've done it all with tire pressure, because it's right back to the start."
"10-4." He said the tire pressure should have helped grip. He told Mikey to lead them out there until 1 to go.
"Last time, I didn't hear it until it was too late. So just be aware of that."
Bootie asked someone to get an official.
"Uh, we've got rain in Turn 2 a little bit. About what it's been doing under caution."
Bootie asked both driver and spotter to "Guys, get that official where I can see him. Get that official where I can see him."
Ty said he had one by him who said it was not one to go yet. "M-Dub, there are eighteen on the lead lap, including the 83, who just got the free pass, and then there are a couple of them with engine issues."
Tony Stewart led under yellow. David was 5th, and Mikey was 6th.
"Another thing to think about here, Bootie, is that they're saying it's getting better." Ty said the others in front of them would probably pit late too, so they could pit earlier and get those spots.
Mikey said something, and Bootie couldn't hear him.
"I said there were big drops in 4 last time. Let me get over there and see if they're there."
Bootie told him to come if he didn't see rain. "If it clears up, you be the first to get in here, okay?"
"Okay?"
"Well I'll try."
"Race car driver, actor, meteorologist."
"I'll either be the first one there or the sixth one there."
"Okay. That's good."
"Does anybody... what's the weather radar look like?"
Bootie said it was a little bit at a time. "It's not like there's a monsoon coming."
Ty said Brett in the pace car was saying it was clear. Mikey was told to come to pit road.
"What if they all pit here? Should I stay out and lead a lap?"
"No, come on."
Mikey said he wouldn't beat them anyway. He apologised for not coming in when Mark Martin in the #5 had stayed out to lead rather than him; he was second. "I hate Carquest, so I didn't even acknowledge it being a car."
Bootie laughed a great deal. "10-4 on that." He said they'd fix the wedge.
"4850. You've got to go around that 5."
Bootie reiterated to go around the #5 and guided the #55 to the box. "Okay, all the way, all the way. Nice job, nice job. 4850."
"4850 to the line. There you go, boys. Good job."
"74 to go, 74 laps to go, so we have to stop one more time at least."
Ty told Mikey to pull up around the 83 and behind the 88. "He's down a cyllander, so we'll make quick service of him. There you go."
"Was that quick enough?" Mikey asked.
"Yeah, that was real quick service."
Kenseth led the restart with 73 laps to go. Mikey was 15th, and David was 14th.
"Green green green. Everybody's rolling. Still inside. Still clear at the top, still clear at the top. Three wide, two wide."
Martin was smoking a great deal and went to the garage.
"Still inside. Still there, barely still there. One blowing up behind you. Both sides, both sides. Clear high. Still down there, still there. Still on the bottom. Still down there. Clear there, clear."
"Radiator fan off, B blowers on, please," Bootie instructed his driver with 69 laps to go. David was 13th and Mikey continued in 15th.
"Clear the 31. All clear."
"88."
"44 still there. Clear clear. Inside, the 44. Inside. Clear clear. Clear the 20, clear."
FOX reported that David had lost his brakes. They worked on this problem, but David lost the brakes again.
"Inside, inside. All clear, clear."
"48.
"21.
"99."
"12 is for position. Clear eight back. Still out there. Still there."
"Do I got trash?" Mikey asked.
"Don't see any. Take a good look too, Bootie. I'll take a look up here."
"10-4," Bootie replied. "I didn't see anything. What are your temps, Michael?"
"Uh, two o'clock with a red light on the water. Two o'clock on the oil."
"10-4. Water pressure. I know they're going to ask. Water pressure."
"Uh, I don't know where that's at, but one of those gauges look tanked all the way to the bottom. I've been all over the 12 twice."
"Right now, the water is at 220 and the oil is at 230," Bootie said. He told his driver to keep telling him what's going on.
"Still there. Still there. Back inside. Clear there. Two back to the 83. Inside. Still inside. Inside. You've got another one looking."
"And make sure, if your radiator fan is off, then turn it on," Bootie adviced.
Mikey said something that was distorted due to engine noise.
"Still down there. 77," Ty warned. "Clear clear."
Mikey was 16th on lap 194. Brian Vickers had passed.
"It's not doing anything," Mikey reported.
"10-4. Clear two back," Ty replied.
"10-4 on that. Keep digging."
"The one gauge looks like it's all the way pegged."
Bootie told the crew to make sure it was all the way clean under the next stop.
"Just won't run worth a shit."
"10-4. Clear there."
David, meanwhile, was 15th. Jeff Gordon took the lead around 55 to go.
"16."
"Clear one back to the 44," Ty said. "Inside, inside."
"12."
"It's the air pressure!" Mikey said.
"Okay, 10-4. Turn your B blower on," Bootie replied.
"It feels like it's going to blow up, so it don't really matter."
"10-4."
"I'm pretty good at telling you what it's doing. We change the tire pressure, we change the car. Not the wedge."
"I got you, Michael. I got you." After a pause, Bootie said, "Paul."
"Where's the leader?" Mikey asked.
"The leader is just now getting into 1," Ty responded. "Still holding your own, bud. 48 to go."
"10."
"Three back to the 8. Leader now."
"06."
"He's right there. One back. Inside, inside. Clear now, clear one back."
"It's raining!" Mikey exclaimed.
"10-4. NASCAR guys are talking about it.
"Half back. Raining a little bit harder now. Keep rolling now. Keep rolling. Got him looking inside. Still down there, still there. Clear two back to the 20. Tell that inspector it's slick out there. Still there on your quarter. 20's down there with him, trying to go down there with him. Clear there. Two back to the 20. One back. Outside. Clear clear. Inside, the 20."
The fifth caution was on lap 208. Kevin Harvick had hit the wall after smoking tremendously.
"Back it down, back it down. You've got one in the wall in 2. Easy easy. He's up against the wall."
"Here's the deal. Whatever y'all did. If our motor lives, then we need to, then we need to go back somewhere to where I was tight. I'm going to crash."
"Okay, okay. What we're going to do, Michael, like I said is go back where we started with the wedge."
Mikey said the bottom left gauge was a little after twelve. He said both were normal. "So we don't have catestrophic, it doesn't appear. I got behind that one dude, and it seems to have gone down some, so I don't know."
Bootie said they'd go back on the wedge and go half back on air pressure. He called for four tires and fuel. "That's right - just a half - and make sure the grill is clean."
"Are we staying out?" Mikey asked.
Bootie told Mikey to come in. "Just half back on the wedge, guys." He counted the #55 to the box.
Bobby Kennedy came on the radio and said to check for trash on the grill.
"We should have stayed out to lead a lap if we were going to fart around like this," Mikey complained.
Bootie told Mikey they were doing good.
"There was a lot of stuff on it, Bootie. Rubber and trash on the grill," Bobby said.
Bootie acknowledged this. He told Mikey about all the adjustments. "We're riding 15th."
Mikey said they should have gotten those five points. "If you can get five points, and it doesn't even cost you a nickel, it's a good deal. My temperatures are going back down. It's good if it's not 260 or whatever it was running it."
Bootie said they were good and they go tthe break they needed. "Everything's good. Everything's rock and roll now, baby."
Mikey was currently sitting 14th, and David was 13th. Mikey pointed out that Stremme was leading.
Bootie told Mikey he'd rather be lucky than good any day. "Make sure your B fan is on, your radiator fan is off, and all that good stuff. Okay, and the 00 is relaying the message that he has no brakes."
"Mine got soft there once, but when I got so loose, I stopped driving it. I had to quit driving it, so it helped it," Mikey replied.
"10-4."
Stremme pit toward the end of the caution, putting Kenseth back in the top spot. Mikey was now 13th, David 12th. Meanwhile, Jamie McMurray went back to pit road for brake fluid.
Bootie asked about the car for more details to see if he should come in for fuel at the end for a bonzai run.
"Real quick. One to go. All the lappers are coming," Ty said. He said the 9, 12, and 26 were behind him on the lead lap. He said the #9 would be at the tail end of the longest line. "35 to go, 35 to go when we take the green here."
Kenseth led the restart. Mikey was 13th and David 12th.
"All right, bud, be ready. Pace car's coming off. Ready? Green green green. Stacking up a little bit on the bottom. Keep coming on the top. Inside inside. Still inside. Still inside. 12's inside. Clear there one back. Clear behind him if you want it."
Stremme passed on lap 217, moving Mikey back to 14th.
"20's looking inside, inside. Still at your door. Still there. That 9's trying to come with him. Looking low. Looking inside. Clear, clear. Clear one back. All the way inside. Clear there."
"75," Bootie read off lap times.
"7's right there on your bumper. 7's right there inside." He said a car was trying to come with him. "Still on your door. Got no one looking, just looking. Clear there. Clear one back."
Mikey was 15th on lap 221. Kasey Kahne had passed.
"It will be clear there. Two back. Whatever you want. Still there inside. To the middle. All the way at the bottom. You're clear now. Clear one back. No pressure. Three wide right there. Easy now. Three wide. Still there."
On lap 222, David was 13th.
"Three wide off this corner. Three-wide. Got the 07 on the bottom. Clear."
David was 14th one lap later.
"31."
"Still outside. Still there. Clear the 20, clear. Clear two back. Clear one back. Going to have a run on you. Looking inside, inside. Inside, he's there. Still back inside, on your corner. Trying to look again. Clear there. There you go. 25 to go. 07 has a run. Looking low. Inside, to your door. Clear there, clear half back. Clear one back."
"I'm just so frickin' loose. We just messed our car up," Mikey commented.
"10-4. Just hang in there. We'll get it back," Bootie assured his driver.
"Clear there. Clear one back. Leader now."
"B blowers off. Radiator fan on, please," Bootie requested. "49."
"Still outside. Still there. Clear clear. Still clear one back, two back. There you go. Clear two back. About seven car lengths back to the 26."
"60.
"68. 19 to go, Michael. 19 to go.
"62."
"Good job, buddy. Great job," Ty praised.
"46.
"43.
"84."
"There you go. Still outside, still there. Still outside, still there. There you go. Clear clear. All right, bud. Keep digging. 13 to go. You're doing a good job with that 26."
"52."
"Great job, bud."
"58.
"81."
"Ten to go, ten."
"84.
"58. Good lap."
"Still there. Still there. Clear."
"8 to go. Robby's been up and down, so just be careful running with him."
Aric Almirola slowed on the apron and crawled around the track.
"Stay up a littel bit in 3 and 4. We've got a little bit of oil," Ty warned. "7 to go. Still outside. Still there. Still at the top. Can't tell. Still there, still there."
"Okay, Michael, we've got 6 to go, 6 to go. Just bring it home, buddy," Bootie told his driver.
"One third of a straightaway back to that 26. You're doing a great job. 6 to go," Ty said.
"97."
"He's in his own world, man. In his own world. You're doing fine. Still out there. Still there. Clear up behind him. All right, buddy, three more."
"Yeah, just leave him alone, please," Bootie requested.
"It's starting to rain kind of hard. Take it easy here. 2 to go. 2 more, 2 more. There you go. Nice and easy, brother. Nice and easy. 1 to go. 26 half a straightaway behind us."
Matt Kenseth went on to win. Mikey was 15th, David 14th.
"Nice and easy. Coming around to the checkered, coming around to the checkered," said Ty. "All right, buddy, way to hang in there. 14th and 15th."
"Great job, Michael. Really good job," Bootie praised. "Good job, crew. That was a good day on pit road too. Real nice. We've come a long ways, man. Fairly competitive all night."
"Good job, everybody. We do got a long way to go though," Mikey replied.
"That's right. We'll win. That's where we need to be. We will. You dove hard tonight."
"Bring it onto the garage, Michael," someone said.
Coverage of the Sprint Cup's Shelby 427 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway begins next Sunday at 3:30pm ET on FOX. The Nationwide Series' Sam's Town 300 is the day before at 4pm on ESPN2.
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© 2009 Kellyanne Lynch, in association with Cyber Speed Design. All rights reserved.
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