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Notebook Busch, Truck, IROC among those logging practicePosted: Monday February 11, 2002 4:42 PMBy Denise N. Maloof, CNNSI.com DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Monday was back-to-work day at Daytona International Speedway. Instead of Sunday's Budweiser Shootout crowds, only empty stands greeted batch after batch of vehicles logging practice laps. The Busch garage opened at 7 a.m., and the Truck series got on the track for the first time in 2002, sandwiching two practice sessions around a mid-morning Winston Cup practice. IROC drivers also practiced for the first time. The series pairs NASCAR drivers against drivers from other series for four races, and the first 40-lap, 100-mile event is scheduled for Friday. Dale Jarrett, Kevin Harvick and former Truck champion Jack Sprague are among the NASCAR entrants. IRL champion Sam Hornish, defending Indianapolis 500 champion Helio Castroneves and former Indy 500 champ Al Unser Jr. will help represent the open-wheel contingent. During an afternoon news conference, Castroneves was asked if he would climb the catch fence to celebrate a win, as he did at Indy in May. "If I can get out of the car," Castroneves said. "I'll try. It's very hard to get out of the car."
Four opt for second-round qualifyingOnly four drivers opted for a second-round qualifying run Monday afternoon: Kyle Petty, Mike Skinner, Kirk Shelmerdine and Norm Benning. Skinner, who placed 47th in Saturday’s first-round qualifying at 180.1 mph, improved to 41st overall at 181.785 mph. The other three didn't qualify Saturday, Petty because of engine problems, Shelmerdine and Benning because of inspection woes. Petty's Monday mark of 183 mph boosted him from 51st to 27th. Benning remains last (51st on the qualifying chart) at 168 mph, with Shelmerdine two spots above at 178.2 mph. Drivers will be divided into two fields for Thursday’s twin 125-mile qualifying races. Only pole-winner Jimmie Johnson and outside pole winner Kevin Harvick have locked in their positions for Sunday's 44th Daytona 500.
Garage sniping continues over spoilersThe impact of NASCAR's Sunday-night announcement of an extra quarter-inch off all Ford spoilers won't be measured until Tuesday's first Winston Cup practice. But Ford camps appeared happy following Monday morning's session. "We know that we have our drag problem and that's one way of eliminating some of that problem," Dale Jarrett said. "So, hopefully it'll get us a little bit closer and at least give us a chance Sunday." "It'll help us some, but we've got to do everything else right, too," said Travis Carter, team owner for the cars driven by Todd Bodine and Joe Nemechek, citing a persistent drag problem for the Fords. Others camps were wait-and-see. "Obviously, they lobbied for it somewhat," Bobby Labonte said. "NASCAR gave it to them somewhat. However, it was 50-50, whatever. But they got what they got. They've had a couple of breaks before the season started. They're taking the cars to the wind tunnel to evaluate them and I guess that's a tool that to me is used to evaluate what should be right or wrong." The sniping between manufacturers -- and the people who build them -- also was a garage topic. "It never stops," Rusty Wallace said. "Then drivers get into it and they get vocal and all hell breaks loose. And that's when I just keep my mouth shut and get out of Dodge." "I understand that some of those other guys think that we've been sitting around on our thumbs all winter," Jarrett said. "But I'll assure you our guys have worked day and night to make our cars as good as they possibly can. "And for them to even think that we'd come down here and waste a three-day test and then go to Talladega and waste a two-day test ... I don't know how they could even start to think that we were here not showing everything that we had the entire time."
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