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Richmond II


Ricky Rudds' new ride, the all important Spotters, and the Excide Select Batteries 400.





Yates Signs Rudd?........

It was reported during the week that Robert Yates Racing has made a deal with Ricky Rudd to pilot the No. 28 Texaco Havoline Ford for the 2000 season. Sources claim that Yates will buy Ricky's team as part of the deal. Ricky has won a race every year for 16 straight years, and with nine races left, he had better get his act together. He has been struggling this year to keep his streak alive. We have all seen how difficult it is these days for an owner/driver to operate in the ever changing world of Winston Cup racing. Darrell Waltrip was a prime example of this. It is extremely hard for a driver to concentrate on his driving duties, while juggling the headaches of expenses, sponsors, car and engine building, etc..



Spotters........... The Assistant Drivers..........

I assume that most of you racing enthusiasts that follow the Winston Cup circuit know about the spotters and how valuable they are for the drivers. Mostly, their duties consist of being the second set of eyes for the drivers. They tell a driver when he is clear after a pass, and inform him when someone happens to zip up along side of him so fast that they might be unaware of it. One of their most important duties is to alert the drivers of wrecks on the track so the drivers have time to slow down before reaching the melee. When they approach the wreck, the spotter also tells them whether to go high or low, depending on the location of the wrecked cars on the track.

Different teams have different roles for their spotters. Some act as coach, such as the task of Roger Penske, team owner and spotter for the No. 2 car of Rusty Wallace. As far as I know, he is the only team owner that takes the role of spotter instead of being down in the pits where the rest of the owners spend their time during a race, keeping on top of things, and being available to help the crew chief with intricate racing decisions. Some drivers don't want to hear much from their spotters, they are just in position high on top of the bleachers with the rest of the spotters in order to advise the drivers in case there's a wreck on the track. No matter what their drivers use them for, they are a very important part of Winston Cup racing and there would be a lot more wrecks and mishaps on the track without them.
The copyright of the article Richmond II in NASCAR is owned by Thomas M. Sampson. Permission to republish Richmond II in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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