2005 July 4th Race Weekend    I was able to part of the crew for the Winn Dixie 250 with Todd Braun, owner of the #32 Chevy!
It was an exciting time in the pits and being behind the race scene.  Wednesday night we went out and partied with Elliot Sadler and Clint Bower.  Thursday was rain!  Friday was the race, with practice in the AM, then qualifying, then racing.  Braun's pit crew coach asked me to put the LR tire over the wall as one of their crew members needed a hand.  That was intense.  Todd was one of my original R/C sponsors back in the late 80's and early 90's.  Now he has one of the best Busch teams on the circuit.  It is amazing to see what is involved with a team (with over 20 employees) and what is involved at the track for a race to be run, both by Nascar and the race teams themselves.

  TNT Live Videos of Mike    l was on TV from Daytona!
In the 1st video, I am the one putting the tire over the wall in a Snowbird Orange 2005 T-Shirt and Jeans (left of the screen).  That was intense.  The tire had to be placed between the jack man and rear window, facing a certain way and angle, and put out according to where the car stopped.  I could have been the one Benny criticized on TNT!  And all of this was without no practice.  I was definitely nervous and excited about it!

In the 2nd video, I am the one sitting on the wall next to Kerry Earnhardt's #33 car (left of the screen).

    Dial-up users:  click on THE SHORTER VIDEOS to the left. 
  If you can not get the long videos to open - try the ones to the left that say 'shorter'. 
  They may work better for dial up connections.

  My Videos from the Race:
#1 - The restart is from the pit box and you get a good idea of the sound and speed.

#2 - Taking off is qualifying from pit road and is
an awesome sound for your computer!

#3 - The pit box has a camera where the pit guys
analyze their stops.  You can see me there.

  General Pictures:

  Cars at the Line and Tech:


  The #32 Braun Chevy Pictures (car, driver, crew, more)







  Driver's at the Track:








  General Pictures:




  Road Racing at Daytona:

top of the page    /    thunder racing's home page