Kilee Wilson
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Catching Up
June 28, 2018
Hello there! I hope you all enjoyed your off weeks. I know for me it was also an ‘off week’ because I am in between spring and summer classes. I also somehow was able to get 5 days off from both jobs, so I kind of laid low for a few days.
Two weeks ago MENCS ran the tricky triangle in Pocono. Hendrick Motorsports ran great at Pocono, as did all the Chevrolets.
Chase Elliott started his day off in the 11th position and rallied to finish 6th at the end of stage 1. In stage 2 Elliott was able to gain one more position and finish 5th. By the end of the race, Elliott finished in the 10th position.
William Byron started in the 16th spot and lost one position to finish 17th. Byron was able to gain a few positions and finish stage 2 in the 13th position. Byron would go on to finish the race in 18th.
Jimmie Johnson started his day 5th, and went onto finish stage 1 in 9th. In stage 2 Johnson was unable to gain any more positions and finished again 9th. By the end of the race, Johnson was able to gain one more position and finish 8th.
Alex Bowman started off his Pocono race in the 14th position and finished one position better at the end of stage 1. Bowman would go onto finish 10th in stage 2. Bowman struggled in the last stage, where he had a flat tire and ultimately finished 27th.
Martin Truex Jr. won the race.
MENCS was in the Irish Hills of Michigan just a few short weeks ago. Even with all the rain it was a good race!
Chase Elliott started his day out in Michigan in the 13th position. He ran in the top 20 for most of the race despite the fact the car had a flat tire on the left rear during stage one; Elliott finished the stage 32nd. In stage two, Elliott was able to find his way from the back of the pack to finish 12th. In the final stage Elliott was able to find the top 10, where he ran for 10 laps before the rain hit and the race was called off. Elliott finished his day off in the 9th position.
William Byron started just behind teammate Chase Elliott in the 14th position. Byron raced to the 8th place within the first few laps and stayed consistent there until the end of stage one. In stage two, the young driver was able to stay within the top 15 for the stage, finishing in 11th. During the final stage, Byron was able to fight hard for his 13th place finish.
Jimmie Johnson started in the 20th position in the Irish Hills. He was facing a lot of handling problems with the car and consequently fell further back in the pack, finishing stage one 23rd. In stage 2, Johnson struggled again, but only fell backwards two more positions to the 25th; although he was able to find some speed and finish the stage in the 18th position. In the final stage Johnson finished 20th.
Alex Bowman started in the 21st position just behind teammate Jimmie Johnson. At the end of stage 1, Bowman was in the 14th position. When stage two started, Bowman was able to race as high as 12th, but ended the stage in the 16th position. In stage 3 Bowman was unable to pass any cars and finished the race in the 16th position.
Clint Bowyer won the race.
Sonoma! I was in the car for most of the race and did not get to see it. Twitter and HendrickMotorsports.com were a really big help to me during this article.
Chase Elliott started his day off highest of all HMS drivers in the 3rd place. During the first stage, Elliott was able to keep pace with the leaders to finish in the 4th position. During the second stage, Elliott fell back to as far as 15th and had to weave and weasel his way back to the front. He ultimately finished the stage second! During the last stage, Elliott fell back into the pack again, but he was able to pass more cars and come back to the top five by lap 75. At the end of the day, Elliott came out in the 4th position.
William Byron started in the 8th place and ran in the top 15 for the most of stage one, he finished in the 14th position. In stage two Byron fell back to 26th due to a caution, sadly Byron fell back to 30th to finish the stage. Byron finished the race in the 25th position.
Jimmie Johnson started Sonoma in the 7th position. He was able to break into the top four quickly and finished the stage in the 3rd position. In stage two, Johnson also fell backwards into the 14th place, but he was able to come back into the top 10 by lap 45. Johnson went on to finish stage two in the 3rd position. During the last stage of the race, Johnson was able to run near 10th, he would finish the race 11th.
Alex Bowman started his day off in the 17th position. He ran inside the top 20 for the whole first stage, but after a late green flag pit stop he finished 33rd at the end of the stage. During stage 2, Bowman ran inside the top 10, and finished in the 7th position. At the end of the race Bowman was again able to run near the 10th position. He moved as high as 8th, but eventually came home 9th.
Martin Truex Jr. won the race.
Also, poor Ryan Blaney lost his power steering and suffered the whole last stage. I cannot even imagine how his arms felt after the race. *For those of you who didn’t know I am a YRB fan and to hear about that happening was pretty heartbreaking.
This weekend we hit Joliet, Illinois for Chicagoland. The first ever race was ran in 2001 on the mile and a half track. Tony Stewart has won this race three times, no one else has ever done that. There is 18 degree banking in the turns, and the tri-oval has only 11 degrees.
Below I have the weekend’s schedule. I hope that this race is as entertaining as they normally are. I will have to watch the race after work on Sunday, but nevertheless I am excited to watch and see what happens at Chicagoland Speedway.
Tweet me who you think will win, I love hearing from you all.
I hope you all have a great rest of your week and weekend.
Friday, June 29, 2018
4:35-5:20 p.m. EST: NASCAR Xfinity Series practice on NBCSN
5:40 p.m. EST: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series pole qualifying on FS2
7:35- 8:20 p.m. EST: NASCAR Xfinity Series final practice on NBCSN
9 p.m. EST: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Overton’s 225 (150 laps, 225 miles) on FS1. (150 laps for 225 miles)
Saturday, June 30, 2018
11:30 a.m.-12:20 p.m. EST: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice on NBCSN
12:40 p.m. EST: NASCAR Xfinity Series pole qualifying on NBCSN
2-2:50 p.m. EST: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice on NBCSN
3:30 p.m. EST: NASCAR Xfinity Series Overton’s 300 on NBCSN. (200 laps for 300 miles)
7:05 p.m. EST: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series pole qualifying on NBCSN
Sunday, July 1, 2018
2:30 p.m. EST: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Overton’s 400 on NBCSN (267 laps for 400.5 miles)
Follow and chat with me here: @wilson_kilee
Shop here now for new NASCAR gear!
June 28, 2018
Hello there! I hope you all enjoyed your off weeks. I know for me it was also an ‘off week’ because I am in between spring and summer classes. I also somehow was able to get 5 days off from both jobs, so I kind of laid low for a few days.
Two weeks ago MENCS ran the tricky triangle in Pocono. Hendrick Motorsports ran great at Pocono, as did all the Chevrolets.
Chase Elliott started his day off in the 11th position and rallied to finish 6th at the end of stage 1. In stage 2 Elliott was able to gain one more position and finish 5th. By the end of the race, Elliott finished in the 10th position.
William Byron started in the 16th spot and lost one position to finish 17th. Byron was able to gain a few positions and finish stage 2 in the 13th position. Byron would go on to finish the race in 18th.
Jimmie Johnson started his day 5th, and went onto finish stage 1 in 9th. In stage 2 Johnson was unable to gain any more positions and finished again 9th. By the end of the race, Johnson was able to gain one more position and finish 8th.
Alex Bowman started off his Pocono race in the 14th position and finished one position better at the end of stage 1. Bowman would go onto finish 10th in stage 2. Bowman struggled in the last stage, where he had a flat tire and ultimately finished 27th.
Martin Truex Jr. won the race.
MENCS was in the Irish Hills of Michigan just a few short weeks ago. Even with all the rain it was a good race!
Chase Elliott started his day out in Michigan in the 13th position. He ran in the top 20 for most of the race despite the fact the car had a flat tire on the left rear during stage one; Elliott finished the stage 32nd. In stage two, Elliott was able to find his way from the back of the pack to finish 12th. In the final stage Elliott was able to find the top 10, where he ran for 10 laps before the rain hit and the race was called off. Elliott finished his day off in the 9th position.
William Byron started just behind teammate Chase Elliott in the 14th position. Byron raced to the 8th place within the first few laps and stayed consistent there until the end of stage one. In stage two, the young driver was able to stay within the top 15 for the stage, finishing in 11th. During the final stage, Byron was able to fight hard for his 13th place finish.
Jimmie Johnson started in the 20th position in the Irish Hills. He was facing a lot of handling problems with the car and consequently fell further back in the pack, finishing stage one 23rd. In stage 2, Johnson struggled again, but only fell backwards two more positions to the 25th; although he was able to find some speed and finish the stage in the 18th position. In the final stage Johnson finished 20th.
Alex Bowman started in the 21st position just behind teammate Jimmie Johnson. At the end of stage 1, Bowman was in the 14th position. When stage two started, Bowman was able to race as high as 12th, but ended the stage in the 16th position. In stage 3 Bowman was unable to pass any cars and finished the race in the 16th position.
Clint Bowyer won the race.
Sonoma! I was in the car for most of the race and did not get to see it. Twitter and HendrickMotorsports.com were a really big help to me during this article.
Chase Elliott started his day off highest of all HMS drivers in the 3rd place. During the first stage, Elliott was able to keep pace with the leaders to finish in the 4th position. During the second stage, Elliott fell back to as far as 15th and had to weave and weasel his way back to the front. He ultimately finished the stage second! During the last stage, Elliott fell back into the pack again, but he was able to pass more cars and come back to the top five by lap 75. At the end of the day, Elliott came out in the 4th position.
William Byron started in the 8th place and ran in the top 15 for the most of stage one, he finished in the 14th position. In stage two Byron fell back to 26th due to a caution, sadly Byron fell back to 30th to finish the stage. Byron finished the race in the 25th position.
Jimmie Johnson started Sonoma in the 7th position. He was able to break into the top four quickly and finished the stage in the 3rd position. In stage two, Johnson also fell backwards into the 14th place, but he was able to come back into the top 10 by lap 45. Johnson went on to finish stage two in the 3rd position. During the last stage of the race, Johnson was able to run near 10th, he would finish the race 11th.
Alex Bowman started his day off in the 17th position. He ran inside the top 20 for the whole first stage, but after a late green flag pit stop he finished 33rd at the end of the stage. During stage 2, Bowman ran inside the top 10, and finished in the 7th position. At the end of the race Bowman was again able to run near the 10th position. He moved as high as 8th, but eventually came home 9th.
Martin Truex Jr. won the race.
Also, poor Ryan Blaney lost his power steering and suffered the whole last stage. I cannot even imagine how his arms felt after the race. *For those of you who didn’t know I am a YRB fan and to hear about that happening was pretty heartbreaking.
This weekend we hit Joliet, Illinois for Chicagoland. The first ever race was ran in 2001 on the mile and a half track. Tony Stewart has won this race three times, no one else has ever done that. There is 18 degree banking in the turns, and the tri-oval has only 11 degrees.
Below I have the weekend’s schedule. I hope that this race is as entertaining as they normally are. I will have to watch the race after work on Sunday, but nevertheless I am excited to watch and see what happens at Chicagoland Speedway.
Tweet me who you think will win, I love hearing from you all.
I hope you all have a great rest of your week and weekend.
Friday, June 29, 2018
4:35-5:20 p.m. EST: NASCAR Xfinity Series practice on NBCSN
5:40 p.m. EST: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series pole qualifying on FS2
7:35- 8:20 p.m. EST: NASCAR Xfinity Series final practice on NBCSN
9 p.m. EST: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Overton’s 225 (150 laps, 225 miles) on FS1. (150 laps for 225 miles)
Saturday, June 30, 2018
11:30 a.m.-12:20 p.m. EST: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice on NBCSN
12:40 p.m. EST: NASCAR Xfinity Series pole qualifying on NBCSN
2-2:50 p.m. EST: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice on NBCSN
3:30 p.m. EST: NASCAR Xfinity Series Overton’s 300 on NBCSN. (200 laps for 300 miles)
7:05 p.m. EST: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series pole qualifying on NBCSN
Sunday, July 1, 2018
2:30 p.m. EST: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Overton’s 400 on NBCSN (267 laps for 400.5 miles)
Follow and chat with me here: @wilson_kilee
Shop here now for new NASCAR gear!
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One Big Recap
June 2nd, 2018
So, I am sure you have been wondering where on earth Kilee Wilson has gone this past month. I know, I know- I have not been able to work on any articles in so long, you probably thought I quit. Well I did not quit, I could never quit; I just had a busy few weeks with work and school and was unable to take a few spare moments to gather the information to write.
On top of work and school I had a busy few weeks with travelling to see family in Idaho, hiking and I even got to go whitewater rafting again. It was a blast, you can see some photos on my Instagram Kwilson8848 if you want.
Because I am so far behind on updates, I am so sorry, I am going to do a rundown of Talladega, Dover, Kansas and Charlotte all in one big article. (Sorry Richmond…I just ran out of time)
Hang on because I am sure it will be one long...possibly wild...ride.
Charlotte - May 27th, 2018
The Coca-Cola 600, the longest race of the year, and a definite fan favorite was raced on Sunday night. The race has been running since Joe Lee Johnson won in his Chevrolet in 1960. The average lap speed was 107.735 mph. Kyle Busch won the latest race at Charlotte Motor Speedway where the average lap speed was 136.692. It was also the last track that Kyle needed to win at to have won at all active NASCAR tracks. From all of us at Ladies of Speed we would like to congratulate the whole #18 team on the accomplishment!
Chase Elliott started his 600 out in the 22nd position. Elliott was able to make it to the 14th spot by the end of stage 1, and then continued on to finish stage 2 in the 7th position where he earned 4 points. Elliott was able to drive his Chevrolet to an 11th place finish.
William Byron started just ahead of Elliott in the 21st position. After hitting the wall during the second stage Byron went a few laps down. Byron would come back onto the track only to hit the wall again, he would ultimately finish 39th in his first 600. After the incident this is what Byron had to say: “It just felt like something broke going into 3 and we just hit the wall again and then we had an electrical issue. Unfortunate, but we will go to Pocono and figure it out there.”
Jimmie Johnson started just behind his two youngest teammates in the 23rd position. Johnson raced to finish 5th in stage 1 where he was awarded with 6 points. At the end of stage 2, Johnson was able to come to a finish in the 8th place, he gained 3 points. The four time Coca-Cola 600 winner was able to finish 5th at the end of the day.
Alex Bowman and the #88 crew, started their 600 off in the 29th position. By the end of stage one Bowman had driven the car all the way to 11th. Much happier now, the rest of the race went great. The #88 Chevy ran top 15 through the next few stages. Bowman was able to race to a 9th place finish in his first 600 for Hendrick Motorsports.
The Coca-Cola 600 has been raced on Memorial Day virtually every year since 1960, this year like in years past, each car was represented by a fallen military member. Below I have listed the driver and the military member:
Landon Cassill - Lance Corporal (LCpl) - Osbrany Montes De Oca
Jamie McMurray - Staff Sergeant (SSgt) - Scott Sather
Aric Almirola - Staff Sergeant (SSG) - Aaron Butler
Denny Hamlin - Sergeant First Class (SFC) - Jonathan K. Dozier
Ryan Blaney - Sergeant (SGT) - Ronald A. Kubik
Ty Dillon - Private First Class (PFC) - Charlie Anthony
Clint Bowyer - Specialist (SPC) - Alan Burgess
Ross Chastain - Staff Sergeant (SSG) - Allen Robert McKenna Jr.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. - Technical Sergeant (TSgt) - John Chapman
Kyle Busch - Sergeant (SGT) - Eric Toth
Daniel Suarez - Corporal (CPL) - Cody A. Putman
Brad Keselowski - Gunnery Sergeant (GySgt) - Chris Eckard
Erik Jones- Corporal (CPL) - Nicholas Roush
Paul Menard - First Lieutenant (1LT) - Leevi Barnard
Joey Logano - Staff Sergeant (SSgt) - Javier Ortiz Rivera
Gray Gaulding - Cpl - Christopher Ebert
William Byron- Major (MAJ) - Michael Donahue
Austin Dillon - Senior Chief Petty Officer (SCPO) - William Ryan Owens
Ryan Newman - Special Amphibious Reconnaissance Corpsman - Ryan Lohrey
Matt DiBenedetto - Captain (CPT) - Kyle Comfort
Michael McDowell - Cpl - Charles Palmer II
Chris Buescher - Staff Sergeant (SSG) - Robert F. White
David Ragan - Sergeant First Class (SFC) - Ricky L. Crockett
Kevin Harvick - Lance Corporal (LCpl) - Patrick Adle
Kurt Busch - Sergeant (SGT) - Jeremiah "Jay" Holmes
Kyle Larson - Captain (CPT) - Kimberly Hampton
Darrell Wallace Jr. - Technical Sergeant (TSgt) - Scott Duffman
AJ Allmendinger - LCpl - Darrell Schumann
Jimmie Johnson - Staff Sergeant (SSG) - Francis “Frankie” Phillips IV
BJ McLeod - Master Sgt - Davy Weaver
Jeffrey Earnhardt - MAJ - Samuel Griffith
Trevor Bayne - Sergeant (SGT) - Jonathon Hunter
Timmy Hill - SGT - Elijah Rao
JJ Yeley - SSgt - Thomas Dudley
Corey LaJoie- Staff Sergeant - (SSgt) David Stewart
Martin Truex Jr.- First Lieutenant - (1LT) Arlen Del Richardson
Alex Bowman - Captain (CPT) - Nick Rozanski
Chase Elliott - Corporal (Cpl) - John Chester Robertson
Kasey Kahne - Specialist (SPC) - Rudy Acosta
Parker Kligerman - Lance Corporal (LCpl) - Nic O'Brien
Grand Marshal #1 - Staff Sergeant - William “Billy” Kundrat
Grand Marshal #2 - Sergeant - Dietrich Schmieman
Grand Marshal #3 - Sergeant - Talon Leach
Grand Marshal #4 - Sergeant - Chad Elliott Jenson
Pace Car #1 - Captain (Capt) - Mark Weber
Pace Car #2 - Staff Sergeant - Joshua M. Snowden
Toyota Tundra #1 - Corporal - Daniel Baldassare
Toyota Tundra #2 - Specialist - Joshua Scott Piotrowski
Toyota Tundra #3 - Senior Airman - Bryce K. Powers
Toyota Tundra #4 - Lieutenant (LT) - J. Wesley Van Dorn
Toyota Tundra #5 - Petty Officer 3rd Class (DC3) - Nathan B. Bruckenthal
( All credit to motorsport.com)
Kansas - May 12th, 2018
Night race #1 for the 2018 season. Kansas is always a fun race for the fans and drivers alike.
Chase Elliott started the race in the 17th position and raced his way to a 15th position finish in stage one. Again in stage two, Elliott finished in the 15th position. By the end of the race, Elliott was able to pass two more cars and finish 12th, the highest of all HMS drivers.
William Byron started his day out in the 13th position, the best qualifying place of all HMS drivers at Kansas. Byron was able to finish stage one in the 20th position, only gaining three more positions to finish stage two in the 17th place. Byron unfortunately was involved in a fiery wreck with 14 laps to go in the race. Also involved in the multi car wreck was Clint Bowyer, Jamie McMurray, Matt Kenseth, Ty Dillon, Chris Buescher and Ryan Newman. After the wreck, Byron had this to say: “I think overall we were trying to kind of push some things there and it didn’t work out. We’re going to wherever’s next and that one was definitely the hardest hit I’ve been in, but thankful to be walking so that’s good.”
Jimmie Johnson started his race at Kansas in the 23rd position. Due to unforeseen problems, Johnson was lapped and finished stage one in the 28th position. By stage two, Johnson was able to race his way to 23rd. By the end of the race, Johnson was able to race all the way up to 19th, where he would stay for the rest of the race.
Kevin Harvick ended up winning at Kansas, his fifth win of the season. A fun fact for you: Harvick is the first driver since 1997 (Jeff Gordon) to win 5 races inside a 12 race span.
Dover - May 6th, 2018
Chase Elliott started in 6th on Sunday. Elliott was very consistent and finished stage one in the sixth place as well; he earned 5 stage points. At the end of stage two he finished ninth, where he gained 2 more stage points. After the rain delay, Elliott raced to the end of the race, finishing 12th.
William Byron started the race 17th and was inside the top 20 for the first stage. Byron raced around the 15th position for most of the race. He ended out his race at Dover in the 14th position.
Jimmie Johnson, AKA King of Dover, started inside the top 20 and was able to race to an 8th place stage one finish. Johnson came back in stage two and was able to finish 4th, four places better than stage one. By the end of the race, Johnson had taken a late race pit stop and finished 9th.
Alex Bowman started in the back of the pack after race inspections went bad. Bowman was able to finish stage one in the 24th position, 2 laps down. At the end of stage two, Bowman was still 2 laps down but in the 23rd place. The Monster Mile got the best of a lot of drivers, Bowman included; he finished 23rd, 4 laps down.
Kevin Harvick won his fourth race of the season.
Talladega - April 29th, 2018
Joey Logano What a win! I was so happy to see him win at Talladega. It was also neat to see Baby Hudson in Victory Lane with Brittany and Joey Logano.
Hendrick Motorsports had a pretty great weekend, they showed speed and growth in the new cars, even leading a handful of laps.
Chase Elliott qualified in the 5th position on Saturday. He unfortunately cut a tire after qualifying and was forced to change tires. Elliott started in the back, but he came back to finish 3rd. “I got to the end, and those guys around me were working together so much. I was trying to move forward and make a lane and push, and they were not interested,” Elliott said after the race. I have to agree with Elliott on this one. I was really hoping for some closer racing and someone to try and pass Joey Logano.
William Byron started 17th and had a great start to his first MENCS Talladega race. Byron was able to lead a few laps in stage one. Although with 25 laps to go Byron was wrecked and ended out his day in 29th.
Jimmie Johnson started 16th and was able to race in the top 15 most of the day. He finished in the 10th position in stage 1, earning 1 point. In stage 2 Johnson was able to finish 7th where he earned 4 points. With 25 laps to go, Johnson was involved in a crash….the big one. After the wreck, Johnson showed minimal damage and was able to race to a 12 place finish.
Alex Bowman started 11th and was able to race with his teammates most of the race, a few times finding himself back further than 20th. During stage 2, Bowman was caught speeding on pit road and had to serve a penalty. Bowman took the #88 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to an 8th place finish at the end of the day.
Notes:
This weekend we are going to Pocono. This is one of my favorite tracks and it is always a blast to watch.
Last years winner: Ryan Blaney
Last years pole winner: Kyle Busch
Fun facts about Pocono: The race track was first raced at in 1974. Jeff Gordon has won at Pocono 6 times.
As always, I hope you all have a great weekend and enjoy the race. I hope to be talking to you all again soon.
Follow and chat with me here: @wilson_kilee
Shop here now for new NASCAR gear!
June 2nd, 2018
So, I am sure you have been wondering where on earth Kilee Wilson has gone this past month. I know, I know- I have not been able to work on any articles in so long, you probably thought I quit. Well I did not quit, I could never quit; I just had a busy few weeks with work and school and was unable to take a few spare moments to gather the information to write.
On top of work and school I had a busy few weeks with travelling to see family in Idaho, hiking and I even got to go whitewater rafting again. It was a blast, you can see some photos on my Instagram Kwilson8848 if you want.
Because I am so far behind on updates, I am so sorry, I am going to do a rundown of Talladega, Dover, Kansas and Charlotte all in one big article. (Sorry Richmond…I just ran out of time)
Hang on because I am sure it will be one long...possibly wild...ride.
Charlotte - May 27th, 2018
The Coca-Cola 600, the longest race of the year, and a definite fan favorite was raced on Sunday night. The race has been running since Joe Lee Johnson won in his Chevrolet in 1960. The average lap speed was 107.735 mph. Kyle Busch won the latest race at Charlotte Motor Speedway where the average lap speed was 136.692. It was also the last track that Kyle needed to win at to have won at all active NASCAR tracks. From all of us at Ladies of Speed we would like to congratulate the whole #18 team on the accomplishment!
Chase Elliott started his 600 out in the 22nd position. Elliott was able to make it to the 14th spot by the end of stage 1, and then continued on to finish stage 2 in the 7th position where he earned 4 points. Elliott was able to drive his Chevrolet to an 11th place finish.
William Byron started just ahead of Elliott in the 21st position. After hitting the wall during the second stage Byron went a few laps down. Byron would come back onto the track only to hit the wall again, he would ultimately finish 39th in his first 600. After the incident this is what Byron had to say: “It just felt like something broke going into 3 and we just hit the wall again and then we had an electrical issue. Unfortunate, but we will go to Pocono and figure it out there.”
Jimmie Johnson started just behind his two youngest teammates in the 23rd position. Johnson raced to finish 5th in stage 1 where he was awarded with 6 points. At the end of stage 2, Johnson was able to come to a finish in the 8th place, he gained 3 points. The four time Coca-Cola 600 winner was able to finish 5th at the end of the day.
Alex Bowman and the #88 crew, started their 600 off in the 29th position. By the end of stage one Bowman had driven the car all the way to 11th. Much happier now, the rest of the race went great. The #88 Chevy ran top 15 through the next few stages. Bowman was able to race to a 9th place finish in his first 600 for Hendrick Motorsports.
The Coca-Cola 600 has been raced on Memorial Day virtually every year since 1960, this year like in years past, each car was represented by a fallen military member. Below I have listed the driver and the military member:
Landon Cassill - Lance Corporal (LCpl) - Osbrany Montes De Oca
Jamie McMurray - Staff Sergeant (SSgt) - Scott Sather
Aric Almirola - Staff Sergeant (SSG) - Aaron Butler
Denny Hamlin - Sergeant First Class (SFC) - Jonathan K. Dozier
Ryan Blaney - Sergeant (SGT) - Ronald A. Kubik
Ty Dillon - Private First Class (PFC) - Charlie Anthony
Clint Bowyer - Specialist (SPC) - Alan Burgess
Ross Chastain - Staff Sergeant (SSG) - Allen Robert McKenna Jr.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. - Technical Sergeant (TSgt) - John Chapman
Kyle Busch - Sergeant (SGT) - Eric Toth
Daniel Suarez - Corporal (CPL) - Cody A. Putman
Brad Keselowski - Gunnery Sergeant (GySgt) - Chris Eckard
Erik Jones- Corporal (CPL) - Nicholas Roush
Paul Menard - First Lieutenant (1LT) - Leevi Barnard
Joey Logano - Staff Sergeant (SSgt) - Javier Ortiz Rivera
Gray Gaulding - Cpl - Christopher Ebert
William Byron- Major (MAJ) - Michael Donahue
Austin Dillon - Senior Chief Petty Officer (SCPO) - William Ryan Owens
Ryan Newman - Special Amphibious Reconnaissance Corpsman - Ryan Lohrey
Matt DiBenedetto - Captain (CPT) - Kyle Comfort
Michael McDowell - Cpl - Charles Palmer II
Chris Buescher - Staff Sergeant (SSG) - Robert F. White
David Ragan - Sergeant First Class (SFC) - Ricky L. Crockett
Kevin Harvick - Lance Corporal (LCpl) - Patrick Adle
Kurt Busch - Sergeant (SGT) - Jeremiah "Jay" Holmes
Kyle Larson - Captain (CPT) - Kimberly Hampton
Darrell Wallace Jr. - Technical Sergeant (TSgt) - Scott Duffman
AJ Allmendinger - LCpl - Darrell Schumann
Jimmie Johnson - Staff Sergeant (SSG) - Francis “Frankie” Phillips IV
BJ McLeod - Master Sgt - Davy Weaver
Jeffrey Earnhardt - MAJ - Samuel Griffith
Trevor Bayne - Sergeant (SGT) - Jonathon Hunter
Timmy Hill - SGT - Elijah Rao
JJ Yeley - SSgt - Thomas Dudley
Corey LaJoie- Staff Sergeant - (SSgt) David Stewart
Martin Truex Jr.- First Lieutenant - (1LT) Arlen Del Richardson
Alex Bowman - Captain (CPT) - Nick Rozanski
Chase Elliott - Corporal (Cpl) - John Chester Robertson
Kasey Kahne - Specialist (SPC) - Rudy Acosta
Parker Kligerman - Lance Corporal (LCpl) - Nic O'Brien
Grand Marshal #1 - Staff Sergeant - William “Billy” Kundrat
Grand Marshal #2 - Sergeant - Dietrich Schmieman
Grand Marshal #3 - Sergeant - Talon Leach
Grand Marshal #4 - Sergeant - Chad Elliott Jenson
Pace Car #1 - Captain (Capt) - Mark Weber
Pace Car #2 - Staff Sergeant - Joshua M. Snowden
Toyota Tundra #1 - Corporal - Daniel Baldassare
Toyota Tundra #2 - Specialist - Joshua Scott Piotrowski
Toyota Tundra #3 - Senior Airman - Bryce K. Powers
Toyota Tundra #4 - Lieutenant (LT) - J. Wesley Van Dorn
Toyota Tundra #5 - Petty Officer 3rd Class (DC3) - Nathan B. Bruckenthal
( All credit to motorsport.com)
Kansas - May 12th, 2018
Night race #1 for the 2018 season. Kansas is always a fun race for the fans and drivers alike.
Chase Elliott started the race in the 17th position and raced his way to a 15th position finish in stage one. Again in stage two, Elliott finished in the 15th position. By the end of the race, Elliott was able to pass two more cars and finish 12th, the highest of all HMS drivers.
William Byron started his day out in the 13th position, the best qualifying place of all HMS drivers at Kansas. Byron was able to finish stage one in the 20th position, only gaining three more positions to finish stage two in the 17th place. Byron unfortunately was involved in a fiery wreck with 14 laps to go in the race. Also involved in the multi car wreck was Clint Bowyer, Jamie McMurray, Matt Kenseth, Ty Dillon, Chris Buescher and Ryan Newman. After the wreck, Byron had this to say: “I think overall we were trying to kind of push some things there and it didn’t work out. We’re going to wherever’s next and that one was definitely the hardest hit I’ve been in, but thankful to be walking so that’s good.”
Jimmie Johnson started his race at Kansas in the 23rd position. Due to unforeseen problems, Johnson was lapped and finished stage one in the 28th position. By stage two, Johnson was able to race his way to 23rd. By the end of the race, Johnson was able to race all the way up to 19th, where he would stay for the rest of the race.
Kevin Harvick ended up winning at Kansas, his fifth win of the season. A fun fact for you: Harvick is the first driver since 1997 (Jeff Gordon) to win 5 races inside a 12 race span.
Dover - May 6th, 2018
Chase Elliott started in 6th on Sunday. Elliott was very consistent and finished stage one in the sixth place as well; he earned 5 stage points. At the end of stage two he finished ninth, where he gained 2 more stage points. After the rain delay, Elliott raced to the end of the race, finishing 12th.
William Byron started the race 17th and was inside the top 20 for the first stage. Byron raced around the 15th position for most of the race. He ended out his race at Dover in the 14th position.
Jimmie Johnson, AKA King of Dover, started inside the top 20 and was able to race to an 8th place stage one finish. Johnson came back in stage two and was able to finish 4th, four places better than stage one. By the end of the race, Johnson had taken a late race pit stop and finished 9th.
Alex Bowman started in the back of the pack after race inspections went bad. Bowman was able to finish stage one in the 24th position, 2 laps down. At the end of stage two, Bowman was still 2 laps down but in the 23rd place. The Monster Mile got the best of a lot of drivers, Bowman included; he finished 23rd, 4 laps down.
Kevin Harvick won his fourth race of the season.
Talladega - April 29th, 2018
Joey Logano What a win! I was so happy to see him win at Talladega. It was also neat to see Baby Hudson in Victory Lane with Brittany and Joey Logano.
Hendrick Motorsports had a pretty great weekend, they showed speed and growth in the new cars, even leading a handful of laps.
Chase Elliott qualified in the 5th position on Saturday. He unfortunately cut a tire after qualifying and was forced to change tires. Elliott started in the back, but he came back to finish 3rd. “I got to the end, and those guys around me were working together so much. I was trying to move forward and make a lane and push, and they were not interested,” Elliott said after the race. I have to agree with Elliott on this one. I was really hoping for some closer racing and someone to try and pass Joey Logano.
William Byron started 17th and had a great start to his first MENCS Talladega race. Byron was able to lead a few laps in stage one. Although with 25 laps to go Byron was wrecked and ended out his day in 29th.
Jimmie Johnson started 16th and was able to race in the top 15 most of the day. He finished in the 10th position in stage 1, earning 1 point. In stage 2 Johnson was able to finish 7th where he earned 4 points. With 25 laps to go, Johnson was involved in a crash….the big one. After the wreck, Johnson showed minimal damage and was able to race to a 12 place finish.
Alex Bowman started 11th and was able to race with his teammates most of the race, a few times finding himself back further than 20th. During stage 2, Bowman was caught speeding on pit road and had to serve a penalty. Bowman took the #88 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 to an 8th place finish at the end of the day.
Notes:
- Jeff Gordon was announced as a 2019 Hall of Famer! Also on this years Hall of Fame list:
- Alan Kulwicki
- Davey Allison
- Jack Roush
- Roger Penske
- Congrats to all!
- Fan of the Week is cancelled until further notice, I really did not want to do this but for the sake of time and lack of nominees it was not much of an option any more. I still am going to host a drawing for the t-shirt here sometime in the next few weeks. Below, I have all the past FOTW winners.
- Michael Nicholas II
- Lauren Bogle
- Kaitlin Rowley
- Crystal Titus
- Johnna Burke
- Olivia Jenkins
- Jessy Miller
- Bebe
- If I by any chance forgot a winner, please just let me know and I will add you to the list. I am very forgetful, so it would not shock me if I somehow forgot one person.
- If you are any of these winners, and you win the drawing, I will contact you directly and you will just need to respond within 2 days.
- I will just be asking for the size of the shirt you want and the location that the shirt is to be delivered.
This weekend we are going to Pocono. This is one of my favorite tracks and it is always a blast to watch.
Last years winner: Ryan Blaney
Last years pole winner: Kyle Busch
Fun facts about Pocono: The race track was first raced at in 1974. Jeff Gordon has won at Pocono 6 times.
As always, I hope you all have a great weekend and enjoy the race. I hope to be talking to you all again soon.
Follow and chat with me here: @wilson_kilee
Shop here now for new NASCAR gear!
Bristol
April 15-16, 2018
After some rain, some more rain and even some snow. We FINALLY got to see some racing at Bristol Motor Speedway. I hope at least some of you were able to watch the race. I was able to catch the end in between class and work. So unbelievably cool to see Bubba Wallace lead laps for the first time. I was so pumped for him.
Chase Elliott was, unfortunately, involved in an early wreck on lap 4, resulting in losing 37 laps and finishing outside the top 25.
William Byron ran between 15th and 20th all day but was able to rally to finish 18th. A solid finish for the young lad.
Jimmie Johnson was able to work his way from the back of the pack to top 20 in the first 10 laps of the race. Johnson was able to finish 7th in Stage #1, earning himself 4 points. At the end of Stage #2, Johnson finished 3rd and earned himself 8 more points. Johnson finished the race in the 3rd position.
Alex Bowman started highest of all the Hendrick Motorsports drivers in the 8th position. He went on to finish Stage #1 in the 16 position and then 7th in Stage #2, he gained 4 points from the result. Bowman then went on to finish 5th, his first ever top five finish. Congratulations, Alex.
I hope you all enjoyed your weekends. I was able to travel further west to Seattle to watch the PBR (Pro Bull Riding) with my family. It was a lot of fun to watch and my favorite bull rider even won the event.
I would love to hear from you all rather it be on Twitter (@wilson_kilee) or on Instagram (@kwilson8848). Hearing from readers makes my day! I am always looking for new ideas for the articles and am always looking for your Fan of the Week nominations. I love getting to hear the fans’ stories and learning more about the amazing people that are part of the NASCAR world.
April 15-16, 2018
After some rain, some more rain and even some snow. We FINALLY got to see some racing at Bristol Motor Speedway. I hope at least some of you were able to watch the race. I was able to catch the end in between class and work. So unbelievably cool to see Bubba Wallace lead laps for the first time. I was so pumped for him.
Chase Elliott was, unfortunately, involved in an early wreck on lap 4, resulting in losing 37 laps and finishing outside the top 25.
William Byron ran between 15th and 20th all day but was able to rally to finish 18th. A solid finish for the young lad.
Jimmie Johnson was able to work his way from the back of the pack to top 20 in the first 10 laps of the race. Johnson was able to finish 7th in Stage #1, earning himself 4 points. At the end of Stage #2, Johnson finished 3rd and earned himself 8 more points. Johnson finished the race in the 3rd position.
Alex Bowman started highest of all the Hendrick Motorsports drivers in the 8th position. He went on to finish Stage #1 in the 16 position and then 7th in Stage #2, he gained 4 points from the result. Bowman then went on to finish 5th, his first ever top five finish. Congratulations, Alex.
I hope you all enjoyed your weekends. I was able to travel further west to Seattle to watch the PBR (Pro Bull Riding) with my family. It was a lot of fun to watch and my favorite bull rider even won the event.
I would love to hear from you all rather it be on Twitter (@wilson_kilee) or on Instagram (@kwilson8848). Hearing from readers makes my day! I am always looking for new ideas for the articles and am always looking for your Fan of the Week nominations. I love getting to hear the fans’ stories and learning more about the amazing people that are part of the NASCAR world.
Next up is Richmond.
Some facts about this week’s track: Richard Petty has won at the short track 13 times. The first race was held in 1953 and the corners have a whopping 14 degrees of banking.
Here is Richmond’s schedule:
Friday, April 20, 2018
4:05 P.M. EST - NASCAR Xfinity Series qualifying on FS1
5:30 P.M. EST - Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Busch Pole Qualifying on FS1
7:oo P.M. EST - NASCAR Xfinity Series ToyotaCare 250 on FS1 (250 laps for 187.5 miles)
Saturday, April 21, 2018
6:30 P.M. EST - Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Toyota Owners 400 on FOX (400 laps for 300 miles)
Follow and chat with me here: @wilson_kilee
Set, pit, repeat.□ pic.twitter.com/hwj1CQRLjT
— Hendrick Motorsports (@TeamHendrick) April 18, 2018
Texas
April 8, 2018
After a very exciting race, HMS only had 50% of their drivers finish the race.
Alex Bowman wrecked within the first two laps of the race, while Jimmie Johnson was wrecked in the first lap of the final segment. Both drivers finished outside the top 25.
Despite the issues that the 48 and 88 teams had, Chase Elliott and William Byron both had a solid race.
William Byron placed in the 10th position, highest of all HMS drivers. Byron is slowly inching his way towards a win!! As he told NASCAR.com “I want to be a winner.”
Chase Elliott also had a solid race. The Dawsonville, GA driver finished 11th after starting 20th. Although, after the race, Elliott’s car was found in violation of Section 20.4.8.1 (involving the rear window support). There is a brace that supports the rear window that did not meet specifications for keeping the glass in the rear rigid.
Alan Gustafson was fined $50,000 by NASCAR and was suspended for two NASCAR Cup Series races. The team lost a total of 20 owner points and 20 driver points. Kenny Francis will serve as the fill in crew chief. Kenny Francis, a Jacksonville, Florida native, currently serves as Hendrick Motorsports’ vehicle technical director. Francis has 17 wins with 75 top-five finishes and 149 top-10s as a NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series crew chief.
April 8, 2018
After a very exciting race, HMS only had 50% of their drivers finish the race.
Alex Bowman wrecked within the first two laps of the race, while Jimmie Johnson was wrecked in the first lap of the final segment. Both drivers finished outside the top 25.
Despite the issues that the 48 and 88 teams had, Chase Elliott and William Byron both had a solid race.
William Byron placed in the 10th position, highest of all HMS drivers. Byron is slowly inching his way towards a win!! As he told NASCAR.com “I want to be a winner.”
Chase Elliott also had a solid race. The Dawsonville, GA driver finished 11th after starting 20th. Although, after the race, Elliott’s car was found in violation of Section 20.4.8.1 (involving the rear window support). There is a brace that supports the rear window that did not meet specifications for keeping the glass in the rear rigid.
Alan Gustafson was fined $50,000 by NASCAR and was suspended for two NASCAR Cup Series races. The team lost a total of 20 owner points and 20 driver points. Kenny Francis will serve as the fill in crew chief. Kenny Francis, a Jacksonville, Florida native, currently serves as Hendrick Motorsports’ vehicle technical director. Francis has 17 wins with 75 top-five finishes and 149 top-10s as a NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series crew chief.
Follow and chat with me here: @wilson_kilee
Follow and chat with me here: @wilson_kilee
Martinsville
March 26, 2018
SNOW DAY at Martinsville! Wait….Snow?
I thought snow in late March was only for North Idaho, although it turns out it happens in Virginia too. (Just so everyone knows, it is snowing right now in Idaho….So much for spring weather.)
Although, I was happy that the race was cancelled only because it was my Spring Break and I was at my grandparents house and had time to actually watch the race. I was so happy when Clint Bowyer won. I could not even stop smiling. It is races like Martinsville that make being a racing fan worth it all.
All track activity was moved from Sunday to Monday because of the snow storm, also dragging along with it the Camping World Truck race. With qualifying being cancelled Hendrick Motorsports rolled off the grid Monday in the order of points, with Martin Truex Jr. starting on the pole.
Alex Bowman finished the highest of all HMS drivers. He had this to say after the race was over: “It’s frustrating to say we are looking for a seventh, but much better than we have been the last couple of weeks and just happy for all my guys. They have worked really hard all offseason and all year. We haven’t had the results we wanted, so to come here and finish stronger is definitely a step in the right direction. We’ve got a long way to go, but we are headed the right way.” Another small step in the right direction for the young driver. I am very happy that HMS is finally getting the finishes that they have worked for.
HMS had a solid weekend overall at the Paperclip.
March 26, 2018
SNOW DAY at Martinsville! Wait….Snow?
I thought snow in late March was only for North Idaho, although it turns out it happens in Virginia too. (Just so everyone knows, it is snowing right now in Idaho….So much for spring weather.)
Although, I was happy that the race was cancelled only because it was my Spring Break and I was at my grandparents house and had time to actually watch the race. I was so happy when Clint Bowyer won. I could not even stop smiling. It is races like Martinsville that make being a racing fan worth it all.
All track activity was moved from Sunday to Monday because of the snow storm, also dragging along with it the Camping World Truck race. With qualifying being cancelled Hendrick Motorsports rolled off the grid Monday in the order of points, with Martin Truex Jr. starting on the pole.
Alex Bowman finished the highest of all HMS drivers. He had this to say after the race was over: “It’s frustrating to say we are looking for a seventh, but much better than we have been the last couple of weeks and just happy for all my guys. They have worked really hard all offseason and all year. We haven’t had the results we wanted, so to come here and finish stronger is definitely a step in the right direction. We’ve got a long way to go, but we are headed the right way.” Another small step in the right direction for the young driver. I am very happy that HMS is finally getting the finishes that they have worked for.
HMS had a solid weekend overall at the Paperclip.
This coming weekend NASCAR heads to Texas Motor Speedway. Here are all the times you will need for this weekend.
Friday, April 6, 2018
1-1:55 p.m. EST - Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series first practice on FS1
2:05-2:55 p.m. EST - NASCAR Xfinity Series first practice on FS1
4:05-4:55 p.m. EST - NASCAR Xfinity Series final practice on FS1
5:45 p.m. EST - Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Busch Pole Qualifying on FS1
Saturday, April 7, 2018
11-11:55 a.m. EST - Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice on FS1
12:10 p.m. EST - NASCAR Xfinity Series qualifying on FS1
1:30-2:20 p.m. EST - Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice on FS1
3:00 p.m. EST - NASCAR Xfinity Series My Bariatric Solutions 300 on FOX
Sunday, April 8,2018
2:00 p.m. EST - Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 on FS1
Reminder: I am always looking for more nominations for Ladies of Speed Fan of the Week. All you have to do is tag a family member or friend who loves NASCAR, and me. As soon as we reach 10 fans I will have a drawing and the winner can win a free t-shirt of their favorite driver.
Who do you think will win this weekend at Texas? I think that Jimmie Johnson or Kyle Busch will win.
As always, I hope you all have a great week and an awesome weekend. Texas, here we come.
Follow and chat with me here: @wilson_kilee
Auto Club
March 18, 2018
Oh Fontana, we all seem to enjoy this track, myself included. For Hendrick Motorsports it was a great weekend for good finishes overall. As an HMS fan, I used this solid weekend as a stepping stone in the right direction with the new Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 cars.
After finishing out of the top ten in all the races, Jimmie Johnson was able to rally to a 9th place position at his home track. After the race Johnson had this to say about the past few weeks as a whole, “We’re definitely not happy with where we are right now but to see the improvements, we’ve been seeing it internally and to make the cars drive better and better and get more competitive. A strong day for the Lowe’s for Pros Chevy, definitely not where we want to be but we’re getting closer every week.”
March 18, 2018
Oh Fontana, we all seem to enjoy this track, myself included. For Hendrick Motorsports it was a great weekend for good finishes overall. As an HMS fan, I used this solid weekend as a stepping stone in the right direction with the new Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 cars.
After finishing out of the top ten in all the races, Jimmie Johnson was able to rally to a 9th place position at his home track. After the race Johnson had this to say about the past few weeks as a whole, “We’re definitely not happy with where we are right now but to see the improvements, we’ve been seeing it internally and to make the cars drive better and better and get more competitive. A strong day for the Lowe’s for Pros Chevy, definitely not where we want to be but we’re getting closer every week.”
Fan of the Week: Michael Nicholas II
Over the last few weeks, I had the privilege to get to know Michael Nicholas II, our fan of the week from Fontana. Michael has been a fan for as long as he can remember, he specifically remembers when Bill Elliott won the Winston Million in 1985. He told me that at the time he had no idea how big it was to win the million, but as the years went on he was able to realize how big of a race that was for Bill Elliott to win.
Michael has a few favorite drivers: Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Kyle Busch. He even told me that he has a lot of diecast cars of his drivers.
Michael looks forward to the NASCAR road races at Sonoma and Watkins Glen, because of the left and right turns. This year NASCAR is returning to Charlotte a second time, but rather than running the oval they will be running the road course, oval hybrid; the roval. Michael expressed to me how excited he is to see that race as well.
Michael has a lot of really interesting facts about him and I thought some were excellent, so I would love to share them all with you. Michael has Cerebral Palsy. Regardless, he still has two degrees in Political Science and History. Two times, Michael was able to reach out on Twitter and receive answers from both Danica Patrick and Jeff Gordon. I have quoted the text he sent me so you can understand his excitement.
“It's hard for me to pick a favorite NASCAR memory because I have had some very unique ones. One that happened recently occurred during the 2017 season. NASCAR Race Hub on Fox Sports 1 said you could Tweet questions for Jeff Gordon. I sent in my question, "What is the hardest part of broadcasting a race?" Jeff Gordon answered my question live on the show. I got to see my Twitter picture on the screen. I have pictures of my television from that night. Xfinity also did a promotion with hashtag sign my Tweet. I wrote a Tweet to Danica Patrick. I was then sent an electronic picture of Miss Patrick holding a large poster with that Tweet. Then you get sent the poster in the mail.”
Michael that is so cool, I love hearing stories like this!
In addition, Michael also collects celebrity autographs books and sports rulebooks. The NASCAR Rulebook is not available publicly yet, you must be a member of NASCAR or a NASCAR Media Member to get one, so Michael wrote a letter to NASCAR president Mike Helton and NASCAR chief executive officer Brian France in which he asked them about the policy. Michael still has not heard back from them yet.
If Michael had one dream to do anything, money no objection at all, he would buy a van with a wheelchair lift to make it easier for him to travel. He also would purchase a house where he could live more independently. It would be staffed with multiple people so Michael’s parents and family didn't need to be relied on so heavily. With Cerebral Palsy people are unable to get in a car or take public transit like an unaffected person is. There is more thinking required to do any task in daily life. Regardless of Michael's condition he has still been able to travel to exciting places like: television studios, baseball, basketball, football games, the United States Capitol in Washington, DC and even sat in on a Supreme Court while there.
Something that Michael would like to do in the future is to visit Orlando, Florida. Along with visiting Florida he would also like to attend the Miss America Museum inside the Sheraton Hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey. He has always has a goal of being invited to a Miss America event. When it happens he would like to take a picture and ask a few questions. Then he would personally thank them for their work with Make A Wish and Children's Miracle Network hospitals.
I would also like to quote Michael one last time. These words are impactful and made me smile, “You can't be afraid to ask questions, and why you can't do things. If the answer is, because no one has done that always remember someone must be the first.”
Thank you, Michael for all your wonderful answers and your time. It was an honor to be able to get to know you and learn more about Cerebral Palsy. I wish you all the luck with your future endeavors, I sure hope you are able to get that van. Give him a follow on Twitter @manicholasii
Follow and chat with me here: @wilson_kilee
Phoenix
March 11, 2018
Hello! We are back again with yet another article. I hope you all a great weekend. I sure did. I am really glad to say I made it through another quarter at school and am one step closer to graduation. I have been really swamped with work and school in the past month but will now get you updated on happenings with Hendrick Motorsports.
Phoenix was everything I expected, yet nothing I predicted at the same time. I would first like to congratulate Kevin Harvick on his back to back to back wins. In this day and age we hardly ever see domination this early in the season with such force.
Chase Elliott was able to finish top five in the third position at IMS Speedway, first HMS driver to finish top ten all year long. Although, after the race, Elliott’s #9 HMS Chevy was found in violation of Section 20.14.2 of the Nascar Rule Book. This rule deals with the rear suspension, more specifically the trailing arm angles and the pinion angle shims. The whole team was penalized with 25 owner and driver points being deducted. Alan Gustafson, crew chief of the Napa #9, was fined $50,000 while Elliott’s car chief, Josh Kirk, was suspended for two races.
William Byron led his first laps ever in a Cup car. A big accomplishment for the young driver who has only been in four Monster Energy Nascar races. Byron finished in the highest position of his young career, 12th. After leading 15 laps Byron became the third youngest driver in Cup history to lead laps. After the race Byron had a lot of positive things to say, “It’s going to take a little bit of work, but it was fun to at least be up there a little bit.”
Also, for all of you doubting Jimmie Johnson’s comeback just remember, he has won 83 races while leading more than 18,000 laps. Johnson also has had 35 poles inside his career, where he has also won 7 championships. His time will come, just you wait.
March 11, 2018
Hello! We are back again with yet another article. I hope you all a great weekend. I sure did. I am really glad to say I made it through another quarter at school and am one step closer to graduation. I have been really swamped with work and school in the past month but will now get you updated on happenings with Hendrick Motorsports.
Phoenix was everything I expected, yet nothing I predicted at the same time. I would first like to congratulate Kevin Harvick on his back to back to back wins. In this day and age we hardly ever see domination this early in the season with such force.
Chase Elliott was able to finish top five in the third position at IMS Speedway, first HMS driver to finish top ten all year long. Although, after the race, Elliott’s #9 HMS Chevy was found in violation of Section 20.14.2 of the Nascar Rule Book. This rule deals with the rear suspension, more specifically the trailing arm angles and the pinion angle shims. The whole team was penalized with 25 owner and driver points being deducted. Alan Gustafson, crew chief of the Napa #9, was fined $50,000 while Elliott’s car chief, Josh Kirk, was suspended for two races.
William Byron led his first laps ever in a Cup car. A big accomplishment for the young driver who has only been in four Monster Energy Nascar races. Byron finished in the highest position of his young career, 12th. After leading 15 laps Byron became the third youngest driver in Cup history to lead laps. After the race Byron had a lot of positive things to say, “It’s going to take a little bit of work, but it was fun to at least be up there a little bit.”
Also, for all of you doubting Jimmie Johnson’s comeback just remember, he has won 83 races while leading more than 18,000 laps. Johnson also has had 35 poles inside his career, where he has also won 7 championships. His time will come, just you wait.
Our fan of the week during Phoenix is Bebe. Although, unfortunately due to some unforeseen problems, we were unable to connect to do the interview and questions so her fan of the week introduction and photo will be added at another date. You can check my page http://www.ladiesofspeed.org/kilee-2018-hms.html for updates on Bebe’s article.
Follow and chat with me here: @wilson_kilee
Atlanta & Las Vegas
March 4, 2018
Dobrý Den (Czech for Hello). I hope you all have had a lovely week It has been stressful for me. I am really just looking forward to having a two day break to sleep.
The last two weeks were not just hard for me, but also for the Hendrick Motorsports drivers. I have created a small chart for your viewing pleasure. This is an easy way to see where your favorite HMS driver started and finished in the last two races, just in case you didn’t see them.
March 4, 2018
Dobrý Den (Czech for Hello). I hope you all have had a lovely week It has been stressful for me. I am really just looking forward to having a two day break to sleep.
The last two weeks were not just hard for me, but also for the Hendrick Motorsports drivers. I have created a small chart for your viewing pleasure. This is an easy way to see where your favorite HMS driver started and finished in the last two races, just in case you didn’t see them.
We were located at Chase Elliott’s home track, Atlanta Motor Speedway, February 25, where we were honored to see Elliott finish in the top ten yet again. He has yet to finish outside the first ten in all his races at AMS!
Chase Elliott started in the 27th position and throughout the race was able to race his way to the front where he was able to finish 10th.
William Byron fought with his car all day long in Atlanta. He struggled and eventually fell a lap down, he finished his long day in the 18th position.
Jimmie Johnson started 22nd, during stage 2 with 12 laps to go, Johnson spun. The Lowe’s team was able to fix the car and get Johnson back on the track and he finished 27th.
Alex Bowman started 18th, he was the highest qualifier for HMS. Bowman had a late tire go flat and he ended his Atlanta race in the 20th position.
Chase Elliott started in the 27th position and throughout the race was able to race his way to the front where he was able to finish 10th.
William Byron fought with his car all day long in Atlanta. He struggled and eventually fell a lap down, he finished his long day in the 18th position.
Jimmie Johnson started 22nd, during stage 2 with 12 laps to go, Johnson spun. The Lowe’s team was able to fix the car and get Johnson back on the track and he finished 27th.
Alex Bowman started 18th, he was the highest qualifier for HMS. Bowman had a late tire go flat and he ended his Atlanta race in the 20th position.
Atlanta’s Fan of the Week: Lauren Bogle
Lauren Bogle is studying exercise science in college right now. You go, girl! Lauren has been a NASCAR fan since she was a little girl, although she has been more interested in racing since last summer. Lauren likes most all of the drivers, but her favorite is Darrell Wallace Jr - go, Bubba! She explained to me how much she loved Behind the Wall, and how teary eyed she was during the last episode (Don’t worry Lauren, I cried too- no shame.)
Lauren’s dream team of drivers would be Dale Earnhardt Sr., Dale Earnhardt Jr., Bubba Wallace and Ryan Blaney.
If Lauren had the opportunity to go to any race on the NASCAR circuit she would go to Talladega (Good pick) because her aunt and uncle have attended races at Dega and loved the overall experience. Lauren would like to have the same experience so she would pick Dega over all the other tracks.
Well, Lauren if you ever get to go to Talladega, let me know and I will meet you there and we can watch the race together.
Lauren also mentioned that she would love to go on a ride along with Bubba Wallace at Michigan, going full speed.
A few fun facts about Lauren: She has never broken a bone, she loves to eat cereal for dinner and she is going to be the maid of honor in her sister’s wedding in June. Give her a follow @BogleLauren
Lauren Bogle is studying exercise science in college right now. You go, girl! Lauren has been a NASCAR fan since she was a little girl, although she has been more interested in racing since last summer. Lauren likes most all of the drivers, but her favorite is Darrell Wallace Jr - go, Bubba! She explained to me how much she loved Behind the Wall, and how teary eyed she was during the last episode (Don’t worry Lauren, I cried too- no shame.)
Lauren’s dream team of drivers would be Dale Earnhardt Sr., Dale Earnhardt Jr., Bubba Wallace and Ryan Blaney.
If Lauren had the opportunity to go to any race on the NASCAR circuit she would go to Talladega (Good pick) because her aunt and uncle have attended races at Dega and loved the overall experience. Lauren would like to have the same experience so she would pick Dega over all the other tracks.
Well, Lauren if you ever get to go to Talladega, let me know and I will meet you there and we can watch the race together.
Lauren also mentioned that she would love to go on a ride along with Bubba Wallace at Michigan, going full speed.
A few fun facts about Lauren: She has never broken a bone, she loves to eat cereal for dinner and she is going to be the maid of honor in her sister’s wedding in June. Give her a follow @BogleLauren
February 25, 2018
Chase Elliott started in the sixth position on Sunday. He unfortunately was wrecked along with Kurt Busch in Stage 3 with 83 laps to go. He finished 34th.
William Byron started in his first Las Vegas race in the 17th position. He ran mid pack for most of Sunday and came to finish 27th.
Jimmie Johnson started off Sunday in the back of the field after failing inspection 3 times. With 75 laps to go in the race, Johnson was able to make it into the top 15. He finished 12th, highest of all HMS drivers.
Alex Bowman started his weekend off in the 20th position. After a long day, he finally got to the lucky dog free pass position to get his lap back, but a caution never came and he finished 16th.
Chase Elliott started in the sixth position on Sunday. He unfortunately was wrecked along with Kurt Busch in Stage 3 with 83 laps to go. He finished 34th.
William Byron started in his first Las Vegas race in the 17th position. He ran mid pack for most of Sunday and came to finish 27th.
Jimmie Johnson started off Sunday in the back of the field after failing inspection 3 times. With 75 laps to go in the race, Johnson was able to make it into the top 15. He finished 12th, highest of all HMS drivers.
Alex Bowman started his weekend off in the 20th position. After a long day, he finally got to the lucky dog free pass position to get his lap back, but a caution never came and he finished 16th.
Las Vegas’s Fan of the Week- Kaitlin Rowley
Kaitlin is also a college student, like Lauren, and is studying English Education.
Kaitlin has been a fan for her whole life, but she has most recently got into NASCAR more than ever.
Chase Elliott is her favorite driver (Go HMS!!!). Kaitlin’s dream team would consist of Dale Earnhardt Sr., Dale Earnhardt Jr., Richard Petty and Jimmie Johnson. (Pretty good team if you ask me)
If Kaitlin could go to any track, no cost to her whatsoever, she would go to Daytona. (Girl, you better call me and make plans so we can go together)
One opportunity that Kaitlin would like to have is to do a ride along with Dale Jr. at Daytona because she likes him a lot and wants to be able to say she has done a ride along at Daytona.
A few fun facts about Kaitlin: She is dating a Marine who is currently based overseas in Japan. She is from the rainiest city in the U.S.A. and she loves to get Dutch Bros. Coffee really late at night. Give her a follow @_kaitlin_rose
Phoenix (ISM) Schedule
Sunday, March 11, 2018
As always, I hope you all have a wonderful week and enjoy your weekend. I plan to work on homework and I am helping at a science seminar for elementary kids on Saturday so I will at least keep busy.
Remember to nominate for Fan of the Week. Just tag @wilson_kilee in the tweet or @LOSdotOrg, either will work. We only need 4 more fans before we can do a drawing for the t-shirt. Keep nominating, the more the merrier.
Talk with you all next week.
Follow and chat with me here: @wilson_kilee
Kaitlin is also a college student, like Lauren, and is studying English Education.
Kaitlin has been a fan for her whole life, but she has most recently got into NASCAR more than ever.
Chase Elliott is her favorite driver (Go HMS!!!). Kaitlin’s dream team would consist of Dale Earnhardt Sr., Dale Earnhardt Jr., Richard Petty and Jimmie Johnson. (Pretty good team if you ask me)
If Kaitlin could go to any track, no cost to her whatsoever, she would go to Daytona. (Girl, you better call me and make plans so we can go together)
One opportunity that Kaitlin would like to have is to do a ride along with Dale Jr. at Daytona because she likes him a lot and wants to be able to say she has done a ride along at Daytona.
A few fun facts about Kaitlin: She is dating a Marine who is currently based overseas in Japan. She is from the rainiest city in the U.S.A. and she loves to get Dutch Bros. Coffee really late at night. Give her a follow @_kaitlin_rose
Phoenix (ISM) Schedule
- Friday, March 9, 2018
- 5:15 P.M. EST - Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series qualifying on FS1
Sunday, March 11, 2018
- 3:30 P.M. EST - Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Ticket Guardian 500 on FOX (312 laps, 312 miles)
- 1:05 P.M. EST - NASCAR Xfinity Series qualifying on FS1
- 4:00 P.M. EST - NASCAR Xfinity Series DC Solar 200 on FOX (200 laps, 200 miles)
As always, I hope you all have a wonderful week and enjoy your weekend. I plan to work on homework and I am helping at a science seminar for elementary kids on Saturday so I will at least keep busy.
Remember to nominate for Fan of the Week. Just tag @wilson_kilee in the tweet or @LOSdotOrg, either will work. We only need 4 more fans before we can do a drawing for the t-shirt. Keep nominating, the more the merrier.
Talk with you all next week.
Follow and chat with me here: @wilson_kilee
Daytona 500
February 18, 2018
I don’t know about all of you, but the conclusion of the Daytona 500 was pretty darn crazy. I hope you all are back to breathing normal.
After a long, crazy race, the 500 was won by Austin Dillon. Rather or not you agree with the last lap pass, he won the race and is the newest DAYTONA 500 WINNER! A big congratulations to Richard Childress Racing and the whole #3 team.
Alex Bowman had a wonderful 500 in his #88 Nationwide HMS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. Bowman was able to run in the top 15 most of the race. He entered the top 10 in the final stage and went on to race up to the fourth position before being wrecked in the last multi-car crash of the day. Bowman went on to finish in the 17th position, highest of all HMS drivers.
William Byron did not have the first Daytona 500 that he or his team wanted. After starting in the rear, Byron was able to move to mid pack before he was wrecked on the last lap of stage 1, lap 59. Byron’s whole team were able to fix his car and sent the #24 Axalta HMS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 back onto the track. Byron was able to finish his first Daytona 500 in the 23rd position.
Jimmie Johnson, who also started at the rear, made his way into the mid pack before he was also wrecked with Byron in the lap 59 crash. Johnson finished 38th in this year's Great American Race.
Chase Elliott started 4th in the 60th running of the Daytona 500. After running in the top ten for the majority of the race, Elliott was wrecked with Brad Keselowski and others in the lap 102 crash. Elliott was shown in the 33rd position when the race ended.
This year is off to a rough start but Rick Hendrick had nothing but good things to say about his fresh new team, “None of us were happy about last year – it was a rough year. Now, we’ve got new blood, we’ve got a new way of going at it and everybody’s excited. When you’ve been on top and you’re not there, it motivates you to go back. We’re not a company that just wants to show up. We don’t want to just show up and be in the pack. If we can’t compete for a win, then it drives all of us crazy. We understand that some of these young guys are going to have some learning curves. That’s OK. But we’re working toward a goal. The goal is we’re winners and we’re going after it. Whatever it takes, we’re going to do, because we’re not satisfied with sitting in the back. We’re not satisfied not leading laps. We didn’t forget how to race, and we’re all motivated because we don’t like not to win.”
And one last congratulations to Austin Dillon and the whole #3 RCR team on their 500 win. On behalf of all of us at Ladies of Speed, CONGRATS! Winning the 500 is a milestone that you will never forget.
Fan of the Week
This past week I had the great honor of getting to know Crystal Titus. She has been a NASCAR fan since birth, 31 years ;) Feel free to follow her on Twitter @CrystalDTitus
Crystal’s favorite driver(s) are: Oh boy, Crystal’s list has to top all other lists
Legends: Cale Yarborough, Terry Labonte, Dale Earnhardt Sr,
No longer driving: Tim Fedewa, Dale Jr, Brendan Gaughan
Today: Clint Bowyer, Kevin Harvick, Jordan Anderson
Team (s): Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR), and Richard Childress Racing (RCR).
If she had the chance, her dream team would consist of Cale Yarborough, Dale Sr, Tim Fedewa and Jordan Anderson. This team would be a bugger to try and compete with. Great picks.
Bristol and Darlington are two tracks that Crystal would like to visit again. She lives the same distance from both tracks and has already been to both, once. When she was at Bristol it snowed and she sadly had to leave; resulting in not seeing the race. But she loves short track racing, nevertheless. Darlington, The Lady in Black, is a great track with so much history.
She would also like to attend a race at Las Vegas, mostly because of the Neon Garage. Crystal, if you ever get the chance to come out West to go to Vegas, let me know and I will drive down and we can attend together.
Fun Facts about Crystal: She writes novels. She would like to one day publish them but editing costs a ton. Hey Crystal, feel free to send them over to me. I love to read. I can give them a read and do a review on them. Crystal has peripheral neuropathy, but never has she let it stop her from doing anything that she loves. Crystal has played golf for 6 years. Hole-in-one. She also has 3 college degrees. WOW, I can barely keep one degree and a minor under my belt.
She has an Associates in Applied Science Horticultural Technology, Turfgrass Management, and a Bachelor's degree in Agricultural Education.
After I told Crystal that she won this week's Fan of the Week, her words made my week. I live for small moments like this: “After the day I had, this makes me smile. Thank you to those who nominated me.”
No, thank you, Crystal, for not only being a fan of NASCAR, but helping make this website better than ever. If you did not know, Crystal is the Head of Writers for Ladies of Speed as of January 2018. She has been involved with The Sisterhood since August 2016. We all love and appreciate what Crystal has done for us. Without her, the evolution of LOS would not have advanced so quickly.
Remember you can nominate people all week long on Twitter for Fan of the Week. Make sure to tag @wilson_kilee in the tweet so I am sure to receive it. When we reach 10 fans of the week, I will be hosting a drawing and the winner will receive a t-shirt of their favorite driver.
As always, I hope you all have a wonderful rest of your week and enjoy Atlanta this weekend.
This Weekend's Schedule
Friday, February 23, 2018
5:15 p.m. EST- Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series qualifying on FS1
Saturday, February 24, 2018
9:10 a.m. EST- NASCAR Xfinity Series qualifying on FS1
10:35 a.m. EST- NASCAR Camping World Truck Series qualifying on FS1
2 p.m.EST- NASCAR Xfinity Series Rinnai 250 (163 laps for 251.02 miles) on FS1
4:30 p.m. EST- NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Active Pest Control 200 benefiting Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (130 laps for 200.2 miles) on FS1
Sunday, February 25, 2018
2:00 p.m. EST- Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 (325 laps for 500.5 miles) on FOX
Follow and chat with me here: @wilson_kilee
February 18, 2018
I don’t know about all of you, but the conclusion of the Daytona 500 was pretty darn crazy. I hope you all are back to breathing normal.
After a long, crazy race, the 500 was won by Austin Dillon. Rather or not you agree with the last lap pass, he won the race and is the newest DAYTONA 500 WINNER! A big congratulations to Richard Childress Racing and the whole #3 team.
Alex Bowman had a wonderful 500 in his #88 Nationwide HMS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. Bowman was able to run in the top 15 most of the race. He entered the top 10 in the final stage and went on to race up to the fourth position before being wrecked in the last multi-car crash of the day. Bowman went on to finish in the 17th position, highest of all HMS drivers.
William Byron did not have the first Daytona 500 that he or his team wanted. After starting in the rear, Byron was able to move to mid pack before he was wrecked on the last lap of stage 1, lap 59. Byron’s whole team were able to fix his car and sent the #24 Axalta HMS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 back onto the track. Byron was able to finish his first Daytona 500 in the 23rd position.
Jimmie Johnson, who also started at the rear, made his way into the mid pack before he was also wrecked with Byron in the lap 59 crash. Johnson finished 38th in this year's Great American Race.
Chase Elliott started 4th in the 60th running of the Daytona 500. After running in the top ten for the majority of the race, Elliott was wrecked with Brad Keselowski and others in the lap 102 crash. Elliott was shown in the 33rd position when the race ended.
This year is off to a rough start but Rick Hendrick had nothing but good things to say about his fresh new team, “None of us were happy about last year – it was a rough year. Now, we’ve got new blood, we’ve got a new way of going at it and everybody’s excited. When you’ve been on top and you’re not there, it motivates you to go back. We’re not a company that just wants to show up. We don’t want to just show up and be in the pack. If we can’t compete for a win, then it drives all of us crazy. We understand that some of these young guys are going to have some learning curves. That’s OK. But we’re working toward a goal. The goal is we’re winners and we’re going after it. Whatever it takes, we’re going to do, because we’re not satisfied with sitting in the back. We’re not satisfied not leading laps. We didn’t forget how to race, and we’re all motivated because we don’t like not to win.”
And one last congratulations to Austin Dillon and the whole #3 RCR team on their 500 win. On behalf of all of us at Ladies of Speed, CONGRATS! Winning the 500 is a milestone that you will never forget.
Fan of the Week
This past week I had the great honor of getting to know Crystal Titus. She has been a NASCAR fan since birth, 31 years ;) Feel free to follow her on Twitter @CrystalDTitus
Crystal’s favorite driver(s) are: Oh boy, Crystal’s list has to top all other lists
Legends: Cale Yarborough, Terry Labonte, Dale Earnhardt Sr,
No longer driving: Tim Fedewa, Dale Jr, Brendan Gaughan
Today: Clint Bowyer, Kevin Harvick, Jordan Anderson
Team (s): Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR), and Richard Childress Racing (RCR).
If she had the chance, her dream team would consist of Cale Yarborough, Dale Sr, Tim Fedewa and Jordan Anderson. This team would be a bugger to try and compete with. Great picks.
Bristol and Darlington are two tracks that Crystal would like to visit again. She lives the same distance from both tracks and has already been to both, once. When she was at Bristol it snowed and she sadly had to leave; resulting in not seeing the race. But she loves short track racing, nevertheless. Darlington, The Lady in Black, is a great track with so much history.
She would also like to attend a race at Las Vegas, mostly because of the Neon Garage. Crystal, if you ever get the chance to come out West to go to Vegas, let me know and I will drive down and we can attend together.
Fun Facts about Crystal: She writes novels. She would like to one day publish them but editing costs a ton. Hey Crystal, feel free to send them over to me. I love to read. I can give them a read and do a review on them. Crystal has peripheral neuropathy, but never has she let it stop her from doing anything that she loves. Crystal has played golf for 6 years. Hole-in-one. She also has 3 college degrees. WOW, I can barely keep one degree and a minor under my belt.
She has an Associates in Applied Science Horticultural Technology, Turfgrass Management, and a Bachelor's degree in Agricultural Education.
After I told Crystal that she won this week's Fan of the Week, her words made my week. I live for small moments like this: “After the day I had, this makes me smile. Thank you to those who nominated me.”
No, thank you, Crystal, for not only being a fan of NASCAR, but helping make this website better than ever. If you did not know, Crystal is the Head of Writers for Ladies of Speed as of January 2018. She has been involved with The Sisterhood since August 2016. We all love and appreciate what Crystal has done for us. Without her, the evolution of LOS would not have advanced so quickly.
Remember you can nominate people all week long on Twitter for Fan of the Week. Make sure to tag @wilson_kilee in the tweet so I am sure to receive it. When we reach 10 fans of the week, I will be hosting a drawing and the winner will receive a t-shirt of their favorite driver.
As always, I hope you all have a wonderful rest of your week and enjoy Atlanta this weekend.
This Weekend's Schedule
Friday, February 23, 2018
5:15 p.m. EST- Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series qualifying on FS1
Saturday, February 24, 2018
9:10 a.m. EST- NASCAR Xfinity Series qualifying on FS1
10:35 a.m. EST- NASCAR Camping World Truck Series qualifying on FS1
2 p.m.EST- NASCAR Xfinity Series Rinnai 250 (163 laps for 251.02 miles) on FS1
4:30 p.m. EST- NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Active Pest Control 200 benefiting Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (130 laps for 200.2 miles) on FS1
Sunday, February 25, 2018
2:00 p.m. EST- Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 (325 laps for 500.5 miles) on FOX
Follow and chat with me here: @wilson_kilee
Crystal Titus - Fan of the Week
Are You Ready For Racing
February 14, 2018
I would like to interrupt your daily routines to bring news of this year's Monster Energy NASCAR season!!
I am so very pleased to be back again this season as your Hendrick Motorsports reporter. These articles and friendships are something that have made my life a little more exciting. I hope you are all ready for this race season. (Because I sure am!!)
Buckle up, it’s about to get crazy.
On, Sunday, February 11, 2018 we were blessed with the first qualifying session of the young 2018 season. Alex Bowman, new driver of the #88 Nationwide Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, piloted his car to the first position (with a lap time of 46.002) for the 60th running of the Daytona 500. Chase Elliott, who is now driving the #9 Napa Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, will race in the Can-Am Duel #2 on Thursday at 8:30 P.M. February 15 on FS1; starting in the fifth position. William Byron who is racing in the #24 Axalta Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 and Jimmie Johnson (who is still driving the #48 Lowe's Chevrolet Camaro ZL1….Just in case you forgot) will be starting second and third behind the newest Daytona 500 pole sitter, Alex Bowman.
After the qualifying was finished Bowman had nothing but praise to sing of the HMS crew and employees. “Our Nationwide Camaro ZL1 has just been great since we unloaded. All the guys back at the chassis shop, body shop, the Hendrick engine shop is top-notch. They all work so hard and we knew we were going for the pole – that’s what we were here to do.”
If qualifying did not fill your need for speed, we also were blessed to have watched the first race of this speedweeks in the Auto Parts Clash, a 75 lap race that was won by Brad Keselowski. Johnson and Elliott were both present in the race. Jimmie Johnson started 5th in the 15 car lineup. Early in the race Johnson was penalized with driving through too many pit boxes and was sent to the back of the 15 car field. Johnson was able to drive up as far as 4th place but was caught in a late race accident that Kyle Larson initiated. He finished in the 12th position.
Chase Elliott, who started 12th in the Clash, raced his way quickly to the front of the small pack. Elliott led 17 laps in the race after first taking the lead on lap 10. Elliott fell back into the pack late in the race but was able to find a way to the 9th position before being crashed with Johnson in the late race accident. Elliott finished 13th.
I would also like to remind everyone that our Ladies of Speed Fan of The Week is still open (always) for nominations. All you have to do is tweet me using the hashtag #LadiesofSpeedFOTW and tag me @wilson_kilee in the tweet. Randomly, I will choose a winner who will be highlighted in that week's article with a picture and few paragraphs. When we reach 10 fans, I will host a drawing where the winner will win a t-shirt of their favorite driver!
I encourage all of you to nominate anyone, yourself included. This is a great way to become more involved with our website and with other race fans!
2018 Speedweek Schedule
Thursday, February 15, 2018:
Can-Am Duel #1 7:00 P.M. EST on FS1
Can-Am Duel #2 8:30 P.M. EST on FS1 (Time Approximate)
Friday, February 16, 2018
Nextera Energy Resources 250 7:30 P.M. EST on FS1
Saturday, February 17, 2018
Powershares QQQ 300 2:30 P.M. EST on FS1
Sunday, February 18, 2018
DAYTONA 500 2:30 P.M. EST on FOX
I hope you all had a wonderful winter break. I was at school for the majority of the break but I was able to go home for a few weeks at Christmas and New Years to see my family in Idaho!! I hope you all had a great holiday with your family and friends.
In addition to my lovely break I was able to get Chris Stapleton tickets for my little sister's birthday (with help from my momma) and PBR Tacoma tickets for April. I am so ecstatic to be able to be a part of more adventures with my family. I also found out last week that I am able to study abroad next year in Prague. I am so very excited for this next journey!!
Remember to nominate for Fan of The Week. I also would love to hear your predictions for the 500 race winner. I have my money on Ryan Blaney and Keselowski.
Follow and chat with me here: @wilson_kilee
February 14, 2018
I would like to interrupt your daily routines to bring news of this year's Monster Energy NASCAR season!!
I am so very pleased to be back again this season as your Hendrick Motorsports reporter. These articles and friendships are something that have made my life a little more exciting. I hope you are all ready for this race season. (Because I sure am!!)
Buckle up, it’s about to get crazy.
On, Sunday, February 11, 2018 we were blessed with the first qualifying session of the young 2018 season. Alex Bowman, new driver of the #88 Nationwide Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, piloted his car to the first position (with a lap time of 46.002) for the 60th running of the Daytona 500. Chase Elliott, who is now driving the #9 Napa Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, will race in the Can-Am Duel #2 on Thursday at 8:30 P.M. February 15 on FS1; starting in the fifth position. William Byron who is racing in the #24 Axalta Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 and Jimmie Johnson (who is still driving the #48 Lowe's Chevrolet Camaro ZL1….Just in case you forgot) will be starting second and third behind the newest Daytona 500 pole sitter, Alex Bowman.
After the qualifying was finished Bowman had nothing but praise to sing of the HMS crew and employees. “Our Nationwide Camaro ZL1 has just been great since we unloaded. All the guys back at the chassis shop, body shop, the Hendrick engine shop is top-notch. They all work so hard and we knew we were going for the pole – that’s what we were here to do.”
If qualifying did not fill your need for speed, we also were blessed to have watched the first race of this speedweeks in the Auto Parts Clash, a 75 lap race that was won by Brad Keselowski. Johnson and Elliott were both present in the race. Jimmie Johnson started 5th in the 15 car lineup. Early in the race Johnson was penalized with driving through too many pit boxes and was sent to the back of the 15 car field. Johnson was able to drive up as far as 4th place but was caught in a late race accident that Kyle Larson initiated. He finished in the 12th position.
Chase Elliott, who started 12th in the Clash, raced his way quickly to the front of the small pack. Elliott led 17 laps in the race after first taking the lead on lap 10. Elliott fell back into the pack late in the race but was able to find a way to the 9th position before being crashed with Johnson in the late race accident. Elliott finished 13th.
I would also like to remind everyone that our Ladies of Speed Fan of The Week is still open (always) for nominations. All you have to do is tweet me using the hashtag #LadiesofSpeedFOTW and tag me @wilson_kilee in the tweet. Randomly, I will choose a winner who will be highlighted in that week's article with a picture and few paragraphs. When we reach 10 fans, I will host a drawing where the winner will win a t-shirt of their favorite driver!
I encourage all of you to nominate anyone, yourself included. This is a great way to become more involved with our website and with other race fans!
2018 Speedweek Schedule
Thursday, February 15, 2018:
Can-Am Duel #1 7:00 P.M. EST on FS1
Can-Am Duel #2 8:30 P.M. EST on FS1 (Time Approximate)
Friday, February 16, 2018
Nextera Energy Resources 250 7:30 P.M. EST on FS1
Saturday, February 17, 2018
Powershares QQQ 300 2:30 P.M. EST on FS1
Sunday, February 18, 2018
DAYTONA 500 2:30 P.M. EST on FOX
I hope you all had a wonderful winter break. I was at school for the majority of the break but I was able to go home for a few weeks at Christmas and New Years to see my family in Idaho!! I hope you all had a great holiday with your family and friends.
In addition to my lovely break I was able to get Chris Stapleton tickets for my little sister's birthday (with help from my momma) and PBR Tacoma tickets for April. I am so ecstatic to be able to be a part of more adventures with my family. I also found out last week that I am able to study abroad next year in Prague. I am so very excited for this next journey!!
Remember to nominate for Fan of The Week. I also would love to hear your predictions for the 500 race winner. I have my money on Ryan Blaney and Keselowski.
Follow and chat with me here: @wilson_kilee
Confidence was key for @AlexBowman88 and the @nationwide88 team in Sunday's qualifying session. #DAYTONA500 pic.twitter.com/pLsLozQeI1
— Hendrick Motorsports (@TeamHendrick) February 13, 2018
