Racing Highlights
Nextel Cup Defending race and series champion Tony Stewart went to victory lane for the 2nd time this season and scaled the fence for the Daytona checkers. Smoke is also taking home a trophy from the IROC race on Thursday, his 2nd this season.
Busch Dale Earnhardt Jr. scored his 21st series win--his 7th victory at Daytona International Speedway in a NASCAR series points race.
NCTS Amy East Cook's husband Terry won the truck race, his first since trip to VL since the 2002 season when he scored 4 wins and had 17 top 10 finishes. INJURED: Kelly Sutton, who made her 49th series start and became the second woman to lead a lap, was extricated from her truck and airlifted to the University of Kansas Hospital after a fiery crash, admitted in fair condition and kept overnight for observation. The other female driver in the series, Erin Crocker, finished with a season high in 16th.
Speaking of Crocker, Evernham's got her back:
Erin Crocker had some high-powered help atop her pit box in Saturday's races. Helping out was Ray Evernham, owner of Evernham Motorsports of the Nextel Cup series. Crocker was driving an ARCA car and a Craftsman Truck series truck which are owned by Evernham. His attendance at Kansas Speedway meant he was not in Daytona for Saturday night's Pepsi 400. [Kansas City Star, July 2, 2006]
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On Sunday, Ray and Erin joined four-time Cup champion Jeff Gordon and new fiancée Ingrid Vandebosch, Cup points leader Jimmie Johnson and wife Chandra, and Brian Vickers to take in Sunday's USGP race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Quoting this...
Jimmie Johnson: "We stayed in Daytona and flew in this morning to see the race, and we're pumped. If I ever had the chance to jump in one of these cars and test like Jeff did a few years ago, I would take that in a heartbeat. I have driven a lot of different stuff in my career, but just think it would take too long to make the switchover."
Evernham also announced that his NASCAR team has agreed to a technical partnership with McLaren Mercedes. [Fox Sports, July 2, 2006]
Jeff and Ingrid's Engagement
It should come as no surprise that NASCAR Nextel Cup Series driver Jeff Gordon's announcement of his engagement to Ingrid Vandebosch dominated this week's search inquiries. Not only did she dominate this week's FAQs, she made history as the most searched for NASCAR wife or girlfriend ever at Answer this...
Traffic tripled last Sunday and went up even further when computer users returned to work on Monday. Keywords included ingrid vandebosch, jeff gordon current girlfriend, jeff gordon engaged.
In a very unscientific analysis by the tallglassofmilk, the following were determined to be the top searched events in the history of Answer this...
1. Jeff Gordon announces engagement to Ingrid Vandebosch
Post: Sonoma: The most FAQs from this...
2. TomKat announces their pregnancy
Post: The spawn of Xenu immaculately conceived by this...
3. Oprah announces she has a "daughter"
Post: Is Big O hiding a daughter from this...?
4. Nicole Lunders' and Eva Bryan's "catfight"
Post: Tammy Wynette would sing praises to this...
5. Kurt Busch reckless driving incident
Category: Kurt Busch's Reckless Driving
6. J.D. Fortune wins Rock Star: INXS
Post: J.D. Fortune is the winner of this...
7. Jordis performs "The Man Who Sold the World"
Post: Jordis is the rock star of this...
Note: TGOM also predicted J.D. as the winner in this post, which followed the fourth episode.
Stay tuned for my early Rock Star: Supernova picks
The Ex
Also this week, there was a significant increase in the number of searches for Jennifer Brooke Sealy, Jeff Gordon's first wife. Readers inquire often about the former Miss Winston who became the first Mrs. Gordon, but the tallglassofmilk does not have any current answers on this...
Jeff and Brooke's highly publicized--and expensive--divorce has readers suggesting that Gordon leave Dupont Teflon out of his arrangements for a pre-nuptial agreement and get something that sticks. Jeff says Ingrid is getting a better husband that Brooke got.
New Girlfriend FAQs
Q. Does Scott Zipadelli, car chief for Joe Gibbs Racing's #18 Cup team, have a girlfriend?
A. No clue. But that's becoming a popular question. I can see why.
Newly Answered Girlfriend FAQs
Q. Does Kertus Davis have a girlfriend?
A. Sources say no.
For the latest answers to girlfriend FAQs, bookmark Female fans want to know this...
Make Believe MySpace
By now, regular readers of Answer this... have received enough emails to know that the tallglassofmilk is fed up with fakers stealing the identity of others and creating MySpace profiles.
This week, a fake Taylor Earnhardt profile was brought to the attention of the tallglassofmilk. Even though it was obvious, TGOM verified that it was indeed a fake and it was ultimately deleted, but not before screenshots were captured:
The fake profile of NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt's daughter, which was located at www.myspace.com/taygurl
Before the "tay-tay" profile was removed, the two sites had comments back and forth to each other pretending to actually be Dale Jr. and his younger sister:
JR BUD: "Aww my baby sis has finally come into this myspace gig... How yah doing me same as usual... Anywayz give me a holla sometime baby sis... Dale Jr"
tay-tay: "Ewwww ugly...lol... I miss you big bro how's the road going ha lol.. I love yah Little E... xoxoxo your baby sis Taylor"
Yeah, riiiiiiiiiiiiiiight.
TGOM estimates that most on the friends list of "JR BUD" and those on the now defunct "tay-tay" profile are fake driver profiles, fake generic profiles, extremely gullible people or persons who are participating in or condoning MySpace identity theft.
MySpace users, please check your friends lists and make sure you have not befriended those currently experiencing identity crises.
Previously discovered fake MySpaces: Clint Bowyer's girlfriend, Kasey Kahne's girlfriend, Martin Truex Jr.'s girlfriend, Rusty Wallace's daughter and Jimmy Means' daughter. 4 out of the 5 have been deleted.
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Blindly itemizing this...
#1 - Which NASCAR driver has rekindled a relationship with an old flame?
Have they both left devastation in their wakes? Has the significant other of one-half of the couple been dumped already?
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#2 - Which NASCAR driver's girlfriend is being impersonated online this week?
'Friends' report that this week thatgurl201 - formerly known as racingprincess20, now unaffectionately referred to by Answer this... readers, MySpace users and message board goers as aimeethestalker--is pretending to have an internship at a sports marketing firm in NASCARolina, despite not being enrolled in any college to receive credit. Curiously, the company she claims to be interning for employs a popular NASCAR driver's girlfriend.
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK
"On Independence Day, we're reminded how fortunate we are to live in freedom and call this nation home." ~ Vice President Dick Cheney to the 100,000+ race fans in attendance at Daytona International speedway for yesterday's Pepsi 400
Happy 4th of July, Everyone!
Have fun and celebrate! Be responsible and designate!
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MORE
* Please note: Additional photos tagged 'exclusive' are available to Answer this... Flickr friends only.
REMINDERS
07/03 - Paige Burton's Birthday
07/04 - Independence Day
07/04 - SI 40th Anniversary Swimsuit Special (Spike TV)
07/06 - Todd Kleuver's Birthday
07/07 - Anniversary of Kenny Irwin Jr.'s Fatal Crash
07/08 - USG Durock 300 @ Chicgoland Speedway (4:00PM ET)
07/08 - Built Ford Tough 225 @ Kentucky Speedway (8:00PM ET)
07/09 - Tom Pistone III's Birthday
07/09 - USG Sheetrock 400 at Chicagoland Speedway (3:00PM ET)
tallglassofmilk's NASCAR Calendar
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Comments below do not reflect the opinions of the tallglassofmilk.