MBNA America 400 - Raybestos® Rookie Notes

TOMMY BALDWIN, CREW CHIEF, #9 DODGE DEALERS/UAW DODGE: "For some reason this year it's been a big factor. It's been some untimely cautions and on the other hand, some cautions that some people have needed. We become over the years so safety conscious, I just think it's just the way that the trend is going more and more to take care of the drivers out there and make sure than anybody gets hurt. Debris has really hurt Jeff Gordon a couple times this year. I think they are going to keep just as good and maybe a better watchful eye on it as the year progresses and into the future." WHERE DOES THE DEBRIS COME FROM? "It's just stuff [smiles]. It's tire build up stuff, it's stuff that rattles and loosens up from inside the car and it's from the fans and the paper wrappings to the beer cans to Coke bottles to the mishaps on the car, things like that." IS THERE A WAY TO CUT DOWN ON THE DEBRIS? "I don't think so. I think there has always been debris. A lot of it is caused by us, and if we do a better job keeping our cars together probably have a little less debris. A lot of it is caused because of wrecks and then cars that are running around that are a little beat up and broken up and parts start falling off cars and that's where the debris is from." DOES SOME OF IT COME FROM THE TIRES? "Some of it, not much. Most of it is just sheet metal and debris like that, caused after wrecks have happened. Stuff that's not picked up and gets put back on the track or the stuff on the cars that are hanging from the cars that have got into the wrecks from the previous cautions or something falls off. Probably 80 percent of the time that's what the cautions are caused from."

SHANE WILSON, CREW CHIEF, 77 KODAK EASY SHARE/JASPER ENGINES AND TRANSMISSIONS DODGE: "A couple of different things have evolved. First, with the softer tire, there is more rubber out there so our grills tend to be a little more packed full of the rubber buildup. Second of all, most of these places have more fans so there is more hot dog wrappers and miscellaneous debris. We work all winter long to be able to put a little more tape on the car so the openings are getting smaller and smaller so when we have like one hot dog wrapper or a little more buildup than normal, we're getting hot. That's where it's evolved. There is a shaker screen inside and back [of the grill area] back and then some people run a little coarser screen in the front now. It's so competitive that you're always trying to get that last little bit of tape and a lot of times it bites you. To go fast is more tape." DO YOU THINK THERE IS ANY SOLUTION TO CUT DOWN ON THE AMOUNT OF DEBRIS? "I think it's going to be more and more of a factor. We're actually looking at running a little different pressure area. You can tape and un-tape in different parts of the nose. We actually went to the less efficient but it's less apt to pack stuff up there so we actually went that way and changed some of our ductwork design to be able to bring air in higher which is a little less pressure area up there. The wrappers and some of the debris are less apt to get up there."

FRANK STODDARD, CREW CHIEF, #22 CATERPILLAR DODGE: "California was a little bit of an odd circumstance. For some reason, I don't know if it was the trade winds or what, but for some reason there was a lot of napkins and things like that. I don't even know where they came from. They usually don't come through the stands through the fence. That was a little bit of an odd occurrence. I've not seen anything quite that bad in some time. At the other places, I think that NASCAR is probably watching for debris more than they ever have, not in the last few weeks more, but in the last year or two. I think they are really on top of their stuff and trying to take care of the safety issues and making sure that someone doesn't cut a tire on some things and stuff like that. They've got the corner workers looking all the time. Because we go somewhere and the racing gets spread out to where there's not 10-car packs and stuff, then you end up with not a lot of cautions from wrecks so there's not a lot to talk about other than watching the racetrack and stuff. If there is some debris out there then NASCAR starts talking about it and they throw a caution for the debris to clean it up. The California deal was an odd occurrence but other than that, I haven't seen any more debris than normal. I think it probably goes in cycles." IS THE TIRE COMPOUND A FACTOR? "No, I don't think so. I don't think the tire has anything to do with the debris. Actually, the tire probably makes less debris than what the tires did back in '97. We used to have rubber balls and stuff that would just gob up the top groove and stuff like that but it hasn't really been like that."

DOUG RANDOLPH, CREW CHIEF, #10 VALVOLINE CHEVROLET: "At California we saw all sorts of stuff on the racetrack and the wind blowing it around. It's hard to tell whether a lot of it came from inside or outside the racetrack but it can sure ruin your day if a hot dog wrapper gets on the grill of your car and overheats your motor." DOES THE TIRE COMPOUND HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH THE DEBRIS? "I really don't think so. It seems like these tires versus tires 10 years ago don't seem to clutter the racetrack. At Rockingham and Darlington we used to have a hard time keeping that rubber out of the radiators but it seems like that's changed in recent years. NASCAR does a good job, especially halfway or two-thirds of the way through the race, of bringing the jet dryers out and trying to clear it all out real good. The deal at California, all they did and all they could do was blow the trash from one side to the other. It would have taken a lot to pick all that up." DO YOU THINK THERE IS A REASON FOR ALL THE DEBRIS? "I don't really think there is a particular reason. I think it's just coincidence, right now."

PETER SOSPENZO, CREW CHIEF, #25 GMAC CHEVROLET: "It's always a factor, especially like at California where they had a lot of hot dog and hamburger wrappers so that was a big problem at California. The best thing they can do is keep the track clean. That definitely helps a lot." WHAT'S THE REASON FOR ALL THE DEBRIS? IS IT THE TIRE COMPOUND? "I don't think so. I don't think the tracks are that bad. It's not like the tires are wearing that bad. There's some rubber on the track but I don't think it's any worse than it used to be." IS THERE ANY SOLUTION? "You don't want to have a one-groove racetrack so you want to make sure that the track is clean so you can get side by side racing. It's not really a big deal, I don't think."

NEWS AND NOTES FROM THE RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE CONTENDERS - NASCAR NEXTEL CUP SERIES