No. 40 TEAM FACTS:
New year, new team: The 2006 season will be Vandermoss’ inaugural year as crew chief for the No. 40 Dodge at Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates.
Along with Vandermoss the No. 40 team has many new faces including car chief Jim Pohlman, mechanics Andy Silver and Luke Roffers, shock specialist John Weaver and engine specialist Frank Mathalia. Crew members Fred Ware, race engineer Brian Burns and tire specialist Rob Lopes join the No. 40 team from within the CGRFS stable.
David Stremme Quotes:
What’s it like being a rookie about to start the Daytona 500 for the first time?
“It will probably be pretty wild. Growing up the Daytona 500 was a pretty big deal. Right now we’d be working on cars to race locally at home in my parents’ garage. On Daytona 500 weekend, we’d always stop and cook dinner and watch. It was a pretty big thing for us because there’s not a lot of racing in Indiana at that time. The first time I came down here was in 2003. I walked around and I was telling Tony Glover (team manager) on the way down here it was pretty neat the first time I walked in the garage area. I asked what all the wooden tables were doing here. He said before all the big pit boxes they’d come and sit their tool boxes and everything up there. I thought that was pretty neat. The track is fast, and I enjoy racing on it because you slide around a lot.”
What are your thoughts on the rookie of the year race?
“I think Martin Truex, Reed Sorenson and Denny Hamlin and everybody in the rookie class are very, very good drivers, but I think whoever is going to win rookie of the year is going to have to make The Chase and win races. I don’t look at the first five or 10 like we’ve got to go out and beat the rookies, we need to build for later this season and be consistent. Martin and Reed and a lot of them are going to be tough to beat, but I look at it as there are a lot of other drivers you’ve got to beat on the weekend, too.”
No. 40 Lone Star Steakhouse & Saloon Crew:
Name
Crew position
Hometown
Jeff Vandermoss
Crew Chief
Green Bay, Wis.
Danny Ekland
Catch Can Man
Green Bay, Wis.
Andy Graves
Team Manager
Syracuse, N.Y.
Rob Lopes
Tire Specialist
Carney’s Point, N.J.
Tony Glover
Team Manager
Kingsport, Tenn.
Luke Roffers
Pit Support
Oneida, Wis.
Jim Pohlman
Car Chief
Oak Lawn, Ill.
Mike Calinoff
Spotter
Hauppauge, N.Y.
Scott Ward
Front Tire Changer
Clearlake, Calif.
Frank Mathalia
Engine Specialist
Oneiata, N.Y.
Andy Silver
Front Tire Carrier
Weaverville, N.C.
Brian Burns
Engineer
Indianapolis, Ind.
Daryl Lockyer
Rear Tire Changer
Los Angeles, Calif.
Fred Ware
Pit Support
Ocean City, N.J.
John Gaynor
Rear Tire Carrier
Vancouver, Wash.
Matt Mansir
Transport Driver
Greensboro, N.C.
Brian Perry
Jack Man
Huntington, W.Va.
Tim Beaver
Transport Driver
Mooresville, N.C.
Benjy Grubbs
Gas Man
Richmond, Va.
John Weaver
Shock Specialist
Montrose, Mich.
