Blog Post: Wednesday, February 14, 2008 at 1:37 pm ET

GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN Somewhere far, far away, Randy Dorton is smiling.

Dorton was one of the first employees Rick Hendrick ever hired when he started his old All-Star Racing team in what was then the Winston Cup Series in 1984. All-Star Racing quickly became Hendrick Motorsports and the one constant for the team was that over the next two decades, Randy Dorton ran the engine program and built it into one of NASCAR’S best ever.

Unfortunately for Dorton and the team, his career did not end in victory lane. Dorton left Martinsville Speedway on Saturday, Oct. 23, 2004, to return to North Carolina to celebrate his eighth wedding anniversary with his wife, Dianne.

The next day, on the way back to the track, Dorton and nine others were killed in the crash of a Hendrick Motorsports aircraft near Martinsville, an event that shook the NASCAR world to its roots.

But even though Dorton is gone from the NASCAR Nextel Cup garage, his influence and philosophies are still very much present this week at Daytona. Two of Dorton’s former protégés, Jeff Andrews and Mark Cronquist, are now the heads of the engine programs at Hendrick Motorsports and Joe Gibbs Racing, respectively.

And as such, Andrews and Cronquist were charged with the wholesale replacement of engines for their rival teams after problems showed up in practice Saturday. “Me and Jeff Andrews were taught by the same man in life, Randy Dorton, so I’m sure we work in the same areas,” said Cronquist.

Both teams said Thursday morning that the necessary engine changes had been made and all cars were good to go. And then, Randy Dorton smiled.

Blog Post: Wednesday, February 14, 2008 at 11:07 am ET

RUBBER MEETS THE ROAD With frigid temperatures in the low 40s this morning at Daytona, there is renewed concern about tire wear in the Gatorade Duel 150s this afternoon. The colder the weather, the better the grip and the more blistering, especially of right-front tires, tends to be a problem.

Some teams have reported wear issues is as little as 15-22 laps, and with the 17.75-gallon fuel cells being used this year, the cars can run 40 laps or more before needing to stop for fuel.

THE

GREAT UNKNOWN Sunday’s Daytona 500 will be the first time NASCAR’s new race car will compete at Daytona with a full 43-car field on the track, something drivers are curious about. “I have not been in a 43-car draft yet to understand exactly how it works,” said reigning Sprint Cup Champion Jimmie Johnson. “The cars have been more difficult to drive and I think they put on a little better show. The car has been moving around a lot, they have been a little sideways, and I think that’s good for the fans, good for the sport. So hopefully that all transfers over to a good race for the 500.”

TOYING AROUND Fred Wagenhals, the former Chairman and CEO of Action Performance and the man most responsible for the phenomenal rise of NASCAR diecast and collectible sales, said Thursday morning he will have a new line of licensed toys available later this year, including a Gameboy-style handheld racing game and a robotic device.

Blog Post: Wednesday, February 13, 2008 at 2:31 pm ET

MOTOR MADNESS Dale Earnhardt, Jr. lost a motor in his Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet during the second of two practice sessions Wednesday and thus will have to start his Gatorade Duel 150 qualifying race from the back of the field. Teams are allowed to change motors after the Duels, but if they change them before the Duels, they must go to the back prior to the qualifying race.

Earnhardt wasn’t the only driver with engine problems Wednesday. All of his three teammates – Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon and Casey Mears – also were reporting valve lifter problems and were mulling over engine changes Wednesday afternoon.

They were not alone.

Toyota engine builders were also working overtime trying to fix a problem that’s resulted in at least six Toyota Sprint Cup motors failing so far in Speedweeks. The latest to suffer an engine problem was Hall of Fame Racing’s J.J. Yeley, who lost a motor after just 11 laps of practice Wednesday. Yeley also suffered engine damage during qualifying on Sunday.

Yeley’s crew chief, Brandon Thomas, said that the team was having a new motor sent to the team overnight from Joe Gibbs Racing, which builds engines for the squad. The problem was traced to a faulty camshaft coating that caused the valve lifters to fail.