Texas - Garage Talk
Fort Worth, Texas.
by Stan Creekmore

• Is the Goodyear tire leasing program about to go bust? A check of the Goodyear mounting compound following the first six races of the season reveals teams have not cut back on the number of tires purchased for use during the race, which was the purpose of the program in the first place.
"The amount you receive back from an unused tire isn't enough," Steve Hmiel explained. "That's why you see more teams changing tires when caution periods are close together." (4-7-2006)

UPDATE: Goodyear now reports going back to the drawing board following the first tire test at Lowe's Motor Speedway. One week later, Goodyear returned with 75 tires using three different compounds in search of the best combination to use for the Coca Cola 600.

The chosen tire reduces grip, slowing lap times a bit more than a full
second over the first test. (4-8-2006)

• When Red Bull Racing debuts their two Toyota teams at Daytona in February of 2007, rumor has it the organization is looking to pair a rookie with a veteran, taking an approached used by Evernham Motorsports with Dodge. Veterans on the Red Bull list are said to be Kevin Harvick and Dale Jarrett. No word on a rookie, but it could easily be an accomplished veteran from another of the Motorsports arenas.

• One of the most famous car designs in all of NASCAR history was the No. 43 STP design driven to victory lane all over the country by Richard Petty. It
appears the STP name will once again grace a Petty-owned car as a primary
sponsor, this time with another NASCAR champion at the wheel, Bobby Labonte. (4-7-2006)    

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