JJ Yeley, the NASCAR driver, not the incorrectly labeled Formula 1 champion, visits the podcast to discuss his role with Rick Ware Racing; what he still gets out of racing; not wanting to get a real job; how his perspective and appreciation of racing has changed over the years and through teams; his career not being as imagined after starting with Joe Gibbs; if there are any regrets coming to NASCAR; the IndyCar experience; getting confidence back in USAC; memories of his 2003 triple crown season and the ribbing with Tony Stewart about it; becoming Stewart’s NASCAR teammate; not having things come easy in NASCAR as Yeley was used to in dirt racing; any lessons from his father; still going back dirt racing when it makes sense; explaining why injuries are more prone to happen in dirt racing; how fulfilled he feels with racing today.

Music created by Tony Monge.

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Jasmine Salinas is a second-generation drag racer, and she’s quickly making a name for herself in NHRA. We get to know Salinas in our conversation, starting with what being at a dragstrip feels like; the most defining moment of her career to this point; the impact of her massive 2021 crash at Gainesville; how long the doubts about racing lasted after the crash; coming back a year later and dealing with the emotions and winning at the same racetrack; her earliest memory of being at a track; when she wanted to be a race car driver; having limited experience compared to the competition; learning how to be a competitor; how she was raised leaving an impression; a family business others didn’t understand when she was younger; being the oldest of four girls; dealing with the pressure and judgment of following her dad’s footsteps; the importance of having family at the track; having mom come around to her daughters racing; who is the most competitive one in the family; the mental game in trusting the car and trusting your ability; balancing her driving career and being the general manager of the family team; the indescribable feeling of Top Fuel testing and dad being a hot mess; scaring herself in the lead up to testing; why next year is the time to go Top Fuel racing; what is going to happen lining up against dad one day; how she uses social media.

Music created by Tony Monge.

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Bobby Labonte is a former NASCAR Cup Series champion who now spends his time … racing. Labonte is keeping busy with SRX and modifieds, as well as television work for Fox Sports. Labonte explains what keeps him coming back to SRX; how competitive the series is; getting to compete against the best drivers from all over; how this chapter of his racing career is different; why it’s hard for drivers to give up racing; Labonte’s relationship with the media as a driver to how its changed doing Fox Sports work; giving opinions and looking at the sport as a whole; how TV has changed his view or understanding of the sport; his first booth experience at Darlington with Fox Sports versus second one recently at Martinsville; the disconnect between what fans enjoy in a race and what drivers enjoy; if he wants to do more booth work; if NASCAR has a responsibility to keep former drivers involved; how to define this version of Bobby Labonte.

Music created by Tony Monge.

Please support my work through Patreon: www.patreon.com/KellyCrandall

Laura Beth Barnhardt is the NASCAR race producer/director for PRN, and the tables have turned as she’s the one behind the microphone. Barnhart shares about the adrenaline of not being able to edit the show together later; being a strong leader in the booth directing men; the easiest way to understand what a race director does; going viral with a BTS video from the booth; why live pit stops are her favorite segment to produce; PRN waiting for its first race of the season and having a choppy schedule; juggling three different jobs as PRN isn’t her day job; the tools inside the broadcast booth to do the job; the dynamic of working with Doug Rice, who is the boss; landing on Rice’s radar for a PRN job; working through the PRN system to her current role; directing NASCAR versus college football; what drew her to radio in the first place; being a gear head; what sports have taught her.

Music created by Tony Monge.

Please support my work through Patreon: www.patreon.com/KellyCrandall

Joey Cohen would say he is the chief complaint officer at Legacy Motor Club, but that’s only in jest. Cohen’s title is actually competition director, and he explains what that means; the unique dynamic of GMS Racing being the truck operation and Legacy Motor Club the Cup Series operation; not coming from a racing family but wanting to be a race car driver; dad building Cohen a go-kart track; racing coming naturally to him as he moved through the ranks; a newspaper article leading to truck racing; the recognizable names Cohen raced against in VA; when the time came to figure out his future; the NASCAR garage feeling like a college reunion; the reception from the garage when engineering became a bigger tool; learning under Steve Letarte; why Cup Series racing wasn’t for him; taking opportunities with many different teams; lessons from working for Pratt & Miller brought to NASCAR; pitching Maury Gallagher on Cup Series racing; the unexpected growth and changes since that decision was made; what brings Cohen the most enjoyment in his job; the full circle moment of Cohen’s son now beginning to race.

Music created by Tony Monge.

Please support my work through Patreon: www.patreon.com/KellyCrandall

It feels good for Ryan Preece to hear himself be called a NASCAR Cup Series driver again. Preece shares what it was like to be out of sight and out of mind in 2022 as he worked behind the scenes at Stewart-Haas Racing; using the year to become a better person and driver; unique ways to build a bond with a team; what being a reserved driver is all about; there being no guarantee of a ride when signing with Stewart-Haas; if Preece went to bat for himself as ’22 went on; the conversations had about his career; funding being the story of his career; if not having a straight upward path has any upside; falling in love with racing as a third generation driver; the sacrifices to race; being the one son (of three) who went into racing; why working on his race cars was the chosen way; how Preece’s first national series start came together; what he thinks has been the defining moment of his NASCAR career.

Music created by Tony Monge.

Please support my work through Patreon: www.patreon.com/KellyCrandall

Fresh off a big win with his new team, Christian Eckes shares how they celebrated; what an early win does for Eckes; what the win does for a team who had never won before; if the fast start has been a surprise; delivering a first win for Bill McAnally; why it was a hard offseason; having a chip on his shoulder and being out to prove something; what kind of work Eckes can do to be better with McAnally; what a team can do for a new driver coming in; taking the next step with multiple wins in a season; telling the team he came to win races and championships; what Vegas showed Eckes about the team; what his responsibility is with a growing team; being a mentor to a rookie teammate and passing along lessons; fitting into the Chevrolet camp; why the Truck Series is so hard for younger drivers; the good thing about going from ARCA to Trucks; truck racing being as crazy as they look; the meaning behind his helmet design; an update on the golf game and it being a draw for drivers.

Music created by Tony Monge.

Please support my work through Patreon: www.patreon.com/KellyCrandall

There was a lot of anticipation for Connor Mosack as he waited his turn to get behind the wheel in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for the first time this season. Mosack will run the majority of the season with Sam Hunt Racing and he discusses how the test at Charlotte Motor Speedway went; being tuned in to what has gone on with the team already; preparing to race the most he ever has in a single season; any translation from the Trans Am car to Xfinity; looking forward to road course races; starting his career later than most and if he felt behind the learning curve; how it went from something that seemed unrealistic to a career; the feeling of driving a race car for the first time; lessons learned from the CARS Tour and late models; how Mosack's opportunities have presented themselves; using his college degree; the family adjustment to getting into racing; if Mosack thought about what he’d be doing if it racing never came along; the differences between Sam Hunt Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing; the adjustment of working with different teams; building year versus a prove himself year.

Music created by Tony Monge.

Please support my work through Patreon: www.patreon.com/KellyCrandall

In his second full season of NHRA competition, Josh Hart hopes people are starting to take notice that his team isn’t messing around. Hart discusses preparing for a new season; what he learned last year; balancing between the driver and owner hat; experiencing the Countdown for the first time; the mental game of NHRA; being one of the quietest and calmest drivers in the pits; fitting into the pits with drivers Hart once looked up to; Don Garlits as a mentor; how his drag racing career started from troubles on the public roads of Indianapolis; starting his racing career later than most; adjusting to the business of drag racing; knowing it was sink or swim and changing his life; some lessons of being a pro driver; trying to get comfortable in his dragster this season and referencing Days of Thunder; recalling the first time hitting the 330mph mark; if he thinks 340mph is out there for dragsters; where he thinks life would have taken him if not for drag racing; if any team changes were made for 2023 and his season expectations.

Music created by Tony Monge.

Please support my work through Patreon: www.patreon.com/KellyCrandall

Brittany Force enters a new season as a two-time NHRA Top Fuel champion and is hungry for more. But before we talk racing, Force shares how she got away from racing over the last few months traveling around the country; having extracurricular activities away from racing; what she learned to enjoy or do from the first championship to the second championship; digesting and appreciating the run her team had in the Countdown last year; what it was like to watch the first round at Pomona with the title on the line; getting crew chief David Grubnic his first championship; if her team can hit the 340 mph mark this season and if she wants to; balancing breaking records but not getting the race win; the work done in preseason testing; having a new car this year; having crew members all switch positions a year after winning a championship; the battle to constantly evolve; the growing depth of the Top Fuel field; the motivation in drag racing from the number on the side of the car; setting new challenges for herself every year; the addition of competition within competitions in the sport; returning to Chicago this year; needing an update to the Twitter bio.

Music created by Tony Monge.

Please support my work through Patreon: www.patreon.com/KellyCrandall