Time for the rumble to return at Daytona

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The Speedweeks lull ends Wednesday with cars back on the track at Daytona International Speedway.
The garage was actually a busy place Tuesday with Nationwide and Truck series teams unpacking their haulers and getting their cars through the inspection process before they get on track.
The weather here has been spectacular since about midday Friday when it finally warmed up. It was sunny all day Tuesday with balmy breezes. As I write this, I am looking out the window and can see a gentleman chasing what looks like about an 18-month-old boy along the edge of the surf. They let cars drive up and down the beach here and there has been a steady stream of traffic out there much of the day.
I haven’t been down to the sand because I’ve been fighting (unsuccessfully, I might add) the Daytona Crud for the past few days. Going to the laundry when you feel good is an unpleasant chore. Going to laundry sick is, well, a suckfest.
I always look forward to Thursday during Speedweeks because the Gatorade Duels usually wind up being fascinating races.
The top two finishers among the go-or-go-home cars race their way into the Daytona 500 field, and then after that you go back to speeds to determine who else makes the show. It’s not being overly dramatic to say that there are at least eight to 10 teams here who want to try to run a full season here but know that if they don’t make the Daytona 500 field they’re just about dead in the water at that point.
One question I get asked all of the time is why a Martin Truex Jr. or a Mark Martin would even bother to run in the 150-mile races. They have front-row spots for the 500 assured, so they have nothing to gain and everything to lose. The answer is that these guys are racers, and every competition is a way to measure yourself. Yes, the Gatorade Duels wind up being a great test under racing conditions, but that’s only a small part of it. If there’s a race to be run, there’s a race to be won. If you don’t have that mentality you never get to this level to start with.
* * *
Sad news from the world of freestyle motocross racing this week as Jeremy Lusk, a 24-year-old California, died Tuesday from head injuries he suffered while trying to land a backflip in competition in Costa Rica.
Lusk, who won a gold medal at the 2008 X Games, was hurt Saturday when he failed to complete a rotation while attempting a backflip and slammed head-first into the dirt.
* * *
Atlanta Motor Speedway is playing “Racing Roulette” with the price of some tickets for its Kobalt Tools 500 on March 8.
Beginning at 9 a.m. Monday, fans can buy up to two tickets for the Atlanta race for the price of the winning car number in Sunday’s Daytona 500 until the first 1,000 are sold. After that, you can buy one ticket for the regular price and get the second for the 500 winner’s discount price. That offer is good until 1 p.m. Tuesday.
Last year Ryan Newman won the race in car No. 12 and AMS sold the 1,000 quickly. This year, the No. 1 car of Martin Truex Jr. is on the pole and the No. 5 of Mark Martin starts second, so there could be some real bargains. Should David Reutimann win in the No. 00, the first 1,000 would be free. But if Carl Edwards wins in the No. 99, the price won’t go up – the specially priced tickets will go for no more than $50 no matter who wins.
For more information or to purchase Racing Roulette tickets following the Daytona 500, fans can visit https://webmail.charlotteobserver.com/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://www.atlantamotorspeedway.com/, call (877) 926-7849 or go through Ticketmaster.